Wario (universe)

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The Wario universe refers to the Smash Bros. series' collection of characters, stages, and properties concerning the subfranchise of the world-famous Mario game franchise centered on series anti-hero Wario. A series with much cartoon mayhem and humor that is sometimes scatological, Wario is a more deranged take on the normally cheery and kid-friendly Mario archetype, and its appearances in Super Smash Bros. Brawl adhere to this aesthetic.

Franchise description

Early in the Mario franchise's release history, Nintendo released the Game Boy platformer Super Mario Land in mid-1989, in which Mario traveled to a far-off land to rescue Princess Daisy. This gave way to a subseries of handheld platformers, and the first sequel, Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins for the Game Boy in late 1992, debuted a new antagonist that resembled a larger, portlier, more thuggish counterpart to Mario, Wario, introduced as one of Mario's previously-unseen enemies. Wario, originally presented in a more straightforward, villainous light, takes over Mario's castle while Mario is away, and when Mario returns he must go on a quest to collect the six titular coins that are the keys to his castle in order to defeat Wario and reclaim it from him. Wario, for a time, then became one of few recurring Mario villains that were not Mario's traditional arch-enemy Bowser, and was reused as such in several puzzle games: Mario & Wario (a Japan-only release for Super Famicom in 1993) and Wario's Woods (released in the West in December 1995) both featured him enacting revenge plots against Mario and his friends, and in one of Nintendo's first crossovers with a third-party franchise, Wario Blast: Featuring Bomberman, a Game Boy installment of the Hudson Soft franchise Bomberman, the eponymous hero must prevent Wario from plundering his home planet.

Wario was then permanently assigned a new role and outlook in the Mario universe, that of a less-malicious anti-hero motivated by a comically insatiable greed. Like Yoshi and his own relevance in the Mario games, Wario forever became part of the stable of recurring Mario side characters that would take part in a variety of Mario games, such as being a selectable racer in Mario Kart and a selectable "board piece" in Mario Party, while at the same time beginning to star in games all to himself. The "third" game in the Super Mario Land subseries, Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3, became the first game in the Wario Land series of platforming titles for various platforms, a series which established a style of platforming different from the familiar Mario formula of jumping and bouncing on enemies and focusing more on physical attacks such as running tackles. The scenarios in Wario platforming games typically center around Wario's greed-motivated adventures and the incidental deeds of goodness he commits for others while doing so, such as defeating a more threatening villain in his quest to claim the reward money. Early in his own games, Wario briefly had an equally greedy rival of his own, a female pirate named Captain Syrup, who had only recently made a return appearance in 2008's Wario Land: Shake It! (the most recent Wario-centric platformer) after a decade of absence.

Starting from 2003, Wario additionally and regularly starred in a more deranged, parodic, borderline scatological series of party games titled WarioWare, with an all-new cast of bizarre side characters and a very different twist on the established party game formula. In these games, the scenario is that Wario gets the idea to strike it rich by founding his own video game company and getting all of his friends from his home city, Diamond City, to program hundreds of extremely simple games for him. The gameplay itself resembles an extended, rapid barrage of extremely simple "games", each lasting mere seconds and taking no more than one or several appropriately timed button presses to complete ("Microgames"), and the number of microgames a player can complete before failing a set number of times is set as their high score. There is seemingly no limit to the range of surreal imagery the microgames display; highlights include Wario having to jump at the right time in order to avoid getting run over by a giant hot dog on wheels, reenactments of classic scenes from old Nintendo games, and successfully guiding a finger into a nostril. Different installments of the series for different platforms have featured their own, unique twists to the gameplay dependent on the hardware of the console itself.

Wario was somewhat infamously excluded as a playable character from both of the first two games in the Super Smash Bros. series of Nintendo-focused crossover fighting games. Wario finally became playable in 2008's Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and in the game, the WarioWare sub-franchise was recognized as Wario's "home franchise", separately categorized from the Mario series in a similar fashion to Yoshi and Donkey Kong. However, the most recent Wario game to feature the WarioWare aesthetic and extended cast, Game & Wario for the Wii U in June 2013, is a much more traditional collection of minigames that are much fewer in number and much more developed individually.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

Wario was not recognized as a distinctive universe in Super Smash Bros. Melee, and it was not treated as one either, for there were no playable characters and stages based on the franchise. There was a trophy for Wario however, and the Bucket trophy may be considered a Wario property in Melee as well. In addition, one of Mario's alternate color swap costumes in both Smash 64 and Melee is a yellow and purple color scheme matching the standard Wario attire seen on Wario's trophy.

