Wario

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Judgesurreal777 (talk | contribs) at 04:56, 25 August 2006 (→Concept and creation: moved info up). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Jump to navigation Jump to search
Wario
Mario series character
File:Wario.jpg
Wario, in his most common appearance
First gameSuper Mario Land 2: Six Golden Coins (1992)
Created byHiroji Kiyotake

Wario (ワリオ) is a fictional Nintendo video-game character. He first appeared in the 1992 Game Boy game Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins as a self-aggrandizing and narcissistic opposite of Mario and the games boss. Besides the Mario series, Wario has featured in his own series entitled Warioware.

The character's role in the Mario series was originally antagonistic and later became an anti-hero of his own series.

Template:Spoiler

Appearances

Main article: List of Wario games

Although originally a minor character in the Mario series, Wario has since appeared in over two dozen Mario games and has been present in some non Mario-games. The character has recurred in Mario sports and party games, and is the protagonist of the Warioware game series, a collection of puzzle games that have been released on the Nintendo DS.

Gameboy games

Wario was introduced as the ultimate foe in Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins. In this game, he invades Mario Land, Mario's personal island, and takes over Mario's castle while Mario is out rescuing Princess Daisy from the alien creature Tatanga (as depicted in Super Mario Land). Wario steals the six magical Golden Coins which seal and unseal the door of Mario's castle and gives them to six of his allies to ensure that Mario will be unable to enter the castle (how Mario came to be in the possession of a castle is never explained, but it was probably as a reward for rescuing Princess Peach). However, Mario returns from Sarasaland, defeats the bosses, and brings the six Golden Coins back to the castle. After traversing the altered castle Mario faces Wario in a showdown. Wario attacks in three phases, using the power-ups of Super Mario Land 2. In the first round he is normal, the second finds him flying with bunny ears, and in the third he shoots fireballs at Mario. Wario has never since used these power-ups. But in the end, Mario defeats Wario, who shrinks and runs away as we see the symbol change from W to M.

In Mario and Wario (released only in Japan), Wario flies around in a plane during boss battles and before each level. In the beginning of the level, Wario drops a bucket or another similar item onto the head of Mario, Princess Peach, or Yoshi (depending on which character the player chooses), thus preventing the player from controlling the character. A fairy named Wanda has to guide the victims to Luigi, who can then pick the bucket off. In the boss battle, Wanda fights a plane-piloting Wario.

Wario next plays the antagonist in Wario's Woods. He attacks the Mushroom Kingdom, forcing Toad, Wanda, and Birdo to brave a dangerous forest. This game was released on both on the NES and the SNES on the same day. It is also the last game released for the NES in North America and the only one with an ESRB rating. In the SNES version, Toad has to defeat many bosses before he can face Wario; the NES version features Wario as the only villain. Wario's eyes here are different from his current appearance: while he now has slanted eyes and thick eyebrows, the game gives him round eyes and thin eyebrows.

Wario stars in a Game Boy puzzle game titled Wario Blast: Featuring Bomberman!. This was released at around the same time as Wario's Woods. As the title suggets, this game pits him against Bomberman. It is essentially a Bomberman game with Wario as a guest star, despite Wario's top billing. When Wario is being played, all of the opponents are Bombermen, and when Bomberman is played, all of the opponents are Wario.[1]

Wario was set to feature in the Virtual Boy video game titled Virtual Boy Mario Land, which had Mario trapped in Wario's world, but this was canceled after the system's failure.[2]

After appearing as a villain several times, Wario went on to star in his own series of Game Boy platformers. Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 is Wario's first appearance as a protagonist, and the beginning of his rivalry with Captain Syrup and the Brown Sugar Pirates. In Wario Land, Wario discovers that the Brown Sugar Pirates have stolen a statue of Princess Peach and that Mario is looking for it. Wario decides to take this statue before Mario can get to it.

Wario Land for the Virtual Boy is similar to the portable Wario games in its gameplay and design. The story involves Wario having to fight his way out of a giant cave housing several strange worlds, all the while looting the treasure. This game features Virtual Boy-style pseudo-3D gameplay, allowing Wario to travel into the background at some points in the levels.

Wario Land II continues the rivalry with Captain Syrup and a new band of bad guys: the Black Sugar Gang. This time, they have looted Wario's castle, and Wario has to chase them to their home on Kitchen Isle to right the terrible wrong. After defeating Captain Syrup and the Giant Spear King, Wario recovers his treasure and returns home. Unlike the first two games, Wario receives abilities through status effects. For example, he can be set on fire by a candle, allowing him to burn up certain blocks and enemies. This game removes the life-meter concept, and Wario only loses coins if damaged. Wario Land II also featured secret exits in levels, which could result in the player fighting a different final boss and experiencing a different ending. There are 5 "final" boss battles and one more battle before the true ending.

