Wario is back making us look like fools again…
Strike a pose with a multitude of motion-based microgames in a brand-new entry in the WarioWare™ series! Grab a pair of Joy-Con™ controllers and get moving as you gently shake, punch, dance, wiggle, and even curtsey through over 200 lightning-fast microgames (minigames that last just a few hilarious seconds). A second player* can use another set of Joy-Con controllers to join the treasure-guarding, sheep-twirling fun. Up to 4 players, each with one Joy-Con controller, can laugh out loud in the local Party Mode’s minigames like a dicey board game with Wario-style rules.
I’ve been a huge fan of the WarioWare series since the original GBA outing. It’s just such a bizarre concept, but one that has worked for years now. Move It is the latest in Nintendo’s attempt to humiliate ourselves in front of our friends with motion controls. You use the Joy-Cons in a bunch of bizarre and compromising positions to complete a series of short burst mini-games that vary from wiggling, dancing, shaking and punching to others that I will leave you to discover for yourself…
The minigames themselves are great fun and having to switch up different methods of holding your Joy-Cons at random intervals keeps you on your toes (unless the minigame suggest otherwise, just kidding…) You will definitely need to use the wrist strap though as some actually require you to drop your Joy-Con which I wouldn’t recommend without it unless you want to buy a new pair soon afterwards.
As with past WarioWare games, there’s a main story where you play as Wario and then his friends, each with their own particular style of minigames to beat. At the end of each, there will be a Boss Stage of sorts which can vary from rotating a poison apple out of a stomach-like maze or moving your arms out of the way so you don’t let water put out the candles you are holding and a bunch of others that will test your body and sanity equally.
During the story sections, you usually get 4 attempts to mess up before Game Over. This time you actually get a second chance of 4 extra lives if you complete and hold a pose for a short time. This can come in very handy for those tougher Boss Stages or if you haven’t quite got the gist of what a minigame is asking you to do. Two players can work together or you can play competitively with up to 4 across a board game in Party Mode. This is also a great time with friends, though you probably will end up pulling a hernia from laughing so much at your own or others expense.
The visuals are typical of the series so it’s a mixture of animated, quirky or retro scenes throughout. There is a new Wario voice-actor as well, now that Mario royalty Charles Martinet has left the voice-acting roles for the series. It won’t come as a huge shock that it’s none other than Kevin Afghani who took over the roles of Mario and Luigi in the recently brilliant Super Mario Wonder. Kevin does a great job here as well, so I’m confident with him in the roles going forward.
The Verdict
Anyone looking for a classic battle of fun and humiliation will have a blast with WarioWare: Move It. It has some of the strangest combinations of minigames and methods of how to use your Joy-Cons, which WarioWare has always been at its strongest when it pushes the scope of how to use our controllers. I cannot wait to see what madness Wario comes up with next!