Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 13: An Unexpected Battle

After you've made your preparations, stocked up on items, optimized gear, saved, and fully healed, proceed through the door in the statue. Peach is ahead, surrounded by an energy field. She's glad the bros reached her safely. Mario explains that they recovered the Cobalt Star shards. This upsets Peach greatly. As Peach is about to explain, the Shroob mother ship appears and fires at the statue. Princess Shroob is on board, directing the attack. Peach directs the bros to a saucer port upstairs. Go to the left to find the doorway.

There's a Save Book ahead. Stuffwell can send you back in time to the previous Save Book if you'd like. When you're ready, go on ahead. The top of Princess Shroob's statue's head is a flying saucer as well. Control it the same way as the mother ship. Hit the smaller flying saucers to knock them into the mother ship. Four hits will shoot it down for good. The smaller flying saucers will move towards you and you'll take damage if they hit you. Four hits will sink your ship. Once you defeat the mother ship, it crashes into the side of the statue.

Go back downstairs and the energy field around Peach is gone. The impact from the crash knocked it out. The bros and Peach check out the crash site and a door from the mother ship opens. The babies push the bros to check it out. Princess Shroob descends from the ship on a throne. She's fuming. We can understand what she's saying. Peach is useless, so Princess Shroob will finish her off. The kingdom is hers and there is no escape.

At the start of the battle, Princess Shroob will be surrounded by a barrier. It will take multiple hits to break, so use an attack like Copy Flowers or Trampolines. When the barrier starts turning red, it will break soon. She'll land on the ground and throw energy balls at the bros. She'll also aim stars at the bros. After a while, she'll put up the barrier again, and attack from a robot. Jump through the rings, then knock her back with a hammer. She will also aim lasers above and below the bros. After she takes enough damage, she'll start glowing. She'll get more attacks per turn. She's almost out of health.

Once you defeat her, Peach suggests getting out of there. The Cobalt Star floats in. Peach shows off the center shard she's been holding onto. She won't allow it to reform. At the most inopportune time, Baby Bowser drops in and grabs the shard. He's been hiding to get back his "treasure". He lets the Cobalt Star reform, despite Peach's protests. Princess Shroob crawls in, saying it's her sister's turn. The Cobalt Star shoots lightning everywhere, turning Baby Bowser into a mushroom. Peach explains that the Cobalt Star contains another Shroob Princess, the twin sister of Princess Shroob. She was attacked when the time machine arrived in the past. Peach trapped Princess Shroob in the Cobalt Star and shattered it. The younger Princess Shroob (the one the bros just defeated) attacked Peach. Reforming the Cobalt Star gave the elder Princess Shroob all her power back. Elder Princess Shroob frees herself from the Cobalt Star and speaks clearly to the bros. She taunts them for gathering the shards and not knowing the truth. She was also the Star Sprite that spoke to the bros on Star Hill. She's going to avenge her sister. The platform they are all standing on rises high into the sky.

Some flying saucers appear. Peach, who's hiding behind the throne, will help by throwing a star to knock away the flying saucers. The elder Princess Shroob will charge the bros. If any saucers remain in the sky, they'll give Elder Princess Shroob a large rock to hit the bros with. Counter with a hammer, repeatedly. The saucers can also bring her a drink to heal herself and can lead a Chomp around to attack the bros. After a while, it will seem like she's been defeated. She'll touch her crown, releasing purple gas. She'll transform into a creature with tentacles. She'll send an energy ball at the bros and try to trip them with her tentacles. She'll also spit poison gas. Peach is unconscious, so she can't help. Her crown is too pointy to jump on, so use other attacks. You'll have to get rid of her arms and damage her legs. Mix Flowers are great for this. Once her arm and legs are gone, take care of the crown. Once it is dull, you can use jump attacks. She'll summon flying saucers and hit them with an energy ball. Some will crackle with electricity and other burn. The burning ones are aimed at Mario and the electrified ones are aimed at Luigi. Once she regrows her arms, she'll try to stab the bros with them. As you battle, her arms and legs will periodically regenerate, and her crown will become active. Use Mix Flowers to deal damage to her head and all other parts. She'll use more and more flying saucers to attack as the battle wears on. Keep using Bros. Items and heal when you need to. Eventually, you'll do enough damage to her, and she'll be defeated. She says she may have been defeated, but the Shroobs will live on and one day, dance on the remains of the Mushroom Kingdom. She'll explode into a plain old mushroom, which Baby Luigi picks up.

The platform lands back in the statue and Peach thanks the bros. The babies are having fun bouncing on the mushroom that is Baby Bowser. Peach wonders how to get rid of the mushrooms. Baby Mario jumps on Baby Luigi, making him cry. The mushroom turns back into Baby Bowser. Peach thinks that baby tears will turn things back to normal. Gadd gets the message and fires up the Hydrogush and sends babies tears into all of the time holes. Toadiko, Kylie, and Toadbert return to normal and the mushrooms disappear. Gadd can't believe the cure is baby tears. Kamek's got Baby Bowser in tow, who's still upset about his "treasure". Kamek tells him to let it go. Gadd goes to Peach's castle of the past in a restored time machine. It's running off the energy of the time holes, since the elder Princess Shroob destroyed the Cobalt Star. Everyone returns to the present in the time machine.

In the present's castle, Gadd mentions that he found something interesting, but will talk to the bros later. Toadsworth is relieved that Peach is safe. She says they owe Mario and the babies a great debt, leaving Luigi out of the equation. The Toads cheer Mario's victory. One lone Toad cheers Luigi, saying it was nice of him to go into the past to greet Mario, but tells him he can't shirk his house-sitting duties. He's only kidding. The other Toads cheer Luigi. One Toad tells the bros to follow him. You can't wander around the castle anymore, as Toads block your path. Go north to the throne room.

The Toadsworths thank the bros. Toadsworth the Elder must bid farewell to his younger self. Before that happens, the bros must deal with the fact that Bowser has collapsed in the throne room. He fell from high up into a time hole and landed in the back yard of the castle. Baby Mario tries to wake him up by jumping on him. The mushroom Baby Luigi was holding onto appears, speaks, and feeds itself to Bowser. He wakes up, spewing purple gas. Peach and the Toadsworths evacuate. Bowser feels reborn with a power burning in his belly. The bros are ready to team up one last time against Bowser. He promises to show no mercy. Bowser spews purple gas into the air, reforming the spirit of the elder Princess Shroob. 10 Shroob heads form the health meter. Bowser says the bros won't get a chance to attack, as he'll barrage the bros with attacks. He'll shoot energy balls and fireballs. Dodging or deflecting the attacks will make them hit and damage Princess Shroob, reducing her health meter. Watch which bro she points at to know who will receive the attack. After all of her health has been depleted, they both explode. Victory at last!

The Toadsworths bid each other farewell, and entertain Baby Peach with a Toadsworth Twist. Peach thanks the babies, telling them to look after her younger self and Toadsworth. Baby Mario gives Mario his hammer. Baby Luigi doesn't want to leave and tries to ride piggyback. Luigi give Baby Luigi a Yoshi cookie and he gives Luigi his hammer. The time machine takes off as everyone waves goodbye. We're done here! Roll Credits!

I had fun playing this game again. The controls took a little getting used to, but once I got into the rhythm, everything was fine. I highly recommend getting Ulti-Free Badges as early on as possible, one for Mario and Luigi. The babies will be alright with the stash of Bros. Items you pick up from item blocks. With that chapter out of the way, I think you can figure out what I'm going to play next. Stay tuned!

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 12: Behind Castle Walls

Now that the Cobalt Star is nearly complete, talk to Gadd. He says only one piece remains. Gadd's a little stunned when Stuffwell says that the spirit of the Cobalt Star told them that they can break the barrier surrounding Peach's Castle. The time hole to Peach's Castle is on the third floor, surrounded by Peach Statues.

Approach the castle and the Cobalt Star reacts, dissolving the barrier. Past the castle gate, you'll find Shroob-enhanced enemies, like Tashroobas, which look like Tanoombas. Go north to find a statue of Princess Shroob. Throw the babies on the ledge and have them go into a dark area. Once they make their way through the maze, hit the switch to make a ! Block accessible. Hitting it forms a bridge to the east. You'll come across Snoozorbs, round, sleeping enemies. Have the babies hit the switch on the other side of the gate to open the gate. The pipe to the north takes you into the castle.

