Wii

Bully: Scholarship Edition

March 21, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Graham Russell Make a comment! / Tweet it!

When Bully was released on the PS2 in 2006, it unleashed the maelstrom of controversy that only a Rockstar-devloped game could. Now, the company has released Bully: Scholarship Edition, an enhanced version of the title, and it carries with it all the provocative content of the original.

The game centers around Jimmy Hopkins, a 15-year-old delinquent, as he settles into life at Bullworth Academy. The Grand Theft Auto-style open world allows players to choose to attend class, head into town or start fights with just about anyone. The “goal” of the game is to climb Bullworth’s social ladder. This can be done by defending nerds from jocks and getting good grades, but it can also be done by beating up more nerds and skipping class with the greasers. Inevitably, though, most situations devolve into a fight.

Bully‘s original graphics are basically passed onto the Wii version, but the title was originally gorgeous and detailed by 2006 standards, so it holds up well. The new motion controls were obviously intended to make Bully an immersive experience, and work well for the most part. They become most prominent during fights, as there’s a Wii Sports-esque system of punching. Sometimes movements aren’t as responsive as they should be, and some actions that would make sense with movement have instead been mapped to buttons. Nevertheless, it does feel like being in a fight, without the obvious danger.

Rockstar has put a lot of work into Bully‘s voice acting, and as a result, the storyline is engaging and funny. Chatter by even minor characters makes the world feel lived-in, and even repetitive dialogue is fairly tolerable.

The classes are presented as minigames, and these have become much more enjoyable with the Wii port. Each consists of a stereotypical class activity, like dissecting a frog or doing simple arithmetic. New classes use motion controls, and though simplistic, they make sense and provide a challenge. Also added are new adventures, including some with a holiday theme.

An obvious issue in many Rockstar games is the lack of polish. The team throws in as much as possible, and little is done to tweak what’s there. The same is true in Bully, but with the sheer volume of content, it’s largely forgivable.

Bully: Scholarship Edition is by no means good enough for Bully owners to buy it again. However, for older Wii owners who missed the 2006 original, it should help make the wait for GTA 4 a bit easier.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

March 12, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Graham Russell Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Does Brawl live up to the expectations? For the most part, the answer is a surprising yes. Brawl‘s incredible depth and breadth means that players will continue to explore it for months, and the balanced multiplayer mode will keep them coming back for years after that.

For those who haven’t played a Smash Bros. game, it is basically a fighting game featuring platformer movesets. The title brings together characters from many Nintendo franchises and pits them against each other in a four-player free-for-all. Brawl does nothing to change this, and focuses on enhancing the experience. The game supports the GameCube and Classic Controllers, as well as a Wii Remote with or without nunchuk. Though a GC pad makes the most sense, it is nice to see such thorough support, and the other options are certainly playable. Fully customizable button layouts make it so everyone will play how they want.

Brawl‘s visuals are as good as the Wii gets. With widescreen and 480p support, it won’t disgrace a large HDTV. The sound might even outshine that, though. Brawl sports the largest soundtrack in recent memory, with hundreds of songs from various Nintendo series, and a few from other companies.

Solo players will find more in Brawl than they did in Melee; most notable is the fleshed-out Adventure Mode, now dubbed The Subspace Emissary. It is by no means a full title, and only takes 8 to 12 hours for the average player. However, it proves to be a fun diversion and an interesting way to unlock characters. Classic Mode, on the other hand, seems to have gotten a bit less attention. Melee‘s Race to the Finish has been dropped, and a few more levels have been added, making it feel a bit tedious and repetitive. Event and Stadium modes add a bit of gameplay, but it’s unlikely that either will be a large timesink.

It’s in multiplayer that the Smash Bros. series shines. Brawl has increased the roster size to 35 and included 41 stages, ensuring that none get tired too soon. Some additions, like Olimar and Wario, play like no other character, and truly present a challenge. Some returning characters have had their movesets altered, like Mario with his new F.L.U.D.D. from Super Mario Sunshine. For the most part, it feels much the same, and that’s not a bad thing. Characters are largely balanced, so high-level players will be working with a much larger slate of possibilities.

Nintendo and developer Sora have thrown in lots of extras and collectibles. The Stage Builder mode will see a lot of focus, and is adequate if not amazing in scope. In addition to collecting trophies, players can also collect stickers to boost characters in The Subspace Emissary and music to play in regular and created stages. Most characters and stages were made easy to unlock, but collecting all trophies and stickers is a much more daunting task, and will appeal to those gamers that like the 360’s Achievements.

Brawl is certainly not perfect, though. With all the modes, it lacks a certain focus. Most things can be unlocked by playing things on Easy mode, so there’s less of a sense of achievement with getting them, and The Subspace Emissary is filled a little too much with original characters in a title that is so much about nostalgia and fanaticism. The lack of pointer support is a bit strange for a Wii title, though GameCube controllers are definitely the way to go anyway. Also, currently Nintendo’s online servers are unreliable and disconnect-prone. Hopefully this will be remedied with time.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl is a great party game for a great party system. It’s not a magnum opus, but rather the logical progression of the series, and that’s okay. Pick this one up.

