Super Monkey Ball Really Sucks, ExciteTruck Boring

I suppose that with 50 mini games packed into Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz, there were bound to be some good ones and some bad ones. So riddle me this ... how is it that Monkey Target, by far the most fun mini game in the previous titles, is so abysmally bad now? One frickin level, this wierd "Option Ball" thing, and what feels like a wind factor without any sort of on-screen wind indicator? How do you manage to take a great game and make it so terrible? By getting rid of the power-ups and other stuff that made the game so interesting.

Luckily, there are some bright spots. Monkey Wars is fun, even if my wife hated it. Two handed independent controls are just too much for her to get her head around. But by far, the most entertaining game was Monkey Darts. That's right ... darts. You don't have to, but we held the Wiimote like an actual dart, and you basically make a quick stabbing motion at the screen to fling the dart. The IR receiver in the Wiimote can sense depth from the screen (sensor bar, really) and you can actually see your dart hovering there in 3D space before you throw it. You can play Countdown, 301, or 501, and it's an absolute blast. All you really need to complete the atmosphere is a chain-smoking retiree in the corner, 80's hair rock, some beer, and a steak that's nothing more than charred gristle. Or maybe that's just the places I've played darts.

Monkey Bowling seemed fun at first, even if it wasn't even up to the standards of the Wii Sports pack-in. That was until we found out that the game has a critical flaw. Instead of actually making a bowling motion (which will almost always result in a hard spin to the left), you just line up your monkey on the line just right of center, and then kind of flick your wrist. You'll get a strike every time. It absolutely sucked all of the joy and challenge out of the game.

Other Super Monkey Ball annoyances include the weird sort of tournament structure of the minigames, where the person furthest behind in points gets to pick the next game. Then there's the main game, where the controls are just plain non-intuitive. Where you might instinctually want to hold the controller horizontal (like the scheme in ExciteTruck), you hold it one handed and vertical, and it just doesn't feel right. This makes the game harder than it needs to be, and my friend David at Nintendo World Report talks more about that. It's just sad to see a game that was so great once reduced to this shameful, and arguably lacking in fun, ridiculous money grab of a launch title.

Oh, and speaking of ExciteTruck, where I had high hopes for the game, they were all dashed while I was line-sitting. GameCrazy had six Wii-osks set up to try ExciteTruck, and I found that you had to complete the Tutorial to unlock the main game. Lame, but OK, new system with a new control scheme, I can understand that. Until I found that you had to complete the tutorial, of which there are 16-20 different lessons. I got to lesson five or six, and I was already bored and handed the controller to someone that really didn't seem all that interested in trying it. That doesn't bode well, especially considering we were all waiting to buy our Wiis.

What kills me about all of this is that Wii Sports and The Legend of Zelda are just so good. I know the controller is new, and developers are still sort of experimenting with it (which is why they are basically monetizing their experiments by turning them into a collection of minigames), but what I don't understand is how you can take a game that was fun and make it un-fun, and somehow manage to be oblivious to that fact. You'd have to think that as the testers started committing seppukku (ritual suicide), they might have sensed that something was wrong.

Wii-kend

Went to UW Bothell yesterday to work on some posters for Delta Epsilon Chi, and then proceeded to watch the first half of the Apple Cup. Good turnout, although the crowd was a bit subdued. At halftime, I had my wife drop me off at the Game Crazy in Redmond so that I could meet up with Andru and get in line for the Wii. That was a 6PM.

Game Crazy (Hollywood Video) was pretty good to us, always coming by to take drink and snack orders, I mean, why wouldn't they want to take our money? Nintendo was there, tossing out tons of swag. I got a black Nintendo polo that says "PLAYER" on the back of the next, which is pretty sweet. I've also got a cubic assload of silicone Nintendo "PLAYER" bracelets. Andru and I were about 60th in line, but it was still 2AM before we managed to get our Wiis and get out of the store. Did find out that the Huskies managed to beat WSU, so it was a very good night.

Got the Wii home, set it up, although I had to really hack some things together since my entire AV setup is going through S-Video and there's no Wii S-Video cable yet. Setup was flawless, and it immediately grabbed a couple of network updates. Popped in Wii Sports and played a game of Bowling and a game of Boxing before we headed to bed.

All day today, I've been playing The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The game is absolutely phenomenal ... not perfect, but incredibly damn good. I don't know if I'd call it better than Ocarina of Time just yet, but it's very close. I'm definitely feeling more drawn into the story at this point.

I played a brief round of Super Monkey Ball just to get a feel for the controls, and it's pretty awesome too. Unlike the GameCube game, there are 50 minigames and they all appear to be available from the get-go ... no earning points in story mode to unlock them. They sort of had to do that, since there are so many other competing games in the "mini game" space on Wii at launch.

It'll be very interesting to see how Wii does in the months ahead. Will the unique controller be a gimmick, or will it be embraced by the development community. Will Wii live up to its potential, or will it suffer a fate similar to the GameCube? Most importantly, will there ever be anything that plugs into the USB ports?

MindCamp 3.0 is in the can!

