Wii

Animal Crossing: City Folk

December 5, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Chris Ingersoll Make a comment! / Tweet it!

It is actually somewhat surprising that it has taken this long for Nintendo’s Animal Crossing franchise to appear on the Wii, given the console’s focus on “non-gamers” and family interaction, but Animal Crossing: City Folk has finally arrived. Additions to the largely-unchanged gameplay aren’t as blatant as they were when the series moved from the GameCube to the DS, but what is perhaps more important is that almost nothing was removed. Just about everything you liked about Animal Crossing: Wild World is still here, minus the obvious touch-based and two-screen innovations, and even more has been added on top of that winning formula, including the return of familiar holidays like Halloween and “Toy Day,” which are now regional-specific. Aside from the additional fish, bugs, and other collectibles, there are four major innovations that will serve as this edition’s hallmarks:

1) “The City”. As the game’s subtitle suggests, there is a city element added to the familiar town experience. The unnamed City gives a permanent home to many of the series’s long-time guest visitors, such as Redd, Katrina, Gracie (her outrageously-expensive store is actually run by the third Able sister, Labelle, with the owner making only occasional appearances), and Dr. Shrunk, as well as Harriet’s Shampoodle hair salon (now no longer attached to Nook’s store), an auction house, a shoeshine b– er… skunk, and an actual physical location for the Happy Room Academy — with AC:WW insurance weasel Lyle as its rep in a career change highly reminiscent of Gil from The Simpsons. You can visit the city any time your town’s gate isn’t open for wi-fi play, but many of the locations close shop at around 9pm; unlike its real-world analogues, this City clearly sleeps, and is actually rather static.

2) Wii Speak. AC:CF is the first Wii title to allow voice chat with friends, via the Wii Speak peripheral (either purchased separately or bundled with the game). The general Wii Speak Channel will go live on December 5th (and you need to have Wii Speak in order to even download it), but voice chatting works just fine in the game. If you and (at least) one of your friends has Mic Chat turned on while visiting each other’s towns, the blue light on the speaker will light up and you can chat away without needing to type, freeing up your hands for catching fish or whatever else you might be doing — even typing, if you like. Since it’s a room mic and not a personal headset it’s not a perfect system by any means; echo and some other artifacts are common, especially since the “outgoing” chat is broadcast through your TV/surround system’s speakers. Still, it is an interesting move on Nintendo’s part, and the continued Friend Code restriction of online play should help to keep anonymous idiots from ruining the experience. Just be aware that it will pick up everyone in and broadcast to the entire room, so little kids still might be exposed to language their parents might not approve of; there’s also a bit of a sensitivity threshold that can result in louder-than-normal “inside voices”. I’m curious to see how the Wii Speak gets integrated into other online-capable games, and in particular if it will be backwards-compatible with Super Smash Brothers Brawl or Mario Kart Wii (which could bring a whole new meaning to my pet name for the Wii Wheel as “the swearing wheel”).

3) “Pro” custom designs. You can now edit your basic patterns for free whenever you wish. Paying some bells to the Able Sisters instead allows you to create “Pro” designs, which include different patterns for the front, back, and sleeves in one slot. You’re still limited to the usual 16-color palette 32×32 pixel grid for each section, but the possibilities for personalization have definitely increased. My wife is currently rocking a custom Harley Quinn outfit that would not have been possible on previous versions.

4) USB Keyboard support. Tapping keys on the DS’s touch pad was the height of efficiency; using the Wii Remote’s pointer is noticeably less precise, and several of the “shortcuts” implemented for the GCN version (like B for Backspace or a shoulder button for Shift) did not survive the transition. While not strictly necessary, the option of being able to use an actual keyboard was long-awaited. Too bad the letter-writing system is still prone to inconvenient line breaks and other outdated quirks…

There are a few minor improvements as well, such as importing a character and (most of) its catalog from AC:WW, widescreen support, being able to send letters to friends in other towns, or posting pictures to your Wii Message Board, but those are the big four. On the surface, nothing much has changed from the 2002 GameCube release, and some people will undoubtedly complain about this. While there indeed is still room for improvement (I would have liked to have seen more interaction between City Folk and Wild World, for example), the rest of us will quickly find ourselves once again caught in the strangely-compelling grip of “virtual yard work” and the Zen-like bliss of a game with no actual goal. Animal Crossing was a title that appealed to all ages and almost every type of gamer, and City Folk continues that tradition on the console that is widening those categories every month.

