A few years ago the Metroid series finished a three part adventure in the Metroid Prime trilogy, the game focused heavily on bringing classic Metroid gameplay to a 3D enviornment and brought Samus back into the mainstream. Now a different developer, Team Ninja looks to expand Samus’s story and give players a new experience that brings old school Metroid gameplay together with her latest 3D adventure.

The first thing everyone will realize when they start up the game is that this is not a typical Nintendo game, while so many of the company’s games keep their general format Metroid: Other M completely branches out, mainly through the fact that it has an expansive story, something that’s almost unheard of in a Nintendo game. The game has a cinematic feel to it from the very start, Samus’s back story is slowly explored as she begins her next adventure right after Super Metroid. Throughout the game in-game and CG cutscenes look back on Samus’s time involved with the military and her relationships with other soliders and her commanding officer. It’s a nice change to see a classic Nintendo character to get a full featured back story and almost feels like players are finally meeting Samus for the first time. One thing to note however is that the voice acting is not always incredibly done, some lines sound forced while others sound very monotone, but overall the story and dialog are done well.

Gameplay is also a significant change from Samus’s previous adventures. The camera angle is fixed to it’s own location so it gives the feeling of playing a sidescroller however the environments are fully in 3D and players can explore in all directions. Metroid: Other M uses a unique control mechanic that hasn’t been used much before, the game limits players to using just the Wiimote. The Wiimote is held on it’s side during regular gameplay, however when you point the Wiimote at the screen the view will go into first person mode and allow players to see through Samus’s eyes. Important to note however is the fact that you can’t walk around in first person, so the ability is usually used to shoot things with precision but not for long battles. Although the controls work well for the most part, switching into first person is somewhat cumbersome, sometimes the Wiimote can get stuck if players don’t point it directly towards the sensor, and even when it does work smoothly it can take a second or two to adjust to the change in perspective. This can slow player’s reaction time dramatically in a fast paced fight.

Graphics are done very well considering the Wii’s limited graphic capabilities, environments look nice and clean and there a few nice details across the game. It’s no where near being on the same level as an HD game but it is definitely one of the better looking games on Nintendo’s machine. Some might argue that the Prime series looks slightly better but overall it’s still a good effort from Team Ninja.

Sound is where things are on different levels, the sound effects are nicely done and the music has some surprises as well, however the voice acting quality takes a dip on several occasions. In a game where the story is the central point the voice acting should be at top quality and several times I found myself very aware of the voice actor’s flaws. Still though points need to be given for effort, this is the first time a Nintendo game has had such an extensive amount of dialogue.

Overall Metroid: Other M succeeds in what it attempted to do, give one of Nintendo’s main characters a back story and explore her emotions. The story has a few twists and although the cutscenes can be frequent at times they are interesting and engaging. The gameplay that accompanies the story is by nature limiting, using the nunchuck would have opened up more possibilities and would have provided a better way of switching from first person to third person view but as it is it still works good. Metroid: Other M provides a unique and quality experience for Wii owners. However its not quite up to the status of other big Nintendo games but is still a very well done game that all Wii owners should check out.

Overall = 8.5

Mario has had a big presence on the Wii more so than possibly any other Nintendo console, with Super Mario Galaxy and New Super Mario Bros. Wii Nintendo has shown that they want the plumber to make his presence known not only to Nintendo fans but to the video game industry.

The original Super Mario Galaxy was a great title that is still considered one of the best games for the Wii, combing classic Mario platforming with gravity phyisics the game made a winning combination. However now Nintendo looks to surpass the original in every way, although many gamers were skeptical that the sequel would not be a significant improvement over the orignal however Nintendo has proven them wrong.

Super Mario Galaxy 2 is built off the original’s game engine so everything that made the first game great is still here, however the developers have learned from the few mistakes they made the first time and tweaked them all to near perfection and it’s becuase of this fact the game reaches a level in quality few other games reach on any console.

One of the first things gamers will notice is how streamlined the game is, at the very beginning of Galaxy 2 you’re given control of Mario in a 2D format similar to New Super Mario Bros. Wii, here the game teaches the controls of the game and begins the events of the story. Also the Hub world is now gone, replacing it is the world map style similar to that of Super Mario Bros. 3. These changes might initally seem like the game is being aimed at casual gamers rather than hardcore gamers but the changes are for the better, anything streamlined doesn’t really feel as if the game is only focusing on casual players but instead just helping them to get into the motions of the game.

