Wario Land II

Wario Land II
250px PAL region cover art for Game Boy Color
Developer(s)	Nintendo R&D1
Publisher(s)	Nintendo
Director(s)	Takehiko Hosokawa
Producer(s)	Takehiro Izushi
Artist(s)	Hiroji Kiyotake
Composer(s)	Kozue Ishikawa
Series	Wario Land
Platforms	Game Boy, Game Boy Color, 3DS Virtual Console
Release date(s)	Game Boy Game Boy Color 3DS Virtual Console
Genre(s)	Platforming
Mode(s)	Single-player

Wario Land II (ワリオランド2 盗まれた財宝, Wario Rando Tsū: Nusumareta Zaihō, "Wario Land 2: The Stolen Treasure") is a platform game released for the Game Boy in 1998. It was the last first-party title made for the Game Boy and was later remade to take advantage of the Game Boy Color hardware. In this game, Wario has to recover his treasure from Captain Syrup and her Black Sugar Gang (formerly the Brown Sugar Pirates). The Game Boy Color version was released on the 3DS Virtual Console in 2012.

Gameplay

Unlike in most video games of the time, the game's challenge comes mostly through impeding player progress by implementing physical obstacles, puzzle-solving, paths blocked by coin or treasure locks, or forcing Wario back to previously-visited areas. By finding hidden exits in some stages, the player can change the direction of the game's plot (loose as it is) and uncover different endings, as well as find more treasure. In addition to the Really Final Chapter, five other endings can be unlocked by collecting all the treasures. An enemy-themed Simon Says minigame based on the Game & Watch game Flagman can be unlocked by collecting all the picture tiles. Additionally, unlike most Mario games and even other Wario games, in Wario Land II, Wario does not have any life points and cannot die; some enemy attacks simply knock him backward and cause him to drop some coins. He can take advantage of certain enemy attacks however to undergo transformations which allow him to reach areas that he cannot normally get to. Example: Being hit by an ice attack will freeze him and send him sliding backwards, completely negating spikes.

Plot

The game features the return of Wario's nemesis, Captain Syrup. Early one morning, she and a few of her soldiers, the Pirate Gooms (Spearmen, which are holdovers from Wario Land; several different levels deal with defeating a giant Spearman), sneak into Wario's Castle and cause havoc. They steal his precious treasure and his beloved pet hen (called Hen), set off his giant alarm clock, and leave the tap running, flooding much of his castle. After Wario wakes up and figures out what's going on, he gives chase across the surrounding lands.

Reception

Wario Land II received critical acclaim. The Game Boy Color version received an aggregate score of 88.04% at GameRankings based on 14 reviews. IGN gave the game 9 out of 10, insisting that "It's the perfect game to accompany you on a long road trip because of its lastability and replayability." Nintendo Life awarded the Virtual Console re-release 9 out of 10, arguing that "Big fans of the first game might lament Wario Land II's sudden significant change in gameplay, but if you give it a try, you'll find that it's actually quite good."

External links

• Official website (Japanese)
• Wario Land 2 at MobyGames