Hopefully this will be the last blemish in gaming Wario will have to squeeze out to move ahead.
GAMEPLAY ~
We'll first start off by saying that the touch screen will be the main focus of the game, from drawing boxes, triangles and other geometric objects to the constant mini-games you must work through to actually acquire the treasures you seek. You move by the touch screen but some of the buttons do act as substitute movers if needed. Y and A move you left and right, B lets you duck and the X button... well I can't remember... to attack, it's all the touch screen! So get use to it!
Too bad the drawing isn't that easy. Many of the touch screen features don't seem steady and I found myself drawing objects over and over again, and sometimes getting a totally different result that needed (tried to draw a box got the space suit, tried to draw the space suit got the glasses...) MoD got very frustrating very fast because of this... and for a Wario game that means defeat in all areas. Stick to what Wario is good at!! Kickin‘ @$$ and takin‘ names!
MoD should have been a side-scrolling gem like all the others with limited focus on touch screen aspects, because it relied too much on it, and because of this the final score was hurt.
STORY ~ 9 / 10
Wario wants to be rich, he creates a helmet that lets him enter the TV and steal Cannoli's magic wand which endows Wario is excellent costume changes. Eh... it's a Wario game... so expect fart jokes and all those other gross habits that makes Wario such an awesome heel!
GRAPHICS ~
Wario: Master of Disguise looks great! Not fantastic, not awesome, just great. MoD is all side-scrolling and the appearance of all the character sprites look like a 2D N64 title. It's original, but the real good part comes in Wario’s 7 costume changes. Under the guise of the Purple Wind, Wario can go from a Scientist to a Dragon with a swipe of the stylus.
Alot of the environments are interactive and it really plays like a well rounded 2D side-scroller... but too bad the touch-screen features really makes many of the special effects look like something I drew in Mario Paint back in my Grade School days... it does hurt... but MoD does give you a useful map! So there is some light at the end of the tunnel!
SOUND ~
Wario's laugh is the real draw here as it is his trademark. Other than that, don't expect miracles because I hardly heard any songs while playing it. The only song I remember is Cannoli's song, because it reminds me of the Borat track "You Be My Wife". It has a eastern European feel to it and it gets on your nerves really fast... unlike Borat... which I loved.
The game host a few SFX, but nothing to awe inspiring, you'll hear some poofing noises and laser shots, but mostly the sound of money is heard over all. Ah money... nothing else worth remembering.
REPLAYABILITY ~
Master of Disguise shouldn't take you over 15 hours to complete, and if it does, you probably got lost or frustrated at trying to master your new disguise.
MoD does offer a nice suspends game option, but other than that it holds really no replayability, unless you like treasure hunting. as just mentioned Treasure Hunting is the name of the game, and to acquire those treasures you need to indulge yourself in what Wario has been known for in all his non-platforming titles... mini-games.
They are the average run of the mill DS games. Tracing, squashing, and moving. You name the average, and Master of Disguise delivers. An if that isn't enough, all the mini-games you complete in-game are than playable on the main menu! Awesome! Too bad that is the only major draw of the game. Also you can view a bestiary and all acquired treasures in the same menu as the mini-games, so at least it's convenient.
OVERALL ~
You need to play a Wario title search out Wario Land 4 for the GBA. It's what Master of Disguise should have been more based on that trying to push the envelope with all the touch screen and mic options. If you already own it, enjoy it, if you don't! Avoid it!
It still hurts me to give a Wario title such a low score... but maybe they will realize their mistakes and keep his side-scrolling and interactive mini-gaming separately... for the fans sake!