The basic gameplay is still the same from the original Galaxy, Mario has his usual platform jumping skills and he must get through a variety of levels that and collect stars along the way. Most of the levels have the gravity engine as the focus, players will be jumping from planets and platforms all with their own gravitational pull for those that didn’t play the first Galaxy, this was a big feat in platform gaming and it could take some getting used to.

The graphics in Galaxy 2 are similar to part 1 which is no surprise, the game isn’t HD by any means but it’s still great to look at and probably the best graphics that the Wii has ever delivered. Nintendo obviously added as much polish as it could so that the game would run smoothly as possible while still keeping it’s graphics pleasant to look at.

Sound is also done with care in Galaxy 2, almost all of the musical scores fit in well with the levels and mood of the game. The music really gives an energy to Mario’s adventure maybe even more so than in previous titles. Sound effects are also nice, non of the characters have any actual lines of spoken dialog but that’s expected from a Mario game, however the sounds of all that’s happening around you is enough to give your ears a treat to listen to.

Perhaps what makes Super Mario Galaxy 2 so good is because it appeals to casual gamers and hardcore gamers. Casual gamers will like how easy it is to get into and since the game only requires about half the stars in the game to actually beat it the game becomes very accessible to anyone. However hardcore gamers will enjoy the game too because of the challenges, some levels are almost brutally difficult to complete and will be a real opportunity for gamers to measure up their true skills.

Overall Super Mario Galaxy 2 is one of the best games for the Wii and probably one of the best platforms in this generation of consoles. Everything about the game is polished, presentation, graphics and sound are all well done. However most important the basic gameplay is a solid foundation that the developers have used to make some of the most creative levels and challenges in any video game. If you have a Wii Super Mario Galaxy 2 is highly recommended.

Overall = 9.0

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Trauma Team is the newest entry in the medical series from Atlus, originally started on the DS with Trauma Center the games have expanded to be solid titles for both Nintendo consoles. Now with Trauma Team the developers have added all new gameplay types to vary the experience the series is known for.

Trauma Team is made up of six different gameplay modes each with it’s own main character, the different modes range from fast paced and exciting to slow and repetitive so most players will find their two or three favorite modes and leave the others off until they have to play through them since the game gives you the option to play the missions in any order. As players complete each mission cut scenes are unlocked to push the storyline forward, much like medical dramas on TV the doctors of Trauma Team all have their own personal issues that they must deal with as they go through the daily stresses of being a doctor. The story will feel familiar to those who watch anime, the same types of characters and quirky humor that is usually found in Japanese shows is present in Trauma Team.

The graphics in Trauma Team are fairly simple, the cut scenes are in a comic book style which works fairly well, unfortunately the animations are limited and could have used a little more polish. The actual gameplay graphics in the surgery modes are also simple with only vague colors and shapes representing actual organs and other body parts.

Sound is overall ok, the elevator music in the slower missions fits in well, as much as the exciting tunes during the surgeries. However the voice acting could use some improvement, a lot of the dialog is delivered as if they were being read directly off the script, a little more acting and feeling could have helped the story a lot.

The basic gameplay mechanics for the surgery levels are still the same from previous entries of the series so fans will feel at home with half of the modes right away. Forensics and Diagnostics are more like adventure games where players need to put the pieces of the problem together in order complete the mission. Although these levels were placed in to slow the pace of the game a little they slow it down a little too much which could make finishing each mission a chore. Overall though Trauma Team still delivers on it’s promise in creating a simple doctor simulation.

The biggest problem with Trauma Team is that it could have been a lot better had the presentation been more robust and the slower modes had been refined a little. One interesting thing to point out is that the game is retailed at a budget price of $40 which does help sweeten the deal. As it is Trauma Team is a solid title for the Wii, fans and new comers who are interested in playing doctor or house will enjoy it.

Overall = 7.7

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If you own an Xbox 360, PS3 or Wii its no surprise that with normal use of the controller, the rubber on the thumb sticks start to wear off. Those crisp little buds on the surface of the Xbox 360 controller, ridges of the PS3 and Wii controller will be no worn in only a couple of months. Caps4Stix rejuvenates your thumb sticks with their analog stick covers.

Caps4Stix are soft rubber thumb grips for your analog controllers and due to the soft grippy buds on the ends of the rubber, it will completely eliminate
the problem of your thumbs slipping off the stick during game play. We tested it for several different controls and consoles, our first was the Xbox 360. A snug fit and ideal use for the Xbox 360. It feels much better then the original analog grips, example when playing Modern Warfare 2 it added a little more precision with movements. On the PS3 since the analog sticks come up the buds on the covers pop out. It took us a second to get used to this feeling but again felt better then the original analog sticks.

