Nintendo Wii

Shrek Carnival Craze Party Games for Nintendo Wii is a party game that I have wanted to try since it was released back in October.  I really liked the Shrek Super Party game for Gamecube, so I wanted to try the newer version for the Wii.  I was a little afraid it would be too similar, but it actually is quite different and to some extent I do not like that.  The main thing I do not like is that there is not a board game style party mode like Shrek Super Party had.

Despite it not being exactly as I expected, it has other new things and formats that make it a good Wii game.  This game has a story mode that includes well animated Shrek sequences that give it a good plot about trying to become the king or queen of the carnival.  To beat story mode you have to beat all the games in each area.  After you beat each area you get a crown or jewels for the crown.  After you beat the first five areas the final six area in Shrek’s Swamp is unlocked.  Beating every game in this area completes the story mode.  As you compete in story mode you are competing against computer players, but the nice thing is that you just have to get 500 points in the game and it counts as beating it even if you lose to the computer players.

I found most of the mini games to be pretty easy to beat.  Some of my favorites included Gingy’s Crazy Cookie Conveyor in which you selected the right piece to complete gingerbread men and Mud Slide Madness in which you  went on a mud surfing ride.  A few of the games I found almost impossible to get the needed score, such as the Melon Toss and the final Shrekpalooza level.  Mostly though it only took one or two tries to get the needed score.

Overall this is a fun game to play.  I enjoyed it on my own against the computer in both Story Mode and Tourament Mode (you play 5 games).  I did not play Quick Play, but it could be a fun way to play if you want to just play one game at a time.  I imagine this would also be a fun party game much like Shrek Super Party is for the Wii, but I did not get a chance to try it as multiplayer.  The graphics are great, especially the short video parts of story mode.

I have mostly read reviews that this game stinks.  Of course, I am not the kind of person to knock a game off my interest list just because of the reviews, so I just had to try it for myself.  I have had it sitting around as a rental for a few weeks now and finally got around to trying it yesterday.

First off I must say the games do not seem like classic mini games, as it says they are, but a few do remind me of other mini games I have seen before, so maybe I just am not in the know about classic mini games to recognize the others.   The thing that gets me, though, is that for a mini game style game you would think it would be an up to four players game, but it is only solo or dual (2) play.

I only tried solo mode, so not sure if it is any good (or bad) as dual, but I got to imagine that really depends on the two playing.  In solo mode there are 30 mini games to try and they all start out unlocked.  There is a variety of game types, such as technique, balance, power,  and brain.  For solo mode you can play the games in Free Mode or

In Free Mode you pick any game and try to just beat the mission for the game you choose.  This can be kind of boring as at least to me the mini games were mostly too easy or way too frustrating because the controls did not seem to react right (big example is the slowness of the bat to react in the baseball mini game and the cruddy angle pitcher’s view angle they give you the supposed batter), but I found the Rank Mode to be fun.

In the Rank Mode you select any five games.  You then try to beat the missions and get ranked as different animals by the pig depending on how you do.  The best I got was cow, but I assume you are trying to eventually be ranked a pig.

Overall I agree that this is kind of a Snooze Snooze game in that it does not offer that much to do and the mini games are all extremely short.  However, I think to some extent it can be a Fun Fun game.  I just do not recommend it as a game to buy, but for an evening of fun as solo or dual it may be worth renting and trying once.  I doubt it would be worth more than one sit through for anyone, though.

Part 3: Spooky Area

This area is unlocked by purchasing a pass from the Carnival prize shop.

Games

Stake Out: This game costs 25 tickets to play. This is a shooting game in which you shoot at the vampires, bats, maidens, and doves trying to rack up points before time runs out. The doves are worth the most.

Where The Heart Is: This game costs 25 to play. In this game you try to put a stake in a vampire’s heart. The tricky part is that he moves around in the dark and you only see his eyes. It gets really hard in the end because it is hard to tell if he is upside down, sideways, or right side up. The controls are easy, though, with you just aiming with the Wii remote and flicking the nunchuck to throw the stake.

