Zack & Wiki: Quest For Barbaros' Treasure - 7/10

You are probably wondering why I'd take the time to actually write a review for a game as old as Zack and Wiki now is. Other than being a sad bastard with nothing better to do, people are still talking about it so the interest is still there.

Also, seen by many as a beacon of hope for quality gaming on the Wii, I feel that many reviewers are overlooking some very prominent flaws. As such I would like to highlight them to potential buyers out there.

If you are reading this you are most likely already familiar with the basic premise of the game so I will omit the background info for the sake of brevity.

Graphically, it is extremely hard to fault Zack and Wiki as it makes excellent use of the hardware on offer. The 'not really but kinda' cell shaded style is right at home and provides a very polished look that makes you forget you are playing on the most handicapped of next gen consoles. It really is one of the strong points of the title.

However, as Wii gamers, we like to think that we know the secret of inner beauty and therefore are not too fussed about having the latest and greatest visuals. We are all about the gameplay and having such an immersive control scheme in which the wii-mote becomes a saw, or a flute or an umbrella is the epitome of gaming. Huzzah!

It's not actually.

As a point and click control scheme, Zack and Wiki move about the screen with the ease of the old mouse and leaves the older console control schemes of an adventure game for dead. Nothing else comes close. It's when Capcom unleash the gimmick that a fair amount of the lustre is lost.

At times it works well, however those times are the exception, not the rule. Other times, the on screen behaviour is the furthest thing from what you are acting out in your lounge room. More than once I was caught out swinging at random hoping the outcome would be favourable.

To be fair maybe half the time the motion controls do what you want them to do, but when that's one of your big selling points, you really need it to be better implemented.

But enough whinging for a moment. Where other's have questioned the lack of voice acting I did not feel that it had a large impact on my enjoyment of the game. Yes, the little soundbite to let you know which character's text you were reading did get annoying, the soundtrack and ambient sounds created a great atmospheric environment.

And what a great environment it is. From the jungle, to ice caverns, to haunted castles, it's quite the romp. Except I couldn't help but feel gipped. The episodic nature of the game ruined some of the scope for me.

At times I was quite content to play a quick level, save it and get back to FIFA. Other times I really wanted to sink my teeth in and get really absorbed by the game. The level format and return to the hideout really prevented that complete immersion that I craved. After all, it was one of my favourite aspects of the old adventure games, and - my control scheme sooks aside- Zack and Wiki plays invitingly enough to make a few hours gaming feel a pleasure.

Overall, the difficulty level was reasonable and seemingly broken into thirds. Obviously the first third is all about learning the ropes, the second is more where the real challenge lies. It's actually here where you will earn your stripes as it seemed by the time you reach the castle you are on the logic train and simply going through the motions to the games end.

My biggest beef with the difficulty is the occasional bout of Sierra-itis. Any time I die for no apparent reason other than someone felt the need to script a random frustrating death, I can't help but feel a bit screwed. Especially when it means I'll be replaying the whole level.

The only thing more frustrating is when you find out that your actions in the first seconds of the stage have dashed all hopes of completing it... ten minutes later. And don't even bother with buying the Oracle's 'tips'.

Hopefully you are still reading this and haven't already begun feverishly typing your reply to let me know how wrong I am, because honestly I really, really enjoyed Zack and Wiki. It was good, innocent fun without coming across as overly childish. Is it perfect? No, but as long as you are prepared to handle the occasional annoyance and take part in some wii-batics to turn a crank, Zack and Wiki is a great example of how the Wii should be used.

Now we just need someone to iron out the kinks.

Gunner 20/02/2009

Kudos: 455  Mates: 7

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