Nintendo's WarioWare Gold launches this week, and if we're judging the game within a vacuum, it's pretty good. We've been micro-gaming with the WarioWare series for just a hair over 15 years (a squiggly, Wario mustache hair, for sure), and Gold lands as a 'best-of' compilation—one that finally brings the franchise to the 3DS, no less.
WarioWare is also where Nintendo lets its freak flag fly, and Gold gets beautifully weird. The artists interpret Wario in different ways throughout the game-one microgame might render him in.
But WWG is difficult to judge within a vacuum. The game's release date puts it in a rarified air among first-party Nintendo games: it arrives within a system's end-of-life window. In case you haven't noticed, the 3DS side of Nintendo has been tumbleweed city these days.
Corporate promises of continued support and new, limited-edition 3DS systems don't obscure the slim pickings that are currently announced for the beloved handheld's future: a Luigi's Mansion port and Yokai Watch sequel by year's end, then a Mario & Luigi RPG port in 2019. WWG is arguably the most interesting game left in that 'farewell tour' selection.
Thus, let's fondly remember the fun WWG still offers—and the historical context it shares with other Nintendo 'flatliners.'
Going for the Gold
The WarioWare franchise began when WarioWare: Mega Microgame$ launched in 2003 as a Game Boy Advance exclusive with a wild sales pitch: one cartridge would include hundreds of games... but each lasts no more than five seconds.
This quality has persisted in subsequent WarioWare games, and it applies to WWG as a series compilation, too. Each WWG mini-game starts with a one- or two-word instruction shout—'Dodge,' 'Squash,' 'Don't Move,' etc.—and an expectation that you'll figure the mini-game out before its timer expires. Fail too many mini-game challenges in a given run, and that's game over. This inevitably happens, since each mini-game's timer speeds up dramatically the longer you play.
WarioWare games have appeared across a few platforms over the years: two on the GBA, two on the original DS, one exclusively for the DSi, one on the Wii, and a series spin-off on the Wii U. Each release since Microgame$ has emphasized its unique hardware in one way or another, whether by exposing a console's built-in tricks or, in the case of the GBA's WarioWare Twisted, utilizing a gyrometer and rumble feature built into a cartridge. As a result, an encyclopedic WarioWare anthology would require a few things: a touchscreen, a gyroscope attached to a screen, an accelerometer attached to a remote, a camera, and support for user-created content.
WWG leaves a few of those options out of the running—namely, anything from the Wii's Smooth Moves or the DSi's Snapped. Most of WWG's mini-games fall under one of three umbrellas. 'Mash' games use a D-pad and one button; 'twist' games force players to rotate the 3DS to move things around the screen; and 'touch' games are completed by tapping and dragging a stylus on the bottom touchscreen.
The game starts by asking players to beat 'story' levels, which focus on one of the three main control types—meaning, you'll face 15-25 mini-games in a row that must be controlled using only 'mash,' only 'twist,' and so on. These are solid enough, but WWG is at its best when you've beaten the main game and unlocked 'challenge' mixes of various mini-games. In these challenge modes, Wario will serve any of the package's mini-games at random, and while some of these modes offer brief hints to which control type is about to appear, harder versions do not.
Once I got to these modes, I realized how meek the default, no-surprises content felt in comparison. The challenge ramp-up is probably perfect for anybody new to Wario's bizarre, dorky, and sometimes gross mini-games, but I've been down this road before. Because I don't have all of the original games handy, I can only estimate (having beaten every WarioWare game) that roughly two-thirds of WWG's mini-games come from older titles. The math isn't important, however, because the mechanics of all 300 games are absolutely familiar.
WarioWare games have never been about the individual mini-games being so precious that they deserve memorializing. Instead, these tiny blips add up to a bewildering experience—where you're plucking nose hairs one moment, then protecting a kitty from the rain, then rotating your 3DS to avoid stomping massive feet on tiny underlings. For all of the memorization you might do, a full-game run of varied mini-games still requires some mental calisthenics, and WWG triples the required bandwidth—in its best challenge modes, at least.
Beating the campaign will unlock 80-90 percent of the mini-games, while going back into challenge modes will randomly unearth the remaining mini-games—and you'll want to do this to unlock a treasure trove of extra stuff. WWG harkens back to the golden years of grinding to unlock a litany of hidden, bonus features, and WWG arguably has the most of these yet in this series. The most fun of these unlockables include lengthy, arcade-caliber games, particularly a new entry in WarioWare's silly 'Mewtroid' spin-off and a solid, motion-controlled clone of the indie iOS hit Desert Golfing.