These covers feel very natural and should have little to no slipping issues. They also work for various different controls on different consoles as well, the nunchuk for the Wii works great as well, however older controller thumb sticks may get stuck around the edges when fully rotating. That is because they evidently make the analog sticks bigger since this is a cover for the existing ones.

Overall these are a must for anyone that want as much precision as possible during gameplay. Whether you have an old or new controller they are definitely better then the factory made analog sticks. They will last longer and even when you get to the point where it will be worn out they are better then the original rubber. For about $1.99 you can’t go wrong with this product.

Pros: Feels great, Better feedback and easy to mount.

Con: Could use more colors

There were plenty of gaming goodies all over the show floor at Pax East 2010. One gaming goodness that stood out to me were Gunnar’s Digital Performance Eyeware. These glasses are designed to ease the relentless stream of information that comes from computers, tvs, and handheld screens to your eyes. We were going to use them for gaming as that is one of their main focuses. I actual bought a pair (the Weezer model) because I was in dire need of lenses to help with my constant eyestrain from monitors and gaming. Were Gunnar eyeware really the new gaming glasses they say they are?

For starters, Gunnar claims that these glasses reduce “Digital Eye Fatigue” and “Computer Vision Syndrome, so let us review the features to familiarize ourselves to understand the full spectrum. In terms of comfortability, they feel very natural when put on. Our glasses were ultra-light stainless steel frames, so they are flexible and can be easily adjusted. They are not heavy and have a very snug fit. Wearing them will help you appreciate the vision you already have and aware of how sensitive they are by reducing the artificial light that comes in.

Gunner utilizes innovative i-AMP Lens Technology. The four technologies used for their glasses are diAMIX lens material, i-FL lens coating, FRACTYL lens geometry and iONik lens tints. Each pair provides its own unique aspect and overall experience. When in use, you will see a difference because they refocus your sight and give everything a magnified appearance. Believe it or not this helps, giving your eyes a break from having to keeping focusing, putting less stress on them.

The lenses have a yellow hue, and is used to help your eyes stay relaxed when viewing monitors at relatively short distance. What make monitors damaging to your eyes is that the artificial light is constanly going through your eyes. What the yellow hue does is when the light passes through, your eyes have a much easier time processing the light. After taking them off, I notice my eyes were dialaiting and watering to refocus which shows how much we go through to process this information.

What makes Gunnar’s glasses so great is how light they are. When I wore them it was easy to forget I had them on (aside of everything looking slightly yellow of course.), my ears don’t feel starined from the weight at all. This seemed perfect as I managed to play a number of games like Modern Warfare 2, Final Fantasy 13, etc. for an extented period of time without feel a hint of eyestrain.

The Gunnar glasses are a vital asset to my gaming experience. Prices range from $70 up to $150. The differences in price vary from style and the quality of the frames, the lense quality are pretty much the same. Any choice would be a wise investment. We all know that prolonged periods of viewing monitors can damage your eyes in the long term. With Gunnar’s glasses, you can rest assure that your eyes are well taken care of. Depending on the kind of gamer or computer user you are, this won’t appeal to everyone but once you try them you will definitely notice the difference.

>Side Note – The glasses can be prescriptioned filled at selected Gunnar retailers, they also have an outdoor edition and have clear lenses as well, to learn more about Gunnars’s products, go to gunnars.com

Made available in the US by high demand from fans they definitely knew this was one no one should miss. With some of the most intense fighting action you will certainly get in awhile, see why this Wii fighter is one you can’t pass up on in our video review.

Overall = 9.1

Written Review link

No More Heroes 2 has been released about 2 years after the original made a scene back in 2008, the first entry in the series had gotten a lot of attention due to it’s mature content on the family friendly Nintendo console. No More Heroes barely had any limits as it had tons of blood, crude humor, and sexual scenes. Although the game had a lot of style it had some technical issues which kept it from reaching it’s potential but the game still received plenty of awards and sparked a following. Now No More Heroes 2 looks to continue with it’s original style and fix it’s technical issues.

One of the first things that needs to be said about No More Heroes 2 is that it’s very unique, the art style is a near perfect blend of anime, and western films. The game has a very “Sin City” feel to it as the game has ridicules amounts of blood and completely over the top violence. One of the main differences gamers will notice if they played the original is that the free roaming world is now gone, replaced now with a menu where you can select where to go. Many will think the series took a step back with this decision but once you play the game you realize that it was the right choice. The selection screen now allows you to jump right into the action and because their is a lot to do you’ll hardly miss the free roaming map.

