Dr. Mario World is Nintendo’s latest entry into the world of mobile gaming. It’s a tile match puzzle game that makes use of the color match mechanic with the aim of each level being to clear all of the different viruses off the board using a finite number of pills, different abilities and tools. There’s no denying that this makes Dr. Mario World perfect for on the go gaming, it’s just a shame that something ruins it.

Dr. Mario World

Platforms: Android, iOS

Reviewed On: Moto G6 Play (Android 9.0)

Developer: Nintendo/Line/NHN Entertainment

Publisher: Nintendo

Multiplayer: 1V1 Online

Available: 10th July 2019

Price: Free (In-App Purchases)

Age Rating: PEGI 3 (UK/EU)

Control-wise, things are pretty easy on Dr. Mario World. You simply drag the pills to the position you wish and can flip them around by tapping them while they’re docked or on the board, but be careful and time it properly as you can’t move pills down, only up. I’ve seen a few people complaining that the touchscreen controls are far too problematic, although to be honest, I haven’t really had any issues with my Moto G6 Play’s touchscreen while playing this game.

As is the typical thing with most mobile games these days completing levels earns you up to three stars based on performance. It’s quite easy to get three stars within the game’s first lot of levels, although as you progress the levels get harder, throwing more obstacles in the way of the viruses you are fighting and really making you work that brain. I can’t say the game isn’t fun because it is and it’s great to see how the developers have implemented things like turtle shells, question mark boxes and other Mario World things to this format of game. For example, the turtle shells will take a whole row of viruses in that classic spinning way we’re so used to seeing from the platform games in the series.

When the game starts getting challenging we are lead to its biggest issue, monetization, which in Dr. Mario World comes mainly from the heart system. You get five hearts in total which each take 30 minutes to regenerate, add this to the fact starting a level eats one heart right away and it gets really annoying, especially in the later levels where this whole issue starts and it becomes easier to mess up, therefore losing more lives. If you think restarting mid-level will help when you cock up, think again as the game will take a heart away for doing that as well.

If the above displeases you, you could always cough up some of your hard-earned dough and purchase 60 minutes of unlimited heart free play. This will cost you 30 gems, which unfortunately isn’t a figure you can purchase, instead you’ll have to either purchase two lots of 20 gems or a pack of 50. A pack of 20 will cost you £1.99, so two packs will cost you £3.98, whereas a pack of 50 will cost you £4.99 but wait, the developers have generously thrown in an extra 3 gems free for that 50 pack. When we do the math, you’re basically paying about £3.00 an hour to play this game, if you choose to go down this route. Of course, you could just wait for the 30 minutes per heart, but for a game, you’ll most likely be playing on bus journeys this feels tedious.

Another area that microtransactions come into play is the slot machine system to unlock new characters. Fortunately you can earn the 4000 coins required to spin the machine by playing the game and completing daily login bonuses, however, it takes a while to earn that many coins, which again just tries to re-enforce the whole monetization system of this game.

A slight saving grace to the game is its online 1V1 multiplayer, which you’ll unlock after completing the 1st island. Surprisingly this segment of the game is free from the dreaded in-app purchases but still on its own isn’t enough to keep me coming back.

Dr. Mario World is a fun and challenging game but it is one of those mobile games that just abuses a system that unfortunately works quite well. I’d much rather pay something like £5 to purchase the game and enjoy it uninterrupted but unfortunately, I don’t see myself ever completing it as I don’t fancy waiting around and certainly don’t fancy paying £3.00 an hour for the privilege. All in all, a good game spoiled, by an awful system, we just have to live with these days.

That concludes our Dr. Mario World review. You can pick up Dr. Mario World for Android, here, and iOS here.