So if any of you do know Kirby already then you surely know that he has been gifted with a special power that lets him suck up and ingest his enemies, then take on the abilities of the digested foe. Well it just so happens that knowledge is totally useless because in this game Kirby loses that particular special power in favour of something more textile.

The story goes like this: As usual Kirby the ever hungry is in search for a snack. He is wandering around Dream Land just minding his own business when he spots the tastiest looking tomato he’s ever seen. So without hesitation Kirby goes to eat it and in doing so, disturbs a strange looking monster made entirely out of Yarn.

Funnily enough his name is Yin-Yarn and he’s suddenly very angry at Kirby for stealing the tomato. Without warning he sucks Kirby up into a magic sock (which is actually a wormhole) to a new dimension in which everything and everyone is made of fabric (yes including Kirby). Without boring you with too many details right now, Kirby soon meets up with Prince Fluff who informs him that this evil Yin-Yarn has stolen some magic yarn that is very important because it literally holds Patch Land together. Kirby and Fluff join forces in an attempt to reclaim all the magic yarn and stitch Patch Land back up again, hopefully defeating Yin-Yarn along the way too. Oh yes remember that Tomato? Well it turns out that it was a magic tomato and after eating it Kirby can now transform into any object he can think of, very cool.

So that’s the story, but what’s the game then? Well Kirby’s Epic Yarn is a brand new platform adventure from the clever people at GoodFeel; they created Wario Land Shake It for Wii a couple of years ago. How do I go about describing this platformer?

Well if you’re familiar with Mario, Sonic and Donkey Kong then you’ll know that the general premise of these game is to complete a series of levels by successfully getting from the left most area to the right most . Along the way there are items you can collect, bottomless pits you can fall down, enemies that can harm you and perhaps environmental obstacles such as molten lava. Kirby’s Epic Yarn doesn’t stray too far from that formula but does add a few twists to the genre.

Firstly absolutely everything in the game is made of fabric, it can be hard to get your head around to start with but after a few minutes of playing it will all make sense. This enables some very interesting new physics play, one of my favourite examples is that in midair Kirby can transform into a parachute and gently drift across a chasm – if there is any wind he’ll be carried along by it.

Second and most controversially is that the whole concept of ‘lives’ and ‘dying’ has been scrapped. Unless you give up and quit a level it’s impossible to lose and you’re never forced to start back at the beginning and try again. This initially might sound like a backward step or making the game too easy but if you think about it for a moment, it’s actually a rather good idea. For years platform games have been designed to continually ‘kill’ the player until they’ve memorised the level. Here in Epic Yarn the real challenge isn’t just getting to the level end, it’s also about finding all of the collectables and finding enough beads to get a gold medal.

Thirdly Kirby’s Epic Yarn tries to use its scenery in a much more physical and interactive way than other platformers. Despite being a 2D sidescroller the game has a unique sense of depth to it. You see that zipper in the sky? Well if Kirby pulls the zipper across a whole new layer of the level that was previously hidden is revealed. Also if there’s a hole in the fabric Kirby can get inside in the same way as he could climb through a whole in your jumper – you even get to see his fat little body create an imprint as he moves in the background!

Oh yes I was meant to be talking about the game….well it’s tough to describe a platform game. I guess as I mentioned before, the main goal is to get from the start of the level to the end. In-between that is a cool mix of your typical platforming stuff like jumping about, bashing enemies and new stuff like transforming into a UFO or a giant missile firing Robot. Each level contains several hidden items as well as hundreds of beads to collect, these are very similar to the coins in Mario or Bananas in Donkey Kong Country. Depending on the number you collect by the end of the level you might get a Bronze, Silver or Gold medal. Remember I mentioned it wasn’t possible to die? Well in Kirby, if you are struck by an enemy or fall down a hole you will lose beads (yup sort of like Sonic dropping his rings), if you want to get a gold medal you’ll have to be very careful not to get hit and explore the level for every last bead you can find. Indeed this is where things get tough in Kirby.

Okay about these items. Every level (except bosses) has two items of furniture and a soundtrack CD to find. These are usually hidden slightly off the beaten track and will need some exploration and perhaps puzzle solving to find. The furniture can be used to decorate Kirby’s house on the overworld map as well as some empty apartment blocks in Quilty Square. If you decorate the empty flats well enough, new tenants will move in and offer Kirby some special minigames to play as a reward.

