Wario Land: The Shake Dimension (Wii) - Review by jofra01

Introduction

Wario is one of those characters from Nintendo that was designed to be hated by everyone, no matter what he did, but unlike Nintendo's more popular stars they keep bringing out games for Wario. Wario Land: The Shake Dimension is the latest game that Nintendo have brought out for him and this time it isn't a WarioWare title but a platformer.

The Shake Dimension has been developed as a platforming title that takes full advantage of motion control while keeping to it's true traditions.

Gameplay

The game starts off with a full animation sequence, which is actually quite surprising that Nintendo has done something like that for a title, and in this animation you learn of a pirate that has stolen a sack that when shaken coins come out. Along with the sack that was stolen a queen was also kidnapped, and in some way Wario is brought into the situation he wants nothing to do with but when he learns of the sack and it's ability he naturally wants in on the situation.

Being a platformer the game does keep to the traditions of all platformers but like previous Wario platformers it has that something extra that makes it more enjoyable and not as straight forward. The game is in fact not the longest game you will come across and the levels are not very time consuming but the enemies and bosses you come across make it more enjoyable as each enemy or boss require different ways to be defeated. There are some problems you will come across with some certain levels and parts of levels that are quite difficult and frustrating. One example is the water level in which you control a submarine but you just get thrown in that level not knowing the controls and have to quickly work them out while enemies are going full speed ahead to kill you. One main thing though you should expect in this game is to always expect the unexpected in any level and be prepared to do something in a split second if you want to be rewarded.

Controls

The game's controls are really simple which is expected for a platformer a title as all it requires is the WiiMote to be on it's side and you use the D-Pad to move Wario around, 2 to Jump and 1 for Wario to do his smash dash. One of the many things that actually makes this game stand out as a platformer is the the shaking feature. When ever you come to a enemy that is dazed or even a bag that if you grab one of them and then shake the WiiMote constantly items of coins will come flying out as you shake. Another feature that stands out is the tilt function of the WiiMote, since you are using the WiiMote on it's side like a NES controller there are situations in which you will be in a unicycle that requires balancing and the WiiMote will need to be tilted so the unicycle keeps it balance. Wario also has a smash ability as you will come across obstacles in the game you won't be able to get pass and you will need to use the smash ability, whether it is to knock a crate off a higher shelf or daze an enemy, all it requires is a simple shake of the WiiMote for Wario to go a smashing.

Graphics

Staying true to previous Wario Land games this game is also in 2D and developer Good-feel have actually made the game very high in detail for a platformer. Both Wario and his enemies are also well detailed and animated, though the bosses are really the ones that stand out as each look completely different and just the way they graphically look they can amaze you. The level designs although simple also stand out but some of the backgrounds on some levels are a little bit boring and some actually resemble levels out of some Super Mario Games.

Sound

When you first start the game off an opening animation plays and as the music plays, which is good, the characters in the animation are about to speak but when they do speak no words come out and instead there are subtitles. The fact that Good Feel and Nintendo used subtitles for the opening animation instead of real voices was a disappointment as Nintendo had the opportunity to let us know how some of their characters actually do speak. The in game music and sounds that Wario do make though are similar to those found in previous Wario Land games and they are still enjoyable to actually hear in the Shake Dimension.

Final comments

Being a platforming title this game is something that all fans of platformers should pick up. Making very good use of the WiiMotes motion controls but still being a simple game this is one that all Nintendo fans and platformer fans should pick up.

Pro: 2D Graphics very detailed, Motion Control done well, Gameplay is enjoyable, Bosses are each unique
Con: No voice acting for opening animation, Game isn't long enough, Some levels are tedious
Final score: 8

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