Review of Princess Peach: Showtime!, finally an adventure for Peach


Important release of the Nintendo Switch in the first quarter of 2024, Princess Peach: Showtime! allows the famous princess to emancipate herself in an adventure that does not lack ideas. To be reserved especially for a younger audience. Our test.

It wasn’t that long ago that Princess Peach was relegated to the role of damsel in distress. The scenario of all Mario games was predictable: the person concerned was kidnapped, and the plumber was then tasked with saving her. Since then, Nintendo has evolved and so has Peach’s role. We saw her win races in Mario Kart, place unstoppable slice backhands in Mario Tennis (stronger than Benoît Paire), put skylights in Mario Foot (better than Kylian Mbappé) or even take up arms in the film Mario animation (where she is more badass than ever). And in Princess Peach: Showtime!now she emancipates herself once and for all.

Like Luigi’s Mansion for Luigi, Princess Peach: Showtime! allows another character imagined by Nintendo to steal the spotlight from Mario, its ultimate mascot. He is also completely absent from the video game available from March 22, 2024 exclusively on Switch – proof that Peach can exist without him. For the Japanese firm, there is no question of offering a pale copy of a Mario platform game, in order to avoid the feeling of being reheated. To thrive, Peach must save a theater whose performances are attacked by a mysterious enemy.

The Peach game is two buttons for a shower of ideas

With its soft graphics and its total refusal of violence, Princess Peach: Showtime! is primarily aimed at a very young audience. This observation is supported by Nintendo’s choice to limit the gameplay to two small buttons, apart from the commands to control Peach’s movements. This accessibility allows the game to be enjoyed by everyone. The child, a bit of a neophyte, will find it a good springboard to discover the world of video games. The adult, perhaps more expert, will see it as a way to decompress between two quests in the much more austere Dragon’s Dogma 2 (available the same day).

Princess Peach: Showtime! // Source: Nintendo
Peach ninja! // Source: Nintendo

Please note, this “simplistic” approach in no way means that Princess Peach: Showtime! doesn’t offer anything interesting. It’s quite the opposite: to carry out her mission, Peach must don different costumes which grant her special powers. But above all it is a way of offering truly varied phases of play, ranging from beat them all to infiltration, including a cooking mini-game when Peach improvises as a chef (Overcooked style!). As there is an alternation between the levels, arranged on the floors of the theater, we constantly have the feeling of having a renewed experience. It’s a bit of an illusion, but it works. Princess Peach: Showtime! digs into a lot of things, but does it with enough mischief to put a smile on your face.

Princess Peach: Showtime! // Source: NintendoPrincess Peach: Showtime! // Source: Nintendo
Peach in chef mode // Source: Nintendo

Once again, Princess Peach: Showtime! allows Nintendo to display its immense know-how, with certainly less ambition than for some of its gems (Super Mario Bros. Wonder is the latest notable example). In any case, it is based on enough ideas to highlight. They allow you to have a good time on your Switch, without giving the feeling of replaying a disguised Mario game for the umpteenth time. In this sense, Princess Peach: Showtime! appropriates the philosophy of Luigi’s Mansion : take a hero we know and offer him his own adventure, with his own codes.

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Manage my choices

In the end, the only criticism we can really make of Princess Peach: Showtime! is its cruel lack of challenge. Someone who has played ten video games in their life will be able to watch the end credits in a short weekend without any problem. This is little.

The verdict

Princess Peach: Showtime! somewhat reminiscent of Luigi’s Mansion in its essence. And that’s a nice compliment. To offer a real adventure to its most famous princess, Nintendo has imagined varied and accessible gameplay. With just two button presses, Princess Peach: Showtime! manages to accomplish a lot.

However, it should be remembered that Princess Peach: Showtime! is a game primarily intended for young people. Its ambitions are quite limited and the absence of challenge, historically present in Mario games, could slow down more than one. Seeing Peach having fun in her own game is still great news for fans.

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