WarioWare D.I.Y.
Until now, Nintendo's WarioWare games have been collections of quick, disposable micro-games that required no more than a few seconds of concentration. They were short blasts of disposable entertainment perfectly suited for the ADD generation.
The latest game in the franchise, WarioWare D.I.Y. for the DS, moves in a new direction. It still plays host to the series' requisite collection of goofy four-second micro-games that have players doing things like guiding a finger to pick a nose and tapping items on a grocery list to put them in a bag. However, its primary focus isn't playing games but instead creating them, and game making turns out to be anything but brief and mindless.
It all begins with a series of detailed interactive tutorials that show players how to create graphics and music and explain the rules that govern game design, including triggers, switches, and winning conditions. It takes upwards of an hour to work through the three most basic sets of lessons, which are all but mandatory to understanding how to make even a simple game. And that's to say nothing of the dozens of specialized technique workshops, which are essential to learning how to create more complex games.
And micro-games aren't the only things players can make. They can also compose 90-second songs using a surprisingly powerful multi-track music editor filled with loads of awesome 8-bit samples. Plus, there's a simple art module for creating short comic strips.
All creations can be shared with friends over a local wireless connection, uploaded to a Wii, or stored in an online warehouse where registered friends can access them. Nintendo will also be hosting design challenges that will let players create games according to a theme, and the best will be posted online for the public to download.
Of course, this cornucopia of creativity comes with the assumption that players will have the tenacity to slog through all of those lengthy tutorials-which, from my perspective, have been unnecessarily lengthened via a seemingly never-ending series of interruptions by the game's unfortunately unlikable star, Wario.
To be sure, the steep learning curve will turn off less focused kids. Still, I feel safe predicting that many of those who stick with it will end up becoming our next generation of game designers. They'll look back on the countless hours spent under their bed covers and in the back seats of cars making games in WarioWare D.I.Y. and realize that time was actually the genesis of their careers.
I hasten to add, however, that this isn't a game just for children. The editing tools are powerful and satisfying enough to offer artistic adults a creative fix, too. In fact, as game blog Destructoid reports, professional game designers such as Masahiro Sakurai (the fellow behind the Super Smash Bros. games) and Yoshio Sakamoto (director of the Metroid series) have already been using WarioWare D.I.Y. to come up with and share games of their own.
Point being, don't be surprised if you find yourself heading into your daughter's room after she's fallen asleep and stealing away the DS still clutched in her hands so you can do a little game and music making of your own.
WarioWare D.I.Y.
Platform: Nintendo DS
Developer/Publisher: Nintendo
ESRB: Everyone
Score: 3/4
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