Sadly, this all hinges on a basic random-unlock system, so you're stuck unlocking a lot of garbage—including text-only crank phone calls and character-themed alarm clocks. In reviewing the game, I found that the unlocking process was slower when playing the more entertaining challenge mixes of its mini-games. I could earn coins much faster by playing the more repetitive mixes of WWG's mini-games. I certainly prefer this path over paid microtransactions, but a poorly managed dribble of unlocks isn't much better.
Although it's been 15 years since Wario's bite-sized games initially captivated gamers with low attention spans, they're back and better than ever. WarioWare Gold contains a huge amount of rapid fire content so pop an Adderall and let's play!
If you've played a WarioWare game before then you'll know exactly what to expect from WarioWare Gold. I played every single game in the series since it debuted back in 2003 and consider myself a big fan. However, if you have no idea what this crazy franchise is about then allow me to explain. You're basically presented with a rapid succession of tiny 'games' that have you perform simple tasks such as tuning in a radio by tilting the 3DS, partaking in a mini version of a Game & Watch game, picking noses, and steering someone out of the way of a dummy using their phone on the sidewalk. It's ridiculous stuff and considering there are 300 of these games included plus 16 boss games that pose lengthier challenges; there's certainly a lot of hilarity to enjoy that will thoroughly test your reflexes.
One thing that WarioWare Gold offers that the other games in the series simply can't live up to is a fantastic collection of cutscenes that break up the crazy gameplay. They're impressively entertaining whether you're a youngin or in your early 30s (apparently). These scenes are full of wacky characters, stories that go nowhere, and plenty of non sequiturs that'll make you either laugh out loud or scratch your head. Heck, Wario even farts for no reason in one of the scenes. It's hilarious stuff and I loved watching these short movies.
Back to the gameplay, WarioWare Gold contains a great deal of variety. For starters, the mini-games are either played by tapping buttons, tilting the 3DS, using a stylus on the touchscreen, or blowing into the microphone. If you've played as much WarioWare as I have then you'll recognize these input methods from previous games such as WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames! as well as WarioWare: Twisted! and Touched! There are also games ripped straight from Smooth Moves, D.I.Y., and Game & Wario. It is somewhat disappointing that I recognized a great deal of games from other installments in the series but there are plenty of new games, too. My favourite ones are based on classic Nintendo titles such as Mario Bros., Yoshi's Island, Pushmo, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Balloon Fight.
The amount of content in WarioWare Gold provides it with a ton of replay value. First up, the story mode contains 18 stages that you can probably complete within 1 or 2 gaming sessions but you can then try them again and aim for high scores. Speaking of which, you'll eventually unlock a variety of challenge modes that add a layer of excitement to the microgame action by incorporating elements such as making sure 9-Volt's mom doesn't catch him playing games, having Wario try and interrupt your gameplay, and there's even a competitive multiplayer mode that uses Local Play. Playing these challenges and multiplayer against a friend is definitely enjoyable but the lack of Download Play and online rankings limits the amount of fun you can have. That reminds me; there's no 3D support at all either.
On the plus side, WarioWare Gold has a huge list of achievements to check off as you play and a vast assortment of trinkets to unlock via a capsule machine that uses earned gold coins. These trinkets are collected in the toy room and include bonus mini-games (which are clearly the most enjoyable unlockables), the ability to dub your voice over the cutscenes, collectible Nintendo memorabilia, tunes from the game's soundtrack, and some very cool interactive goodies. My favourite one is where you scan an amiibo to make Wario paint it. The result almost always looks like a kid drew it and you get awarded some bonus coins, too.
WarioWare Gold is the ultimate collection of microgames. With so many ways to play, oodles of unlockable goodies, and hilarity lurking around every corner; you'd be a goof not to enjoy Wario's latest fun-filled cash grab.
- + Tons of microgames that offer loads of variety and ridiculous fun
- + Super-charming and funny cutscenes
- + Massive amount of content to unlock
- - Many of the games are ripped straight from previous iterations of the series
- - No Download Play mode, 3D functionality, or online leaderboards