It’s safe to assume no one waking up on Thursday morning thought they would be getting news of a brand new game coming to the Nintendo Switch this summer. Turns out that’s exactly what they got with a trailer and release date for Paper Mario: Origami King.
The announcement was rolled out with no previous fanfare and no real inkling beyond a few vague rumors that a new Paper Mario is on the way. Alongside the trailer, Nintendo launched an official website, sharing a few details about Origami King:
“The kingdom has been ravaged by an origami menace! Join Mario and his new partner, Olivia, as they team up with unlikely allies like Bowser and the Toads to battle evil Folded Soldiers.”
You read that right. This time around, the big bad isn’t Bowser but someone named King Olly. Billed as a satirical take on the old Mario platformer structure, players will be able to take advantage of some new abilities in order to try and liberate Princess Peach’s castle from the clutches of the evil-doer.
Chief among Mario’s new powers is something called the 1,000 Fold Arms. This ability allows players to do battle and solve various puzzles scattered throughout the newest addition to the Paper Mario series. There’s also something called the “ring-based” battle system that definitely appears to need a closer look before the game launches.
Nintendo bills this battle system as something that’s entirely new to the series and possibly to gaming in general.
While the announcement of a new Paper Mario game would have been exciting on its own, the fact that Switch users will be able to get their hands on it in two months is definitely a bit of a shocker. It’s safe to call this the first major announcement of the summer and could quickly become the most anticipated title of the season behind only The Last of Us Part Part II.
Paper Mario: Origami King arrives on the Nintendo Switch on July 17 and preorders are available now.