The best holiday games you never heard of (2/3)

Nintendo Wii


Zack and Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure ($40, out now)
Capcom shot themselves in the foot when naming this superb adventure game. Not only is the title generic, it screams "this isn't for anyone over the age of 12." That sentiment couldn't be further from the truth, however, as Zack and Wiki's polished look, challenging difficulty, and engaging puzzles are easily worth $50-60 bucks. Ironically, Capcom only asks $40 for the privilege. Even celebrity game designer CliffyB, most famous for his work on Gears of War, allegedly endorses a purchase of this, one of the year's biggest sleepers.



Medal of Honor Heroes 2 ($50, out now)
The last thing the gaming world needs is another World War II shooter. But Medal of Honor Heroes 2 on Wii manages to make the genre feel fresh with its Metroid Prime 3-quality controls and wealth of options. What's more, it offers a variety of ways to play including your standard campaign mode, on-rails arcade mode, and a 32-person online multiplayer the runs without a glitch and without Nintendo's cumbersome Friend Codes. The enemy intelligence is offensively moronic, but it's an admirable shooter for a system that's starved for alternatives. Good game.



NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams ($50, Dec 18)
Though NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams doesn't incorporate as many motion-controls as we'd expect for a Wii game, its graceful graphics and undeviating gameplay will likely be enough to satisfy the appetites of long-time fans hungry for a sequel. The online battle and time-trail modes are a welcome addition to the simple, yet enjoyable gameplay first created for Saturn in 1996. Assuming Sega resolves the minor framerate issues, Journey of Dreams should consummate as more of the same, and that's hardly a negative.


Next: PlayStation 3...

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