Wario's Woods
Encyclopedia
is a puzzle game, developed and published by Nintendo
, for both the Nintendo Entertainment System
and Super Nintendo Entertainment System
. The NES version was released in Japan
on February 19, 1994, and both versions were released simultaneously in North America
on December 10, 1994. Because of the increasing popularity of the Super NES, Wario's Woods was the last licensed game released for the NES, and is also the only game in its library to have an official rating by the ESRB
.
Wario's Woods is a falling block game where the objective is to clear the playing field of monsters by using bombs, arranging them into rows of matching colors. Unlike other puzzle games such as Tetris
, where the player directly manipulates the game pieces, the player controls Toad
, who moves around the playing field and arranges them after they have fallen.
The game was re-released in various forms, first available as a broadcast on the Satellaview
from April 1995 to June 2000; as a collectable, playable item in the 2001 Nintendo GameCube
game Animal Crossing; and for purchase as a Virtual Console
title for the Wii
in 2006.
, where the initial number of monsters increases. The monsters themselves also begin to vary, ranging from requiring two matches to completely destroy them or can only be cleared in diagonal rows.
Unlike other action puzzle games such as Tetris
or Puzzle League
where the player directly manipulates the game pieces, either as they fall or via a cursor, the player directly controls the character Toad
, who moves around inside the playing field atop the fallen objects. Toad primarily can pick up individual objects or lift entire stacks and place them elsewhere in the playing field, but is unable to manipulate objects he cannot immediately reach. However, Toad can perform a variety of additional tricks, such as scurrying up stacks to retrieve specific objects or kicking them across the play field. If the player cannot clear the playing field of its objects quickly enough, the play field will eventually fill to the brim and trap Toad, resulting in a Game Over
.
The player is also given a pseudo time limit
called the "Time Gauge," which switches between Bomb Time and Enemy Time each time it expires, causing the game rules to change. During Bomb Time, Birdo
drops bombs into the playing field. During Enemy Time, Wario
drops monsters into the playing field and lowers the ceiling, shrinking the available space and making it both harder to arrange objects and easier for the playing field to quickly fill up.
is awarded each time the player accumulates a certain total.
, a satellite modem
add-on for the Super Famicom. The first version was copyrighted in 1994 and released under the name . The Bakushō Version featured personalities
from the Japanese radio comedy show, Bakushō Mondai
(JA).
The second version of Wario's Woods broadcast for Satellaview was released under the name . It was broadcast from 1995 until June 30, 2000, throughout the lifespan of the Satellaview. The game was quite popular and it was rebroadcast at least seven times throughout the tenure of St.GIGA
's Satellaview-broadcasting period. The game was also broadcast at least once as one of the Satellaview's special event versions.
The NES version of Wario's Woods is available as collectable item in the 2001 game Animal Crossing for the Nintendo GameCube
, obtained through special means. This version was also one of the first titles available for the Wii
Virtual Console
, released alongside its launch in North America, Australia and Europe, and on December 12, 2006 in Japan. It is currently available for purchase at the Wii Shop Channel
for 500 Nintendo Points.
rated Wario's Woods 4 stars out of 5 for the NES version, and 3.5 stars out of 5 for the SNES version. Christian Huey, who reviewed the NES version, stated that the controls were "both surprisingly complex and completely intuitive" while the gameplay has a "surprising level of depth," and labeled the two-player versus mode as "an extremely welcome addition to the core game." Scott Alan Marriott, who reviewed the SNES version, felt that the game "doesn't quite measure up to the addictiveness of either Tetris
or Dr. Mario
," citing the game's "extremely awkward" controls and complicated gameplay. While Marriott appreciated "that the developers were trying something new," he concluded that "Sometimes when you add things to an already proven formula [for action puzzle games], you dilute the ingredients that made it a success." Because Nintendo Power
ceased coverage of NES games starting with its March 1994 issue (the NES version was released in December that year), it only reviewed the SNES version of Wario's Woods, awarding it a score of 3.375 out of 5.
