Don't Overlook These Gems...
Here we are: the Xmas season, and with it comes a flurry of impulse purchases and the usual holiday rush of games when we've spent the past few months with few releases to draw our interest.
Let me start by saying that, yes, Super Mario Galaxy is incredible, but I implore you: don't turn your back to a shelf of Wii games that include such gems as Mario and Sonic: Olympics, Zak and Wiki, Raving Rabbits 2 and RE: Umbrella Chronicles.
I understand why the industry releases this many games during a period when most Wii owners will be buying 1-2 games each, but that doesn't change the fact that some of these games stand a good chance of being completely overshadowed by a mythical game like SMG.
There's nothing worse than playing a Wii game, loving it and then checking out its sales figures for the week to see that it didn't get even half of the sales it deserved.
How much weight you want to place in my commentary is entirely up to you, but believe me when I say that you'll be robbing yourself of some excellent gaming experiences if you don't give these other titles a try as well. Rent them if you have to (most video stores also carry Wii games these days), but don't let them go by unnoticed. Nintendo fans have complained about a lack of 3rd party support in the past (myself included) but by not supporting good 3rd party games when they arrive on shelves then the blame falls upon us and ONLY us.
M&S: Olympics is a solid sports game package, featuring some excellent motion control and the ability to play with your Mii alongside famous video game mascots from the Mario and Sonic universes.
Raving Rabbids 2 is one of the better minigame compilations I've seen, and it's downright hilarious to boot.
RE: UC is easily the best lightgun game I've ever played, adding a welcome layer of strategy to the genre which was previously absent.
And Zak and Wiki is a throwback to the point and click puzzle games we all knew and loved. It's a fledgling franchise, with no brand recognition to fall back upon like the others, but it delivers a great time for even a room full of people who love to be challenged by clever puzzles.
I'm not suggesting you buy four additional games, but please, give them a rent if any of them sound like they might interest you. I'm confident you'll be pleasantly surprised.
The Medablog has been updates! And with a great entry, too!
I feel bad for "Mario and Sonic" the most. Even if the games you mentioned might get ignored in favor of Galaxy at least they have won people's hearts.
"Mario and Sonic", on the other hand, has received the worst gamer apathy a game can get. First off, everyone is dismissing it because it ain't the fan service cross over event people wanted. Second, people are calling it a shallow, stupid party game, especially when half of these people haven't even bothered with it. Third, those that HAVE played it have been bitching about the controls. Finally, and unfortunately this is all Sega's doing, Sega's poor track record has given the game a bad rep without it being properly introduced.
It almost hurts as the game is rock solid and features some really innovative Wii controls and has a surprising amount of depth.
So people, TRY IT OUT!
Sorry for commenting on an old entry but I want to take back what I said earlier about M&S. The game's a MAJOR worldwide hit. Sales went up like crazy during the holiday season. Hell, even Japan, who pretty much ignored it back when it was first released, is eating the game up. It makes me very happy!
And Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 is an excellent game, even if it isn't perfect. The mini games are quite fun and clever and its finally a TRUE multiplayer experience.