Wario's Woods (Nintendo Entertainment System)

Wario's Woods is a puzzle game for the Nintendo Entertainment System released in 1994. It is the last first-party game to have been released for the system and, having been released late into the console's lifespan, is the only Nintendo Entertainment System game that has an ESRB certificate. Wario's Woods is a part of the Wario franchise, although it stars Toad as the main protagonist and Wario as the main villain. The game has an alternate version for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, which released around the same time, so it is not a reissue.

Wario's Woods has been ported a few times. It was first reissued in 2001, being a part of Doubutsu no Mori+ as well as its two variations, Animal Crossing and Doubutsu no Mori e+. In these games, Wario's Woods is a furniture item that can be obtained from Animal Island. In 2006, Wario's Woods was released for the Wii Virtual Console. Since this release, the ESRB updated their K-A rating for Wario's Woods to an E rating, and the game also received two additional ratings, including a 3+ from PEGI and a G from the ACB. In 2013, Wario's Woods was ported to the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console. Later on, that same year, the game was ported to the Wii U Virtual Console. In 2018, Wario's Woods was ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System - Nintendo Switch Online.

Story
Wario and his army of monsters have taken over the woods. Toad, partnered with Birdo and the Sprites, goes on a journey to defeat Wario and his minions and reclaim the woods.

In the ending cutscene, Toad is seen chasing Wario out of the woods.

Gameplay
In Wario's Woods, the player takes control of Toad with the objective of destroying all the monsters that are on-screen. If the player manages to do this, they can advance to the next level. To destroy the enemies, the player must place bombs that match their color next to them; when three items of the same color with at least one bomb are placed horizontally, vertically, or diagonally in a row, all the items in the row are cleared. If Toad is trapped by bombs or monsters, the player receives a Game Over.

Trivia

 * In Doubutsu no Mori+, the Wario's Woods furniture item is modeled after a Family Computer. In Animal Crossing, it was changed to a Nintendo Entertainment System with the Wario's Woods box cover on top of the system. This change was retained in Doubutsu no Mori e+ despite being a Japan-exclusive version of the game.