The main parts of game have you fighting through a level of enemies until you reach the boss of the level, these are called ranked battles and they get progressively more difficult, in fact many battles later on tend to get a little too crazy to the point where you can hardly tell what’s going on in the fight. However for most players the frantic battles won’t be too much of a problem, at it’s core No More Heroes is a beat-em-up game and anyone with experience in the genre should feel comfortable controlling Travis.

Other than the main story battles there is a lot to do in the city and even in the character’s apartment. No More Heroes 2 is littered with old school style mini games complete with pixelated graphics and 8-bit soundtracks, older gamers will definitely appreciate the classic charm of the games. Even in these mini games No More Heroes 2 manages to retain it’s unique personality, almost everything in the game has some violent or sexual theme to it however subtle it may be and the developer deserves to be recognized when it brings these themes so well together. The game hardly ever feels like it’s being edgy just to make heads turn, it does it because that’s the way the story is best told.

Graphics try to impress not with detail but with quantity and animation. The Wii’s power is no more near that of the other consoles so No More Heroes 2 might look a little bland from technical stand point but this forgiven considering the console and the fact that it makes up for it from an artistic stand point. As a game with so much going on often times this is easily one of the best looking games on the Wii.

The sound is also top notch, voice overs are done with as much personality as the game itself although in fights the enemies might repeat a line or two too many times giving them a slightly repetitive feel to them. Music is also all about have a unique and often strange style to it, like the visuals there’s a mixture of anime and western films and it comes together nicely considering how different the two styles are.

Overall No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle is better than the first in almost every way, the technical issues have been fixed for the most part and series has taken it’s unique personality to a new level. The Wii doesn’t have many titles like No More Heroes 2, in fact even the other consoles don’t have a quite like No More Heroes 2. If you have a Wii No More Heroes 2 is a strong recommendation, there’s a lot to see and do in the game so you’ll definitely be getting a bang for your buck, and if you haven’t played the first it’s still recommended you check this game out simply because it deserves your attention as a Wii owner.

Overall 8.8

Stay tuned for the video review coming soon

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Video Review link

It’s no surprise the the amount of hardcore games for the Wii is less then stellar, especially when it comes to particular genres. Well folks this is an entry for the ages, sporting not only controls easy for pick up but delivers deep gameplay for hardcore around the board. Tatsunoko vs Capcom is one of those games that can be easily passed off as a quick scheme for Capcom to make a buck on the mega seller Wii but this game was made with A lot of firepower.

Tatsunoko vs Capcom takes it back to its roots from the Vs series (ala Marvel Vs. Capcom, etc.), so if you’ve played those you’ll feel right at home here. Added in the roster are many fresh faces to a Capcom fighting game including the entire cast of Tatsunoko. What’s great is that each character doesn’t stray to far from the pack but is unique enough to really add some strategy for each fighter. The control scheme is also easy to pick up, making use of three attack buttons and a assist button that can also tag you out. At first it maybe a little odd to use one button for both punch and kick but doesn’t take to long to adjust.

You’ll spend the majority of gameplay in Arcade mode at first, which boast secret characters, endings, and acquire points during matches. Points can be used at the shop to purchase more colors for fighters, gallerys and viewed endings. All other modes include versus, time attack, survival and online play. We’ve noticed that in online play the game holds up surprisingly well for the Wii. The Wii is not known for having great online connectivity but this game stayed relatively smooth. Supporting the creation of friend rosters and rival rosters can have you going at the online for quite awhile. The detail in this game are some of the best done on the Wii. The environments add depth, characters looks rich and everything just seems to be very vibrant. Combos and super moves for everyone seem very lush and chock full of color as well.

Tatsunoko vs Capcom fits right into the vs series library, making use of Capcom allstars like Viewtiful Joe, Frank West and a Lost Planet suit. To Tatsunoko’s cast like Geforce characters, the 2d-3d anime Karas and more. For anyone that enjoys fighters, this one is definitely hard to pass up or put down. It’s clear that their was A lot of thought put into this entry and with an unfamiliar for some yet intriguing cast, it’s not hard to see that this maybe the start of many more of these calibrations to come.

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Their comes a time in gaming history where the technology is truly ground breaking. Where it will stand in time as the innovator, leading to bigger and better things. The N64’s rumble pack, playstations duel analog controller, the Wii controller, guitar hero etc. Unfortunately where those succeeded on being innovative, this one seems to miss its mark.