The reviews for the Virtual Console
release ranged from mixed to positive, applauding the gameplay and depth, but criticizing the choice to release the primitive NES version over the more comprehensive SNES version. Lucas Thomas of IGN
awarded the game an 8.0 out of 10, praising the game's unique approach to the puzzle genre and graphics that "took full advantage of the 8-bit
hardware [and were] full of character," but recommended "saving [one's] points for the SNES version, if it becomes available." Aaron Thomas of GameSpot
gave Wario's Woods a score of 7.0 out of 10, admiring the "fun, addictive game play" and "surprising amount of depth," but criticizing the game's repetitive music and poor sound effect
s, adding that he also prefers the "ideal" SNES version. Nintendo Life scored the game 6 out of 10, stating that while the game is fun, "enjoyment for most will no doubt be short-lived."
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
, for both the Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo Entertainment System
The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...
and Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...
. The NES version was released in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
on February 19, 1994, and both versions were released simultaneously in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
on December 10, 1994. Because of the increasing popularity of the Super NES, Wario's Woods was the last licensed game released for the NES, and is also the only game in its library to have an official rating by the ESRB
Entertainment Software Rating Board
The Entertainment Software Rating Board is a self-regulatory organization that assigns age and content ratings, enforces industry-adopted advertising guidelines, and ensures responsible online privacy principles for computer and video games as well as entertainment software in Canada, Mexico and...
.
Wario's Woods is a falling block game where the objective is to clear the playing field of monsters by using bombs, arranging them into rows of matching colors. Unlike other puzzle games such as Tetris
Tetris
Tetris is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was released on June 6, 1984, while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic...
, where the player directly manipulates the game pieces, the player controls Toad
Toad (Mario)
Toad, known in Japan as , is a fictional character belonging to an anthropomorphic mushroom-like species of the same name in the Mario series, created by Shigeru Miyamoto. A citizen of the Mushroom Kingdom, Toad is one of Princess Peach's most loyal attendants and is constantly working on her behalf...
, who moves around the playing field and arranges them after they have fallen.
The game was re-released in various forms, first available as a broadcast on the Satellaview
Satellaview
The is a satellite modem add-on for Nintendo's Super Famicom system that was released in Japan in 1995. Available for pre-release orders as early as February 13, 1995, the Satellaview retailed for between ¥14,000 and 18,000 and came bundled with the BS-X Game Pak and an 8M Memory Pak.The...
from April 1995 to June 2000; as a collectable, playable item in the 2001 Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
game Animal Crossing; and for purchase as a Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
title for the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
in 2006.
Gameplay
The objective of Wario's Woods is to clear the playing field of monsters of varying colors by using bombs of matching color, which are dropped into the field from the top of the screen. In order to do so, the monsters and bombs must be rearranged by the player such that three or more objects of the same color are placed adjacent to one another in horizontal, vertical, or diagonal rows, with at least one object being a bomb (such rows are called a match). For example, a match may consist of two red monsters and one red bomb, but may also consist of two red bombs and one red monster. When the play field is cleared of all the monsters, the player progresses to the next roundLevel (video gaming)
A level, map, area, or world in a video game is the total space available to the player during the course of completing a discrete objective...
, where the initial number of monsters increases. The monsters themselves also begin to vary, ranging from requiring two matches to completely destroy them or can only be cleared in diagonal rows.
Unlike other action puzzle games such as Tetris
Tetris
Tetris is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was released on June 6, 1984, while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic...
or Puzzle League
Puzzle League (series)
Puzzle League is a series of video games published by Nintendo for its various video game consoles. The series began with Panel de Pon in Japan and Tetris Attack in North America, and has since been adapted to many other consoles...
where the player directly manipulates the game pieces, either as they fall or via a cursor, the player directly controls the character Toad
Toad (Mario)
Toad, known in Japan as , is a fictional character belonging to an anthropomorphic mushroom-like species of the same name in the Mario series, created by Shigeru Miyamoto. A citizen of the Mushroom Kingdom, Toad is one of Princess Peach's most loyal attendants and is constantly working on her behalf...
