The Wii: More than meets the eye!

[Lee]

This was inspired by The Brain who asked recently about whether he should buy a Wii, a few people chipped in with a resounding no. I mean there is some terrible things out there for the console, and has a horrible reputation for being gimmicky, but to me it's worth it. At five years old there are a number of classics out there that bring the fun in gaming whilst still keeping that absolute quality so to The Brain this week is for you!

Super Mario Galaxy

Where better to start? Super Mario Galaxy released in 2007 and SMG2 released in 2010 are two of my favourite games of all time and I do not say that half heartedly. It takes the 3D Mario we're used to thanks to 64 and Sunshine and then gives a crazy element with the gravity side of things and a few bits of 2D thrown in for fun. Both games are easy to beat Bowser but difficult to master every single star, plus Lugi's in it...nice! Controls are simple with not much flailing of the arms but rather a simple flick of the wrist. Galaxy 1 received great praise and Galaxy 2 was not far behind and added a world map and Yoshi to an already great game!

Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn

This will get a brief mention, I loved it, most reviews are mixed. If you've played Path of radiance then it's worth it. If not don't bother.

Mario Kart Wii


Take Mario Kart, add four more people to the race, add a motorbike, new tracks, retro tracks a la DS and you have a great game. Play with people over the internet, play with your mates, play by yourself....top game indeed! Though I bet you can't be bothered with that wheel thingy? Well good news is in store for you because you can use the GameCube pad (or classic controller) which just makes it that so much better.

Kirby's Epic Yarn

I can't believe I've still not played it yet but you can check my preview out http://nintendolee.com/2011/02/01/preview-kirbys-epic-yarn/

Donkey Kong Country returns

I am definitely getting this game ASAP I keep putting it off due to the fact it's still full price but seriously guys this game looks incredible and has had rave reviews. Simple gameplay mechanics plus an epic platforming engine work so so well.

Super Smash Brothers Brawl

Have you played Smash Bros? You haven't? What about Melee? No. Imagine a fun fighting game with Nintendo characters and you have this...use the GCN pad or the classic controller or the wii mote. A fantastic first player adventure mode and some great additional characters such as Snake and Sonic are a must. Plus the Theme song rocks all you Titus fans!




Oh yes more to come! (Originally posted at http://nintendolee.com)

 

[Fizzy]

I love my WII. I have both Super Mario Galaxy's, and they are just awesome. I love how colorful the graphics are, and how laid-back the actual game feels. You are just simply having fun going through the levels with no real intensity. You never feel the need to rage-quit because you are just having a fun time looking at the amazing scenery, or having fun with the incredibly fluid controls. Great game for the WII.

I have played Path of Radiance, and absolutely loved it. I loved the strategic part of the game, and how fun it was leveling characters that sucked in the start, and advancing them into new jobs, and they turn into complete badasses. I have never played Radiant Dawn, but I will check that out eventually. Pretty full on my gaming schedule at the moment.

I enjoy playing Mario Kart, and DK Country returns with family. They both can account for hours of mindless fun where you don't even remember that you are playing a video game. Great games for family get togethers, and such.

Onto my favorite WII game in SSBB. I fucking loved everything about this game. It took what was made by SB, bettered in Melee, and perfected it. I loved the addition of specials, and I enjoyed the new characters very much. I loved playing as Meta Knight, and Pit. I also loved the story mode. It was actually somewhat difficult to beat unlike anything on normal difficulty in Melee. Fucking great game that is a must have for any Nintendo fan.

Some ones that you haven't mentioned Lee are Kirby's Epic Yarn, and Epic Mickey. Epic Yarn is a very different type of game. A game about Yarn? Shit must be boring right? Wrong as it turned into an incredibly unique, and fun game. I loved Epic Mickey as well because it was fun to see some of the old Disney characters. It has very fun graphics, and fun gameplay despite its control issues.

 

[Lee]

Virtual console

Lets just get straight into this, for those who don't know the Virtual console is a ton of classic games on a variety of systems that you can play on your wii. Consoles that are covered are: NES, SNES, N64, Mastersytem, Megadrive/Genesis, TurboGrafx-16, NeoGeo, Commodore 64, MSX as well as some Arcade based gems.

This is one of my favourite things about the Wii, want to play shining force II? Don't want to pay the £40 on ebay going for the game? Want to play OOT but your N64 has packed in? You're British so never got Mario RPG? Now you can play it. Tons of history on here, some great some not so great....it's definitely worth checking out if you're wanting to know a bit about gaming history.

