Nintendo Wii

[Nabeel Ansari]

I just got a system too, and the person who got it for me bought Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games with it, and supremely unimpressed would be an understatement.

BUT

I just ordered Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime Trilogy, and something tells me the holidays are about to get even jollier. (is that a word?)

It's gonna be GOOD.

Other games to get:

New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Super Paper Mario

Super Mario Strikerz

As long as you have those, you should be busy for the next year or so...

I do not understand all the hate for this system.

The hate is because the majority of Wii games are just sets of repeated carnival minigames with different names and brands slapped onto the cases. :/

[Toadofsky]

The hate is because the majority of Wii games are just sets of repeated carnival minigames with different names and brands slapped onto the cases. :/

Also, biased game "journalists"/"analysts" that act like they speak for the hardcore, but have no trouble throwing them under the bus when they don't agree with them (example: Modern Warfare 2).

I've actually quit reading some websites because of how ridiculous they've been acting about the Wii, case in point, IGN, and their "Nintendo Is Lazy", and "Wii Needs Achievements" articles. They must have not liked New Super Mario Bros. Wii doing so well, or maybe they just suck at it.

[Thalzon]

I'm not about to say it's a conspiracy, but I think all the Wii hate stems from both a lack of understanding about this new shift in the gaming industry and a dislike for some of the side effects of the shift.

First off, some people don't understand that every market must be stabilized. We're seeing a glut of casual minigame stuff on the Wii because it's easy to produce, and everyone wants to nab their piece of the casual market pie, and make a name for themselves (or generate a quick buck) before the casual market settles. By "settles" I mean, the casual gamers rest on their selections and stick with them more or less forever. Nintendo and EA are doing a great job of establishing themselves as the companies of choice for fitness and exercise games.

This frenzy, of course, results in a lot of games taking up shelf space that are just plain unappealing to conventional gamers. The frenzy peaked back in 2007-08, when there wasn't much coming out of Nintendo that appealed to the hardcore crowd and everyone else was releasing some terrible software. Sony seemingly had the same problem (some may argue they STILL do), regarding a dearth of great software, but then you won't find Chicken Shot on their console, either.

The second point, about disliking the new software geared towards casuals, goes a little deeper. Basically, people don't want to be associated with Chicken Shot, Anubis 2, or Ninjabread Man, because in their minds, just the fact that the Wii has these games for purchase means the console itself is made worse. It's basically an evolution of the "Nintendo is a kiddy console for kids" thing that the GameCube picked up. Moreover, since the Wii doesn't have the graphical power behind it as the 360 and PS3 do, a lot of the hardcore market doesn't think that even the good games are any good, because they don't LOOK as good. It can be argued that it's the natural result of pushing visuals for years and years.

These same fanboys are, of course, creaming their jeans over Natal and Sony's glowstick, thingies. This implies a rather acute sense of jealously about the Wii's success over the supposedly "better" consoles. Oh well.

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

All right gang, so I'm having a connectivity problem with a friend of mine, and I'm sure it's because she needs to have the proper ports forwarded, but I have no idea which ports I'd have to open for the DS/Wii to be able to connect with no problem. Can anyone help with this?

[Toadofsky]

I'm not about to say it's a conspiracy, but I think all the Wii hate stems from both a lack of understanding about this new shift in the gaming industry and a dislike for some of the side effects of the shift.

First off, some people don't understand that every market must be stabilized. We're seeing a glut of casual minigame stuff on the Wii because it's easy to produce, and everyone wants to nab their piece of the casual market pie, and make a name for themselves (or generate a quick buck) before the casual market settles. By "settles" I mean, the casual gamers rest on their selections and stick with them more or less forever. Nintendo and EA are doing a great job of establishing themselves as the companies of choice for fitness and exercise games.

Sony seemingly had the same problem (some may argue they STILL do), regarding a dearth of great software, but then you won't find Chicken Shot on their console, either.

The second point, about disliking the new software geared towards casuals, goes a little deeper. Basically, people don't want to be associated with Chicken Shot, Anubis 2, or Ninjabread Man, because in their minds, just the fact that the Wii has these games for purchase means the console itself is made worse. It's basically an evolution of the "Nintendo is a kiddy console for kids" thing that the GameCube picked up. Moreover, since the Wii doesn't have the graphical power behind it as the 360 and PS3 do, a lot of the hardcore market doesn't think that even the good games are any good, because they don't LOOK as good. It can be argued that it's the natural result of pushing visuals for years and years.

These same fanboys are, of course, creaming their jeans over Natal and Sony's glowstick, thingies. This implies a rather acute sense of jealously about the Wii's success over the supposedly "better" consoles. Oh well.

