AMN Holiday Buyer’s Guide 2006: Wii

The next generation of gaming is upon us, but for Nintendo, the term “next generation” isn’t good enough to describe its upcoming home console. Instead, the Big N uses its own finely crafted term, “new generation,” to describe its upcoming Wii console. Technically speaking, Wii might not be on the same level of power as either Microsoft’s Xbox 360 or Sony’s PlayStation 3, but that’s okay. Wii, which is just slightly more powerful than an Xbox, isn’t about graphics. It’s about playing, as Nintendo’s slogan, “Playing is believing,” suggests. The console’s controller echoes that statement, as it’s unlike any controller to come packaged with a game console before. Shaped like a remote, you hold the Wii-mote – as its been nicknamed – in your right hand. The controller can sense changes in motion and how you’re holding it, thanks to a built-in accelerometer. Furthermore, it can also be used as a pointer and interact with a sensor bar that sits either atop or below your TV. The Wii controller can also be held horizontally, like a traditional game controller, and it can communicate with a number of peripherals. Thanks to the Wii-mote, you can interact with video games unlike ever before. Oh, and did we mention every Wii comes with a free copy of Wii Sports?

In the world of Elebits these Pikmin-esque creatures called – you guessed it – Elebits are responsible for supplying the world with electricity and power. However, one day these unique critters disappear. In Elebits, you play in first-person as you roam around different locations trying to collect any Elebits you can spot with your trusty capturing gun. Control is easier than ever thanks to the Wii-mote’s motion-sensing and pointing capabilities, which enable you to simply point and click at any Elebits on screen to capture them with your weapon’s zapping power.

Remember Excitebike on NES or Excitebike 64? Of course you do. Well, consider Excite Truck the spiritual successor to the dirt biking classics of yesteryear. If you want a good idea of what to expect from Excite Truck, think of Excitebike, only replace the dirt bikes with monster trucks. There you go. You now have a pretty good understanding of what Excite Truck is all about. You hold the Wii-mote horizontally, like an NES controller, tilting it left and right to steer. Meanwhile, the gas button powers your truck forwards. Excite Truck has a huge focus on two things: speed and big-air. And these two things kind of go together. Developer Monster Games has designed a cool feature that allows you to run over a bonus icon, and by doing so, the very ground in front of you will transform into huge ramps of dirt, which allow you to gain huge air. The more air you get, the more boost you’ll earn when you land. These boosts will not only allow you to gain great amounts of time on your opponents, they’ll also allow you to clear chasms in the track that might otherwise be impassable.

Ubisoft has two first-person shooters coming to Wii this fall, and Far Cry Vengeance is one of them. The Wii incarnation is a mix of both old and new –- combining both elements from the original Far Cry on PC with new ones from Far Cry Instincts –- but above all else, it’s an all-new adventure set in the universe of the popular Far Cry franchise. Just like the original PC shooter, Far Cry Wii stars Jack Carver, who must make his way through a tropical island unwrapping a wholly original storyline and kicking a lot of ass along the way. The title is being designed ground-up for Nintendo’s innovative console to take full advantage of the Wii-mote. Using it, players simply point and click to shoot any enemies they come across. What’s more, they can also use the Wii controller to steer and maneuver any vehicles they come across in this adventure.

Sure, it might not have snazzy next-gen visuals, but the truth is Madden NFL 07 on Wii is the closest thing to playing real-life football or playing in the NFL you’ll get other than actually doing one of the two things for real. This version of Madden has been designed exclusively for Wii, and the entire focus is on using the Wii controller in the best ways possible. Using the Wii-mote, you motion punts, passes and more with close-to 1:1 precision controls. Want to throw the ball fast? Gesture with Wii-mote with the force you want, and make it happen. Want to throw it short? Gesture a short pass. Whatever you do with the Wii-mote is what happens on screen. Oh, but be sure not to tackle your friends, as when they punch you back you’re going to feel the pain. How’s that for realism?

Need For Speed: Carbon is the latest entry in the popular Electronic Arts-created street racing franchise. Like the most recent Need For Speed games, Carbon features a street racing theme, but this time things take place in and outside of a city surrounded with dangerous canyons. In the racer, you must compete with other rivals to control specified parts of the town, and to do this, you’ll have to race through treacherous canyons where one wrong move can send you tumbling to your death. Carbon is also being released on both Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, but the Wii version of the game features enhanced controls that use the Wii remote horizontally, allowing you to tilt it back and forth to steer your way through the game’s many courses.

