Released in the US on May 26th, 2003, WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$! was the first in what would become a popular microgame series starring the notoriously greedy and quirky character that is Wario, and a cast of equally bizarre characters. Each character in the game comes with a collection of uniquely themed microgames, both in style and gameplay mechanics, which players will randomly play through and eventually face-off in a "boss" minigame. Once cleared, players can play that character's microgames endlessly, going for a high score as the difficulty and speed gradually ramp up. A unique aspect to WarioWare's microgames is that they are all very quick and simple concepts, making them a test of quick reflexes and the ability to quickly identify the rules of the microgame. Some microgames, like Orbulon's IQ-centric microgames, have a longer timer allowing for more complex puzzles, but short enough still to test the quick wit of the players. And perhaps one of the favorite characters of the series was 9-Volt, whose microgames were all centered around retro gaming goodness, much like an early version of what would later become NES Remix.
There was also a wealth of odd knick-knacks and side-minigames to be unlocked within the game. Some were good for a short laugh while others provided much lasting entertainment all their own. You may have noticed the Birds & Beans game that was recently featured in the 2017 Nintendo World Championship, which actually found its start as an unlockable minigame called Pyoro in Mega Microgames$!. Aside from this massive amount of gaming content to be found, these microgames also all featured such a bizarre sense of humor and absurdity that helped define a unique personality and tone for the series. From jumping over hotdogs on wheels to sniffing up dripping snot in serene anime fashion, there was no end of surprise and chuckles to be had.
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| WarioWare's addictive unlockable minigame, Pyoro. Later to be re-released as a standalone arcade game on DSiWare as Birds & Beans. |
Carrying on this hallmark of fast and funny, 2005 saw the release of two more stellar WarioWare titles, those being WarioWare: Twisted! for the Gameboy Advance and WarioWare: Touched! for the Nintendo DS. Each game made unique use of new hardware features to deliver a fresh and creative new experience. For Twisted!, the game cartridge itself was equipped with a noticeably protruding gyroscope, in which players would then need to twist and rotate the entire device to play these microgames. Meanwhile, Touched! made heavy use of the new touch screen on the Nintendo DS, having players tap, swipe, and scribble their way through another absurd assortment of microgames. These two games in particular mark in my opinion the pinnacle of fun and truly innovative gameplay of the series.
Since those entries, the series hasn't quite been able to find its footing again. 2007's WarioWare: Smooth Moves for Wii tried a slew of motion-based microgames, but the accuracy and effort of large movements weren't the perfect fit for the small, fast-paced microgames. From there, WarioWare has then experimented in smaller-scaled games, such as WarioWare: Snapped! for DSi's camera, WarioWare D.I.Y. for coding your own microgames, and Game and Wario for various uses of the Wii-U's GamePad. But none have had the lavish success that were its original trio. With that said, this series is still highly regards for those first three entries alone, as they are just as much fun to play and go for high scores today as they were when first released. Perhaps the series just needs to reevaluate and take a step back to its roots, focusing on a simpler and cohesive experience, rather than always reinventing itself. And with the Nintendo Switch taking the same approach, returning to a single-screened mobile gaming device and taking inspiration from past Nintendo consoles, the time may be ripe for a return to form on this platform. Until then, continue enjoying flying paper airplanes and saving Fronks.
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| Fronk - A frequent-appearing character in assorted microgames across all characters of the WarioWare series. |
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