Paper Mario belongs to Nintendo’s broader Mario franchise.
The series reimagines Mario’s world as a paper-craft adventure, but its characters, settings, enemies, and central conflict come from the wider Mario universe. Mario remains the playable hero, Princess Peach is frequently central to the story, and Bowser commonly serves as the main antagonist or a major opposing force.
The first game, released in Japan in 2000 and internationally in 2001, grew out of a planned sequel to Super Mario RPG. Although Paper Mario developed its own role-playing mechanics, humor, visual identity, and supporting cast, Nintendo continued to position it as a Mario spin-off rather than a separate franchise.
This distinction causes occasional quiz confusion. Paper Mario is not primarily a Zelda, Kirby, or Donkey Kong series, even though Nintendo’s franchises sometimes share characters or crossover appearances. It is also separate from Mario & Luigi, another Mario role-playing series developed by a different team. Both series use Mario, but they are distinct game lines.