Wii Ware

There is some absolute rubbish on this, but there are some gems, these are rather simplistic games that bring good fun, you could say it's Nintendo's attempt at the app store whilst it hasn't taken off there are some gooduns. Here's a brief look at what I think are the better four games out there.

Fluidity (US name)/Hydroventure (Europe name)

Puzzle game + Platformer + water pool puddle thingy + made by Nintendo = incredibly fun.

Here's the original trailer:



Cave Story

This is being released soon on 3DS (updated visuals not a sequel), it is an homage to classic games such as Metroid and Castlevania. A good fun 2D platformer that really does have some magic about it.

World of Goo

A puzzle game where you have to join goo things together to make structures that won't collapse. Simple yet addictive it takes place over a year in the world of goo and different seasons act as chapters with 48 levels in total. This has since hit the apple platforms, PC and steam. Great game.

Bit.trip runner

I can't even explain this game just watch this video:



There are tons more out there for the console wiiware wise, have a research and see what you think of other games

 

[Lee]

So for part three of my four parter look at the wii I've decided to have a gander at the hidden gems out there on the console. I'll look at five of them but there are much more than that around. Oh yeah and they're all third party!

Zack and Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure

An action adventure point and click game is something that kind of died out about 15 years ago, whilst classics such as Monkey Island hold special places in our memory for most Z&W has been overlooked. This game offers taking puzzles as well as great comedy that goes a lot deeper than the cutesy graphics would make you believe. This is definitely one to buy and you can get it very cheap both brand new and pre owned but if you live in the UK I do have a copy to give away (check my blog).

Mini Ninjas

Another cheap game (I got it £9 brand new from blockbuster) Mini Ninjas received a multi platform release and it is great fun. You're a mini ninja called Hiro who fills the stereotypes of being called on an "epic adventure" it's an action adventure style game but you also have five people to help you on your journey. All five (plus yourself) have different powerups including one with mega strength, a blow dart expert, an archer, someone who thinks they're a tiger and someone with a Naginata. Great game, great story, great gameplay...quite immersive.

de Blob

Another one of those games I always struggle to explain well, but it's great fun. Just watch the video:



Mushroom Men The Spore Wars

I love this platformer, a brilliant story, nice and dirty visuals (by dirty I mean grungy). The story is about four Mushroom tribes who arrived on Earth due to a meteorite crash and all four are at war with each other. You're a Mushroom called Pax who pretty much must save the day. It's a nice platformer with some great puzzles including weapon upgrades with everyday items such as matches and a stick! Whilst it's an easy game it's a nice game to play through. You can pick this game up for about a fiver (I paid £7 at HMV a year ago, it's £4.50 in CEX when I checked today).

Little King's Story

I've heard this described as Animal Crossing meets Pikmin, and I would agree with that. You're King Corobo and you need to unite the seven kingdoms, the back of the box says it "mixes gameplay elements from real life-sim, strategy and adventure genres" and it works so well. The story is great, the gameplay is fun and there are many little side things in this game to immerse you. This game you can get for £7 on amazon, though CEX have a few copies for £3.

There are tons of other gems such as No more heroes 1&2, Madworld, a Shadow's Tale, Blastworks, Dragon Quest Swords among others. What about you? Can you think of any 3rd party gems for the Wii?

 

[RendarSelin]

The Wii definitely has plenty to offer any gaming fan from any generation.

Looking for newer games? I would definitely recommend any of the following Wii titles:
Super Mario Galaxy: This game has much to offer any long-time Mario fan, or anyone just entering the Mario universe with plenty to keep themselves entertained. Whether exploring colorful, challenging worlds, battling new and familiar foes, or enjoying new and retro soundtracks (including the Airship Theme and Scrolling World themes from Super Mario 3), this game can entertain any gaming fan, young and old!

New Super Mario Bros. Wii: Miss the challenging, old school days of 2D side scrolling games? Ever want to move through Mario levels with a partner at the same time? New Super Mario Bros. Wii entertains on all levels. What Mario fan doesn't feel nostalgia riding Yoshi and spitting out Koopa shells? Reintroducing the Koopa kids from Mario 3, expect plenty of entertainment and challenge with this title!