The Tony hawk franchise has been slowly pummeling itself on a downward spiral of games until Skate came along and knocked off its horse completely. Taking a 2 year hiatus the series, it planned to make the skating experience as authentic as possible, what we get is something that just doesn’t feel that put together in any aspect. The board has two accelerometers and four sensors to track movement. The sides will track you kicking the board for more speed while the front and back are for grabs. Don’t get us wrong it feels very durable but (and maybe it was just us) you do have this overwhelming feeling like your going to fall all the time.

Getting on the board and turning the game on will put you through the configuration process, once done your ready to begin. You’ll notice their are 3 types of modes when you get in which are career, online and party play. Their are 3 difficultly types, casual, confident and expert, the first of which basically plays itself. Career mode lets you run through the story but is the same 3 types of play throughout the entire game. Stages seem pretty linear offering little variety between them, thats also do to the fact that you feel limited in movement when on the board. The game is pretty stripped of features and gameplay elements, from the single player to the online player which still seems to be single player. The soundtrack is the real hero in this offering a great mix bag and has never failed the Tony hawk series before.

For $120 the game only offers a casual experience that not everyone will get into. With only a great soundtrack to hold on to its tough to tell what direction future games might go from here, one thing is for certain, it might be back to the drawing board for this one.

overall = 6.5

Anime fighting on video game consoles has always been a constant struggle to recapture the intensity of the manga battles that we all love. Today’s generation of games bring us closer at reliving the famous battles of the anime universe. Naruto Shippuden: CONR 3 for the wii, while different then its PS3 and Xbox 360 counterparts still bring us one step closer to this goal.

Naruto Shippuden: CONR 3 for the wii is a fighting style game where you choose a character from the manga series and duke it out with an opponent. There are different modes to play in such as the Story Mode,  VS mode, and Online mode just to name a few. Naurto, Sakura, Kakashi and a few others  are avalible at start however most of the characters have to be unlocked by buying them in the store in the game. Completing story missions in the game’s story line will help you gain money for these characters. You can also buy other things such as more options to toggle with.  ( For example, more power, harder difficulty, etc…) Online play and collecting money for store items will give players plenty to do.

The fighting system is very easy to learn. Depending on what controller you are using on the game, for example the Gamecube controller, the A button is strong attack, the B button is weak attack and  the L and R buttons are for dodging and counter attacks. Y button for throw. The X button is for Super Jutsu attack (or called secret technique) and lastly, the Z button is for switching characters in a tag battle match. Each character has a super gauge called Chakra which fills up from oncoming damage from your opponent. In my experience using the GC controller feels more intuitive. However you can also also use the wii remote (with nunchuck), and  the classic remote for different styles of play.

Each player has their own different super moves, however they all have very similar basic attack combinations. What separates the characters though is the different animations. This is not a huge flaw but having basically the same moves for every character can get boring.
However some characters are very unique to use. Granny Chyio and Tsunde are the characters who use puppets in the game. In this example you can manuever them through the field but their attack puppets move only through attack. The plus side is that the puppets have an auto tracker, the player won’t have to change the attacking postion.

Battles in Naurto 3 can be both fun and challenging.  Some characters can inflict stauts ailments on their opponents such as reversing direction orientation. In other words, left becomes right and right becomes left. There is a scene in the game’s story where Guy must face himself which was an interesting feature in the game. The catch is that the computer character will mimic your every move. The goal is to defeat the cpu utilizing the stage enviroments under a time limit, this puzzle-like element adds a dash of orginality in fighting games which is a huge welcome.

Visuals in Naruto 3 is pleasing for the most part. The game uses cell shaded graphics to convey the anime feel which is a classic way of presenting in most anime fighting games. The games moves at a solid 60 frames per second which is great. The character models are nicely detailed however the environments are not very texturized as the the characters are and it is pretty noticeable. However this graphical nag doesn’t take away from the fighting experience and still enjoyable.

The sound is standard of this fighting game. From the classic booms, bangs and blows landing sounds from the manga are all here. The voices in the game are straight from the american voices of the show. The voice acting sounds a bit pushed and to not have the option to switch to the japanese voice seems odd in this point in time with video games. The option to play the game in the very natural japanese voice would of add more vaule and enjoyment to the overall experience.

Naruto 3 for the Nintendo Wii is a nice rendition of the series. Easy pick up and play mechanics, running at a solid 60 fps, and online play makes for a well rounded Naurto experience. There is room for improvement however but the presentation is fairly solid.  This iteration of Naruto for the Wii is a step foward for anime games and with more focus on solidifing the game play mechanics and visual presentation, it appears games have become grown up as the Naruto series itself.

Overall: 7.8

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