By Michael Rougeau on Aug 30, 2017 12:30 am
Game of Thrones' Season 7 finale may have been its most important episode ever. So much was revealed, so many characters finally reunited, so many things fans have waited years for finally happened. And, on top of all that, it was a great episode. No wonder it broke records yet again. Be sure to check out GameSpot Universe's video breakdown of the finale, where our experts go over every scene for fun and hidden meaning. And in the meantime, here are some things you might not have picked up on in the Game of Thrones Season 7 finale, "The Dragon and the Wolf."
Dany's New Sigil
Dany has a new sigil, seen elsewhere throughout this season and focused on heavily in the finale's opening shots. It resembles an ouroboros, a snake eating its own tail, or--as many have already pointed out--the logo for The Elder Scrolls Online.
Podrick's Magic Member
Bronn's joke about "Podrick's magic cock" is a reference to Pod's apparent prowess in bed, which Tyrion and Bronn learned of all the way back in Season 3.
The Dragon Pit's Importance
The Targaryens ruled Westeros for hundreds of years, and they built the Dragon Pit to keep their dragons separate from King's Landing. Chaining them up didn't do them any favors, though, and the dragons eventually died out. Good thing Dany didn't leave hers beneath Meereen for too long. Regardless, the Dragon Pit is an important location in the series' lore, and one longtime fans were excited to finally see.
Some Tension In The Air
The Dragon Pit scene was important not just because it brought so many characters together, but because of those characters' relationships with one another. Many of the most emotional reunions, such as Tyrion and Cersei's or Brienne and Jaime's, occurred with nothing more than a meaningful look. Half these people should have been dead the moment they came within sight of King's Landing, from the Hound--who abandoned King Joffrey during the Battle of the Blackwater--to Varys, who aided Tyrion in his escape and his murder of Tywin Lannister. The scene captured all that tension perfectly.
Dany's Heir
Jon and Dany's chat about the Dragon Queen's chances of conceiving may have been more than just flirting. Although Mirri Maz Duur told her in Season 1 that she's barren, there are plenty of theories to the contrary, and she and Jon could produce a legitimate heir (if they somehow find the time to get married).
Sansa's Realization
This is likely the moment when Sansa realized for certain that Littlefinger was playing her against her sister. Littlefinger had just advised her to think about people's worst possible motivations, then weigh them against their actions, and consider whether they make sense. Sansa realized here that Arya would never want to be "the Lady of Winterfell," and thus, saw through Littlefinger's plotting.
Arya's Dagger
The last time we saw that dagger, Arya had handed it to Sansa after threatening her. When Arya entered the hall for her "trial," she once again had it strapped at her side. That was our first clue that the Stark sisters were working together after all.
Bran's Help
Bran's presence in the hall at Winterfell was the other clue that Littlefinger was about to get a throat full of dagger. The Three-Eyed Raven let on in an earlier episode that he knew about Littlefinger's plotting when he parroted Baelish's own words, "chaos is a ladder," back to him. The only question was whether Bran would care to share that info with his sisters, which he clearly did in the end.
Littlefinger's Final Gift
Arya done slashed Littlefinger's throat real good, but there's one final thing to note about the master schemer's death: His face is very much intact. Just like she took the guise of Walder Frey, Arya could potentially assume Baelish's identity and wreak all kinds of havoc in Game of Thrones Season 8.
Quoting Ned
Arya and Sansa reminisce about their father in this emotional scene. The first quote--"In the winter, we must protect ourselves, look after one another"--is something Ned said to Arya in Season 1. The second--"When the snows fall and the white winds blow, the lone wolf dies, but the pack survives"--is something he said to her in the first book, A Game Of Thrones. No doubt he repeated it often, which is how Sansa knew it too.
"You Don't Need To Choose"
Jon's heartfelt words to Theon in this scene have another meaning beyond the obvious. "You don't need to choose. You're a Greyjoy and you're a Stark," Jon tells Theon, who is a Greyjoy by birth but was raised at Winterfell by Ned Stark. Jon might as well be talking to himself here: As we learned later in the finale, he's a Targaryen and a Stark. Hopefully he remembers his own wise words when he learns his true identity.
