2K Games Releases Carnival Games For Wii

Let’s see if we can sort this situation out. Nintendo launches the Wii last fall, and many developers don’t know what to do with the system, or they simply right it off as too gimmicky. Nintendo’s “gimmick” becomes the fastest selling console of all time, and now companies scramble to catch up? And now we’re getting half-assed PS2 ports, plus some mini-game compilations. You know our thoughts on the former issue, but what of the latter? With 2K Games announcing their own mini-game compilation with Carnival Games we begin to wonder how much developers understand what makes Wii games so much fun.

The reason people are so enamored with Wii Sports is fairly basic; the controls and functionality is simplistic. That game is really just a tutorial on how to play with your new toy. That’s all it is, and the ease of use is what appeals to gamers of all ages. But Carnival Games isn’t like Wii Sports, it is more like a Raving Rabbids. There though Ubisoft tapped into a presentation that was amusing and highly appealing. If you think back to the hours spent with the first Rabbids game you’ll soon realize that it was pretty mundane in gameplay. But the antics of the characters in the game, plus the Simpsons like spoofing of pop culture, made Ubisoft’s title a hit.

If Carnival Games is going to compete with the best mini-game offerings on the Wii it has to present the simple games in a unique and interesting way. Otherwise the 25 midway and boardwalk style games like Ring Toss, Frog Leap, Shooting Gallery and Balloon Darts will get tired within a day. That is a death knell for any mini-game compilation. We’ve yet to see how well the presentation works in this 2K Games title, but we have a minor suggestion. If the developers want to produce a carny game, then we need the full experience. When you go to play Balloon Darts if the guy running the booth could be a toothless wonder who leers at your girlfriend, that’d do wonders in bringing up horrible high school memories of the local fireman’s carnival.

Carnival Games is now available for a very reasonable $39.99.