Wario World

"It's Over Already!?"

After the disappointment that was Zelda: The Wind Waker, I have been eagerly anticipating a better Nintendo original. I was hoping that I had found it with Wario World for the Nintendo Gamecube. Yet, I hesitated to buy it, because I had already read mediocre reviews. So, I went and rented it first, and sat down and played it. I had finished the game by the end of the day.

Graphics: There have been many games on the Gamecube that have broken the limits of graphical technology, such as Metroid Prime, Zelda, and Star Wars: Rogue Leader. I can say that this game is far from the standards set by the other graphical powerhouses. The game is set in a 3D environment, but also in a 2D environment. It is a side-scroller. Character models are cartoony and poorly done, and backgrounds are anything but good. All in all, not impressive. 4-10

Sound: I don't enjoy sound in games, unless there are voices that advance the storyline. I usually listen to my music instead of the game's. That is what I did with Wario World. As far as I know, the characters don't talk, and only make little grunting noises. So, I can't really rate it, but if I heard the sound, I wouldn't give it a good score. 1-10

Story: Wario steals a black jewel, which turns all his treasure into monsters. It is up to Wario to defeat the black jewel to get his treasure back. Also, Wario gets help from little monsters, who claim that Wario stole treasure from them also. Why would they help him then? A confusing, idiotic plot that deserves no recognition! 0-10

Gameplay: This is a side-scroller. The object is to get to the other side of the map, collecting certain crystals so you can gain entry to the boss battle. Yawn. There are four worlds, with two maps and a major boss battle in each. This is one of the most boring games I have ever played. The one thing that deserves recognition are the boos battles, which are creative and innovative, and practically always easy to beat. Before I could start to enjoy this game, I found out that I was already watching the credits. This game only took me three hours to beat. I have never played a game this easy before! Horrible, horrible game. 3-10

Replayability: If the player collects all the treasures in the levels, the game unlocks little minigames that you can play on the GBA. However, I did not bother to find out if the games were any good. 5-10

Buy Or Rent: Neither. This pathetic excuse for a game doesn't deserve to be played. If Nintendo wanted to convince gamers that this was a title worth buying, they should have made this game more fun, more challenging, and much, much, much longer! I hope I never have to see a game this short ever again!

Overall score: 2-10
+ Decent graphics
+ Innovative and creative bosses
+ GBA games for anyone who wants to waste time
- Stupid puzzles
- Horrible sound
- Bad character and background models
- Way too short: 2-5 hours for average gamer
- Way too easy
- Stupid enemies

Don't bother with this rubbish. It is not worth anyone's time. The redeeming factor of this title is the boos battles, but that is not worth 50$, and it is not even worth the 6$ to rent. Next time, Nintendo needs to put more thought into their titles, so fans will not get disappointed again!

Reviewer's Score: 2/10, Originally Posted: 07/14/03, Updated 07/14/03