Winter Sports

February 28, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Graham Russell Make a comment! / Tweet it!

Conspiracy Entertainment has been known to try to exploit any deficiencies in a system’s game lineup. With the release of Winter Sports, the company was obviously looking to play off the success of both Wii Sports and Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games. All in all, it’s not the worst effort in the world, but it certainly could have benefited from a bit more polish.

The game’s nineA

MLB Power Pros

February 28, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Graham Russell Make a comment! / Tweet it!

In a genre dominated by games like the Madden and FIFA series, sometimes it’s nice to be reminded that sports games don’t always have to be pure simulations. 2K’s MLB Power Pros is truly a game, and a deep one at that.

Konami’s Power Pro series has been popular for years in Japan, but never really had any success in the American market. For MLB Power Pros, Konami teamed up with 2K Sports to integrate Major League Baseball teams and players into its format. Even with the series’ simplistic player models, personalities of MLB stars come through just as much. The look fits in well on the Wii.

Don’t be fooled into thinking the game is easy. On the contrary, Power Pros has one of the deepest systems in the genre, and can be hard to pick up and play. Once a player is in, though, there’s something for everyone. In addition to a season mode with full AAA rosters, Power Pros includes player and team customization that includes detailed statistics and behaviors, multiplayer leagues, a home run challenge and, most importantly, Success Mode. This mode feels much like an RPG, with players making decisions and upgrading statistics in an attempt to have a college player make the jump to the big leagues. Success is very much a Japanese mode, from its high difficulty to the option to date various girls. Ultimately, though, it is a rewarding way to build a unique character to use in the rest of the game.

The actual gameplay is fairly conventional. Pitchers aim and press various button configurations, and batters react by moving the bat within a square and swinging. A player’s statistics seem to matter more in batting power and pitch speed and less in baserunning and accuracy, but ultimately players feel different. Most importantly for a baseball title, games progress relatively quickly, due to less presentation elements like replays.

The controls in this game don’t fit the Wii completely. The main game uses no motion sensors, and is best played with a GameCube controller or a Classic Controller. However, 2K also threw in an extra Wii Remote mode, which comes off as a variation on the Wii Sports Baseball design. The batting is more simplistic and only recognizes specific motions, but characters have more variety, and both Miis and other players in the game can be used. It also allows for customization of almost all rules and parameters, so it can be adjusted to work best in any environment.

MLB Power Pros is by no means a graphical powerhouse, but it makes up for it with depth, variety and sheer fun factor. It’s a good game for sports fans and a great sports title for gamers, and it’s also relatively inexpensive. Don’t let this one continue to fly under the radar.

Samurai Warriors: Katana

February 28, 2008

Reviews / Wii / by Graham Russell Make a comment! / Tweet it!

The moment the Wii’s control scheme was initially announced, gamers worldwide were abuzz with ideas for games, and the concept of a swordfighting game was usually at the top of the list. Ubisoft’s Red Steel was the first attempt at this, but many found the controls inaccurate and the game lacking. With Samurai Warriors: Katana, Koei took a simpler approach, putting levels on rails like Ghost Squad and focusing on controlling the sword itself.

Unfortunately, this was ultimately not a success. The Samurai Warriors license feels like it should be accompanied by feverish, wild slashing with the Wii remote, and instead most of the time players end up aiming and shooting instead of hacking and slashing.

Katana feels like an attempt to capitalize on what made Samurai Warriors fun, but it seems to have missed the mark a bit. Sure, the initial excitement of the series comes from 50-hit combos and cool animations, but fans stick around for the strategic army movements and RPG elements. There is some weapon customization in the title, but nothing really changes in the base gameplay. All it allows is for one less slash to take out an enemy or a bit longer life for the player.

The graphics for this game are almost laughable. Almost everything looks recycled from the original PS2 title, which was designed to display dozens of enemies on screen at a time. The more powerful Wii and gameplay with less opponents should have made Koei go with higher polygon counts and more detail. Also, be warned: Katana suffers from the all-too-prevalent gimmick syndrome. As if a swordfighting game wasn’t gimmicky enough, Katana has players shaking the remote and Nunchuk for no reason as well. This is the time in the system’s lifespan that these sort of knee-jerk reactions should be fading away, but we’re not so fortunate yet.

The title isn’t a complete failure, though. Boss fights are certainly more epic than in the main series, and require knowing some advanced tactics to succeed. Also, the one-player campaign, if repetitive, is relatively long and includes a few attempts at variety. Finally, though it’s not a deep mode, there are a few 2-player minigames for a few seconds of fun.

That’s the true nature of Samurai Warriors: Katana, really – it’s for a burst of fun. In many ways, that makes it an ideal rental. Anyone hoping to get a full fifty bucks of enjoyment out of it, though, will be sadly disappointed.

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