Princess Peach: Showtime!
If Princess Peach Had Her Own Game…
If Captain Toad tracks treasure, Luigi goes after ghosts, and Wario makes money off his microgames, what would Princess Peach do in a spinoff of her own? Princess Peach: Showtime!’s answer is that she can do pretty much anything! One moment she’s a superhero, saving the world from an alien invasion as the epic Mighty Peach. The next she’s in Disney On Ice, with Figure Skater Peach’s elegant routines and synchronized skating. That constant variety and delightfully original stage play aesthetic help lift Showtime! up, even when its otherwise simple gameplay and inconsistent performance could have used a few more rehearsals before opening night. Princess Peach’s first solo outing in nearly two decades may not earn a standing ovation, but I still had a nice time at the show.
Inside the Sparkle Theater
Showtime! takes place entirely within the Sparkle Theater, a can’t-miss destination for thespians and theatergoers in the Mushroom Kingdom. Apart from the pair of Toads that accompany the Princess on her quickly-disrupted vacation, Showtime! forgoes everything else familiar about the world of Mario, replacing the (arguably overused) Goombas, Koopas, and Shy Guys with new antagonist Grape and her wicked Sour Bunch. While the Sour Bunch and the Theet – the friendly inhabitants of the Sparkle Theater – feel a little bit generic, it’s refreshing to see a Peach-focused adventure entirely removed from the main series’ trappings of Bowser kidnappings, flagpoles, and Super Mushrooms. Nintendo has given Peach ownership of something wholly original in the same way that Luigi’s Mansion gave Mario’s brother his own identity, and I sincerely hope this is just the start of an ongoing series for our Princess.
The Theatrical Experience
Showtime! excels in its admirable commitment to that stage play look and feel. Every level really leans into the idea that this whole adventure is taking place inside a theater, and the results are incredibly charming and memorable. A spotlight is always shining on Peach, which looks especially cool during levels that take place at night; all of the backgrounds look like handbuilt wooden sets you’d see in a high school play; some enemies are held up by puppet strings; and sometimes the whole stage rotates 180 degrees to give the illusion of entering a brand new room without the camera angle changing. These delightful touches make Showtime! a joy to play through even when the things you’re actually doing on that stage aren’t always as compelling.
Transformers: Princess Peach in Disguise
Across Showtime’s roughly eight-hour campaign, you’ll find multiple stages for each of Peach’s 10 transformations. Nintendo is really good at picking the right character to pair with a new concept, and this character is an awesome choice to play these different roles. Her costume design is great for each and every one, from the Zorro-esque Dashing Thief to the classic investigator look of Detective Peach, and it’s fun to see her do brand new things we haven’t seen in a Mario game before. Every transformation introduces its own story told across three acts, new abilities, and unique set design and music that fit the transformation’s vibe. Despite every level taking place in the theater, the locations all manage to feel distinct from each other, meaning Showtime! never feels repetitive as you switch between them.
Exploring Different Genres
Your favorite transformation is probably going to depend on your preferred game genres, and that’s a credit to how well Showtime! streamlines recognizable ideas for beginners. I’m a massive Ace Attorney fan, so naturally I loved solving mysteries as Detective Peach where I got to examine crime scenes for evidence and call out witnesses on their lies – I was never stumped by the mystery or shocked by an unexpected twist, but it was fun to see an incredibly simplified version of a genre I know so well. Ninja Peach puts a fun spin on a stealth game, as she holds up wooden disguises to blend into tall grass and breathes underwater using an adorable bamboo chute while she tiptoes around and sneak attacks her enemies.
Boss Battles and Challenges
Great boss design is one of Showtime’s strong suits, whether it’s foes waiting at the end of individual levels or bigger bads Peach must face to restore each floor of the Sparkle Theater. The first Swordfighter Peach level wraps up with a fight against a giant plant right out of Little Shop of Horrors, and one of the more memorable boss encounters had me hiding behind walls to stay out of sight of a giant snake on the prowl. Kung Fu Peach’s levels end in one-on-one brawls that are pretty much just quick time events, but they’re certainly fun to look at.
Completing the Performance
Like most Nintendo platformers, the main way to squeeze more out of the adventure is to go for 100% completion, and Showtime! sadly stumbles in this department. The best Nintendo games have a range of difficulty, where they’re easy for players of any skill level to get through, but tougher and more rewarding for advanced players who want to search every nook and cranny for secrets and collectibles. To its credit, Showtime! is packed with shiny things to find, as each level has a handful of Sparkle Gems and cosmetics to track down.
Technical Hiccups
I also hoped Princess Peach: Showtime! would be the tentpole Nintendo Switch game for 2024 that would distract from the endless speculation about new hardware, but sadly, it instead serves as a stark reminder of why so many people are ready to move on from this beloved but aging console. The graphics simply don’t always look that great, especially compared to other gorgeous Switch games starring Mario and friends like Wonder and Luigi’s Mansion 3. Peach herself often looks blurry, and the inconsistent framerate really pulled me out of the action at times. Framerate stutters are most prevalent during cutscenes or moments with lots of action, and the performance fails some of Showtime’s most exciting bits.