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Ghost Squad
As there are only a handful of shooters on the Wii designed for use with the new zapper it is hard to really split hairs. This is an ARCADE light gun game that doesn't deliver the big storyline gameplay length and arc that many gamers have come to expect from shooters instead GHOST SQUAD takes its ARCADE origins and puts them in your living room like VIRTUA COP on the Saturn before it. The zapper feels good as snapping offscreen to reload doesn't diorient as much as it does in some LG games.
The reticle is accurate and is just sensitive enough for the games Sniper scenes. The characters landscape and gameplay have that classic SEGA feel and look and the unlockable weapons and costumes will keep you coming back to the three multi route levels alone and with a friend in multiplayer, how many times a day can the president get kidnapped? Short sweet and to the point if you have the Wii Zapper you want this game.
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The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
It's a rare occasion in the video game industry when a game series consistently manages to top itself one game after the next, but that's exactly what Nintendo manages to do with the Zelda franchise. I thought Ocarina of Time would never be dethroned as my favorite game of all time, but Twilight Princess is actually better. Started as a GameCube title, this action-RPG really shines with the Wii controls. Slashing your sword, shooting arrows, and especially fishing are both rewarding and accurately mapped to the Wiimote, and let's not forget the graphics. Ever since the days of the N64, Zelda has become a benchmark for the graphics power of Nintendo's systems. True, it has GameCube graphics, but so much time and effort went into creating this living, breathing world that minor jaggies aren't that big a deal. We are already seeing the full graphics potential of the system with upcoming games like Mario Galaxy and Smash Bros. Anyway, the story is dark for a Zelda game, which I love, the characters are fantastic, and the action never stops! The levels are so detailed, I have regularly run across random hidden holes and gone spelunking for nearly an hour, finding all kinds of hidden treasures and fighting spiders and other creatures. Another great feature of this game is the length, this is definitely the longest Zelda game ever, and you can literally find things to do for months after you buy it. Do yourself a favor, if you buy a Wii, you HAVE to buy this game, as it's a masterpiece.
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Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection
I have been waiting for this game for months and I finally got my copy one day after release thanks to prime shipping from Amazon. The main reason I wanted this game was becuase of Funhouse. I was addicted to that game back in my freshman year of college (1991-92) as we had it in our dorm's common area. That game caused many people to skip classes and skip dinner just so they could put Rudy to sleep and nail him in the mouth with the pinball! So much fun!
So, to the game, my expectations were rather low due to the fact that it was delayed for so long. Usually, that means there are problems. Well, 5 minutes after opening it, I was back in college playing Funhouse again. Now, there is nothing like playing pinabll on a real machine but the physics employed by this game are rather astounding in my opinion. Everything that I remember about the original game was in this. The one thing that may have been different is the sound of Rudy's voice. Maybe its the simulated surround sound I am using on my home theater for the WII or maybe they just couldn't get the original Rudy!
As far as the other games, I was not too familiar with them but I did play a few including Gorkon and Space Shuttle. I enjoyed them a lot and found them to have their own interesting set of challenges.
The overall game has several modes to it. There is a simple go to the arcade mode where you can play most of the games (although I think some are locked). As you play, you have certain challenges to complete like get a certain score or hit this or that. When you achieve these, it may give you the opportunity to unlock another game or give you more credits (you need credits to play some games and you start with 20...but it is very easy to get more).
I played the Challenge mode where you play each pinball machine where you have to achieve a certain score before moving to the next machine. You get three tries on each machine to get the score or the challenge ends. I made it to the fourth machine (Funhouse) but, ironically, I couldn't get the required score to move on.
There is a tournament mode but I did not try that yet but it appears you can play with only one person. I assume you must play against AI somehow.
There is another mode that I could not open as I hadn't built enough credits yet so I can't comment on that yet. I will post an update as I progress in the game.
Overall, for $30, this is going to provide me with hours and hours of enjoyment. Funhouse alone is worth it to me but having the variety of games on there really increases the longevity of this game. The sounds make you feel like you are at an old arcade and the games seem to replicate the machines just like the originals.
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Super Mario Galaxy
This game rocks! I played Mario games on NES and SNES and I am glad that I bought Super Mario Galaxy. This is my 2nd Mario game for the Wii and this is way better than Mario Party 8 (for single player that is)
The graphics aren't like Xbox 360 but they're very colorful, the music is great, and the fun factor is there which is most important to me.
