Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

true Game: Mario & Sonic At the Olympic Games Genre: Mini-Game Platform: Wii, DS (Reviewed on Wii) <img src="/contributed/1195581663iNrvZiNPiT.jpg" width="154" height="217"> I came into work this morning already in a foul mood from <a href="/gamer/sarah/blog/article/no_rock_band_for_gamervision">the great Rock Band debacle</a>, and found a copy of the recent Wii release Mario & Sonic: At the Olympic Games on my desk waiting to be reviewed. I hoped that maybe some quirky Olympic-style mini-games with Nintendo and Sega’s respective mascots might brighten my spirits a little bit. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite have that effect. When this game was announced, I actually thought it had the potential to be kind of neat; after all, seeing Mario and Sonic together in the same game was something that had never occurred before. However, with a slew of party games already in my Wii library, I thought it might be better to hold off before plopping down $49.99 for this one. That turned out to be a wise choice, because although this game does deliver some degree of fun, it’s really too shallow and, at times, frustrating to warrant such a purchase. <img src="/contributed/1195581676EttDJiqjnu.jpg" width="440" height="316"> First things first, it’s not all bad. Many of the games, especially the track and swimming events, actually offer a degree of challenge not usually seen in mini-game compilations. It feels kind of like Track & Field mixed with Super Monkey Ball, both of which are fairly entertaining titles. Some of the games are pretty fun; gymnastics, where you have to pull off a series of moves using Wii remote and button combinations, was probably my best category, but several others had me going again and again trying to improve my score. Playing with a friend is really the optimal experience for this game. Unless you’re a star athlete, beating the computer opponents in any of the races proved to be very difficult. To run, you swing the remote and nunchuk up and down alternately, a method that has been used in games before and is usually pretty effective. However, in this case, you really have to work to place in the top three. I know I’m a little out of shape and all, but I shouldn’t have to warm up before playing a track and field simulation. <img src="/contributed/1195581690EIOrB8lfmf.jpg" width="440" height="330"> The gameplay can get pretty repetitive; aside from a few unique events, most of the track and swimming events use the same controls, and a lot of them I’ve seen before in other Wii games (most notably Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz, which came out a year ago for the system). I played through most of the single events to get a feel for them, then tried a full-length circuit, only to not be able to make it past the first event. The control explanations are not always clear and sometimes far too lengthy; like in past party titles, instructions should be minimal and to-the-point so that the gamer does not lose interest. I shouldn’t have to spend more time reading about how to play than I do on the individual events themselves. Had the game had more fluid controls and an entertaining single-player mode, it probably would have worked a whole lot better. As it is, I can’t see it being fun for more than a short amount of time. Though it has its moments, they’re not enough to make me deplete my bank account fifty bucks for a game that’s only sometimes fun. <img src="/contributed/1195591010cicaSvXtma.jpg">         <a href="http://www.tkqlhce.com/click-2481309-10416249"> <img src="http://www.awltovhc.com/image-2481309-10416249" alt="Video Game Rentals Delivered" width="300" height="250"></a> review

2007-11-20T15:37:55-05:00

Game: Mario & Sonic At the Olympic Games Genre: Mini-Game Platform: Wii, DS (Reviewed on Wii) <img src="/contributed/1195581663iNrvZiNPiT.jpg" width="154" height="217" /> I came into work this morning already in a foul mood from <a href="/gamer/sarah/blog/article/no_rock_band_for_gamervision">the great Rock Band debacle</a>, and found a copy of the recent Wii release Mario & Sonic: At the Olympic Games on my desk waiting to be reviewed. I hoped that maybe some quirky Olympic-style mini-games with Nintendo and Sega’s respective mascots might brighten my spirits a little bit. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite have that effect. When this game was announced, I actually thought it had the potential to be kind of neat; after all, seeing Mario and Sonic together in the same game was something that had never occurred before. However, with a slew of party games already in my Wii library, I thought it might be better to hold off before plopping down $49.99 for this one. That turned out to be a wise choice, because although this game does deliver some degree of fun, it’s really too shallow and, at times, frustrating to warrant such a purchase. <img src="/contributed/1195581676EttDJiqjnu.jpg" width="440" height="316" /> First things first, it’s not all bad. Many of the games, especially the track and swimming events, actually offer a degree of challenge not usually seen in mini-game compilations. It feels kind of like Track & Field mixed with Super Monkey Ball, both of which are fairly entertaining titles. Some of the games are pretty fun; gymnastics, where you have to pull off a series of moves using Wii remote and button combinations, was probably my best category, but several others had me going again and again trying to improve my score. Playing with a friend is really the optimal experience for this game. Unless you’re a star athlete, beating the computer opponents in any of the races proved to be very difficult. To run, you swing the remote and nunchuk up and down alternately, a method that has been used in games before and is usually pretty effective. However, in this case, you really have to work to place in the top three. I know I’m a little out of shape and all, but I shouldn’t have to warm up before playing a track and field simulation. <img src="/contributed/1195581690EIOrB8lfmf.jpg" width="440" height="330" /> The gameplay can get pretty repetitive; aside from a few unique events, most of the track and swimming events use the same controls, and a lot of them I’ve seen before in other Wii games (most notably Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz, which came out a year ago for the system). I played through most of the single events to get a feel for them, then tried a full-length circuit, only to not be able to make it past the first event. The control explanations are not always clear and sometimes far too lengthy; like in past party titles, instructions should be minimal and to-the-point so that the gamer does not lose interest. I shouldn’t have to spend more time reading about how to play than I do on the individual events themselves. Had the game had more fluid controls and an entertaining single-player mode, it probably would have worked a whole lot better. As it is, I can’t see it being fun for more than a short amount of time. Though it has its moments, they’re not enough to make me deplete my bank account fifty bucks for a game that’s only sometimes fun. <img src="/contributed/1195591010cicaSvXtma.jpg" />         <a href="http://www.tkqlhce.com/click-2481309-10416249"><img src="http://www.awltovhc.com/image-2481309-10416249" alt="Video Game Rentals Delivered" width="300" height="250" /></a>

8858

1242

2009-10-08T20:37:48-04:00

2007-11-20T15:37:55-05:00

11670

6.0

mario_sonic_at_the_olympic_games_wii published A Real Workout Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games - Wii

2009-10-08T20:37:48-04:00

763