If you are itching to play some microgames and were a little disappointed with the paltry selection from the previous WarioWare Snapped for its lack of content, then you might want to look into WarioWare DIY (Do It Yourself). This latest entry in the WarioWare series allows you to create your own microgames on the Nintendo DS. WarioWare DIY Showcase on the Wii doesn't have the creation tools that come with its DS counterpart, but it does have 70 original microgames, and you can download the ones you or your friends have created on the DS. We had an opportunity to visit Nintendo to check out the DS version and make our own little microgame.

　　Looks easy enough, right?

　　WarioWare DIY will come with 90 microgames that can all be imported into the DIY Studio and modified using the Super Makermatic 21. You have another 90 slots to fill with your own ludicrous creations that can involve such things as firing rockets with a simple tap or using the stylus to jam a finger up a nostril. We were told the latter required a bit more time and effort, so we weren't able to re-create that one during our visit. The game comes with a DIY 101 tutorial that is lengthy but vital if you want to know how to come up with your own microgames. The DIY Studio is essentially a high-level programming tool that lets you build from the ground up. We were given a walk-through on how to make a simple tap-a-rocket-to-make-it-move game, and it seemed simple enough, but it obviously would take much longer if we were let loose to do it ourselves.

　　In our demo, we watched as a Nintendo representative showed us how to create our own background using the tools at our disposal. Similar to a basic paint program, you can draw and design stamps from scratch or use premade stamps to mold your landscape. At any phase of the development, you can always import from any of the 90 preexisting games. Objects like goombahs, hills, or buildings can be thrown in to give your layout a bit of variety, but once you're done with the layout, it's time to build the object that would serve as the purpose of the microgame. We watched as our rep drew half a rocket and cloned it so that it would be symmetrical. This object was drawn in one cell, but if you want it to animate once it appears onscreen, you have to slightly shift it in the next cell and adjust the timing. For the flames of the rocket, the colors were swapped around in the first two cells to give it a flashy effect.

　　After setting up the background and objects in the game, the assembly comes next, which is where you assign AI to your objects, as well as sound effects. You begin by setting up where you want your objects to appear. Once that is done, you have to give your object action instructions by assigning trigger types. In our case, it was "tap" because our goal was to have our rocket move when we tapped it. We also had to assign the direction and speed of the rocket, as well as bring in the fire animation that would come in once the rocket ignited. In this particular situation, we had to assign a switch action so that once our first object (the rocket) was switched on, the flames of the ship would move from a hidden starting location to the attached position that we had given it at the bottom of the rocket. You can test out the game at any time by hitting the play button at the bottom to make sure the objects are interacting correctly. This part can get a little complicated if you're not familiar with how programming works, but it's all explained and outlined in the tutorial part of the game. During the tutorial, you'll build your own microgames, so you'll have them to refer to when you've completed the lessons.

　　High level programming for your convenience.

　　To complete the game, we added some sound effects for when the rocket took off and stage shaking effects, as well as modified some imported music from another microgame. You can compose your own music or hum into the microphone, but it was faster and easier for us to just borrow from another premade piece. After putting in a win condition, as well as a tap command to help players figure out what to do, our game was done and we were able to upload it onto the Wii version to play it on a bigger screen. Using friend codes, you can share your DS creations locally or upload it via Wi-Fi for friends to download later. We were told that eventually Nintendo will have downloadable content for those who own the Wii version.

　　It took roughly 20 minutes to build a simplistic microgame from scratch and borrow some elements from existing games. It looks like it will take some time to get used to the tools to fully understand what you need to do with certain objects and how the physics work to come up with something a bit more advanced. There's an Assembly Dojo that unlocks later on, which are puzzles that quiz you about the mechanics of building a microgame. These 32 challenges are there to help you try to get a handle on the trickier concepts, and it's another way of testing your comprehension.

　　WarioWare DIY retains the quirky retro style of the series and looks to be a fun tool for those who are really into building things on their own. Depending on how long the tutorial is, it might be too much for the not so patient, but the possibilities are endless once the community starts to build its own collection of wacky games. Both versions come with random comics, so you can also design your own four-panel comic on the DS. Look for WarioWare DIY on the Nintendo DS and WarioWare DIY Showcase for the Nintendo Wii on March 28.