A few thoughts on WarioWare Gold now that I've beaten its story mode

Those of you who've played this entry in Nintendo's long-running WarioWare series--or any of its installments, really--must be thinking something like, I hope you don't consider beating this game's story mode to be an accomplishment!

You're right, of course. After all, you can finish WarioWare Gold's story mode in just a couple of hours if you don't drag your feet.

I'm patting myself on the back anyway, though--mostly because I managed to do the above plus a bit more over the last couple of weeks despite the fact that Octopath Traveler has been monopolizing my free time since it came out in mid-July.

In fact, I've now put about four hours into WarioWare Gold. Even that's nothing to brag about, admittedly, but it's been more than enough to time to get a good feel for the game, and that's what matters here. Speaking of which, keep reading for my initial thoughts on this zany 3DS title.

The cutscenes are awesome--In fact, I'd go so far as to say they're the highlight of the entire package. The main reason for that is they're funny. Surprisingly funny, even. My favorite is the one starring 5-Volt (9-Volt's mom). In it, she becomes obsessed with a buff dude named Mr. Sparkles, who sells special frying pans--they're so heavy you basically have to become a bodybuilder to use them--via cheesy infomercials.

I actually love the voice acting--And that's not something you'll hear me say all that often. No joke, I usually either don't care about voice acting or actively dislike it (to the point that I turn it off, assuming that's an option). I adore the voice acting in WarioWare Gold, though--which is a good thing, as the game's crammed full of it. I'm especially smitten with Wario and the new addition to the franchise, the spunky and heavily browed Lulu.

I wish the game didn't force you to unlock so much of its content--I know this is typical of the series. Or at least that's what I've heard. (I've only played a handful of WarioWare titles to date: Smooth Moves and D.I.Y.) Whatever the case may be, I'd prefer it if this entry didn't make unlocking its "souvenir" mini-games, like Mewtroid 2 and Super Pyoro, such a chore. To do that, you have to rack up points playing the title's story and challenge modes--usually over and over again. Then you plop those points into a capsule machine and pray something interesting pops out. In other words, depending on your luck, you may get Micro Golf or Pro Bowl early on or you may have to wait quite some time to gain access to them.

I'm not sure how many more hours I'll put into it--Don't get me wrong, I've thoroughly enjoyed what I've experienced so far. That said, I'm not entirely convinced the rest of what's on offer here is going to be enough to keep me coming back for more than a few additional hours. If I could freely play all of its bonus mini-games, that'd probably extend things at least a little while longer. As things stand, though, I have a feeling my time with WarioWare Gold is about to come to a close.

Even if I quit right now, I won't regret my purchase--Probably. I think. Maybe? Why the hesitation? I don't often spend $30-plus on a game and then stop playing it after just a few days. Given that, I won't be surprised if I slightly regret buying WarioWare Gold down the road. Still, I had an absolute blast during the four or so hours I've spent with this game, so I'll do what I can to keep those feelings of remorse to an absolute minimum.

Have any of you played WarioWare Gold? If so, what did you think of it?

See also: 'five reasons I've fallen head over heels in love with Sushi Striker' and '10 things I adore about Octopath Traveler'

I'm surprised Nintendo has yet to release these games for the 3DS

There's no question that Nintendo has pumped out an impressive number of top-shelf games for the 3DS since its release back in early 2011.

Still, so far the company's failed to produce sequels for a number of previously successful titles, with the following seven being especially surprising omissions, in my opinion:

Mother Collection--I know Nintendo of America's disinterest in this series practically is legendary at this point, but even so I'm a bit shocked that its Japanese counterpart has yet to conjure up either a 3DS compilation that includes all three previously published Mother games or a 3D remake of the second or third title. After all, each of these endearing RPGs were able to rack up more-than-acceptable sales in their home country, and while North American sales of the second (EarthBound) were far from stellar, it's since gone on to develop an impressively cultish following. Surely some sort of well-packaged re-release or remake would garner enough interest (and consumer dollars) to warrant its development?

