WiiWare and Virtual Console Roundup Review

Strong Bad's Cool Game For Attractive People Episode 2: Strong Badia the Free

• Developer: Telltale Games
• Wii Points: 1000
• In Real Money: GBP 7.00 / EUR 10.00 (approx)

With their Sam & Max episodic adventure, Telltale's razor sharp comedy instinct was eventually dulled by the repetitive nature of the tasks and locations on offer. Concerns that Strong Bad may follow suit aren't quite alleviated by this second episode, which reprises several locations from Homestar Ruiner, but the structure of this new series is such that it's not as problematic as it might have been.

This time around Strong Bad, the wrestling-masked, boxing-gloved belligerent anti-hero of the saga, has been placed under house arrest by the King of Town for failing to pay his email tax - one cream cake per email sent or received. After a short introductory puzzle which involves getting rid of the electronic collar around Strong Bad's neck, you're off on a quest to overthrow the king and crown yourself monarch of Strong Badia.

Trouble is, all the other characters have set up their own countries as well, and to unite them all under your banner you need to travel through each in turn, fulfilling certain objectives to earn their allegiance.

Straight away, the experience is a lot more linear than the enjoyable ramble of the first episode. It's also a lot more straightforward, and so probably won't last experienced gamers as long. At least, the main story won't take you as long. As before, there's a ton of additional stuff to find, hidden jokes, fun collectibles and unlockable arcade games to play with.

It's here that Strong Bad separates itself from the herd. While there will be points where you'll start to feel tired of wandering back and forth between the same scenes, boredom can be staved off by simply exploring for something else. Unlike Sam & Max where random scenery items might trigger an amusing one-liner, here you're just as likely to uncover lengthy comedy tangents and playable extras.

Much still depends on how funny you find the Homestar Runner web cartoons, but Strong Bad remains an episodic experience well worth making time for each month.

8/10

Helix

• Developer: Ghostfire Games
• Wii Points: 1000
• In Real Money: GBP 7.00 / EUR 10.00 (approx)

Do you like the concept of Samba de Amigo, but aren't quite ready to fork out on a full price purchase? Or maybe you enjoy waving your arms in time to music, but find games with too much character or personality overwhelming and scary? Either way, this would appear to be the game for you - a no frills rhythm game in which you match the movements of a robot while generic dance music pumps away.

You'll need two remotes to play properly, though the game does let you play with just one - at the cost of half the available points. The robot, which looks uncannily like the ones that prompted Will Smith to exclaim "AW HELL NAW" in I, Robot, performs a move and then you repeat it as a bar passes over the top of the screen. Start your flailing at the start of the bar, and make sure your arm is back by your side at the end. Bingo. You are a superstar.

The motion recognition is up to the task, most of the time, and you can calibrate your remotes to make it even more accurate. Even so, experienced Wii players will soon work out the minimal movements which can be used to trick the system. Not sure why you'd do that, but there you go. The soundtrack, meanwhile, is made up of techno and trance acts you've never heard of, and the incessant generic tunes grate all too soon.

Helix is certainly serviceable, in that it features music and gameplay involves moving in time to this music, but there's no atmosphere, no energy, no life to the thing. Much like its robot host, it's a bare bones facsimile of something with a lot more soul. Samba de Amigo may cost four times as much but even in its slightly disappointing Wii incarnation, it's still four times as much fun as well.

5/10

Sonic the Hedgehog

• Platform: Master System
• Wii Points: 500
• In Real Money: GBP 3.50 / EUR 5 (approx)

There hasn't been a Master System game added to the VC in over three months, so you have to wonder why Sonic the Hedgehog is the game to break the dry spell. This is, after all, a slightly gimped version of a game that's been on the Virtual Console since launch.

So what you're getting is Sonic the Hedgehog with no background scrolling, lower quality music and, since the gems now appear in the levels rather than special stages, less gameplay. It's also 300 Points cheaper, of course.

There's not much else to say. It's Sonic. Not quite as awesome as some people may recall, and certainly not as good as some of the immediate sequels, but still one of the all-time favourite platform games for a very good reason. If you don't already own the marginally superior Megadrive version, here's a cheaper option.

8/10

Jumpman

• Platform: C64
• Wii Points: 500
• In Real Money: GBP 3.50 / EUR 5 (approx)

Jumpman was, of course, Mario's original name back when he tackled Donkey Kong in the arcade. This 1983 platform game rips off both name and concept with admirable gusto, but rather forgets to mimic the more refined gameplay of Nintendo's hit.

You guide Jumpman around a series of familiar platforms and ladders, touching bombs to defuse them. Each level introduces more hazards and enemies to make this simple task tougher than it looks. Bullets that suddenly change direction. Robots that patrol the platforms. Bombs that drop from the sky. You know the drill.

It's not that Jumpman is short of ideas. Across the thirty levels there are numerous tweaks to the formula. In one level, you can shoot instead of jump. Another finds you destroying the platform beneath your feet whenever you jump. It's the core gameplay that lets the game down, with the same sort of relentlessly fussy quirks that spoiled Spelunker.

There's a perfect example on the very first stage. There's a small raised area at the bottom. Jump off it and you land in good health. Walk off the edge and you die, despite a shorter drop than when you jumped. You get a generous bunch of lives with which to get used to the game's foibles, but with so many better games available there's not much reason to make that extra effort.

3/10

Boulder Dash

• Platform: C64
• Wii Points: 500
• In Real Money: GBP 3.50 / EUR 5 (approx)

Here's a game that has aged much better than Jumpman. Boulder Dash is one of those games that could really only work in 2D, and has inspired countless remakes, tributes and rip-offs over the years. Amazingly, it still feels fresh and addictive.

Grabbing diamonds is the aim of the game, but to get to them you must tunnel through the ground. Boulders litter the way ahead, and should you remove the dirt beneath one, it will fall. The same is true if you dig away the dirt down the side of a pile of boulders. The physics won't impress anyone reared on today's software, but it's still a lot of fun to cause mini-rockslides, escaping by the skin of your teeth.

It looks like a platformer, but is actually a puzzle game. After a few easy levels to get you eased into the concept, the game starts putting you in fiendish situations where a wrong move can leave you trapped, crushed or unable to reach a diamond because of your rash actions. Forward planning and nimble movement are your friend.

Boulder Dash never quite rose to the level of the gaming greats, perhaps because it lacked an identifiable or personable star. Rockford, the hero, is a squat little boggle-eyed freak. Still, it's definitely worth 500 Points to revisit a solid game that is as moreish in 2008 as it was in 1984.

7/10