As in Gritzy Desert, the bros will have to split up to activate switches. The lasers in the castle will allow you to reach some ! Blocks. Activate lasers that are facing each other at the same time to create a beam. In the castle, you'll encounter Soul Bubbles and Shroob Rexes. You'll want to go around the castle to clear out the enemies in your way with all four bros first. After activating the first four lasers, hit the ! Block to open the door ahead. Take the pipe to the second floor.

On the second floor, you'll encounter Shroobsworths, elderly Shroobs with an Intern Shroob riding piggyback. Once you defeat the Shroobsworth, the Intern Shroob takes over. You can't go across the bridge as it's guarded by two saucers. The path across the bridge is accessible from inside the library. You'll have to roll up the stairs in under 23 seconds. There are a few obstacles in the way. At the top of the stairs, reunite the bros and save. The Shroob mother ship is docked here. Hit the switch on the floor to go inside.

When the bros go inside, the mother ship takes off. Luigi suggests controlling the ship to get rid of the other flying saucers. Four blocks will appear. The meters behind each block will stop when you hit the block, controlling the ship's altitude. Mario's block fires a beam, which also drops the ship's altitude once fired. You can fire the beam from any altitude. Saucers appear and it's time to shoot them out of the sky. Some of the saucers will move. The ship will land when you defeat all the saucers. The saucers guarding the bridge are gone, so you can keep exploring.

There are a couple of pipes in the northwest corner. The one on the right leads outside the castle so you can reach the time hole quickly. The one on the left leads to the third floor. Go south and Baby Spin to the ledge and hit the switch. This will allow the bros to Spin Jump to a ! Block, enabling the babies to hit another switch on the wall. Go back north and hit the colorful blocks. This opens a door in the Princess Shroob statue. Inside, the bros find a control room and see Peach on one of the monitors. She calls for Mario when she hears his voice. She says she's locked in a room at the top of the statue. The communication gets cut off fairly quickly. Grab the items in the room, then go through the pipe on the left. Unfortunately, a Chomp swimming in the sewers knocks the pipeline out of alignment and the bros head to the sewers.

The pipe to the west leads out of the castle. To the east, you'll find Ghoul Guys. Send the Baby Cakes through the low window in the back wall and have the bros spin the gear. The fan affected by the gear is to the far left. Go right when high up to reach a spring. It will take the babies to a switch so the four can continue to the door. Baby Spin into the tornado and follow the coins. Hit the ! Block in the room to the south to lower the draw bridge. Use the bridge to reunite the bros. Toss the babies into the trunk and load the Bros. Ball into the cannon. Fire when ready. The bros will end up on the far left. The pipe block to reunite the bros is in the upper left corner. Baby Spin to the right and activate the blocks to lower two bridges. Go north. The pipe takes you deeper into the sewers.

Go east and send the babies into the pipes. They'll run into Lethal Bob-ombs. The path will take them to the south, so they can lower the bridge for the bros. Go east twice. The first ! Block will lower the bridge and the second one will be eaten by a Chomp. It will make four blocks with stars (like in the Star Shrine) appear. The Chomp will appear from one of five pipes. Use the blocks to target the Chomp. To aim for the middle, hit the south block, then the north block. To aim for the second to the right pipe, hit the north, then left block. Hit the south and right block for the second to left block. To hit the blocks on the ends, hit the south block and the left or right block to hit the left or right pipe, respectively. After hitting the Chomp three times, all five pipes will have Chomps. The correct Chomp is chomping faster than the others. It will return the ! Block, which lowers the spikes. The pipe leads to the first floor.

Go east and hit the ! Block. This lowers the gate and exposes a grate. The bros will have to be split up. The grate will allow the babies to walk along the top of the walls. There are Ghoul Guys up here, so be careful. Send both sets of bros to the northwest corner. The babies will lower the gate with the switch and the bros can line up under the laser. The babies will return to the top of the wall and loop around the castle to the northeast corner to the other laser. This means you can take a short path through the middle of the castle or a long path along the south of the castle, which has more items. The room with the second laser to the northeast has the passageway on the wall to the northeast laser. Activate the lasers and reunite the bros. The pipe you just opened leads to the second floor on the east side.

You can access the other side of the library now. There are some items on the bookshelves. Go north to what would be Peach's room and take the pipe to the third floor, on the other side of the statue. Go east and hit the switch to lower the gate, so returning here will be easier. Go inside the statue at the top. The pipe to the left leads outside the castle. Go north, up the stairs. Stuffwell reports that the Cobalt Star is reacting very strongly now. It thanks the bros for everything they've done, but they must part ways now. It also says to look for Peach, while it looks for Princess Shroob. The Cobalt Star flies off. At the top of the stairs, Stuffwell strongly encourages the bros to save. He doesn't think the bros will be able to return after passing through the door. Hit the heal block, the Save Book. Make any preparations you want to make now.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 11: The Secrets of the Stars

Star Hill is a peacefully, starry road, with soothing music. It's still infested with enemies, however, so a leisurely stroll is not in order. You'll meet Handfakes, enemies that hold paper signs of enemies and attack in the same way as they do. Fire-based attacks do critical damage. Mix Flowers are a new Bros. Item found here. The bros surround the enemies, throwing fireballs into the air that conglomerate into a giant fireball. When the bros can no longer support the fireball by throwing fireballs, it drops on all enemies. It's incredibly powerful. You'll also encounter Fly Guys, Shy Guys with helicopters on their heads, carrying spike balls.

In the next area, send the Baby Cakes in a narrow gap and spin the gear to increase the air current. You can exit on the second and third levels on the left. On the second level, you can get some coins and items. On the third level, you can reunite with the bros and keep going. Save when you reach the Save Book.

Just up ahead, in the same area, is a Shroob. He summons an army of Shroobs to fight the bros. A flying saucer drops in a giant bomb. The Commander Shroob hides off screen, so lure him out with the bomb, by hitting the middle and right Shroobs. The left Shroob can't hold the bomb on his own and it rolls backwards, hitting the Commander Shroob, bringing him on screen. He takes critical damage from Ice Flowers. He'll fire with his ray gun and send Shroobs at the bros from the ground and the sky. After a while, he'll have the Shroobs bring in another bomb. Use Bros. Items and you'll defeat him quickly.

Ahead is an area with three star-shaped pillars. Stuffwell reports high Cobalt Star readings. He lets the Cobalt Star out and the pillars reform it. It reveals the Star Sprite that lives within the Cobalt Star. The sacred power of Star Hill allows the Star Sprite to speak with the bros. It says it has the power to defeat the Shroobs, which is why Princess Shroob shattered the Cobalt Star. The Star Sprite tells the bros to retrieve the other shards to restore the Cobalt Star. If they find two more shards, they'll be able to break the barrier that surrounds Peach's Castle. It says that when they collect the last shard, they'll be heroes. It opens a starry path ahead to the Star Shrine, where another shard is. Inexplicably, Baby Luigi starts crying. Walk or roll up the path ahead.

The pipe leads to the Star Shrine. There is a large star-shaped door ahead. The door opens its eyes and asks what the bros are doing there. Those unworthy or without purpose will not enter. Mario and Luigi will be appraised of their worthiness. Mario is deemed true and courageous, virtuous, and concerned about Luigi. He should watch his diet, however. He is worthy. Luigi, on the other hand, gets wished good luck. The door mentions that Luigi has secrets that he might not wished revealed. The door has no issues with the babies, but that only allows three bros through. The door presents three options: give up and go home, leave Luigi behind, or find and hit the Aurora Block. The Aurora Block is a rare block. If they find it and hit it, the door will let Luigi through.

Go either east or west. Either way, you'll reach the same place. In the next areas, you'll encounter Piranha Planets. You'll also find Wonder Thwacks. In the areas to the north, you'll need to Spin Jump from high platforms. If you find yourself falling a lot, try walking around in the Spin Jump pose, with Luigi standing on Mario. This may help you control the bros better. You'll reach a star-shaped area. Go north to an area with a gear, a rainbow block, and a couple of springs. Send the babies up the left spring and have Baby Mario drink water. Spin the gear to move the rainbow block to where the babies are. Hit the block with water, then go up the right spring. Hit the block and it moves to where the bros are. Have a bro and baby team up to hit the block and it moves in front of the door.

