Nintendo just released a gigantic batch of new screenshots and artwork for Mario & Luigi
Dream Team.
And you know what that means--it's time to start up the old analysis machine and see
what secrets they might be hiding.
But please make sure to check out our previous analysis if you haven't already as we've already
discussed a lot about the game that we won't be talking about here
And with that, let's get started.
SO one of the new pieces of artwork showcases 6 different pillows, each with a distinct
design.
Okay, so what, right?
But the artwork also revealed 5 new characters, which appear to be part of the ancient Pi'illo
people that we already knew about.
And as you might have noticed, the fabric each is wearing corresponds to one of those
pillows.
So we're guessing that these are the Pi'illo people that we had previously learned were
turned to stone that you'll have to rescue from the Dream Worlds.
And since there are 6 pillows here, that likely means there are 6 characters you'll have to
find too.
Which might also mean there are 6 main dream worlds you'll be exploring.
Now as you might have noticed, one of those pillows is lacking a corresponding character
But its color scheme does seem very similar to Dreambert, who was a Pillow character you
actually meet fairly early into the game, as we discovered during our hands-on time
with the game at a preview event a couple of months ago.
Now beyond the characters, one of those pillows is also larger than the rest.
Is that one more important than the rest?
We're not sure, but it does seem odd
Furthermore, while most of the pillows here don't match up to the ones we've seen Luigi
use during gameplay, a couple of them do, such as the Red one, which actually appears
on the game's title screen, or the purple one, though the ring is faded.
So perhaps you'll be able to use these pillows once you've rescued the respective Pillow
people?
Or maybe they're actually how you rescue them instead ?
While we may not know their exact role, we do know Luigi will use them at some point,
based on this artwork which shows him about to take a nap on the pink one
Speaking of characters, this new image of Princess Peach also shows her holding a pillow
unlike the others.
Is it of any importance?
And could it hint that maybe we'll visit Peach's dreams too?
And then we finally get our first good look at the game's antagonist Antasma.
Now in a previous analysis, we talked about how her name suggests that she might be the
embodiment of a nightmare, and she sure does look nightmarish here!
And we can see she's holding the Darkstone, which is one of two powers in the Dream World.
The other, the Dreamstone shown here, was destroyed by her so she could have her evil
way with the Pillow People.
So cruel!
Now if we take a look at the box art for the game, we can see something interesting: A
bat.
But not just any bat, but one that seems suspiciously similar to Antasma, right down to the big
yellow eyes and fanged teeth.
So it seems you'll have to deal with her while in bat form occasionally too.
Btw, does any of this look familiar to you?
It might, because Cackletta , who was the main villain in Mario & Luigi Superstar saga
not only looked somewhat similar, but could turn into a bat as well.
Could the two be related in some way?
Or is it entirely coincidental
Okay, that's enough about the villian, let's talk about the heroes, and one of the new
pieces of artwork reveals that they can now ride a rocket-powered skateboard!
So the big question is: is this a new attack, like the helicopter move?
Or is it a new form of transporation, like the Luigi-surfboard from Superstar saga?
We're not sure, but either way it seems Mario will be able to do some hammering during the
ride.
And while we're talking about attacks, another piece of artwork shows off the Ball of Luigi
attack we've seen before, but it does give us a better look at some of the enemies that
we only saw in passing before.
Alright and that about covers it for the artwork.
Let's take a look at some of those screenshots.
And let's start with this battle one.
First of all, it gives us a look at a new type of enemy.
But more interesting is what's going on with the bottom-screen.
Now we already knew badges were back from a previous analysis, but now we get to see
them in action.
And so far, it seems theyll function very similarly to the badges from Bowser's Inside
Story--in fact, both of the badhges shown here appear to be lifted directly from that
game.
On the left, we can see that Mario's badge is the Mushroom badhe, which restores HP,
while the badge on the right is Luigi's Great Badge.
And the combined effect results in a 30% restoration of both of their health once you've filled
the badge meter, which happens with well-timed attacks.
But what about those heart icons?
One of our viewers Kratos7560, thinks these you'll activate one of them each time you
fill that meter, allowing you to activate them at will with the press of a touchscreen
button
This is supported by the fact that in some other shots, only one of the buttons appears
to be active, suggesting the meter's only been filled once.
Moving on, another battle shot has quite a few more interesting details.
For one, the entire thing takes place in an area we haven't seen before, with light shining
down from above.
Then there are the two new enemies, including Bee Like guy, and this fruit-looking dude.
Finally, in the background, we can see a weird statue with 3-eyes.
But that's not the first we've seen of him, as he also appeared in the very first trailer
in the background of one of the battles--and he even moved around then too.
And he pops up again in the latest round of screens as a statue in this shopping area.
What makes him so important?
And while we're on this screen, we can see Peach is here too, which means this is probably
e fairly early into the game since she's not yet kidnapped.
And we can see the same chat bubble on the floor here that also appeared on a kiosk in
the last trailer.
And the desk here is even being run by the same swirly-haired people.
Based on the icon, we think these shops might mark the return of an information-like center
that was in Superstar saga.
And speaking of stores, we also get a look at an item ship here, which appear to be selling
Mushrooms and 1-ups at the least
And would you look at that-- Yoshi's are indeed back, as we correctly guessed in our last
analysis.
And that confirms at least two color variants too, being green and red.
Okay, we're almost done here, but as usual, there are still just a few final details left,
For one, the long ? ? Block is back.
Yeah, it's nothing major, but we thought we'd point it out.
Next, the new artwork also shows off a few new characters, including a couple of block-people,
who appear to be a mechanic and a miner.
Then there's this odd looking guy.
Between his lab coat, glasses, and thought-bubble shaped head, we're guessing he may just know
a thing or two about dreams.
Finalyl, let's take a look at this colorful piece of art, which contains several depictions
of elements we've pointed out before, such as the Bone Fish and HooHooligans.
But did you spot Bowser's head over on the right side?
Or, and there's another in the top-left corner.
Yup, seems Bowser will be back too, though we still don't know in what capacity.
And with that, we're done covering everything we could dig up for Mario & Luigi: Dream Team.
As always, let us know if we missed anything by posting in the comments.
Thanks for watching and make sure to stay-tuned to GameXplain.com for more analysis
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