Out of Control!

It hasn't escaped my attention that reviewers these days can't seem to mention a new FPS title without mentioning "Call of Duty" in the same sentence. Don't get me wrong, I love the CoD games and the amount of hours I have clocked up online with these games is frankly obscene, but I think enough is enough.

I've heard a few comments on The Conduit's reviews in the last few weeks and a couple of them mentioning CoD, and having now played the game for myself, I can see that these comparisons are frankly ridiculous. Let's make one thing clear, anyone with half a brain can see that this game was never intended to go up against CoD, in fact I don't think High Voltage could care less about Activision's franchise. Never in Call of Duty have I heard a seductive female voice say "respawn in 3...2...1", there is no Middle East in The Conduit, no sand, no nukes and no marines. This is old school fragging plain and simple, this game almost pays homage to the likes of Quake and Unreal Tournament. I mean, if you're going to compare FPS titles it should be done like for like, would they compare Forza Motorsport to Outrun?? I highly doubt it!

But here's the problem with games on the Wii, if a developer releases a party or 'family' game it gets bad reviews due to it being "yet another party game", however if a developer releases a more serious type of game it gets the "this game isn't right for Wii and is better on PS3 or XBox due to the graphics". You're basically damned if you do and damned if you don't!

Let's cut to the chase, yes The Conduit is linear but then so is CoD, yes the graphics aren't as good as a 360 game but it still looks great so who really cares, yes the storyline isn't exactly original but then neither is a war game set in the Middle East with nukes and an evil dicatator!!!

It's about time reviewers got out of their CoD rut that they seem to be stuck in and see things for the way they really are. The Conduit is old school fragging at it's best, it's time to embrace it not slate it!

MKWii Battle Tips

I've been discussing with other forum members how to improve their skills in the Mario Kart Wii battles. Sometimes a picture can express a thousand words far more clearly. Hopefully it will make the regular Monday night session even more exciting than it already is.

Want to burst our bubble? Head over to the Gameov3r Forum

Nearly a year old and

It’s been 10 months since Mario Kart Wii was released in Europe and I thought I’d get in a personal early first birthday retrospective. One of the first major titles to hit shelves in Europe before North America there was much comment, much excitement, and much trepidation from the gaming community prior to release. After the success of MKDS, which has just passed 14 million sales, many found it hard to see how Nintendo could improve on the franchise.

I was one of the many that descended on the 24-hour supermarkets to pick up a copy at midnight, driving furiously home so that I could play the game while most gamers were in bed dreaming of red shells. I got home, unpacked my wheel and began to re-learn how to play Mario Kart. Since then it has barely left my Wii.

Many people couldn’t adjust to the updated control scheme. I recall one blogger likening the Wii Wheel to “strapping a biscuit tin to your wiimote”; many complained about a lack of accuracy. Me? I just plugged away at it getting better with every hour of track time.

Then there were, and still are, those who complain “it isn’t fair” or that the game is “a whole lot of luck and very little skill”. These whining voices are from a generation of gamers who want instant gratification, easy wins and no learning curve. They aren’t prepared to accept that their shortcomings as gamers are to blame as it must be the game’s fault.

Then there are those, like myself, who aren’t naturally brilliant but have learned how to play the game; learned the tricks, the techniques that allow us to improve our scores. We’ve played endlessly online (which is by far the best Nintendo online interface) and been beaten by some of the best out there, but always learning and always getting that little bit better.

I’ve set myself the challenge of hitting a ** rating by the end of the month, a step up from my current * rating. So far out of the 5 revisited Grand Prix I have achieved my goal on the first attempt. Only 8 more to go until that second star is mine!

Mario Kart Wii. You have provided me with many laughs, many tears and more than the occasional swear word. Nearly Happy First Birthday to you.

Why not join in the regular races arranged on the Gameov3r FORUM

Why Oh Why?

"There are no mistakes, just playing for the pure joy of playing" say Nintendo. I've seen the rather uncomfortable to watch video (see above) of several fully grown adults flailing around randomly and I didn't see or feel much joy.

Creating a music game where you remove all the skills required for playing a real instrument and in fact any skill or point what so ever I don't get. I know some people have similar feelings about Guitar Hero and Rock Band style games but even then you'd have to admit you need decent timing and coordination skills to score well. Wii Music requires none of these. There is no score, there is no skill, there is no point.

Holding a Wii remote to my mouth and randomly mashing buttons is some what unappealing at the age of 35. I certainly can't imagine my friends or family joining me for a run through classic public domain hits like "Yankee Doodle Dandy", "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" or "Turkey In The Straw". It reminds me of when I used to go to arcades as a lad and bash the buttons without putting any money in... I've grown out of that now.

Maybe that's it and this is aimed at very, very young kids but I kind of get the feeling that isn't what Nintendo are thinking, are they thinking? From the video I think this turkey should stay in the straw, in a very large field far away from shops and inhabited areas. Coming soon to a bargain bin near you...

Join the GAMEOV3R Forum, no turkeys allowed

All you need is a Mushroom

I’ve done it again. Different track, different circumstances, but the timing was just as impeccable.

Last time I dodged a Blue Shell it was pure chance. I hit the boost pad and took flight over the river that meanders through DK’s Jungle Raceway at the very moment that the Blue Shell attempted it’s kamikaze swan dive.

This time was different. Let me strap you in behind the wheel for a drivers-eye view of what happened… Comfortable? Good. Here we go...

You’re in first place on the final lap of a 150cc GP race at Mushroom Gorge. You’ve controlled the race, from the front, since the green light and have just bounced and tricked your way over the mushrooms in the cave one last time. You hit the track and mini turbo perfectly towards the final turn. Victory is about to be yours.

