Highlights
- WarioWare: Move It returns to the original formula of the series, offering fast-paced microgames and comedic storytelling with plenty of jokes throughout.
- The game incorporates a unique story trope by making fun of Nintendo consoles, with the Joy-cons being represented as ancient "Form Stones" in the game.
- The Form Stones play a significant role in the game, with an entire civilization on an island worshiping them and wearing masks symbolizing the Joy-con controllers, adding an extra layer of humor and gameplay depth.
WarioWare: Move It brings back the original formula for the series after experimenting with a few new approaches to its famous microgames. After fans get a brief introduction to the game's story, they can jump into Wario's introductory games before spending time seeing what his friends are up to on their island getaway. While making numerous poses, dealing with faster and faster challenges, and even finding Easter eggs based on games like Super Mario 64, players will have their hands full with the title for at least a little while.
While the latest game is full of the original, expected gameplay, WarioWare: Move It also includes a story trope that's unique to WarioWare. As the games starring Wario and his friends are incredibly comedic and wacky in nature, there are plenty of jokes strewn throughout the many story modes the series has to offer. One long-standing joke in three of the games is based on the console the game is on. WarioWare: Move It is the most recent one, with the Nintendo Switch's Joy-cons being the basis of many jokes as they're represented as ancient "Form Stones."
WarioWare's Trend of Making Fun of Nintendo Consoles
How the Wii and Wii U Were Made Fun of in WarioWare
As WarioWare began with the idea of Wario making video games to make money, a number of games in the series revolve around cartoony representations of game development, as well as the everyday shenanigans that the characters get up to. This means that the games need a platform to be played on, and while some introduce new consoles and handhelds respectively, some just make standard white gizmos to stand in place of the actual device fans are tackling WarioWare's boss fights and microgames on.
However, three games in WarioWare's history do something completely different. In order to keep the laughs coming and immerse the player more, the console the game is running on is brought in to be part of the joke. WarioWare: Smooth Moves was the first to do this, having a core plot that revolved around the "Form Stick," a stone Wii Remote that acted as a way to bridge the gap between the player and the game. Game and Wario also referenced the unique gimmick of the Wii U, showcasing a combination of a TV and gamepad that Wario and friends make games for.
Compared to WarioWare: Smooth Moves , Game and Wario 's TV and gamepad system is only used to give players a console to play the minigames in-universe. There are far more jokes to be found dealing with Nintendo's consoles and interesting controller choices in Smooth Moves and WarioWare: Move It .
The Form Stones in WarioWare: Move It Keep the Jokes Coming
WarioWare: Move It may bring back joking about Nintendo's consoles, but Move It takes it an entire step further compared to Game and Wario, and even Smooth Moves. While the premise of the latest Switch WarioWare game doesn't deal with game development, Wario and friends go on a getaway to an island that encourages them to explore with their Joy-con Form Stones, saying that moving with them will bring good luck. While it serves as an excuse to have the Switch's iconic controllers in-universe, the game runs with the idea far more than expected.
The Form Stones serve as the basis of an entire civilization on the Caresaway Island, who have been told to make a "form" with the stones in their hand with their body by "The Voice." This civilization worshiped the voice, and as such, wore masks that symbolized the different joysticks on the Joy-con controllers. While the stones themselves don't play much of a role outside of Wario's story, players will continuously learn The Voice's forms and how they came to be, no matter how bizarre the form itself and the story behind it is. This fills Wario Ware: Move It with tons of fun games and laughs as when forms like "Gift Giver" and "Ba-Kaw" keep coming up, players will keep laughing as they learn to master them all.
WarioWare: Move It is available now for Nintendo Switch.
