All Wii Reviews

Balloon Pop (Review)

Mar 4, 2008

On most consoles, a simple, casual puzzler like Balloon Pop might not seem like a good deal for $20. But, when compared to the usual Wii dreck that goes for a pair of Hamiltons, this unassuming little game feels like a revolution of sorts. It isn't literally revolutionary in any discernable way, but it doesn't suck horribly, and in today's budget Wii lineup that's rare enough to vault it high above the pack. As "match three colored things" ...

Balls of Fury (Review)

Nov 14, 2007

Nov 14, 2007 Plick, plock, plick, plock, plick, plock, "Tell grandma to bring the car around". Plick, plock, plick, plock, "Tell grandma to bring the car around". Plick, plock, plick, plock, plick, plock "Tell grandma to bring the car arou - mwaaaaaaaah!" That last sound, in case you're wondering, is the noise of a normally happy-go-lucky gamer being pushed over the edge and having to commit a heinous act of physical violence upon a random hapless victim within reach. What preceded said sound ...

Barnyard (Review)

Feb 9, 2007

Here's a refreshing entry into the games-based-on-movies fad: instead of simulating a movie's plot, THQ's Barnyard offers up an open-ended Grand Theft Auto-style experience (minus the sex and violence, of course). In fact, Grand Theft Bovine would have been a fitting subtitle. Upon first glance, the open-ended elements are simply a vehicle to take you from one minigame to the next with little to do in-between. But then something unexpected happens: the game slowly transforms into a fairly ...

Baroque (Review)

Apr 21, 2008

If you’re hardcore enough to derive happiness instead of pain from the Roguelike convention of starting from scratch when you die, but not quite hardcore enough to have imported this dungeon crawler ten years ago for your Sega Saturn, we recommend this terrific remake of Baroque.

Baroque’s death mechanic dovetails neatly with the narrative - it’s by dying and revisiting that you start to piece together the intriguing ...

Battalion Wars 2 (Review)

Nov 1, 2007

Nov 1, 2007 Like its predecessor, Battalion Wars 2 is an action/RTS hybrid, similar to PC titles such as Savage. Instead of players assuming the role of General from a bird's-eye view, they are able to control their grunts, flamethrowers, anti-air tanks, bazookas or a number of other units that roam the field of battle. Controlling units, as well as performing other actions such as attacking, issuing orders and raising flags to assume control of mission objectives would require an elegant ...

Battle of the Bands (Review)

Apr 28, 2008

Any rhythm game that compiles the likes of Electric Six, Tenacious D, and Tag Team – yes, of "Whoomp! (There It Is)" fame – deserves some serious props, and we gladly send them in the direction of Battle of the Bands. Offering five distinct renditions (rock, country, Latin, hip-hop, and marching band) of each full song further sweetens the pot, but when the most interesting aspect of your game (by a wide margin) is the ...

Bee Movie Game (Review)

Nov 5, 2007

Nov 5, 2007 For all of the hubbub over shovelware and uninspired Wii ports of last-gen games, it's somewhat refreshing to see a Wii-specific version of a multiplatform release that significantly pales in comparison to the other iterations. Wait, did we say refreshing? We meant ...

Ben 10: Protector of Earth (Review)

Oct 30, 2007

Oct 30, 2007 Following in the cel-shaded footsteps of Dragon Ball Z and Naruto comes another cartoon-turned-game, Ben 10. And like those, this is an all out beat 'em-up featuring cartoon children. Playing as Ben Tennyson, you own an alien device called an Omnitrix - a watch-like object that when activated can transform Ben into all manner of interesting beings, each with their own unique abilities. Among his repertoire of alter-egos is a four-armed beast that's strong as a box of bears. ...

Big Beach Sports (Review)

Jun 24, 2008

Last month we had Deca Sports (Sports Island in the UK), this month it’s Big Beach Sports. Curious. It’s almost as if third-party publishers are trying to cash in on some hugely popular sports game collection that Nintendo bundles with the Wii. This time around the collection features six sports - cricket, soccer, bocce, volleyball, frisbee golf and football – and they’re all played on the beach, would you believe. ...

Big Brain Academy (Review)

Jun 27, 2007

On the surface, Wii Degree looks like a total cash-in for brain training and multiplayer minigames. It's an understandable blend though, as they're two of Nintendo's most profitable concepts these days - why not mix them into one title and sell a frillion copies of it? Even though the premise is an obvious grab for lots more casual-player cash, the game remains a fun, frantic and family-friendly piece of software. Challenges come in five flavors, each with three minigames apiece to test your ...