Ouendan 3--Here's another series that surely sold enough copies in Japan to deserve a 3DS follow-up, yet here we are, seven years after the release of Moero! Nekketsu Rhythm Damashii Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan 2, waiting for its third entry. Sadly, I have a feeling that of all the games discussed in this post, this one is the least likely ever to see the light of the day--and even if it does see the light of day in Japan, it probably won't earn a Western release.

Rhythm Tengoku sequel--Unlike the pair of titles mentioned above, I have little doubt that folks who own Japanese 3DS systems will be able to play a Rhythm Tengoku made specifically for their dual-screened handhelds before this "gen" has ended. Why? Because the previous two entries in this short-lived series sold like gangbusters in their country of origin. Again, though, I won't be surprised if said title fails to find its way across the pond--although it might serve as an easy-to-localize, late-generation release for Nintendo's American and European arms.

Super Princess Peach 2--OK, so I'm not actually "surprised" Nintendo has yet to make or release a sequel for this pastel-slathered platformer, as it hardly received universal praise following its release in 2006. There's so much about Super Princess Peach that could be improved upon in a "part two," though, that I personally think it would be a crying shame if the company that made Mario into a mascot that rivals the great Mickey Mouse didn't take a stab at some or all of them.

Tetris 3DS--Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Tetris DS a really popular pick-up for DS owners around the world? If so, why can't those same folks go out and purchase Tetris 3DS from their friendly neighborhood big-box store as we speak? Yes, I'm sure getting the go-ahead from the Tetris Company is a pain in the butt, as well as a pain in the pocketbook, but if the resulting game recoups its investment (and then some), who really cares, right?

Wario Land 7--This supposed next installment in the vaunted (by me, at least) Wario Land series would be its seventh, assuming you consider Wario: Master of Disguise to be its fifth and Wario Land: Shake It! to be its sixth. So, why am I surprised Wario Land 7 has yet to be published for the 3DS--especially when neither of its predecessors met with a whole lot of success? Because every Nintendo handheld before the current one has received at least a single Wario Land title, that's why.

WarioWare 3D --Although I'd love to be able to play Wario Land 7 on my trusty pink-and-white 3DS XL sometime soon, I'd love it even more if I could play a new WarioWare title on that two-toned system. Here's hoping we hear about one later this year or early next. I'd be pretty shocked if we didn't hear about one before the 3DS calls it a day, to be honest, as both the GameBoy Advance and the DS received multiple WarioWare games.

Now that I've had my say, what do all of you think? Are there any sequels you'd like to see Nintendo publish for the 3DS between now and when the company bids it a fond farewell?

Oh, hey, auntie pixelante has released another awesome Flash game

It's called Dys4ia and, basically, it takes you through transgender game developer Anna Anthropy's rather tumultuous experiences with hormone replacement therapy.

I'm sure some will say it's not really a game, at least not in the traditional sense. My response to that: Anthropy's not exactly a traditional game developer, so what did you expect?

Anyway, I quite enjoyed my brief playthrough of Anthropy's latest Flash-based effort. I'm sure this will sound awfully odd, but it's kind of like an extremely linear WarioWare game, as each segment has you complete a (generally easy) task while reading a small bit of on-screen text.

Although such gameplay--if it can be called that--could be be boring in the wrong hands, in Anthropy's hands it's surprisingly compelling. Of course, it helps that she keeps things interesting by rarely calling on the player to complete the same "task" more than once.

As for Dys4ia's superficial aspects: Its pixel-based graphics are, as is seemingly always the case in an auntie pixelante game, superb, as is Liz Ryerson's spacey, new-age-ish soundtrack.

It only takes a few minutes to complete a single run-through of Dys4ia, so if you have the time and interest I'd highly recommend giving it a go (here) as soon as possible.

See also: Previous auntie pixelante posts

If I weren't already married ...

... I'd seriously consider proposing to WarioWare D.I.Y.

Yep, I'm smitten. :)

It was love at first sight--er, play--really. I mean, as soon as I completed my first microgame (see below) I knew my heart belonged to this Goro Abe creation.

Now, I've only completed two of the game's tutorials so far (oh, and I've downloaded a bunch of the microgames that are "on display" at the NinSoft Store--more on those in a bit), so I've barely scratched the surface of what it has to offer, but I can already tell it's going to be a major time suck.

