The wii topic [Archive]

frogbeastegg

12-15-2006, 15:22

Anyone else got one?

I'm actually a bit disappointed with my early stroke-of-amazing-luck Christmas present ~:mecry: It's the only time I've brought a new console and not had some kind of "Wow! Great things lie ahead!" feeling. I find I'm slowly feeling gutted.

First the general good of the console:
The analogue stick on the nunchuk is nice. Best I've used, to be honest. Very responsive, and it feels right. The part where your thumb rests is coated in a very grippy rubbery substance, so chances of thumb slippage are slim.

It's a dinky little console. Cute.

Wireless controllers means no wires. Yay!

The wii-mote has rumble built in. Nice, considering a lot of other wireless controllers don't.

The general bad:
You can't turn the console off unless you unplug it. Most won't care about this, but as I have the console in my bedroom I do. I don't want power lights on while I'm trying to sleep.

I can't sit down to play. I have to stand up or most of my wii-mote swinging isn't picked up. In the course of a typical working day I walk approximately 5 miles and stand for 9 hours. I don't want to be forced to stand when I'm trying to relax. I've discovered another flaw to this: I hurt my knee two days ago. I haven't been able to play my Wii for two days because standing is painful. So much for the generic console advantage of being able to sit comfortably while playing, and playing while ill.

I have two games: Zelda and the copy of Wii Sports which comes bundled.

Zelda is fine - it's Zelda for heavens sake! Except ... it's all so blurry. Reviews have said it looks like a Gamecube game; my Gamecube was never this blurry. I found that console's graphics to be more than good enough, and still do the occasional time I fire it up. I was expecting minor steps forward in the graphics department, not a big slip backwards.

The more serious issue is the controls. They feel so bolted on and gimmicky. Wave your wii-mote about to initiate sword attacks. Except the result is no different at all to pressing a button. I find I'd rather be using a normal controller, save for when I do a spin attack. Shaking the nunchuk to get a spin attack is the only improvement I've found on the control scheme so far. Aiming projectiles via the wii-mote is not as easy as I'd like, probably because I have to waggle the remote about at arms length in front of the TV before it detects it to put the cursor on screen, a process which sometimes results in the cursor appearing instantly, others in taking precious seconds. The fly in the muddy ointment is that occasionally I find Link doing things I don’t want him to in battle and dying because of it. Like flying over an enemy’s head into an instant death cloud of poison. Meaning I had to repeat several minutes of play to get back to that point because the save/continue point system is still in the early 90's. And then he did it again. :blankg: This is a far cry from the older 3D Zeldas, where I felt Link was so well under my control I only needed to think of doing something and it was done.

I'm not sold on the wii-mote speaker either; why is having tinny-sounding sword swooshes coming out of the wii-mote classed as better than having proper quality sword swooshes coming from the TV? The result is just odd and a bit tacky.

It all adds up. Ocarina of Time is my favourite game ever. Majora's Mask isn't far behind. I enjoyed Wind Waker, with the exception of the boring sailing, until it got to the awful fetch-quest near the end. I'm simply not getting the same feeling of awe and addiction with Twilight Princess. Everything I like about it is undermined by the blurriness, the controls, and having to stand to play it.

Wii Sports isn't my usual cup of tea; I don't like sports and I don't like sports games. But it came free, and it should be good to play with my boyfriend. It has five games: tennis, bowling, golf, baseball, boxing. Bowling and baseball are mind-numbingly boring. Golf is the least interesting game out of the lot to me, I haven't tried it yet (why bother with golf when there's Zelda?!).

Tennis is the one I should have liked; it's the one I was looking forward to trying. It should have been great, given the motion sensor controls. It isn't. A lot of my swings don't pick up, or trigger the wrong kind of move. Left side control is the biggest problem: I swing on my left and the character stubbornly swings on his right. Tennis is the one which gets all that talk about non-gamers picking up a wii-mote and playing happily in seconds. I haven't won a single game of tennis. I've scored 1 point. In 11 games. In the same time I've watched the ball bounce past my character as I swing the wii-mote futilely more times than I can count.

Not entirely related but still a factor in my end feeling: You can play gamecube games on the Wii. Excellent! I have an imported US gamecube, and there are some titles I never imported. I can play the PAL versions now. Theoretically - none of the shops near me have gamecube titles. Amazon.uk doesn't have the ones I want except as second hand extortionate rip offs. Nowhere has them. I'm talking first party Nintendo titles like Pikmin 2 here.

And another: All games on the virtual console for PAL territories are PAL versions. Huzzah - we got a crappier version of the game the first time around, and can now download a crappy version again, paying more for that 'privilege' than any other territory. There's no option to get a proper 60Hz version even if your TV supports it, and nearly all TVs in the UK now do. Most worrying of all this means that games which didn't reach PAL territories before likely won't come to the virtual console. So no Mario RPG et al for us.

:sigh: So in the end most of my problems really come back to one thing: the motion sensor controls. They don't work reliably, they don't work comfortably, and they feel gimmicky in one out of my two games.

I have tried moving the sensor bar from below the TV to above it, standing closer, standing further back, I've turned down sensitivity, I've turned up sensitivity, I've even tried telling it the sensor bar is below my TV when it is above it and vice versa in the hope that would help. Moving the bar above the TV made a slight improvement, but it also ensures I absolutely must stand to play.

Gah! I’ve got Zelda and I can’t play it because I’ve hurt my knee and can’t stand to use some gimmicky feeling controls I’d rather do without! ~:mecry:

Husar

12-15-2006, 19:37

I'm sorry for you, not a console gamer myself, I had my doubts about the accuracy of such a control with motion sensors and wireless and so on, it just felt like it wouldn't work reliably. Then again, one would expect it to if it is sold publicly and if your success in games depends on it.
Maybe your controller or receiver has a fault or you need to stand really close to the TV(which also doesn't sound that good, even worse because of your knee). There was also some homepage about TVs broken by the Wii mote because apparently it can slip out of your sweaty hands if you move it around fast, the cord breaks easily and so it can land in your TV, just be careful with it.~;)

MSB

12-15-2006, 19:53

The Wizard

12-15-2006, 20:59

I don't know what the heck people are doing if the Wiimote gains enough velocity to start flying fast enough to damage something :sweatdrop:

Xiahou

12-15-2006, 21:14

Just another bad that was on the news:
The wii's controlers have straps that are too thin. These can break and cause large ammounts damage to anything from TVs to windows should they fly off :san_sad:I'm perfectly willing to call BS on the majority of the "my strap broke and my wiimote broke my TV" stories- they don't pass the smell test.

Here's (http://www.nintendojo.com/fullfocus/view_item.php?1166055790) a link to a guy who stress tested his strap- nothing that could be considered ordinary use would break it....

----------------------------------

frogbeastegg, I'm sorry to hear you're having so much trouble, I certainly don't have any of those complaints- maybe I can help some.

First, the "power off" issue:
When you turn the Wii off via the Wiimote, it actually just goes into Standby (yellow light) mode- which allows the wireless networking to stay active for the WiiConnect24 feature. The idea with WiiConnect is to download updates, ect while you're away from your Wii. But from what I can tell this functionality isn't implemented yet- so leaving it on standby does nothing other than generate heat it seems for now. To turn it off properly, you have to hold down the actual power button on the Wii until the LED turns red. If it's the small LED light that's bothering you this probably wont help too much.

