Author: DaveWeLike

I'm the editor of StuffWeLike.com.

Disney’s Chicken Little: Ace In Action (+)

A video game based on a movie that’s based on a video game. Oh boy do we want some chicken.

For being out less than a couple of months, the Wii has gained a great variety of genres. Anti-Nintendo fanboys have always bashed Nintendo consoles for having too many kiddie oriented games. While Chicken Little: Ace In Action may appear to be a kiddie game on the outside, it contains enough comedy and solid gameplay to entertain all ages.

Chicken Little is a prime example of why the Wii can make any sort of game fun even if you’ve played it before. Chicken Little is very similar to Nintendo’s Starfox series. Missions cycle through different gameplay modes such as foot soldier, tank, and a spaceship. Playing rehashes isn’t necessarily a fun process, but because Chicken Little: Ace In Action is the first game to utilize the Wii-mote in these gameplay modes and the fact the game plays very solidly this game shines. This game makes good use of the capabilities that the Wii-mote offers. Destroying your target by pointing your Wii-mote is made very simple by an automatic lock-on feature. Another standout feature is being able to move your space ship up and down by moving the Nunchuck device up and down.

The graphics of Chicken Little: Ace In Action are on par with other Wii games. It’s simplistic graphics don’t really make this game entertaining to look at, but they are suitable to gameplay.

The other aspect that makes this game worthwhile is the comedic dialogue that the characters say. Adam West, Zach Braff, and Joan Cusack are some of the voice actors in this game. For being a kiddie video game, it really has a smart script that both children and adults can find enjoyment in.

The game is loosely based off of the Chicken Little movie. This is great for those unfamiliar with the movie. The story is a lot of fun because it’s about Chicken Little and his friends playing a Wii game that features Chicken Little’s super hero alter ego Ace as well as the alter egos of his friends. So obviously this makes for a lot of funny commentary when Chicken Little and his friends comment on the gameplay and then Ace and his team are talking back and forth about their own actions.

I cannot whole heartedly recommend Chicken Little: Ace In Action because of the minor flaws that it has. If the game had only been fine tuned a little bit more it would have been an overall fun experience rather than frustrating game. All it takes is one nearly impossible level to ruin what would otherwise be an enjoyable time. For $39.99 Chicken Little: Ace In Action isn’t that bad of a purchase, if you’re looking for an experience that will tide you over till the new Starfox game. If there is one thing that I can say about Chicken Little: Ace In Action it’s that this game is going to be the example for future third person shooters and that’s a good thing.

Primeval (-)

A serial killer terrorizes Africa for years. Turns out this serial killer is a croc. Crikey!

There’s a lot to say about crappy movies – they’re crappy. Primeval is no exception to this rule. Why would you ever see this movie? In my case my friends wanted to see it even though I told them that it was bad. 10 minutes into the movie I asked them if they wanted to jump over to another theater that was showing Children of Men and we all agreed to leave. That was the best part of the movie.

Unlike bad movies that are funny such as Snakes On A Plane, Primeval is just a poorly made movie that begs the question how the hell did this movie get made? A killer crocodile in Africa sounds like a great idea that would make a thrilling movie (note the sarcasm). The movie has sucky actors who are in a sucky movie. There is nothing worthwhile here.

Avoid at all costs!

Metal Slug Anthology (+)

A compilation of the Megal Slug arcade series.

One of the great things that the Wii offers is its retro gaming with the Virtual Console. If you love the games on the Virtual Console or just in general like old-school arcade games, pick up Metal Slug Anthology! Not only does this game offer you six different ways to control your character, but it also packages in seven Metal Slug games! Even if you’ve played Metal Slug in the arcades you’ve never experienced it quite like this.

The objective in all Metal Slug games is simple: go from beginning side of the level to the end of it. Fight variety of enemies such as soldiers, mummies, undead, and terrorists. Throughout this game you’ll be dieing over and over. Unlike in the arcade, the Wii version allows you to respawn over and over again. You don’t have to insert more coins, simply press continue and let the mayhem keep on rolling.

