Wii Play
Wii
Nintendo


For all the things that are going right with Nintendo's new console - impressive sales, a good reception from the mainstream media - there's still the worry that the machine is simply going to become home to lazy ports and even lazier mini-game collections. Nintendo themselves aren't doing a great deal to help soothe any worries in this regard; aside from the wondrous 'Twilight Princess' and the enjoyable 'Wii Sports', their only other contribution to the Australian launch line-up was 'Wii Play' - a collection of nine mini-games that is notable mostly for the fact that it comes with a Wii remote for only ten dollars more than the remote itself sells for.

In many ways, 'Wii Play' is a training program for those just picking up the console. The first game, Shooting Range, is a simple tutorial in gun-like aiming with the remote. Despite this simplicity, it proves to be one of the more entertaining games in the collection: an amusing throwback to 'Duck Hunt' on the NES. Others, like Table Tennis, teach players to move the remote left and right quickly and accurately to hit the ball - though in this case, the simplicity of the game proves boring rather than endearing.

Laser Hockey, while similar, is much more interesting - a psychedelic air hockey match that sees players moving the remote in all directions, as well as twisting it to maneuver the puck around. It's fast paced, and easily played - unlike Billiards, in which players must use the remote like a pool cue, which is confusing and feels irritatingly imprecise. Fishing, with its engaging paper cutout art style, fares much better; simple and enjoyable and a well thought-out use of the controller.

The single-player mode offers the chance to win medals depending on score, but it feels a little pointless and empty and once you're done with the nine games on offer, you'll likely never touch them again. That said, there's a reason why the game comes with an extra remote packed in: it's intended to be a multiplayer title and it does a reasonable job of that - especially when you're playing with someone who is using the Wii for the first time. It's annoyingly hit-and-miss, often irritatingly vacuous, and foreshadows a trend that no-one really wants to see the Wii continuing, but - if only for its price point and pack-in remote - 'Wii Play' is at least worth a look.

Alistair Wallis