, who moves around inside the playing field atop the fallen objects. Toad primarily can pick up individual objects or lift entire stacks and place them elsewhere in the playing field, but is unable to manipulate objects he cannot immediately reach. However, Toad can perform a variety of additional tricks, such as scurrying up stacks to retrieve specific objects or kicking them across the play field. If the player cannot clear the playing field of its objects quickly enough, the play field will eventually fill to the brim and trap Toad, resulting in a Game Over
Game over
Game Over is a message in video games which signals that the game has ended, often due to a negative outcome - although the phrase sometimes follows the end credits after successful completion of a game...
.
The player is also given a pseudo time limit
Time limit (video game terminology)
A time limit is a phrase in video game terminology that is used to make gameplay faster on the threat of losing a life. A typical time limit can range from a single second to multiple amount of minutes. Although it is possible to have a Super Mario World level with zero seconds on the timer A time...
called the "Time Gauge," which switches between Bomb Time and Enemy Time each time it expires, causing the game rules to change. During Bomb Time, Birdo
Birdo
Birdo, known in Japan as , is a fictional character in the Mario series of video games, who first appeared in Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic, which was localized for English audiences as Super Mario Bros. 2 and is an enemy to Mario...
drops bombs into the playing field. During Enemy Time, Wario
Wario
is a fictional character in Nintendo's Mario series. The character was designed as another antagonist to Mario , and first appeared in the 1992 Game Boy title Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins as the main antagonist and final boss...
drops monsters into the playing field and lowers the ceiling, shrinking the available space and making it both harder to arrange objects and easier for the playing field to quickly fill up.
Techniques and Bonuses
The player is awarded special advantages for performing various techniques. A chain reaction, which occurs when one match triggers another match, extends Bomb Time and shortens Enemy Time. If the player clears a row that contains five or more objects, a Diamond appears, which when used in a match, automatically removes all monsters that match its color from the playing field. Upon completion of a level, the player is awarded a certain number of coins that decreases each time the Time Gauge expires, for which a continueContinue (video gaming)
Continue is a common term in video games for the option to continue the game after all of the player's lives have been lost, rather than ending the game and restarting from the very beginning.-Arcade games:...
is awarded each time the player accumulates a certain total.
Additional Modes
In addition to the main single-player mode, Wario's Woods offers two play modes: a time attack mode, where single-players complete a number of levels as fast as possible; and a competitive two-player versus mode, where each player races to clear all the monsters from his playing field before the other one does. The players can spawn monsters in their opponent's screen via the techniques mentioned above. The Super NES version gives players the option to play this multiplayer mode against computer-controlled players of increasing difficulty, while the NES version supplies unique boss battles, which are fought in a special variation of its main single-player mode.Re-Releases
Two modified versions of the Super NES version of Wario's Woods were released for the SatellaviewSatellaview
The is a satellite modem add-on for Nintendo's Super Famicom system that was released in Japan in 1995. Available for pre-release orders as early as February 13, 1995, the Satellaview retailed for between ¥14,000 and 18,000 and came bundled with the BS-X Game Pak and an 8M Memory Pak.The...
, a satellite modem
Satellite modem
A satellite modem or sat modem is a modem used to establish data transfers using a communications satellite as a relay.There is a wide range of satellite modems from cheap devices for home internet access to expensive multifunctional equipment for enterprise use.A "modem" stands for...
add-on for the Super Famicom. The first version was copyrighted in 1994 and released under the name . The Bakushō Version featured personalities
Radio personality
A radio personality is a person with an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality can be someone who introduces and discusses various genres of music, hosts a talk radio show that may take calls from listeners, or someone whose primary responsibility is to give news, weather,...
from the Japanese radio comedy show, Bakushō Mondai
Bakusho Mondai
is a Japanese comedy duo consisting of Yūji Tanaka and Hikari Ōta under the entertainment agency, Titan Inc. The comedians first met when they were students in the Department of Fine Arts at Nihon University, and they formed Bakushō Mondai in 1988 after dropping out of school...
(JA).
The second version of Wario's Woods broadcast for Satellaview was released under the name . It was broadcast from 1995 until June 30, 2000, throughout the lifespan of the Satellaview. The game was quite popular and it was rebroadcast at least seven times throughout the tenure of St.GIGA
St.GIGA
is the name of a defunct satellite radio company that was formed as a subsidiary of satellite television company WOWOW and later became semi-independent, forming a keiretsu with its parent. Using the BS network to broadcast digital radio via direct broadcast satellite as a test on November 30,...
