After a couple of years of silence, Wario is ready to conquer the world once again with a new video game. The WarioWare games are known for complete chaos and innovating ways of controlling the game. When the Nintendo Switch was first revealed, a new WarioWare to demonstrate the possibilities of the Joy-Con made perfect sense but Get it Together! has a different twist and doesn’t focus on controls. Let’s jump in!
Get rich, the Wario way
The story of WarioWare: Get it Together! is a rather straightforward and classic one for the franchise. Wario came up with a new game, hoping he’ll get filthy rich once he releases it. The moment he presents it to his crew of friends, things take a turn for the worst. Everyone who joined the meeting gets sucked into the new game and has to defeat the bugs ruining their own level in order to escape. It’s nothing really special and the story can be considered as a lengthy tutorial to introduce the playable characters and their skills. Unlike other WarioWare games, this one doesn’t focus on the way you control it, instead, it focuses on the way you control the characters.
This new approach feels like a wind of fresh air blowing through the franchise. Although I wouldn’t mind another game focusing on the unique capabilities of the Joy-Con, I love that this WarioWario tries to do things differently. After you rescue a character in the story mode, you unlock it as a new playable character. Once you unlocked a couple of characters, you can create your own small team of three to conquer the upcoming microgames. To decide who will join your team, you’ll probably need to master the different control schemes for the different playable characters.
Not one character is the same
The diversity and variety of the playable characters is the beating heart of this game. Wario can hover and dash using his jetpack, which gives him a lot of freedom while other characters can jump higher or shoot deadly projectiles. Every benefit comes at a cost, take 9-Volt for example. He’s constantly skating in a certain direction and can’t jump. The only way to make him jump is to grab a floating ring with his jo-jo. This is far more complex compared to Wario’s jetpack and yet, some microgames are easier to clear as 9-Volt. Discovering the abilities and potential of the characters is needed to create a strong team of three. Of course, your personal preferences are the main motivation while assembling your team.
That being said, I love how all characters are introduced. With a short tutorial where you’ll need to move your new character through a small maze, you’ll learn how to control your new hero. If you’re playing on your own, it isn’t hard to keep track of the skills and abilities of the characters. If you’re playing co-op, it’s harder to explain to someone who didn’t play the character’s introduction. An extra tutorial option wouldn’t have hurt to smoothen out the learning curve for new players.
Microgames madness
The characters aren’t the game’s only unique feature, the real fun starts in the microgames. These microgames are extremely chaotic and absurd but above all extremely creative and fun. The goal of the microgame is to clear it in a certain time, the more microgames you win, the faster the pacing and the less time you get to complete it. If you’re in for a couple of rounds, some of the microgames will test the level of your reflexes, which will sometimes feel near impossible. The variation is what keeps the microgames fun, in story mode they are divided into different genres but once you complete the short story (three hours of gameplay), you’ll unlock new modes where you can go in microgames frenzy.
From pulling the hairs of someone’s armpit to catapulting a block in a Zelda-themed microgame, it’s all there, and it’s extremely absurd. While playing I often had a moment where I needed to double-take the microgame. It all happens so fast and your one-word instruction isn’t always that clear from the first second but that’s also what makes this game so much fun. Combine this with the fact that the developers clearly received a lot of creative freedom to design the microgames the way they look right now. Not everyone will agree on this but thanks to the absurd freedom, this is one of Nintendo’s most unique and creative franchises without any doubt. Some of the microgames even deserve their own spin-off in my option!
The downside? This isn’t a game you’ll play for long sessions and is most enjoyable in shorter sessions. Don’t know what to do before you start watching your favorite Netflix show? Why not play a couple of WarioWare microgames? Or even better! Play them together with your friends or family, this one isn’t named Get it together! for nothing.
Play together
For the first time in the franchise’s history, you’re able to play WarioWare together with a friend in local co-op. If you were expecting online multiplayer, I have to disappoint you. The only online element in the game is the leaderboards in certain unlockable modes where you can compete in different challenges to try to conquer the number one spot of that time. That being said, in multiplayer, the focus really remains on local co-op, which is a blast to play. Playing the microgames together with a friend can end up in a huge advantage, since there are two characters playing the game, there’s a double chance to clear the game in time. Of course, if you decide to mess up each other’s run, you’ll see the game-over screen rather quickly.
It’s impressive to see how well co-op works for the franchise and it’s almost a shame they didn’t include multiplayer sooner. It really elevates the fun and overall experience. Where playing on your own is fun, it’s not that entertaining to keep playing; but with friends this changes, it simply transforms the game into the perfect game to play during gaming nights.
Conclusion:
WarioWare: Get it Together! is a fun entry in the franchise that’s most enjoyable when you’re playing it together. It’s a bit different from other WarioWare games when it comes to the controls but that’s nothing to really worry about. This one offers a lot of fun for shorter gaming sessions and might be the perfect game to play from time to time. It’s as absurd and crazy as ever but that’s why it’s so much fun.