In Wario Land 3, Wario becomes trapped in a music-box world. He has to help a mysterious figure regain control of this world by defeating a hoarde of monsters, only agreeing to do so after hearing that he will get to keep all of the treasure acquired throughout his quest. This game introduces a new villain, Rudy the Clown. Unlike past games, Wario is not set on a linear path. He also has lost all his powers, and must find them as he progresses.

File:Ss wl4 pre.gif
Screenshot from Wario Land 4, with Wario exploring in traditional side-scrolling adventure like Mario

Wario Land 4's adventure begins when Wario reads in the newspaper about a great treasure inside of a Golden Pyramid in the jungle and drives off in his Wario Car to find it. He must retrieve twelve treasures, guarded by four huge monsters, to unlock the final level. Wario is no longer invincible, and this is the first game in the Wario Land series to feature a health meter.

Kaitou Wario Seven (literally translated as Mysterious Thief Wario Seven) is an upcoming Nintendo DS game. Little is known as of now, but a handful of conclusions can be drawn from the screenshots shown at the Tokyo Game Show 2005. The health meter remains; the top screen is for the map and information while the bottom screen is used for gameplay; he will not be wearing his W cap at times; and status effects will be returning (one form known to be in the game is the snowball).

Wario is also a playable character in Super Mario 64 DS, but he must be unlocked using Luigi to defeat Chief Chilly. He has abilities that Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi do not, such as being incredibly strong, and being able to turn into metal form with a power flower.

Wario did not make an appearance in the story mode of New Super Mario Bros., however he did appear in the mini-games.

He will, however, make a playable appearance in the upcoming Yoshi's Island 2 for the Nintendo DS. This will mark the first appearance of Wario as a baby, along with fellow villain-turned-hero Donkey Kong.

A younger version of Wario will appear in the upcoming Yoshi's Island 2 for the Nintendo DS. His special ability is to attract coins to Yoshi, showing that he's just as greedy as his elder counterpart.

Super Smash Bros. Melee - GCN, 2001 - One of Mario's costumes has the colors of Wario's clothing (this is also true in the original Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 64, though it is not as detailed, such as the buttons being yellow rather than white), and it is possible to win a Wario trophy. Game & Watch Gallery 2 - GBC, 1998 - Wario replaces Mr. Game & Watch for several of the modern games. Appears in the modern versions of "Helmet" and "Ball". Game & Watch Gallery 3 - GBC, 1999 - Wario replaces Mr. Game & Watch for several of the modern games. Appears in the modern version of "Mario Bros." Game & Watch Gallery 4 - GBA, 2002 - Wario replaces Mr. Game & Watch for several of the modern games. Appears in the modern versions of "Rain Shower" and "Fire Attack".

Console games

Wario appears in Dr. Mario 64, co-starring alongside Dr. Mario. In this game, Wario attempts to steal the bottle of Megavitamins from Mario in order to become a doctor himself, but fails. Wario eventually gets involved with Mad Scienstein (a minion of Rudy the Clown from Wario Land 3), who steals the Megavitamins. Mario and Wario chase him together in order to retrieve them. Players can choose which to control. If Dr. Mario defeats Rudy without being defeated, he faces Vampire Wario, and if Wario defeats Rudy without being defeated, he faces Metal Mario.

Wario World for the Nintendo GameCube is a departure from typical Wario platform games. It was developed by Treasure, and focuses more on fighting enemies than solving puzzles with various powerups or status effects (both of which are missing from this game). Wario gets his hands on a mystical Black Jewel, which eventually destroys his castle and turns all of his treasure into monsters. Throughout the game, Wario will encounter Sprites trapped in small boxes. Once Wario defeats the Black Jewel, the Spritelings will reward him by creating a new domain for him. Depending on how many Spritelings and treasures and how much money Wario collects, he will get one of two replacement domains—a shack (if he does not get enough Spritelings, treasures, and money) or a castle (after getting all collectibles and enough money). The game got a good deal of negative press, mostly attributed to the ease and length of the game.[3] As in Wario Land 4, Wario has a health meter.

