First impressions:Wario World
The one thing I was thinking while playing the demo for the new Treasure-created Wario World was, “Man. . . this guy is 10 times cooler than Mario.”
In the demo you control Wario, who is hell-bent on collecting as many coins as possible by beating up forest creatures and throwing them off hundred-foot drops to their demise below. On the menu is also destruction of baby bird nests and random muggings to subside your cravings for more materialistic wealth at the expense of others’ pain. Muahahaha!!
*ahem*
The level I played took place in a forest setting where Wario took command of the situation by jumping, tackling and stomping his way through the forest. “Get outta my way!” he screams as aggressive creatures attack him and try to impede his progress through the level, and to be sure, they don’t live to regret it.
While Mario calmly jumps on goombah’s heads or throws fireballs to clear his path, Wario takes the time to really rub salt in the wound while yelling insults and using his giant mouth to vacuum in the money dropped from his stunned and helpless victims. Now this is a game I can sink my teeth into.
Although the level didn’t last very long I could immediately tell that this is a character with character. The levels seemed large and the water effects of different waterfalls was nice, but what caught my attention was the illusion of distance in the game the designers achieved by blurring the mountains and sky in the background. Looks nice.
The demo itself seemed to focus on giving you a beginner’s course on Wario’s abilities which include jumping, dashing, dash-tackling, butt-stomping (strange how Mario characters seem to enjoy using their bums to attack others, but I digress) and his mysterious “breath sucking” approach in which Wario opens up his mouth wide, grimaces and sucks in all the coins in the immediate area.
Overall, the game played smoothly and I took might fine satisfaction in not only defeating enemies but making them feel worse to boot with random insults, although I need to play more levels in order to get a feel for what exactly Wario needs to accomplish and how much deeper the gameplay can go.
Is Wario as cool as Mario? Keep your eyes on GCA for updates throughout the day on impressions here at the Los Angeles Convention Center!
-Adrian DeHerrera
Quelle: Gamecube advanced