Cersei's Pledge
You can't see it, but Cersei had her fingers crossed when she promised to aid in the fight against the Night King's army. Just kidding (well, who knows?).
Jorah's Warning
Jorah Mormont warned Dany of assassins this episode. In Season 1, he foiled an assassination attempt--which he likely knew about because he'd been spying on Dany for Varys and Robert Baratheon. Maybe she should heed his warning this time?
An Overdue Book Scene
The Game of Thrones Season 7 finale featured a surprise reference to a small but important book scene that, in the source material's chronology, happened a long time ago. It went a little differently in the books, but Jaime observing the first flakes of snow in the South as he decides once and for all to leave Cersei is a critical moment for his character.
Rhaegar Looks Familiar
Here's a quick refresher in case the family trees are getting too muddled: There's a good reason Rhaegar looks so similar to Viserys, Dany's douchebag older brother from Season 1. Rhaegar was their oldest brother, and by all accounts was a much more decent guy than Viserys. (That's also why Jon--Rhaegar's son--is Dany's nephew.) At least they got to trot this wig out of storage one last time.
Tyrion's Sad Face
Plenty of viewers wondered why Tyrion seems troubled when he witnesses Jon enter Dany's room. There are a few theories, but the simplest is that he realizes how much more complicated them hooking up will make the situation, politically speaking. Remember also that Tyrion spoke with Daenerys this season about her lack of an heir; there are theories that his idea of "breaking the wheel" will ultimately involve dismantling the monarchy and establishing some sort of democracy. If Dany does manage to produce an heir, despite being apparently barren, that plan is shot. Then there are actor Peter Dinklage's own words, in this video from HBO: "It's dangerous for everybody involved. I'm sure it's good for both of them in the moment, but you don't even get the relief of how beautiful it could be or should be. It's 'No!' Just it's not good. But it should be! But it's not. It's Game of Thrones. There's a long history of romance not ending well on this show."
Three Horns
When the undead army appears at the Wall, the watchers blow three horn blasts. That's the Night Watch's universal signal for White Walkers, as we learned in Season 2. (One blast means rangers returning, and two blasts means wildlings.)
Tormund And Beric's Fate
Tormund Giantsbane and Beric Dondarrion likely aren't dead yet, and not just because we didn't explicitly see them fall when the Wall came crashing down. HBO's official episode synopsis clearly states that "Tormund and his wildings rush to safety." That's not exactly proof, but Brienne and Tormund shippers can cling to it until we find out for sure in Game of Thrones Season 8.
The Mountain's Face
Here's a bonus! Check out what The Mountain looks like without his helmet on while shooting this season, courtesy of a behind-the-scenes video straight from HBO. He'll probably be a little more gruesome if the Hound ever unmasks him in Game of Thrones Season 8.
By Matt Espineli on Aug 30, 2017 12:25 am
Mastering the Gang
The key to success in strategy game Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle is knowing how to best use its characters. In every fight, you build a squad of three that includes Mario and two others--either his Mushroom Kingdom pals or their mashup Rabbid versions. Every character in Mario + Rabbids is unique, with strengths, weaknesses, and abilities. Here's a quick introduction to each of Mario + Rabbids' characters, when you'll find them, and the situations in which they're best used. Kingdom Battle is out now for Nintendo Switch. It sports a season pass, which includes new weapons and a story expansion. For the uninitiated, the game sees you pick a squad of three characters to face a bunch of heinous enemy Rabbids. Its local co-op mode, meanwhile, has you team up with a friend, each controlling a squad of two. Despite the game receiving poor first impressions when a piece of concept art leaked online, it managed to defy all expectations when it was officially unveiled at E3 2017 this past June. Kindgom Battle has since been well-received by critics. GameSpot's Edmond Tran said the game "triumphs in creating a magical game world that is undeniably delightful" and called it "a consistent delight." Check out our in-depth review for our full thoughts about the game.