"Tinny" sounding wiimote speaker:
Yup, it's sound quality isnt the greatest. Some people think it's because it's a cheap speaker, I tend to think it might have something to do with the limitations of bluetooth... Either way, I prefer to just turn down the speaker volume- I like to be able to hear it faintly still, just not so loud that it drowns out the better quality stereo/tv. If you can't stand it at all, you can just turn it all the way down. :shrug:

Wiimote pointer functionality:
I have almost no problems here- it goes where I point it. I recently purchased Elebits, which is extremely pointer intensive. It involves grabbing objects and furniture with your "capture gun" and flinging them around as well as zapping tiny elebits by pointing at them and pressing a button. I generally play sitting down, with the only exception being when I'm swinging my arms around like an idiot- which I can't do as well sitting down. :laugh4:

You can diagnose ALOT of problems through the sensitivity screen in your Wii settings. Keep in mind that the sensor bar isn't a sensor at all- it simply broadcasts IR light from transmitters on each end of the bar. The wiimote uses those signals as markers to determine it's position.

So, if you go into the sensitivity settings you should see two white dots on the screen. Move the wiimote around and make sure that you always have two dots as you point it at different parts of the screen. If you don't have two dots, your sensitivity is too low. If you see more dots, either your sensitivity is too high or you're getting interference from another IR source.

One problem I had was when I played seated on my sofa with my coffee table in front of me.... I had left my game cases on the coffee table in front of me, and noticed that my pointer was jumping all over the screen- what was happening was that the IR light from the sensor bar(I use mine under my TV) was reflecting off of the plastic game cases and confusing the wiimote- this was apparent under the sensitivity menu, as extra dots showed up whenever I tilted the Wiimote downwards. The solution, obviously, was to remove the game cases. I've occasionally had similar problems with drinking glasses, ect being in the way- but it's not problem now that I know what to look for.

Hope this helps some- let me know if you have any other questions.

Kekvit Irae

12-15-2006, 22:53

Not entirely related but still a factor in my end feeling: You can play gamecube games on the Wii. Excellent! I have an imported US gamecube, and there are some titles I never imported. I can play the PAL versions now. Theoretically - none of the shops near me have gamecube titles. Amazon.uk doesn't have the ones I want except as second hand extortionate rip offs. Nowhere has them. I'm talking first party Nintendo titles like Pikmin 2 here

Looks like you need someone to help you with finding imports. :tongueg:

If the Wiimote gets you down, buy the standard controller at any gaming shop.

frogbeastegg

12-16-2006, 20:58

Wii-mote flinging
Ditto. I don't believe any of those stories. My wii-mote's strap is solid, and the wii-mote is light enough that I doubt it could damage my TV even if I threw it with all my puny strength.

If it's the small LED light that's bothering you this probably wont help too much.
Alas, it is the red light. In a dark room it's surprisingly disturbing.

Wii-mote speaker
So much for my tentative hope I was missing something which made it into a good feature instead of something which seems bizarre. Oh well. Maybe in the future. For now I'll leave it turned down quite low, it's alright when it's like that.

Elebits
Oooh - is it good? I have my eye on that one. It's out here at some unstated point in 2007, which probably means February or later. Nintendo do something wonderful, and do a near-simultaneous worldwide release – then leave Europe dragging behind on games. As usual. Disappointing, moreso as they were doing games releases for the gamecube/GBA with less than a month of lag at one point.

If you see more dots, either your sensitivity is too high or you're getting interference from another IR source.
Ah ha! It was picking up the room's main light and treating it as another source. The light is not centrally hung (idiots who modernised this Victorian house had all kinds of silly ideas about where to put things) and is positioned to my left as I stand in front of the TV. I have to play with the room in darkness except for my reading light above my bed, and I still have to stand.

Testing out my solution to the light problem led to a Wii-sports filled evening with my boyfriend, sharing the single Wii-mote and taking it in turns to play. I'm terrified by how good he is at the boxing! I always thought him harmless. Turns out he's Muhammad Ali reborn. He loved it, and says we will have to get an extra Wii-mote and some other two player games. I'm thinking of the Wii play pack, and possibly Rayman.

Myself, I'm still not a fan of Wii-sports. It's sports. Tennis was alright though, and the whole experience improves considerably when the controls work. The automatically adjusting difficulty level is unique in my experience - it actually works! When you win a match your next is noticeably harder, when you lose it's a little easier, and the step up or down is never too big. Give me a game based on something I like and Good Things could happen ...

Looks like you need someone to help you with finding imports.
The thought had crossed my mind. I have been plotting. You should have mail soonish.

If the Wiimote gets you down, buy the standard controller at any gaming shop
I could hook up my wavebird or standard gamecube controller, so forking out for extra controllers is thankfully not necessary. The hitch is that Wii games don't give you the option to use standard controls, just as virtual console and gamecube games don't let you use motion sensors. I can see Nintendo's point in not allowing this; motion sensor is the big selling point of the Wii, and without it the console is open to direct comparisons to the PS3 and xbox360. .

Xiahou

12-16-2006, 23:10

Glad I could help some.

The sensor bar is really an interesting creature imo- people have already discovered many ad-hoc substitutes for them, including modded remote controls or even candles to transmit the needed IR signal. There are already 3rd party sensor bars cropping up on the Internet that run on batteries instead of needing to be plugged into the console. Hopefully we'll see adjustable length ones someday to help those who have freakishly large TVs.

When you say you have to play standing, is it because the pointer functionality doesn't work when seated? Obviously, WiiSports is pretty much designed to be played standing, but I always play Zelda(which is awesome) and Raving Rabbids seated without any problems. If so, make sure it's all the way out to the edge of whatever your tv is sitting on- so the signal isn't being blocked from the angle you're seated at. :shrug:

I haven't got to spend much time on Elebits yet (just the tutorials and the first level), but what I've seen looks neat. The motion control is really something in game- you can grab objects and toss them around, move them up, down, left, right, or even forwards and backwards by pushing/pulling the Wiimote towards or away from the screen- neato. The level I played consisted of me basically trashing my room (lifting boxes, over turning tables, opening and emptying closets, ect) in my search for elebits. When you collect a certain amount of them, you can power devices (ie: your TV, toy car, ect), which in turn flushes out 'power' elebits. Collect enough of these guys and the weight that can be manipulated by your capture gun goes up. Towards the end of the level I could move most objects in my bedroom, that was when I really had the place trashed searching for the last few buggers- looked like a hurricane had been through. :laugh4:

lars573

12-17-2006, 04:15

I'll be waiting for the release of Super Smash Brothers: Brawl before I get a Wii. Twilight princess does not a console sale make for me.

Reverend Joe

12-17-2006, 06:02

Every time I hear "Wii", I think "penis."

Who the hell names a gaming system "Penis"?

Motep

12-17-2006, 08:02

That is one hell of a rant!

MSB

12-17-2006, 10:36

Every time I hear "Wii", I think "penis."

Who the hell names a gaming system "Penis"?
:san_rolleyes:

The people who made Wii obviously.

doc_bean

12-17-2006, 10:46

Every time I hear "Wii", I think "penis."

Who the hell names a gaming system "Penis"?

This is a rather strange phenomena, since wii,wee,we,wi or whatever doesn't actually mean 'penis', yet almost everyone immediately associates it with the male member. Still a horrible move by Nintendo though.

Froggy I'm glad you're having fun with your Wii now, I imagine it can be really annoying when it doesn't work properly...

Fragony

12-17-2006, 12:38

Fragony eyes his 360................ 'you absolete piece of trash! Dinosaur!'

I simply love the Wii, have yet to get my own but a friend was more lucky. Maybe tomorow...........

