The Top 10 Wii Games of 2010
This has been the best year yet for Wii games. There are more than ten must-have games this year, so I’ve had to leave off some great games like GoldenEye 007 and Trauma Team as well as others that, while not the best of 2010, could easily have been the best of 2009 or 2008. 2010 is the first year in which a lot of the best Wii games were as engaging as the best games on the PS3 and Xbox 360. Will the good games continue, or will publishers seduced by new hardware put all their best motion-gaming designers to work on the other consoles’ new gesture gaming systems? We’ll find out in 2011.
While not quite the gaming revolution promised by the designers, and in spite of camera and control issues, action-adventure game Disney Epic Mickey still stands as the best Wii game of 2010, with clever gameplay, an engaging story, intriguing visuals, a great score and more than the usual amount of freedom in deciding how to approach tasks. While not perfect, Mickey is a Wii game that can stand side-by-side with similar classics like The Legend of Zelda:Twilight Princess and Okami. I love this game, and I never even liked Mickey Mouse.More »
There are games I like better than Donkey Kong Country Returns, but none that match its virtually flawless game design. This old-school 2D platformer does everything right, offering remarkably varied gameplay. It is also blisteringly difficult, so if you are averse to endless deaths in pursuit of perfect timing, this might not be the game for you. But it sure is nicely done.More »
No game series has exemplified the difficulties of translating a 2D platformer to the third dimension so well as Sonic the Hedgehog, a series whose brilliant early 2D games were followed by years of bad 3D sequels. In the world of video games, 2010 will always be known as the year Sonic finally got it right. Sonic Colors beautifully captures the blinding speed and colorful design of the old 2D games. In fact, in a never before-seen feat, the 3D Sonic game is a lot more fun than the 2D Wiiware game Sonic the Hedgehog 4. While Donkey Kong Country Returns proves 2D is still viable, Sonic Colors proves that nothing has to stay flat.More »
Let’s face it, Harmonix owns the rock rhythm game genre. After Activision bought the rights to their breakout hit series Guitar Hero out from under them, Harmonix upped the ante with Rock Band, going from a music game with a toy guitar controller to a music game with peripherals for guitar, drums and vocals. With Rock Band 3, Harmonix has once again revolutionized the genre, adding keyboards and replacing five-button toy instruments with fully functional guitars and keyboards that allow for incredibly complex gameplay. RB3 is so close to playing real music that I expect ten years from now when rock stars are asked how they got into music, half will say it all started when they were trying to beat Bohemian Rhapsody on expert mode.More »
With its riveting cold war story, varied, well designed gameplay and solid multiplayer, Call of Duty: Black Ops represents the pinnacle of Wii first person shooters. While many developers put out a completely different, generally lesser game of the same title for the Wii, Developer Treyarch respects the console enough to squeeze in as much of the PS3/360 game as it can, and while there is more content and better graphics in the other versions, the Wii version has Call of Duty’s excellent control system to recommend it. In spite of some stiff competition from GoldenEye 007 and Call of Duty: World at War, I’m declaring Black Ops the best Wii FPS of all time.More »
In 2003, I fell in love with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time because of its brilliant gameplay and lovely storytelling. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands has that same athletic platforming and challenging puzzle solving, as well as superior combat, so it’s a shame that the story is an inexcusable mess. While the magic is missing from the narrative, there are still moments of pure magic in the fanciful levels and ingenious game mechanics.More »
And Yet It Moves is one of those rare games that was improved when ported to a different platform. A puzzle platformer originally designed for the PC, AYIM is even better in its WiiWare incarnation, as the game’s motion controls are perfect for the central game mechanism in which you can rotate the entire game world, allowing players to turn the ceiling into the floor. This is a simple, low-budget indie game that is everything such games should be, and the best WiiWare game of the year.More »
While the promising anime start to the story goes nowhere, the gameplay of flight combat game Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces is consistently entertaining. The unusual control scheme alone makes the game worth playing, as you reverse your nunchuk and remote for use as a flight controller. If this game had a decent story and online multiplayer it could have been the best flight game ever made. Even without those, it’s still the best of the genre for the Wii.More »
Where most games rely on adrenaline-pumping action or tough mental challenges for their appeal, Endless Ocean: Blue World offers a pleasant sense of relaxed adventure that makes a game about swimming through sometimes frigid waters feel like relaxing in the hot tub. Likeable and varied, this mix of scuba-diving simulator, adventure game and nature documentary has got to be the pleasantest games of 2010, and proof that a game doesn’t have to brutalize the player to be fun.More »
The original No More Heroes was a really great action game diluted with terrible mini-games and pointless driving. The sequel, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, strips out most of the dross and leaves in the great, gory sword combat and insanely over-the-top style that made the first game so much fun. It’s a shame the designers failed to come up with any interesting new gameplay ideas or a good story, but a game that is nothing more than No More Heroes without the awful parts is still one awesome game.More »
Here are the games good enough to have made a Wii top 10 in previous years: GoldenEye 007, Trauma Team, Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon, Create, Red Steel 2, Max and the Magic Marker, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers, Sin & Punishment: Star Successor. What a year it’s been.