Kirby’s Epic Yarn is a great little platformer and reminds me quite a lot of LittleBigPlanet both in terms of graphical flair and gameplay. If you enjoyed LBP but wished it had that little bit of Nintendo magic then you will find it here. The main story will last just 5 to 7 hours but actually getting everything in the game will double that to around 10 to 14 hours. It would have been nice to see a LittleBigPlanet like online level community but sadly we’ll likely have to wait until Wii2 for that. The level design is very impressive and it really does appear like Kirby is moving around inside a fabric world. Everything from the super impressive textures to the way things thump on the ground really do make it ‘feel’ like fabric. There’s a great range of level environments; Water, Ice, Clouds, Lava, Grass and even Outer Space – all made of fabric, crazy but you’ll have to see it to believe it. Very understated but this is one of the best looking games on Wii and if you’re not paying attention, it will fool you into thinking it’s High Definition. Let’s not forget the music because it’s awesome, gentle toe tapping tunes very reminiscent of Mario, heck there’s even one song that really reminds me of “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” by The Beatles. All that goes by the wayside when it comes to my favourite element of Kirby’s Epic Yarn for Wii – the excellent story narration by Paul Vaughn for the European English version. His voiceover takes you back to the friendlier days of kids TV, shows like Postman Pat, The Wombles, The Clangers etc.

Kirby’s Epic Yarn may appear easy from the outset but a real gamer will find plenty of challenge hidden here, you just need to look beyond the cuteness. If you have a friend and want to play coop then bring them along for some extra fun in this rather cute and rather excellent platformer. 5 out of 5.

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Donkey Kong Country 64 (1999) was the last game in the series that was created by original developers Rare, its higher res visuals and massive levels ensured it was unique for being the first Nintendo 64 game that required compulsory use of the N64 (Ram) Expansion Pack. During the intervening ten years we’ve seen some other Donkey Kong games such as Jungle Beat; an unusual platformer that could be played with the GameCube Bongo controller. However none of these DK games really captured the essence of the Country series.

So it was a surprise to everyone when Donkey Kong Country Returns was revealed at last year’s E3 convention. Not only was it totally unexpected to see a return to this forgotten franchise but the game was being developed by Retro Studios, creators of the Metroid Prime trilogy. Donkey Kong Country Returns for Wii is brand new entry into the series that goes straight back to the roots of the original DKC game rather than incorporating the gimmicks from the later titles. Just like the original DKC game, our heroes Donkey and Diddy awake from the lazy existence of relaxing in the jungle to find that some nasty bugger has stolen all of their bananas.

The Kremlings aren’t to blame this time. A strange race of musical creatures known as the Tiki Tak Tribe are using their hypnotic powers to control the minds of the jungle inhabitants. We see everything from Giraffes to Elephants all becoming slaves to the relaxing rhythm, they then start carrying those precious bananas away into the sunset. As you can imagine, Donkey and Diddy are not best pleased and immediately give chase – thus our game beings.

I hope you’re ready for some of the toughest platforming action since Mario & The Lost Levels because this game is one unforgiving beast. Now I’m sure you’re already used to 2D platformers so I will not insult you (too much) by describing what you actually do. Initially you start just with Donkey as you progress through the level rolling and jumping across platforms, pits, spikes and other obstacles. Almost all of the enemies in the game can be defeated by a simple roll or a stomp on the head but later on you will encounter some that will need differing tactics.

When you encounter a DK barrel you’ll be able to join forces with Diddy Kong which will give you two major advantages. Firstly this doubles your hit points from two to four making things slightly easier. Secondly Diddy’s new jetpack comes in very useful because it allows the pair to hover in the air for a couple of seconds, this combined with a long roll and jump will result in some very long jump distances. A Donkey Kong Country game wouldn’t be the same if it didn’t feature some of its most famous features now would it? Barrel Blasting, Tyre Bouncing, KONG Letters, Minecart Crashing, Secret Hunting and not forgetting those Animal Buddies. In fact almost everything that made the original DKC title is here in Donkey Kong Country Returns.

It’s all very well copying and pasting stuff from the original but often it is what you add and what you take away that makes the most difference when creating a sequel. There are several changes in DKCR and let’s go over the main ones now! First up the two player tag team mode has been reworked and is now a fully fledged real-time coop system that is very reminiscent of New Super Mario Bros. As long as you have enough life balloons you can survive on a stage indefinitely by resurrecting each other. On the other hand things are much more hectic when the two characters are independent, the camera will be constantly zooming in and out to fit you both onscreen (Smash Bros style).