Wii bowling is the best thing ever. Wii don't need graphics. No idea what you are talking about frog, the control is amazing, nothing gimmickry about it, pure ace.

frogbeastegg

12-17-2006, 20:26

I didn't think 'penis' when I heard 'wii'. Now I will. Thanks. :blankg:

Moving swiftly on,

When you say you have to play standing, is it because the pointer functionality doesn't work when seated?
If I don't stand the pointer isn't detected at all. If I sit on my bed I appear to be classed as too low down. If I sit on the chest of drawers which is a foot higher than my bed I'm classed as too high. Thing is, in both positions I'm aimed right at the TV, so there shouldn't be a problem. It's very finicky indeed about where it will or will not pick up the pointer. My having a small TV probably doesn't help ... but still, it doesn't make sense to design a small low-graphics console at a cheap price, then do a Microsoft and require people to have an expensive big TV to get it to work decently.

No idea what you are talking about frog, the control is amazing, nothing gimmickry about it, pure ace.
In Wii-sports the controls are natural and fitting. In Zelda they are gimmicky. Zelda is a port of a gamecube game with motion sensor functionality bolted on, and it shows. Nintendo really should have tried harder ~:(

edyzmedieval

12-17-2006, 21:18

I didn't think 'penis' when I heard 'wii'. Now I will. Thanks. :blankg:

:laugh4:

That made me LOL hard.

Meh, I'm not really interested in Wii. I'm hyped about PS3.

Xiahou

12-17-2006, 21:18

If I don't stand the pointer isn't detected at all. TV size really shouldnt have any bearing on the pointer being detected- the sensor bar doesn't know what size your TV is. The only ramifications I can think of is that a bigger TV will cause movements to appear to cover a greater distance on screen than they would on a smaller screen (if that makes any sense).

Again, I'd try to move the sensor bar out away from the TV to the edge of whatever the TV is sitting on to see if that helps. How far away do you play? I think the recommendation is 3-10ft...

In Wii-sports the controls are natural and fitting. In Zelda they are gimmicky. Zelda is a port of a gamecube game with motion sensor functionality bolted on, and it shows. Nintendo really should have tried harder ~:(
As you say, the Wiimote functionality was clearly bolted on- but I still prefer it to using a Gamecube controller. Most of it operates traditionally, but I love the pointer aiming and the nunchuk flick spin attack is also very welcome. I don't really use the traditional attack all the much- mainly jump attacks and spin attacks. To each their own though. :yes:

Marius Dynamite

12-18-2006, 00:02

Well, Its Christmas soon and the consoles are all coming out again. Its time for me to decide which one I want.

I feel I should stay loyal to Sony. I loved the Playstation and went for the
PS2 instead of the Xbox because of that. I wasn't dissapointed with the PS2 and from what I played of Xbox, it wasn't greatly superior nor inferior. I never even considered a Gamecube because I have no interest in any of the kind of game which are made for it.

I wouldn't get a Wii for a few reasons. One, it seems like a gimick (SP?) similar to Eyetoy was for PS2. Two, I don't like the games I see for it. Three, I don't have enough space in my room to fully express myself in a sword game. :)

Wii seems like a rich, 30 year old persons thing who has a large TV, young children and a large living Room. Even this person probably wouldn't play it incredibly much.

So anyway, back to my problem.. Xbox 360 or PS3.

PS3 has been delayed a few time already right? Whens its release in the UK? March 2007? and its 425 pounds Sterling? I heard games will be £70 aswell? Is that true?

360 is £279 and more or less the same in every other way except with a smaller HDD? I got my first 'real' taste of the 360 in my friends today with Gears of War. It owns, no doubt. I think I might get that now? Which would be best and for what reasons? (Don't say the Wii :P) :2thumbsup:

P.S. I love using the R1 and the Xbox equivelant and the Analogs for shooting games. Its very fun and better than the Wii sticks.

Grey_Fox

12-18-2006, 00:39

Erm...

Aren't the PS3 and Xbox 360 twice the price of the Wii? Wouldn't that make them "rich man's" consoles?

You don't really need to swing your arms around, you can just move your hands and use wrist action to do everything for you...

Xiahou

12-18-2006, 03:18

You don't really need to swing your arms around, you can just move your hands and use wrist action to do everything for you...
Yeah, you can really just swing your arms as much as you want to. For most games I think it actually gets a little tiring to make full swinging motions- especially when wrist flicks work just as well.

The only games I still regularly make something close the full real-world motions for are in WiiSports- baseball (when at bat), and bowling.

doc_bean

12-18-2006, 10:50

Meh, I'm not really interested in Wii. I'm hyped about PS3.

Meh, so far it's graphically inferior to the xbox360 and some launch games had serious issues. It might become worth owning in a year or two.

Lehesu

12-18-2006, 19:38

It would have to be much better than the 360 to justify a 200 dollar price hike over the 360.

Fragony

12-19-2006, 12:28

Meh, so far it's graphically inferior to the xbox360 and some launch games had serious issues. It might become worth owning in a year or two.

Mixed bag, some look better on the 360 and some on the ps3, not firsthand knowledge of course. But, the ps3 also plays all ps1 and all ps2 games, can't wait to play flawed gems like Killzone and Shadow of the Collosus without the framerate issues that kinda killed them.

doc_bean

12-19-2006, 13:45

Mixed bag, some look better on the 360 and some on the ps3, not firsthand knowledge of course. But, the ps3 also plays all ps1 and all ps2 games, can't wait to play flawed gems like Killzone and Shadow of the Collosus without the framerate issues that kinda killed them.

I haven't heard of any improvements in framerate. I did hear that ps2 games look worse on an hdtv with a ps3 compared to hdtv+ps2.

They still have some issues they need to work out.

Fragony

12-19-2006, 14:28

Did improve considerably when the ps2 took over from the ps1, I expect nothing less from the ps3, would be really really stupid.

Papewaio

12-20-2006, 00:53

http://www.wiihaveaproblem.com/ ... seems to be more then an urban myth of straps breaking.

As for annoying red lights... wouldn't bluetac over it solve that problem...

Xiahou

12-21-2006, 03:56

http://www.wiihaveaproblem.com/ ... seems to be more then an urban myth of straps breaking.

As for annoying red lights... wouldn't bluetac over it solve that problem...
Nah, I already knew about that site- most of the pics there are clear or likely fakes.
I would call this (http://www.wiihaveaproblem.com/show_article.php?id=53) an example of a clear fake. :yes:

Im not saying that someone can't or hasn't broken the wrist strap by behaving like a maniac and actually broke something with it- it could happen, I just dont think it happens very often at all.

Papewaio

12-21-2006, 04:10

They acknowledge at the site this one seems iffy... I could understand a screen or a speaker covering being punctured.

It seems that it isn't the thick part of the strap that is breaking, it is the string bit that attaches to a Wii.

I agree that it is highly unlikely to happen but a small chance times a large number of uses = a number of times it can happen.

So sheer large number of consoles sold and a few incidents will happen.

Universal rule of product design:
No matter how foolproof the product is, nature will breed a 'better' fool.

BDC

12-21-2006, 17:24

You think Zelda for Gamecube is worth the effort? Never played a Zelda game before, worried it might a bit too kiddy and silly puzzle heavy. I prefer my RPGs heavy and full of blood...

Fragony

12-21-2006, 17:28

Zelda ain't no rpg, and yes it's puzzle heavy and kiddie. Love it or hate it, only one way to find out.

frogbeastegg

12-22-2006, 15:39

Pape: You want me to stick tacky blue putty stuff on the on/off switch of my shiny white console!? Gah!, I say to you, sir, gah!