This past weekend saw the return of the 24-hour geek mashup known as Seattle MindCamp. Like the last year, I served as a "Camp Counselor", and specifically got to be the designated AV Nerd for the weekend. That suited me just fine, since it was mostly my equipment getting hooked up anyway.

I tried valiantly to get Nintendo's PR firm to supply us with a Wii for a tournament, but couldn't get a phone call back to arrange it. I turned the reins over to Andru who was largely as successful as I was. But wait! At the last possible moment, someone from Nintendo (names withheld to protect them from a gamer onslaught) contacted Andru and offered to bring a screen, Wii and a full complement of controllers) for us to play with for a few hours. I figured that while the crowd were geeks and bloggers, and not necessarily gamers, that the Wii would be a big hit, and it certainly was. There was a ton of people huddled around to see the Wii in action, and not surprisingly, Wii Tennis was the big hit, with four people swinging their arms furiously and everyone having a great time.

I really wanted to box with Andru, but had AV duties and ended up missing the entire Wii tournament. Nintendo gave away a DS Lite, some games, and some Nintendo swag ... less than what I had originally proposed, but far more than we expected at the time, and not at all unwelcome given the last minute nature of the showcase. I got back just in time to catch the tail end, just as they were putting in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I grabbed a chair, pushed my way through the crowd and plopped right next to the Nintendo rep who was starting the game. I felt like a little kid again, even going so far as to tug the end of the nice man's shirt and beg him to let me play it. "Please sir ... can I play?" Sure enough, I got to play all right. Well, sort of. First, I dropped the nunchuck like an idiot when the gentleman from Nintendo offered to skip me past the sign in part. Which is a shame because that was the extent of the real Wii experience in the short time the game was running, apparently. What I really got to do was watch a lot of cinematics and then herd some goats using a fairly standard controller setup. I didn't really get to experience any of how the "Wiimote" really works save for someone pointing out that my pointer was stuck at the top of the screen, so I waved it around a bit. The lack of voice acting was noted by the onlookers as disappointing, as was the hilarity of the phrase "GOAT IN" that pops up when you herd the goats. Then, it was time for Nintendo to leave, and that's when the ... wait for it ... ennui set in.

Yeah, I'd been making that joke all weekend.

Anyway, Andru and I and some of the other camp counselors are going to camp again this coming weekend, but this time, for the Wii. I've already explained to Andru that after taking one for the team at the Xbox 360 launch, he "owes me a solid", so I should have no trouble securing my little glossy white friend. I can't wait to get my hands on it, and neither can many of the others that stood waiting. I'd say the time was very well spent, and when MindCamp returns for Version 4.0 in April, I'll make it my mission to make it work on the gigantic projection screen ... even if it kills me.

Other than that, the entire camp seemed to be a raging success. We tried a new system for determining which rooms would be holding which sessions, which involved posting your session on the wall and having people stick a colored dot on the ones that they were interested in. Sure enough, the largest spaces ended up with the largest sessions, and the main theater in particular was usually quite full.

One session that I heard was particularly great was "Lucid Dreaming", which ended up going three and a half hours well into the night. I missed it, since I was showing the movie Mirrormask, which was also a big hit. (I knew that a trippy Alice in Wonderland meets Labyrinth style movie with story by Neil Gaiman and amazing CGI art would go over well.)

Of course, Overnight Gaming made its return, but was less attended than it was previously. Part of the problem was the need to have the PlayStation 2 in the back for Guitar Hero II, so people who just wandered in didn't get to see all the fun we were having. I'm going on record right now saying that "Sweet Child O' Mine" by Guns and Roses was my favorite song of the night. I tried to keep myself from singing along, and sadly, it just wasn't happening. Close runner-ups were Heart's "Crazy On You" and "Message in a Bottle" by The Police. Awesome guitar songs, and just a ton of fun to play. Of course, it helps when you know the song, which is probably why some of the lesser known songs just aren't resonating with me. Please ... PLEASE ... give us an 80's Hair Rock version!

Finally, the big game of the night was none other than Gears of War, running in HD on a 30 ft. projection screen. My god, this game is amazing looking, and the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center's theater is a fantastic place to play it. Dark, moody, loud, and nerve wracking. I'd say that if there were a flaw in the game, it's that the game tries to get you killed deliberately in order to get you to try out new tactics, and I think that's cheap. If anyone gets by the Berserker without dying five or six times before they figure out how to kill her ... well, they're damed liars. The biggest thing that people needed to learn was that the game is not like a regular first-person shooter. If you've played paintball (the clear inspiration for the game), then you know what Gears is all about ... dashing from cover to cover and only popping up long enough to pop off a few shots. Once you get that down, and you realize that the bloody gear that keeps popping up in the middle of the screen is your health meter, you'll do a lot better. You'll still die a lot ... since that's planned in the game design (the first encounter with the Kryll is another example), but overall the game is pretty solid. And frickin' gorgeous, even in SD.

Yeah, I still don't have an HDTV yet, and I have to say that I'm totally spoiled by the theater at Youngstown. Luckily, Sara McChristian told us that since the theater sits empty a fair amount of the time, she'd love to have us come down and hold a monthly gaming night. I think I'll have to take her up on it.