Bionicle Heroes (Review)

Jun 22, 2007

Developer Traveller's Tales has had an almost unreasonable amount of success translating LEGO blocks into successful game franchises. Despite what some would say, the much beloved blocks even gave the ailing Star Wars franchise a much needed shot in the arm. So it's a sad thing indeed that they've failed to provide the same treatment for LEGO's original property Bionicles, on a system desperate for solid ...

Blast Works: Build, Fuse and Destroy (Review)

Jun 20, 2008

We'll admit we were skeptical of Blast Works: Build, Fuse and Destroy the first time we saw it - but probably not for the reasons you'd think. The problem wasn't that Blast Works is a side-scrolling, 2D shooter - we like the old school stuff. And it wasn't that the graphics are so primitive and blocky that it looks like everything is made of LEGO bricks. No, the big problem we had was that it's basically a port of a PC indie ...

Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII (Review)

Mar 26, 2007

War is hell, but Blazing Angels war is closer to annoying. You battle through war-torn versions of all your favorite postcards - Big Ben, the Eiffel Tower and Pearl Harbor - offing Nazis and pals in a mix of aerial dogfights and some of the worst special objectives ever conceived for a ...

Bleach: Shattered Blade (Review)

Oct 15, 2007

Oct 15, 2007 While it's easy to dismiss games based on popular animated series as lip service to fans, it would be a mistake to overlook Bleach: Shattered Blade. While it definitely appeals to fans of the show, there are many unique and entertaining aspects to this fighting game that make it worth a look for anyone that's into fighters or anyone that's looking for some good old fashioned mindless violence that's easy for any gamer to pick ...

Block Breaker Deluxe - WiiWare (Review)

Jul 18, 2008

Full marks to whoever came up with the title. “We’re ripping off Arkanoid, guys. What shall we call it?” There’s a bit more to Block Breakers Deluxe than just borrowing a concept from a decades-old game, though, and it’s a decent effort at revitalising one of the old favourites. At heart, this is about the age-old struggle of ball versus brick: you bounce your ball off various bricks and a level ends when the ...

Bomberman Land (Review)

Feb 14, 2008

Of the different Bomberman Land games, the Wii iteration is the most straightforward of the bunch. You don't have to concern yourself with tracking down items or solving puzzles to get through the story mode. Instead, you only have to worry about your hand falling off from madly shaking the Wii remote as you play through dozens of awful minigames.To be fair, a few of the minigames are good. Moving the Wii remote up and down to pump the crank on ...

Boogie (Review)

Aug 7, 2007

We've given EA there share of guff, sass - heck, we even went so far as to sling malarkey - at their persistent onslaught of subpar Wii ports. Outside of SSX Blur and a decent Madden control scheme, they've done little more than shower Nintendo with mediocre translations of readily available GameCube and PS2 games. But EA has since apologized for their lack of foresight, and we're happy to say that the song and dance found in Boogie is a damn fine step in the right direction. The visuals here ...

Boom Blox (Review)

May 6, 2008

The story behind this struck us as a tad unlikely - the game Steven Spielberg always wanted to play with his family? Wasn’t he a bit busy with some movie when it was being made? But however it came about, Boom Blox is far better than it has any right to be. While we’d normally file celebrity-endorsed casual games alongside the likes of Carol Vorderman’s Sudoku, this is in a different league. It’s brilliant! ...

Brunswick Pro Bowling (Review)

Oct 24, 2007

Oct 24, 2007 Living in fizzy drink-enameled dives, played in slippers held together by fungal infections and favouring whooping theatrics over polite applause, bowling is the social slob of the sporting world. This makes capturing it in game form oh-so-very difficult and it certainly isn't made any easier if, like Brunswick here, you try to do so with anything other than a goofy grin on your face. But whereas Wii Sports presented flighty six-pounder fun, this struggles under the heavy-handed ...

Bully: Scholarship Edition (Review)

Mar 4, 2008

It's been a year and a half since Bully (Canis Canem Edit in the UK) built up a storm of controversy and then sort of fizzled out of the public eye, but Rockstar Games has refused to let the game die quietly. Instead, Jimmy Hopkins and crew are getting a second chance at life in Bully: Scholarship Edition, a remastered and expanded version that adds updated visuals and a slate of new missions and classes to the already excellent story and ...