Mario & Luigi... Again?

Ohh, Bowser. One day you'll realize they're all 'Lucky.'

I'm going to be completely honest, and I know I stand alone on this: I can't stand Mario & Luigi. I managed to struggle through maybe a fourth of the first title before I got fed up of getting my butt repeatedly spanked by the weakest prey in the game.
 

The series takes the worst elements of RPGs and Platforms—grinding à la semi-random encounter and electroshock classical conditioning—and marries the two in unholy tedium. It never ceases to amaze me that as the series becomes increasingly juvenile with each title, it persists in retaining its draconian learning curve.  
 

After that ridiculous "Lost in Time" setting, the developers decided to steer the series in a different direction, this time, taking on the form of a Mylanta commercial.
 

Mario Ando Ruiji Arupiji Suri!

The split between Bowser and the Mario brothers is a clever device for making use of both the DS's screens, and it seems the Mario brothers will have a greater emphasis on platforming, rather than dodging aggro all the time. Battles, however, are still only on the touchscreen, which begs the question, "What's going on above?" That was one of the biggest critiques raised against the last title: Having extra acreage for your fancypants battle moves doesn't really justify having a screen that does nothing half the time.

I suppose rescuing the Princess from the bowels of evil (literally) is kind of original for your typical Mario thoroughfare. Unfortunately, Bowser's assorted maladies remind me way too much of the "Cavity Creeps" from those awful Crest commercials from the 70's, but that shouldn't really be a problem for the game's target audience.