The door congratulates the bros on finding the Aurora Block. Luigi is to hit the block, but it moves out of the way. The door asks Luigi who is responsible for bringing the Aurora Block over. He gives Luigi three choices: Mario, the babies, or himself. Whichever you pick is incorrect and the door will ask again. And again. The door will say the correct answer was the fourth choice, everyone. Luigi complains that there were only three choices. The door reprimands him, saying Luigi is destined to be lonely. Luigi starts crying and Mario says the door is lying. The babies also defend Luigi. The door says they are the best siblings ever. The door says that it was all a test. He knows Luigi is pure of heart and they all may pass. Luigi hits the Aurora Block, which alters its size to match the size of the heart of the one who strikes it. Luigi is flattened into a disc. The door opens. This leads to a pipe to a new part of the Star Shrine

This part of the Star Shrine is shaped like a pentagon. Each point of the pentagon has a block with a star on it. Hit it to send a couple of beams out. Keep hitting those blocks to form beams that connect in the center of the pentagon, forming a star. You must form at least one connection between two sets of beams or the other will shut off. There is one puzzle where you'll have to match a pattern dictated by a ! Block. Hit the blocks in question with the baby of the same color as each part of the pattern to make the block with the star appear. This will form a path to the center of the pentagon from the north point. Take the pipe deeper into the Star Shrine.

Everything connects in a weird maze, but all you have to worry about is moving forward. In the third room, Stuffwell spots the Cobalt Star shard. Hit the switch to open the door ahead and release the shard. Suddenly, Toadbert and Kylie drop in after being carried by a Lakitu. Kylie explained that when she landed on Toadbert's head, his memory came back. He was holding onto a Cobalt Star shard in secret. He also reveals that restoring the Cobalt Star will not help us defeat the Shroobs. Toadbert says not to reform the Cobalt Star and runs off when Mario shows that they have four shards already. The Cobalt Star tries to communicate that a strong power ahead beckons and flies off.

In the next area, send the Baby Cakes under the low ceiling on the left. There are many paths to take, but one leads to a grate, leading to a switch. Hit the switch, which will allow the bros to climb higher. Climb the mostly pink stairs, Spin Jumping and Baby Spinning when you need to. Grab some items and save in the next area. Ahead, Toadbert and Kylie have been knocked down. Kylie says something about a monster and danger. Toadbert mentions his sketch. He says the hidden answer is there. We must rub the dirt smudge to reveal it. The dirt smudge in question is in the lower right corner. It reveals another Shroob wearing a crown. Before Toadbert can explain, a Shroob appears and turns Kylie and Toadbert into mushrooms. The explanation will have to wait.

This is the Elder Shrooboid. He'll approach the bros and spin into them. Counter with a hammer repeatedly. It has spikes on its head, so no jump-based attacks. He'll put the bros in crystals, then spin a giant iron ball at them. Jump repeatedly to break the crystal, then dodge him hitting the iron ball and diving at the bros. He'll also send a spike ball to circle the bros. Knock it away with a hammer and it falls over, so you can use jump attacks. After enough damage, it will grow larger and send out a flying saucer with a time bomb. He has all the same attacks. If you can repel the spike ball attack, it will fall down and the time bomb will move over him. He can also throw fireballs. Once it is defeated, it explodes, revealing the Cobalt Star shard. The rest of the Cobalt Star returns. We must leave Toadbert and Kylie here. Approach the door to open it. This leads to a time hole in the basement.  

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 10: A Fungus Among Us

The bros get to explore the Shroob mother ship. Oddly enough, it has quite a few bean spots. The room to the south is split by a wall. Go east to a narrow hallway. You'll encounter Guardian Shroobs. They're faster than normal Shroobs and like to team up for attacks. Ice Flowers do critical damage. In the background, you'll see Shroobs soaking in green liquid. Keep going to the right. You'll see a large purple ! Block. Hit it and it flies away. Send the babies up on the spring. There will be switches to hit,  illuminating the area ahead. You can only hit the ! Block when the area around it is lit up. Go to the right and hit the ! Block to form a bridge between the split rooms. When you're ready, go up the elevator.

Go north and you'll see the princess. Rather, it's a hologram. An army of Shroobs appears and the princess walks in with them. She rips off the fungus covering her face and reveals herself to be Princess Shroob. This time, her speech is translated. The bros are to be consumed. One Shroob doesn't seem to be celebrating and breaks out a camera. After snapping a few pictures and taking out the army with a ray gun, the Shroob reveals herself to be Kylie. The five escape into the elevator ahead. She's calling it even for saving her from Petey Piranha. Kylie thinks it may have been Princess Shroob's plan for the bros to take her to the present Mushroom Kingdom to take it over, as well. For once, Bowser's useful for something, as he foiled her plans. Get off the elevator and save.

Ahead, Kylie's found the keyhole for the key she found. It opens a trapdoor out of the mother ship. Baby Bowser, who's still on the roof, hears the noise and breaks through the roof. He hides on the ship.

In Yoshi Village, Toadbert's helping repair the village. The image he drew keeps bothering him, but he won't think about it anymore. Kylie lands on his head. This jogs his memory.

The bros land in a devastated area. Stuffwell says it's Toad Town. Explore the houses. Check out the glow gaps and send the Baby Cakes in for extra items. There are Shroids in this town, robotic Shroobs. If you counter their spike ball attack, they'll malfunction. Another attack is their flag attack. If the flag of the same color as the bro is raised, the bro should jump. This changes if the Shroid malfunctions. On your way, you'll pick up Red Shells. They're like Green Shells, but will hit other enemies after your target has been defeated. There's a house to the east that has a bridge connecting it to a house on the other side of the wall. Send the babies over and have the bros go south. The babies should go south to hit the blocks to open the gates ahead. They'll run into Skellokeys, skeleton Pokeys. They'll also encounter Love Bubbles, which attack from the air.

Throughout Toad Town, the bros will be separated from the babies. Stuffwell reports that the Cobalt Star is reacting strangely. Stuffwell says the activity is related to a place called Star Hill. There is a path there in Toad Town. The bros should go west, then east twice to the next set of blocks. The babies should go southeast, then south to reach their next set of blocks. Have all four bros go south to be reunited. Hit the ! Block to open the gate to the Time Hole. The pipe will take you to Star Hill.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 9: Grinding Beans

Inside the volcano, go east from where Mr. Thwomp is. Baby Spin into the tornado and follow the trail of coins. Reunite the bros in the next area. You'll find Gold Koopaleons here. They'll give you lots of coins if you defeat them. In the hollow Thwomps to the north, you'll encounter Thwack Totems, Thwacks stacked on top of each other. To the east is a hole in the wall. It leads to a slot machine and a Thwomp. Roll the bros into the cannon and hit the switch. This sends the bros into something like a pinball machine. The bros must roll around and collect gems. When they're done, hit the switch to stop the slot machine. You can get coins or a bean for matching the symbols. A bean requires three stars. You can get some beans this way. When you're done, the bridge to the south will form. If you return, you can play Extra-burly Mode, where you can get 5 beans with three stars. I got enough for another Ulti-Free Badge. You'll find Blazing Shroobs to the south. Ice Flowers work really well here.

To the west, Stuffwell advises standing on top of the Thwomp. Before we do that, go west to the pipe. It will take you to the pipes to the north, preventing you from backtracking the long way. The Thwomp acts as an elevator, but will stop when it hits a block. To the east are enemies and items. To the west of the Thwomp is a platform the babies control from inside the hollow Thwomp. Have the bros go west after you collect the items. Take the platform to the south, then go east. Baby Spin into the tornado and grab some coins and items. Go west and into the pipe to make a bridge with a ! Block. Go east to reunite the bros. Go west twice for items. Hit the green ! Block so the Thwomp can reach you. The Thwomp descends until another block stops it.

Go west, through the pipes, to make bridges. To the east is another Thwomp who wants to play a game. Baby Spin into the tornado and collect gems. If you go to the east while playing the game, you'll reach an area with good items. He'll let you pass if you collect 30 gems. If you return and collect all 50, you'll get a bean. Hit the red ! Block to let the elevator Thwomp descend further, until he's blocked by a blue block. Go west to the pipes to build a bridge, then return to the elevator and hit the blue ! Block. Heal and save before you descend.

