Fear not, game girls is not dead. That pesky beast known as the real world gets in the way of blogging every once in a while, forcing us geeks to contend with various responsibilities including school, jobs and covering federal elections. But with things calming down — and me getting some serious gaming done in my new apartment — we should be back on track here soon.
I’m still working my way through Final Fantasy IV DS (same pathetic excuse about “real life” getting in the way). Yours truly is now on the moon and about to earn the best summon of all. I’m told the giant backstory video featuring the characters as children comes after the Giant of Babil, which comes after the first trip to the moon, so I don’t have any “experienced it for the first time” moments to share yet. In much happier news, FuSoYa still looks very much like a mop, and still looks hilarious when he’s been knocked out.
I’ve been getting a fair bit of mileage out of my Wii, especially since getting Wii Fit just over a month ago. I’ve only missed a few days in that period and I’ve already noticed my posture improving. Nintendo gets mad bonus points for creating a fitness product that goes beyond weight loss and strength training, even though I can only do three or four of the yoga poses at this point. My spine isn’t made of Jello (to the best of my knowledge).
Since I’ve been finding Wii Sports and Wii Fit so entertaining, I took the plunge and rented Wii Music this week. The game has endured criticism from gamers used to the more streamlined Guitar Hero and Rock Band series, and, as Wired notes, hasn’t been selling very well. As a gamer and a music geek, I felt compelled to give it a shot.
To put it simply, it takes a little while to get used to.
The game begins with instructions on how to produce sound while “playing” different instruments — different types of instruments use different motions and buttons and have different settings. The overall setup is confusing at first, and the manual isn’t terribly helpful. Once I got comfortable with the interface, it became kind of fun.
Wii Music levels the playing field, so to speak, when it comes to gamers’ musical abilities. You don’t need to be able to read music or have experience with any instrument to be able to play the game; the only necessary skills are the ability to use a Wiimote and Nunchuk. (Rhythm helps.) I had some trouble with it at the beginning despite playing a few instruments in real life for that very reason — I play music on instruments, not Wiimotes. Fortunately, the notes to a given song are already lined up for you in the proper order. The trick is getting the timing right — or is it? The game’s first lesson is that it’s okay to improvise. You grade your own performance when all is said and done, and can watch it as a “music video” that plays out on a stage chosen by you.
The game’s highlight is the overdubbing feature, which allows players to not only select a song and a backdrop for their “performance,” but also record multiple instrument parts over each other. Depending on how many players go at it at once, you could complete the melody, harmony, bass and percussion sections of a single song with one Mii, then watch five avatars designed to look like you break it down together, complete with adorable animated interactions. Up to four players can “jam” together, and the actions required to produce sound border on the amusingly ludicrous, suggesting this might make a decent party game for kids too young for the more advanced music games.
If nothing else, it gives those of us who can’t sing something to do while the rest of the world sings karaoke. B-
Posted by Kerry 