Wii

Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure

February 7, 2008

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

When experienced gamers see anime-style characters and a title that clearly denotes a main character and a sidekick, their brains usually leap to the conclusion of “cartoony mascot platformer” and then they frequently move on to the next box on the rack. In the case of Capcom’s Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure (Z&W), they would not only be dead wrong, but also missing out on one of the Wii’s finest third-party offerings to date.

In reality, Z&W is a point-and-click puzzler the likes of which the gaming world hasn’t seen for quite some time, with sharp, expression-rich cel-shaded graphics very reminiscent of Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. Using the Wii Remote, you will direct Zack, a young upstart pirate working for the Sea Rabbits, and his magical mischievous morphing monkey companion Wiki through a series of two dozen stages. Along the way, you will have to outwit and elude Rose Rock goons (members of a rival pirate gang), cannibalistic Growlin’ Goblins, and restless pirate ghosts — not to mention fiendish traps and mind-bending puzzles. Some stages even feature puzzle-based “boss fights” that will tax you to your mental limits. Your reward for solving each stage is a piece of treasure coveted by the Legendary (albeit cursed) pirate Barbaros; he has promised to give you his legendary ship if you can reassemble his various pieces — your fondest wish come true!

As mentioned, the interface for Z&W is point-and-click at its core. Various items and contraptions will be highlighted as you direct the pointer over them, and almost all of them must be employed to succeed in the current task at hand. In addition to items you find on each stage, you can also create items from living creatures by shaking the Wii remote near them; this will cause Wiki to transform into a bell that will transform the creatures both to and from item form. Ringing the bell is also useful in other situations, such as collecting coins or exorcising guardian spirits. Thanks to the Wii remote, each item and contraption is used just like you would use it in real life: keys must be turned, saws pulled back and forth, umbrellas opened via their release button, etc.. You will have to master over one hundred items in order to solve all of the puzzles and collect all of the treasure.

Each obstacle you pass scores you an amount of HirameQ (HQ) points, a sort of measure of your intellectual ability; you earn less HQ if you fail at a given task or complete a step out of sequence, but not for taking a long time, so it’s advisable to think out your situation whenever possible. Some obstacles have multiple solutions possible. You can also pray to the Hint Fairy for advice by pressing the 1 button, although you will need to have purchased a Hint Idol from Granny in the Sea Rabbits’ Hideout first, and it will cost you HQ when you complete the stage. Running afoul of traps and enemies will result in a swift — and often hilarious — death for Zack; if you have a Platinum Ticket (also bought from Granny), the Hint Fairy can rewind time to before you screwed up and you can take another shot at it (at the cost of some HQ), otherwise it’s back to the beginning of the stage you go. Sometimes you will have erred in such a way that the stage becomes unsolvable; if you find yourself in such an unfortunate situation, the Hint Fairy will let you know (if you ask her). You can also restart the stage on your own at no penalty at any time.

Z&W features appropriate music for its various stages, which include a jungle, an ice zone, a volcano/fire zone, and a haunted castle among others. Sound effects bring every character, item, and contraption to life; while there is no voice acting, there are clips (in the original Japanese, “Zaku” in full effect) that accent emotions and give a little extra personality to the characters. Theoretically there is very little reading required in order to actually play the game, although the early game is filled with text explanations that will need to be relayed to anyone too young to read them. Fortunately, there is another in-game aid available for anyone who might not be able to handle the game on their own: a form of multiplayer in which up to three other Remotes can be used to point out and draw temporary lines on the screen. Only the 1P Remote can actually do anything, but this inspired decision can turn this puzzler into a group or family experience.

By the time your quest is over, you will have most likely logged over thirty hours playing Z&W; additional puzzles also show up in completed stages once you’ve beaten the main storyline for additional brain-teasing. Considering that a new copy of the title retails for a discounted $40, that’s a playtime-to-cost ratio rivaled only by epic RPGs. Unlike an RPG, however, you will be actively engaged just about every step of the way. The puzzles are always logical, although not necessarily obvious or intuitive every time. Sometimes the Wii remote’s gestures don’t respond quite like you want them to, but outside of that small problem there are few flaws to be found in this game. The Wii needs more third-party support of this superior caliber, and Zack and Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure deserves a spot in every Wii owner’s library.