Mario
Your "leader" character, Mario, is an all-around fighter who you bring into every battle. He's good at mid-range thanks to his Blaster weapon, but a lot of his best work is done up close. Mario's secondary weapon is a big mallet that lets you smash characters, and which can affect a large area, allowing you to deal a ton of damage if you buy better upgrades. Mario's two techniques are Hero Vision, which lets him take a reaction shot against any enemy in range who's moving, and M-Power, which gives all his allies in the area a boost to weapon power. Both abilities are devastating when used mid-turn, allowing other characters to use their powers to force enemies to move, or to take advantage of the damage boost. You'll want to upgrade Mario's movement capabilities, particularly the range he gets off his Stomp attack, so that he's not trapped in the open after hitting an enemy. He's also good for lending covering fire to other characters, and for turning up the damage at key moments, especially in boss fights.
Rabbid Peach
Your primary healer, Rabbid Peach, is a solid teammate who can knock out a ton of damage, absorb even more, and save characters from the brink. You can use her to both smash enemies and protect your own characters, making her extremely versatile on the battlefield. Rabbid Peach's techniques are a shield that can absorb damage incoming to her, and a healing field that can spruce up the whole team. With the shield, you can put Rabbid Peach in harm's way or use her to activate enemies' reaction abilities, in order to protect the rest of your team; and obviously, healing is self-explanatory. But Rabbid Peach can lay out quite a bit of damage with her Drone in particular, and she carries the same Blaster gun that Mario does, for decent mid-range damage. Generally, though, you want Rabbid Peach to be around in case other characters are in trouble. She's a solid mid-range fighter, but best used with characters that can dish out more punishment but might need help taking it.
Princess Peach
A combo healer and bruiser like Rabbid Mario, Princess Peach has a lot of versatility for moving in, wreaking havoc, and then getting out of harm's way. She'll join your team during the boss fight at the end of World 2. Peach carries the same Boomshot shotgun as Rabbid Mario, which can smash cover and hit multiple enemies in a tight area. She also carries a Grenaduck, a rubber ducky grenade that's good for a little more range and can get enemies behind cover. Both are especially good on tight maps where you'll find enemies close together and with nowhere to go. Peach also has a special Team Jump ability, where she dispenses a little bit of healing in the area around where she lands. It's handy to use to get Peach onto the front line and heal up anyone who's already there, although its effects are somewhat minimal compared to Rabbid Peach's heals. She can also help out other characters with her Protection ability, which spreads out damage dealt to whoever she uses it on, sharing it between the other character and Peach. She's got a big health pool, which makes her good for absorbing damage. Throwing Peach into the heat of battle with other characters is her ideal situation, with Protection very handy in keeping other front-line fighters from getting overrun by enemies. Her Princess Gaze technique, a reaction shot used against any enemy that moves in her range, allows her to destroy a ton of cover or deal huge damage to enemies. But you'll need to keep her upgraded, and having characters at a distance as backup for covering fire is key to keeping Peach from getting outnumbered and overtaken.
Rabbid Luigi
The best way to use Rabbid Luigi is to lay down status effects that can help out other characters on the team. His gun, the Bworb, has a high capability for dishing out status effects to enemies, and his rocket launcher secondary weapon is great for stomping enemies behind cover, or even destroying their cover. But his coolest ability is his movement dash capability. Rabbid Luigi can slide tackle multiple enemies while dishing out the Vamp status effect, which lets him absorb their HP. The handy thing about Vamp is that, once it afflicts an enemy, other characters can use it, too. So if Rabbid Luigi slide tackles an enemy and gives it Vamp, Mario can shoot that same character and also absorb some of its health. That gives you the chance to stack up damage and give everyone a little healing, too. Rabbid Luigi can also use his Weaken technique to turn down the damage enemies can deal to your team, and has a shield that absorbs some damage, but mostly is good for countering status effects. Weaken is particularly good against enemies like Smashers and Bucklers, who are tough to deal with and can severely punish your team. But primarily, pairing Rabbid Luigi's movement abilities with both his weapons can be extremely effective in battles.