A new Rocket Barrel provides some serious fun which rivals the minecart rides in terms of difficulty. You need to safely steer the Kongs through a tricky obstacle course with only the power of thrust or gravity, kinda reminds me of the lava magic carpet stage from Disney’s Aladdin on the SNES. The Kongs also have some new moves to show off. I’ve already mentioned Diddy’s Jet Pack but that’s not all folks. You now have the power of blow. That’s right you can now crouch down and blow the petals off flowers to reveal a bonus, you can also blow out enemies that are covered in flames that would normally be too hot to jump on. Climbing has been improved too, previously the only things that you could climb before were ropes and vines. Now you will encounter patches of thick grass on walls and ledges, this really helps with additional vertical gameplay and the hiding of secret bonus rooms.

Oh I guess I should mention that Diddy Kong has a peanut gun, the funny thing is I didn’t realise this ‘til after I finished the game. I didn’t use it once! So who remembers the animal buddies? Yeah we know that they’re basically Yoshi from Mario but they were all so damn cute. Well there is some good news and bad news; Rambi and Squawks return but the rest of the gang don’t even get a mention. The lack of swimming levels mean there’s no Enguarde but why we don’t get to see Expresso the Ostrich and Winky the Frog is beyond me!

Last but not least comes the Super Guide; designed for those not as finely tuned to ball breakingly hard platformers as some of us. After around six failed attempts at clearing a level you will have the option of getting Super Kong (the CPU) to finish the level for you. This might be great for getting past a tricky level but you get none of the rewards, my advice is not to use it – I didn’t and I’m still alive aren’t I? If you need more lives or invincibility potion then you can just visit Cranky’s Store and spend some of your banana coins.

Many people have complained that there is no classic or gamecube controller support; I agree that it would have been fun to play it SNES style but I was more than happy with the WiiRemote and Nunchuck scheme. I found them intuitive and responsive enough and I think most people will be fine after a bit of practice. Much has already been said of the graphics of DKCR. The switch from prerendered to polygonal has been fairly successful, everything is lush and detailed to the max. The rumours are that there are six times as many polygons on screen than Metroid Prime 3, which to this day is still considered to be one of the Wii’s hottest looking games.

Alright I’ve been holding it off for as long as I can but we need to talk about the music. The OST from Donkey Kong Country is epic and loved by millions worldwide; Retro made a rather interesting choice to not create a new soundtrack but recreate and remix the original. In short it is certainly amazing to be listening to the classic tunes in this new game but it can’t go without saying that despite the huge leap in technology; these remixes just don’t compare.  Donkey Kong Country Returns for Wii is a really fun title and certainly one of the best 2D platformers on the system. There’s just something magical about the speed and subtlety of the level design, one moment you can be blasting breakneck through barrels and at other times you’re hopping slowly from platform to platform with pixel perfect precision. The variety of level types is great. The easier Jungle levels are the most like the original but as you progress right up to the deviously hard Factory and Volcano you will be testing your skills with moving platforms, fire, steam and gravity switches amongst other things.

I estimate that you’ll take around ten hours to finish the main game but you’ll then have to go back to find all of the hidden Jigsaw pieces and KONG letters if you want to unlock all of the game’s secrets. There is an image gallery, music gallery and even a whole set of hidden levels – which are even tougher than the main ones! If you’re ready for the toughest and prettiest platforming on Wii then like me you’ll go bananas over Donkey Kong Country Returns on Wii. What else but 5 out of 5?

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There’s not much to be said about the original Goldeneye that you won’t have heard elsewhere a million times before. Put simply it was the best first person shooter of it’s generation and totally changed the worlds perception of movie licensed video games. To top it off, it actually felt like a real James Bond game, there was plenty of stealth, action, guns and gadgets, not forgetting the two very polygonal Bond girls. What more could any self respecting teenage boy want?

A lot has happened in the world of video games in the thirteen years since; we’re two hardware generations ahead and console power is at an all time high. Well all except the Nintendo Wii that is. You can’t fault that success of the Wii when you look at it’s sales figures but that on it’s own doesn’t tell the full story. Many third party developers complain that the Wii is too underpowered for their latest engines and as such, porting from the 360 & PS3 is no easy task, and one that isn’t worth their time. Combine this with the Wii’s casual image and we have an unfortunate situation where core mature titles are somewhat of a scarcity on Wii. Thankfully though some developers see this as a chance to snag the hardcore Wii owners with little other competition in the market.