The elevator Thwomp lands in the middle of where Bowser is holding Peach. A small shell appears and knocks the babies back. It's Baby Bowser, planning on revenge. Bowser appears and knocks back the bros. He says Baby Bowser reminds him of himself when he was young. Apparently, they haven't figured it out, but that's not important. They're teaming up to beat the bros.

Baby Bowser rides piggyback in this battle. Ice Flowers do critical damage. The new Bros. Item, Copy Flowers, is like the Trampoline, but the bros move from left to right infinitely. Hit the bro's button for the action command. Bowser will jump and land, creating shockwaves. Baby Bowser will hit Bowser's shell with a hammer at the bros. If you keep up the volley, the shell will hit Baby Bowser, sending him away. Baby Bowser will hit a fireball at the bros. He can also heal himself with mushrooms that restore 100 HP. After a while, Bowser will return. When his health drops enough, his shockwaves will cause Thwacks to fall and roll at the bros. Baby Bowser will also jump on him to spew fireballs. He'll also breathe fire at the bros. Once you defeat one of them, the battle will continue until you defeat the other.

After you defeat the Bowser team, the volcano erupts again. It pushes the elevator Thwomp, with them on it, out of the volcano. A Shroob flying saucer knocks Bowser off, so he tells Baby Bowser to get stronger and more evil. Baby Bowser says he'll be even better than Bowser was. Bowser lands in the time hole and Baby Bowser and the Thwomp land on the Shroob mother ship. The mother ship blasts a hole in the side of the mountain and sends a hose in to pick up Peach. The bros try to stop it and get picked up as well.

Aboard the mother ship, Peach is nowhere to be found. Stuffwell thinks she's been taken farther into the ship.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 7: And yet, I don't feel Over-Powered Enough

The Gritzy Caves are a bit of a maze. To the north, put out the fire and break the rock to reach the shop. The pipe to the southwest will take you back to the Gritzy Desert. Go east. In the center of the room is a ! Block on a ramp. Use it to lower platforms to another ramp. The area behind the grate on the back wall has items and coins. The ramp will lead to the area to the east. Roll to the next area. Petey Piranha appears, looking to snack on Kylie Koopa. The bros can't reach her in time and Petey disappears. Go south, then west. There's a device activated by the Bros. Ball. Send the babies past the grate and have Baby Mario drink some water. Activate the device and two sets of items will appear. Hit the item with a drop of water if it matches the item on the bros' side. Do this three times to form a bridge. The item on the bros' side will move faster the longer it takes you. To the west, hit the ! Block to make a shortcut for the Bros. Ball. Go to the southeast.

Along the way, you'll encounter Dark Boos, which are faster and more powerful. They can also steal items. The enemy that looks like a sarcophagus is a Snifaro. They'll shoot above and at you.

The pipe leads deeper into the caves. Have the babies go past the ledge in the back and wall far to the right. Hit the ! Block to lower the gate for the bros. They have 20 seconds to reach the ! Block at the other end. You'll need to Spin Jump to reach it. This will lower a gate below. Go east. There are a couple of pipes here. (Side note: I got the 90 beans needed for the Ulti-Free Badge, so I returned and got one. That means unlimited Bros. Items for the wearer of the badge only. I'll need another.) In the next area to the west, there are Elite Boom Guys, also faster and more powerful. Hit the switch on the wall on the left side, then climb up to the ledge and go west. Check out the pipes and go south. There's another device activated by the Bros. Ball. Send the babies up on the ledge and have them stand on the platforms. The rolling activates the platforms. The longer the bros roll, the faster the platforms will move, so have the bros stop rolling when you need to. Have the babies hit each of the three blocks to make a platform appear in the spike pit. Go east, then east again for items. Go west to the pipe.

The pipe leads yet deeper into the caves. Get the items in the room with a Save Book and save. Ahead is a room with a single item block. It's a trap. Petey Piranha appears, eats the block, spits it out, creating a crack in the wall. After a game of hide and seek, the battle starts. He'll fly into the air, so some attacks will miss. He'll fly up on some blocks, then dive, sending rocks at the bros. He takes critical damage from Fire Flowers. Trampolines are a new Bros. Item. They're like Cannonballers, but you can keep the attack going until you mess up the action command or you win the battle. The bros will fall faster, so it will be difficult after a while. Once he takes enough damage, he'll sink into the ground. Don't use jump-based attacks. He'll make the ground sink, like quicksand. Jump to avoid sinking. He'll also send a piranha plant on a vine at a bro marked by the block above. When you defeat him, he explodes, leaving a Cobalt Star shard and Kylie. She looks at the shard and freaks out, saying someone was looking back at her. She says that while she was exploring, she picked up a key that she thinks opens something on the Shroob mother ship. Mario asks about Peach and Kylie says Peach was inside Petey until he spit her out after eating Kylie. She thinks Peach might be in the caves ahead. In the meantime, she'll be trying to find the lock for the key.

Make a hole in the back wall. To the north are a couple of gates. Send the babies under the gate to the right and approach the switch. A voice will call to Mario, before screaming. The switch opens the other gate. Just ahead is Princess Peach, with an interesting addition to her face. A purple mushroom is attached to her face. She collapses and returns with the bros in the time hole.

In Peach's room, Toadsworth laments Peach's new mask. Peach can't talk. Baby Peach starts crying, so the Toadsworths take her out of the room. In the meantime, Peach will be resting and will not be disturbed.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 6: The Koopa Dome

The time hole on the viewing platform leads to the Gritzy Desert. To the north is a dome that looks like a Koopa shell. Go inside. An army of Shroobs chase the bros out. Kylie Koopa appears, saying going through the front door is a bad idea. She's onto a new story here. Princess Shroob will make an appearance to celebrate conquering the Mushroom Kingdom. Also making an appearance is another princess, who happens to like the color pink. Mario fills in some details, thinking it might be Peach. Kylie mentions a secret entrance to the dome, but she doesn't know where it's located. She says the entrance is connected to four desert statues. Go east, where the coast is clear.

 As expected in a desert, you can find Pokeys. You'll also find Shrooba Divers in the sand. The statues are clearly marked on the map. What you have to do is split up the bros and have them activate statues that are across from each other. Each statue looks at its partner. You have to situate the bros before you hit the blocks. To reach the east and south statues, go to the northeast. You'll have to hit a ! Block, then hit the other one on the other side of a maze in under 18 seconds to pass through. This opens a gate, allowing you to continue. Another method is to go to the south east. Send the babies into the red pipe, then have the bros roll into the cannon to the right. Hit the switch to fire the cannon across the spiky gap.  There are Bob-ombs on the east side. When you activate a set of statues, a beam comes out of their mouths, aiming for a crystal near the dome. When all four statues are activated, the crystal shatters, revealing a ! Block.

Reunite the bros and return to the dome. Hitting the ! Block lowers a ledge on the dome. The entrance is on the top of the dome. Go through the pipe to the interior of the dome, called the Koopaseum. Kylie follows you in and says Princess Shroob should appear any moment. The five watch through the window. Princess Shroob descends from a flying saucer and fires up the crowd. Peach is brought in over a pipe containing Petey Piranha. The Shroobs cheer. Peach is dropped and Petey gobbles her up. On the other side of the window, Kylie's been caught by the Shroobs. The bros are on their own.

To the right is a room with a grate. The grate leads to many items. To the west, Spin Jump to the ! Block to lower some platforms. Climb up and roll into the next room. Spin Jump over spikes and roll down the path. Downstairs, throw the babies onto the ledge on the right and hit the Shine Sprite block to light their way. Be careful as the path gets pretty narrow in some parts. Once out of the maze, hit the switch to open the door. Stand on the platform ahead when you're ready. The platform takes you on stage. Princess Shroob orders an attack, but the bros defeat most of the Shroobs on stage. A giant Shroob with a lollipop swings in on a chain. Battle time!

The Shrooboid Brat is unusual enemy. He'll ask the crowd which enemy to attack. Whoever gets the most votes has a lollipop coming their way. Now is a good time to try out the Pocket Chomp. A Chomp will chase Mario or Luigi, while a baby rides on the tail. Hit the bro's button as he lands on the enemy, then hit the baby's button as he goes by. The crowd will send the Shrooboid Brat items. He'll eat them and spit them out at the bros. Some items may be harmful, so hit them with your hammer. Sometimes, he'll fire mushrooms. As you weaken him, the crowd will show signs where the color doesn't match the letter. The letter says who he's aiming for. They may also vote more than once, indicating more than one attack.