I took a short nap (from 4AM to 7AM), just in time to get in a few games of "Werewolf", a social game where a group of people tries to lynch the werewolves before the town is decimated. Basically, the group sits around a circle, and draws cards. Most people will end up being Villagers, but one or two might be Werewolves, one might be a Seer (able to determine if someone is a Werewolf) and one a Healer (able to protect any player).

The game works like this. A Moderator tells everyone that night has fallen. Everyone closes their eyes and starts slapping their leg with one hand. Why one hand? So that you can't tell who the Werewolves are when when Moderator tells them to wake up and collectively choose someone to kill. Then the Werewolves close their eyes, and the Seer awakens. They pick a random person, and the Moderator will signal to them whether that person is a Werewolf or not. They sleep, and then the Healer selects a person to protect. The Moderator might then check on a few things, but usually the town will awaken, and someone will be dead.

Then the Village tries to sniff out (ha!) the Werewolf (or Werewolves) in their midst. They can lynch someone if they are pretty sure, or choose not to. The problem is that they might lynch their Seer or Healer, because for their own safety, they might not reveal themselves lest they get eaten by the Werewolves. The game is hectic and fun, and I'm glad I got to do it this year. I'll have to find a way to split my time between gaming and Werewolf next time. There are apparently additional rules and roles that can come into play, like a Sorceror (who is allied with the Werewolves and can detect the Seer), and a Tinker (who works all night and thus, appears to be a Werewolf to the Seer). It'll be fun to try out some of those advanced rules. Maybe I can incorporate Werewolf into the Overnight Gaming session and play it on the stage!?

Probably my favorite part of the camp was getting to talk with Tom Bihn (bag designer and entrepreneur extraordinaire). I showed him my Kensington Saddlebag Sport, the backpack that's ushered me through my college career, and he marveled at the design and work that went into a bag that sold for only $60. It was amazing to talk with Tom and learn a bit about how he deals with having a local factory instead of outsourcing production overseas, and about management in general. He was absolutely fascinating to talk to, and hopefully I can hear more from him at the next camp.

Which is in April. You should plan to be there, and I'll let you know when we've selected a date. I just hope it's not when I'm supposed to be in Orlando!

Why is Wii Going to Win?

Any fans of The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time know that a huge part of why that game was such a major success is the fishing mini-game. Oh, sure, the game has expansive dungeons and incredibly fun horse riding, but Ocarina was the first game that I would fire up and play when I just wanted to spend a leisurely half-hour and kick back. Who knew fishing was so relaxing? (Well, odds are, your Grandpa knows full well just how relaxing fishing is.)

GameTrailers bring us this clip that shows just why Wii is going to be a massive hit. Debate about which version of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is the "real" version aside, the fact that the fishing game is going to feel exactly like reel fishing (tee hee) is precisely why everyone should get the Wii version over the GameCube version. Nothing feels more satisfying that flicking out your line and reeling in that fish.

More Wii Details

Planet GameCube is live-blogging the Nintendo press conference today. Apparently Wii Sports will indeed be included in the package (it wasn't in Japan, so there was some confusion), and will inclue Tennis, Golf, Baseball, Bowling, and Boxing as well. I hope you have the option of using a second controller (or the nunchuck) for two-fisted boxing action. It's not a new PunchOut!! or Fight Night 3, but it'll do. Additional Wii Remotes (the official name, despite Nintendo's apparent facination with the idea of calling it the "Wii-mote") will be $40, and the nunchuck attachment is $20.

The other details are still valid, launching November 19th for $249.99. I don't understand the late launch, given that Nintendo had assured everyone that they'd launch before PlayStation 3. The price is higher than I expected, but given the inclusion of Wii Sports and the nunchuk controller, it's a decent value. However, I'd like to remind everyone that may have forgotten ... Nintendo dropped the price of the Nintendo 64 from $249.99 to $199.99 three days before the launch. While it's doubtful they'd repeat that stunt, it's certainly a possibility.

Sadly, the unit will ship in white only at first. I was hoping for a Nintendo Red model.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and Excite Truck will be the only first-party launch titles. Mario won't be out until 2007. 15 total games at launch, and 30 by the end of the year. The Trauma Center remake for Wii will be a launch title.

The most interesting part is the idea of a "Mii". This is a virtual charicature of yourself or someone else, which you can then transfer to your controller and take with you. Clever idea. Any game with support for the "Mii Channel" can use your charicature in-game. including Wii Sports and Wario Ware.

Much like Xbox Live, Nintendo will be using a point system for Virtual Console purchases, and it's fairly straight-forward ... 2000 points for $20.00. NES games are 500 points ($5), SNES are 800 points, and N64 games are 1000 points. Unfortunately, the much vaunted Opera browser for Wii will NOT be included, and must be purchased with points.

No mention at all of DVD playback, so the rumors of DVD support being dropped must be true. Damned shame ... while I don't need another DVD player personally, it's certainly a "nice to have".