Review in Progress: Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope

destructoid.com:

The first Mario + Rabbids crossover was an interesting, surprising mix of ideas that you wouldn’t presume would work together. But while Kingdom Battle laid out the groundwork, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope feels like it’s expanding the ideas and making something a bit more its own. And it’s all the better for it.

It doesn’t take long to get into the actual battles in Sparks of Hope. While the crew is lounging about at Peach’s Castle, they’re suddenly thrust into an interstellar conflict. The evil Cursa is vying for control of the galaxy. Meanwhile, Lumas are being turned Rabbid, making them into Sparks that need Mario and crew’s help.

Mario, Luigi, and Peach all rejoin the starting roster, alongside their Rabbid counterparts. Down the line, more characters are recruitable, including Bowser and Rabbid Rosalina. All of the characters have new weapons that feel much more distinct than those in the previous game. The Rabbids also talk a lot more, making vocal quips during fights and chipping in during plot moments, and it’s honestly a very welcome addition. Rabbid Mario cracks me up every time he chimes in.

In battle, the difference between Sparks of Hope and its predecessor becomes much more apparent. The grid-based, XCOM-style approach to combat has been replaced with an action-oriented, circular free-movement system. With each turn, characters can roam around within their potential area of movement. They can dash, use special abilities, and team jump off each other; their position only locks in place once they’ve fired a weapon.

Though it took me a few battles to get the hang of it, I’ve grown pretty fond of this system. It doesn’t just break Sparks of Hope a little further from other tactics games but makes fights feel