Luigi
You'll add Luigi to your squad in World 1-5, and he fills the role of the team's sniper. His Precision gun has the longest range of any in the game, and upgraded, it can dish out some serious punishment. He also has an automated Drone secondary weapon like Rabbid Peach, which is handy for dealing with characters under cover and for drawing fire away from the rest of the team. The best way to use Luigi is in dishing out a ton of damage from as far away from the battle as possible. He's got some handy movement capabilities, including the ability to do two Team Jumps in a single move, and Itchy Feet, a technique that increases the movement distance of everyone in range. Those two things are great for getting Luigi up to high ground, where he can hit enemies the hardest. The trouble with Luigi is has the smallest health pool of any character, which means it's easy for him to get knocked out if you don't protect him. Getting him up to high ground, though, you can use him to kill enemies quickly from across the map, especially with his Steely Stare. Like Mario's Hero Vision, it gives Luigi a reaction shot, and you can upgrade it to allow him to take as many as three. Used correctly, Luigi can take out almost any enemy on the board in one turn, but you'll need to use other characters to break up cover and give him the open shot.
Rabbid Mario
Use Rabbid Mario as your extreme, close-range bruiser, since he's great for ravaging several closely grouped enemies at once. Joining your team in World 2-5, he's a tough fighter in general, and his Boomshot shotgun can ravage cover and damage lots of tightly bunched enemies at once. He also has the same melee hammer as Mario, which deals a ton of area effect damage as well. Even better is Rabbid Mario's upgraded movement attack ability, in which he slide tackles enemies and blows them up in the process. The explosion can hit multiple enemies at once, which means you can use Rabbid Mario to just devastate groups of enemies in a single turn. Rabbid Mario's techniques include his Body Guard shield, which absorbs movement attack damage: Great for when you have to leave Rabbid Mario in the middle of a group of enemies at close range. His other technique, Magnet Dance, can draw enemies out of cover, setting up his teammates for high-damage shots after he's crashed through their defenses. The main trouble with Rabbid Mario is that he'll generally take a ton of damage for his trouble, so you'll need to be careful and keep him healthy for him to be effective.
Rabbid Yoshi
You won't pick up Rabbid Yoshi until World 3-5, but once you get him, you'll find a versatile fighter that's good in a lot of situations. He sports a machine gun called the Rumblebang that comes with some unpredictability. The range on its potential damage is the biggest in the game, meaning Rabbid Yoshi runs the risk of dealing fairly low damage, but can potentially deal extremely high damage. His secondary weapon, a Grenaduck like Peach has, gives him an option to get around cover and catch multiple enemies in an explosion. One place in which Rabbid Yoshi excels, though, is in flanking enemies and getting out of danger. You can upgrade his movement attack to catch as many as five enemies in one turn, allowing you to hurt lots of people in proximity to Rabbid Yoshi before he finds cover and starts turning on the heat with the Rumblebang. His Outer Shell technique is a damage-negating shield, which means that you can often leave him out of cover or at least close to enemies after using him to dish out a ton of damage all over the battlefield. Rabbid Yoshi's second technique, Scaredy Rabbid, is also good for keeping him safe and setting up combos with other characters. It's a scream that pushes enemies away from him in a straight line, which can push them out of cover and give him a little room to breathe. With a ton of range and a lot of mobility, Rabbid Yoshi is great to use on big battlefields where you can let him run around, getting behind the enemy.
Yoshi
Your final squadmate is Yoshi, who joins up extremely late in the game: World 4-5. Yoshi is great at long-range destruction. He carries Rabbid Yoshi's Rumblebang, which has pretty long range, and the rocket launcher Rabbid Luigi carries. Properly upgraded, he can smash cover and take out enemies from across the map. Yoshi is great for taking enemy cover with his Team Jump Ground Pound ability, as well. The range on it can get huge if you upgrade it, dishing out damage to lots of enemies in an area as well as to their cover. His Egg Beater reaction shot technique is a great follow-up for when enemies try to move to new positions to protect themselves. The other technique Yoshi packs is Super Chance, a field that activates critical shots for every ally in the area. That means you'll definitely dish out status effects to enemies once you've used it, which is handy if you've got a team with weapons that can make use of it. Use the Super Chance to activate Push, Bounce or Burn to knock people out of cover, or to drop Honey on Smashers and Bucklers that would otherwise close the cap on you and crush your characters.
