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RUNE FACTORY 3 CHARACTERS SERIES
The Wii version was actually one of the first titles in the series to come to the U.S., and it’s honestly kind of a mixed bag. Shiren the Wanderer is a series of extremely difficult roguelike RPGs that have sporadically appeared in the West over the years. Unfortunately, even Hollywood talent wasn’t enough to buoy the game’s sales. Billy Bob Thornton and the late Dennis Hopper actually provide the voices of two humans who appear throughout the story. The result was a pretty cool little experiment with surprisingly high production value for a third-party Wii game. Deadly Creatures was an attempt early in the Wii’s lifespan to create a new IP that went beyond the casual gamer demographic and sought an answer to the question, “What if you could use these new controls to play as a scorpion and a tarantula?” While there was a lot of hype for the Wii’s 2006 release, its runaway success surprised most developers. At least it’s easy to pick up a copy on the cheap. Capcom initially showed interest in a sequel, but the characters seem to be completely abandoned at this point. Unfortunately, the heyday of point-and-click games is long past, and the game sold abysmally. It’s a lot more charming than it sounds, and the numerous uses of the Wii-mote were especially innovative.
RUNE FACTORY 3 CHARACTERS UPDATE
Developed by an all-star team at Capcom, it’s a modern update on traditional point-and-click adventures featuring a pirate boy and a monkey, who he can shake like a bell to solve puzzles.
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Zack & Wiki was one of the most ambitious original titles for the Wii. It’s also one of the best looking games on the Wii, featuring hundreds of finely detailed fish that look great even in standard definition. Some may prefer the more open-ended experience of its predecessor, but Blue World includes a solid story mode for those who prefer a more guided experience. That’s the gist of Endless Ocean: Blue World, one of the more relaxing titles released for the Wii. Go out to the middle of the ocean, dive deep into the water, meet the marine wildlife, and search for treasure. Really, there are a lot of interesting ideas here that don’t always pan out, but the atmosphere remains top notch, and the puzzles make excellent use of the Wii-mote.
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Enemy appearances change slightly based on the answers you give to a therapist between levels, adding a touch of personal horror to the game. There’s no combat, you just run from enemies in a frozen version of Silent Hill that pops up between your explorations. Shattered Memories was a “reimagining” of the first Silent Hill, keeping the same basic plot of Harry Mason searching for his missing daughter, but heavily tweaking the gameplay.
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