What I don't like is the 2 player co-op. It's a bit distracting so I just play solo. You can play as Luigi if you collect about 120 stars but I feel you should have the option to play him or Mario whenever you want.
The game seems easy at first but the more stars you collect, the more harder it gets.
I highly recommend Super Mario Galaxy if you're old school Nintendo player like me. You will NOT regret it.
Pros: Colorful graphics. Fun Factor! Great Music!
Cons: 2 player co-op is poor.
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Wii Play with Wii Remote
This rating is based on the theory that this is a 10$ game bundled with a remote. Only worth buying because it comes with remote, other than that, it should be in the 15$ bin. I give this a 5 star fun rating because for 10$ (10$ game +40$ remote), you really get your money worth with multiplayer. I am going to review each mini game and then the game as a whole.
The games:
Shooting: Easily could have just turned this into duckhunt instead of releasing a real duckhunt game later this year. This game is a fun shooter, however the targets (once you played each level a few times) generally appear in the same locations as the previous time you played the level. This game is slightly more fun for a single player competiting for a high score. Playing against a human opponent is more of a battle of who can shoot the targets first, which if you are playing against a new player or some one who is slow with the remote, it's not fun for them. But overall a fun shooter for a single player or 2 skilled players.
Find Mii: This is a really fun game, but only if you have a few miis created on your console. As you progress through the levels it can be very challenging and even though there are only a few objectives, the variety of levels makes the game worth playing. It can be fun for 2 people as well, however you should gain time instead of points in multiplayer. (Single player you gain time instead points) Where you can get to very high levels in single player, (the game only appears to end when you run out of time, I'm not sure if there is a level limit) you can't in multiplayer because you don't gain time. Overall a fun, brain-teasing game.
Pose Mii: The worst game on here. Very boring, repetative, and for the most part: pointless. There are only 3 poses and until higher levels, the Miis are generally standing straight up or slightly angled, so there is not much to do other than move the remote back and forth while bubbles pop. Very boring. It's about the same fun for single and multi.
Ping Pong: This lacks substance but still a decent challenge. I was hoping that you would actually swing the wii mote like a paddle to play this game, but you basically just move it back and forth, it swings for you. As for single player, you just see how many times you can rally against the computer. (no points awarded) Multiplayer is more fun, as you play for points, and can be fun to see how many times you can rally it with eachother as the ball builds speed. Overall fun, but they could have allowed you to actually swing the paddle.
Laser Hockey: This is easily one of the best games on the disc. I prefer the round paddle for added realism and better control. (hold A + B before the start countdown ends) This is a very challenging game and is very fun for multiplayer tournaments. Single player is pretty fun as well but the AI is pretty bad when the puck gets stuck in a corner. Overall a great mutliplayer game, however the puck doesn't move very fast when you thrust it, instead the puck seems to build speed the more it's rallied off the wall and the opponents paddle.
Cow race: Some what humorous game, but overall not much replayability. Not really a point to playing single player, but can be fun against a human player. Only one course makes this game boring after a few runs, but every once in a while you can have fun with it. The controls are creative and fun when you have a group of people playing.
Fishing: Fun for both single player and multiplayer. Much like the shooting game, fishing for a high score in single player is what holds this game's fun. As for multiplayer, much like shooting again, both players should be evenly skilled, otherwise one player catches all of the fish while the other player gets angry or discouraged. The controls are alright, they could have added some extra features and made it a bit like zelda fishing with the nunchuk reel and what not, but this game is too basic I think to incorperate that. All you really do is hold your rod in a pool of paper fish, and yank to catch when they bite. Overall a fun competition if you have 2 players of equal skill.
Tanks: This is one of the best games on the disc. Single player and multiplayer each hold their own challenge. The levels are the same for both modes, but single player you have lives, and every 5 levels completed, you gain a life. Mutiplayer you work as a team to beat each level while also competing for points by destroying the enemy tanks. (Multiplayer would be way more fun if you got lives like in single player, as the levels are tough and only having one chance before having to start back at level one when you both die at level 17 is very annoying) There are 20 levels to start and then more are unlocked the 2nd time through. (I've heard there are 100 levels) Use the nunchuk to steer if you have serious intentions, as the d-pad only works so long before your thumb feels awkward. Controls are decent and the game overall is extremely fun and challenging for 1 or 2 players.