There has been a lot of talk about Rayman Raving Rabbids and what kind of game it is. Is it an adventure game? A puzzler? What the heck is it? Don’t’ fret. We’re here with just the facts. Developed by the team behind Rayman 2 and the acclaimed Beyond Good & Evil, Rayman Raving Rabbid’s is famous game-creator Michael Ancel’s creation. The game’s storyline follows Rayman, who is captured by evil bunnies invading his homeland. Yes, we said evil bunnies. However, while these critters often look cute, cuddly and even innocent, they’re anything but. They’re evil –- in every sense of the word. Rayman must earn respect from the bunnies by competing in tons and tons of contests or party games and mini-games –- ones including first-person shooting mechanics, racing, flying, throwing things and even dancing. So, what is Rayman Raving Rabbids, again? It’s a storyline-based adventure brimming with mini-games and puzzles. What? You’re still confused? It has freakin’ bunnies!

Taking place in both parts of the US and Japan, Red Steel follows a character who’s fiancé has been murdered. In the game, he sets off to get revenge for the murder of his love and must face the deadly Yakuza. The game features a huge amount of both gunplay, and as the game’s title suggests, swordplay with katanas. Using the Wii controller, players point at their television screens to shoot the bad guys and wave the Wii control around to wield their sharp blade. This Japanese-themed shooter doesn’t support online play, but it features four-player split-screen multiplayer.

Sam Fisher is back, and his latest adventure is truly unlike any of his previous missions. For the first time, Fisher steps behind enemy lines, as a double agent who must infiltrate a terrorist group headquartered in the United States. Double Agent features a tantalizing storyline that follows Fisher carefully trying to find the harmonic balance his latest mission demands. If he kills too many terrorists as a double agent, he’ll reveal himself. But on the other hand, if he doesn’t act quickly enough, thousands could die. Double Agent features similar stealthy gameplay as found in its many predecessors. However, the Wii game features totally new controls. Using the Wii-mote, you can aim unlike ever before and interact with Sam’s world like you never thought possible.

Like in the original, the goal of Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz is to move your monkey (in a ball, no less) down a track into the goal. Sounds easy? Well, it’s not. The biggest change Banana Blitz brings to the table is its enhanced Wii-mote controls. You simply hold the Wii controller like a paper airplane and tilt if forwards, backwards, left and right to roll your monkey ball down the stage and into the goal. Banana Blitz also features dozens of different mini-games to love (and hate, as they’ll no doubt be challenging). One mini-game involves tossing rings at poles, and another has you trying to throw a heavy ball as far as possible. Meanwhile, another has you controlling a monkey that must re-direct falling fruits into the correct basket, which you play by using the Wii-mote to turn which way the monkey is facing.

North American gamers might not be incredibly familiar with Super Swing Golf – aka Pangya Golf – but the golf franchise is popular in both Japan and Korea. The main focus in Super Swing Golf for Wii is the feeling and functionality of the controller when using it to putt and golf. The game features a single-player mode with many different courses to play through, and it also features offline multiplayer to boot. Gamers looking for a more full-fledged golf game than Wii Sports: Golf might find it here.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess follows the story of Link, who one day travels to the Hyrule Summit to represent his small village, but accidentally finds himself in the mysterious Twilight Realm. Upon entertaining the unknown kingdom, Link is immediately transformed into a wolf, captured and imprisoned. But thanks to the help of a friendly character named Midna, Link is able to escape. While in the Twilight Realm, players will control Link in wolf form with Midna riding atop him. Link must discover why the land of Hyrule has been plunged into this darkness by traveling back and forth between present-day Hyrule and the Twilight Realm, looking for clues and slaying the evil responsible. Twilight Princess plays similarly to past 3D Zelda games –- most notably Ocarina of Time and The Wind Waker -– using a similar control setup, except there’s one huge difference in the Wii version of the game: added Wii-mote functionality. With the Wii controller, players can interact with Link in ways unlike anything done before. Use the Wii controller to shoot Link’s bow, throw his boomerang, solve puzzles, swing Link’s sword and much more. There’s no doubt that Twilight Princess is destined to go down as one of the best launch titles of all time.

Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam is pretty different from your average Tony Hawk game. For starters, the title is being handled by independent game developer Toys for Bob. More significantly, Downhill Jam is all about downhill racing –- as the name no doubt implies –- and combat. Don’t worry, there are still tons of tricks and combos to master, but there’s now the added element of speed and racing. The game features eight different cities to skate through, including San Francisco and Machu Picchu, and each city has a number of different routes to experience. So, all together, there are over 100 different “levels” to see and play. Gamers should think of Downhill Jam as SSX with skateboards, because that’s what it seems to be.

Trauma Center: Second Opinion (which is the best name ever), though a “Wii-make,” is not a port. The game features the same operating table action, where you must do operation on injured patients, using the Wii controller. Atlus says the game is being developed ground-up –- but based off of the original DS game –- for Wii. What this means, in other words, is you can expect a relatively familiar storyline with a lot of familiar missions, but the developer promises that there are plenty of new missions to experience, too. On top of this, all your favorite tools from the DS game are back, along with plenty of brand new ones. Second Opinion takes full advantage of the Wii-mote, allowing accurate precision while in the operating room. The game runs on a brand new graphics engine, too, and looks spiffy.