Author: Rich Meister
You’ve made it; it’s time since I came on and launched an editorial section for SwordChomp we knew the legendary day would arrive. It’s time to review a Wario Game! Warioware is an insane series and probably one of the most objectively strange and entertaining things that Nintendo has ever done, and I’ve been head over heels for it since way back in the GBA era.
Warioware: Get It Together is Intelligent System’s latest foray into the world of Wario and the Diamond City crew of weirdos that all hang out together for some reason. Get It Together hits some of the micro game-highs of the series past but struggles in the spots it tries to change, namely in being a cooperative experience and offering an interesting choice of character options to play around with.
Warioware: Get It Together (Nintendo Switch)
Developer: Intelligent Systems
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: September 10, 2021
MSRP: $49.99
On the surface, Get It together presents the same package Warioware players are accustomed to an engaging but light story. This one follows Warioware Inc.’s latest game release that is so riddled with bugs the entire Diamond City crew is sucked in and forced to play through a series of microgames to rescue each other and fix their game. For each section of the game, You have to select a series of three to five characters to play as that rotate throughout each game. While the microgame formula is the same and compelling as ever, conveying a quick objective with a single glance, things like plugging a giant nose or knocking over a vase, each character handles entirely differently.
Wario moves on his jetpack through the 2D plane and attacks in the direction he’s moving like in Wario platformers, while characters like Mona or 9-Volt are constantly moving and attack with projectiles. The cast is enormous, and as a result, some characters end up feeling pretty useless. Even two character sets work identically but are only truly viable in co-op, with one player attacking to the right and the other to the left.
Every character has their merits but certain microgames feel completely at odds or downright impossible with some of them. Warioware is at its best when you’re moving quickly, and losses feel genuine and not punishing. These problems are slight on the surface but can mess with the overall flow of a game session.
These same problems are persistent when trying to play the game in co-op. Warioware is about learning; you see a game and understand it quickly. You may fail, but in failure, you learn what was done wrong. Embracing that loop can be harder with two players. When one player understands a concept another can’t quite grasp, the game’s trademark speed grinds to a halt and sucks any fun out of the session.
For a game trying to embrace multiplayer sensibilities, it still plays best as a solo experience or a pass the controller competitive one.
In the back end, after completing the brief story, Warioware once again finds its legs in the post-game. Weekly challenges and a vast collection of structured games, including things as simple as a don’t let this ball touch the ground promise to make it a fun party game even if engaging with the built-in co-op is the least fun way to enjoy it, passing that controller around while you have a few drinks with some friends is as fun as ever.
There’s a built-in promotion system that leads to unlocking fun art and color palette options for the characters you like playing as, and it even keeps track of your playtime on individual characters in an attempt to prove just how useless 5-volt is, I guess.
Verdict: Warioware Get It Together is fun when playing a particular way. Strangely enough, that way is entirely at odds with the game’s marketing. This co-op-driven game ends up being a solid single-player experience, even if it’s weak for the franchise overall: fun but probably not fifty dollars fun.
Wait for a sale
[This review is based on a retail build of the game purchased by the reviewer]