By GameSpot Staff on Aug 30, 2017 12:24 am
How to Become a Master Mario + Rabbids Tactician
It's tempting to think that a strategy game featuring Mario would be simple, but Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle is anything but. While some of its elements aren't as complex as those in other strategy games, there's plenty of depth hiding in the game, and it can be pretty difficult at times. There are plenty of little things in Mario + Rabbids that are a bit different from the turn-based strategy titles you might be used to. Here's a list of things you'll want to know before you get started, which can save you time--and maybe a few losses. Kingdom Battle is out now for Nintendo Switch. It sports a season pass, which includes new weapons and a story expansion. For the uninitiated, the game sees you pick a squad of three characters to face a bunch of heinous enemy Rabbids. Its local co-op mode, meanwhile, has you team up with a friend, each controlling a squad of two. Despite the game receiving poor first impressions when a piece of concept art leaked online, it managed to defy all expectations when it was officially unveiled at E3 2017 this past June. Kindgom Battle has since been well-received by critics. GameSpot's Edmond Tran said the game "triumphs in creating a magical game world that is undeniably delightful" and called it "a consistent delight." Check out our in-depth review for our full thoughts about the game.
You Can Change Squad Members at the Start of Every Battle
This is a bit of an unintuitive element, but your team is almost never set in stone in Mario + Rabbids. In fact, before almost every battle in the game, you'll have time to survey the battlefield, switch characters, buy new weapons, and even level up your team. Take advantage of that fact and trade out characters as the situation warrants. You don't have to stick with the team you had for the last fight.
...But You Can't Change Squad Members in Boss Fights
The only battles that restrict your ability to choose new teammates are boss fights, which are activated by crossing a banner like the other chapters in the campaign. When you cross the banner, a cutscene starts, and you're stuck with whomever you bring. Work around that issue by restarting the whole chapter, rather than just the battle, and pick new characters before you head into the fight. It's better to give up early and get the fighters you want than to waste a bunch of time in a boss fight where you're struggling.
Solving Puzzles Gets You New Weapons
You may find yourself wanting to skip all the exploration that you can do in Mario + Rabbids. Most levels are pretty dense, with lots of side paths and hidden treasures to grab--but they're often items like concept art, which can feel like a lot of effort for little payoff. The puzzles are worth it, however, because they're chiefly how you'll unlock new weapons. Keep an eye out for red rings that trigger a race to pick up red coins, and blue rabbid cannons, in particular. Both give you puzzles that almost always dish out new, better guns. And you might find Power Orbs on the odd occasion that will make the time you spend exploring worth it
You Can't Buy Everything
Weapons are bought with coins after you unlock them, but your stash of money is shared across all your characters. At the beginning of the game, it doesn't seem like a big deal, but you'll quickly find out you can't buy everything, and you'll waste a lot of money if you're not careful. It's pretty rough getting stuck with a low-level gun in a late-game battle because you can't upgrade your characters. Save your money whenever you can and choose your weapon purchases very carefully.
Upgrade Your Rabbid Characters' Movement Abilities
One of the major things that sets Mario + Rabbids apart from other strategy games is its movement system. Your characters all can move around a large area every turn, and each character can actually slide tackle enemies as they move, with no penalty to their range. That means if bad guys fall in your characters' move area, you can hit them. The Rabbids in particular can often hit multiple characters in every move, which lets you dish out a ton of extra damage if you're careful. And certain enemies, like Smashers, have abilities that trigger if you shoot them but not if you slide tackle them. It's totally worth it to spend your Power Orbs to upgrade your characters' movement damage. It often functions like a free hit and can be a game-changer when used effectively.
And Upgrade Your Ability Cooldowns
It might seem wise to go straight for the damage and healing upgrades for most of your characters, but the first thing you should upgrade is their ability cooldowns. Being able to use Mario's Hero Vision or Rabbid Peach's healing capabilities as often as possible is extremely handy and worth dumping your Power Orbs on right away.