Super Smash Bros. Brawl: Ever wanna smack the living crap out of Pikachu? Ever wish Luigi could knock Mario down a peg? Ever wish Peach could finally slap the crap out of Bowser? With many classic characters from the Nintendo universe, all these scenarios and more are possible. Whether pursuing the entertaining Subspace mode, Classic Arcade mode, or having a party and wasting a Saturday night with frdiends, SSBB is a great addition to any gamer's library!

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess: Although not as good as Ocarina of Time, and available on GameCube, Twilight Princess is still a must-own for any fan of the Hero of Time. Expect the traditional challenging levels, captivating story, and entertainment for hours.

Wii Sports: Baseball, boxing, tennis, bowling: All available on one title. While not the greatest controls, this game can entertain a family or friends. And best of all: it's available for free!

Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition: Sure, this game is available on multiple platforms, but none beat the motion control compatibility of the Wii. Using the WiiMote to aim at the Ganados, or swiping the WiiMote to swipe the knife, the classic survival horror experience is only improved on the Wii.

Mario Kart Wii: This game's Wii Wheel and controls are extremely entertaining. Whether you're using Bowser on a dirtbike, or Mario in the classic kart, there are plenty of new tracks as well as fan favorite retro tracks from classics such as Super Mario Kart and Mario Kart 64. A wide variety of favorite Mario characters are available as options. Challenging...just be ready for cheap items such as the Super Bullet Bill...

The Wii is also compatible with any GameCube title, including classics every gamer should try such as Tales of Symphonia, Super Smash Bros. Melee, and more. Combined with great classic titles on the Virtual Console such as Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Kid Icarus, Bubble Bobble, TMNT, Mega Man 1-4, Final Fantasy, many Mario titles, Secret of Mana, Sonic the Hedgehog, Earthworm Jim...the available titles are just wide open!

WiiWare titles are also available. Curious about the events following Final Fantasy IV? Try Final Fantasy IV: The After Years. Classic Mega Man controls, graphics, and sound effects available in Mega Man 9 and 10. Plus many other titles previously mentioned.

I would recommend a Wii for anyone from a new gamer to a hardcore gamer. This system just has something for everyone to enjoy, and is well worth the price tag. Just wait a few weeks before buying, the system is dropping in price very soon due to the XBox 360 Kinect.

 

[Lee]

I've had this written since Sunday and have only just realised I didn't upload it (yes it's been one of those weeks).

So I covered the franchises, I covered the Virtual Console, I covered WiiWare and I covered some hidden gems now it's time for the future of the wii. I had the idea for this article before the massive WiiHD rumours started as the more I look into them the more it seems that the WiiHD will be a brand new console not just an updated Wii as what I had thought initially. As such my original list has been changed (number one would have been wii HD).

So what we still got to look forward from the console? Not a lot the more I research!

5) The Last Story

Made by Mistwalker and published by Nintendo the last story is mainly credited to Hironobu Sakaguch who brought us the Final Fantasy games (See what they did with the name, final/last and fantasy/story....those cheeky scamps!). Released in January of this year in Japan it has reached critical acclaim and has recently been announced for an official release in the NA regions so surely it's just a matter of time until Europe has the game announced.

4) Vitality

You all forgot about this, right? It may have been shelved it may not have been, who knows? It was shown at E32009 but failed to appear at E32010 and not a lot has been said since then. For those who don't know, Vitality is a sensor that measures your pulse rate. There were talks of games using it in a way that would build the pressure up, for example in resident evil if your BPM is high the game would get scarier or something like that. Seems a good idea but it is definitely MIA.

3) Dragon Quest X

This was actually announced in December 2008 at the Dragon Quest conference, it was seen as a huge thing that the Wii had an exclusive of this magnitude. We saw how well Dragon Quest IX did on the DS and it's a given that X will sell a gazillion* in Japan alone. Not much is known yet about this but lets hope it's a la VIII and keeps the fantastic humour we've known to love from the game.

*Exaggerated figure

2) Pandora's Tower

We've finally had a trailer on this with a Japanese release date of May 26th. Enjoy:



1) Skyward Sword

Whilst Xenoblade deserves a mention I already did a preview on that so we'll leave that off this list even if it looks fantastic. Skyward Sword is the one we're all waiting for, a Zelda game designed for the wii. Visuals are a mix of adult link and cell shading, the colour palette I love the look of (even if a lot of people do not). It makes great use of the motion controls and seems to be set at the beginning of the timeline (don't get me started on that!). I'm rather excited for this game and the rest in the list (plus Xenoblade as mentioned). Still I can't help the feeling that Nintendo is about to let our little white box die