BDC: Go and buy Zelda. Then play it. Finish it. Then go and buy all the other 3D Zeldas, play and finish them. Then come back. Go now. This is one of my favourite series, and it contains my favourite game ever: Ocarina of Time. I don't get on with the 2D ones though, to my ever-lasting disappointment.

And as for kiddy, it may not have blood and gore and swearing, but I find that seldom makes anything mature at all. On the contrary, games with that often feel very "I'm a teenager and wannabe cool!!1!" to me. There's very few which use it to good effect.

Some parts of the recent Zelda games are quite dark, if you think about them. There also tends to be a sorrowful atmosphere to them, and the endings are bittersweet at best. If you think about them.

Anyone played Monkey Ball, Red Steel or Rayman? We can't decide which one to pick up with Wii Play. :sigh: This is the problem when you give your boyfriend the chance to give his opinion, instead of choosing for him and telling him to be happy :tongueg:

I have fond memories of the first Monkey Ball, but didn't find the second to be nearly as good (level design wasn't as good, the camera had real problems on some levels, story mode was crap, and the whole experience felt less pure). I have never been a fan of the mini games in this series, with the exception of the first game's version of monkey flight. I hear this new one has bosses. This sounds like a terrible idea and makes me doubtful. Monkey Ball is about rolling monkeys in balls around intricate levels collecting bananas and teetering on the edge of death, not about bopping stupid monsters.

Red Steel has swords, guns and ninjas. He likes that sort of thing. I don't mind it occasionally provided it is well done and not a straight run and gun type. Red Steel has had a lot of reviews complaining about poor controls and bugs, and it sounds like a very straight up shooter.

Rayman sounds so silly and perfect to play with another person ... except it also sounds short-lived. It's going to be a while before Wii games go down in price. Being nothing but mini games it also doesn't have much meat to it for SP gaming.

Lehesu

12-22-2006, 19:07

I also heard that Red Steel is god awful.

Xiahou

12-22-2006, 19:23

Pape: You want me to stick tacky blue putty stuff on the on/off switch of my shiny white console!? Gah!, I say to you, sir, gah!
Just hook it to a power strip that you can switch off when you're not playing. That'll save you from unplugging it all the time.

Something tells me that I'll be getting Monkey Ball for Christmas, so I'll know more about it then... I have heard some mixed reviews on it though.

I had rented Red Steel, and it's not a bad game. The controls seem a little awkward at first, but I got used to them within the first hour. It's basically just a shoot em up with a thin plot about rescuing your GF who's dad is a Yakuza lord. The sword fighting is kinda fun, but they don't make much sense in the pacing of the game- You're running along shooting everyone in sight, then you go into a room with a guy with a sword and you duel him instead of just blasting with a shotgun... for some reason.

I own Raving Rabbids and it sounds like you got it nailed. It's a collection mini-games with a all but non-existent plot tying them together. The mini-games are good fun and have a sense of humor, but alot of them seem to involve similar motions.

--------------------------

I just got the forecast channel and the Internet channel installed on my Wii. Both of them are pretty neat w/forecast channel you can view your local forecasts or zoom out to a global views and spin the view to other towns/cities around the world. The Internet channel is just a customized Opera browser, but it supports Flash- which means it can play youtube videos and play Flash online games.

Fragony

12-25-2006, 11:24

Wii's got it, oh baby wii's got it.

Couldn't be happier with my purchase. Ok, I am with the frogmod, the wii specific elements aren't that great in Zelda, but aiming with the wiimote is a great improvement.

Now about Zelda, WIW. Awesome. I always get nervous when developers talk about making the game darker, Zelda needs to be kiddie. But, it works. I am especially fond of the soundtrack, just epic, lots of horns yay. Just finnished the first dungeon, loving it to death.

frogbeastegg

12-27-2006, 13:06

Ok, I am with the frogmod
:calls off her ninja death squads: :winkg:

Congratulations on finding a wii :balloon:

Xiahou, thanks. I think what I may do is wait until my few days off over New Year, then rent the three games and see what they are like. Wii Play remains sold out everywhere, with no date for restocking.

Did you get Monkey Ball?

Fragony

12-27-2006, 13:24

What is this Wii-thing? Never heard of it.

Anyways, I got Zelda and Red Steel, which is actually pretty good, just not very consistantly. The parts that are good are good , but a lot seems like filler, and the swordfighting is a HUGE dissapointment, a rushed release for sure.

ps, I did it, traded my 360 for a beer, had it with that boring pos and I was thirsty. Me happy, friend happy. Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

Xiahou

12-28-2006, 20:44

What's up with you Euros and your hatred of the Zelda Wii controls anyhow? ~;p

I scored Monkeyball, Red Steel, and CoD3 over Christmas- but I didn't get to spend much time playing them because the primary game my family was interested in was WiiSports. Brother, sister, cousins, parents... everyone wanted to create a Mii and play, even 'non-gamers'. The only person who didn't want to play was a techno-phobe uncle, but even he was handing out advice on technique to my parents from the sidelines. :beam:

I did get to spend just a few minutes playing Monkeyball mini-games (multiplayer) and CoD3. Compared to the controls of any other console FPS, those of CoD3 seem very intuitive. Obviously, you aim/steer with the wiimote, but you can also lean out from behind cover by tilting the wiimote to the left/right. That with throwing grenades via the nunchuk added some very nice touches imo.

Kekvit Irae

12-30-2006, 03:43

I decided to take the plunge. I'm now a wiitard. Can anyone suggest any good games to get for it (Wii/GC)? Besides all the Zelda games, of course. That's pretty obvious.
Additional Information: I already have RE4 for the PS2, and I played MGS: TS when I had a GC, and was not impressed in the remake. I also own Pokemon Colloseum (which is pure love thanks to an ACTUAL PLOTLINE and traditional RPG elements).

Bah, I wish Katamari Damacy was on the Wii. The game just BEGS to be played on the wiimote!

Xiahou

12-30-2006, 09:04

Well, I'd say that I'm pretty happy with all the games I got for my Wii. The biggest time consumers are probably WiiSports and Zelda, but the others have their good points as well. I really wouldn't know which ones to recommend, but if you have any questions about the gameplay of any of them I'll be happy to try and answer.

For the record, I own:
WiiSports
Zelda
Raving Rabbids
Elebits
Red Steel
Monkeyball
CoD3
Frankly, with the amount of playing I actually get to do, I probably have enough games already to last me at least several months... but I'm hankering to try out the Wiimote on a racing game. Anyone heard anything good or bad about NFS: Carbon, or Excite Truck?

frogbeastegg

12-30-2006, 20:51

Wii games are not available for rental. Gah! I have a sneaky suspicion this is a Nintendo thing; I have a nagging memory of them trying to ban the rental of either SNES or N64 games years ago ...

Can anyone suggest any good games to get for it (Wii/GC)
On the Gamecube I'd mention:
Moneky ball. I'd go with the original gamecube edition; it was the better game of the two on that platform, and I haven't tried the Wii game.

Metroid Prime I/II. I edges it out as the better game, with a nicer world to explore. II is more challenging, and a bit creepier. Not that number I is particularly easy.

Skies of Arcadia: Legends. Director's cut edition of the famous JRPG about pirates and ships which sail through the skies.

Paper Mario. Odd. No other RPG like it, save the other Mario RPGs.

Tales of Symphonia. Another quality JRPG. You control one character in battles, with the others handled by AI

Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader. Brilliant. Don't bother with the third game - it's poor by comparison.

Smash Brothers: Melee. Especially if you have other people to play with.