Dragon Blade

January 16, 2008

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

Dragon Blade is a simple hack ‘n’ slash adventure pitting a plucky young hero against teeming hordes to reclaim his mentor’s glory and rescue the kingdom. His only weapon is a magical sword containing the spirit of said mentor, an ancient fire dragon known as Valthorian. At first he only has basic swings and thrusts at his disposal, but in time he will be able to unleash the power of a dragon.

As Dal (the lad in question) progresses, he will battle the evil dragons and corrupt kings of old who claimed the shards of Valthorian’s Dragon Core. Each time Dal defeats one of the kings, his sword gains one of Valthorian’s attributes: claws, wings, tail, or fire-breathing head. Each form has its own abilities, and Dal will have to master them all in order to defeat the Dark Dragons.

Doing so is simply a matter of swinging or thrusting the Wii Remote and Nunchuk in the proper manner. Dal is fairly responsive and will do what you want more often than not as long as you’re not being frantic. The dragon forms offer you moves like titanic punches, earth-shaking ground pounds, furious claw swipes, and streams of fireballs. The gesture controls really pay off here, as they help to put you “in the game” as opposed to just hitting buttons. Each use of a form’s attack consumes Firepower (think MP), easily regained as you fell enemies, destroy objects, and stab your fiery blade into a boss’s scaly hide.

The battles against the massive Dark Dragons are easily the most impressive aspect of the game. Once you’ve softened them up, you get a Core Break Chance, a quicktime sequence a la God of War. Execute the commands in time to shatter the dragon’s Core and emerge victorious. After having to whittle your way through several layers of health bars (some more sensitive/vulnerable than others), these all-or-nothing sequences are a welcome respite and are among the game’s graphical highlights.

Dragon Blade is mostly combat; there are puzzles here and there, but those are generally solved by simple application of one of the Dragon Forms. Combat can be repetitive if you let it be, but fighting without losing a ton of health requires some actual strategy. Hitting the A button as an enemy is about to hit parries the attack and regains health, but striking them at the right time instead scores extra damage. You can also roll out of the way of blows too heavy to parry, or leap into the air to add oomph to your swing or get additional hits against large enemies. You can lock on to enemies, but this system doesn’t work nearly as well as it does in games like Zelda, partly due to the sometimes-abysmal camera.

You can tell that developer LAND HO! put a lot of effort into the gameplay, but also that this was pretty much their sole focus. Besides the camera, many shortcomings prevent Dragon Blade from achieving must-own –or even must-play– status. The most obvious are the graphics, which are bland and unimpressive, even by Wii standards. Some attention was paid to fire effects and the fights against the enemy dragons are awesome, but everything else quickly fades from memory. The enemy AI leaves something to be desired at times, as you can sucker them into attacking you “black ninja” style rather than in one overwhelming mob. The game is also plagued by invisible walls that keep you on a linear path. Finally, while the music and sound effects are decent, the only voice acting we get is Valthorian during the opening and closing cinemas. Every other time it’s just plain blocks of text.

I love Dragon Blade‘s mostly-original concept and well-executed gameplay, but the repetitive and at times monotonous nature of the adventure combined with the general “blahness” of the presentation make the game arduous to play for extended periods. The ending hints at a sequel, and I sincerely hope that it improves on these areas, because there is promise in this IP at its core (no pun intended). Fortunately, publisher D3 seems to be aware of the game’s shortcomings, as it retails for a bargain $30, less expensive than some DS titles. At that price, Dragon Blade becomes a worthy investment for those willing to overlook its flaws and give it a chance.

Geometry Wars: Galaxies

January 13, 2008

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

Geometry Wars is a little game that just keeps growing. The series, which started as a minigame in Project Gotham Racing 2 and grew into a Xbox Live Arcade classic, now sees a full-version release on the Wii and DS. The new release, titled Geometry Wars: Galaxies, offers a deep one-player mode and a new multiplayer experience.