ESRB: E for comic mischief. Of course, the usual “Online content may change gameplay experience” disclaimer is in full effect here
Pros: More of the same pointless Animal Crossing gameplay if you were into it the first two times, plus the usual array of new additions; Wii Speak works well
Cons: Not quite the MMO-ish game some of us were expecting; more of the same pointless Animal Crossing gameplay if you weren’t into it the first two times
Plays like: Anything else with “Animal Crossing” in the title.

de Blob

November 20, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Chris Rasco Make a comment! / Tweet it!

De Blob is one of the more unique and creative games that I’ve played in recent years. The evil INKT Corporation has invaded the city of Chroma and outlawed color and fun. Playing as de Blob, you will lead the color revolution in an effort to bring back color to the city and help the oppressed citizens of Chroma enjoy daily life again.

Playing as de Blob, you start off as a clear ball of water and smash paint cans to absorb the paint. Paint cans come in the three primary colors and can be mixed to form four additional colors. Each paint can awards you a fixed number of paint points when you absorb it. Every time you touch a building or an object it turns the color of de Blob and deducts 1 paint point. Use all your paint points and you can no longer paint objects in the city.

Chroma city is divided into several parts that you unlock as you progress through the game. Each area has various challenges and sections you can. Sections are timed, but completing challenges and progressing through levels awards you additional time to continue playing as well as points. Collect a certain number of points to open up the additional sections of your current level. As you paint the town, additional citizens of Chroma city, called Raydians, arrive with additional challenges or missions for de Blob. Challenges can be anything from painting certain buildings various colors to defeating armies of INKT soldiers.

Each level also has certain goals that you can strive to meet such as painting all the trees or rescuing all the Raydians. Meeting all of these goals results in scoring 100% on that section or level. This must be done on a single play through as de Blob doesn’t store your progress on any given level. Start the level again and you are back at the very beginning. I didn’t like this feature at all.

de Blob is a simple concept with a virtually flawless execution and the controls only serve to complement this. Developer, Blue Tongue, opted to make full use of the motion sensing features of the Wii. Movement is handled with the analog stick but jumping and any additional movement like smashing paint cans or INKY soldiers is done by flicking the Wii remote up or down. The controls can be a little difficult to get the hang of and will be difficult for younger gamers.

De Blob is an amazing game by any standard. It delivers a solid and enjoyable gaming experience. It’s a little too challenging for kids under 6 to truly enjoy, but everyone else will be fine.

ESRB: de Blob is rated E for mild cartoon violence
Plays Like: Nothing I’ve played before
Pros: Excellent story and characters; fun and original
Cons: Doesn’t preserve level progress upon completion

Rock Band

November 20, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Chris Rasco Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Musical rhythm games have been a huge hit with gamers of all ages since Guitar Hero stormed onto the scene. In the past, emulating your favorite rock star was limited to showcasing your skills on a replica guitar controller. With the release of Rock Band, that all changed.

Rock Band was initially released in late 2007 for the PS3, PS2, and the Xbox 360. It wasn’t until the summer of 2008 that Rock Band became available for the hordes of Wii owners begging for a full rock experience.

Unfortunately for Wii owners, the version that was delivered is similar to the previously released PS2 version and it lacks the some of the capabilities of the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions. The most glaring omission is the online music store that allows gamers to purchase new tracks. As a consolation, Harmonix and MTV are releasing 20 song Track Packs for $29.99. The downside is that it becomes an all or nothing affair for gamers wishing to expand their track library. Other missing features include the lack of online play, no create-a-rocker, and a stripped down career mode. For a game that shines as a party game, these online features aren’t paramount to a good time.

Rock Band for the Wii may be missing some features that expand its playing experience, but the core gameplay is intact and it’s as fun as ever. The instruments are solid and the sleek white color of the drum set invokes an Apple-ish design.

Rock Band 2 is slated for a December 2008 release on the Wii and with improved instruments making their way to the Xbox 360 and the PS3 gamers will want to hold off on purchasing this full bundle.

Mario Super Sluggers

October 27, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Justin Last Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Mario baseball on the Wii should have been a sure thing. Take one part Wii Sports baseball and one part Mario Superstar Baseball, bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, and rake in the cash. Sadly, what we got was a less challenging version of Mario Superstar Baseball with a bad single-player camera and motion controls with no good alternative.

Unexpectedly, Mario Super Sluggers is defined by its motion controls. Swing the Wii remote like a bat to swing, lift and flick forward to throw a pitch, and shake the remote to run faster around the bases. The nunchaku is optional but recommended to players that want any control over their outfielders. Those that play with the remote only aren’t left out in the cold though. The AI will take care of the fielders for you, but be warned – it’s pretty conservative. For those that prefer a less arm-wiggling control scheme the Wii remote can be held sideways, but it’s a tough scheme to pick up since you can’t use it in the tutorial, the d-pad is nowhere near as responsive as the analog stick, and button functions are double up – the biggest offender being “advance base” and “sprint.” A control scheme without motion controls is nice, but enabling the GameCube controller would have been much better.