Billiards: Wii play is worth owning just for this game alone. The physics are quite realistic and the gameplay is nice. Standard 9 ball rules, however to win you are awarded points per ball minus fouls. It would have been better to have whoever sinks the 9 ball legally win, but you can choose to play that way mentally before you start a game and ignore the points in multiplayer. The only problem I have is that I would like to be able to see the ball numbers on the overhead view, instead of having to scroll to each ball to see what ball it is. If you know the standard pool ball colors, I guess it wouldn't matter. Overall very fun competition for multiplayer. It seems like they could have easily included an 8-ball variant as well with this. Oh well.
The game overall:
Before you critique this game harshly, understand that its sole purpose is to demonstrate the wii mote, like wii sports. That is why it's a ten dollar game bundled with a 40 dollar wii mote. This game will probably never be sold without the remote, and if it is, expect it to be much cheaper. I give it 4 stars, becuase for what it actually is, it has a lot of multiplayer fun packed in it, especially with 9 ball, tanks, and air hockey. If it was 50 dollars and did not come with a wii mote, it would be a 2 star game, or nintendo would have included more mini games and more depth. This game has longevity with multiplayer as air hockey tournaments and billiards never get old, much like real life. As for improvements, I feel that this could easily support 4 players like wii sports. Also, many of the single player elements should have been included in multi, like getting extra lives in tanks, gaining time in find mii, etc. Billiards should have included 9-ball and 8-ball.
Pros+
Most of the games are decent
Fun multiplayer with longevity
In reality, it's only 10$
Easy but fun controls
Realistic physics in billiards and air hockey
Challenging games
Cons-
Pose Mii is awful
All games could have supported 4 players
Shooting, fishing, and cow race lack depth
Billiards should have 8-ball as well
Multiplayer modes should have the single player rewards like more lives and time
Conclusion:
This is a great buy if you need another remote, and want to have some multiplayer games in your library. If you already have 4 remotes, I would wait until this game is sold without the remote in the cheap bin before you pick it up. This has multiplayer longevity, but you probably won't find yourself playing this game alone.
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Wii Play with Wii Remote
My sister and I have soo much fun playing Wii Play!! There are all kinds of games like find mii, shooting range, billiards, fishing, and more. there are about 8 different games on it. Once you get Wii play you will have two controllers, and it is sooo much fun with two people. One of my favorite games called shooting range is when different kinds of targets come up like balloons, regular shooting targets, frisbees, UFOs, and cans. Another one of my Favorite games is called find mii. In find mii the game tells you what to find, like the odd mii out, the mii you are using, the sleepyhead, and the 2-3 lookalikes. In all of the games you can get gold, silver, or bronze metals if you do good enough.In Wii Play you will always know waht to do, and you will always have fun!!!!!!
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It's hard to explain in writing just how amazing a game like Brawl truly is.It really does have everything you could possibly ask for out of a game.And there is so much content to the game,you will be playing it for years to come.
The premise of Brawl is Nintendo characters are out to beat the heck out of each other.With Smash attacks,special moves with each character and a huge amount of items;such as red shells,baseball bats and bombs.To win a Brawl you must knock your opponet out of the various well detailed levels.It sounds simple but there are so many way to get the job done everyone will have there own unique strategy of doing things which really makes the game fun to play with three other players.
Brawl really hits it home with it's Huge roster!Not everyone is here.But the roster is very very well improved.There are less clones and more unique characters.And even guest characters Solid Snake and Sonic.And the regulars you would expect like Mario,Link and Samus.And maybe some you have no idea are even Nintendo characters like Pit and King Dedede(I knew they were nintendo characters).
Levels are also a huge improvement.There a lot more fun to play on this time and there is a lot more going on in the levels.Such as a huge top of an iceberg that you and three others are fighting on crumbles and falls down into the water.The fight continues,but watch out for a crazy big fish that wants to make you dinner!And if you like calmer levels you got those levels to,and a handful of ones from Melee.This game really gives everyone something to enjoy.And there is even a well done map editor.Giving you endless possibilities.
There are all sorts of modes to keep you busy.An improved Single Player that is more fun then ever combining platforming and fighting.And the single player modes are really where you will be unlocking most of your stuff for multiplayer action.And other modes like multi-man melee and classic mode return as well.There is also all-star and challenges,and you can do mostly all of this with a coop buddy!!
Wi-fi is also added into the mix,adding more replay value to Smash Brothers then ever before.Each match will be a new foe that has a brain and will most likely give you a heck of a challenge.
Graphics are also well done in Brawl.Brawl looks amazing.It's not perfection.But the graphics have a great style,and all these universes Nintendo created fits in well with one another.So from the story cut scenes to characters and levels,Brawl looks amazing.
