Wario's Woods - Reception

Reception

Wario's Woods has received lukewarm to favorable reviews. Allgame rated Wario's Woods 4 stars out of 5 for the NES version, and 3.5 stars out of 5 for the SNES version. Christian Huey, who reviewed the NES version, stated that the controls were "both surprisingly complex and completely intuitive" while the gameplay has a "surprising level of depth," and labeled the two-player versus mode as "an extremely welcome addition to the core game." Scott Alan Marriott, who reviewed the SNES version, felt that the game "doesn't quite measure up to the addictiveness of either Tetris or Dr. Mario," citing the game's "extremely awkward" controls and complicated gameplay. While Marriott appreciated "that the developers were trying something new," he concluded that "Sometimes when you add things to an already proven formula, you dilute the ingredients that made it a success." Because Nintendo Power ceased coverage of NES games starting with its March 1994 issue (the NES version was released in December that year), it only reviewed the SNES version of Wario's Woods, awarding it a score of 3.375 out of 5.

The reviews for the Virtual Console release ranged from mixed to positive, applauding the gameplay and depth, but criticizing the choice to release the primitive NES version over the more comprehensive SNES version. Lucas Thomas of IGN awarded the game an 8.0 out of 10, praising the game's unique approach to the puzzle genre and graphics that "took full advantage of the 8-bit hardware full of character," but recommended "saving points for the SNES version, if it becomes available." Aaron Thomas of GameSpot gave Wario's Woods a score of 7.0 out of 10, admiring the "fun, addictive game play" and "surprising amount of depth," but criticizing the game's repetitive music and poor sound effects, adding that he also prefers the "ideal" SNES version. Nintendo Life scored the game 6 out of 10, stating that while the game is fun, "enjoyment for most will no doubt be short-lived."