Wario Land II

"Mario rules, but Wario is just as good!"

Mario’s evil twin returns for another adventure on the Game Boy circuit! The sinister Wario makes another comeback in this exciting sequel.

The story continues from the last game. Wario wakes up in his humble castle just to find all his treasure stolen by the Black Sugar Gang, led by the dastardly Captain Syrup! Upon hearing this, he will stop at nothing to chase after the crooks and get his treasure back, which are scattered all over Wario’s Land.

There’re definitely some improvement from the last game. First of all, Wario is immortal, meaning that he cannot die or lose/collect any lives, unlike many Mario series. Instead of all the fancy headwear you pick up, you can allow Wario to change into different forms to progress through the levels. For instance, get squashed by a giant block and our flat friend can slowly drift onto a narrow gap he can never get through in his normal form!

As for the level standard, certain stages had to be played through once more in order to obtain everything in the game. Whether you missed an opportunity to gain one of Wario’s treasures or lost a map piece in a bonus stage, this can last a few hours of your time. Once the game is completed for the first time, you can retrace your steps to collect the missing items and beating the game 100%.

Storyline
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5/10
Wario’s treasure is missing, so he sets off for a journey to gain them back again. Simple, but the gameplay does all the talking instead.

Graphics
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8/10
Colourful, clear just like any Game Boy Colour game should be.

Sound and Music
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10/10
Catchy music and pleasant effects make this game worthwhile.

Controlling
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7/10
Bumping into a surprising enemy happens frequently to players like me - I hope you wouldn’t be one of them!

Lifespan
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9/10
Beating the game using your wits and brains is the best you can do to retrieve all the secrets and beat up the Black Sugar Gang.

PROS
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Crazy shapes to tackle tough situations
Colourful gameplay
Lasts a while to get everything
Much easy to deal with than Wario Land 1

CONS
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Watch out for those random enemies!
BUY OR RENT?
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A really fun game to play. I advise you to buy this if you’re wacky about Wario. This game is a real treat for those who have the Game Boy Colour and is one of the best platform title of all time.

This proves that Wario is more than a Mario clone and his games are compared in a totally new way to his goody counterpart.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 02/20/03, Updated 02/20/03