Wario's Woods

Wario's Woods holds one small place in history: it became the last officially released title for the classic NES, while also shining in its Super Nintendo version as a brisk and inventive puzzle game.

Unlike most logic games of the era, you aren't limited here to just shifting blocks around a static field. You directly control the character Toad, who runs across the playfield, picks up bombs and monsters, and arranges them so that bombs match colours with the creatures, clearing them in rows or columns. This more action-oriented layer gives the game a dynamism that classic falling-block puzzlers lack.

The design was handled by Intelligent Systems under Nintendo's wing, which shows in the thoughtful gameplay as well as in the signature villain Wario, who serves here as the main antagonist. The game combines quick decision-making with spatial planning: you have to track falling elements, manoeuvre Toad, and cleverly chain the elimination of enemies all at once.

Visually, the SNES version is colourful and fresh, the controls snappy, and the pace can ramp up considerably. Various modes are on offer, including a battle mode, so players looking for a competitive showdown on a single console will get their money's worth too.

Wario's Woods never reached the fame of Nintendo's biggest franchises, but among collectors and puzzle fans it holds its ground as a solid, original piece — and, on top of that, as a symbolic closing note to Nintendo's home 8-bit era.

Why play it: For its unusually action-driven take on the puzzle genre, where you directly control a character across the playfield, and for its reputation as the last official NES game with a well-crafted SNES variant.