And then there was the Wii...

Note: I've become addicted to Google Reader, as well as playing Dungeon Siege II. I need someone to play with. Sorry again for latency in posting, but work demands my time, and I haven't had time to really put together a good editorial. I should do a review of some games...tune in this weekend.

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"Game Party", "Game Party 2", "Carnival Games", "Pong Toss"...the list goes on. Casual Gaming used to be a world of Pop-Cap games on your PC (Peggle, Bejeweled...etc), but it seems like people got a good whiff of the Wii's brand of casual fun and suddenly developers EVERYWHERE are crapping out games like the aforementioned. Why? Because it's easy to throw down a sneezy handful of mini-games and call it a release, that's why.

Looking at the time and energy going into these titles it seems like companies are taking their talent and saying "Alright now, let's take the few of you that aren't yet or already did work on our next big fall title and have you churn out one for the kids." I honestly have never considered buying, renting or casting a gaze on Game Party or Carnival Games, much less the upcoming titular titles Pong Toss ("Beer Pong" in a non-orwellian universe) and Major League Eating. Major League Eating.../headdesk /headdesk /headdesk.

Also coming into the Wii's court are games like last years Soul Caliber Legends, Skate It, Link's Crossbow Training (fun game, all said and done) and even a graphicall toned down port of Ghostbusters. Soul Caliber did poorly, Skate It is a walking gimmick...it makes me feel like the Wii is the last system people look to when thinking about NEW games. However, the Japanese still seem to love it. Platinum Games has MadWorld (pictured) coming out, Suda 51 gave us No More Heroes, Nintendo is churning out much new content for it. It leads me to this:

Do American companies see the Wii as a viable platform for a new title, or as an afterthought platform better used for ports and mini-games?

Graphically the Wii falls short, processor-wise, Internet-wise. All in all it's not the powerhouse the PS3/Xbox360 is. That oomph, that extra step seems to be what American companies want in their games out of the box. American audiences are quickly becoming an HD audience. HD with a nice 5.1 system and no time for measly "component" cables. The Wii is getting the brunt of this discrimination with the onslaught of afterthought games. I hereby christen the genre: Afterthoughts.

I see American companies throwing out afterthoughts left and right. Some people (myself included sometimes) may see this as good old fashioned Americanism. Is it fast, sexy and bigger than life? No. Is it apple pie? No. Then we don't have time to waste on it! Small teams, small games, little victories and critical failures says to me that some companies straight up don't give a hoot. To be in the age where gaming is beginning to crack at the hinges (Innovation vs. Graphics) and not to take advantage of half the playing field is lunacy. Eventually graphics will look so good we can't distinguish them from real life. Then what? Better graphics? The Wii is getting started early, pulling a Dreamcast if you will. We remember how that ended, and this string of casual, budget titles could spell the end of the Wii's American credibility. It will become that trend that so many analyst are predicting it is, and that's sad.

I want to challenge developers out there to consider the Wii FIRST when looking for inspiration. The gimmick was there at the start with motion control, it quickly died down into a steady period of decent Japanese exports hitting our shelves. We need to look at the system the way they do: Use it to it's creative potential, not just it's graphical or processing potential. I feel like if one company really tried marketing a serious game on the Wii, it'd turn a few heads. I don't mean games like Rock and Roll Adventure, I mean something fresh, maybe even a little avant garde. Ubisoft seems to be heading down the right track, from up north. Let's get on the ball USA.

Time to get fresh.

-Joe