WiiWare Review: Dr. Mario Online RX

May. 29 7:07 PM by Lynxara

I am honestly not sure what to say about reviewing the new Dr. Mario Online RX. It's a good solid game, and a good example of what WiiWare is good at that boxed titles can't accomplish quite so well. On the other hand, reviewing Dr. Mario seems roughly as futile a task as attempting to publish a new review of Pong. This game is long since a classic, and all I can really comment upon is whether or not the new package makes it any better or worse than the NES cart I'm sure everyone reading this who was around in those days probably had.

Also, my Dr. Mario Online RX number is 4334 1405 0124. Poke me on AIM if you want a match. (Warning: I am not incredibly good, but neither am I incredibly bad.)

Doctor, Doctor

Dr. Mario was always second only to Tetris in the household hierarchy of Games Everyone Would Play. Nothing would convince grandma to take interest in Super Mario Bros. 3 or Dragon Warrior, but fire up Dr. Mario and shed proceed to rampage on all contenders. Nintendo seems to have crafted Dr. Mario Online RX specifically to update that sort of bizarre intergenerational sense of competition for the new century.

Accordingly, Dr. Mario Online RX has received its fair share of plastic surgery to keep the game from showing its age. You actually get two titles for your money: Dr. Mario, which is a near-exact port of the original NES title with more songs, and Virus Buster, an offshoot version of the game that you have to play with the Wii Remotes motion controls. Both games feature full Mii support, complete with cute doctor uniforms for your various creations when they represent you in Virus Buster or multiplayer Dr. Mario.

Of course, as the title promises, there is also online play, though right now it seems marred by the phantom lag and disconnects that hurt Super Smash Bros. Brawls online performance in its early days. More annoyingly. Dr. Mario Online RX is crippled by Nintendos ridiculous practice of forcing you to use a game-specific friend code, forcing you to re-register everyone who wants to play against you (and is, likely, already in your main Wii collection of friend codes).

Honestly, this is a game that should feel like a ripoff. There are tons of iterations of Dr. Mario that couldve gone up on Virtual Console for a similar or cheaper price than Dr. Mario Online RXs 1000 Wii Points. The new 3D graphics, songs, Mii support, and online play doesnt really do a lot to change the overall feel of the game. Virus Buster is an amusing party game, since its quite easy to make hilarious mistakes with an errant flick of the wrist, but ultimately just Dr. Mario in a funny motion-controlled hat.

Somehow, though, Dr. Mario Online RX feels like its worth every penny. The ability to send demo versions to friends is great. The Wiis rampant popularity means that there are plenty of people to share this game with who have honestly never played any version of Dr. Mario before. Theres a goofy charm to the new 3D model for Dr. Mario and the Miis in lab coats thats infectious. The online play the title promises could certainly be better implemented, but its still a solid package.

Playing Dr. Mario Online RX for an hour or so virtually guarantees a smile and good mood to follow. Precious few full-price Wii games are that much fun, and a $10 game that delivers and that every single member of your family is likely to enjoy playing - is frankly a bargain.