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Thursday 6 March, 2008
GAMEPLAY:
Now the second time around, things really began to take a change. My competitors and I became obsessed with getting strikes. There were many techniques I had discovered in the process of bowling. Some key moves that stood out to me and as well seemed very realistic, was a curve strike, the ability to bowl the ball really slow, and the speed a player was able to get.
The curve strike was a killer and my goof friend was really good at them. It consisted of swinging the arm right next to the gutter and just before you let go of the B button (releasing the ball), you would have to tilt the controller to the left or right. It was a killer move to master and one of my friends was able to get seven in a row. I on the other hand got a couple. Secondly, bowling the ball really slow helped when there were only one or two remaining pins. You could swing slowly to the point where the character went directly up to the line and then release the ball at a very slow speed. Lastly, I was amazed at how fast I could throw the ball; you could really get some speed!
Another thing I had noticed was the people in our room and my obsession with getting strikes. We actually forced our friend to stay longer (he was really good at the curve strikes) so as to see if he could beat his own score. The interaction between player/audience to the video game was thoroughly enjoyable. Overall, I believe the gameplay was a ten out of ten hands down and acceptable for anyone of any age.
DESIGN:
What was very interesting about Wii Sports when it came to the design of the overall game was its simplicity. I would think that with this new type of video game, new aspects and innovative techniques would be used when it came to design, but when it boils down to it, Wii Sports is an interactive game that is good old fashion fun.
In bowling, the bowlers were these cartoon little characters, fun and cute looking; they set the tone for the game. They didn’t even have any arms! There was not much personality to the characters besides their obvious physical looks and there is not story whatsoever to Wii Sports.
As for level design, the bowling arena looked exactly like a realistic one would look like. There were no extra cool features when bowling; it was simply exactly like the bowling arenas that you and I play on. What caught my attention though was how exactly when the payer was not playing, how the overall experience of bowling was captured in the video game. I saw it very much like a sports channel. First I would bowl, and lets say I would get a strike. There would be multiple slow-motion angles of my ball hitting the pins, and then “Wii Sports” would flash into the screen transitioning back to the player. I think its interesting that society watches these professional sports on the television, and now it’s the player interacting with and in the television, even though it’s the games character who represents the player. With Wii Sports simplicity and fun, I was able to interact with the videogame physically, interact with my opponents, and interact with the audience in a positive enjoyable manner.
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