If there's one thing a crossover between the popular children's cartoon Rabbids and the well-renowned Mario Brothers guarantees, it's a cuteness overload factor. Ubisoft introduced gamers to this hybrid idea with Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle in 2017, which proved to be highly successful, winning The Game Awards for Best Sim/Strategy Game for that year. Naturally, with such a successful product on Ubisoft's hands, it was no surprise the franchise would come up with a sequel, and Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is living up to the standards of its predecessor. Most gamers would come up with any excuse to play a Mario game, and Ubisoft crafts its characters beautifully in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. Luigi got a lot of love from the developer, and the fan-favorite Green Mario might be the game's superstar ability-wise.
Ubisoft refused to play it safe with its Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope release, distinguishing the sequel from Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle with increased freedom and improved gameplay. Players have leeway to explore the world, mix and match their roster, and move around combat areas. Speaking of rosters, characters in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope have areas of specialty to suit the combat styles of gamers. A few characters are unlocked right at the game's start after the tutorial, and contrary to regular gaming practice, Ubisoft made some of these characters useful in the long run.
Luigi's Long Range Mastery Is A Must-Have For Players
Players who prefer long-range battles would be delighted to discover the capabilities of Mario's brother, Luigi, considered one of the best distance attackers in the game. Luigi has the largest attack radius in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, and with complementary support, he is a top-tier recruit that should be high on players' lists to retain on their team. Using him comes with some drawbacks, as his HP is extremely low compared to other characters in the game, so gamers will need to have a healer on standby next to Luigi. Gamers need to consider strategy and the strengths of their teams when playing Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, and Luigi is one of the characters that require specialized usage.
He is minimally effective at close range, suboptimal but functional at mid-range, and lethal at long range. Due to his low HP and susceptibility to elemental attacks, gamers should keep Luigi hidden behind some cover. Like every other character in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Luigi has two abilities - a base and a special. The first is a Sharpshooter with the potential to one-shot opponents from long range. The weapon has a very high base damage which increases with further distance from the target, thanks to its long range.
Players can upgrade the Sharpshooter's range and effectiveness by acquiring new skills in the Skill Tree for Luigi, making him a deadly weapon in any offense. Compared to his brother Mario, Luigi does 20% more damage, despite sharing the same triggers and effects with him. Luigi's special attack, the Steely Stare, charges up his Sharpshooter simultaneously while in use by the player. When Steely Stare is activated, Luigi uses his turn to charge up his weapon for attack.
For the next turn, if the enemy moves within the radius of the Steely Stare, Luigi can launch a Sharpshooter projectile at him. Luigi's special attack covers a range of 37 meters, similar to the base Sharpshooter range. Under the influence of the Steely Stare, the projectile deals up to 120% more damage than usual - practically a death sentence for any opponent in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope. Even bosses are not unaffected by the projectile of death, with their health bars undergoing significant damage after a single hit from Luigi's special attack.
Skills and Sparks Make Luigi Even More Powerful
Once Steely Stare has been used, players will need to wait for two turns before the attack becomes available again. With its limited use, players must plan their attacks to find the best time to use the deadly special move. Luigi also has skills to enhance both his base and special attacks, and players can ignore investing in his health as Luigi should ideally never face close combat. There are a few skills that players can focus on upgrading for Luigi to make him one of the better weapons in the latest entry of the Mario + Rabbids series.
The Movement skill is essential to Luigi's style of play, as better movement allows him to create distance between himself and the opponent to maximize his weapon damage. In addition to the offensive importance, improved mobility will also help Luigi make a quick getaway if an opponent gets too close to him, serving as a mode of defense. Since Luigi's damage increases with distance, it would be a logical choice to upgrade his weapon range. Another skill for Luigi is Damage Dropoff, which gives him better chances of surviving a close-quarter battle, making him serviceable from mid-range.
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope characters boosts separate from his skills in the form of Sparks. One of the Sparks, Regenesis, is one of the best Sparks to equip to Luigi, as it increases Luigi's maximum HP by 15% and replenishes his health by 20% for two turns, compensating for his weak HP and defenses. Regenesis will help keep Luigi alive for longer, and players can continue to deal damage to their opponents from range.
Ubisoft gave so many enviable abilities to Luigi in Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, and the arcade favorite is one of the most powerful characters in the game, possibly even the superstar option for players considering the damages he can deal. He may have been nerfed with a low HP and ineffectiveness at close range, but these setbacks can easily be overcome with proper team pairing from gamers. Luigi might get even more improvements through the DLC coming to Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, so there's a lot for his fans to be excited about.
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is available now, exclusively for Nintendo Switch.