After you defeat him, the Shroobs pound the floor with hammers, dropping the bros through the floor. The bros land in the basement of the Koopaseum, in the Gritzy Caves.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 5: Houston, We have Continuity!

When you return to the castle, talk to Gadd. He's impressed that the bros retrieved two Cobalt Star shards. He also takes a look at Toadbert's sketch. Peach lost the battle with Princess Shroob and the Cobalt Star shattered. The rest of the details are unknown. Gadd says a new time hole appeared on the third floor of the castle. We haven't even checked the other three that appeared yet, so we shouldn't check this one out yet. It leads to Peach's Castle in the past, and it's heavily guarded. We must get more Cobalt Star shards for now.

The Toadsworths are in the garden again. Her Majesty is crying again. The two of them have formed a ball and roll around. This amuses the princess. Mario wants to learn the move. The Bros. Ball involves hitting [R] to select the move and hitting (A) to form a ball. Then roll around, which is faster than walking. It also allows you to go under low ceilings. The Toadsworths mention that this technique will help them reach the viewing platform on the third floor. They also mention that it can spin things.

On the west side of the castle is a strange device with a gear. Spin the gear with the Bros. Ball and a pipe appears. It goes to the basement of the castle. You'll see a mysterious figure in a red hood in the next area. Before you follow it, have the babies go through the grates of the pipes. Have the bros stand on the cracks in the pipes. Directly under each crack is an item block with a 100-coin coin. The room to the north has more items. Follow the mysterious figure.

To the east, the mysterious figure will go past a grate. Get the 100-coin coins and head west, then north. You'll reach a new area that looks much different from the rest of the pipes. Talk to the figure to hear a familiar voice. "I have boredom... Guests? Now I have... FURY! I say to you WELCOME! Welcome to Fawful's Bean 'n' Badge! In this place beans are like precious treasure milked from a famous cow made of jewels! All who come with beans leave with badges so rare they make mustaches droop with disbelief! What? The story of Fawful? Your words are not beans. I am not wanting them... You are like brainless cats that are too dumb to know they are stupid! You have curiosity... ...But my tales is long, so long it makes babies old and hairy lips grow gray with aging. Do you dare hear?"

If you answer, "Um, OK.", he'll tell you. "Then now you listen! I am here, merchant of badges, only sometimes with fury, but I once had fury at all times. I drizzled rage dressing on the country next door. Rage dressing on a salad of evil! And then the bad men came. Red and green bad men. I had the punishment. Bad punishment with hammers and jumping on my head and the overheat of my ship. I have a little fury even with my remembering... Red! And green! A pair of jumping hammers in red and green who are looking like you! I HAVE FURY! Those brothers of badness! My brain aches at their overalls! I have fury AND headache now! Fawful would be here, reigning over all and laughing at you! ...But no. SO MUCH FURY! Stupid mustaches! Hairs like the dirty tail of a horse in a barn built by a farmer who is crazy! ...I have calm. I am waiting like an elevator. I have the commerce. I run Fawful's Bean 'n' Badge, but... The day comes soon when Fawful rises again, and then no baby's candy has safety! I am counting chickens before they are even eggs, before the chickens are even chickens! I WILL! HAVE! FURY! I LAUGH AT DEFEAT! I FIGHT WITH RAGE! I HURT YOUR FACES! Hooof... Heffff... D-Did I...have insanity? Did I...have evil? I suppress the fury, but sometimes... The fury has me. Red and green puts the fog of rage in my eyes, and my mind goes crazy. P-Please... I will be fine. No worrying for Fawful. We talk of beans."

"Beans and badges... We begin trading!" You can check out his interesting selection, or learn more about beans. "The beans hide in the dirts of this country like dirt-fish who like to eat dirt for dinner. Bean symbols like this are marking all bean spots. You are digging in dirt, right? You are digging under symbols. And you are finding much bean! Bean symbols have sneakiness! When the beans are gone, the symbols flee like babies! You are wanting much beans? Then you are hunting symbols. And digging and popping. There are even places to win beans in games, maybe... If you get many beans, you get many badges at this place, Fawful's Bean 'n' Badge!" His most interesting badge is the Ulti-Free Badge. It costs 90 beans, but it is well worth it. It gives you unlimited Bros. Item, if you have them in your inventory. If you haven't obtained that Bros. Item, you will not have an unlimited supply of them, but once you do, you will. I have 73 beans at this point, so I'm close to getting the badge. When you're done, he says, "I have badges. Such badges. Bring beans! BEANS! Now is the time when you wait! I have a vision... The castle viewing platform... A new path for your finding... A new path...of DOOM!"

There's nothing to the south, and a time hole to the west. We won't be using it just yet. The time hole we need is accessible from the second floor in the tall tower. Hit the ! Block, then roll up the stairs to reach the top before the ! Block at the top of the stairs disappears. You have 25 seconds. This leads to the viewing platform, where you can see the kingdom. Travel through the time hole.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 4: An Amazing Egg-xit, by Boogity

Now that Kamek's out of the way, proceed east. Ahead, Baby Bowser comes to a dead end. The bros catch up. In retaliation for eating the cookies, Baby Bowser eats the Cobalt Star shards. He says they were delicious, but it seems they gave him a little stomacheache at first. The bros try to stomp the shards out of him, but some Shroob flying saucers appear. Yoob is climbing up the cliff. The flying saucers hit him with a laser which makes him grow much larger. He eats Baby Bowser and the bros.

Inside Yoob, the babies are wailing. Luigi finally calms them down with some Yoshi cookies. Baby Mario starts hitting some colorful buttons on the wall. Have the babies jump on the spring to find a Yoshi trying to push a familiar-looking rock. He thinks pushing the rock down the hole will open up a way out of Yoob. He can't push the rock anywhere on his own. Stuffwell thinks there are other Yoshis around that can help. Check out the multitude of bean spots and use the pipe block to reunite the bros. Each time you drill, Yoob winces. Also check out the "trunks" in Yoob's body. You'll find useful items, money, and new enemies called Bullies. One "trunk" has a piece of fruit. Feed it to the Yellow Yoshi near the northern doors to get him to help push the rock. There's a Heart Block in the room so you can heal without using items.

There are five rooms ahead. The room to the west has an RC Shroober terrorizing a Red Yoshi with his robot. Destroy its robot and it attacks. It will send out remote-control robots at you. Hit the flying saucers and jump on the ground-based robots. Once you defeat it, the Red Yoshi will help push the rock. The room to the northwest has a Dry Bones and a Blue Yoshi trapped behind a wall. The Dry Bones may throw bones over the bros' heads. Go to the back wall and hit the buttons so they match the colors of the knobs to the left. This will make a grate appear. Position the bros in front of the gate. The babies will see a set of buttons in front of them. Hit them to match the knobs in front of the gate. The knobs on the gate will light up as they match. When they all match, the gate opens. Talk to the Blue Yoshi to get him to help. The north room has lots of enemies, as well as an item block with Ice Flowers. They're like Fire Flowers, but they may lower a stat of the enemy instead of causing a burn. The northeast room has a Pink Yoshi trapped by spikes. Have the babies use the spring to reach a room with 6 holes. The rightmost hole leads to a bean spot. The middle hole leads to the Yoshi. Hit the button on the wall to make a path. The eastern room has another RC Shroober terrorizing a Yoshi. This one's an Azure Yoshi. Go past the grate to some running water. Approach the front wall and hit the robot with two drops of water to make it short-circuit and break the wall. Defeat the RC Shroober and Azure Yoshi helps push. All six Yoshis cooperate and the rock starts moving.

The rock opens up the passageway to the pipe. The Yoshis follow the path. Go after them. The pipe leads deeper into Yoob. Down here is an egg factory where the Yoshis are put into eggs. Go south. The Yoshis are trying to push another rock. Send the babies up using the spring and move the bros to the northeast corner, where there are eggs in boxes. Have the bros hit the boxes to send the eggs up to where the babies are. With good timing, hit each egg with a drop of water to send it into a hard surface, where it cracks. This releases a Yoshi to help push.