Mummy Twist: This game costs 50 tickets. In this game you try to unwind the mummy more than your opponent without entirely unwinding the mummy. There are 5 rounds with one turn per player each round. To unwind the mummy you point at the stick or spin buttons and press A to select. At the beginning you are going to want to use your turn to spin the mummy. To spin flick the Wii remote to the left or right. If you think your Mummy is unwound low enough to win you can skip your turn by selecting stick.

Brain Dump: This game costs 10 tickets. In this game use the nunchuck to rotate the catapult and then you pull the Wii remote towards you to launch a brain. The object of the game is to shoot as many zombies as you can before time runs out. Personally I found this to be one of the more complex games to actually implement the controls successfully.

Shut Your Trap: This game is free to play. In this game you aim with the nunchuck and then thrust the Wii remote forward to jab the plants. If you hit three in a row, then you get a 30 point bonus.

Bah Bah Boo!: This game costs 10 tickets. This is a game you herd sheep into their pen. It is kind of frustrating and I gave up on it after one try.

Part 1: Carnival Area

Part 2: Fairytale Area

Part 2: Fairytale Area

This area is unlocked by purchasing a pass from the Carnival prize shop.

Games

Sweet Tooth: This game costs 25 tickets to play. This is one of my favorite game in all of Wonder World. In the game you use the joystick on the nunchuck to aim your cursor. You then making a throwing motion with the Wii remote to throw at the lollypops and Witch’s Teeth for points. The Green lollypops are worth the most. If you get all the Witch’s Teeth all the lollypops turn to Bonus ones worth 50 each.

Spin-a-Spider: This game is free to play. You will need to play this game and do decent at it to get tickets to play other games in the Fairytale area, as you start with 0 tickets. In this game you keep the spiders away from the girl by aiming with the Wii remote, grabbing the spiders with A, and then spinning them up by flicking the Wii remote left or right. This game can be pretty easy to master and always get the max points of 500 with a little practice.

Sleepy Hollow: This game costs 25 tickets. In this game you shoot with the B button and aim with the Wii remote to shoot as many wisps as you can before time runs out. The wisps can sometimes be hard to get because they are small and try not to get tricked by the flashes of light.

Bug Off: This game costs 10 tickets. In this game you have to whack the bugs that match the color of the flowers. The colors of the flowers change each round. If you whack one wrong one, then it ends the round and mixes it up and changes the colors. For each round you beat the number of bugs increase that match the color to a max of 7. They decrease by one each time you fail to hit them all with a minimum of bugs matching being 1.

Bumble Rumble: This game costs 10 tickets. In this game you guide 5 bees back to the hive. You aim with the Wii remote to herd them back to the hive. I find this to be kind of frustrating and not worth playing.

Bag-a-Bug: This game costs 50 tickets. In this game you try to collect as many bugs on your stick as you can before time runs out. The controls are simple in that you just aim around with the Wii remote, but actually keeping the bugs can get hard as the number of red bugs that knock off the point bugs increase.

Prizes

The prizes do not mean anything except for the passes for passes to the other areas. They do need to all be purchased, though, in order to unlock the area’s final game.

The prizes are Nectar Collector (75 tickets), Bad Book Nullifier (150 tickets), Crusty Gingerbread Goodness (75 tickets), Nectar Juice (40 tickets), Teeth Thief (75 tickets), Sparkly Stick of Joy (40 tickets), Space Zone Pass (150 tickets), Mystical Horse (300 tickets), and Clockwork Marvel (40 tickets).

Final Game

Tunnel of Love: This is a cool game in which you aim with the Wii remote and shoot at goblins with the B button as you ride through on the Tunnel of Love ride. Note you can also get points for shooting props in the ride.

Part 1: Carnival Area

I feel in love with this rental game and for once actually played through the entire game. Wonder World Amusement Park has many mini games divided into five areas. The different games use the Wii remote and sometimes nunchuck in a variety of ways. I found it fun as a single player in Story Mode earning tickets and trying to unlock the other areas, purchase the prizes, and unlocking each area’s boss-like game. Below is Part 1 of a 5 part guide to be posted throughout the next week or so.  It is organized by area the mini games are in and gives a brief look at how to play the different mini games along with some tips I have from my personal experience playing the game.

Part 1: Carnival Area

This is the area that you start with unlocked.