File:Wario WWare.gif
Wario as he appears in the WarioWare, Inc. series, which is thought to parody various Nintendo products such as Pokémon

In the WarioWare, Inc. series, Wario starts a video game factory with his friends. Wario first creates the company in the game WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$, inspired by Ken the Reporter's report about the success of the new "killer app" video game Pyoro. He hires some of his friends to help him make his games. In each WarioWare title, he cons his friends into making more games for his latest scheme, while trying to cheat them out of the proceeds. In the plot, each game is a product being sold by WarioWare, Incorporated. These games are called microgames, and last between three and seven seconds. This game series has become very popular among long-time Wario fans.

These games parody the release of the Game Boy Advance SP, the success of Pokémon, and the release of the Nintendo DS. [citation needed] In each, Wario hears about the success of a new game or system (Pyoro's cover is strikingly similar to those of most Pokémon games), and decides to cash in by convincing his friends to make a bunch of games for his latest project. In true Wario fashion, he ends up filthy rich at the end by cheating his friends, but a twist of fate deprives him of his ill-gotten cash.

Wario also stars in the bonus game Dr. Wario (featured in WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$). The gameplay remains the same as in Dr. Mario, but Wario is now the doctor, fighting against different variants of the original viruses. He sports a lab coat like Dr. Mario, but his facial features are also different.

In each game, Wario 'presents' a series of microgames unique to him (as do the other characters). To allude to Wario's apparent vanity, each game features Wario's likeness in some way - although precisely how much they flatter Wario varies considerably. Although Wario is often depicted pitted against Mario (with a very favourable outcome for him should the player succeed), he has also (for example) been shown in a Victorian one-piece bathing suit, among other such humiliating outfits and circumstances.

In the Mario Kart series, Wario's first appearance was in Mario Kart 64. He has since appeared in all Mario Kart sequels. In Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, he is paired up with Waluigi and his unique kart is the Wario Car. In all of these games, Wario is among the lightest of the heavyweights; he features great ramming power, but bad acceleration and off-road handling. Wario concedes that his raw power is second only to Donkey Kong and the King of all Koopas himself, Bowser.

Wario has appeared in almost every Mario sports game since Mario Tennis (Nintendo 64 and Game Boy Color). In the Game Boy Color version, Wario is a secret unlockable character, only playable after beating the game with one of the original characters. In the Nintendo 64 version, however, he is playable from the outset, and the original characters must be unlocked. He was featured in Mario Power Tennis, the GameCube sequel. Mario Tennis: Power Tour, the GBA version, was the first Mario sports game since Mario's Tennis to not feature Wario. In these games, Wario is also a very powerful but slow character. Once again, Wario's power is second only to DK and Bowser.

Wario also appears in Mario Golf for the Game Boy Color and Nintendo 64. In the Game Boy Color version, whilst in a locker room, it is possible to find a fake moustache and a yellow cap in Wario's locker. Unlike the other Mario sports titles, Wario's character plays without any unusual quirks (such as the Boo's floating ability). Wario has remained unaltered through the Mario Golf sequels.

Mario Superstar Baseball also features Wario as a playable character. Each character in the game features a special characteristic and physical attributes. He is also a team captain in the GameCube title Super Mario Strikers.

Although they are not 'sports' titles, the Mario Party titles also feature Nintendo's all-star Mario roster. Wario has featured as a playable character in every game in the series since its inception on the Nintendo 64.

Wario is set to appear in the upcoming Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii in 2007[4]. Wario appears in the trailer in his WarioWare-style biker outfit. It is unknown how he will fight, but near the end of the trailer released during E3 2006, one of the moves he showcased was a gas attack, followed by a mushroom cloud, a move tentatively being called the Wario Waft. In Super Smash Bros. and Super Smash Bros. Melee, Mario has an alternate costume featuring Wario's color scheme. There is also an unlockable Wario trophy in Super Smash Bros. Melee.

File:WarioStarfi.jpg
Puffy Wario assists Stafy in a cameo appearance in Legend of Stafy 3

In Legend of Stafy 3, Stafy, the sky star, encounters Wario in World 8 of the game. Throughout this world, Wario works with Stafy to beat the levels, and gives the player four different treasures: a Wario cap, a Wario nose/moustache, a copy of WarioWare, Inc. with a GBA, and a pile of gold. In these three levels, he takes the form of Puffy Wario, Fire Wario and Bubble Wario, and these powers help Stafy get from one place to another in the levels.