Keep an Eye on Movement Upgrades, Too
There are a variety of different battle objectives throughout the Mario + Rabbids campaign, and not all of them have you thrashing every enemy you come across. Some are chase scenes, in which you need to get from one side of the battlefield to the other in one piece. In those scenarios, you're going to be thankful you spent some Power Orbs on upgrading your characters' movement distances--or wishing you did so. It's an easy-to-overlook upgrade, but one or two extra cells of motion can be a game-changer in lots of battles, particularly as you get toward the end of the game, when enemies and bosses become much tougher.
But Don't Be Afraid to Respec At Any Time
Mario + Rabbids lets you reset and redistribute your Power Orbs at any time, and without penalty. So, if you're having trouble with a particular map, consider restarting the match and funnelling your skill points into abilities that will be useful. For example, it's often a good idea to boost everyone's movement abilities in a map that requires you to reach an area quickly.
Criticals Can Affect Your Teammates, So Be Careful
Lots of the weapons in Mario + Rabbids have a chance to dish out special effects on a critical hit. Most just hamper enemy movement or abilities, but a couple are pretty dangerous: particularly, Push and Burn. Push knocks characters out of their cover positions, sending them flying in a straight line, and Burn lights enemies on fire like they're in a Bugs Bunny cartoon, causing them to move. Trouble is, if you shoot an enemy with Push and it's too close to one of your characters, your teammate will go flying too. And if a burning character touches another character, they both get burned. Keep in mind what kind of effects your guns might have, and where you're shooting them--an unintentional critical at the wrong time can be disastrous.
You Can Restart Any Battle at Any Time
Some players aren't keen on "save scumming," but if you're having a hard time in a battle or just mess something up early, you can restart the fight from the Plus button menu whenever you want. It's handy when you accidentally send the wrong character to a location or when you're learning the ropes on a new enemy, and it can save a lot of time.
You Must Have a Rabbid on Your Team
For some reason, Mario + Rabbids doesn't let you roll a team of just Mushroom Kingdom characters--you need to bring a Rabbid along. Keep that in mind if you're thinking about buying a bunch of new weapons as you unlock new characters. It's best to be as balanced as possible and to build teams to respond to multiple situations, so try to spend time with different combinations of characters to see how their abilities mesh or clash.
Protect Mario
You're stuck with Mario on your team for the entire, since he's the "leader" of your team. Every chapter in the game features at least two battles, and the damage your characters take in the first fight stays with them through the rest. Sometimes, if you're into exploring, you can find a mushroom between battles to get some health back--but sometimes not. While you can rotate your hurt characters out for fresh ones between battles, you can't switch out Mario, which means if he takes too much damage in one fight, he can become a liability in the next. It's tempting to throw Mario into the thick of it in every battle, but keep in mind that you're stuck with him if he gets trounced.
The Tactical Camera Is Really Useful
Hitting X lets you view the battlefield from above, and it's really useful for surveying the battlefield at the beginning of a fight, getting a sense of the terrain and enemy types, and deciding who should be on your team. It's also really useful during a fight, since you can take a look at your enemy's potential movement and attack ranges--very useful for keeping yourself out of reach from Rabbid Smashers.
By GameSpot Staff on Aug 30, 2017 12:23 am
Useful Tips to Know
Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle combines two franchises into something totally different: a turn-based strategy game. But don't let the Mario-style graphics and goofy, screaming rabbids fool you. Mario + Rabbids is a deep strategy game in the style of XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and it'll test your strategy skills. To help you transition from mild-mannered plumber to Mushroom Kingdom defender, we've compiled these nine tips to get you in the right mindset. Kingdom Battle is out now for Nintendo Switch. It sports a season pass, which includes new weapons and a story expansion. For the uninitiated, the game sees you pick a squad of three characters to face a bunch of heinous enemy Rabbids. Its local co-op mode, meanwhile, has you team up with a friend, each controlling a squad of two. Despite the game receiving poor first impressions when a piece of concept art leaked online, it managed to defy all expectations when it was officially unveiled at E3 2017 this past June. Kindgom Battle has since been well-received by critics. GameSpot's Edmond Tran said the game "triumphs in creating a magical game world that is undeniably delightful" and called it "a consistent delight." Check out our in-depth review for our full thoughts about the game.