Sorry, but I think it's best not to divide gamers by what they play. That to me is part of the problem, besides this annoying Hardcore gamer garbage.

It amazes me how they (the industry) make games for the hardcore for the Wii, but when there is little to no advertising for the game, how can they expect it to sell? Word of mouth may get some games a high selling rate, but not all of them are so fortunate.

And not every game needs to be rated M to be considered as a hardcore title/great title, but since I've seen too many "hardcore" gamers/journalists cry about lack of these "mature" games, I think there isn't enough maturity in the gamers/journalists themselves.

Have they (the journalists) even tried to read or research Blue Ocean Strategy? If Microsoft or Sony started in on that, they probably would.

The "casual" mini games are a glut of bad software, there's no ifs or butts about it. But even that is backfiring now on companies that tried to cash in on it (customers are not as stupid as they think, they catch on quick).

But it amazes me that here is a console that has a high install base, is cheaper to make games on, and companies stick their nose up at it. What? Are they afraid to compete with Nintendo? Sure, NOT ALL of their games have been that great lately, but if you can't or don't want to compete with a company that has been known for quality (in the past for some), then YOU'RE LAZY. Hear that IGN? that's what you should have been whining about, third party companies lack of software.

I've become disallusioned with the gaming industry. So much BS has gone on these past few years that I have no trust in it whatsoever. From the reviews that are done in plush hotels paid by the game makers (like Modern Warfare 2), to the manipulated hardcore gamers, to the arguements about games being an "art" form (I don't want to get into that), this is not what I expected, let alone wanted.

I guess I am a jaded gamer, but these things have definitely put a large dent in my feelings on gaming. I don't care about big giant stories in games, I don't care about big orchestral scores (most are forgettable in games today), or acheivements.

I just try to enjoy games, and that's it.

(Sorry for this being a rant once again)

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

I guess if Gears of War or Uncharted ain't on the system, it's crap.

There are PLENTY of games on the Wii worth grabbing(or at the least interesting), and I'm not even counting all the stuff on WiiWare/Virtual Console.

[q-pa]

There are PLENTY of games on the Wii worth grabbing(or at the least interesting), and I'm not even counting all the stuff on WiiWare/Virtual Console.

There's also the awesome homebrew scene :wink:

But seriously, I understand their points; good games are few and far between. And looking at the catalog of titles together on a store shelf is kind of a downer...

Still I love my Wii and am proud to own one. I'm actually still working on several leftover GameCube games, principally Eternal Darkness and Ikaruga.

[AarowSwift]

It helps to not limit yourself to liking just a few genres. The Wii plus the DS caused me to deal with the first backlog I've ever had. A backlog it's taken me over a year to catch up on. My Wii game collection alone is larger than any of my others and I own systems back to the SNES, and this is after a recent brutal cull of games I didn't figure I'd replay. Is the Wii lacking strong showings in some classic genres? No doubt. I saw that as all the more reason to experiment with trying out new stuff and so far this has been very rewarding.

[Thalzon]

It helps to not limit yourself to liking just a few genres. The Wii plus the DS caused me to deal with the first backlog I've ever had. A backlog it's taken me over a year to catch up on. My Wii game collection alone is larger than any of my others and I own systems back to the SNES, and this is after a recent brutal cull of games I didn't figure I'd replay. Is the Wii lacking strong showings in some classic genres? No doubt. I saw that as all the more reason to experiment with trying out new stuff and so far this has been very rewarding.

Indeed. Even average games like Dewy's Adventure or Deadly Creatures are worth checking out, especially since both are likely super-cheap by now.

[Toadofsky]

Indeed. Even average games like Dewy's Adventure or Deadly Creatures are worth checking out, especially since both are likely super-cheap by now.

I heard Deadly Creatures was plagued by bugs (like actual game glitches), and signifcant slowdown, if that wasn't true, I'll by all means check it out.

Never did try Dewey's Adventure, might have to try it out.

[Thalzon]

I heard Deadly Creatures was plagued by bugs (like actual game glitches), and signifcant slowdown, if that wasn't true, I'll by all means check it out.

I encountered one that was pretty annoying. It's on level 9, and there's a chance that some enemies won't spawn. They need to be killed in order to unblock the passageway, but if they don't spawn, they never will unless you reset.

One I only heard of was that certain copies will not work on Wii systems. That didn't happen to me.

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

Resident Evil: Darkside Chronicles.

If you like Resident Evil 2 and Code Veronica, as well as light gun shooters, then this is the game for you. The only problem one might have with it is the shaky camera, but I love this game and you all should too.

[linkspast]

I think that the flood of casual games on the wii is where this negative sterotype comes from, I mean for every Mario or Zelda there must be 30 or more Wii party games...