To the south is a room with enemies and "trunks". To the south is a room with the Yoshis, who will give you stuff. Return to the room with the "trunks" and go north. You'll meet a Toad there. His name is Toadbert, but he can't remember anything. It makes his head hurt to think about it. The only thing he remembers is a dim memory, which he sketched. He doesn't know what it means. It shows Peach using the Cobalt Star against Princess Shroob, but parts of it are covered up. He woke up in Yoshi Village and was eaten by Yoob. He says that Yoshis trapped in the eggs will be reborn as monsters. Up ahead is a monster blocking the exit. Ahead is a Save Book.

The monster ahead is guarding some eggs. Toadbert tries to tell it to let the eggs go, forgetting that Toads are cowardly in nature. The monster throws an egg and it cracks, revealing Baby Bowser. The battle begins. It's Sunnycide, a pun on eggs, sunny side up. You'll want to get rid of the eggs first. Cracking an egg releases a Yoshi to help push a rock on a ledge above. He'll throw the eggs at you.try to land on them. Once there are no more eggs, attack him until he makes more appear. He'll also inhale the bros to try and heal himself. Once five Yoshis are on the ledge, they'll roll the rock into him, flipping him on his back, revealing his weak spot. Cannonballers is a great Bros. Item to use. He can still attack. He'll pull a cord to turn off the lights. A Boo will appear to attack the bros. Other times when he pulls the cord, a hole will appear under the bros. Jump to avoid falling in.

After you defeat Sunnycide, the exit he was guarding opens up. Some eggs fall through, including Baby Bowser. When you're ready to go, jump down the exit. The bros land back on Yoshi Island. Some eggs and Toadbert land on Luigi's head. Yoob stops moving and you'll can't explore it anymore. Stuffwell thinks the eggs were its fuel. Toadbert takes the eggs back to the village and the bros follow.

In the village, Baby Bowser's telling the Yoshis he saved them so they'll give him Yoshi cookies as thanks. They believe him. He gobbles the cookies when the bros appear, thinking that's what they're after. His stomach hurts and he spits up the Cobalt Star shards. The Yoshis think it's magic. The shards smack him far away. Stuffwell had no idea they could do that. Toadbert explains the bros helped the Yoshis, who jump for joy. The bros return to the present.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 3: The Battle for Cookies

Sooner or later, you'll want to return to Bowser's Castle and Toadwood Forest to pick up the beans lying around, and get the beans in the castle. When you're done, you should have around 29.

When you're ready, talk to Gadd. Stuffwell explains that Baby Bowser has the two Cobalt Star shards we retrieved. Gadd says a lot of time holes have popped up lately, namely four around the castle. The one in the second floor's library has strong Cobalt Star readings, so Baby Bowser's probably in the area it leads to. Before we go, Gadd suggests checking on Toadsworth in the garden.

In the garden, Toadsworth the Younger is standing on the Elder's head, trying to entertain a crying Baby Peach. They execute a Spin Jump, calling it the "Toadsworth Twist". Her Majesty is amused. Luigi requests that the Toadsworths teach them the move. It's the same as before, but Luigi stands on Mario's head.

When you're ready to go, go upstairs to the second floor to the library. Stand on the bookcases and Spin Jump to others. There are some items in the area. To reach the time hole, Spin Jump towards the back wall, where you can walk around. Pick up the babies from the pipe block. The time hole is to the left.

The bros wind up in a lush green area with great music. The melody is part of the Yoshi Village music from Paper Mario. Go east. You'll see a large set of shoe prints in the ground. This is the village on Yoshi Island, but it's deserted. Check out the houses. In one house is a Koopa with a camera, wearing a beret. She's Kylie Koopa, ace reporter for the Koopa Kronicle. She says a giant egg just appeared and thinks it's connected to the Shroobs. She wants to use the spring in the corner, but it won't work. Have the babies use it. There are four Yoshis upstairs. They tell the babies to be quiet and loud footsteps are heard. The Yoshis run away outside. Outside is a giant Yoshi-like monster. It eats the Yoshis. Kylie gets some photos before being eaten as well, then spat out. Eventually, it leaves. Outside, the bros meet up with Kylie again. She says the monster is called Yoob. She also mentions a Magikoopa going into the house to the east, but is going to follow Yoob.

In the house to the east is Kamek, gathering snacks for Baby Bowser, who's on the cliff top. He's not going to deal with the bros for now and leaves. There are some items upstairs. Outside, Kamek runs into Yoob. Yoob eats him and spits him out, just like Kylie. Apparently, it doens't like Koopas. Go through the northwest house. To the west is a spring and the shadow of a block. Have the babies use the spring to reach the clouds. Hit the button on the block to put it within reach of the bros. Inside the next house is a pile of Yoshi cookies. Luigi grabs a few. Ahead is the pipe.

Kamek is ahead, but the bros won't let him by. To make the bros' lives difficult, he sets various fires in the area. Have Baby Mario approach the running water. The number near his head indicates how many water drops he can spit up. Having Baby Luigi hit Baby Mario with a hammer will make him spit up the water. Put out the fire to the east and keep going. You'll encounter Pidgits on flying carpets. Defeating the ones with money bags will give you more coins. In the next areas, you'll send the babies to the clouds. There are enemies there called Gnarantulas. Use hammers on them initially, because there are Gnarantulas with spikes covered by the fuzz. Also check out the bean spots on the clouds.

The path ahead will split. There are three areas you need to go to and extinguish the area's fire. This will allow you to hit a block that will make a larger block appear that you can use as a platform. The running water you need may be on the clouds. Go east first to make the red block appear. In the next area, accessible via the red block, go north and tunnel under the grate. Spit the water into both tubes. Have the bros Spin Jump to the green block. To the northeast is a puzzle that has you align blocks with tubes so that water will travel through the tubes to the fire. Hit the blue block and continue north. You may encounter Coconutters, who use spears. The position of the spear will determine if you attack by jumping or using a hammer. Go through the pipe ahead.

There's a tornado in the next area that allows you to cross larger gaps with the Spin Jump. This will scare away Kamek. The babies will take the lower path, which leads to a spring. This will allow the bros to reunite. Continue on to the next area, which requires hitting a ! Block to reveal a grate. This will allow the babies to reach some running water. In the next area, the tornado moves, so time your Spin Jump.

Near the Save Book, you'll see Kamek. Save, then approach him. The bros hide and spy on Baby Bowser guzzling Yoshi cookies. His stomach hurts, so Kamek gives him warm milk from an evil cow. Baby Bowser's okay with being in this ghost town because he gets to eat lots of cookies. The babies reveal their presence and the bros do as well. While they talk, the babies eat the cookies. Baby Bowser thinks they want his treasure, which is correct. He freaks out when he sees the babies in front of what was his pile of cookies. Kamek's going to deal with this.

Kamek starts off flying on his broom. He'll use magic to drop spike balls and mushrooms on the bros. Don't hit the mushrooms at him. He'll also split into five. We have a new Bros. Item to use called Smash Eggs. Kick the egg into the enemy until it breaks or the enemy is defeated. You might get an item from it. If you use Fire Flowers, hit the babies' buttons to hit airborn enemies. Hit the babies' buttons to add power to the next hit. When he takes enough damage, he'll fall off his broom. On the ground, he'll send a flame to hit the bros. It will hit him and he'll run into the bros. After he's defeated, he'll just lay on the ground. Time to chase Baby Bowser!

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 2: Hammers Roxor

E. Gadd is waiting for the bros in the throne room. The time hole remains and is marked on the top screen, including its destination. Now that all four bros have joined forces, you can reach the upper floors of the castle. When you're ready, talk to Gadd. He's got the Jr. Shrooboid in a state of suspended animation. He's happy to see the four teaming up. Stuffwell shows off the mysterious sparkly shard and Gadd identifies it as a shard of the Cobalt Star that powered the time machine. Gadd has no idea why the Cobalt Star was broken, nor why a shard of it was in Bowser's Castle. The shard floats over to the Jr. Shrooboid and it reacts angrily. Gadd concludes that there's a link between the Cobalt Star and the Shroobs. A Toad suggests finding more shards to learn how to defeat the Shroobs. The shard opens up a time hole in the west part of the castle. Gadd says it reacted to the other shards in the past. Stuffwell will keep track of how many we've collected. Gadd gives the bros a badge, which makes Stuffwell very happy. An item and equipment store on the east side of castle is now open, so check it out before you head out. When you're ready, go through the time hole.

