Nintendo Everything has created a guide for Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, in which we will cover some basic tips and tricks that may help players starting the game.
Difficulty Settings
Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope has customizable difficulty, which you can change at any time outside of combat. There are no benefits to playing with increased Enemy Threat, reduced Hero Health Management, or with Invulnerability on or off. This means you can play the game however you want to play without worrying about missing out on achievements or in-game bonuses.
However, it is recommended that you make sure that Hero Skills Management is set to Manual so the game will not automatically assign Skill Prisms once you acquire them. This is especially the case where you are playing on higher difficulties, where you will need to adjust things more frequently.
Exploration and Overworld Tips
Be sure to explore the map and do as many sidequests as you can, both when you arrive on a new planet and just before you leave. These will reward you mostly with Planet Coins to spend at the shop, but they can also reward you with Sparks, which will broaden your options in combat. Some sidequests will remain locked until you have acquired a set number of Sparks too, so remember to revisit planets after you have cleared a new one to see what might have unlocked.
The game is very generous with coins and star bits, and levels accumulate slowly, so do not feel that you need to grind to progress in the game! Although it is a good idea to battle every enemy you see, and to interact with any objects you can on the overworld.
Prioritize purchasing the Planet Keys with your Planet Coins. These will unlock a door hidden in the overworld which will gain you additional Sparks you can use in combat, making them more valuable than either the weapon skins or Star Potions you can buy with them otherwise. Weapon skins are a cosmetic change only, and you can only upgrade your Sparks intermittently as your party gains levels: you will be able to afford the upgrade cost for the first two levels from gathering star bits as you play through the game.
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope Combat Tips and Tricks
Make sure that you keep your characters behind full cover where possible. Even on Relaxed difficulty enemies have a tendency to attack a single character if they’re in range, and can wear down your characters within a couple of turns if you’re not careful.
Once you attack with a character they can no longer move, so always save attacking for your very last action, when you’re sure you’ve exhausted all possible options for your character and you’re happy with where you’ve placed them.
Don’t be afraid to split your characters up if the goal of the map is to defeat a number of enemies, but generally it is a good idea to keep them fairly close together so that you can focus your effort on stronger foes. If you are using either Rabbid Peach or Peach as support (which you definitely should do!), you can keep them within the character’s range, and so that you can utilize jumps to cover ground more quickly. You can always move them back to where they were afterwards!
Your best bet for early-game Sparks are the ones that provide more generally useful buffs rather than elemental boosts. Exosphere, Stardust, and Reflector are extremely useful in the early hours of the game for the defensive boosts they provide. On a map where you need to survive for a set number of turns, Screech can help to repel enemies too.
Remember that you can respec your party members at any time, and you should take advantage of this to suit the situation. If the map you’re on requires you to defeat enemies to progress, you would be better off investing Skill Prisms in the Weapon and Technique branches of the Skill Tree. If your goal is to get to a select point on the map, or just to survive, then invest in Health and Movement.
Party Tips
A good early game party for the first two worlds is Mario, Luigi, and Rabbid Peach. Mario can attack two separate targets and defeat weaker enemies more readily, Luigi is a long-range character who can finish off enemies before they get close to the party, and Rabbid Peach, as a combat healer, means you won’t be quite so dependent on healing items to keep your party healthy in the worst-case scenario, and is a slightly better choice than Peach as her barrier skill doesn’t account for enemies ganging up on a single character.
Mario and Luigi also both have access to a skill that will allow them to automatically attack an enemy that moves within their line of sight: Second Sight for Mario, and Steely Stare for Luigi. These are fantastic for finishing off stronger enemies and can stop weaker ones from getting into position during their turn.
A good early game strategy for defeating stronger enemies before they can attack you is to start your turn by using Second Sight and Steely Stare, and then using one of your characters to dash attack into the enemy. That will launch them into the air, triggering the ability. You will still be able to attack after doing this too, so if they survive this initial assault you can then attack them immediately after.
