Super Mario Land 3
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3'' is a 1994
platform game A platformer (also called a platform game, and sometimes a jump 'n' run game) is a subgenre of action game in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are characterized by levels wi ...
developed and published by
Nintendo is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto. It develops, publishes, and releases both video games and video game consoles. The history of Nintendo began when craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi ...
for the
Game Boy The is a handheld game console developed by Nintendo, launched in the Japanese home market on April 21, 1989, followed by North America later that year and other territories from 1990 onwards. Following the success of the Game & Watch single-ga ...
. The player controls
Wario is a character in Nintendo's Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise that was designed as an Archenemy, archnemesis to Mario. Wario first appeared as the main antagonist and final Boss (video games), boss in the 1992 Game Boy game ''Super Mar ...
as he travels around an island in an attempt to find treasures to purchase his own castle. Wario traverses a series of levels which are filled with treasure and coins that can be collected to help progress. ''Wario Land'' received positive reviews from critics, lauding its length and aesthetic quality, though it garnered mixed opinions on the game's difficulty. It sold more than five million copies and established the ''Wario'' series of spin-offs and sequels. The game was re-released for the
Nintendo 3DS The is a foldable dual-screen handheld game console produced by Nintendo. Announced in March 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS, the console was released originally on February 26, 2011 and went through various revisions in its lifetime, ...
's
Virtual Console The Virtual Console was a line of downloadable retro video games for Nintendo's Wii and Wii U home video game consoles and the Nintendo 3DS family of handheld systems. The Virtual Console lineup consisted of titles originally released on pa ...
.


Gameplay

''Wario Land'' features gameplay markedly different from the previous two games in the ''Super Mario Land'' series. The game takes place on a route through several themed areas, which are split into several courses, culminating in a boss fight.
Wario is a character in Nintendo's Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise that was designed as an Archenemy, archnemesis to Mario. Wario first appeared as the main antagonist and final Boss (video games), boss in the 1992 Game Boy game ''Super Mar ...
is able to jump on or bump into enemies to knock them over. Enemies thus stunned can be picked up and thrown at other enemies. When in his grown form, Wario is also able to perform a shoulder charge, which is used to attack enemies, break through blocks and open hidden treasure chests. There are additionally three unique helmets that Wario can obtain, with their own abilities. The Bull Helmet increases Wario's strength and doubles the length of his shoulder charge attack, allowing him to smash through blocks more easily. It also gives Wario the abilities to stick onto ceilings and perform a "butt stomp" into the ground, which stuns nearby enemies and breaks through blocks underneath him. The Jet Helmet increases Wario's running speed and lets him fly in purely horizontal directions in the air, as well as to shoulder charge underwater. Finally, the Dragon Helmet lets Wario shoot long-ranged bursts of flames both on land and underwater, which destroy enemies and blocks on contact. This attack replaces his shoulder charge so long as he wears the Dragon Helmet. Players can also collect a Starman to gain temporary invincibility. If Wario takes damage from an opponent or obstacle, he will shrink, losing his shoulder charge move, and will remain small until he collects a clove of garlic, a helmet, or reaches the end of the level. If Wario is hit while small, or is hit by an instant kill obstacle, such as pits or lava, he will lose a life and all the coins he had collected in that level. Unlike the ''
Super Mario (also known as and is a platform game series created by Nintendo starring their mascot, Mario. It is the central series of the greater Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise. At least one ''Super Mario'' game has been released for every ma ...
'' series, in which coins are typically used to earn extra lives, coins in this game are instead used as currency. They can be earned by collecting them, finding them in blocks, or shoulder charging enemies. If Wario has acquired 10 or more coins in a level, he can pull out a 10-coin piece, which he can throw at enemies, and pick up again if desired. They can also be spent to open level exits, or activate
checkpoints Checkpoint may refer to: Places * Border checkpoint, a place on the land border between two states where travellers and/or goods are inspected * Security checkpoint, erected and enforced within contiguous areas under military or paramilitary cont ...
. Extra lives are earned by collecting heart points, which are earned by defeating enemies or collecting Hearts, with an extra life earned for every 100 points. At the end of each level, the player can choose to either gamble the coins they have collected in the level in a game of chance, or spend them to try and earn heart points. Certain levels contain a locked treasure room, each of which contains a unique treasure. To acquire the treasure, the player must find the key in the level, carry it to the treasure room (Wario cannot use helmet abilities or the shoulder charge while carrying the key), break open the treasure chest, take the treasure, and finish the level. Upon finishing the game, each treasure the player has acquired is traded in for a set amount of coins. Even the least valuable treasure is worth roughly as many coins as the player would normally acquire over the entire game. The game's ending varies according to how many total coins the player has.