[XZero]

I think that the flood of casual games on the wii is where this negative sterotype comes from, I mean for every Mario or Zelda there must be 30 or more Wii party games...

Well, that's absolutely true of Zelda.

I just got New Super Mario Bros. Wii for Christmas. Great game. Really great, actually, and probably some of the most ingenious level design I've ever encountered in a Mario game. But you know what? It kind of feels lazy.

I didn't bother reading back through all of the recent posts (so this may have been noted here already), but Matt Casamassina over at IGN recently wrote a good editorial arguing that Nintendo has been lazy, and I have to agree, holding up NSMBW as an example. Yes, it's a fantastic game. It simply could have been so much more.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii is, I think, an excellent example of the problems with Nintendo's new strategies. First and foremost, the graphics are identical to the DS graphics. It doesn't look bad, but compared to 2D games like Wario Land or Muramasa, Mario is just bland. This is also true of the character selection. Mario and Luigi are a must. So is a (1) Toad. Not 2; only 1. There is no reason that Peach, Wario, Waluigi, Daisy, etc. are not playable as well. If every character controls the same, it's nothing more than swapping the 3D character on the screen.

The gameplay is generally fine (except for the fact that the GCN and/or Classic Controller should have been optional and the shaking should have been omitted), but it's not perfect. When more than one person is playing, its actually a rather annoying game. Did you ever want to play a Mario game with grandma? Well, now you can, and you can find out just why you don't want to play games with grandma. The fact that characters bounce off of one another is a real problem, and ultimately, I think NSMBW's multiplayer would be more fun drunk at a party. And that's precisely the problem.

Nintendo's *everyone plays!* Wii strategy is really annoying to gamers. The hardcore RPG gamers aren't getting the RPGs (the only place for a steady flow of JRPGs anymore is the DS), the older fans aren't getting the flow of mainstream or adult-oriented games that other consoles have, and the only people satisfied are those who play games casually. New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a fun experience, and a solid Mario game. Instead of making something outstanding, they made it accessible to everyone, and it's just not the best way to handle these sorts of things, especially since the two do not have to be mutually exclusive.

Let me summarize my thoughts on New Super Mario Bros. Wii thusly: it is the DreamWorks to Super Mario Galaxy's Pixar. It's a generally solid game, but it is by no means a masterpiece. The ultimate reason for this, in my opinion, is that Nintendo lost focus, going for accessibility and family play while ignoring the core gamers, just as they have been doing since the N64-GCN era. The Wii is a good system with quite a few very, very good games that are core-gamer oriented. You just have to dig through a bunch of crap in order to find them.

[Thalzon]

So I've been playing Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, and I must say, it's a very gripping game. It's not OMG SCARY!!! or anything, but it just feels like I could play through several times and find some new stuff each time. It's a fun game to analyze, because the effects of your choices are not immediately apparent.

For example, I was told to fill in a school schedule. I was told it should be my "optimal school day". Creative Writing, Literature, Science, and Geography (not necessarily in that order). The next area I went through was a high school, naturally. But I really don't know how these choices influenced the environment or how the game progressed. I suppose the "science" choice gave me access to the biology and chemistry labs, but I can't be absolutely certain, because I certainly didn't go through an english class or geography classroom. Also, the main puzzle of the area was in the art studio.

The "nightmare" segments are pretty damn cool, I think. First, you see the entire surrounding area ice over in real-time. People are crystalized, and then the monsters come out. Generally, they are all the same type of monster: a humanoid that screams and squeals like a little girl, and latches onto you, strangling and clawing... But honestly? It really feels like they're HAPPY to see you, because when they kill you they simply lay a hand on your arm or back, as though not understanding why you suddenly fell over. The only annoying thing about these nightmare segments is that it's so easy to get lost and wind up going in circles. All exits and obstacles get a bit of blue light on them, but there's no distinction between the lights, so the way you came from is lit the same way as the way you're going. Also, checking the map is difficult because you're bound to be swarmed by shrieking mutants, and you can't run while the map is open. That might just be par for the course in the series or horror games in general. It may seem like a major annoyance, but it really gives you a feeling of relief when you finally make it to safety.

The plot is pretty sweet, too. Anyone who's played previous Silent Hill games (unlike me) might be able to spot plot twists a mile away, though.

This game definitely puts the "Survival" back into "Survival Horror".

[Devyn]

"Matt Casamassina"

I don't mean to be hateful, but those IGN loss relevance years ago. They rate games based off of the effort that goes into games, not how fun the games are. Speaking of RPGs, the Wii has virtual console, which has the best RPGs (especially oddballs like Shining Force) and it effectively defeats other consoles in that category. That's my two cents.