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Wario is recognized and treated as a distinctive universe in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. It focuses heavily on the Wario Ware games due to their extreme popularity.

Character

• 
  Wario: The franchise's first playable character. Wario has been the only Wario property seen in the trailers for Brawl. Wario is dressed in his biker jacket as he is seen in the WarioWare series. However, an update showed that Wario also has the option of utilizing his original, plumber overalls. This overall gives Wario twelve costumes to choose from in the game. The developers have stated that Wario, in an attempt to embody the Wario series' off-kilter and sometimes scatological nature, can build up "gas" over the time of the match, and he is able to use it as a form of atomic flatulence.

On the final character select screen (after all characters are unlocked), Wario shares a column with fellow Mario side series characters Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and Yoshi.

Assist Trophy

• Kat & Ana: These twin ninja kindergarteners use their ninja skills and slash in multiple "X" formations on the stage, damaging any foes that make contact with their attack. This is the only Assist Trophy originating from one of the Mario sub-series.

Stage

• 
  WarioWare, Inc.: Occasionally, the stage takes the player from the main "elevator" into a microgame, which they can complete to obtain some sort of award. The microgames are able to damage characters, as a screen shot depicting a "Dodge the rain" game shows the characters in the rain taking non-flinching damage.

Music

See List of SSBB Music (WarioWare, Inc. series).

• WarioWare, Inc. - A slight alteration of the main menu theme from the original WarioWare, Inc.: Mega MicroGame$!, as well as the title screen from the same game. It is the theme of the WarioWare stage.
• WarioWare, Inc. Medley - A medley of a large number of songs heard in the first title of the series, WarioWare, Inc.: Mega MicroGame$!, including the opening theme, Wario's theme, as well as Dribble & Spitz's theme among others. It is used on the WarioWare stage. This song is also played during Wario's Classic Mode credits.
• Ashley's Theme - A big band version of the vocal theme song of Ashley in WarioWare Touched! It is used on the WarioWare stage.
• Ashley's Theme (JP) - The same as the above song, but with Japanese lyrics. It is used on the WarioWare stage.
• Mike's Song - A 50's rock-and-roll version of the vocal theme song of Mike in WarioWare Touched! It is used on the WarioWare stage.
• Mike's Song (JP) - The same as the above song, but with Japanese lyrics. It is used on the WarioWare stage.
• Mona Pizza's Song - A fully redone version of the vocal theme song of Mona in WarioWare Twisted! It is used on the WarioWare stage.
• Mona Pizza's Song (JP) - The same as the above song, but with Japanese lyrics. It is used on the WarioWare stage.
• Wario's victory theme - Shares similarities to many Wario games, featuring musical qualities from both the WarioWare series and the Wario platforming series. It would be implemented into the first stage music for the game Wario Land: Shake It.

Trophy

See List of SSBB trophies (WarioWare series)

• Wario
• Wario-Man
• Wario Bike
• Kat & Ana

Stickers

See List of stickers (WarioWare series)

• Wario (multiple)
• Brute
• 9-Volt
• 18-Volt
• Ashley
• Ana
• Dr. Crygor
• Jimmy T
• Orbulon
• Penny
• Spitz
• Tiny Wario
• Wario & Bike
• Wario-Man
• Wario World Symbol
• Young Cricket

In Super Smash Bros. 4

Assist Trophy

• Ashley: She was confirmed as an official Assist trophy by Sakurai, via Miiverse, January 15, 2014. She will create a purple cloud giving an effect on the opponent.

• Waluigi: Waluigi's functions appear to be similar to those of Brawl, where he dashes at a random opponent on stage and stomps them into the ground. Interestingly, he no longer appears to be a part of the Mario universe.

Games with elements from or in the Super Smash Bros. series

WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!

Wario, who is playable in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, is dressed in his WarioWare outfit, which was first seen in this game. In addition, the stage WarioWare is based off not only several "Microgames" seen in this game, but also the pig elevator in this game.

WarioWare: Touched!

Two of the microgames appear (slightly altered) in Wario's home stage, WarioWare, Inc. Also, Wario's Final Smash, Wario-Man, originated from this game.

Ashley, a lonely teenage witch who first appears in Touched, is an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and has a theme song from Touched that was remade specifically for Brawl.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves

All of the voice samples of Assist Trophy Kat & Ana and of Wario's responses in the WarioWare, Inc. stage are lifted directly from this game.

External links

• Super Mario Wiki