Mario Super Sluggers is best experienced in competitive exhibition games. Players with good chemistry can drastically alter how any given play goes down from denying your buddy of a home run by allowing your fielder to jump off of a buddy’s shoulders to having your on-deck batter distract the defense while you’re up to bat. If you don’t have a buddy nearby, exhibition can also offer a decent challenge with the difficulty ratcheted up.

Mario Super Sluggers’ most disappointing change is the loss of the single-player challenge mode. The name remains, but instead of squaring off against different teams you’ll just wander around different stadiums and compete in short challenges like complete a double play. For a casual audience these challenges are appropriate, but those that came from Mario Superstar Baseball are going to be disappointed by the reduced difficulty in a mode with the word challenge in the name.

Mario Super Sluggers drops the ball in a few places. Environments feel uninspired, and none of them feel as well-designed as those found in Mario Superstar Baseball. Star power animations are short and bland, usually featuring nothing more than a quick orange or red flourish. Worst of all though is the single-player pitching camera view that can’t be changed. The camera sticks behind the mound throughout the pitch making it nearly impossible to gauge where the ball is when it crosses the plate. Despite these shortcomings though, Mario Super Sluggers manages to be a fun, if simple, arcade baseball game. Just don’t go in expecting as deep an experience as Mario Superstar Baseball, and you’ll be ready to have a good time with some friends in exhibition mode.

Plays like: A cheaper version of Mario Superstar Baseball that has motion controls this time

ESRB: E for Comic Mischief – Mario is appropriate for everybody

Pros: Fun in multiplayer

Cons: uninspired arenas, bad pitching camera, no good conventional control scheme

Wall-E

October 22, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Justin Last Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Wall-E could have been so much more than the game we got. The atmosphere of the movie was great, the characters were extremely likable, and the whole thing could have lent itself to a great logical puzzle game. Instead we get yet another overly simple movie tie-in with light logical elements and puzzles whose solutions had may as well come with neon signs saying “use this cube now, dummy!”

Wall-E, like every other movie-tie game game on the Wii, replaces button presses with motion controls. The chief offender here is Wall-E’s cube toss. On every other platform this action is carried out with a button press, and it works just fine, but on the Wii you have to flail the controller about for no good reason. This is not what Nintendo had in mind (I hope) when they designed the Wii remote. Motion controls don’t replace button-centric control schemes; they augment them (i.e., Twilight Princess’s motion controlled bow and arrow aiming). Graphically, Wall-E looks like a PS2 game, but it gets the job done in a pinch. If you aren’t gaga over motion controls and want something with some visual punch then PS3 or 360 is the way to go for this title.

As in the movie, Wall-E starts out on a future garbage-filled Earth. Also as in the movie, garbage is the only thing left on the planet aside from Wall-E and his cockroach buddy, so there are no enemies to fight. Instead, the first few levels pit Wall-E versus the hazardous terrain of our solar system’s biggest landfill. Successfully getting Wall-E from point A to point B involves scooping up garbage and turning it into different kinds of cubes. There are four types, and you’ll always know which to use because the game holds your hand the entire way by placing the proper cube dispensation unit near the area it is needed. Simple cubes are the most abundant and are only really good for throwing at switches; heavy cubes are good for knocking things over; charge cubes are used to supply energy beacons with power to turn on machines; and magnet cubes attract or repel certain objects within the game world. The scientist in you is most likely reeling at the levels reminiscent of The Incredible Machine that could be made with these simple concepts, but Wall-E’s level design is sure to use only one cube type at a time.

After leaving Earth, EVE joins the cadre of playable characters, and she brings her own bag of tricks along for the ride. EVE has the ability to fly, and she comes equipped with a laser gun which means that now you’ll be contending with bland levels, overly simple environmental puzzles, and enemies. In most games this progression makes sense and is a welcome change from the tutorial area. In Wall-E, however, you are also hampered by the game’s control scheme and mechanics. Wall-E always feels like he is treading on ice, EVE’s flying is constantly hampered by invisible barriers, and Wall-E’s jumps are spastic and impossible to properly land. The only thing Wall-E really has going for it is that its target audience probably won’t realize the game’s shortcomings. This is strictly a paint-by-numbers movie cash in, and like The Incredibles before it, that stings because the IP could have been turned into a great game that everybody could enjoy.

ESRB: E for Cartoon Violence – if the movie is appropriate then so is the game.
Pros: full of potential, decent length
Cons: overly simple puzzles, loose controls, invisible walls
Plays like: any other kids’ movie game you can think of

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