Looking at the best partners across the Mario franchise

Today, we’re looking at all of Mario’s partners – not just from the Paper Mario series, but from almost every game in the entire franchise.

Over the years, Mario has been accompanied by many different partners – some of whom haven’t appeared since their initial debut. At the time of writing, the greater Mario franchise is in something of a transitional period. We do have Mario & Luigi: Brothership coming up, but beyond that everything is presumably being saved for Nintendo’s next console. That means it’s as good a time as any to review all of Mario’s partners and ask: which is your favorite?

Geno and Mallow (Super Mario RPG)

These might not be “partners” in the traditional sense, but they’re party members – they have to count here! Super Mario RPG’s two original partners, Geno and Mallow, are perhaps the most beloved in the entire franchise. You can see this with how consistently fans have asked for Geno in Super Smash Bros., dating as far back as Super Smash Bros. Brawl in 2008 and the years leading up to it. Unfortunately, at the end of the game, Mallow and Geno both return home, never to be seen again (except for a small cameo that Geno makes in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga). We don’t think it’s terribly likely that either of these two characters appear again, even with the release of the recent Super Mario RPG remake.

Paper Mario partners

Our first big group of partners comes from the original Paper Mario on Nintendo 64. Each one has a different ability that’s at some point required to progress the story. Paper Mario’s partners include Goombario, Kooper, Bombette, Parakarry, Bow, Watt, Sushie, and Lakilester for a total of eight. We’d wager that the partners from The Thousand-Year Door are generally more popular, but that doesn’t mean you can necessarily count these guys out.

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door partners

This group of partners is probably tied with Super Mario RPG’s Geno and Mallow in terms of popularity. The Thousand-Year Door’s partners follow a similar “format” to the original Paper Mario’s – they’re all of different species, some typically being enemies, and each has different abilities. There’s Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, Yoshi, Vivian, Bobbery, and the optional Ms. Mowz. Of these, we think Goombella, Koops, and Vivian are probably most popular, and we wouldn’t at all be surprised if your answer aligns with one of these.

Tippi (Super Paper Mario)

There are tons of Pixls available in Super Paper Mario, and some are completely optional. That said, this game sort of marked the beginning of “singular” partners in Paper Mario games – Tippi has much more screen time and character development than the other Pixls, making her the “main” partner. Toward the end of the game in particular, Tippi receives tons of background lore and character development, which we think places her in the upper end of Mario’s partner rankings.

Kersti (Paper Mario: Sticker Star)

For the record, there is absolutely no way anybody is picking Kersti as their favorite Mario partner. She’s generally the most disliked out of any of Mario’s companions, and arguably for good reason. Her very first interaction with Mario includes her accusing him of destroying the Sticker Comet, and things only go downhill from there. Kersti is infamous for scolding Mario if he defeats a major boss without using the appropriate Thing sticker, which is likely where most of her poor reputation stems from.

Huey (Paper Mario: Color Splash)

Just like in Sticker Star, Paper Mario: Color Splash sticks to the “only one partner” formula. Thankfully, Huey is entirely more tolerable than Kersti, and though he doesn’t have a ton of personality traits, he’s a much more defined character. He likes talking about food (how does he even eat?) and gets angry when he sees people use paint or the Paint Stars for nefarious purposes. Writing is one of Paper Mario: Color Splash’s strengths (writing in terms of dialogue, not necessarily writing in terms of story), and that trait definitely helps make Huey more likable.

Olivia and Bobby (Paper Mario: The Origami King)

In many ways, Paper Mario: The Origami King marks a half-departure from some of the less-than-stellar design decisions of the previous two Paper Mario titles. This includes no more Things, characters with actual character development, and more than one partner to accompany you in the game. There are also partners available like Professor Toad, but we’re sticking to Olivia and Bobby here as these two are arguably the most memorable. Both of these characters undergo more character development than anyone present in Sticker Star or Color Splash, and we’d venture to guess they’re on the higher end of the partner rating spectrum, too.

Stuffwell (Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time)

One of the more obscure partners on this list for sure, and mainly because Partners in Time isn’t often acknowledged by Nintendo in the modern day. In fact, they skipped directly over it to remake Bowser’s Inside Story for 3DS instead. Stuffwell is an invention of Professor E. Gadd, who appears prominently in the game. He doesn’t do a whole lot other than provide basic tutorials for the player and keep the story moving along, but he’s still a neat little guy who has sadly fallen into obscurity and will likely never appear again.

Starlow (various)

Starlow first appeared as the main partner character in Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story. She’s become one of Mario’s most iconic partners by virtue of how many games she’s appeared in since. She retains her role in Mario & Luigi: Dream Team and Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam, which is three whole games’ worth. Given that the Mario & Luigi series has remained dormant since then, however, she hasn’t appeared since. And from what we can see of the trailers, Starlow doesn’t seem to be the main partner in Mario & Luigi: Brothership (nor does she seem to be present in the game at all).

F.L.U.D.D. (Super Mario Sunshine)

It’s hard to say if F.L.U.D.D. actually counts as a partner in the traditional sense, but we figure it’s okay to put it here anyway. It can talk, but it doesn’t have much personality outside of giving tutorials and such. Where F.L.U.D.D.’s value as a partner comes in is its usefulness in-game!

Baby Luma (Super Mario Galaxy)

In a similar vein to F.L.U.D.D., Baby Luma doesn’t have a ton of personality, but it does offer tons of functionality in-game. It grants Mario the ability to Star Spin in both Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2, which of course winds up instrumental in clearing both games. Part of what could make the baby Luma memorable for some, though, is its rather sad sacrifice at the end of Super Mario Galaxy. And since Super Mario Galaxy 2 doesn’t appear to be a direct sequel to the first game (maybe more of a retelling?), it makes sense that the baby Luma can appear again despite having sacrificed itself in the previous title.

Cappy (Super Mario Odyssey)

Cappy is perhaps the most criminally underrated of Mario’s partners. He does appear in an incredibly popular game, but he’s never seen again outside of that. Cappy facilitates cap-tures, one of the coolest mechanics the Mario series has ever seen. You’d think they’d give him some small appearances in spin-off games, but no – at the time of writing, Cappy has not made a single appearance outside of Super Mario Odyssey. You could argue he’s part of Mario’s up special in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, but that’s about it.

That should be just about all of Mario’s partners across the many games he’s starred in. If we somehow forgot to include your favorite partner from the series, be sure to let us know in the comments below. Otherwise, which of these is your favorite Mario partner? Do you think they’ll ever appear in a future game again, or do you expect them to remain exclusive to their initial debut?

In the meantime, Mario & Luigi: Brothership has a new partner, and the game releases on November 7. You can check out the official site here.