In Uniracers, one of the tracks is named 'Wario Paint', a mix of Mario Paint's title, and Wario. In Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga, there's a WarioWare Inc. poster with Wario in it in Yoshi Theatre. Interestingly, Wario was also set to make an appearance in the Starbeans Cafe at one point in development, alongside Professor E. Gadd and various Nintendo-related non-Mario characters. In his scenario, Wario is offered some coffee, but does not like the taste.[5]

Pilotwings 64 - N64, 1996 - In the Little States stage, shoot Mario's face on Mt. Rushmore and it turns into Wario's. Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door - GCN, 2004 - The W Emblem Badge changes Mario's clothes to the colors of Wario's clothes. Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix - GCN, 2005 - boss of World Three

Wario in other media

Various Wario merchandise has been released, including plush dolls[6] and stickers.[7] and stickers. The Super Mario Adventures graphic novel, collecting a series of comics originally serialized in Nintendo Power, features Wario in two of the stories. This comic was illustrated by Charlie Nozawa, written by Kentaro Takekuma, and localized into English by Leslie Swan. It features a variety of storylines, including a story of Wario's past and his relationship with Mario. Wario often felt that he was bullied by Mario as a child, when they were friends. He has his allies from Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins and has his revenge.[8]

Characteristics

File:FireWarioshot.PNG
Wario set ablaze in Wario Land 3. Wario is known for his unique and humorous abilities

Wario possesses negative characteristics that include greed, laziness, ruthlessness, and gluttony.[citation needed] The character is renowned for his greed and is thought to be a cruel and unintelligent enemy of Mario who will do anything for wealth. In most of the games he has only various evil minions and no friends, though he does appear to have several friends in the Warioware series and a love interest named Mona. The minions in his service are subject to his mismanagement and oblique leadership, leading to continual failure to achieve his goals. For example, in Super Mario RPG, Wario kidnaps Princess Peach, attempts to marry her, but fails to see the danger Mario presents until it is too late and then completely forgets about the marriage.[citation needed]

Warios physical appearance resembles an exaggerated Mario, being very fat and short (though he also has muscular arms) and an oversized jagged moustache.

Wario is of questionable intelligence, often becoming wealthy by hatching a nefarious scheme, only to lose it all. He also has a Sicilian accent/dialect. His personal car which he drives in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and Wario Land 4 is the Wario Car, which resembles a single-seater purple 1950s Cadillac with his trademark moustache on the hood. A checkerboard-patterned version of this car called the Brute appears in Mario Kart DS. Wario is also sometimes seen flying a purple plane named The Bulldog. In direct contrast to Mario, who is heroic and kind, Wario is extremely greedy, lazy, ill-mannered, and manipulative. He will only agree to something if there is a reward (preferably money) involved; he is easily susceptible to bribes. He is hugely jealous of Mario's fame, and has frequently tried to steal enough wealth to make himself as beloved as Mario. While he has been rich at times (to the point of owning his own giant castle full of golden coins more than once), usually his get-rich-quick schemes seem to go wrong. According to a comic story published in Nintendo Power[9], the reason Wario acts the way he does is because Mario bullied him when they were both young. Wario especially hated playing cowboys, because he was almost always the rustler that the sheriff, played by Mario, had to arrest. Wario would lose to Mario either way. However, there is no indication that this story is canon. Wario started out as more of an evil character. In a commercial for Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, Wario attempts to hypnotize the viewers into serving him.[10] He continues on with his evil streak in Wario's Woods and Mario and Wario, while also playing an anti-hero role in Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3. Later games feature him almost exclusively in the anti-hero role, and he seems to have retired as Mario's enemy, even though he does say he is still his nemesis. In Super Mario 64 DS, Wario even teams up with Mario, Luigi and Yoshi, although it could be considered that he has no choice (having been captured and imprisoned, as they were, by Bowser). Wario is not evil per se, but his greed can motivate him to do evil things. Wario's most defining asset is his phenomenal strength. He is strong enough to pick up enemies much larger than himself, pile drive them, and break through several layers of brick walls. Throughout the Wario Land series, Wario employs power-ups, such as hats. The earliest power-ups are the Dragon Helmet, Bull Helmet, and Jet Helmet. The Dragon Helmet shoots flames, the Bull Helmet increases Wario's strength and endows him with a ground pound maneuver and the ability to cling to ceilings, and the Jet Helmet allows Wario to fly forward for a short amount of time, jump higher, and run faster according to the manual. These also appear in Virtual Boy Wario Land, along with new power-ups, such as the Eagle Helmet and King Dragon Helmet. Later games replace the helmet powers with status effects; Wario Land II introduces such forms as Puffy Wario (which allows Wario to fly into the air slowly until his bloated face pops), Spring Wario (which turns Wario into a spring and allows him to bounce until he hits something), and Burning Wario (Wario catches on fire, which allows him to light torches and destroy fire-sensitive blocks). Wario World is the first platforming game of the series that does not feature the helmet powers or status effects, rather gaining physical moves, such as the Corkscrew Conk, the Piledriver, and the Wild Swing-Ding. He also has an ability called Hyper Suction, which allows him to inhale various objects such as coins and garlic in a "Kirby-esque" fashion.