Don't Forget to Move
Mario + Rabbids has a straightforward cover system, in which hiding behind smaller walls makes characters half as likely to get hit by incoming shots, and hiding behind taller walls makes shots impossible to land. Flanking enemies is key, but one of the unique things about Mario + Rabbids is that you can deal damage to enemy characters when your characters move (and vice versa). Don't forget, every time you take a turn in a battle, that if an enemy is in range, you can stop by and do a slide tackle to them without compromising your character's ability to reach their destination or perform other actions. Try to do movement damage every turn--it's easy to forget.
Take Your Time
At the beginning of every battle, you can use the "Tacticam" by hitting X to survey the battlefield and see what you're up against. You should always check things out before you start. After the first few battles, you're able to switch characters at the start of every new fight, to better adjust your team for what you're facing. Take note of the terrain, your objectives, and what kind of enemies are on the field, then assemble the team that's be best-equipped to handle the fight.
Explore Like Crazy
Between battles, you're able to wander around the Mushroom Kingdom, and like most Mario games, there are tons of secrets. Always check for side paths or alternate ways to get places, because they usually hold extra coins you can use to buy upgraded guns and treasure chests. Lots of the secrets you find in treasure chests are unlockables like 3D models and soundtrack songs you can view at the Museum near Peach's Castle, but many also contain weapons that you can then purchase. Getting new guns is essential in Mario + Rabbids, so always take the time to look around for hidden stuff, and try returning to old areas when you have new abilities.
Don't Buy Weapons Until You Need Them
Though there are a lot of coins scattered throughout the world, guns are expensive and you have limited funds. It's tempting to try to keep everyone in your group outfitted with the best gear, but as you unlock more characters and secondary weapons, it'll be tough to keep up. Instead, save your money, and use your pre-battle preparation phase to buy new guns for the characters you plan to use next. That way, you can afford the best stuff for the characters you need, when you need it.
You Don't Always Need to Kill Every Enemy
Some battles have you taking down all the enemies on the field, but plenty of others have different objectives. Sometimes, shooting isn't the best plan, and since the game ranks your play based on how fast you clear a battle and how many of your characters survive, you have an incentive to play efficiently. In boss fights, for instance, taking out the boss instead of focusing on the smaller enemies can end the battle quicker. Don't be afraid to take risks.
Don't Be Afraid to Lose
Mario + Rabbids throws a lot of new stuff your way as you progress, including new enemies, new battlefields, and new allies. You'll spend much of the game learning new concepts and adapting to different conditions, so don't be afraid to fail. Building the right team for any given fight can be tough, and learning how different characters interact and can work together is essential for success. Mario + Rabbids also includes a feature that lets you replay old battles to get a better rank, so don't be afraid to experiment and learn from your mistakes.
Customize Your Characters To Your Playstyle
Every time you clear a world, you earn Power Orbs you can spend to increase their abilities. Ranking up your characters is essential to success, so don't sleep on upgrading them. You likely won't be able to afford every upgrade for every character even by the end of the campaign, but you can use upgrades to create a playstyle. Do you prefer using lots of character skills, or being highly mobile? Want some characters to be damage sponges? You can adjust how your team works significantly if you invest in the right areas.
Think About How You Can Use Characters Together
Essential to beating some of the tougher battles and bosses is effectively using complementary characters. For instance, you can use Rabbid Mario's Magnet Dance to draw characters out of cover, and Luigi's Steely Stare to take reaction shots triggered by their motion. You can deploy skills mid-turn to use them to make some pretty powerful combinations, so keep experimenting, and don't ignore any character skills.
Double Back For More Goodies
As you move progress, you often find areas you can't reach because you lack abilities. You unlock a new exploration ability at the end of each chapter, so it's worth it to head back and try to find the things you missed. These unexplored places often yield handy weapons, and dropping back through areas you've already cleared lets you try challenge missions for extra coins and Power Orbs. If you're struggling, try heading back to places you've already been to upgrade your characters. You can also use the Time Machine near Peach's Castle to replay old battles and earn more coins, should you need them.
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