GENRE
	Minigame
	DEVELOPER
	Nintendo
	PUBLISHER
	Nintendo
	LOCAL WIRELESS MULTI-PLAY
	No
	Wi-Fi/GLOBAL ONLINE MULTI-PLAY
	No
	MICROPHONE
	Yes
	BUY NOW AT

Wario’s latest romp into microgames appears to be a perfect fit for showcasing DSiWare and the Nintendo DSi, which is equipped with two cameras. The interior camera serves as the backbone to Wario's latest offering: it records players performing zany tasks, such as playing peek-a-boo with a baby. The 20 or so minigames available bring smiles and laughter, but setting up the game can be an aggravating experience akin to trying to fit a square peg into a round hole.

visuals

Cartoon-like characters and vibrant colors liven up the screen in WareWare: Snapped! The game’s menu features Wario and friends, but each minigame shifts in visual style, presenting players with a crazy mismatch that fits accordingly to the title’s rapid-fire nature.

These presentation features come second, however, to you. The title highlights the player through clips and images after playing a round of microgames. Watching embarrassing pictures of yourself or a friend biting air -- complemented with over-the-top art overlaying the image, such as rice appearing to enter your mouth -- is definitely the high point of the experience.

audio

Old-time piano tunes and Wario’s laughter comprise much of the music. The main song is upbeat and fits snugly with the rest of the package. There’s also cheers or jeers from a small audience after each microgame, depending on the player’s success rate.

gameplay

Sadly, many may not care about their in-game success rate because of a huge hurdle in starting a session. To begin playing WarioWare Snapped!, users must set up the camera and find a sufficient light source along with a background that contrasts with the gamer's skin tone. This proves to be rather difficult and will place people in some awkward positions. Even worse, there may not be a place in your residence with the perfect conditions needed for playing.

But once the game gets going, it’s as refreshing as jumping in a pool on a hot summer day. Different tasks shoot up on-screen, like blowing kisses. After completing five such objectives, the title throws together a montage video of the user playing, which oftentimes is laugh-out-loud funny.

What isn’t funny, though, is that this collection of pictures cannot be transferred to the DSi system or SD card, so enjoy it while it lasts. And even worse, the game can be blitzed through in roughly 10 minutes or less -- the aforementioned refreshing dip is in a rather shallow pool.

multiplayer

Two players can sit cheek to cheek, which adds to the madness. Definitely a fun feature to play with family or significant other, but just like single-player, difficult to get started.

overall

WarioWare Snapped! is like buying a Lamborghini with a bad engine. The game looks super slick and proffers a highly amusing time when running, but more often than not, never gets started because of under-the-hood problems.

5.1/10