Review: WARIOWARE: MOVE IT! is Full of Microgame Fun

In the last week or so, Nintendo has released WarioWare: Move It! for the Nintendo Switch. The game costs $49.99 at retail and is available from the Nintendo eShop, Humble Store (affiliate link), GameStop (affiliate link), and more. Nintendo was kind enough to supply me with a digital copy of the game, but the thoughts below are my own.

Grab a pair of Joy-Con controllers and get moving as you gently shake, punch, dance, wiggle, and even curtsey through over 200 lightning-fast microgames (minigames that last just a few hilarious seconds). A second player* can use another set of Joy-Con controllers to join the treasure-guarding, sheep-twirling fun. Up to 4 players, each with one Joy-Con controller, can laugh out loud in the local Party Mode’s minigames like a dicey board game with Wario-style rules.

Here’s my quick caveat before getting into the bulk of the review: this is my first real foray into the WarioWare games. There’s been one instance where I briefly was introduced to WarioWare: Smooth Moves, but it was probably less than five minutes. I was really excited to play Move It though because it looked fun. I was interested in trying out the various microgames and having a fast-paced party game.

Move It features more than 200 microgames for you to enjoy with your friends across a few different formats. The story mode allows up to two players to take on the roles of Wario and his friends as they go on an island vacation. Meanwhile, 2-4 players can enjoy four party game modes: Galactic Conquest, Listen to the Doctor!, Medusa March, Go the Distance, and The “Who’s in Control?” Show. I need to note that I have not been able to try out The “Who’s in Control?” Show because it requires four players. I want to briefly touch on the other modes.

First, the Story Mode is fun, but definitely not necessary. It’s nice if you want to practice the microgames solo or just become more familiar with them and the various forms. Listen to the Doctor! is a fine party mode where each player will take turns playing the microgames while doing additional tasks like shouting out animals that are black or puffing their cheeks out. The catch here is that you get points by other players shaking the Joy-Con to denote that you performed the additional task well and you get fewer points if any of the other players are less enthusiastic about shaking those Joy-Con. That being said, my 6-year-old daughter loves this mode. Medusa March is possibly the hardest of the party game modes. You have to try to sneak up to a giant medusa and freeze in place when she looks at you and occasionally complete microgames. It’s possible, but in my opinion it’s probably the least fun because of the sneak element. Go the Distance is probably the favorite party mode for both me and my wife. Players will have to complete microgames in random pairings/solo bouts and if you fail the game, you lose one of your four hearts. Last character standing wins. Finally, Galactic Conquest is very different. Not only does it have a board game feel where the winner of each mini game rolls a die and moves spaces on the board, but also notice how I said mini game instead of microgame. The games in Galactic Conquest are very different from any other game mode which can create a nice break.

Overall, Move It is great. It is presented well with everything looking good and sounding as you’d expect. I don’t have any complaints regarding the visuals or sounds. The story is even the perfect amount of silly. Plus, many of the mini games and microgames are a blast. My daughter has really gotten sucked into playing Move It and it’s been a great way to spend some family time. Another aspect I appreciate is that some of the microgames feature assets and inspiration from other Nintendo titles. One has you smack a tree like in Paper Mario: The Origami King. Another has you run from Link as a Cuccoo in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. There was even a game that came up once for me featuring Metroid Dread. That’s a fantastic little touch!

That being said, there are some faults. The biggest complaint I have is that the controls aren’t always the most accurate/responsive. In particular, when you have to do the squat form, I feel like the movements become more hit and miss which can get frustrating. This lack of accuracy also makes the sneaking in Medusa March require a lot more focus. A nitpick I have is that it is far more comfortable in my opinion to use the same side Joy-Con as your dominant hand. This is because the grip you need to have will have a non-dominant Joy-Con’s analog stick go into your palm. The dominant Joy-Con will have the stick facing outward.

At the end of the day, I think Move It is a fun game for quick game nights with friends or family. It’s also great if you’ve got a lot of people that you need to rotate through. It’s not perfect and there are problems that make me think it’d be best to grab on sale, but I do think it’s worth grabbing. Especially at this time of year when you’re getting together a lot for holiday festivities.