Toadsworth, carrying Baby Peach, runs into his older self. Toadsworth the Elder thinks that the princess grew younger due to her trip with the time machine. Toadsworth the Younger freaks out, not knowing who Toadsworth the Elder is.

The time hole leads to Toadwood Forest. Something's weird about the trees. Toads are stuck in the trees. In some item blocks, you may find Fire Flowers as new Bros. Items. There are some hollow tree stumps in the forest. Toss the babies into the tree trunks to find items, coins, and enemies. Koopeleons are one type of enemy in the trunks. They'll disappear, making dodging their attacks difficult. Some of the item blocks contain coins worth 100 coins. They'll fly out of the tree trunk, so have Mario and Luigi get them.

In the next area, the bros find Toadiko, one of Peach's assistants that went on the time machine trip, trapped in a tree. When the time machine arrived, the three of them were attacked by the Shroobs. Princess Peach was taken and the trees of Toadwood Forest captured Toadiko. The trees siphon away the captured Toad's vim, which flows through the roots to the Shroob Vim Factory. There, the vim is mixed with chemicals to make fuel for the flying saucers. The bros must go to the Vim Factory, as Toadiko know's there's a Cobalt Star shard. Some flying saucers appear overhead and fire lasers, hitting Toadiko, turning her into a Shroob mushroom. She mentions gathering the Cobalt Star shards.

In the next areas, you'll encounter Boo Guys, ghostly Shy Guys. They'll split into two, but the bro it points to will be attacked. There will be pipes in the trunks, which are enemies called Elasto-Piranhas. The path will split ahead. To the southwest, go to the large trunk in the southwest and have the babies move around. There are boxes with little flames that the babies must hit. Each flame will appear from the tall, skinny trunks into another box. When all flames are outside, hit them in their new boxes into the box into the center. They will conglomerate into one giant flame. Hit that box to send the flame to the trees ahead, which will burn them and clear a path. The path ahead leads to a pipe.

To the north is the Vim Factory, but you can't cross the moat just yet. Go east and toss the babies into the trunk. There's a block with a rotating arrow. It controls the platform over the spikes. Use the platform to go to the right. When you make it across the spikes, go north and reunite the bros. In front of the radio antenna is another colorful block. Have one bro jump up, then, while in mid-air, have the baby jump to hit the block. You can hit higher blocks this way. Hitting the blocks activates the antenna, deactivating one of the claws in front of the factory. Go west and toss the babies in the trunk to control the platform that's to the south. Go due east over the obstacles to the ! Block that raises a platform. To the west is another radio antenna. Deactivate the other antenna. Go south and have the babies control another platform. There are useful items over the spikes. The path will take you to the area south of the factory. Use the pipe block in front of the factory to reunite. You can now enter the factory.

Inside the Vim Factory are two Hammer Bros that speak in L33T. "AREA RESTRICTED. ALL NOOB INTRUDERS 2 B HAXORED BY US L33T HAMM3R BROZ.! WE R TEH SHROOB ALLIES. WE ROXOR U AND THEN ROFL. THEN U AM CRY. WE RECEIVE ORDERS THRU ANTENNAS ON THESE L33T HELMETS. THEY R HOTNESS. WE MUST OBEY ALL ORDERS. WE LIKE 2 PWN NOOBZ 4 TEH MASTER SHROOBZORS. U = NOOBZ. BROZ. = L33T. PREPARE 4 TOTAL PWNAGE. WOOT! WOOT! WOOT! WOOT!" Roughly translated, the L33T Hammer Bros are under the control of the Shroobs due to their special helmets and will defeat the bros. A device drops in and takes Mario and Luigi away. "NOOBZ STILL R NOT PWNED. CONTINUE PWNERSHIP UNTIL ALL NOOBZ R PWNED. TEH ESCAPE IS IMPOSSIBLE. WE R 2 L33T. WE OWNZ JOO. U WILL GET FLATZORED BY R L33T HAMMERS." Translation: the bros haven't been completed defeated, so they will flatten the babies with their hammers. Time for battle.

The L33T Hammer Bros have a hammer-based Bros. Attack, which that looks like Knockback Bros. They will also throw their hammers. Use Fire Flowers on them, as burns can help do extra damage. Defeating them breaks the helmets on their heads, freeing them from Shroob control. The Hammer Bros are thankful and give the babies some hammers. With new equipment comes new techniques and tutorials. Baby Mario always uses the hammer to hit stuff and Baby Luigi uses his to drill underground (like the Luigi Dunk). The order of the bros does not change (no hitting [Start]), so you're ready to use hammers when you hit [R]. The drill technique will allow you to get beans from marks in the ground (there's only one type of bean in the Mushroom Kingdom, but you'll want to collect lots of them).

After the tutorial's over, step on the yellow switch with two dots. Go through the hallway and smash crates. Ahead is a room of puzzles. Tunnel under the gates to reach the top of the walls and hit switches. This will make platforms appear that form stairs in the northwest corner. Enter the ventilation system. It's a maze with some new enemies called Spiny Shroopas. The Hammer Bros teach the baby bros how to use hammers in battle. When you exit the ventilation system, go south via the left gate to enter a room with an enemy and items. Go east and you'll see a giant tree. Hit the orbs at the tree's roots to destroy them. The bros will fall out of the tree's nostrils and and Spiny Shroopas drop in. The Hammer Bros appear so they can teach the quartet how to use hammers in battle. Once the battle's over, hit the switch high on the back wall to the right to open the gate. Hit the four-person switch to move forward. You'll find a new Bros. Item and new enemies. Dr. Shroobs will use two types of mushrooms. Attack them to knock the mushroom out of their hands. Leave the gray mushrooms alone, because when they eat them, they'll be weaker. If they have red mushrooms, they'll become gigantic and attack. Lakitufos will drop Spiny Shroopas on the field. Take the pipe further into the factory.

In the next room, tunnel under the gate to hit the switch which opens the gate. In the next room, in the middle, throw the babies onto the back wall and have them go through the hole. Hit the switch in the room to deactivate the electric gate for the bros. Hit the blocks ahead to form a path for the babies. Hit the switches and blocks so each set of bros can progress. The babies will leave the room on the right and walk high on the wall, breaking crates along the way. They'll have a nice view of all the Toad-shaped vim going through the tubes. Hit the two switches on the far left to open the two gates below. There are beans through the left gate, as well as through the right gate. To the right, send the babies through the back wall so they can control a platform once more. There are blocks directly over the sparks, so make sure their shadows are on the platform before you jump to get them. Reunite the bros at the other end of the pit of sparks. Save in the Save Book and hit the switch on the floor when you're ready.

Beyond the door is a giant, green, Wiggler-like entity. It drinks from a cup and powers up flying saucers. It's called Swiggler, and Baby Mario knocks over its cup, sending it into a rage. Battle time! Swiggler is accompanied by two Dr. Shroobs. You'll want to attack the Dr. Shroobs holding gray mushrooms to knock them into Swiggler's cup, which will weaken him. You'll just have to deal with the powered-up Dr. Shroobs. Swiggler will spew a poisonous gas, slam the ground, creating shockwaves, and power up some flying saucers that shoot at the bros. Use Bros. Items on Swiggler, especially if he's weak. It's a great opportunity to test out the Cannonballers, which shoot the bros from a cannon. Hit each bro's button as they land. When you defeat it, it explodes, revealing a Cobalt Star shard. Baby Bowser appears out of nowhere and runs circles around the bros, making them dizzy and drop the shards. He thinks they stole treasure from his castle. Kamek picks him up. The bros return to the present to strategize.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Part 1: Gadd, the Suitcase is Talking to Me

Mario and Luigi safely travel through the time hole to the Mushroom Kingdom of the past. Something else makes its way through the time hole, and tells E. Gadd not to shove it. It lands on poor Luigi's back. It recognizes Mario, but can't find Luigi, seeing as it's standing on him. Luigi gets up and it apologizes. This entity is Stuffwell, a suitcase invented by Gadd. For some reason, Gadd thought to give it a voice. It's as annoying as it sounds. Stuffwell claims to be an assistant, containing many sensors and memory apparati for data retention. After the tour, the time hole disappears. We're stuck here, so we might as well move forward.