Luigi's Mansion. Short and sweet, and the game which made me think my brand new cube had a great future ahead of it.

Pikim I/II. I haven't played II yet, but I know it's a larger game all around than the first, and it lacks the time limit. Come on - it's strategy and exploration with a mini army of cute little plant creatures! What's not to like?

Anyone heard anything good or bad about NFS: Carbon, or Excite Truck?
A lot of people seem to be talking about Excite Truck in a positive way.

Xiahou

12-30-2006, 22:32

I'll second Tales of Symphonia on the GC- I loved that game.

Another classic is Eternal Darkness. It's an epic survival horror that covers an entire millennium- very well told and well produced. Anyone who hasn't played it needs to immediately run out and buy it. It's $19.99 or less new and as low as $10 used. :2thumbsup:

A lot of people seem to be talking about Excite Truck in a positive way.I've heard it's alot of fun too. I was just wondering if the lack of depth would lose me eventually... Of course, I've heard that NFS is very shallow/short as well.

frogbeastegg

12-30-2006, 23:10

Another classic is Eternal Darkness.
Gah! How could I forget Eternal Darkness!? A few days ago I spent a good while expounding its merits to a colleague because he'd picked up a gamecube in the sale.

One of my favourite games on the cube. I played it through start to finish three times, once on each path, and I did it in less than two weeks: phenomenal for a frog and the kind of intensive play only a limited handful of excellent games receive. I remember most of the plot now and stand-out moments, four years later. That’s how good it was.

The voice acting in this game is some of the best I have heard. The storyline is above the standard; each chapter makes you feel attached to your character, and the end of each chapter is quite bruising to the emotions. Don’t let the survival horror tag fool you; this isn’t resident evil, this is Lovecraft. This isn’t zombies and shocks to scare, it’s psychological and well built. This game single-handedly disproves all those who say the gamecube only had kiddy games on it; it’s mature in the true meaning of the word.

Ah, the nostalgia. With games like Eternal Darkness, Luigi's Mansion, Smash Brothers, Monkey Ball and Rogue Leader around so early in its life the gamecube looked to have a bright destiny ahead of it. Those first months with my brand new gamecube were some of the best gaming times I've had, full stop.

Kekvit Irae

12-31-2006, 01:51

I've played Rogue Leader to death when I used to have a GC, and I absolutely hate all the Metroids that came out after Super Metroid. First person shooters on a console were never meant to be. I tried Prime and didnt like it. I even tried the demo of Hunters for the DS. Again, didnt like it.

Justiciar

12-31-2006, 02:27

My brother and I jointly purchased a Wii for Christmas.. having stood around in some godawful que for an hour. :yes:

Anyhow, it isn't as good as some people initially said and it certainly isn't as bad as others have claimed. Zelda's a great game (no surprises there) though it clearly wasn't made for the Wii. The only other game we have is Wii Sports. Now THAT is fun. According to it's fitness test I'm old enough to be my own grandfather. :laugh4:

Xiahou

12-31-2006, 08:19

Ok, so I broke down and bought Excite Truck- and as advertised it's loads of fun. The controls were a little difficult at the outset, but in a matter of 15mins or less I felt comfortable with them. Rather than "turning" the wiimote as though it's the center segment of a steering wheel, you simply tilt it in the direction you want to go. I quickly realized that this was a motion I already made subconsciously when playing this type of game "leaning into the turns", so once you're used to it it becomes quite intuitive. Also, they throw in the feature of being able to load mp3s on your SD card and use them instead of the default soundtrack. :2thumbsup:

The game is technically a race, but it's about pulling off crazy stunts/jumps as much as it is about actually winning. As you race, you collect stars for stunts and then you get bonus stars at the end depending on where you place (50 for 1st, 25 for 2nd, ect). 150 stars isn't an uncommon score for an "S" rank on a course, so winning is integral but not near enough by itself if you want the highest ratings- in versus, my wife actually beat me while losing the race itself by a wide margin.

So far, it's tons of fun- but it's too early to say if it'll ever start to get boring.

frogbeastegg

01-01-2007, 22:15

Thought of another good gamecube game: beyond good and evil. I have the PS2 version so it didn't immediately come to mind.

Metroid isn't really a FPS. It's more about exploring than shooting, which is why you have the lock-on system. Still, I admit the controls were a royal pain. I never did feel at home with them, however long I played. For me the exploration and detail made the annoyance of struggling to lock on worthwhile. Seeing the helmet visor mist up, bug goop splattering and blocking your view if you killed an enemy too close up ... and the incredible sights at some points in the game. The music was damned good too.

I didn't play Hunters. The controls can't possibly work, and it's mainly MP.

Kekvit Irae

01-02-2007, 00:29

I never thought I'd actually say "I love playing with my Wii" without looking like a pervert. :tongueg:

Xiahou

01-02-2007, 01:57

I didn't play Hunters. The controls can't possibly work, and it's mainly MP.I spent a bit of time playing the demo and the controls were surprisingly robust. The config I used was the stylus as a mouse w/tap to jump, the D-pad controlled movement ala WASD and the shoulder buttons shoot. I never bought the game though since, as you say, it seems to be mainly about MP and I dont think I could keep up with the 13yr olds online(nor would it be much fun to try).

I dl'ed Toejam & Earl for the VC, I'd recommend that for anyone who has a friend to play with- it boasts some really well done MP co-op for a game that was made so long ago. If you're near each other, you both play on the same screen- but if you seperate, it automatically switches to a split-screen allowing you both to explore seperate areas of the map independently.

I never thought I'd actually say "I love playing with my Wii" without looking like a pervert. :tongueg:I won't even embarrass myself by sharing all of the lame Wii jokes I've subjected my poor wife to... :laugh4:

Kekvit Irae

01-02-2007, 03:33

I played Toe Jam & Earl on the Genesis many years ago. And it still murders a lot of modern games today with its quirkiness and enjoyable gameplay. If the Wii Store would accept my credit card, I would be playing it over and over and over again.

frogbeastegg

01-02-2007, 12:12

Toe Jam and Earl love
Looks like my solution to being beaten repeatedly in wii sports game has just arrived. :downloads:

Um ... I'm kind of embarrassed to admit this ... and I know I'm risking being lynched ... but what the heck is so good about Gunstar Heroes? This game is worshipped, it's classed as one of the best games on the VC, a must have for all wii owners. I downloaded it, played the first level, and was bored. Run right while holding down fire. Occasionally jump a bit and throw an enemy. Run about doging bosses while holding fire. Die. Respawn. Keep on running while holding fire. Yay I win the level. :zzz:

Xiahou

01-03-2007, 08:07

If the Wii Store would accept my credit card, I would be playing it over and over and over again.Well, there's always points cards. :idea2:

It gave me trouble with my credit card too- apparently it couldn't resolve my city and zip code. The solution was just to use the other town associated with my zip (even though I don't live in it) and voila, it worked. :shrug:

Frog, I thought about getting Gunstar heroes and then decided against it. I figured if I really wanted a side-scrolling shoot em up, I'll just spring for the Metal Slug Anthology- at least it gives you more control options and includes 6 games in one.

Fragony

01-03-2007, 11:13

I didn't play Hunters. The controls can't possibly work, and it's mainly MP.

Oh yes they can, they do :2thumbsup:

more a shooter then metroid though, good game.

edit, now take a look at this.

http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2006/351/934872_200612018_screen001.jpg
http://image.com.com/gamespot/images/2006/351/934872_200612018_screen003.jpg

impressive.

frogbeastegg

01-06-2007, 13:38

I got Rayman and Monkey Ball for my birthday, and Red Steel may be making an appearance later on. I managed to locate a copy of Wii Play two days ago as well.