's Satellaview-broadcasting period. The game was also broadcast at least once as one of the Satellaview's special event versions.
The NES version of Wario's Woods is available as collectable item in the 2001 game Animal Crossing for the Nintendo GameCube
Nintendo GameCube
The , officially abbreviated to NGC in Japan and GCN in other regions, is a sixth generation video game console released by Nintendo on September 15, 2001 in Japan, November 18, 2001 in North America, May 3, 2002 in Europe, and May 17, 2002 in Australia...
, obtained through special means. This version was also one of the first titles available for the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
, released alongside its launch in North America, Australia and Europe, and on December 12, 2006 in Japan. It is currently available for purchase at the Wii Shop Channel
Wii Shop Channel
The Wii Shop Channel is an online shop for the Wii video game console that allows users to download Virtual Console and WiiWare games, and new channels. Downloading may require redeeming Wii Points. The channel launched with Wii on November 19, 2006...
for 500 Nintendo Points.
Reception
Wario's Woods has received lukewarm to favorable reviews. AllgameAllgame
Allgame is a commercial database of information about arcade games, video games and console manufacturers.Allgame is owned by All Media Guide, along with Allmusic and Allmovie....
rated Wario's Woods 4 stars out of 5 for the NES version, and 3.5 stars out of 5 for the SNES version. Christian Huey, who reviewed the NES version, stated that the controls were "both surprisingly complex and completely intuitive" while the gameplay has a "surprising level of depth," and labeled the two-player versus mode as "an extremely welcome addition to the core game." Scott Alan Marriott, who reviewed the SNES version, felt that the game "doesn't quite measure up to the addictiveness of either Tetris
Tetris
Tetris is a puzzle video game originally designed and programmed by Alexey Pajitnov in the Soviet Union. It was released on June 6, 1984, while he was working for the Dorodnicyn Computing Centre of the Academy of Science of the USSR in Moscow, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic...
or Dr. Mario
Dr. Mario (video game)
is an action puzzle game designed by Gunpei Yokoi and produced by Takahiro Harada. It was developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy consoles and released in 1990 and 1991....
," citing the game's "extremely awkward" controls and complicated gameplay. While Marriott appreciated "that the developers were trying something new," he concluded that "Sometimes when you add things to an already proven formula [for action puzzle games], you dilute the ingredients that made it a success." Because Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power
Nintendo Power magazine is a monthly news and strategy magazine formerly published in-house by Nintendo of America, but now run independently. As of issue #222 , Nintendo contracted publishing duties to Future US, the U.S. subsidiary of British publisher Future.The first issue published was...
ceased coverage of NES games starting with its March 1994 issue (the NES version was released in December that year), it only reviewed the SNES version of Wario's Woods, awarding it a score of 3.375 out of 5.
The reviews for the Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
release ranged from mixed to positive, applauding the gameplay and depth, but criticizing the choice to release the primitive NES version over the more comprehensive SNES version. Lucas Thomas of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
awarded the game an 8.0 out of 10, praising the game's unique approach to the puzzle genre and graphics that "took full advantage of the 8-bit
8-bit
The first widely adopted 8-bit microprocessor was the Intel 8080, being used in many hobbyist computers of the late 1970s and early 1980s, often running the CP/M operating system. The Zilog Z80 and the Motorola 6800 were also used in similar computers...
hardware [and were] full of character," but recommended "saving [one's] points for the SNES version, if it becomes available." Aaron Thomas of GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
gave Wario's Woods a score of 7.0 out of 10, admiring the "fun, addictive game play" and "surprising amount of depth," but criticizing the game's repetitive music and poor sound effect
Sound effect
For the album by The Jam, see Sound Affects.Sound effects or audio effects are artificially created or enhanced sounds, or sound processes used to emphasize artistic or other content of films, television shows, live performance, animation, video games, music, or other media...
s, adding that he also prefers the "ideal" SNES version. Nintendo Life scored the game 6 out of 10, stating that while the game is fun, "enjoyment for most will no doubt be short-lived."