The next gen equivalent of Wii Sports is a mini-game filled trawl through Nintendo history, but can it really become the Wii U’s killer app?
It’s easy to forget what an enormous risk the Wii was for Nintendo. It’s not hard to imagine an alternative version of Wii Sports filled with self-promoting Nintendo characters and obscure references, but instead you didn’t get so much as Mario as an umpire. And although technically it was just a collection of sports mini-games none of the motion-based mechanics were at all similar to traditional video games. But while Nintendo Land is very much the Wii U’s equivalent to Wii Sports its approach is the exact opposite.
Much like the Wii U itself Nintendo Land is a less straightforward proposal than the Wii and Wii Sports double act. It’s not even a bundled game by default, but available ‘free’ only the with the Premium console pack (although admittedly that’s the version of the hardware that’s likely to be most popular).
Many people will already have dismissed Nintendo Land because it is, unashamedly, a mini-game collection. That’s a concept that on the Wii has been made almost completely unpalatable to most core gamers, thanks to an army of zero budget shovelware games. But like most overused concepts there’s nothing intrinsically wrong with the idea, it just has to be done well – and Nintendo Land has been done very well indeed.
As you might gather Nintendo Land uses a theme park setting to provide context for its 12 different mini-games, all of which are based on existing franchises but ranging from world famous icons to Japanese-only curios. You don’t actually play as any of the games’ stars though, but instead as Miis dressed up as Mario, Link, Samus, and so on.
The mini-games are split unevenly between three categories: co-operative, competitive, and solo. The multiplayer games all support up to five players, with one person on the GamePad and up to four others on Wii remotes or Pro Controllers. It’s the three competitive games which are the very best that Nintendo Land has to offer, and it’s interesting how reminiscent they are of Nintendo’s unfairly obscure GameCube and Game Boy Advance crossover Pac-Man Vs.
Mario Chasein particular has a very similar concept, as the player with the GamePad controls Mario and attempts to stay out of the way of the other four. It’s basically It (or Tag or Kiss Chase or whatever you called it at school) with Mario provided with a top-down map of the arena but the other players having to shout out advice and directions between each other.
Nintendo calls this asynchronous multiplayer (they really should think up a better name) and it’s an absolute hoot in the right party atmosphere. The basics are simplistic of course but what’s interesting is that it’s a game that couldn’t possibly exist on any other format. Maybe you could jury-rig something together with Xbox SmartGlass, but the person with the tablet wouldn’t have proper controls – and the game wouldn’t benefit from Nintendo’s unique approach to multiplayer game design.
Animal Crossing: Sweet Dayfeels even more anchored to the Wii U since it uses the twin analogue sticks of the GamePad to control a guard each as you try and stop the other players from scrumping sweets from trees. The more sweets they carry the slower they get, and the more desperate the pleas for aid become.
The most complex of the competitive games isLuigi’s Ghost Mansion, where the GamePad player plays a ghost that again has a clear view of the entire level and everyone in it. He’s invisible to the other players though, unless they shine a torch at him to weaken him. Downed players can be revived, but this takes a nervous few seconds during which the ghost has even freer reign.
The co-operative ‘Team’ games are a little more complex again, withMetroid Blasthaving multiple different play modes and a surprisingly involved control system. It’s essentially a third person shooter, where the nunchuck’s analogue stick is used to move and the remote to aim. It’s a similar set-up to the Wii version of Resident Evil 4, but without the purposefully clunky movement of that game.
Clearly this isn’t meant to be played by the bowling grannies that so loved the Wii, but more experienced gamers will immediately be impressed and wonder why these same controls weren’t used for more Wii games. The player with the GamePad controls Samus’ ship, which requires a whole new set of skills, but does become a bit unbalanced once you get used to it and play the competitive deathmatch mode against the on-foot players. Although its help is very much appreciated in the co-operative survival modes.
One of the many surprising things about Nintendo Land is that it’s actually quite difficult at times, withThe Legend Of Zelda: Battle Questbeing the trickiest of the Team games. It’s an on-rails combat game where two players use a cut down version of Skyward Sword’s motion-controlled sword combat and the player with the GamePad wields a bow and arrow. The game world may look like it’s been sewn together after an explosion in a Laura Ashley showroom but take your eye off the ball (or rather moblin) and it’s easy for all three players to wipe out at once and lose the game.
