RR: Warios Woods (NES)
By Beeks. Wednesday, 9. May 2007, 02:20:02
Every Monday Nintendo adds a few more games to their U.S. list of Virtual Console games. These games are downloadable from the Wii Shop Channel. The games come from a list consisting of the original Nintendo Entertainment System, the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, Turbo Graphix, and the Nintendo 64. Every Tuesday N+ provides you with one "Retro Review" of one game off of the list. The Retro Review is designed to introduce young or new players to some of the "classics" that made gaming what it is today, while also providing a reminder to those who have already played these games, how much fun they really had. This way, whenever you want to download a new VC title, you can have at least one place to turn to see if it was good before you spend those Wii-Points. "Read More" for the review...
This weeks' game: Wario's Woods
Game Price: 500 Wii points
Although I wish I could have grown up puzzling my way through Wario’s Woods, I only recently discovered this NES gem through Animal Crossing’s rare furniture gifts. What I found, though, was an addicting puzzler full of furry little forest creatures, a mysterious yellow Thwomp, and a very disgruntled Wario who wants our protagonist, Toad, out of his woods!
Story?As far as I can tell, there is no riveting story line that introduces us to Toad and why or how he’s been thrust into the woods that are Wario’s. But are they even Wario’s? Were these once happy woods that have suddenly been tarnished by Wario’s thirst for greed and power? Whatever the case, our hero Toad is in charge of clearing lines of creatures that reside in the trees. Every ten trees that are completed result in a confrontation between Toad and Wario, with Wario growling threats at the little mushroom boy. Eventually, a final showdown between Wario and Toad will occur, deciding the fate of the woods.
GameplayThroughout the first couple of stages, the challenge level is relatively low. Players are introduced to the concept of lining up monsters of the same color and then collecting bombs of said color to destroy the entire line. You must have at least three objects of identical hues in a row (be it vertical or horizontal) to clear it. Toad can run to and from either end of the screen picking up either single objects or an entire stack, giving him the ability to place things on top of each other. Another fun attribute is the fact that Toad can kick an object across the screen or out from under a stack—this power allows players to speed up gameplay if they wish. Combos are also attainable—for instance, if you clear one row that ultimately causes another row to clear, you have mastered a combo! The player is also granted a few extra seconds to clear the rest of the puzzle.
It might sound easy, but as the game progresses, the puzzles gradually become more challenging. More monsters line up on the screen from the get-go, bombs start falling faster, not to mention the fact that at the top right corner of the screen sits Birdo, who likes to occasionally throw out extra objects into the mix. To make matters worse, a yellow Thwomp-like block hovers above everything and descends if you aren’t clearing the area fast enough. And always one to make an appearance, Wario will shove his way into the screen if the Thwomp gets too close to the edge—the music speeds up, objects rain down twice as fast, and unless you start getting stuff out of the way, the Thwomp will eventually crush you!
There are rewards if you can manage to sweep the area of objects fast enough. Depending on your speed, any number from 1-5 coins will fall from the tree after you finish a stage. These coins can eventually buy you extra lives, so be sure to collect them before they disappear or you run to the next stage!
Types of Creatures
- Straight (Fuzz, Spud, Squeak) - These creatures can be cleared either as a column, row or a diagonal.
- Diagonal (Beaker, Scram) - These creatures can only be cleared as a diagonal.
- Color-change (Dovo) - These act like Straight creatures except that when bombed for the first time, they will change colors. The second time they are bombed, they will be cleared.
- Double-bomb (Spook) - These creatures must be bombed twice. When they are first bombed they will flash for about five seconds. While they are flashing they must be bombed again to be cleared. (excerpt from Wikipedia)
Fun Factoids:- Wario’s Woods was the last game to ever be released on the Nintendo Entertainment System. It is also the only NES game to have an ESRB rating of K-A (Kids to Adults)!
- Other versions of Wario’s Woods were released, including one for the SNES (which has the same release date as the NES version!). Two versions were released for Japan’s Satellaview—Wario’s Woods: Again and Wario’s Woods: Burst of Laughter. Burst of Laughter featured, strangely enough, two likenesses of some radio personalities that were popular in Japan at the time.
- Wario’s Woods is a very rare furniture item found in the Gamecube version of Animal Crossing. You can either boat your way out to the secret island and have the islander dig it up for you, or you can just find a secret code on the internet to give to Tom Nook.
N+ 7/10 Though it’s no Tetris, Wario’s Woods is still a challenging puzzler with tons of levels. A good buy since it is one of the cheaper VC titles, but if you happen to have a copy of Animal Crossing, you can just play Wario's Woods for free on there!
Cost: 500 Wii Points
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(10%)
By yeeliberto, # 9. May 2007, 13:56:25
By CaptainSeagull, # 9. May 2007, 15:41:15
By -MK, # 9. May 2007, 16:16:40
By Beeks, # 9. May 2007, 16:40:11
By megthemermaid, # 9. May 2007, 18:17:33
http://www.plasticbamboo.com/2007/05/09/gameboy-xp-pc/
It should be a post.
By yeeliberto, # 9. May 2007, 19:35:25
By -Lithium-, # 10. May 2007, 03:20:17
By Beeks, # 10. May 2007, 03:33:33