When you pick up and play a Nintendo Mini-game compilation, you have certain expectations. You think of playful versions of Nintendo's already playful franchises. I imagine repetitive actions that must be performed at lightening speeds. I remember always having four people in a room dying with laughter only to be screwed by some die roll or whim in the end. These are the things that I expect.
This post is about what I didn't expect from Nintendo Land and why it impressed me. We'll start from the top:
Single Player Experiences: If there is anything I don't expect to do with a Mini-game-fest is play alone. Historically the whole point is to encourage single couch multiplayer wrapped in a package of hilarity and fun. Imagine playing Mario Party or Rayman Raving Rabbids by yourself. You'd be competing with no one in a room with no one because the value is inherently tied to the multiplayer. Nintendo Land on the other hand has 6 games, half of the games, that are single player only. This strong emphasis is strange to see. Did you ever sit around(or stand when appropriate) playing Wii Sports or Wii Play by yourself? No, those games, once again, revolved around the multiplayer and barely offered the chance to play single player.
I think the part that really sold me though is that these single player offerings aren't bad. In fact, some are even good! While Takamaru's Ninja Castle and Captain Falcon's Twister Race bottom out my personal ratings, the rest of the options are not only worth checking out, but worth investing some time into. Octopus Dance is a competent ape of Rhythm Heaven. Yoshi's Cart is a puzzler that offers something I've never seen before in terms of translating from big to little screen. Donkey Kong Crash Course is the kind of thing I can play for days, not unlike those labyrinth boxes or apps you can find on your phone. Then Balloon Trip Breeze may be the best in the bunch in terms of replayability and fun.
Engage the Living Room: All the single player experiences lead me into my next point of interest. Historically, Nintendo has always been about same couch multiplayer and getting people of all ages and skill level into the games. With Nintendo Land, they also seem to be giving those not in the game something to watch. They're putting on a show. Most of the mini games have an option to see the camera's image streaming the player's face from the game pad. Even the single player games offer something to watch when I'm not playing. I enjoy planning out the route for Yoshi's Cart and watching as the player's trail plays out. People not playing the game, have a reason to watch and, for me at least, it's pretty engaging.
Replayability: Once you figure out exactly the broken, awkward bowling swing that get's you the best scores, Wii Bowling looses it's luster. Once the new wears off, Mini Games get returned to the used game shop. This is where Nintendo Land borrowed a couple ideas from other major blockbusters, namely, unlockables. As you play through the multiplayer and single player games within Nintendo Land, you will stumble across, find, and reveal all kinds of secrets including new maps and attractions. While the "tutor" computer-thing is annoying and unable to be skipped, it does point out some really neat stuff wrapped up in this collection. Essentially, Nintendo Land set out to make people want to play their silly little games again and again. With me, it worked.
Nintendo Land doesn't reveal motion gaming to the masses like Wii Sports did. It doesn't create a competitive yelling fest like early Mario Party's did. It does, however, introduce the strengths of the game pad, asymmetric multiplayer(I'll spend some time on this later) and engage a watching audience like few games have tried before. It does all this while being a really entertaining game with a lot of options.
This post is about what I didn't expect from Nintendo Land and why it impressed me. We'll start from the top:
Single Player Experiences: If there is anything I don't expect to do with a Mini-game-fest is play alone. Historically the whole point is to encourage single couch multiplayer wrapped in a package of hilarity and fun. Imagine playing Mario Party or Rayman Raving Rabbids by yourself. You'd be competing with no one in a room with no one because the value is inherently tied to the multiplayer. Nintendo Land on the other hand has 6 games, half of the games, that are single player only. This strong emphasis is strange to see. Did you ever sit around(or stand when appropriate) playing Wii Sports or Wii Play by yourself? No, those games, once again, revolved around the multiplayer and barely offered the chance to play single player.
I think the part that really sold me though is that these single player offerings aren't bad. In fact, some are even good! While Takamaru's Ninja Castle and Captain Falcon's Twister Race bottom out my personal ratings, the rest of the options are not only worth checking out, but worth investing some time into. Octopus Dance is a competent ape of Rhythm Heaven. Yoshi's Cart is a puzzler that offers something I've never seen before in terms of translating from big to little screen. Donkey Kong Crash Course is the kind of thing I can play for days, not unlike those labyrinth boxes or apps you can find on your phone. Then Balloon Trip Breeze may be the best in the bunch in terms of replayability and fun.
Engage the Living Room: All the single player experiences lead me into my next point of interest. Historically, Nintendo has always been about same couch multiplayer and getting people of all ages and skill level into the games. With Nintendo Land, they also seem to be giving those not in the game something to watch. They're putting on a show. Most of the mini games have an option to see the camera's image streaming the player's face from the game pad. Even the single player games offer something to watch when I'm not playing. I enjoy planning out the route for Yoshi's Cart and watching as the player's trail plays out. People not playing the game, have a reason to watch and, for me at least, it's pretty engaging.
Replayability: Once you figure out exactly the broken, awkward bowling swing that get's you the best scores, Wii Bowling looses it's luster. Once the new wears off, Mini Games get returned to the used game shop. This is where Nintendo Land borrowed a couple ideas from other major blockbusters, namely, unlockables. As you play through the multiplayer and single player games within Nintendo Land, you will stumble across, find, and reveal all kinds of secrets including new maps and attractions. While the "tutor" computer-thing is annoying and unable to be skipped, it does point out some really neat stuff wrapped up in this collection. Essentially, Nintendo Land set out to make people want to play their silly little games again and again. With me, it worked.
Nintendo Land doesn't reveal motion gaming to the masses like Wii Sports did. It doesn't create a competitive yelling fest like early Mario Party's did. It does, however, introduce the strengths of the game pad, asymmetric multiplayer(I'll spend some time on this later) and engage a watching audience like few games have tried before. It does all this while being a really entertaining game with a lot of options.
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