Thirty years ago, we clutched our Game Boys in sweaty palms and gasped in collective awe at the grandeur we faced when Super Mario Land 2: 6 gold coins fell at the scene. We don’t just have an absolute beater on hand – it’s completely superior to the first Mario Land in every respect and feeling like a ‘proper’ Super Mario Bros. The game is magically squished into the Old Boy – but it’s also the first time we’ve been basked in the glory of Wario. In his first appearance, Mario’s opponent is a sly but majestic figure, towering over him.
Fast-forward three decades (yes, it really is) and the Wario as we know it now is a bit different from the formidable threat we first saw in 1992. Wario currently lives mostly in the neighborhood. humorous profession, sometimes launched as a villain in the Mario Sports Games. But where is the turning point?
The way we see it, there are three eras of Wario…
Wario, Rival and Hypnotist
“The evil impostor Wario cast evil spells on Mario Land” is how we were introduced to Wario in an iconic commercial (above) that shows him trying to hypnotize viewers into believing that Mario was the enemy, shouting, “Obey Wario, DESTROY MARIO” with a menacing look in his eyes. The original interpretation of Wario as the most evil villain the character has ever had.
While Mario went to fight aliens in Sarasaland, Wario took the plumber’s absence as an opportunity to put the inhabitants of Mario Land under his control through a spell. , capture Mario’s castle and lock the door with six gold coins scattered around the land.
Yes, in the early days Wario was a master of hypnosis and knew magic. This feature even transitions to television advisement Because Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 in which he tries to hypnotize viewers by hanging a coin in their face and lecturing them on the positive side of greed. It also gives us a rare look at his hair.
So what would make a man harbor such hatred for Mario that he would make a hostile takeover of his land? In the guidebook for Super Mario Land 2, Mario – once a narcissist – declares, “He’s been jealous of my popularity ever since we were boys.”
However, the Club Nintendo comic ‘Mario Vs Wario’ sheds light on a darker side of the story. As it turns out, Wario was once a victim of childhood bullying by none other than Mario himself. Yes, Nintendo’s golden boy tormented poor Wario.
So just maybe, he’s a good guy who fell into an anti-hero through no fault of his own.
Wario, Treasure Hunter
After Mario put him in his place, Wario never tried to coup Mario Land again. Actually – in addition to spin-off competitions like on the track or playing Tennis and DDR – he hasn’t resisted Mario since.
Instead, Wario begins a life of treasure hunting, starting with the original Wario Lands. For a character who used such allegorical methods against Mario in his debut, it turns out that Wario is the bad guy.
Zoom in on a few games, Wario Land 4 begins with a scene in a newspaper saying that a pyramid containing a legendary treasure has been discovered and ancient creatures are preventing people from discovering it. So what does our beloved Wario do? He got in the car and went straight there.
Even when appearing in his first boss encounter, Spoiled Rotten – a horror beyond human comprehension – will he begin to doubt the plan? No, Wario charged at the enemy without hesitation. Throughout his adventures, Wario is stung, burned, and even turned into a zombie, but he has no intention of stopping. Not until the treasure is his.
Then come Wario World, which begins with our dashing hero sitting on a throne in his golden castle, surrounded by heaps of treasure. Unbeknown to him, among his treasures was the cursed sentient gem, the ‘Black Gem’ suddenly awakened, pushing Wario out of the house and stealing his entire treasure collection. he.
Smash Bros. Brawl finally showed us Mario’s fearsome rival in Smash… and what does he do? Bike falls and farts
He plunges headfirst into an unknown land, having stolen all the spoils of his life under him. Is there a 20-minute cutscene of him lamenting everything he’s lost? No, he will be straight back within seconds and go out to get his treasure back. This is a resolute man whose lust for treasure overpowers mere human emotions such as fear and despair.
The culmination of Wario’s era of pointless action is definitely 2008 Wario Land: The Shake Dimension. This is not a mistake, as Tadanori Tsukawaki – the game’s design director – said in a Nintendo online interview:
“As much as possible, I wanted to show a manly Wario, a manly and tough man… I asked the animators to emphasize his masculine features.”
However, this is supposed to be the last time we see this side of Wario.
Wario, General Entrepreneur
Which brings us to Wario’s third era, one in which he becomes a stinky, garlic-gobbler, who has given up a life of adventure to sit behind him and have others create video games for him. This version of the character is mainly seen in WarioWare later Mario games and sub-games.
Unbelievable like Smash Bros. the series deals with its characters, Wario’s interpretation of those games is almost exclusively inspired by the later era. Outside the iconic burden (removed in Beat 4), Wario’s move list lacks any references to his Wario Land days. QuarrelThe trailer finally showed us Mario’s fearsome rival appearing in Smash after years of asking, and what does he do? Fell off his bike and farted on people.
The character’s humorous side is also present in most sports titles, such as the intro scene of Mario Power Tennis, showing him and Waluigi as idiots who messed up Bowser’s plans. This continues in his latest installment Mario Strikers: Battle League appears, where his super involves him smacking his butt into a ball, followed by him gobbling up a giant garlic clove.
Wario is an interesting character study amongst the Mushroom Kingdom crowd, arguably no other character going through the drastic changes he has. While we love WarioWare games with all our heart – and who doesn’t love a delicious fart? – it’s a bit disappointing to see the comedy side overwhelm a character that was once extremely capable. Then again, maybe this is simply the result of not having a single Wario Land game in the last 15 years.
It will be interesting to see if Wario appears in the new Mario movie and what form he will be in if he does. Is he the Shadow the Hedgehog-esque post-credit ster, establishing him as the villain for the inevitable sequel? Or will he be in the back to make the fart joke happen?
Who knows. Whatever happens, we salute you today!
Please let us know your favorite Wario games and moments below. We’re about to kick off Super Mario Land 2 for a 30th anniversary stage!