Rayman is stupidly fun so far. I love the games which involve shooting rabbids with plungers :gring: Brilliant. The dancing mini games are better than I expected; rhythm games aren't my cup of tea, yet vaporising rabbids in time to music is quite addictive. The toilet door one is a pain; I can't last more than 20 seconds in it. For some reason it doesn't seem to pick up the hand being placed over the doors, so no matter how quickly I shake the nunchuck the doors always open and I get a face full of plungers. That's the one, single solitary control issue I've encountered; the rest of the game plays to perfection. I can't imagine playing it on one of the other consoles.

Monkey Ball is a very mixed bag. Most of the mini games I've tried are a bit crap, and too many have fiddly and/or unreliable controls. Some are reasonable. Snowboarding is alright, and the space invader rip off one is decent enough. The bird flying one is far and away the best so far; the controls work beautifully, and it's quite relaxing. But I was never a fan of Monkey ball's mini games; the original monkey flight is the only one I've liked.

The main SP game is about as good as Monkey Ball 2's, though the controls are going to take a bit of getting used to. Presently they don't feel as accurate as my old analogue stick. Given time I expect I'll gain fine control.

Monkey Ball’s bird mini game has gotten me thinking about how good a Wii katamari game would be …

I shall try Wii Play when my arms stop hurting. Spraying oncoming hordes of rabbids with carrot juice is hard work. My puny little arms are in danger of getting muscles ~:shock:

frogbeastegg

01-08-2007, 00:11

I did get Red Steel as well. I haven't enjoyed a console shooter as much since Perfect Dark on the N64. I don't understand all the complaining about the controls; they felt natural to me after five minutes of play whereas I have never been able to get on with using dual analogue sticks. I always ended up blowing my own feet off, or running about in circles. Much prefered Perfect Dark's control set up, with forward/backward/strafe on the cluster of buttons, and look on the stick. The training sword fights were neat too; nothing wrong with them. I did tweak the sensitivity a bit, and set the sword fights to large movements instead of small, so maybe that is important in getting it to control well.

I'm not a shooter connoisseur; in fact I haven't really played any for several years. Maybe it's my uncultured tastes showing? Whatever, it's fun and that’s all I care about.

Wii Play is great when played with another person. My boyfriend and I wasted an entire hour on it before moving on to a bit of tennis. Target shooting is fun, and the fishing game. We didn't like billiards much.

Fragony

01-08-2007, 12:15

Feel the same way about Red Steel, they just should have given the makers more time because a lot of awesomness is underdeveloped. People are complaining about the cheesiness, but that is intentional. What made Max Payne so charming was the over the top noirishness, Red Steel does the same thing but with Hongkong action flicks. Common, what is it with these japanese that they drop weapons and go samurai the minute they see a sword :beam:

I really have no idea what the game does so terribly wrong, it has ok graphics, lots of destruction and a control scheme that kicks the crap out of the mouse/keyboard setup. People that have trouble with the controls only prove thhat the evolutiontheory isn't complete. I am dancing my way through this game making headshots I never thought possible. The final stages really demand that you are comfortable with the controls, it gets hard

Swordfighting sucks though, shame.

Xiahou

01-08-2007, 20:42

I really have no idea what the game does so terribly wrong, it has ok graphics, lots of destruction and a control scheme that kicks the crap out of the mouse/keyboard setup.
I don't know that I'd go so far as to say that Red Steel puts keyboard/mouse FPS controls to shame- but it most assuredly does put analog stick FPS controls to shame. :yes:

I'd also go one further than "Ok" graphics, and say that in many places they actually look quite good. Red Steel shows alot of promise for the Wii in general, imo. Consider that the game was probably designed almost totally on the development prototype Wii (basically a GC with a Wiimote) and, iirc, developed before the Wiimote "learning" development kit was released as well. This suggests to me that there should still be significant room for improvement graphically and in terms of controls for things such as sword-fighting.

While I'm at it, the sword-fighting really isn't bad at all. It's just all about timing- parry/dodge, attack, attack, then rinse & repeat. If you can get proficient at the knock-back parries, you can usually put a beating on a guy pretty quickly.

Meneldil

01-12-2007, 09:19

Any plan of an Eternal Darkness II released for the Wii ? Zelda is the first game I ever played, but I'm not a great fan of the 3D ones that were released lately (on 64 and Gamecube). While Twilight Princess looks cool, I don't think I'd buy a console for only one game (just like I bought PS1 just for FF7 ^_~)

Now, if Silicon Knights were kind enough to release Eternal Darkness : Sanity's redemption, or however they chose to call it, then I'd happilly buy a Wii to smash zombies and Ancients with a Wii-ed Alexandra Roivas.

Edit : And well, I wouldn't mind playing Super Smash Bros aswell. It was already hilarious on the Cube.

Big King Sanctaphrax

01-12-2007, 12:39

An ED sequel would be fantastic. Unfortunately, Silicon Knights are currently working on Too Human for the 360, and might be at that for a while, so I wouldn't hold your breath.

It is coming, though. Clicky. (http://blogs.ign.com/silicon-knights/2006/07/06/24044/)

Fragony

01-12-2007, 12:50

[QUOTE=Meneldil]Any plan of an Eternal Darkness II released for the Wii ? Zelda is the first game I ever played, but I'm not a great fan of the 3D ones that were released lately (on 64 and Gamecube). [QUOTE]

You simply have to play the Minish Cap then, 2D Zelda at it's oh so finest.

The Blind King of Bohemia

01-12-2007, 14:51

I'm a little annoyed with the lack of console games up for the download. Mario 2 and 3 need to be out up quickly as some of the games at the moment have been really talentless

On the subject of old game cube games Freedom Fighters is one of the best games arounf for it and the best mulitplayer easily on the game cube

Xiahou

01-18-2007, 05:02

So, I picked up Warioware for the Wii- the short review would be: It's a fun, fast-paced, quirky game... but I'm not sure it's worth the $50 price tag.

If you liked earlier iterations, you'll almost certainly like this one since it provides more of the same. It's got a very quirky sense of humor and some of the mini-games actually elicit a laugh from me. The mini-games follow the same pattern as previous games, with the obvious difference being the use of the wiimote. As the game progresses, it introduces you to different ways of holding the wiimote, giving them named poses- the janitor, the umbrella, the big cheese, ect. As you are shown more and more styles, part of the challenge becomes quickly changing grips as required from one mini-game to the next.

On the downside, the actual game is fairly short(you can probably get through most of it in an evening)- naturally it has decent replay value, but again, I think $50 may be a bit much for what amounts to a collection of mini-games. Another drawback is the fact that multiplayer is completely disabled until you play all the way through the single-player game- this was noted nowhere in the manual and I actually had to go to the Nintendo forums to figure out why it wouldn't work. :thumbsdown:

Back to the bright side, one thing Warioware showed to me yet again, was the immense possibilities of the wiimote. There are sooo many mini-games, many of which have you using the wiimote in ways I never would've thought of and it works so well so much of the time. Very exciting... :2thumbsup:

Fragony

01-19-2007, 09:38

So, I picked up Warioware for the Wii- the short review would be: It's a fun, fast-paced, quirky game... but I'm not sure it's worth the $50 price tag.

He has moves and they are smooth :2thumbsup:

It's great, even better then the DS version. I didn't know the Wiimote could be used in so many ways, they should have used the horizontal control for monkeyball because it's not that easy on your wrist, can't play it for more then 10 minutes.

frogbeastegg

01-19-2007, 19:50

I think $50 may be a bit much for what amounts to a collection of mini-games.
$50!? My local games shop has a giant poster in the window advertising it at £14.99!

