
	Platform Wii Genre Platformer Publisher Nintendo Developer Good-feel ESRB E (Everyone) Released September 22, 2008

- Reminiscent of old time platformers but still brings something of its own - Fits right in with the Wario mythos - Excellent animation - Hardcore crowd will still get a challenging experience

- All that shakin' can lead to arm cramps - You'll wish it was a longer adventure

Review: Wario World (GC) Review: Super Mario Galaxy (Wii) Review: Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii)
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Wario Land: Shake It!

Score: 8.5 / 10

Unequivocally, the world would be a better place if there were more games like Wario Land Shake It! I haven't played a 2D platformer in what seems like forever and it's a testament to a neglected genre that it can still showcase a great gaming experience.

As the name so subtly suggests, Wario Land: Shake It! includes some rapid shaking of the Wii Remote among a few other uses of the motion control, but most of the control is inputted by the directional pad and the 1 and 2 buttons. For those old

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enough to remember, it's a lot like playing an 8-bit Super Mario game.

The big difference between those original Mario Bros. games and this is that Wario Land: Shake It! has a visual style that feels so animated and alive that it's a lot like controlling a cartoon, a fact that is not successfully displayed by screenshots. All of Wario's movements look really good and the backgrounds and

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environments look like they had a lot of love and attention poured on them.

As kid friendly the graphics are and accessible the levels are, Shake It! has some really hard challenges for older players. Each level tasks Wario with freeing a "werfle" at the end of each level then running back through the level before the timer runs down to zero and all the loot Wario collected counts for nothing. But that's not usually a problem. What is a problem is fulfilling the optional tasks, like finishing the level without taking any damage or not falling in the water or jumping on three enemies of one type in a row. Fulfilling some of these objectives are a challenge and if you're a completionist or just think you should be able to conquer such a kid friendly game you'll likely spend more hours than you should learning the secrets of each level to find all the treasure and learn the quickest exit routes. Doing it right is a reward unto itself but those less inclined for this kind of perfection can buy other rewards from the shop, like heart containers and area maps (to unlock the next area).

With the recent release of the brutally difficult Mega Man 9 -- a throwback to the NES Mega Man games -- a game like Shake It! acts as a good counterpoint because while it can be approached with a hardcore attitude, it can easily be played with a much more relaxed frame of mind. Or by 9-year olds.

- Aaron Simmer

(October 4, 2008)