Why the Wii is starting to own

And it's not just because of this awesome Metroid Wii. The system has been getting a lot of quality releases lately. Yes, they are "hardcore." The following games have released or will release this year. If you've got a Wii, you should definitely think about picking these up.

Out now! Well, they have scores anyway...

No More Heroes 2- metascore: 86/100

A lot of people overlook the No More Heroes franchise. It's probably the best non-Nintendo franchise on the Wii. You can't really get much more hardcore than NMH. In fact, there's nothing else like it on any other console (unless you count the Japanese-only port of the original for the Xbox and PS3- which I don't). It truly is something wacky, brutal, and fun. There's just something off about this game. And it's awesome. Words can't really do it justice, so here's a crazy-ass trailer:



Tatsunoko vs. Capcom- metascore: 85

I previewed the Japanese version of this game a while back. While I haven't yet picked up the North American version, I'm sure it's even better with its added character selection and tuned-up mechanics. I was never a fan of Marvel vs. Capcom because it was too technical for me, but with Tatsunoko vs. Capcom, they've made the gameplay simpler while retaining the depth. The result is extremely fun to play.



Red Steel 2- metascore: 81

The first Red Steel sucked big time. Wisely, Ubisoft threw out everything relating to that game and built this new game completely from the ground up. It's even got a fancy Borderlands visual style. Actually, it looks really nice. There isn't much noticeable difference between the two, besides some loss of sharpness. Unlike the first game, this one is a samurai-meets-cowboy old west Tokyo type of deal. It uses Wii Motion Plus (bundled with the game) for greater accuracy of your sword and gun, which you can switch to on the fly to pull off some crazy combos. The game is actually quite brutal, even though the enemies bleed yellow blood.



Monster Hunter Tri- metascore: 88

Typically a PlayStation exclusive franchise, Capcom decided to branch out and bring the third Monster Hunter game to a wider audience on the Wii. They're also hoping that, since the series is only really big in Japan, they can finally appeal to the 'ol North American audience with this entry. And I must say, this game looks stunning. I'm really, really tempted to check it out, especially because of the glowing reviews it's been getting (it comes out April 20th). As you can see from the trailer below, Capcom really put a lot of effort into the visuals. Man, does it show! And it's got some sweet music to go along with it all, too.

For those of you who don't know, Monster Hunter 3 plays exactly how it sounds like it would. It's an RPG-style game in an open world in which you accept missions to take down progressively harder monsters or brave the wilds yourself. With every monster you defeat, you'll be able to upgrade your weapon with parts from the bodies of your enemies. Tri adds new underwater segments that, for once, are actually well thought out and fun. In addition, the game has two player local co op and four player online co op. According to reviews I've read, its the best online experience on the Wii. The battles get really tough and intense, though, so it pays to go into battle with a buddy.

I can't decide which trailer I like more, so you get two:





Sin and Punishment 2- metascore: 87 (import version)

Yes, there is a game called "Sin and Punishment" on a Nintendo console. I know it's hard to believe, but the original actually came out on the N64 and it was a cult hit. Never played it, but this looks like some old school arcade fun (with some old school arcade difficulty) to me. It comes out here June 7.



Coming later this year


Super Mario Galaxy 2 (May 23)

Sure, the box is a little too bright and cheery, but who doesn't want to play the sequel to the best 3D mario game ever? I certainly do. And you should too. And Yoshi's in this one too. What more could you want?



Metroid: Other M (June 27)

I really blasted Pokemon the other day for being stale and unoriginal, but I have to hand it to Nintendo- Metroid is one franchise they always keep fresh. First the old school 2D games, then Prime, and now something in between. Other M looks awesome. Hopefully, it'll live up to expectations as being awesome to play and having a great narrative. My one gripe is that, in typical Team Ninja style, everything is overly shiny. But I guess I can't complain because, man, look at those visuals!



Conduit 2 (Fall 2010)

Yes, they dropped the "the" from the title. Stupid, I know. Anyway, this sequel to last years superb The Conduit was literally just announced a few days ago. As such, there's not much info about it, but you can bet it's going to be awesome. IGN has a short preview if you're interested.

Epic Mickey (Fall 2010)

This game hasn't been shown in action as of yet, so nobody quite knows how it'll turn out. However, with Warren Spector (System Shock, Deus Ex) on board, it's got to be some kind of good right?

The game sees Mickey transported to another dimension run by Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, filled with old, forgotten Disney characters. Mickey uses a magic paint brush to alter the environment (which sounds familiar if you've ever played Okami) in this platforming adventure. Personally, I liked the game's concept when it had a steampunk vibe, but we'll see how it works out.

The JRPG Triumvirate
Japanese RPG fans rejoice! It's a great year to own a Wii, with three big JRPG's releasing this year. Here they are in chronological order of release:


Arc Rise Fantasia (June 22) 

Japanese RPG developer imageepoch is bringing Wii gamers Arc Rise Fantasia, a much needed dose of JRPG for the console. It looks like a fairly straightforward one, as well. Turn based, AP gages, parties, summons, flying numbers, it's all here. It's supposed to have heavy emphasis on story, as well. If you're into that sort of thing, look for it this summer.



The Last Story (2010)

If the game's name and logo seem like a Final Fantasy ripoff, that's probably because this game is beging developed by Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi. Little is known about it since it was only recently announced, but it will apparently have a theme of human emotion, have no science fiction elements, and contain a "real time system." Whatever that means. I hope it has to do with the combat.


Xenoblade (June 10 in Japan, TBA in U.S.)

Don't let the name fool you. Though this game was created by Tetsuya Takahashi, it has no relation to his other series Xenogears and Xenosaga. The man just has a Xenofetish, I suppose. Anyway, details a surprisingly vague on this game as well even though it comes out in less than two months. 


What I do know is that the idea of the game intrigues me. There were these two massive gods who killed each other in battle and their bodies were left to time. Eventually, civilization sprung up on their corpses. This is where the game takes place. On one god live these machine people and on the other live humans. As you can probably guess, they don't get along. The trailer below doesn't show any gameplay, but you get a sense of how massive the world is supposed to be. Also, Yoko Shimomura does the music. I knew it sounded unusually good. For those of you confused, she's the composer for Kingdom Hearts. You can listen to that sweet, sweet music on the official website. There's two songs which you can pick by selecting BGM 1 or 2 in the bottom right corner. The combat looks real time-ish...





And this one shows some early gameplay (the game was originally called Monado: The Beginning of the World- glad they changed that).



And that's just the Wii exclusives coming out this year. There's probably quite a few you missed from 2009, but I won't get into that right now.