Epic is the only word that could possibly describe the games music.Everything sounds beautiful.And the majority of the music is music you would want playing if you were in a real fight.It sounds amazing and it's one of the best sounding games made in recent memory.
Overall,I could go on and on about how amazing Brawl is,but people that read can only read so long before getting bored.So I'll sum it up.Brawl may not be perfect in every area.But it deserves a ten for it's heart,and the developers deserve all the credit through the hell they went through to bring this game to us.If you're a gamer of any kind.Buy Brawl!
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I haven't been terribly impressed by the last few years of gaming machines. In recent times I've asked myself, What ever happened to great videogame consoles like the Sega Saturn and the SNK Neo-Geo? The last great system in my opinion was the Sega Dreamcast, which I thought was the best system of the last generation. While the PS2 and GameCube had both good libraries (the XBox was the most overrated console in the universe), they didn't strike a chord with me like the machines of yesteryear.
Nintendo understands what direction to take. They know that the future of gaming is about innovative entertainment, NOT processing power. After all, how much more upgrading in hardware specs can we stomach until we finally realize we've been playing the same kind of games for years? Everything about the Wii is NO JOKE. It's fresh and innovative. It's small. It's light. It's well-priced. It comes bundled with a game. It's accessible to all ages. It's about the fun, the interactivity, and the replay value.
At first, I thought everything about the Wii was all gimmick. I was wrong. Wii Sports, while not the most impressive graphically, has tremendous replay value (especially with the Mii feature). No longer will playing Nintendo, or games in general, be called a lazy couch potato hobby. The Remote, Nunchuk, and overall motion sensor capabilities more than impressed me. I can't imagine Sony even trying to market such hardware with their shoddy parts. As for other games? For starters, it's backwards compatible with GC games and has the Virtual Console to play classics. It has many exclusives that utilize the controller in unique ways such as Raving Rabbids, Twilight Princess, WarioWare, and Red Steel. Players have other games to look forward to such as Super Mario Galaxy, Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition, and Super Smash Brothers Brawl.
Nintendo struggled in the late 90's, but has slowly came back with the GC, GBA, DS, and now the Wii. I am downright convinced Nintendo now and will always stay true to real gaming, and am glad they are still around since SNK and Sega have backed out from the console wars years ago. I don't even care if the Wii doesn't win this generation's console wars (though it deserves it). Nintendo still created the best console of them all which I'd find myself still playing with.
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We own the Wii, PS3, Xbox360 and still play the older PS2, Gamecube, Xbox, PSP, DS, etc. etc. consoles (not to mention PC games). Since we have paid our dues, we have the right to compare.
The biggest difference of the Wii compared to the PS3 and 360 is that it offers a substantially different approach to gaming. Because the controller is designed to be moved, swung, shaken, jerked (but not thrown at the TV) you need to stand up, move around and use your body. That's a far cry from letting your fingers do the gaming (like you do in a typical PS3 or 360 controller).
The PS3 and 360 are more powerful graphics machines. They are designed to take advantage of our new HDTVs and give us amazing graphics. You bet, they really do. Hence you pay a lot more for it. But, the Wii has proven that you really can have fun by allowing more interaction with the game's content, despite using the old (standard) definition TV. Critics will go on and on about how great the PS3 and 360 technology is but games are more about having FUN and less about having a romance with technology.
Furthermore, if you are a parent who's paying for your kid's gaming, then you might want to consider BALANCING the kind or themes of games your kid is playing. I have noticed that the PS3 and 360 games my kids buy are tilted towards getting their excitement up with shooting and explosions. With the Wii, the games are more of the jumping up and down, arm swinging, and body movement kind of fun.
This leads to my final observation. All the body movement required to play many (but not all) of the Wii games contribute a few points for anti-obesity. I'm shocked at the number of hours my kids could sit down to play games on their consoles, use their PCs, and watch TV when all I could do as a kid back in my time was to ride a bike or play ball.
250 bucks is not too much to pay for the fun the Wii provides. I hope Nintendo has got a lot of imagination up its sleeves because it take a lot of it to make more games that can really use and benefit from the Wii controller and nunchucks.
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There's a little video on the internet that shows two girls like in the PC vs Mac commercials. One's a Wii and the other is a Playstation 3. It's right on the money. The Wii is playful, cheap, and great cartoon fun whereas the PS3 is just a PC that you can't upgrade.
This little monster is so great at keeping my family and myself entertained that we actually have to have Wii time or we'd be on it all day.
If you get one, you won't be disappointed.
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