The one Virtual Boy game published by Nintendo that people ever really talk about. The second title in the Wario Land series, Virtual Boy Wario Land offers it's own take on the formula the original game developed.
In a rare turn for games on the Virtual Boy, this is actually a proper, in depth game. Yes it may be a short experience, beatable in under an hour if you know what you're doing but this doesn't feel compromised by the hardware, this feels like a proper Wario Land game and my gosh I have been hoping to find a Virtual Boy game like this.
This is Wario Land at it's core. Wario has his dash attack and through a few power ups he can gain a glide ability, breathe fire, or make himself stronger to break certain blocks and do a screen shaking ground pound, stunning all enemies. Wario becomes tiny upon taking damage in any form and will die if hit in his tiny form. You've got that fun and unique Wario moveset but not quite developed to the point stuff like Wario Land II and beyond would take it.
A platforming title with exploration at it's core, VB Wario Land sees you exploring it's well crafted levels to find a key to unlock the exit and progress. Each level also contains a hidden treasure which will change your ending depending on the amount you've collected. It's fun to explore these levels with Wario's unique moveset, barging through enemies and discovering secrets but this is a VB game and so it needs to make use of the 3D somehow right?
Well in VB Wario Land, levels are designed with a background and a foreground and you can hop between them using certain platforms you can find. Now these days, background/foreground hopping in a 2D platformer isn't that crazy. In 1995 and in 3D where you can see an actual depth to it all? Excellent stuff, fantastic use of the hardware and done in a way that fits the Wario Land gameplay naturally. A lot of VB games like to change the viewing angles of games to make the 3D effect more pronounced but Wario Land is a 2D platformer at heart and they keep it like that. You probably won't appreciate the 3D effect layering as you're playing but as soon as you try and play this in 2D you'll see just how much clearer the game looks in 3D with everything at different depths. It's great stuff and is worked into the level design well, often making you search for a way to get to the background because you see something interesting in it.
Throughout it's 14 levels there are 4 boss fights, each making decent use of the background/foreground mechanic for you to dodge attacks and find an opening to hit them. The final boss can be a bit of a pain to hit at times but otherwise, these are pretty good fights and help break up the main levels.
Every level has a 20 minute timer for some reason, probably more to do with them not wanting people spending hours in a single level on the Virtual Boy. 20 minutes is more than generous for these levels, so don't worry, you'll have plenty time to explore thoroughly and find the treasure and exit.
Virtual Boy Wario Land is the peak of Nintendo's library they put out on Virtual Boy. Despite being relatively short, it's one of the few titles that feels like a game with depth to it, that feels like it fits within its series, and it's something I wish the VB had more of. It's a fantastic Wario Land title that finds a way to work well with the 3D effect and not compromise on its core gameplay to do so
In a rare turn for games on the Virtual Boy, this is actually a proper, in depth game. Yes it may be a short experience, beatable in under an hour if you know what you're doing but this doesn't feel compromised by the hardware, this feels like a proper Wario Land game and my gosh I have been hoping to find a Virtual Boy game like this.
This is Wario Land at it's core. Wario has his dash attack and through a few power ups he can gain a glide ability, breathe fire, or make himself stronger to break certain blocks and do a screen shaking ground pound, stunning all enemies. Wario becomes tiny upon taking damage in any form and will die if hit in his tiny form. You've got that fun and unique Wario moveset but not quite developed to the point stuff like Wario Land II and beyond would take it.
A platforming title with exploration at it's core, VB Wario Land sees you exploring it's well crafted levels to find a key to unlock the exit and progress. Each level also contains a hidden treasure which will change your ending depending on the amount you've collected. It's fun to explore these levels with Wario's unique moveset, barging through enemies and discovering secrets but this is a VB game and so it needs to make use of the 3D somehow right?
Well in VB Wario Land, levels are designed with a background and a foreground and you can hop between them using certain platforms you can find. Now these days, background/foreground hopping in a 2D platformer isn't that crazy. In 1995 and in 3D where you can see an actual depth to it all? Excellent stuff, fantastic use of the hardware and done in a way that fits the Wario Land gameplay naturally. A lot of VB games like to change the viewing angles of games to make the 3D effect more pronounced but Wario Land is a 2D platformer at heart and they keep it like that. You probably won't appreciate the 3D effect layering as you're playing but as soon as you try and play this in 2D you'll see just how much clearer the game looks in 3D with everything at different depths. It's great stuff and is worked into the level design well, often making you search for a way to get to the background because you see something interesting in it.
Throughout it's 14 levels there are 4 boss fights, each making decent use of the background/foreground mechanic for you to dodge attacks and find an opening to hit them. The final boss can be a bit of a pain to hit at times but otherwise, these are pretty good fights and help break up the main levels.
Every level has a 20 minute timer for some reason, probably more to do with them not wanting people spending hours in a single level on the Virtual Boy. 20 minutes is more than generous for these levels, so don't worry, you'll have plenty time to explore thoroughly and find the treasure and exit.
Virtual Boy Wario Land is the peak of Nintendo's library they put out on Virtual Boy. Despite being relatively short, it's one of the few titles that feels like a game with depth to it, that feels like it fits within its series, and it's something I wish the VB had more of. It's a fantastic Wario Land title that finds a way to work well with the 3D effect and not compromise on its core gameplay to do so