WarioWare: Move It! Review – Shake Your Tailfeathers

WarioWare: Move It! Review

As a gamer of a certain age, I used to find motion controls deeply frustrating. The Switch has changed all that. Now games like WarioWare: Move It! run like a dream. Unlike previous generations, the biggest challenge here is figuring out what you’re supposed to do. While I haven’t played much of Wario’s microgames back catalogue, I’ve had a blast with this latest entry in the franchise. Plus it’s a half-decent workout!

This latest game takes place on a lush tropical resort. Wario and the gang are here to have a good time and they mostly succeed. Some peril is of course included in their stay. Honestly the narrative is of very little consequence. We’re here for the microgames, you know? On that front, WarioWare absolutely delivers. Every game is a fun, frantic mess. Like I said, failure mostly comes from missing what the actual task is. Once you clock that, things run pretty smoothly. Every game is based on one of many different poses and gestures. Here’s where the real magic happens.

I’m genuinely impressed by how responsive the Switch is with things like this. When you do the Big Cheese pose, the game knows. It also knows if you’re not doing said pose correctly. It’s truly fascinating stuff. There’s a grip of different poses, and each one is both distinct and memorable. Plus, you mix things up with extra actions like dropping the Joy-Cons. Yeah, you can’t go without the straps for this one.

Strap In, Folks

Believe me, I tried to circumvent this requirement. I hate the Joy-Con straps something fierce. Slotting them into place feels like you’re damaging the controller, every time. Plus, they never sit quite perfectly. But you absolutely need them for WarioWare. Otherwise you end up kneeling on the ground, frantically mimicking what you think should be happening.

Speaking of Joy-Con straps, one pose had me terribly confused. Hand Signals requires ditching one Joy-Con altogether, while you point the IR receiver at your other hand. It took a good while for me to figure out what on earth the game wanted me to do. It wasn’t until I stumbled upon a training center that I could figure it all out. Once I crossed that critical threshold I was golden. But oh boy, the journey there was a perilous one.

The other poses are goofy goodness, one and all. One in particular has you imitating a chicken. One Joy-Con is your beak, while the other one is your uhhh, your tail. You can guess where it goes. There’s also a lot more butt motion than I was expecting. Get ready to literally move your butt in some truly surprising ways. For extra entertainment value, be sure to have a witness while playing. I also loved the flavor text that came with the pose instructions. There’s a disembodied voice that sends these lessons to the masses, and every lesson is peppered with wit. The rest of the writing is aggressively fine.

Every Pose A Party

I didn’t see much of the multiplayer, having only one working set of Joy-Cons. But Party Mode only needs a single Joy-Con per player, which rules. You traverse a simple board game setup, complete with scores and separate rules. The games are also adjusted for single Joy-Con play. As much fun as single-player WarioWare is, multiplayer is where the real good times are hidden. If at all possible, drag 1 to 3 of your friends into a session or ten.

While I’m impressed by the technical tricks, WarioWare is just… really funny. It’s awesome fun making a fool of yourself in front of friends and loved ones. It’s even better dragging them into the mix. The variety of games is delightful, and the various poses are well-crafted. But they’re also funny. Honestly, if you take away nothing else from this review, my job is still done. WarioWare: Move It! is a hilarious good time and you’d be a fool to let it pass you by. Though this season is crammed with excellent games, the latest WarioWare title is perfect for that party-style vibe.

***A Nintendo Switch code was provided by the publisher***