| Platform | OVERALL |
|---|---|
| Wii | 7.80 |
| Overall | 7.80 |
|
Lost Winds is one of the launch WiiWare titles and by most peoples opinion it is the best game to come out. Of note its only $10, so it is a short game. Lost Winds is a side scrolling platformer/puzzle game. The hook of the game is that not only do you control the main character Toku, but you also control the wind spirit with the wiimote. Toku can't do much on his own other than walk and grab so you must use the wind to make him jump and move him around the environment, as well as interact with the game world. The game has a simple story about an evil demon that was imprisoned by good spirits but its escaped and you must help the wind spirit regain its power to fight off the evil demon. The simple story works, there are NPCs in the game which flesh it out a bit more, again its very simple but it fits cause this is a tiny game. In no time you are controlling Toku and the wind and off to your adventure. The games world is sort of like Metroid, its 2d with many paths that are not open to you at the start. When you begin the game all you have is the ability to make small gusts with the wind which will propel Toku around. To do this you simply draw a line, vertical or horizontal while holding A. Its simple, intuative and always responsive. You can also manipulate objects in the world like bolders, not as easy to move as Toku but you have no direct control of it so its supposed to be harder to manipulate. The game starts off with simple puzzles like move the block onto the switch, as well as battling simple blob creatures, which you can kill by launching them in the air and letting them splat on the floor. Soon after you are finding new abilities and the game begins to explore larger puzzles. The game continues to build and build at a quick pace, you are learning a new ability like once every 20 minutes by the end you can do all sorts of interesting things like create a vortex to launch obejects, mainupate fire and more all done perfectly with the wiimote. The areas you explore also get more complex as the game goes on. It starts off with simple puzzles that are right in your face but by the end you have multileveled, multiswitch, puzzles in a large areas that really explore all your abilities. Its never that hard, you wont need a guide or anything but its enough to be enjoyable. On top of puzzles there are enemies which try to get in your way (they almost never hurt you, in fact its very hard to die in this game), some fly, some are made of rock. The cool thing is that you can kill them in interesting ways like launch a bolder at them, or fling them into the air and then push fire onto them. Sadly there are a few enemy types and only one is used to solve puzzles, I wish they intergrated the enemies into the puzzle solving more. The game is short, only three hours, by the end the game feels like the first part of a larger game, thats cause it is. If you can accept that, pretend you are paying for the first chunk of a game, the length of the game should not be an issue, I felt I got my moneys worth. There is a bit of backtracking though, its nesessary with these Metroid like worlds but this game has no map, so get ready to get lost at times. As you play you will come across "hidden" statues, there are 24 in all but most of them are very noticable, normally they have you using an advance skill to get to them. The game ends with its only boss fight, its a Zelda style use your ability to hit the weak points fight which surprisingly works great. I wish there were more but I guess thats for the next game. Graphically the game is gorgeous for such a small title. The colors are vibrant, everything in the world sways with the push of the wind. There are only two tracks of music, the standard exploring track and the battle track, both have an oriental vibe to them. The whole game evokes a feeling of calm, of serenity. The music is soothing, the pacing is slow, its almost relaxing. Lost Winds is a very fun, unique title that makes excellent use of the wiimote. Its short, it is rather simple but its fun. Well worth it in my opinion. Overal Score: 7.8 |
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Posted by Dvader Sun, 22 Jun 2008 06:42:09
Mon, 23 Jun 2008 01:01:49
Great review! I'm going to buy this one someday, but there's just too many VC games I want more right now. 
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