It's a great game, if a little derivative.

Well, maybe more than just a little.

Oh, alright, fine. The game is basically one big shameless Paper Mario clone, right down to the style of the menus. But you know what? It's a clone with heart and effort put into it. And when you don't get a good game out of a series for more than a decade, it's up to the indie dev scene to put Nintendo in their place.

...Now, when is an indie game coming out with Chibi-Robo gameplay...

If you're like I was, you're pretty solidly on the fence about buying this game.

Also, in my opinion, this is the exact type of game where Steam reviews SHINE. The reason for both is that it seems that now, a game can sell copies merely by displaying the mechanical or artistic trappings of a timeless classic. All it takes is a few screenshots of an isometric grid with decent pixel art and our minds are in Ivalice instead of on our wallets.

If you're wary about Bug Fables, I'd wager it's because you've been bitten a time or three before by these games that claim to be able to scratch a particular nostalgic itch and then, earnestly or opportunistically, fail to fully deliver. And how could they?! All these years after playing Banjo, Chrono Trigger, Advance Wars, you name it - we have combined our memories of their original quality and first-playthrough charm and set them up on a towering pillar of nostalgia, insurmountable to most any game that would try.

It makes me sad when those who try it fail, and it burns me up when people take advantage of it for money. I was certainly wary when I saw Paper Mario blatantly quoted on Bug Fables, since TTYD remains in my top three all time and my rose-tinted glasses are practically opaque by this point. So wary, that I waited until reviews got to Overwhelmingly Positive to check it out. Well, I have checked it out. Without further ado are all the ways in which Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling failed to meet my expectations for everything TTYD and OG Paper Mario brought to the table.

1. The character cut-out art leans a bit closer to MS Paint quality. Arguably.

Literally every other facet of the game met or exceeded my inflated expectations. To say this title delivers on its promises would be an understatement. Consider my nostalgic itch DEEPLY scratched. Combat, balance, music, puzzles, field abilities, badges, cooking, towns, characters - I mean it goes on and on and on - each thoroughly polished. And the cherry on top is the writing, which not only captures to perfection the endlessly charming style of the Paper Mario series (even with its trademark conversational asides), but takes it to a height that Nintendo will never be able to reach with a voiceless everyman - character development. The story of Bug Fables is not the whimsical self-aware rigmarole of Peach's capture and rescue, but the personal emotional journey of its protagonists.

I have never met the team that made this game, but by playing it I can confidently claim that they did not make this (solely) because they think you'll run for your wallet if you see a Paper Mario combat stage. It feels like they made this because they played Paper Mario, loved it to death, and needed more.

I can only hope The Everlasting Sapling is the first of more Fables, and that Bug Fables inspires more of what I will now refer to as Paper RPGs, since it is no more a love letter to Paper Mario than Shovel Knight is to Mega Man, and deserves a spot right up next to it.

Trust a skeptic, this is the real deal. Pick it up.

I do enjoy this emerging genre of "Nintendo refuses to make the kind of Paper Mario a lot of people enjoy anymore so we're just gonna do it ourselves" indie games. Bug Fables definitely seems to scratch that itch while still having an identity of it's own.

"Fine I'll just make my own paper mario"

Speaking as the only person alive who has played this while knowing nothing about Paper Mario, you should definitely check out Bug Fables. 

Do you like RPG's?
Do you like the game paper plumber and the door that was above 999 years old?
Do you like bugs?
Play this game.

Now close your eyes and imagine a good Paper Mario game...released in 2019/2020.

Can you?

Neither can Nintendo.

This is the spiritual sequel Paper Mario 64/TTYD always deserved, playing nonstop since acquisition.

Just asking 20$ for a game this long with this much content is a STEAL, best deal ever.

The Paper Mario sequel we've been waiting for.

This game is everything I've ever wanted Nintendo to put in a Paper Mario game. The comparison can't be helped, and frankly, it shouldn't be, because Bug Fables is a stellar example of taking a perfectly good concept going to waste and breathing new life into it. Shout-out to Arlo for reviewing this on his channel, or I may have missed out on this one!

I was a huge fan of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door.

This game is not that.

It's better.

The main cast of characters is charming, the combat feels awesome, the medals you can earn really enhance the game overall, and for the most part, no area ever felt stale. The main story is a little basic, but honestly, that's part of why it works so well. And as to the side quests? Let me just say that this is the first time I've actually gone out of my way to 100% complete a game. (If you get this, at least complete the requests of all main characters. Please, for the sake of the story.) But the sidequests are half the fun, and they aren't made worse by bad backtracking. Once you complete an area, you can quickly return to it at any time. In some cases, you can go even earlier if you want to spend some berries, what the game uses for in-game currency. (You'll probably never run out of these.)

The abilities in the overworld were really cool to use, though I did eventually tire of pushing ice blocks around.

Oh, and I listen to the music regularly now. The compositions are just incredible.

If I had to make one complaint at all, it's that it can get tiresome to have to cook one food at a time when making better items.

I know what I'm saying isn't doing the game much justice, but it was such a good game, that even though I earned every achievement all while in Family Sharing, I still bought the game AND the art for myself afterwards, just because I love what the developers did. If they ever release the soundtrack on here, I'll buy that, too.

Please, if you're a fan of classic Paper Mario, RPGs, bugs, magic, or just straight-up cool aesthetics, then buy this game. Seriously, it's worth it, especially right now.