Pikmin Adventureis another disarmingly attractive game and goes some way towards making up for the fact that Pikmin 3 isn’t a launch title. Here the player with the GamePad controls a cosplay Captain Olimar, who’s able to throw pikmin – whether human or computer-controlled – at enemies in the normal fashion. Despite 16 levels of action and a simple levelling-up system you still wouldn’t describe Pikmin Adventure as complex but again it’s a great introduction to the world of ‘proper games’ and there’s a fun versus mode attached too.
If anything the Team games are just a little too involved and begin to fall dangerously between two stools: too complicated to be an instantly accessible mini-game but too simplistic to sustain extended play. Splitting progress up into discreet levels helps to maintain the quick turnover of the competitive games though and so balance is maintained.
You can play any of the Team games on your own if you want but there are also six purpose-designed single-player games. This is where Nintendo Land slips into more traditional mini-game collection territory and although most of the games are still fun a number of them do feel like they could quite easily have been smartphone games.
Donkey Kong’s Crash Coursein particular is an arcade puzzler where you have to guide a spring-loaded cart across a Meccano-like maze of platforms. It’s an entertaining time waster but not something you could imagine paying more than 69p for on its own.Balloon Trip Breezehas the same problem and although it has some great visuals, with the game presented as if it’s a stage play, the gameplay is still essentially the same as the original Balloon Fight game from the NES days.
The inspiration forTakamaru’s Ninja Castleis ostensibly Japanese-only NES title Nazo No Murasame Jo , although it’s really just an update of lightgun game Duck Hunt. You hold the GamePad vertically and flick your hand across the touchscreen to fire shuriken at a shooting gallery of paper ninja. Again it’s very simple stuff and only a few steps up from something like Fruit Ninja.
Captain Falcon’s Twister Raceis a predictably simplified version of future racer F-Zero, but where you can view the track from a top down perspective on the GamePad and twist and turn it to move, instead of using traditional controls. It’s a neat way to avoid direct comparisons and still retains the original’s amazing sense of speed.
Even better isYoshi’s Fruit Cart, which makes the cleverest use of the GamePad of any of the single-player games. The concept is very simple, in that all you’re trying to do is help Yoshi pick up fruit by drawing a line around the stage for him to follow. The catch is the fruit are only visible on the TV, which cleverly turns the problem of not knowing which screen to look at into a part of the gameplay.
By comparisonOctopus Danceis the only real dud in the entire line-up. Based on an old Game & Watch title it’s basically just a version of contemporary electronic game Simon, where you have to follow dance moves as the octopus squirts ink at the screen to distract you. It’s not much fun, but it’s far from offensive – indeed its simplicity may be just the thing for some more casual gamers.
We just stopped ourselves from saying Nintendo Land has something for everyone, because it doesn’t. Even the more complex games are still highly simplistic, but we assume no-one would come into this expecting Fallout 4. The important thing is that the games are entertaining, they make good use of the Wii U’s curious range of abilities, and unlike Wii Sports or other casual games they’re very likely to make non-gamers interested in more traditional games.
The presentation is pure Nintendo too, with excellent use of each game’s iconic sounds and music. As a result there’s several ways you can categorise the game: as an extended tech demo, a straightforward party game, or as an interactive trip down Nintendo memory lane. Of course it’s meant to be all three at once and for most of the time it works extremely well as such.
It’s certainly our favourite game on the Wii U so far and one we’re genuinely looking forward to playing with friends and family over Christmas. That’s not something we can say about many of this year’s other great games, and while being described simply as ‘fun’ may have become a back-handed compliment to some gamers here it’s all the praise the game could ever want.
In Short:A clever demonstration of all the Wii U’s features and, more importantly, a mini-game collection that can keep any gamer – from casual to hardcore – equally entertained.
Pros:The competitive games are as entertaining as any multiplayer game this year, while there’s hardly a stinker amongst the rest. Excellent presentation and fan service.
Cons:The Team games can feel a little undercooked, and although the single-player games are almost all fun some of them don’t make much use of the GamePad.
Score:8/10
Formats: Wii UPrice: £49.99 (free with Wii U Premium bundle)Publisher: NintendoDeveloper: Nintendo EAD Software Development Group No. 2Release Date: 30th November 2013Age Rating: 7
Video:Check out the Nintendo Land trailer
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