A common power-up in the Wario games is garlic, which is his answer to Mario's Super Mushrooms. It restores Wario's health in several video games, such as Wario World, and when Wario eats garlic in Wario Land 3, he gains more power for certain attacks. Garlic is also what transforms Wario into Wario-Man in WarioWare: Touched!: he finds some bad garlic in his refrigerator, and eats it anyway. As Wario-Man, he is able to fly slowly. An explosion inside of Wario is apparently the antidote. In Super Mario 64 DS, Wario can turn into Metal Wario by picking up a "Power Flower" from a red "?" block. Metal Wario is heavier and sinks in water, although in this form, he is virtually invulnerable to damage. In the original game, Super Mario 64, this power is accessible by Mario, and appears in green blocks in the form of a cap. In the game's multiplayer mode, he can use his Piledriver and Wild Swing-Ding moves from Wario World, as well as the Wing Feather(Which all 4 of the game's characters can use in Multiplayer). Ever since Mario Tennis, in Mario spinoffs, Wario has been paired with Waluigi, Wario's brother and answer to Mario's brother, Luigi. The two of them are greedy, sinister, and devious, consistently scheming together. According to Nintendo of Europe, Waluigi and Wario are brothers. Oddly, he has never appeared in any Wario Ware game. In the Wario Ware series, he has quite a few friends, one of which is a high school student named Mona. There has been some evidence of a romantic relationship between the two of them. Captain Syrup is Wario's first nemesis (not including Mario) and the only recurring Wario Land villain, though she hasn't appeared for several years.

See also: WarioWare characters

Concept and creation

The name "Wario" is Mario's name blended with the Japanese adjective warui (悪い) meaning "bad"; hence, a "bad Mario"[11]. Wario is of questionable intelligence, often becoming wealthy by hatching a nefarious scheme, only to lose it all. He also has a Sicilian accent/dialect. His personal car which he drives in Mario Kart: Double Dash!! and Wario Land 4 is the Wario Car, which resembles a single-seater purple 1950s Cadillac with his trademark moustache on the hood. A checkerboard-patterned version of this car called the Brute appears in Mario Kart DS. Wario is also sometimes seen flying a purple plane named The Bulldog.

He is voiced by Charles Martinet, who also voices the Mario, Luigi, and Waluigi characters.[12]

Wario is thought to resemble Foreman Spike, a villain in the NES game Wrecking Crew. He works against Mario in order to prevent him from destroying the buildings (along with his Eggplant Men). Both sporting similar facial features, but after Wrecking Crew '98, Spike's features changed, and he resembled Wario a little less.[13] He still has the same nose and a Waluigi-like moustache, however. While it does not appear that they are the same person, some still believe that Wario was inspired by Spike's physical features. [13]

Notes

  1. ^ "Wario Blast". Nintendo Database. 2005-01-28. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ VB Mario Land "VB Mario Land". N-sider.com. 2006-01-01. Retrieved August 23. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ "Wario World Reviews for the GameCube". gametab.com. 2006-01-01. Retrieved August 23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ "Characters". Smash Brothers.com. Nintendo. 2006-01-01. Retrieved 2006-08-23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  5. ^ W., Dan (2005-11-15). "Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga: Lost text". The Mushroom Kingdom. Classic Gaming.com. Retrieved 2006-08-23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  6. ^ "Super Mario Bros. Plush Figure Set". GKworld.com. Retrieved August 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "MERCHANDISE MANIA - Mario stickers". Super Mario Brothers HQ. Retrieved August 24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ Super Mario Bros. Headquarters. "Super Mario Adventure Graphic Novel". Retrieved August 11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ Takekuma, Kentaro and Nozawa, Charlie. "Mario VS Wario". Nintendo Power vol. 44. January 1993.
  10. ^ "Super Mario Land 2". Video Game Ads. Gamepressure.com. 2006-01-01. Retrieved 2006-08-23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  11. ^ Marcus & Mattias Liedholm. "Facts & Fun - How did they get their names?". Nintendoland.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ Charles Martinet. "Charles Martinet-Voice Over". charlesmartinet.com. Retrieved August 21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ a b Hitchhiker's Guide to Video Games. "Theory Station". Retrieved August 11. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)

References

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wario&oldid=71749722"