THE FACTS: NiGHTS Journey Of Dreams Wii | Sega | 1-2 Player versus | 1-2 Players online | Out Now Controller compatability: Wii remote (pointer); Wii remote and Nunchuck; Classic Controller; GameCube Controller Reviewer: Billy White  Playing as either a young boy or girl, you enter their dream where you meet the mysterious NiGHTS. By “touching” NiGHTS, you will be able to combine with him, and fly through levels, ensuring that the evil Wizeman gets whats coming to him. Although it’s clear that this game is aimed at kids, it will also be far too difficult for them. The levels often consist of flying around, gaining speed boosts and catching up with flying creatures before defeating them with a swift press of the attack button, although some also include a bit of platform-y style exploring. Once you’ve completed the main part of each level, you’ll move on to the boss battle of that stage. These bosses can take a bit of practising before you can defeat them, and since you have to return to the very beginning of each level if you lose to them, they can also provide a source of frustration.  Controlling NiGHTS makes the game a lot harder as well. You can use the Wii remote pointer to aim on the screen the direction you can fly, but the responsive-ness is all over the place, and you’ll end up going to one of the other methods (of which, none of them still aren’t that great).In addition to the very short story mode, there are a few extras to keep you occupied. There’s the tedious My Dream, where you can roam free in a bland custom land, a very bad multiplayer battle option where you shoot big balls around, hoping they bash into the other player, and a so-so multiplayer race option. Despite the fact that the race mode isn’t too bad (and is also ready for online play, as is the battle mode), you’ll need to be up against a player of similar skills, or otherwise this section will also get boring quickly.  The game does have its moments, and when you get the hang of flying, the whole thing can seem quite magical, but this is taken away by the disappointing graphics throughout the game, which are often blocky and look achievable on a PlayStation 2. Also contributing to the “bad” side of the scale are the long loading times, and limited replay-ability for the whole game. Overall, fans of the original should still get a kick out of this version, but other gamers may find it too childish (whilst the kids themselves will be finding it too unfairly difficult), bland and badly designed. Final Score 16/30 Poor Gameplay 6 Fine for a good chunk of the time, but the controls are horrifically bad Presentation 6 The music isn't that bad, but the graphics certainly are Enjoyment 2 It has its moments. Sadly, "moments" is a fairly accurate description of just how often the fun occurs Other 2 Very short, with some poor extra modes
|
NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams - Wii Review |