The Galaxies single player mode features different-shaped levels with different waves of enemies, as well as an upgradeable sidekick with different behaviors. The different levels manage to feel varied and uniquely challenging.

The real challenge for the series was porting to a system without dual analog controls. The Xbox version relied on this setup, with the second stick controlling the shot angle. The Wii version has many options, with the primary one being the remote-nunchuk combination. The control stick moves the ship, while the Wii’s pointer aims the shots. A red line and a cursor appear on the screen to show where the player is pointing. For those who would rather try the traditional control scheme, the title allows use of the Classic Controller, but lacks support for the GameCube pad.

The sound effects in Geometry Wars are trance-inducing and fit well with the experience. The bright, chaotic visual style is part of the charm, and the next-gen wow-factor found in the 360 version is still here. The chaotic vector effects add to the pulse-pounding excitement, but don’t detract from playability.

The multiplayer works well for a game that wasn’t designed to have it. Versus mode allows one player to shoot at waves controlled by the other. Co-op play shares bombs and scores, and simultaneous play has both trying to rack up more points while shooting the same enemies.

Galaxies would have been a successful title if that were the only content, but Sierra and Kuju included more. The entire original game is available to play, and there also is an extra galaxy available to those who link up the two versions of the game. Both allow downloading a demo to any DS, as well.

For players that enjoy Geometry Wars and similar shooters, Galaxies is a deep package with more of the fun you’re used to. For people that have yet to experience the gameplay, it has all you need in an easy-to-get-into package. Definitely give this one a try.

Star Trek Conquest

January 11, 2008

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

Star Trek doesn’t have a very good track record when it comes to video games, but Bethesda has set out to change that with Star Trek Legacy (360) and Star Trek Conquest (Wii/PS2). First, I need to qualify this review with two things: I love both Star Trek and board games. If you also love both Star Trek and board games then Conquest is right up your alley as it meshes the two together in a fun, accessible way.

Strip away the license, and Star Trek Conquest is a simple turn-based strategy game. Simple isn’t always a bad thing as it makes the game fairly accessible and easy to learn. The only thing missing is a tutorial mode. While Star Trek Conquest‘s learning curve isn’t exceedingly steep you can expect to lose your first two or three bouts because you’re learning as you go instead of being led through a simulation by a high-ranking official from your race of choice. Of the myriad races in the Star Trek universe six are playable here: Federation, Romulans, Klingons, Cardassians, Jem’Hadar, and Breen. A

Godzilla Unleashed

December 26, 2007

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

The GameCube release Godzilla: Destroy All Monsters Melee was a surprise hit on a system light on fighting games. As a result, there was a decent amount of buzz for the Wii edition of Godzilla Unleashed. Simply put, people are going to be disappointed.

New to the game is a Wii-based motion control system. It’s painful. The movements seem arbitrary and unresponsive, which is compounded by the monsters’ slow movements. The large health bars make for long, tedious fights that seem like more of a chore than entertainment.

The story is based around simplistic comic-book cutscenes that feel more campy than anything else. Much like the movies, the focus is on big monster battles, so the plot is secondary to say the least.

Atari tried to add in elements of strategy to make the game more fun, but it largely failed. Monsters now have specific elemental weaknesses and strengths, but they rarely come up in gameplay, being heavily overshadowed by the base stats of each monster.

There are some redeeming features for Godzilla fans. Playing through the game unlocks obscure creatures and concept art. There are over twenty characters eventually available. The problem is that the game is so slow-paced that it takes hours to unlock a decent roster of monsters. The design seems to be based around the core experience being fun, and it just isn’t. It matters little that Atari did the little things right when the big thing is flawed.

Wii players may have been looking forward to Godzilla Unleashed as a good Smash Bros. replacement until Brawl hits in February, but it just isn’t the solid title we expected. Pass on this one.

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