Plot

After being ejected from
Mario Mario (; ) is a Character (arts), character created by the Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto. He is the star of the ''Mario (franchise), Mario'' franchise, a recurring character in the ''Donkey Kong'' franchise, and the mascot of the Ja ...
's castle in the previous game, Wario resolves to get his own castle, one even bigger and more impressive than Mario's. To fund this extravagant dream, he travels to Kitchen Island, where the Brown Sugar Pirates have hidden many treasures and coins, including a golden statue of
Princess Peach is a character in Nintendo's Mario (franchise), ''Mario'' franchise. She was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and introduced in the 1985 original ''Super Mario Bros.'' game as Princess Toadstool. She is the Queen regnant, princess regnant and hea ...
, stolen from the
Mushroom Kingdom is a video game series and media franchise created by Japanese game designer Shigeru Miyamoto for Nintendo. Starring the titular plumber character Mario, the franchise began with video games but has extended to other forms of media, including ...
. Wario intends to retrieve this statue and sell it back to Mario for the price of a castle. After exploring the island, stealing the pirates' treasures, and infiltrating their Syrup Castle, Wario confronts the leader of the pirates, a female buccaneer named Captain Syrup. She summons a
genie GEnie (General Electric Network for Information Exchange) was an online service provider, online service created by a General Electric business, GEIS (now GXS Inc., GXS), that ran from 1985 through the end of 1999. In 1994, GEnie claimed around ...
to destroy Wario, but he defeats the genie and Syrup destroys the castle with a large bomb as she escapes. In doing so, the pirates' biggest treasure is revealed: the giant gold statue of Princess Peach. However, Mario appears in a helicopter, thanks Wario and takes the statue away in front of his eyes. Still holding the genie's lamp, Wario summons the genie and wishes for a castle. The genie tells him that he requires money to grant his wish, and so Wario gives him all the coins the player has collected over the course of the game, plus trades in all the found treasures for more coins. Exactly how well the genie grants Wario's wish depends on the final amount of coins he is given: Wario can get (from best to worst outcome) a castle, a Chinese pagoda, a log cabin, a treehouse, or a tiny birdhouse. If the player collects all the treasures and has enough coins to reach the 99,999 limit, the genie will give Wario an entire planet with his face etched on its surface.


Release

Originally released for the
Game Boy The is a handheld game console developed by Nintendo, launched in the Japanese home market on April 21, 1989, followed by North America later that year and other territories from 1990 onwards. Following the success of the Game & Watch single-ga ...
on January 21, 1994, in Japan and from March 13 to May 13 in North America and Europe after being delayed from a December 1993 release date, the game was later re-released on the
Nintendo 3DS The is a foldable dual-screen handheld game console produced by Nintendo. Announced in March 2010 as the successor to the Nintendo DS, the console was released originally on February 26, 2011 and went through various revisions in its lifetime, ...
's
eShop The is a digital distribution service for the Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo Switch 2, and formerly available via the Nintendo Network for the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS. Launched in June 2011 on the Nintendo 3DS, the Nintendo eShop served as t ...
Virtual Console The Virtual Console was a line of downloadable retro video games for Nintendo's Wii and Wii U home video game consoles and the Nintendo 3DS family of handheld systems. The Virtual Console lineup consisted of titles originally released on pa ...
download service in Japan on December 14, 2011, and in 2012 in Europe on February 16, and North America on July 26. The game could be downloaded along with its predecessors, ''
Super Mario Land is a 1989 platform game developed by Nintendo Research & Development 1, Nintendo R&D1, the same team that designed the Game Boy. It was published by Nintendo as Game Boy#Launch titles, one of the first four games released for the console. I ...
'' and '' Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins''.