Goldeneye 007 is a brand new game from Activision and Eurocom, both companies have gone on the record to say that this is not a remake of the N64 classic, but a new game based on a re-imagining of the movie. One of the major changes you’ll instantly notice is the removal of Pierce Brosnan and the introduction of Daniel Craig. Out go most of the gadgets and the lashings of suaveness and in comes a tougher more physical bond who prefers to use his fists whenever possible. Just like the rest of us, Bond now carries a smartphone but instead of sending tweets all day he uses it to takephotos, track targets, disable alarm systems and communicate with M over at MI6. I don’t know about you but I wish my iPhone had a direct dial to Judy Dench, GILF!

The basic Goldeneye storyline is still in place but has been modernised enough to make it more relevant to society today; for example; the game features less reliance on the Cold War vibe that has littered Bond movies for years and instead focuses more on cyber warfare. The Russian military and the shady Janus crime syndicate still feature prominently but they’re less stereotypical than before. Previously the MI6 traitor Alec Trevelyan (agent 006) was a Russian spy, but this time around it appears that he is just an English agent like Bond but has simply become weary of his duties.
Why should he endanger his life to protect England’s rich elite bankers when they’re the ones that have helped put the world into recession? Of course with all the skills and knowledge acquired after serving in Her Majesty’s Secret Service, he is more than capable of planning the world’s greatest bank robbery. Can James Bond stop Alec from carrying out this heist and covering his tracks by blasting London with an enormous Electro Magnetic Pulse from the stolen Goldeneye satellite?

If you wanted retro first person shooter action then you’ve come to the wrong place, Goldeneye is a modern and up to date first person shooter. Many have compared the game to Call of Duty but that doesn’t tell the whole story. Call of Duty is well known for bringing direct storytelling to the forefront with a streamlined narrow experience focussing on one path and multiple set pieces. This modern Goldeneye uses those same style of set pieces and cut scenes to tell it’s story but in a less scripted way. Whereas many Call of Duty games seem to have a massive explosion around every corner and millions of continual re-spawning enemies, Goldeneye sticks to the stealthy roots we know and love.

Right from the start Goldeneye puts you just outside the familiar Verzasca dam, it’s quite possible to go in all guns blazing but you’ll alert more enemies to your presence. Generally Bond likes to operate quietly in the shadows and you’ll find the game a bit easier if you think like a real spy. Creeping up behind on unsuspecting baddies and taking them down quietly is much better than shooting a noisy weapon about the place. If you can remember back to the original Goldeneye then you may well recall that the levels were big and sometimes you’d explore an area only to find that there was nothing there anyway. Some people may describe that as a waste of space but for me it seems more realistic, why should you find all of your mission objectives along a predetermined straight route when you could just as easily sneak upstairs and locate a small office with those secret documents in? For me Goldeneye gives the player a greater level of explorational freedom, if you just follow the checkpoint marker then you’ll miss some interesting stuff and that’s the way it should be. You’ll be rewarded for taking your time and looking in every nook and cranny with better weapons hidden in locked chests, just shoot the padlock off and the goodies are yours.

The single player campaign is split into 4 difficulty levels:

• Operative is the lowest difficulty level and contains the main story missions.
• Agent features heightened difficulty and an extra couple of side objectives.
• 007 will tax you by increasing the difficulty further as well as adding even more objectives.
• 007 Classic is the same as 007 but is where the original Goldeneye fans will feel more at home because auto health regeneration is removed and the body armour pickups return.

Oddly enough before the game’s release most of the talk about Goldeneye Wii was about it’s multiplayer modes. Activison promised us a return to our heritage with awesome splitscreen local multiplayer, of course it’s fun playing online but there’s nothing quite like blasting your friends to pieces when you’re in the same room is there? So the very same deathmatch that attracted me to the original returns in all it’s glory here on Wii, up to four players can sit around with a quarter of a TV screen each and play headlong into the night without having to worry about laggy servers or migrating hosts every 10 minutes. If you can find three friends to come play Goldeneye with you then I promise you’ll have masses of fun here, almost every aspect of the game can be customised and there are plenty of deathmatch modes to choose from. To everyone’s surprise Eurocom didn’t go the easy route and leave Wii owners with no online mode, those with broadband can take the game online and experience a fully fledged multiplayer experience that you’d normally associate with the HD consoles. A full XP ranking system awaits you and just like with Call of Duty, the more you play the better the weapons you’ll unlock.

