The five Wii launch games you MUST* own
*Well, the ones you should own. If you like the same games as we do. And can afford to buy a bunch of launch games. And need some random blog to tell you which ones to go for.
Yes, everyone’s got their opinion on the pick of the Wii’s launch line-up here in Europe, and WiiWii is no exception. The relative cheapness of the console itself leaves plenty of scope for splashing out on Day One.
Read on to discover why your pennies should be laid down for Wii Play, Legend Of Zelda, Rayman Raving Rabbids and Trauma Center: Second Opinion. Oh, and why Wii Sports is the best bundled-with-the-console game ever.
1. Wii Sports
First off, this comes with the Wii, so you don’t have to pay extra for it. And it looks set to be the game getting most play on launch day (unless you’re a Zelda fan). Wii Sports has five sports included - tennis, baseball, golf, bowling and boxing. All use the Wii-mote to full effect, so you can swing a racket, club or bat, chuck a bowling ball, and best of all, air-box your friend/wife/husband into a pulp. Tennis, Golf and Bowling support up to four players (Baseball and Boxing are just 1-2), and you can use your own Mii avatar as your character. Marvellous.
2. Wii Play
Sadly they’ve junked the Japanese title, which translates as ‘My First Wii’. But this should still be your first game purchase as a new Wii owner. Mainly because for the price of a normal game, it includes an extra Wii-mote controller, which’ll come in handy for multiplayer action on all these games. But also because it’s a big collection of mini-games which show off the Wii-mote, including Table Tennis, Fishing, Pool, Shooting and a weird Pose Mii game where you have to make your Mii avatar vogue like early-90s Madonna.
3. The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Okay, so Zelda is something of an acquired taste. Nintendo veterans worship it, but everyone else just wonders who the funny little fella in the hat is, before firing up another game of FIFA. But from the details revealed so far, Twilight Princess is set to be the most absorbing, immersive Wii launch title. The game also makes use of the Wii-mote, letting you fire arrows, go fishing, and if reports are correct, swing your sword. And if anyone laughs at you for buying what’s basically a tarted up GameCube game, just tell them how many fish you caught last night. It won’t shut them up, but you’ll feel cool. Probably.
4. Trauma Center: Second Opinion
One of the most intruiging aspects of Wii is how often games that have been designed for the Nintendo DS’ stylus control system translate to the Wii-mote. The Wii version of hospital sim Trauma Center is a revamped version of the DS game, putting you in the latex gloves of a bunch of crack cartoon surgeons, wielding scalpels, forceps and even a defibrillator in an effort to save lives without getting too much blood on the floor. No news sadly on whether you can wave the Wii-mote around to scrub away MRSA superbugs.
5. Rayman Raving Rabbids
I was torn over this fifth choice, not being a big Rayman fan - he’s too quirky and forces games journalists to make endless ‘he’s armless!’ jokes. But in the end, the prospect of over 70 strange mini-games, including the one where you pull worms out of a groaning rabbit’s teeth, won out over other more hard-boiled Wii launch titles. Rayman Raving Rabbids promises to be the sort of game you buy for the kids - you know, the people you pretended you were buying a Wii for - but end up playing for hours yourself. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
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November 1st, 2006 at 8:39 am
Definitely looking forward to Trauma Centre and Wii Play, loved Trauma Centre on the DS, but it’s bloody hard!
November 7th, 2006 at 5:02 pm
Wii = Amazing. TLOZ: TP will be orgasmic!
November 8th, 2006 at 12:20 pm
[...] Does it do nifty stuff with the Wii controller? But of course! The game is also being released on Game Cube the same day, so there are of course noteable advantages to playing it on the Wii. Users will use the Wii-mote with the Nunchuk attachment to not only control Link, but to aim and fire the bow, boomerang, and even to fish in the streams. The best feature, without a doubt though, is being able to swing the controller like a sword - a lot better than pretending it’s a gold club, no? [...]
November 10th, 2006 at 9:30 am
[...] Does it do nifty stuff with the Wii controller? But of course! The game is also being released on Game Cube a few weeks later, and there are of course noteable advantages to playing it on the Wii. Users will use the Wii-mote with the Nunchuk attachment to not only control Link, but to aim and fire the bow, boomerang, and even to fish in the streams. The best feature, without a doubt though, is being able to swing the controller like a sword - a lot better than pretending it’s a gold club, no? [...]
November 14th, 2006 at 7:37 am
[...] Darn shame Sir Paul and that one-legged trollop Heather Mills are not on speaking terms any longer, we would’ve loved to see them battle it out for Paul’s £1 billion fortune in the divorce settlement over a nice friendly game of Wii Sports - it’s all arms, not legs, after all! Although just this once we may be tempted to encourage them to stick with the GameCube, purely because Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix would be oh so entertaining. If you’d like to perhaps create their daughter Bea, head over to Joystiq’s online Mii creation application, and let it be, let it be, oh let it be… [...]
November 14th, 2006 at 11:36 am
[...] 56. Trauma Center: Second Opinion. Another launch game, this time putting you in the squeaky flat shoes of a top surgeon. It’s one of our five essential launch titles, and well worth polishing up your biology skillz for. [...]