as well as three original games, Relic Hunter, Wonder Journey and Fruit Shake.
UNMARKED SPOILERS FOR THE CANON PAPER MARIO SERIES!
The tropes loom before you, false hero.
- 100% Completion: Required to get The Stinger.
- Adaptational Nice Guy: Implied in Color Splash Recut, as the impatient, starving schoolchildren in Regale Trainworks deal no damage when they queue up to yell at Mario due their frustration over the broken train. Their generic Toad counterparts in the original could potentially kill their hero at low HP with their screams.
- The Atoner: Prince Montoir, having accidently released Shroomsday-as-the-Plague, intends
- Bittersweet Ending:
- Downplayed in Relic Hunter, in which the plague is gone, and in the Golden Ending, the cursed underground kingdom is freed from its curse, while the villains turn themselves to the law, one of them being the story-tied partner's mentor, and the butler who allied with Peach decides to accompany his friend so as to atone for his family's crimes.
- Played straight in Color Splash Recut. This time, Huey is unable to return to Prism Island regardless of what you do, since Splotchleek is the true source of the corruptive Black Paint and he admits he can't get back home this time, unlike Merluvlee aka the Sticker Comet.
- Botanical Abomination: The fungus Shroomsday, the Final Boss of Relic Hunter. and the floral Sporepocalypse, the Superboss of Wonder Journey.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Princess Shadhema, the true identity of Kersti. Born the daughter of the Shadow Queen and Starmageddon, and having a similar destructive power
- Dying Curse: Upon defeat
- Earn Your Happy Ending: In Relic Hunter,
- 11th-Hour Ranger: King Montgomery, the ruler of the Holey Underground
- Final Boss:
- Megasparkle Bowser (and technically Shroomsday) in Sticker Star Recut.
- Shroomsday is properly faced in Relic Hunter.
- Supershadow Cackletta in Paper Jam Recut.
- Starmageddon in Wonder Journey.
- Spotchleek Bossblob in Color Splash Recut.
- Grand Finale: Color Splash Recut can be considered this to the Recut
- Guest-Star Party Member:
- In Relic Hunter, three
- In Paper Jam Recut, a fourth party member
- Human All Along: Or rather, Shamaness, but once Shroomsday reobtains his crowns from the Sticker Comet, she reverts to the Prism Island's incarnation of Merluvlee.
- Named by the Adaptation: Whatever's sentient in the Black Paint now has a name, Splotchleek. And a voice.
- Optional Party Member:
- In Relic Hunter, Prince Montoir and his father King Montgomery.
- In Color Splash Recut, Sledge and Robin.
- Promoted to Playable:
- In Relic Hunter, Blizz aka the boss of Sticker Star World 4,
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits
- Recurring Element:
- The Pit of 100 Trials (except for Relic Hunter).
- The Shamans Merlon
- Sixth Ranger:
- In Relic Hunter Prince Montoir can be recruited by defeating him in battle,
- Flurrie, Sir Mordrat,
- Sledge, Toadsworth, Robin and...
- Take That!: In the Japanese versions, the Easy Mode difficulty (which doesn't allow you to play the final chapter) is called "Light Novel".
- The Stinger: If you get all flags in Sticker Star Recut, after defeating the final boss, ten eyes stare back at the player,
- There Is Another: Turns out the Sticker Book isn't unique
- Token Heroic Orc: Piper the Ptooie's revised design reveals that he's a descendant of Sporepocalypse, but unlike many of his creations, retained his own free will.
- Updated Re-release:
- Wham Line: False hero.
- Wham Shot
