Here's an article I recently posted on ProtoAttack.com !
Speed Racer is not the best film ever made. I know that seems like a pretty obvious statement to make, but if I already know that, then why do I recommend it as my go-to film when people ask me what movie they should try to test out their new Blu-Ray and HDTV setup? Because it’s gorgeous and colorful. It’s a great demonstration of what the technology is meant for, providing the best image possible.
Sin & Punishment: Star Successor isn’t the best game for Wii, but if somebody came over who has never tried the console, this is hands down the game I would put in because it utilizes the motion sensing technology in a great way. This is the first game I’ve played for Wii in ages where I was happy that it wasn’t just any other console.
If you haven’t played the original, don’t worry, most haven’t. It came out for Nintendo 64 but was never released in North America until the Virtual Console (remember that thing?) existed. The best way to describe it is a Treasure shooter in 3D space, which works out because it is made by Treasure and it’s a shooter in 3D space.
You use the remote and nunchuck. The remote is your point-and-shoot device, while your nunchuck moves your character around and jumps and dodges. The game is on rails, which normally is an annoyance to me, but again this is essentially a shmup in 3D, so I understand.
Yes, since it is a Treasure shooter that does mean it’s pretty difficult. This certainly isn’t any kind of bullet hell, but it’s still rough, even with the easiest settings. For the most part since you do have freedom of movement rather than the standard 8-directions in a top down shooter, it’s easier to dodge bullets, but I found that some of the attacks were just unavoidable, no matter if it looked like I had slipped past them.
Also being a Japanese game, it is pretty bizarre. Mechs, so-so voice acting, weird enemies including businessmen and dolphins, jazzy music, etc. Hey, all the more appealing to me.
The important thing here though is the control, and what brings me back to my opening statement. It’s difficult for me to understand why there isn’t more of this kind of game on Wii. I don’t want every game to be a shooter, but there has to be more implementations than just this. It’s the first game I really feel free in, and not just on Wii, but any console. The remote and nunchuck combo have always been freeing, but when something isn’t tacked onto a movement that would more easily be executed with a button, and you’re not just waggling to get your character to automatically do something, but are actually directly involved, then you start to get the whole point of this motion control thing…almost four years after the console came out.