Then you hear it. It’s coming again. A Blue Shell.

All your hard work is going to be undone because the chasing pack are not very far behind. But wait, you have one last chance. You exit the hair-pin onto the long straight. The finish line is in sight but the Blue Shell is closing fast. In the top right of your screen is your chance. You have a Mushroom. You wait as long as you dare and then, keeping the kart as straight as you can, you hit the d-pad and turbo toward the finish line. But the line is too far away! The turbo boost expires and your kart slows down. But where’s the Blue Shell? It missed? No? You dodged it! Yay!! You timed the Mushroom so perfectly that at the instant before impact you boosted out of its destructive clutches.

Take that evil Blue Shell!

“All you need is love” said the Beatles. “All you need is a Mushroom” said Gameov3r, from his FORUM. All I need is some sleep! Oh, did anyone tell you that GTA IV is out?

Hero or Slave?

I think it's pretty clear that there are advantages when using a traditional controller with Mario Kart Wii. As gamers we're simply more at home, more adept and more comfortable with an analogue stick than with the motion sensing Wii Wheel.

I'm not going to start bashing the Wii Wheel, far from it. In fact I'm a big fan of the wheel and think that Nintendo have once again been brave, to a point, in creating something different. The Wheel adds a unique and fun element to Mario Kart and makes races both hotly contested and hilarious. The Wheel is a shining light in what would otherwise have been a fairly average addition to the Mario Kart series. I'm quite glad that the cowboy outfit is optional, thanks for the video Lee, although I've always wanted to try wearing a Stetson while racing at Moo Moo Meadows. Speaking of headwear, isn't it awful that our favourite Nintendo characters are out there risking life and limb on motorbikes without helmets! What's that teaching the kids? I'm sure the HSE will have something to say when they hear about this!

Using the Wii Wheel presents gamers with challenges, this is where some gamers fall off the track, and because the challenges aren't present using analogue sticks it's easier just to go back to what you know.

Here’s a bit of gaming steering wheel history. If you remember the Atari Arcade game Night Driver, released in 1976, you will also recall that this game had a large, black plastic steering wheel. The idea to steer the car with a steering wheel was, of course, sound but it was poorly implemented and hardly ergonomically designed. The steering wheel felt disconnected, it span around and around loosely not being weighted in any way. It certainly didn't self-centre or have a neutral position. If you're not old enough to remember Night Driver then perhaps you've played on a well-worn Outrun machine, incidentally the game that perfected arcade game steering, that had a knackered steering wheel that didn't centre itself and simply flopped from side to side. It could be argued that 22 years after Atari released Night Driver Nintendo have made the same mistakes with the Wii Wheel.

Considering the design of the Wii Wheel the Night Driver problems are unavoidable and I don't think it's true that Nintendo made the same mistakes as Atari. Holding the Wii Wheel comfortably in both hands leaves no chance of feeling disconnected or of the wheel spinning loosely through your grip. The weight is supplied by you and the feedback and feeling couldn't be better. One issue remains though and it's what sets the Wii Wheel apart from and behind the other control methods. It's the lack of a centre or neutral position. It's this that means that the Wii Wheel is put aside in favour of a conventional controller with an analogue stick as gamers fear that the Wheel isn't fast enough or precise enough to keep up with the pace being set by gamers already selecting to use an analogue stick to steer.

The neutral position on the analogue stick allows you to quickly get your kart or bike wheels in line and onto the perfect racing line faster thus achieving your top speed quicker. If you're on a bike the analogue advantage is increased as you'll be boosting along, Valentino Rossi style, front wheel lofted, faster than your opponents can say "L" in the sentence "Look! There he/she goes again. Do they think they're Mario Schumacher or something!!” As I said at the top, gamers are already comfortable with an analogue stick so adding the "neutral" advantage and you have a few extra seconds per lap. Take a look at the Top 10 times in the Worldwide and Continental Time Trials. Not a Wii Wheel in sight when I last looked.

I'm not advocating throwing the Wii Wheel in the bin. I know the Wii Wheel can be as fast as a conventional analogue stick. If Nintendo hadn't included support for other control methods do you think the world Top 10 would be any slower? Of course not, but it would've taken a little longer to achieve those unbelievable times. The Wii Wheel requires just a little more practice, patience and getting used to. Playing using the Wheel intensifies your connection with the game and the sense of fun and achievement are both heightened.

Including all the other control methods, in case everyone hated the Wii Wheel, was Nintendo only being brave to a point. European adverts don’t have the Wii Wheel! It’s Super Mario 2 all over again. Nintendo Japan don’t think we’re adept enough to manage the art of the Wii Wheel!

Don't be a slave to convention because you're desperate to be fastest right now. Remember, the short, quick path leads to the dark side and ultimate doom. You know who you are. We know who you are too thanks to the online system telling us! True Karters, all you Wii Wheel Heroes, are the light and Gameov3r salutes you.

Learn the ways of the Wii Wheel. Be at one with it. Be a Wii Wheel in the World Top 10. Be a Wii Wheel Hero.

See you on the track.

Be a Wii Wheel Hero on the GAMEOV3R FORUM

Get Behind The Wheel

I was quite surprised to find that the TV ads here in the UK for Mario Kart Wii don't feature the Wii wheel at all, with everyone using the remote and nunchuck in the ones I've seen. Now I'd have thought this would have been a big selling point for the game and it seems Nintendo of America agree... but I'm so glad we didn't get this. How much do these marketing people get paid again?



Wannna pop a wheelie on the GAMEOVER Forum? Get behind the wheel!