Reception

In the United States, it was the top-selling Game Boy game in
March March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 2 ...
and April 1994. By 1997, units had been sold worldwide. The game has sold 5.19 million copies worldwide to date. ''
Game Informer ''Game Informer'' (''GI'' is an American monthly Video game journalism, video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and video game console, game consoles. It debuted in August 1991, when the video game reta ...
''s Ben Reeves called it the 13th best Game Boy game and called it the most successful spin-off from the ''Mario'' series. In the United Kingdom, it was the top-selling Game Boy game for three months in 1994, from May to July. ''
GamePro ''GamePro'' was an American multiplatform video game magazine media company that published online and print content covering the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software. The magazine featured content on various video ...
'' named it the best Game Boy game at the 1994
Consumer Electronics Show CES (; formerly an initialism for Consumer Electronics Show) is an annual trade show organized by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA). Held in January at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Winchester, Nevada, United States, the event typi ...
, praising the new
power-up In video games, a power-up is an object that adds temporary benefits or extra abilities to the player character as a Game mechanics, game mechanic. This is in contrast to an Item (game), item, which may or may not have a permanent benefit that ca ...
s and the multiple endings. In their later review, they deemed the game faster, more challenging, and more fun than its hand-held predecessors. They particularly commented that the backgrounds were not as cluttered as in the previous games, making the action easier to follow, that the music was less obtrusive, and that the sprites were better detailed. The four reviewers of ''
Electronic Gaming Monthly ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' (''EGM'') is a monthly American video game magazine. It offers video game news, coverage of industry events, interviews with gaming figures, editorial content and product reviews. History The magazine was fou ...
'' gave it a unanimous 7 out of 10, criticizing that the game is too easy but praising the new power-ups and strong graphics.
Power Unlimited ''Power Unlimited'' is a Dutch multi-format video games magazine. It is the biggest gaming magazine in the Benelux. The first issue was released in June 1993. History ''Power Unlimited'' started in June 1993 in Bjørn Bruinsma's basement as a ...
gave the game a review score of 85%, describing it addictive, long and varied, and called it a worthy successor to the first two ''Super Mario Land'' titles. ''
Pocket Gamer ''Pocket Gamer'' is a video game website and former print magazine that focuses on mobile, portable and handheld games. It was launched in 2005 by Steel Media Limited. The publication covers portable and mobile gaming formats, including iPhone, ...
'' awarded the Virtual Console re-release a 9 out of 10. ''
Nintendo Life Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British digital media company based in London. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and ot ...
'' similarly awarded the game 9 out of 10, praising the game as one of the best platforming games for the Game Boy system.


Legacy

''Wario Land'', the sequel to '' Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins'', was designed to promote Wario to a starring role and expand the Mario universe. ''Wario Land'' spawned five popular sequels: ''
Virtual Boy Wario Land ''Virtual Boy Wario Land'' is a 1995 Platformer, platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Virtual Boy. It stars Wario, who finds himself deep underground after stumbling upon a treasure-filled cave and must find his way back to ...
'', '' Wario Land II'', '' Wario Land 3'', ''
Wario Land 4 ''Wario Land 4'' is a 2001 platform game developed and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance. It is the fourth installment in the ''Wario Land'' subseries of the ''Wario'' series. It was released in Japan in August 2001 and November 2 ...
'', and '' Wario Land: Shake It!''. Other ''Wario'' titles have been released following the success of ''Wario Land'', including '' Wario World'', '' Wario: Master of Disguise'', and the ''WarioWare Inc.'' series. Several ''Mario'' spin-off titles have referenced the original ''Wario Land''. In ''
Mario's Super Picross is a Super Famicom sequel to '' Mario's Picross''. The game is compatible with the Super Famicom Mouse. It is developed by Jupiter and Ape and published by Nintendo. After the failure of '' Mario's Picross'' in North America, Nintendo decide ...
'', Bull Wario, Dragon Wario, and Small Wario appear in the background of the Wario stage selection screens. Subsequently, in '' Picross 2'', Wario is depicted wearing his safari helmet that was introduced in this title. Similarly, Wario's
Amiibo (, ; stylized as amiibo; plural: ''Amiibo'') is a toys-to-life platform by Nintendo, which was launched in November 2014. It consists of a wireless communications and storage protocol for connecting figurines to the Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, Ni ...
board map in ''
Mario Party 10 is a 2015 party video game developed by NDcube and published by Nintendo for the Wii U video game console. It is the tenth home console release in the ''Mario Party'' series and a part of the larger ''Mario'' franchise. Featuring gameplay ...
'' features his safari helmet as a background element. In ''
Mario Kart 7 ''Mario Kart 7'' is a 2011 kart racing video game developed by Nintendo EAD in cooperation with Retro Studios and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS. In ''Mario Kart'' ''7,'' the player takes control of one of seventeen ''Mario'' series ...
'', Wario's bull transformation appears as a billboard on the Wario Shipyard racetrack. Additionally, the music track of this course is based on the main theme of ''Wario Land''.


Notes


References


External links


Official website
*

at NinDB * {{Portal bar, Video games, 1990s 1994 video games Nintendo Research & Development 1 games Game Boy games Platformers Super Mario Land Video game sequels Virtual Console games Virtual Console games for Nintendo 3DS Video games about genies Video games about pirates Video games developed in Japan Video games produced by Gunpei Yokoi Video games set in castles Video games set on fictional islands Wario Land Single-player video games