By the way, if any of you have this game and would like to swap microgames, send me your friend code. My friend code is 0775 6955 2080. I haven't added any microgames to my warehouse's storage crates yet, but I plan to do so soon.

Buy: WarioWare: D.I.Y.

These tutorials will make more sense after I get the game, right?

I just watched four "advanced tutorial videos" produced by the folks at Nintendo of America to help WarioWare D.I.Y. users create better microgames.

Here's the first one:



(Here's the second, and the third and the fourth.)

Anyway, I found all of them fascinating, but they threw me for a loop, too--what with their talk of A.I. and animation and objects and switches and targets.

It'll all make a lot more sense when my copy of WarioWare D.I.Y. is delivered to my doorstep in a few days (booyah!), right?

Buy: WarioWare: D.I.Y.

See also: 'auntie pixelante + WarioWare D.I.Y. = digital sex' and 'Best WarioWare D.I.Y. microgame thus far: Localize This'

auntie pixelante + WarioWare D.I.Y. = digital sex

"When i was little, videogame creation was something mystical and inaccessible. I never imagined I could be making games with my own two hands. Children today will grow up in a world where digital game creation is not a distant fantasy, but something within their grasp."

What prompted Anna “auntie pixelante” Anthropy to post those words to her site? A week spent with WarioWare D.I.Y.

A few of the fruits of Anthropy's labor can be seen in the following video, posted on YouTube yesterday.



My favorite: the spanking microgame ("Give this pig 12 blows!"), though I'm also quite fond of the one that features the protagonist from Mighty Jill Off.

Buy: WarioWare D.I.Y.

See also: 'Best WarioWare D.I.Y. microgame thus far: Localize This' and 'Hey! You got your Cave Story in my WarioWare D.I.Y.!'

(Via tinycartridge.com)

Best WarioWare D.I.Y. microgame thus far: 'Localize This'

And it was made by none other than Wired's Chris Kohler.

Skip to the 1:00 mark to see it in action.



I take umbrage at Kohler's (likely tongue-in-cheek) suggestion that Endless Ocean isn't worthy of localization, but other than that I think his microgame is spot on.

Buy: WarioWare D.I.Y.

See also: 'Hey! You got your Cave Story in my WarioWare D.I.Y.!' and 'Another reason to add WarioWare: D.I.Y. to your DS wish list'

Hey! You got your Cave Story in my WarioWare D.I.Y.!

Not that I'm complaining, especially when the result is as competent and compelling as the following fan-made microgame:



I have a feeling that when I finally get my grubby mits on this game, life as I know it will come to a screeching halt.

It won't be the first time, of course--the same thing happened after I brought home a copy of Animal Crossing: City Folk, for instance. I spent the next few weeks (OK, months) coming up with custom t-shirt designs for my town's fur-covered inhabitants, much to my husband's chagrin.

Buy: WarioWare D.I.Y.

Reason #127 I wish I was at GDC 2010

Yesterday morning (I know, I'm a bit behind), the folks over at joystiq.com posted the following photo from their perch at the Game Developer's Conference in San Francisco:

I'm guessing they got the playful papercraft from someone at Nintendo of America, as the company's WarioWare D.I.Y. will hit store shelves (in the States) in just a few weeks.

See also: 'Another reason to add WarioWare: D.I.Y. to your DS wish list' and 'More evidence that WarioWare D.I.Y. is going to be awesomely magnificent'

Another reason to add WarioWare: D.I.Y. to your DS wish list

It has a Mario Paint-esque music creator/editor! How did I not know that until yesterday, when I read this post over at tinycartridge.com?

Oh, and it's not just any music creator/editor--it's a Balloon Fight-themed music creator/editor, as evidenced in this YouTube clip:



WarioWare: D.I.Y. will hit store shelves in North America on either March 29 or May 31, by the way. (Although most sources say it'll be released on the former date, Amazon.com says it'll be released on the latter.)

See also: 'More evidence that WarioWare D.I.Y. is going to be awesomely magnificent'