1. Disney Epic Mickey
While not quite the gaming revolution promised by the designers, and in spite of camera and control issues, action-adventure game Disney Epic Mickey still stands as the best Wii game of 2010, with clever gameplay, an engaging story, intriguing visuals, a great score and more than the usual amount of freedom in deciding how to approach tasks. While not perfect, Mickey is a Wii game that can stand side-by-side with similar classics like The Legend of Zelda:Twilight Princess and Okami. I love this game, and I never even liked Mickey Mouse.More »
2. Donkey Kong Country Returns
There are games I like better than Donkey Kong Country Returns, but none that match its virtually flawless game design. This old-school 2D platformer does everything right, offering remarkably varied gameplay. It is also blisteringly difficult, so if you are averse to endless deaths in pursuit of perfect timing, this might not be the game for you. But it sure is nicely done.More »
3. Sonic Colors
No game series has exemplified the difficulties of translating a 2D platformer to the third dimension so well as Sonic the Hedgehog, a series whose brilliant early 2D games were followed by years of bad 3D sequels. In the world of video games, 2010 will always be known as the year Sonic finally got it right. Sonic Colors beautifully captures the blinding speed and colorful design of the old 2D games. In fact, in a never before-seen feat, the 3D Sonic game is a lot more fun than the 2D Wiiware game Sonic the Hedgehog 4. While Donkey Kong Country Returns proves 2D is still viable, Sonic Colors proves that nothing has to stay flat.More »
4. Rock Band 3
Let’s face it, Harmonix owns the rock rhythm game genre. After Activision bought the rights to their breakout hit series Guitar Hero out from under them, Harmonix upped the ante with Rock Band, going from a music game with a toy guitar controller to a music game with peripherals for guitar, drums and vocals. With Rock Band 3, Harmonix has once again revolutionized the genre, adding keyboards and replacing five-button toy instruments with fully functional guitars and keyboards that allow for incredibly complex gameplay. RB3 is so close to playing real music that I expect ten years from now when rock stars are asked how they got into music, half will say it all started when they were trying to beat Bohemian Rhapsody on expert mode.More »
5. Call of Duty: Black Ops
With its riveting cold war story, varied, well designed gameplay and solid multiplayer, Call of Duty: Black Ops represents the pinnacle of Wii first person shooters. While many developers put out a completely different, generally lesser game of the same title for the Wii, Developer Treyarch respects the console enough to squeeze in as much of the PS3/360 game as it can, and while there is more content and better graphics in the other versions, the Wii version has Call of Duty’s excellent control system to recommend it. In spite of some stiff competition from GoldenEye 007 and Call of Duty: World at War, I’m declaring Black Ops the best Wii FPS of all time.More »
6. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands
In 2003, I fell in love with Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time because of its brilliant gameplay and lovely storytelling. Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands has that same athletic platforming and challenging puzzle solving, as well as superior combat, so it’s a shame that the story is an inexcusable mess. While the magic is missing from the narrative, there are still moments of pure magic in the fanciful levels and ingenious game mechanics.More »
7. And Yet It Moves
And Yet It Moves is one of those rare games that was improved when ported to a different platform. A puzzle platformer originally designed for the PC, AYIM is even better in its WiiWare incarnation, as the game’s motion controls are perfect for the central game mechanism in which you can rotate the entire game world, allowing players to turn the ceiling into the floor. This is a simple, low-budget indie game that is everything such games should be, and the best WiiWare game of the year.More »
8. Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces
While the promising anime start to the story goes nowhere, the gameplay of flight combat game Sky Crawlers: Innocent Aces is consistently entertaining. The unusual control scheme alone makes the game worth playing, as you reverse your nunchuk and remote for use as a flight controller. If this game had a decent story and online multiplayer it could have been the best flight game ever made. Even without those, it’s still the best of the genre for the Wii.More »
9. Endless Ocean: Blue World
Where most games rely on adrenaline-pumping action or tough mental challenges for their appeal, Endless Ocean: Blue World offers a pleasant sense of relaxed adventure that makes a game about swimming through sometimes frigid waters feel like relaxing in the hot tub. Likeable and varied, this mix of scuba-diving simulator, adventure game and nature documentary has got to be the pleasantest games of 2010, and proof that a game doesn’t have to brutalize the player to be fun.More »
10. No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle
The original No More Heroes was a really great action game diluted with terrible mini-games and pointless driving. The sequel, No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, strips out most of the dross and leaves in the great, gory sword combat and insanely over-the-top style that made the first game so much fun. It’s a shame the designers failed to come up with any interesting new gameplay ideas or a good story, but a game that is nothing more than No More Heroes without the awful parts is still one awesome game.More »
11. Runners Up
Here are the games good enough to have made a Wii top 10 in previous years: GoldenEye 007, Trauma Team, Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon, Create, Red Steel 2, Max and the Magic Marker, Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All-Stars, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers, Sin & Punishment: Star Successor. What a year it’s been.