It’s pretty crazy to think how in the four decades of the Mario series, Peach has only ever been a central playable character on a handful of occasions. In most cases, even when playable, she’s been part of an ensemble, like in party games, Mario 2 USA, or Mario RPG. But in Princess Peach showtime, she takes center stage – literally.
Something of Peach’s showtime adventure calls to mind Yoshi’s Story on N64, in fact. That game had a storybook aesthetic, with the game’s narrative framed as a bedtime story told to restless Yoshis. Showtime’s core conceit is that everything that takes place does so within a theater – as part of a series of plays, something that lives up to an age-old Miyamoto philosophy.
Each ‘level’ the game offers is a different show, which leaves Peach able to change into a variety of costumes and take on a variety of different abilities. This is basically a game about role-play, in the traditional non-gaming sense.
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