Most Overlooked Wii Games - Part Eight

When we read from some gamers that the Nintendo Wii had a small selection of titles that were worth playing, we just roll around laughing to their ignorance. Then, we realize, "okay. That's subjective, so we can't make fun of them. We can only greatly disagree." The Most Overlooked series of articles talks about games that are worth playing that a good portion of the gaming community or consumers simply did not play. The sales numbers were low, the hype was nonexistent, etc. This is most likely our final look at the overlooked titles of the Wii's actually wide-reaching and varied library. Join us for Part Eight of Most Overlooked Wii Games, all of which can be played on your Wii Us, if you wish!

For those who haven't seen previous installments, here are some links for you!

Wii - Part One
Wii - Part Two
Wii - Part Three
Wii - Part Four
Wii - Part Five
Wii - Part Six
Wii - Part Seven

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MadWorld

Platinum Games has a bit of reputation for creating excellent, niche games that simply don't sell all that well. MadWorld was something that was obvious to say it was doomed from the word "go." It was released on the Wii, which wasn't exactly the market for a black and white (and red) gritty, ultraviolent action game. Perhaps had it released earlier in the Wii's life cycle when titles like Red Steel, Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition, and Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles were actually selling, then Platinum Games and SEGA would have had a better shot. Regardless, if you enjoy taking a chainsaw and slicing foes in half, slamming stop signs into the craniums of foes, and taking down bosses big and small, MadWorld might be a good game for you.

Wii Play Motion

A game that came packaged with a Wii Remote Plus, Wii Play Motion was released at a time where "Wii fever" was pretty much over-- thanks to Nintendo itself mostly. Regardless, this mini-game compilation featured plenty of interesting takes on the more capable motion controller of the Wii. A fun fact about the game was that a different studio worked on each mini-game. Some favorite mini-games that were in the twelve game package included Wind Runner, a game where you raced through a twisting course using the wind to give you speed, and Veggie Guardin', whose premise was based off of Whac-A-Mole. Not all of the games were winners, but overall, the package which was Wii Play Motion delivered enough innovative and engaging activities to make it a fair addition to one's Wii collection.

We Ski & Snowboard

Coming off We Ski, Namco Bandai gave Wii owners a second trip to the slopes with We Ski & Snowboard, the latter using the Wii Balance Board to have the player shift their weight to guide their character down the snowy and icy terrain. The game gave players the entire mountain to explore from the very start, and completing events and satisfying certain conditions meant unlocking new clothing and gear. With winter fast approaching now, it seems like a great time to check out this underrated gem in the Wii's often overlooked library.

Mushroom Men: The Spore Wars

We're suckers for old school 3D platformers. You know, stuff from the PS1 and N64 era. Mushroom Men: The Spore Wars was one of those titles that harked back to a simpler time in gaming. We weren't concerned with 1080p vs. 780p. resolutions, and we didn't argue on message boards over a game running better on system X versus system Y. Mushroom Men was a fun platforming romp, if not a bit by-the-numbers, a complaint that some review publications had. We welcomed this formulaic approach, as there were so few games of Mushroom Men's ilk around. Even today we're still not seeing a lot of 3D platformers around. Mushroom Men: The Spore Wars can easily be found for a budget price, and it's worthy of trying out.

FlingSmash

Our last game we will be talking about is FlingSmash. This game came with the Wii MotionPlus accessory, and thank goodness it did. Otherwise, you'd simply be waggling the regular old Wii Remote helplessly as you tried to play the game. FlingSmash had players hitting a ball to collect points and acquire other goodies through auto-scrolling levels. It was a new IP from Nintendo, and it sold really poorly. Perhaps that's why Nintendo is so shy about creating new franchises outside of their digital stores, but perhaps Nintendo could have actually made an attempt to let people know about the game. You see, FlingSmash came out when Nintendo's support for the Wii dropped off a cliff, essentially and successfully killing the console early. It's a shame, as we have fond memories of the old Wii...