Wario Land 4

"Wario Land 4 Lives Up to His Name And the Standards"

Get your greed face on and let us muster gluttony for the precious riches within a mysterious pyramid. Mario’s flipped persona arrives in his latest installment that is Wario Land 4. Perusing through a newspaper and driven to the untouched riches of a recently discovered wonder, the ever so dogged Wario is oblivious to the demises of earlier attempts. Up for the thrill and as money-hungry as America’s lovable politicians (ha-ha), Wario seeks out the pyramid.

As 2D side-scrollers go, Wario Land 4 lives up to the portable gaming standards. Using the incredible power of the GBA, a whole new height of action is consigned for players. Squeezing high results, their new disposal consists of Wario’s truckload of expert moves like his mighty butt stomp, the decisive bash, the swift slide, and much, much more. With his new array of techniques, the overtly fat Wario earns a thumbs-up for his trickier side of side-scrolling gaming. Besides collecting items to complete the stages, Wario must now go deep into guarded enemy territory and keep his guard on his health. Wario’s life, now embodied as heart containers, must be sustained by dodging attacks. If the containers drain clear, the player is tossed back to the stage’s entrance and as a penalty, loses all items found. Some areas in the pyramid are to be advanced by the help of enemies. Wario must proceed towards certain enemies and imitate their special property. Wario goes through a type of metamorphosis if successfully in contact with an enemy. There are also quite a few screen-filling bosses the players square off against. Clever ways of attacking them must be utilized in order to defeat the overgrown menaces. If the player has any snag, he can simply purchase power-ups at a shop then vanquish the colossal brutes. Lastly the three dandy mini-games such as the home run derby, match the face game, and doge the whizzing objects, add to enhance the replay value. Difficulty-wise, Wario Land 4 proves to be as painless as old-schooling gaming can get.

Wario Land 4 is a great 2D platform and shows with its bountiful stages. Fast, smooth, and clean gameplay is generally found everywhere with the gaudy graphics. Let’s face it, there is no other finer side-scroller on the market right now (other than the Castlevania one), and this is a portable title gone the extra mile.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/23/02, Updated 01/23/02