How is multiplayer when you finally have it available?

Xiahou

01-20-2007, 02:21

$50!? My local games shop has a giant poster in the window advertising it at £14.99!

How is multiplayer when you finally have it available?
If that price is legitimate, I'd grab it without a second thought. The game is great fun, and if you can grab it cheaply I'd say it's a no-brainer.

I've unlocked multi, but my wife and I haven't gotten a chance to play it together yet.

Fragony

01-20-2007, 10:11

$50!? My local games shop has a giant poster in the window advertising it at £14.99!

That is just about the same amount of money :beam:

Personally I say it's well worth it, luv it

frogbeastegg

01-20-2007, 12:04

That is just about the same amount of money :beam:

Personally I say it's well worth it, luv it
£10 cheaper, according to the $ -> £ exchange rate :winkg:

Hmm, I shall see what my BF thinks. I've got plenty of games to go at myself, but maybe he'll want to have a go.

Fragony

01-20-2007, 12:27

Hmmmmrph ~:angry:

~;)

Anyway, anyone has tried this Elibits game? Sounds great. I am on a Wii-spree, bought Madden which seems like a good game, bit I am completily lost on the gaming rules though, they could have included an explanation of the basics for the european version. Tried Call of Duty, but it was extremily laggy, when a lot happens sometimes it takes a second for your character to react, bleh, in Red Steel I feel like an unstoppable killing machine, terrible controls there. Returned it and got me Lost Planet for the dinosaur. What was I thinking in the first place, never liked Call Of Duty games.

Sooooooooooooooooooo, next on the list is Trauma Centre which sounds just like what the docter ordered.

Justiciar

01-21-2007, 00:52

Call of Duty 3, as others have said.. gah! Bought it earlier today, and though it's a good game, it really wasn't designed for the Wii remote. I was enjoying it right up until I found myself trapped in a barn, running around in circles and staring at the cieling. I'm going to have to get one of the good ol' fashioned controllers, methinks.

Marshal Murat

01-21-2007, 07:29

You can lose weight playing Wii.

BDC

01-22-2007, 12:28

You can lose weight playing Wii.
You can lose weight doing anything.

Don't eat.

Justiciar

01-22-2007, 18:32

I acctually hear setting oneself ablaze works wonders on the ol' chunkiness front. Burns those lovehandles clean off!

frogbeastegg

02-23-2007, 14:15

Ocarina of Time is now available on the virtual console for 1,000 points. I love that game so much :jumping:

Kekvit Irae

02-23-2007, 19:54

Ocarina of Time is now available on the virtual console for 1,000 points. I love that game so much :jumping:

I still have my Collector's Edition GameCube version with Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask (which sucked), Zelda 1 and Zelda 2. :loveg:

frogbeastegg

02-23-2007, 23:56

I still have my Collector's Edition GameCube version with Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask (which sucked), Zelda 1 and Zelda 2. :loveg:
I was never able to get that disc. All I could get was the disc with Ocarina and Master Quest, which was given away free with preorders of Wind Waker ~:mecry:

Majora's Mask was a love it or hate it game. I loved it; I liked the atmosphere, and the concept of reliving the same three days until you save the world was very good. Not that I'd want to see that happening in another Zelda game, mind. Once was enough. Ocarina was my preferred game of the two, but I shall certainly buy the virtual console edition when it comes out, so I can replay it with the convenience of not needing to dig out and find space for my old N64.

I don't think the virtual console edition offers the master quest alternate Ocarina of Time game. Note to self: check!

Kekvit Irae

02-24-2007, 11:05

The collector's edition is still available over here. *nudges froggie*

CybrGamr

02-26-2007, 05:28

The collector's edition is still available over here. *nudges froggie*

I actually got 2 of them when they first came out (with my Nintendo Power subscriptions). I still have one sealed, and I sold the other a few months ago (along with the strategy guide) to help pay for a PSP (got $140 for the pair).

Xiahou

04-01-2007, 06:00

Seems, to me at least, that there's been a drought of good Wii games lately....

However, I've been hearing a lot of good things about the Godfather: Blackhand Edition for the Wii. Anyone else heard anything or get to play it? It's said to make good use of the Wii's controls, punching, stabbing, strangling, shooting ect. Supposedly, it also boasts a non-linear storyline and a large game-world, similar to the GTA games.

Xiahou

04-12-2007, 15:53

Looks like I get to answer my own questions...
Just a couple days ago, I broke down and bought the game. I had a partial Gamestop giftcard left and used it as a flimsy pretense to buy the Godfather: Blackhand edition for the Wii. :beam:

I've got to say, after a few hours of play time- I absolutely love this game. It's very similar in style to the GTA series, but I'd say it has deeper gameplay and a far richer plot due to the fact that it draws from events in the movie. The use of the Wii controls are also, imo, excellent. For example:

Aiming can be done several ways- Z is used to lock onto a target, then, you can use the wiimote to do locational shooting. The "lock" keeps the reticle generally on the enemy, but the wiimote aims your shots on the body, which allows headshots for a quick kill, kneecaps to slow someone down, or shoulder shots for a chance to disarm, ect. Additionally, the + button enables free aim mode, which can be handy in certain situations where an enemy is using cover and lock-on isn't giving you a good shot. Speaking of cover, the game uses it excellently... You can crouch behind objects or press up against walls, aim for/lock on targets, and then lean out from behind cover to let them have it and your enemies will try to do the same.

The game consists(so far) of doing story missions, extortion, favors for family memebers, and hits. Extortion is great fun, and is the main way to take over rival family's territory. You go into a shop that's run by a rival family- if they have any goons watching the place, they usually have to be taken out (although some police bribes ahead of time are a big help here). Then you find the store owner and "convince" them to pay protection to the Corleones. It can range from doing them a favor (ie: taking care of a problem customer, ect), or just slapping them around and wrecking their shop until the give in. Incidentally, hand-to-hand is also well done. You can grab onto people, punch them, slam their heads into counters, smash them into shelves, throw them through store windows, strangle them, ect- all using the Wiimote & Nunchuk. It's really no end of fun for me. :2thumbsup:

The game intersects with many plot points from the movies ie: the assassination attempt on Don Corleone, ect. You don't get to change any of the events from the film, but you usually get to play an interesting role as you ascend the ranks of the family. The game definitely earns its 'M' rating- I was a bit concerned that "strangling" someone using the wiimote might be a tad disturbing, but it hasn't been at all. It feels more like you're creating your own interactive mob film than anything else.

Azi Tohak

04-13-2007, 04:02

As much as I would love to play Zelda, the game I simply can't wait for is Metroid Prime 3. But, going to Saudi Arabia means Azi doesn't get any consoles at all. Thank God for my DS!

Azi

frogbeastegg

04-14-2007, 09:52

Elebits, now renamed Eledees, is finally limping its way into European shops at the end of this month. At last. No sign of a Super Paper Mario release date. Trauma Centre isn't out here still, and won't be until more than 9 months have passed since the US release. I can't say I'm happy; I had expected better, as Nintendo seemed to have done a good job of hacking down the PAL delays with the DS and later days of the Gamecube. It would help if it wasn't all the games I'm interested in which get the delays; there's been nothing I want to buy since very early January.

Now it's finally almost here, is Elebits worth getting? I remember a few people were playing the game's early phases.

How about Sonic? I've seen a few people calling it the only good 3D Sonic. Also, can you turn off the music without muting the rest of the audio? Bad metal isn't my thing at all.

