BPX001: When Wii Were Kings

[DeathAdder]

Mario Galaxy was one of the best 3D Mario's since Mario 64

Isn't there only Sunshine in that time period?

[MarioMark]

Ok Galaxy still is one of the best since 64.

[Neon Ignition]

As much as I love Galaxy 1 & 2 the Dolphin point is a good one. If Nintendo released them both on NX mapped to a standard controller I'd immediately enjoy them both more and the only real alteration they'd need to make is to make the star bits magnetise to Mario like bolts do to Ratchet. Actually, that's pretty much true of most Wii games. They worked fine on the Wiimote/nunchuk but bar the odd exception it too often felt it was in spite of them rather than because of them. Their outlook does seem to be that the controller makes the system as if you remove that aspect there's nothing remarkable about any of their systems.

If anything it's impressive how consistent they are in hobbling each platform with something that really gets in its way.

Since the N64 stuck with cartridges, the Cube had its space restricted mini-discs, Wii was severely underpowered and WiiU was relatively underpowered with an overly expensive controller. Surely it's inevitable NX will have something that causes facepalms.

[wakka]

I have to say I really enjoyed using the Wiimote and nunchuk for games that had mostly traditional controls (minimal pointing/waving), It was really comfortable, aided by the two-piece design.

[Neon Ignition]

I remember enjoying the wiimote support in Prime 3 compared to the earlier games but that could have been because the C-Stick on the Cube was too small

[Nu-Eclipse]

I remember enjoying the wiimote support in Prime 3 compared to the earlier games but that could have been because the C-Stick on the Cube was too small

For me, the Wii ports of Metroid Prime 1/2 and Pikmin 1/2 are the definitive versions. They are greatly enhanced by Wiimote control.

[randombs]

The Wii is the only console I've ever bought on the strength of one or two games, such that I would've been happy not playing anything else and still feel like the whole package was value for money. Those games are Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort.

I agree with others on here that the Wii feels like a mixture of fluke and genius. They definitely marketed it well and it, along with the DS, was the only console I believed the celebrities(e.g Beyonce) in the adverts would actually use themselves.

[Leon Retro]

It was the definition of a "fad" because a couple of years after everyone on the planet had bought one... it ended up either being left to gather dust or sold for pennies.

It's understandable why everyone got excited about motion control and playing tennis & bowling in the home, but once people got bored of swinging their arms around, they didn't have much interest in the machine and its games. But, of course, enthusiast gamers bought games like Super Mario Galaxy 1 & 2, which were genuinely brilliant creations that will always be returned to.

As much as I thought the Wii wasn't a great console, I have fond memories of playing Excite Truck, Mario Kart Wii and the Galaxy games. There were quite a few gems for the machine that left me with positive memories. But I fully understand why lots of people didn't like the Wii and recognise it as a mixed blessing for Nintendo. It sold amazingly well.. but definitely tarnished Nintendo's reputation - not just with enthusiasts but with the mainstream; people began to see Nintendo as a toy company rather than a big player in the console market. Microsoft delivered the 360, Sony gave people the PS3, and Nintendo offered a relatively 'damp squib' with the Wii - an underpowered 480P machine that most developers didn't have any interest in due to it not being powerful enough.

So, the Wii was a huge success and there were a few genuinely great games released for it, but it did taint Nintendo's reputation amongst console gamers. I really hope Nintendo can come back strong with their next console.

[dataDave]

For me, the Wii ports of Metroid Prime 1/2 and Pikmin 1/2 are the definitive versions. They are greatly enhanced by Wiimote control.

Resident Evil 4, too. Aiming guns with a pointing device is a million times more intuitive/comfortable/faster/precise than using a joystick.

[Nu-Eclipse]

Resident Evil 4, too. Aiming guns with a pointing device is a million times more intuitive/comfortable/faster/precise than using a joystick.

I agree.

[charlesr]

The Wii brought the return of lightgun shooters for the flatscreen age. The EMS Topgun kit for the PS2 was a good attempt, but when done well like Ghost Squad and L.A. Machineguns, the Wii pointer in a gun accessory is almost as good as the old CRT games (in terms of pointing, not gameplay). It's really sad that they didn't rerelease all the old games

[charlesr]

However, the list of on rails shooters appears to be far greater than I imagined: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_gun_games#Wii

EDIT: no, that's a list of games that support the zapper OR are lightgun rail games

[Neon Ignition]

The wiimote made for a good makeshift gun controller, it always seemed best suited to the game types that sold least. Thinking back, Wii was kind of the last solid gun genre platform. A few made it to PS3 but it's practically dead at this point.

[wakka]

Yeah, it's a shame. I really miss lightgun games.

[thetrooper]

The Wii brought the return of lightgun shooters for the flatscreen age. The EMS Topgun kit for the PS2 was a good attempt, but when done well like Ghost Squad and L.A. Machineguns, the Wii pointer in a gun accessory is almost as good as the old CRT games (in terms of pointing, not gameplay). It's really sad that they didn't rerelease all the old games

I totally agree!

I always found it funny how Sega didn't bother with a Virtua Cop collection; I was working in Game at the time Ghost Squad was released and we couldn't keep it in stock for the first month or so (I chuckle a bit when I now see it sitting in CEX for a couple of quid).