Games

Coconut Topple: This game is free to play. I find it to be one of the harder free to play games to earn tickets from and am thus glad you start with 100 in the Carnival area. In the game you use the Wii remote and nunchuck. You aim by using the joystick on the Wii remote to move around your cursor. You then make throwing motion with the Wii remote to throw baseballs at the coconuts. When you get rid of all the coconuts they refresh. I found they come off better if you aim low at them. Also, the gold ones do not stay gold long so be quick or ignore them as you can lose precious time trying to get them and missing. Also, it does take two hits to knock off a gold.

Ready Steady: This game costs 10 tickets to play. This one requires a very steady hand, as you try to keep the ring around the metal bar without it touching the bar. You use the Wii remote to aim and guide the ring along. When you hit the sides you have to press A to sync back up with the ring. At least it just stops where you hit the bar and it does not start over. If you reach the end before time runs out, then you move on to the next level. I think there are a total of three levels to work through, but I always run out of time on the second or third level.

Hook-a-Frog: This game costs 10 tickets. In this game you go fishing for frogs. You aim by moving the Wii remote around. When over a frog’s open mouth you press A to go down and try to catch it. Go for the frogs on lily pads that are moving across the back for higher points. Also, the golden frogs are worth more than the green ones.

Crack Shot: This game costs 50 tickets. In this game you aim with the Wii remote and shoot with the B button. The goal is to hit all the cans and bottles in a level. If you get them all, then you move on to the next level. I think there are four levels, but I always get stuck on the third.

Picture Perfect!: This game costs 25 tickets. This is a slider puzzle game. I stink at it, so cannot really give any tips on it. Basically you try to make the picture right by moving the tiles one by one into the open space until they are all back where they belong.

Rodent Riot: This game costs 25 tickets. This is a fun whacking game. You select the spot to hit using the joystick on the nunchuck. You then hit the rodents where they pop up by doing a whacking motion with the Wii remote. Hit the rodents with helmets for higher points. They do take two hits, though. If found this to be the easiest one to earn tickets from in the Carnival area.

Prizes

The prizes do not mean anything except for the passes for passes to the other areas. They do need to all be purchased, though, in order to unlock the area’s final game.

The prizes are Bubble Solution Receptacle (50 tickets), Spooky Zone Pass (100 tickets), Stuffed Icon of Excellence (50 tickets), Thumb Masher (25 tickets), Ambush Comedian (50 tickets), Kiddie’s Delight (25 tickets), Fairytale Zone Pass (100 tickets), Rod of Merriment (25 tickets), and Joyful Transport (200 tickets).

Final Game

Sky Cannon: In this game you are shot out of cannon and on your way to the bucket you have to do tricks to get through gates. If you fail to do the right trick, then the round ends. There are two rounds. There are four types of tricks. One is a star (press up arrow), one is a T (press down arrow), one is a ball (press A button), and one is a spin (press B button). I found it frustrating at first to keep the button and tricks straight, but after a few tries it sunk in. The timing for your move can be hard, but once you know to do it when your wake turns rainbow it becomes pretty easy. It is the landing in the bucket for the bonus 200 points at the end that I still am confused on.

I have noticed that Wii Play seems to stay on the list of top selling Wii games and I really wonder if it comes down to it just being a way to get a Wii Remote. A Wii remote costs $40 and the game retails at some places still for $50, but I have seen it end up on sale for $30 at least a few times including early on when it came out and I bought it because it was the only way to buy an extra Wii remote. That was most definitely the reason it sold so well at first, but I really wonder with Wii remotes now being not too hard to buy in stores if people actually ever think of the games when they buy it.

Wii Play has nine mini games for one or two players to play. To me it is a little disappointing that at least some of the games were not made into 4 player games because they easily work well for more than 2 players, such as Shooting and Find Mii. The mini games at least in my case entertained me for a few hours the first week or so I had the game, but since then (at least a year ago) I can only remember pulling it out once and even then we only played for less than an hour. Bottom line is I really would think of it as a dud purchase if it had not come with a Wii remote.

Note the nine games are Shooting, Find Mii, Table Tennis, Pose Mii, Laser Hockey (really hard and frustrating with crap graphics in my opinion), Fishing, Billiards, Charge!, and Tanks!