A virtual console release this time: Story of Thor on the Megadrive. Any good? Sounds a bit like a Zelda clone. Back in ye olde days I wanted to play this quite badly, but could never find it.

Kekvit Irae

04-14-2007, 15:07

How about Sonic? I've seen a few people calling it the only good 3D Sonic. Also, can you turn off the music without muting the rest of the audio? Bad metal isn't my thing at all.

It's full of fail and lose. http://www.g4tv.com/xplay/reviews/1447/Sonic_and_the_Secret_Rings.html

Xiahou

04-14-2007, 23:29

Now it's finally almost here, is Elebits worth getting? I remember a few people were playing the game's early phases.That's a tough call- it would probably depend on the person. Personally, I like Elebits- but otoh, I haven't played it for awhile now either since there are so many other Wii games that I want to play more. Whipping things around and generally trashing a room while searching for Elebits can definitely get pretty fun. But, others say it's tedious and more like work than fun. :shrug:

How about Sonic? I've seen a few people calling it the only good 3D Sonic. Also, can you turn off the music without muting the rest of the audio? Bad metal isn't my thing at all. I think Sonic looks pretty good. But, I bought the Godfather instead- I wanted to play something a little grittier on my Wii for a change. I think the Wii version is pretty well recognized as the best of the current crop of Sonic games. Here's (http://www.gamespot.com/wii/action/sonicrevolution/review.html?mode=web&om_act=convert&om_clk=stats&tag=stats;theysay) a listing of review scores for it. You also might want to read their own Full Review. The main gripe I keep hearing about the game is the jump controls.

frogbeastegg

04-15-2007, 18:15

I want something to fill the gaping void left by the lack of a PAL Super Paper Mario release. I haven't picked up anything for my Wii since early January, excepting a couple of virtual console titles.

I have:
Wii:
Zelda (Nice, but the controls feel so tacked on)
Red Steel (Nice, but somehow loses my interest after a bit, despite being the most enjoyable console FPS I've played since Perfect Dark)
Rayman (tiring. Very tiring. And I'm a fit frog.)
Monkey Ball (fiddly)
Wii Play (basically a tech demo)
Wii Sports (I'm very bored of it now)

Virtual console:
Zelda: TooT (Already finished it several times)
Mystical Ninja (loved the N64 games in this series)
Story of Thor (decided to pick it up this morning)
Mario 64 (played it a lot back in the day)
Gunstar Heroes (don't like it much)

I own a copy of the PSP edition of the Sega Megadrive Collection, which wipes most of the megadrive virtual console games off the list because I can't see the point in paying £6 for a duplicate of any of the games. Ditto the SNES games which have GBA versions, like Link to the Past.

Think I shall pass on Sonic for now. The problem with being the best of the current crop is that the rest of the crop is completely awful. The music is a drawback for me, as are control issues. Maybe when it's half price I'll rent it and see what it's like. That will take a few months.

Elebits doesn't sound like a £40 game. If I can get it for £20 I think I'll like it. So no Elebits for a few months.

Prince of Persia was some hope for me. The conversion isn't great, the controls are dodgy, and nothing is added, so it's pointless for me; I already own (and have played a lot of) the xbox version.

Godfather ... I don't know. I'm not interested in the mafia, crime and all that. Not sure whether it would be something I could enjoy. The idea of missions and all I could like ... but not the slamming people's heads into walls and threatening innocents. Is there still a chance I may like it?

:sigh: Looks like Story of Thor is all I've got. It had best be good; my Wii is gathering a layer of dust which defies my spring cleaning. Unless anyone can think of anything? I just want something fun, something I can sink my teeth into a little, and maybe something I can play with my boyfriend.

Which reminds me - he would like to know if there are any decent golf games on the Wii. Something with controls as good as those in the Wii Sports golf game, but with more holes and variety.

EDIT: Chucking out another name here: kororinpa. Rolling a ball about a maze. Sounds a fair bit like the first monkey ball, back when the idea was pure and unsullied by annoyances like boss battles. Anyone?

Xiahou

04-16-2007, 00:42

Think I shall pass on Sonic for now. The problem with being the best of the current crop is that the rest of the crop is completely awful. The music is a drawback for me, as are control issues. Maybe when it's half price I'll rent it and see what it's like. That will take a few months.I think that's probably my plan too. It looks decent enough, but I think I'll wait for a price drop.

Elebits doesn't sound like a £40 game. If I can get it for £20 I think I'll like it. So no Elebits for a few months. That's probably a fair assessment.

Prince of Persia was some hope for me. The conversion isn't great, the controls are dodgy, and nothing is added, so it's pointless for me; I already own (and have played a lot of) the xbox version. Just the fact that it was retreading old content was a big turn-off for me. A definite pass.

Godfather ... I don't know. I'm not interested in the mafia, crime and all that. Not sure whether it would be something I could enjoy. The idea of missions and all I could like ... but not the slamming people's heads into walls and threatening innocents. Is there still a chance I may like it?Well, your main source of income in the game is extortion money that you get from shop keepers. It's definitely a high-violence, guilty pleasure sort of thing. If you liked the GTA series, you might like this. Personally, I don't think it's quite as shallow as GTA though...

For golf, all I know of is Tiger Woods Golf for the Wii- that and Super Swing Golf. The only game I have that we haven't already covered or you don't own already is Excite Truck. I think it's definitely a great game and the ability to add your own mp3s via SD card is also a nice touch. It has impressive graphics and gameplay that I'd liken to Waveracer- you try to get through the course while pulling off as many stunts as possible. I thought the Wiimote as a steering wheel works great too. But, if you can't stand the genre, you may not like it regardless of how good it is.

Fragony

04-16-2007, 08:54

frogbeastegg

04-16-2007, 21:26

I expect the Wii will see something similar to the DS: shockingly strong sales by something dismissed as a silly gimmick, a scramble by publishers to get onboard, dire games with half thought out control systems, and then slowly an increasing trickle of good games as developers find their stride. The DS seemed to hit its stride about the time the Lite version appeared.

I am disappointed with the virtual console. Definitely. I expected more games, and better games. I hoped for demos. I expected to be seeing games which didn't get a release here, such as Mario RPG, but now Nintendo say games will only come out in the regions they were originally sold in. Meaning Europe misses out yet again on some very fine titles.

I'm also disappointed with the backwards compatibility. Gamecube games aren't being made now. They haven't been made in a long time. So they are very hard to find, and invariably used, also expensive. Where's the point in having this feature if only gamers with an old Cube and collection can use it? Ditto the GBA and DS - could I find a copy of Zelda: Minish Cap when I looked? Could I heck. Most shops only had a single shelf of battered pre-owned GBA games. Several had none at all. I had planned to use the BC to fill some gaps in my Cube library; I ended up having to import the US editions for my old US Cube.

I don't like the release schedule either. Nintendo have revived the big lag times between US and PAL releases which they had nearly done away with in the later days of the Cube and with the DS. Where's our Super Paper Mario release date!?

Still, there is one thing I cannot deny. There's no other console which can provide an experience to match playing (and winning! Go me! ;p) Wii Sports tennis against my boyfriend

No Godfather for me, then. I wouldn't like it.

Excite Truck is one I keep hearing about as a good, fun game. Alas, I don't like racing games much ~:(

I'll look into the golf games, see if there are any I'll allow him to play.

I'm increasingly tempted by Koroinpa, but at £39.99 it's overpriced. However choicesUK.com have it for £27.99 ... which is still a bit more than I'd like to pay :cheap frog: