So, here's the truth: i've NEVER played a Paper Mario game. Actually that's a lie. I played 5 minutes of Super Paper Mario then gave up. I'm thinking of giving Paper Mario Color Splash a serious shot, so I was wondering if any of you have played it yet. Apparently, according to Metacritic, it's 1 point better than Sticker Star (SS has 75 and CS has 76).

Is this a genuinely good game?

BTW, I can't get my hands on Thousand Year Door at the moment, so that option is ruled out :P

If you are going to give a shot to a good Paper Mario game for a cheap and overall better price, I would recommend you to play Paper Mario 64 on the Virtual Console instead. I am re-playing it at the moment and about to finish it, and makes me remember why i loved Paper Mario series so much and why Color Splash is a slap to the face regarding combat mechanics.

Absolutely love it!! It's one of the funniest and charming games I have played in ages, plus it looks gorgeous. I have no problems regarding combat, exploration is good, and it improves greatly on the much frowned upon Sticker Star. I give it 9/10, that's how good I think it is, a joy to play.

Super Paper Mario is the superior game(by a long shot).If you didnt like that game, I dont think you will like this one.

They're all great. Recently got Colour Splash and don't regret it one bit. It's a tad bit better than sticker star.

The HD REALLY makes a difference. The game is gorgeous. I never thought paper mario would benefit so much with 720p.

Tagging, would like to know what people think of this game as well

It is funny and beautiful there is always something new happening.
Thumbs up or 9/10 or 4/5 or A.
You can choose your own difficulty level by not buying cards in the card shop or not using colour on the cards.
...and it has achievements / trophies.

I too have never played a Paper Mario game, so I bought Color Splash going into it not knowing what to expect. I am now many hours into the game and love it! The game has a LOT to it, and is downright funny in some places. It doesn't take itself too seriously, but you still get invested in finishing everything.

If there was one thing I would say is a drawback for me is sometimes the battling can feel a little bit like grinding, but that usually gets broken up after a bit with the storyline. That and I've lost all respect for Cheep Cheeps after the Beachfest level.

I would rate it an 8/10

Honestly, better than I thought. The main problem is the battle system. It's an improvement over SS, easily, but it still lacks any depth. The rest of the game is pretty solid. Great level design, humour, it's not void of new and interesting gameplay formulas... It'd be probably in the level of the first games, if it just kept a similar combat system. Still, if you enjoy a fun and chilling adventure, and you don't mind a lot the obvious combat system flaws, this game is for you. It's really charming. It could do with less Toad overload though xD

I'd probably give it a 7'5/10. Bloody combat system, the game had potential to be a personal GOTY.

So far, I've gotten 4 of the 6 stars, and I've gotta say, the game's been excellent overall.

The game looks beautiful, as if created by a child with all sorts of paper craft. The soundtrack is a joy to listen to, with catchy and relaxing beats on the ears.The writing is excellent, with a lot of great humorous moments, so much so I was laughing often while playing. The world is great to explore, with each stage feeling like its own separate episode, having a unique gimmick or event happening (with a few exceptions of a stage's story carrying on to multiple levels). Combat is overall fun and interesting, presenting you with different ways to dispatch enemies. Some enemies need to be jumped on, while others are only affected by hammers, and a few enemies you need to figure out how to defeat them. It's not without its faults, as I feel there could be more variety in attacks, rather than different jumps and hammer attacks. However, there is enough variety in the cards to the point where it's hard to have all of the cards in your deck without having a large quantity of certain cards.

Overall, it's been a great joy to play. Often times I have a hard time quitting, simply because I want to see what else this game can possibly throw at me. I've seen some funny bizarre things in it that may rival even TTYD, and I eagerly await to see what else will come up. I can go on about this game, but I will leave it at this.