WarioWare : la folie des micro-jeux Nintendo

WarioWare: Nintendo's Microgame Mania

1374 mots | Temps de lecture : 6 minute(s)

What if a video game only demanded three seconds of your attention at a time? That's the wild gamble of WarioWare, the most zany series in the Wario universe. Since 2003, Nintendo has piled hundreds of express "microgames" into it, which players chain together at an increasingly frantic pace, all under the guidance of the Mushroom Kingdom's most greedy mustachioed anti-hero.

Welcome to Diamond City, the imaginary town where Wario set up his studio to make a fortune. Here's the concept, the twelve games, their gadgets, and the eccentric band of friends that make up this cult saga.

Summary

The Microgame, the Art of Three Seconds

The WarioWare series is based on a simple but brilliant idea: the microgame. Each challenge lasts only three to five seconds and boils down to a single action: pressing, dodging, catching, blowing, squeezing. A one-word instruction appears on the screen ("Jump!", "Cut!"), then it's up to you to instantly understand what to do.

The microgames chain together without interruption, and the tempo gradually accelerates to become frenetic. Failing a challenge costs a life; the game ends once all four lives are exhausted. This chaotic and hilarious formula combines reflexes, absurd humor, and deliberately kitsch graphics. The very first installment already offered over 200, a record continuously broken with each new episode.

Welcome to Diamond City: Wario Opens His Studio

The series begins with WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames!, released on Game Boy Advance on March 21, 2003 (Japan) and developed by Nintendo R&D1. The scenario, a pretext for humor, features Wario: seeing the success of video games, the greedy character decides to found his own company, WarioWare, Inc., to get rich. Too lazy to do everything himself, he recruits a joyful band of friends tasked with creating microgames for him.

All the action takes place in Diamond City, a wacky metropolis populated by colorful characters. Unlike the Wario Land series, which offers classic platforming, WarioWare is a pure party game designed for humor and sharing. Its success was immediate, launching a franchise that would methodically explore each new Nintendo console.

A Console, a Gadget: The Series' Metamorphoses

WarioWare's big idea is to make microgames a testing ground for the peculiarities of each machine. Each episode adopts a different hardware gimmick:

  • Twisted! (Game Boy Advance, 2004 in Japan) integrates a rotation sensor in the cartridge: you tilt the console to play. Never released in Europe, it remains the series' big absentee on the continent.
  • Touched! (Nintendo DS, December 2004 in Japan) utilizes the stylus, touchscreen, and microphone.
  • Smooth Moves (Wii, December 2006 in Japan) transforms the controller into a "Form Baton" held in 19 different ways (like a remote control, an umbrella, handlebars…).
  • Snapped! (DSiWare, 2008 in Japan) uses the DSi's camera to film you.
  • D.I.Y. (Nintendo DS, 2009) lets you create your own microgames from scratch.
  • Game & Wario (Wii U, 2013) focuses on the GamePad screen, while Move It! (Switch, 2023) returns to motion thanks to the Joy-Cons.

Wario's Gang: The Employees of WarioWare, Inc.

While Wario remains the star, the series owes much to its gallery of friends, each with their own style of microgames:

  • Mona, the most dedicated young employee, who juggles odd jobs;
  • Jimmy T, the disco dancer addicted to his phone;
  • Dribble and Spitz, a duo of taxi drivers (a bulldog and a cat);
  • Kat and Ana, twin ninja sisters;
  • 9-Volt, the Nintendo-fanatic schoolboy whose microgames recycle the company's retro classics;
  • Dr. Crygor, the eccentric scientist, and his inventor granddaughter Penny;
  • Orbulon, an alien with a saucer, and Ashley, the young witch from the haunted mansion.

Ashley has even become a true star: her theme song, which appeared in Touched!, is so popular that she has joined the Super Smash Bros series.

Nintendo's Craziest Idea Lab

Over the years, WarioWare has become a kind of creative sandbox for Nintendo, where the publisher tests wacky mechanics before, sometimes, developing them elsewhere. The compilation WarioWare Gold (Nintendo 3DS, 2018) marked a quantitative peak with 316 microgames, the largest selection in the saga, combining buttons, touch, and microphone.

The series also reinvented itself in terms of multiplayer. Get It Together! (Switch, 2021) breaks the mold: you no longer embody just a simple hand, but directly the characters, each endowed with a unique ability that changes the way to solve the same challenge. Twenty playable characters and 222 microgames later, the saga proves that the three-second concept, twenty years after its debut, has lost none of its freshness or its touch of madness.

Key Milestones of the WarioWare Series

Mega Microgames! (2003, Game Boy Advance) The very first installment, over 200 button-based microgames
Twisted! (2004 Japan, GBA) Cartridge with rotation sensor; never released in Europe
Touched! (2004 Japan, Nintendo DS) Stylus, touchscreen, and microphone
Smooth Moves (2006 Japan, Wii) The "Form Baton" controller held in 19 ways
Gold (2018, Nintendo 3DS) Record compilation of 316 microgames
Get It Together! (2021, Switch) You play as the characters, each with their own ability
Move It! (2023, Switch) Joy-Cons in hand, the whole body in motion

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FAQ

  • What exactly is WarioWare?
    It's a Nintendo game series made up of "microgames": mini-challenges lasting three to five seconds that you chain together at an increasingly fast pace. The first installment was released in 2003.
  • What's the difference with the Wario Land series?
    Wario Land features classic platformer games where you play as Wario. WarioWare, on the other hand, is a party game built around compilations of express microgames and its absurd humor.
  • Why was WarioWare: Twisted! never released in Europe?
    Its cartridge integrated a rotation sensor. After several delays related to European homologation tests, Nintendo eventually canceled its release on the continent. The game was only released in Japan and North America.
  • How many games are in the series?
    About a dozen games were released between 2003 and 2023, from the first Mega Microgames! on Game Boy Advance to Move It! on Switch, including episodes and spin-offs on every Nintendo console.
  • Who is Ashley in WarioWare?
    Ashley is a young witch who appeared in WarioWare: Touched! in 2004. Her theme song has become so iconic that it's featured in the Super Smash Bros. series.
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