GamePro Reviews WiiWare! (Page 3 of 5)

• By The Gamepros
• May 28, 2008 13:24 PM PST
• Print
• Email this!
• Share
  • Digg
  • Yahoo Buzz!
  • FaceBook
  • StumbleUpon
  • del.icio.us

WiiWare LostWinds Impressions: Wait, This is Really Good

By: Daniel Cowan

This is it, guys. This is the breakout, must-buy hit that WiiWare needed to justify its existence. LostWinds is a beautiful and unique exploration-based platformer that takes full and natural advantage of the Wii's control setup. Due to its short length, it would be hard to justify a retail release without costly additions and the expected amount of gameplay bloat, but thanks to WiiWare, LostWinds has the potential to thrive at a low price point of $10.

And you'd better damn well buy it, if you know what's good for you.

Lost for Words

My absolute favorite thing about LostWinds is the fact that when you choose to start the game, you start the game. There is no intro or tutorial. You're instantly given control of your character, and you're free to learn the basic mechanics on your own, mercifully free of insulting and obvious directions like "Use the control stick to move!" The game eventually opens up and offers brief hints and story sequences after a few minutes of play, but incredibly, they're well-paced and unobtrusive. It's really kind of amazing, given the fact that even the best games are often top-heavy with droning instructions that go on forever.

This lack of lecturing means that you'll learn how to play most of the game on your own, and much like how it takes a while to get used to Bionic Commando's lack of jumping or Kirby Canvas Curse's indirect control method, LostWinds' gameplay is going to challenge you until you get the hang of it. While you're given direct thumbstick control over your character's movement, jumping is triggered by controlling the wind -- hold down the A button on the Wii Remote, swing in the direction you want your character to go, and release the A button to create a propelling gust of wind.

You'll get mixed results at first. Soon, though, you'll realize that holding down the A button causes the game to move in slow motion, which gives you an advantage in lining up jumps and running starts. By the time you're given the ability to perform double jumps, the movements and mechanics will feel entirely natural.

Wind Beneath Wii's Wings

Further mechanics and additions will follow, which will open up new areas in LostWinds' sprawling, free-roaming world. Gameplay flows much like it does in games like Super Metroid and modern 2D Castlevanias, though the second-nature controls and the simplicity of its goals make the experience feel more organic in comparison. Gameplay progresses at a constant, pleasing pace. It feels like all the unnecessary elements that often bog down the genre have been forcefully stripped out. It just feels right.

It's this simplicity that makes LostWinds so wonderful. It's not going to compete with the big retail blockbusters, and it never intended to. It's just a neat, memorable little game that lasts only as long as it needs to, and it would have never been possible without WiiWare.

LostWinds is a steal at $10. WiiWare developers, pay attention. This is how you do it.

PROS: Beautiful game world; intuitive mechanics; doesn't treat you like an idiot.
CONS: Short length (about three hours); slow initial learning curve; leaves you wanting more.

GRAPHICS: 4.50
SOUND: 4.00
CONTROL: 4.50
FUN FACTOR: 5.00

• Previous Page Prev
• Next Page Next
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5

• Print
• Email this!
• Share
  • Digg
  • Yahoo Buzz!
  • FaceBook
  • StumbleUpon
  • del.icio.us