As you move forward, Stuffwell will teach you how to use the controls and move around the area. There are blocks in the area that are colored either red or green. It should go without saying what to do here, but Stuffwell's going to say it anyway. Hitting all the blocks makes the path ahead accessible. In the next area, a Toad drops out of the sky, hitting Mario on the head. He mentions the village ahead. Spaceships fly overhead and start attacking the village. The Toad mentions dank purple mushrooms. The Toad is picked up by a spaceship's tractor beam.

On the giant mushrooms with the gold, sparkly stems are some purple mushroom-like enemies called Shrooblets. Cue battle tutorial from Stuffwell. Ahead, something speaks in a weird language and a Shrooblet drops on Luigi's head. Stuffwell determines this is a good time to teach the bros about items. Luigi needs the mushroom as the hit dropped him to 1 HP.

Ahead is Holli Jolli Village, looking just as devastated as Beanbean Castle Town when the bros first arrived. The spaceships abduct a Toad before leaving. Check out the houses for items. The mayor of Holli Jolli Village lives in the house east of the one with the Save Book. He's stuck in the chimney. He looks familiar. He calls whatever just attacked the village "Shroobs". Have Mario push him out of the chimney. The mayor is approached by Shroobs and calls for help. The bros leave the house and watch the Shroobs abduct the mayor. The Shroobs battle them.

One Shroob calls in air support in the form of a spaceship with a bomb attached to it. When the number drops to zero, the spaceship will unleash an enormous energy ball. The Shroobs will attack with their laser guns. You're not going to win this fight. The Shroobs will cheer at their victory.

Above Holli Jolli Village, Bowser's Koopa Cruiser flies. Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, and Baby Peach are playing inside the Cruiser when Shroob spaceships attack. You may want to turn the volume down, because the babies will start crying. Toadsworth takes the princess to safety and the baby bros make their way through the cruiser. Koopas explain how the baby bros move: (X) for Baby Mario and (Y) for Baby Luigi. Once on the bridge, Baby Bowser decides to show off the Koopa Cruiser's firepower and takes out all three spaceships in one hit. The Cruiser loses altitude and some Koopas notice Mario and Luigi on the ground. Baby Bowser doesn't want to help them as it's past his snack time, and because he's evil. Peach voices her disapproval of his decision. Baby Bowser fires the Koopa Cannon at the Shroobs to calm her down. He lets the baby bros off at the village to take care of things.

The baby bros approach Mario and Luigi and Shroobs appear from behind the spike ball that the Koopa Cannon fired. Toadsworth provides in-battle instructions on Bros. Items, which replace Bros. Attacks. To start, they get Green Shells. On the top screen, you'll see how the attack is to be executed. Each time you use a Bros. Item, it's number will decrease in your inventory, so you're limited to using how many you have, not how much BP you have. Toadsworth has an unlimited supply, so you can practice until you've got the timing down. After the battle, Toadsworth notices the similarity between the two sets of bros. He suggests taking those two aboard.

Toadsworth explains the invasion from the Shroob planet was a nightmare. The Shroobs want to take everything in the Mushroom Kingdom, including the land and the lives of its citizens. The village and Peach's Castle are in ruins. Baby Bowser called in Kamek and the Koopa Cruiser to get them out of there. The Cruiser is now on it's way to Peach's Castle, which has been redecorated to be Shroob Castle. The leader, Princess Shroob, is there. Mario explains that Peach is being held there. Princess Shroob sends a transmission to the Cruiser, but no one understands the Shroob language. Actions speak louder than words, however, and Shroob Castle launches a missile at them. The Koopa Cannon is out of ammo, so they can't counterattack. They just barely make it to Bowser's Castle, which is still under Baby Bowser's rule.

Mario and Luigi stumble out of the Cruiser and Stuffwell informs them that the others were probably thrown clear of the crash site. Stuffwell's sensors prove to be useful, as he locates a timehole in the castle. Inside the castle are typical enemies, such as Goombas and Boos. You may need to walk on the higher platforms to move to new areas. Soon, you'll hear the babies. They're on a ledge high above. They'll drop down and the bros can continue, after the babies stop feeling abandoned. Stuffwell explains that the bros can carry their baby selves piggyback. The babies can jump off with either (X) or (Y), which can allow them to reach higher ledges. If you see panels on the ground with four spots, you'll need all four bros to activate the panel. The blocks with pipes on them allow the bros to regoup if they've been separated.

Ahead, you'll run into Kamek, looking for Baby Bowser. He mentions kidnapping the babies previously. He sends an enemy to deal with them, which gives Stuffwell an opportunity to explain how to battle as a quartet. Jump on top of the pipe when you reach it. It will take you to a different part of the castle. In some parts, you'll see blocks with four colors. Line up the bros according to how many blocks there are. Hit the solid block to make the other block solid. When you hit all the blocks, something will happen. In one area to the north, you'll throw the babies on to a ledge which leads to a dark room. Have the bros stand under the block with the Shine Sprite and hit it to illuminate the room for the babies. In a retro-styled item block on the other side of the fence is a sparkling blue shard. Stuffwell doesn't know what to do with it, but will hold onto it. Take the pipe to the next part of the castle.

The door ahead has flowers on it. It leads to Baby Bowser's playroom, where Toadsworth and Peach have been waiting. The time hole is here as well. Toadsworth does not plan on jumping into the time hole, but goes to avoid being alone. The time hole takes the bros to the east side of Peach's present castle.

Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time -- Save the Princess. Save the Kingdom. With Time Travel.

"Really, really long ago... way far out in space... in a dark, dank place shunned by starlight... there was this creepy planet floating alone... The beings of this world were... creepy. They spent their time staring creepily into space. Just creepy daydreamers, right? Wrong. They were searching. Searching for a new home. At last, they fixed their creepy gazes on a distant world, a land of beauty and peace..."

Baby Mario and Baby Luigi walk into Peach's Castle and are greeted by a younger Toadsworth. Her Majesty would like some playmates to play with. The young bros walk ahead into the next room to find many Toads collapsed on the floor. Baby Bowser drops in carrying Baby Peach. Seems Bowser was intent on kidnapping Peach at an early age. Toadsworth tries to deal with Baby Bowser, but his flames are too much for him to handle. Time for Baby Mario to deal with Baby Bowser, while Baby Luigi keeps Baby Peach entertained. Toadsworth will give instructions on Action Commands and dodging attacks. All Baby Mario can do is jump for now. It only takes a few rounds. Baby Bowser says he can't lose because he's a prince. The victory celebration is interrupted by an attack on the castle. Purple and white spaceships take aim at the castle. Behind the clouds are hundreds more.

In the present, there is breaking news in the kingdom. E. Gadd has completed a time machine. It's powered by a Cobalt Star. The time machine was unveiled at Peach's Castle. Peach decided to take it for a spin with a couple of Toad attendants named Toadbert and Toadiko. She decided to go to the Mushroom Kingdom's past. Toadsworth is less than pleased. Not even Gadd assurance of a 99.999999999% chance of her return can calm Toadsworth's worry. He collapses. A Toad tells Mario to get a Refreshroom in Toadsworth's room to revive him. Lakitu provides an overhead map of the castle for Mario, letting him know which room he's in. Toadsworth's room is in the southwest corner, but that doesn't mean Mario can't pick up items along the way. The Refreshroom is in the item block over the plants. Return to the throne room when you get it. The cure is just what the doctor ordered.

After Toadsworth's miraculous recovery, the time machine reappears, heavily damaged. Inside, however, is not Peach, nor her attendants. It's a green monster called a Junior Shrooboid. Mario takes center stage in the battle. Jump to attack and counterattack. Once the battle's over, Gadd informs everyone that thankfully, the Shrooboid didn't eat Peach. His DS time radar says Peach is in the Mushroom Kingdom of the past. Using the time machine to find her is out of the question. Luigi appears, freaking out about a mysterious hole in the castle's garden. Gadd thinks that the time machine tore holes in the time continuum. The bros join up to go due south to the garden. Hit the Save Book on your way.

Gadd says the mysterious hole is a time hole connecting the past to the present. Luigi gets too close to the time hole. Gadd doesn't know where the time hole leads or if it's possible to return to present. Mario wants to use it to save the princess. Gadd thinks it's the only way. Toadsworth's stretcher crashes into the time hole, startling Luigi and causing him to fall in. Mario jumps in after him. Where will the time hole lead? Will the bros find the princess? Will there be continuity in a Mario series? All this and more in the exciting sequel to my personal favorite Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga. Stay tuned!