It’s amazing to see what the Wii controller allows developers to do and Metal Slug Anthology is a prime example of how the Wii-mote can be used in different ways to simulate similar gameplay. While none of the control schemes work perfectly, it is fun to try them all out. The most difficult of all of these controls  Wii-mote and nunchuk, nunchuck only, tilt Wii-mote, Wii-mote, arcade, and Gamecube controller – is the arcade mode. It’s hard to emulate the feel of a joystick by holding the Wii-mote vertical. After a while it hurts your hands.

The 2D graphics aren’t comparable by today’s standards. When they are blown up on any big screen TV they just look nasty. Thankfully though it is still easy to see all of the action on screen. The blood that spews from enemies as you shot them or cut them with your knife is graphically speaking the best part.

There is co-op which allows for at least some replay value. The unlockables, music tracks and concept artwork, aren’t worthwhile though. For seven games Metal Slug Anthology is worth at least a rent. Since all the games were built for the arcades, the gameplay offered in them doesn’t last that long. But again if you like old-school games Metal Slug Anthology is a must buy.

Star Trek Legacy (+)

A space simulation Star Trek game that is the first to feature all 5 Captain voices.

There’s a lot to be said about controversial games. Not all game controversy has to lie in its content, rather with Star Trek Legacy its controversy lies in whether or not it’s a good game. Hyped to be one of the best Star Trek video games of all-time, Star Trek Legacy does stand out from the rest of the game series. With its emphasis on strategic space-combat and a story that spans all 5 generations of Star Trek, this game is not for the weak.

Star Trek Legacy is not an easy game to get into. At first you will question why there are so many button configurations, why the ships are moving so slowly, and why it takes so long to charge your lasers. After you get used to the controls and the speed of both the ship movement and laser recharge, you’ll begin to ask more questions such as why does the difficulty in the game change per level, why can’t your ship move straight up or down, and why some of the voice overs by the famous Star Trek Captains sound just as poorly spoken as the secondary characters. These are a lot of questions that you’ll have to get past before you can begin to enjoy this game.

Star Trek Legacy offers die-hard Trek fans an experience like none other. For the first time ever all 5 captains – Archer, Kirk, Sisco, Picard, and Janeway – are available in one continuous well-thought story line. The game allows you to control each generation’s ships. You can buy new ships with the experience points that you gain by completing each mission. As you progress through time, the ship’s technology improves which ultimately helps with the strategic factor in the game. Each mission forces the player to think about their objective before they set out to complete it. While this may sound like a good idea, it really becomes a trial and error process.

The first couple of missions are rather dull and and the controls take a long time to get used too. As each mission may take over 30 minutes to complete, Star Trek Legacy is a game that you have to invest a good amount of time into before it actually gets good.

The graphics in Star Trek Legacy look very nice. From the particle effects to the ship models everything screams high quality production. It’s amazing to see your damaged ship spewing out flames and missing parts of the hull! Regretfully the frame rate does drop in a couple of missions. The final mission has the worst frame rate speed. At points it is so choppy that the screen repeatedly freezes for split seconds.

Now Star Trek Legacy is not for the average gamer. Either the player has to be a major Star Trek fan and/or into strategic space-combat games in order to enjoy this title. This game will make you frustrated, but the story is engrossing enough to make you want to complete the game.

Deal or No Deal (+)

Based upon the NBC game show of the same name. Experience what it is like to be on the TV show in this video game!

Deal or No Deal is obviously a game that is trying bank on the new TV Show on NBC. This game show features Howie Mandel and has players randomly guessing which suit case out of the 26 total has a low amount of money in it. The idea is to be left with the highest amount possible.

Deal or No Deal is effective in sucking the player into a gambling addiction. It’s frustrating when you knock off $1 million. It’s also relieving when you knock off $0.01!

The graphics are relatively clean with minor annoyances here and there such as all the “case holding” girls looking very similar. It appears that the developer Cat Daddy Games simply reused the same model and made minor changes such as the hair, skin color, etc.

This is the sort of game that needs to be played in a social environment to get longevity out of it. The game does feature some mini-games, but none of them are nearly as fun as the actual game.

The biggest problem with this game is its price tag of $19.99. Don’t bother picking this game up until it’s at most $9.99. If you’re a fan of the Deal or No Deal TV show, the video game is just as good.