[Malaki-LEGEND.sys]

I'm gonna go ahead and just say it.

Fuck "hardcore gamers".

Seriously. Fuck those elitist pricks. If a game is fun, it's fun. If it's not, then stay the fuck away from it, but don't belittle someone's experience by saying they're tasteless shitheads for liking something like Bejeweled or Peggle as opposed to something like Dragon Age or Halo 3: ODST.

Laziness? If by laziness you mean putting out solid experiences time after time, then I guess so. It's not Nintendo's fault 3rd parties are trying to cash in on the success of stuff like Wii Sports and Wii Fit without adding any of the depth to their titles.

[Doni]

The Wii is super cool, I like it, but I agree with some about how most titles suck.

The problem is that nintendo said, "YOU MUST USE THE WII-MOTE EXCLUSIVELY" to all developers. So for a title to be on the wii, it has to have a certain percentage of wrist action... so to speak...

I think it's a shame that nintendo couldn't keep it's RPG cred though. The SNES was easily the best for it's RPG's and it rocked all other systems formidably. Mario Kart, Mario Galaxy, smash bros.... all that is dope... but where for art though my Earthbound sequel that I've been waiting 20 years for... :puppyeyes:

[PriZm]

Well I used to have a Wii, but I sold it due to lack of interest in the titles. As much as it's cool for you to like the Wii, it's also cool if someone happens to not like it. I mean, if you're gonna expect everybody to respect you for liking the console, shouldn't you respect also those who don't ?

I do not consider myself an elitist prick or jealous or whatever, I just plain didn't like it.

That being said, it's obvious that someone who spends their time telling everybody how liking the Wii is gayer than gay etc etc. does not deserve your respect.

[XZero]

Laziness? If by laziness you mean putting out solid experiences time after time, then I guess so. It's not Nintendo's fault 3rd parties are trying to cash in on the success of stuff like Wii Sports and Wii Fit without adding any of the depth to their titles.

You are absolutely right that it's not Nintendo's fault (though the Nintendo Seal of Quality used to mean more back in the day...).

There is something that's Nintendo's fault, though. No one would disagree that games like New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a fun, solid experience. It simply could have been better, and I think that's the general consensus of the various reviewers and fans.

[Hawkwing]

I'm currently addicted to Harvest Moon: Animal Parade. I don't know what it is about those Harvest Moon games, but I love them.

[Schwaltzvald]

I'm gonna go ahead and just say it.

Fuck "hardcore gamers".

Seriously. Fuck those elitist pricks. If a game is fun, it's fun. If it's not, then stay the fuck away from it, but don't belittle someone's experience by saying they're tasteless shitheads for liking something like Bejeweled or Peggle as opposed to something like Dragon Age or Halo 3: ODST.

Hey now don't throw such statements like that around, especially those such as myself consider playing difficult games that would make most run away from them from sheer but not impossible difficulty, "hardcore gamers". Those that make it a habit of searching or artificially making games difficult for the mere challenges and accomplishments from doing so.

I'm on my one man crusade to change that perception as "hardcore gaming" had nearly lost itself to the very same bullshit that you described Malaki. The only place elitism should ever have would be the scoreboard/speed record/highscore record and that's all; simply initials along with the numbers and that's it.

I also like the Harvest Moon series...

wut..?

[Thalzon]

I'm currently addicted to Harvest Moon: Animal Parade. I don't know what it is about those Harvest Moon games, but I love them.

I sunk well over 200 hours into Rune Factory Frontier. Con: Life wasted. Pro: I finally crafted my Whale Hat!

[cobaltstarfire]

You are absolutely right that it's not

There is something that's Nintendo's fault, though. No one would disagree that games like New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a fun, solid experience. It simply could have been better, and I think that's the general consensus of the various reviewers and fans.

What would you have done to make NSMB Wii "better" just out of curiosity?

Other than 'better graphics and more characters'

I'll just say now I think the bouncing/pushing is an aspect I like about the multiplayer game. So I'll just pre-emptively agree to disagree with you on that bit. (I mean I got used to the bouncing and learned to control and use it to my advantage). Maybe I'm just weird and enjoy that there actually is some interaction during multiplayer beyond 2-4 people being on the screen at once.

[Nabeel Ansari]

It simply could have been better, and I think that's the general consensus of the various reviewers and fans.

Game reviewers like IGN make big deals out of nothing and nothing of big deals.

There's nothing wrong with NSMBW, therefore IGN has to resort to complaining about stuff that's NOT in the game. However, they don't give the slightest praise to what IS in the game.

I'm not sure what could be added to increase the fun of NSMBW besides HD graphics.

But graphics aren't everything, and the Wii proves it. (the NES proved it, for god's sake)