Wii U Reviews and Experience Part 2

Nintendo Land: Whilst it makes a great test bed for Nintendo's ideas, Nintendo Land isn't quite the offering I had hoped it would be. There are some stand-out multiplayer moments in it but it is not as easy to convince people to play them as it was with Wii Sports. There isn't a whole lot to the single player experience as the game is more of an instructional tool. Although each of the games makes a good diversion, if you have any other launch title you have probably got something better to play. All of the games are just a bit too limited in scope and it just makes me dream of what could be if they made a full title out of these great franchises. I still think the premium pack is the way to go but just not because of Nintendo Land 6.5/10.

Scribblenauts Unlimited: Scribblenauts is somewhat of a misnomer as you aren't scribbling but touch typing your way through the world. The game is primarily aimed at kids and doesn't allow you to write in some of the naughtier things you might like but with a bit of imagination even adults can have an obscene amount of fun with this game.

Scribblenauts is perfectly suited to the Wii U controller, you type away on the touch screen and you can move about the world using the touch screen or analogue sticks, it all flows pretty easily. The first thing you will probably do is just be silly and create a lot of nonsense and that is what's great about this game. Solving puzzles in silly ways is a lot of fun. Just dreaming up new things and ways to solve a puzzle is a great challenge.

It's not all perfect though. It can be a bit stale at times and it doesn't always understand your logic, seemingly craving the same objects you've been giving it over and over. Some of this can be put down to to the player's imagination or lack thereof but some of it is just bad gameplay. The story component is a little short but there are plenty of things to find and unlock once you have finished that. I also encountered a few bugs, with quests failing for no reason and objects not interacting with each other. Over all these are pretty mild things and a quick reset of the quest usually fixes it.

Scribblenauts Unlimited is definitely worth a play and whilst it does suffer from some minor setbacks it is well worth it's admission price 8/10.

Wii U Experience: Again one of the things I'm loving about the Wii U is that the controller gives you lots of options and Scribblenauts was another example of this. You could use the touch screen to walk or the stylus; walk over stars to collect them, or click on them with the stylus and select pick up. It's especially great if you are trying to eat, let's say chips, with one hand whilst playing with the other.

Online functionality does add some interesting twists to your games. Seeing what people have drawn is my favourite, or even reading their complete nonsense. Nintendo do have a way to go to catch up with their competitors in this regard but I don't think they are as far behind as some pundits claim. The online store is easy to use and offers a lot of free demo content, plus it has become one of the easiest places for indie developers to launch their games, so we may see some killer titles coming through due to that.

Finally, the worldwide sales figures. Whilst I can't get an exact number IGN estimate the worldwide sales figures at about 2.5 million, perhaps pushing a little closer to 3 million. Overall not a bad start but not a huge launch. However given the lull in the global economy at the moment these figures are probably quite good and certainly something Nintendo can build off.