Whatever mode you play, Goldeneye features a range of control schemes for Wii supporting every peripheral except the Wii Balance Board. Those who have experienced Wii Pointer controls on shooters such as Resident Evil 4, Metroid Prime 3 or The Conduit will be pleased to hear that they too can point at the screen and shoot those Ruskies. As much as I wanted to use that control method I just had to default to a joypad, the sluggish framerate and auto aim assist conspire to ruin the default control system. You can also use the Wii Zapper, Classic Controller or even the Gamecube pad if you feel so inclined, but the best experience will be gained if you use the new Classic Controller Pro – this updated pad features better button and analogue stick placement as well as being much more comfortable to hold. It is with this that I personally suggest plumping for the Collectors Edition of Goldeneye that comes packed in with a discounted cost Classic Controller Pro, that is if you don’t already own one.

The positives:

Goldeneye on Wii looks terrific and is one of the most ambitious games to come out on the system do date, there’s real time lighting, explosion and smoke effects a plenty. The levels are huge and full of detail with no fogging and a very long draw distance, it’s certainly come a long way since the N64 original. The attention to detail is stunning and creates the most authentic Bond atmosphere to date. Everything from the voice acting of Daniel Craig and Judy Dench to the title sequence with the (obligatory) sultry naked female swimmers, set the scene perfectly. Not to mention the game is full of the same superb motion performance capture you’ve seen in games such as Resident Evil 5 and Uncharted 2.

The negatives:

Well I can’t complain about the effort put into Goldeneye at all, however my biggest complaint has to fall to games sluggish framerate. This can’t really be attributed to the developers though, they set out to create the best FPS on Wii and they’ve succeeded – however there’s only so much they can do with a CPU and GPU which are just a small step up from the Gamecube and Playstation 2. Goldeneye deserves to be running at a solid 30fps but for the most part it feels like we’re lucky to get 25, it doesn’t sound like much but it’s a noticeable difference.

Goldeneye for Wii is an essential purchase for all Wii owners who have been waiting for a real gamers game since they finished off Super Mario Galaxy 2. It’s true you could play a much better looking game on 360 or PS3 but if you want that authentic Bond experience then persist with Goldeneye and you’ll understand that graphics aren’t everything. Despite the flaws that come from being too overambitious on a platform that is underpowered, and yes seeing as you ask; I enjoyed the single player campaign more than the much more expensive Black Ops on my Xbox 360. Goldeneye scores a perfect 5 out of 5.

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Switching seamlessly between better 3D sections than Sonic Adventure and better 2D sections than Sonic 4, Sonic Colours manages to completely grasp onto what a new Sonic game should be and runs with it. The action is fast – super fast – but controllable and natural. The level design is unfortunately linear, but makes up for it by offering you a lot to look at and constant impulsive gaming. It’s a pretty game, especially for the Wii, and we don’t even need to ask whether the music is any good – it’s a Sonic game, of course it’s good.

The ‘Colours’ part of the title is all because of the Wisps, a multi-coloured alien species who are being pestered by that blasted Doctor Eggman. Isn’t he dead? Nope, he’s somehow still bumbling around, opening up a intergalactic theme park to cover his plot to enslave the Wisps. Sonic buddies up with the Wisps in order to save them. They can offer him power-ups when he rescues them from the fat doctor’s traps, and every colour gives a different power. In the Wii version, there are eight colours to pick up, and they all have great effects on gameplay. Cyan turns Sonic into a laser, Pink turns him into a sticky bomb, Purple lets him eat up anything in his path – oh man, even writing these down reminds me of how fun all these powers are. The highlight is the Yellow Wisp, who allows Sonic to drill down through solid rock to secret areas beneath him, just like a real hedgehog. Surprisingly, these gimmicks don’t ruin the game and they don’t make you cry over the packaging. They actually make the game better. GASP.

In order to save these good gimmick-generating plot elements, Sonic must explore eight themed planets. This results in a lot of typical Sonic fare, casino planets and green hill planets for example. Each level is an assault course of massive leaps, bouncy springs, robots to smash and rails to grind. Nothing out of the ordinary for the blue hedgehog. There’s over sixty levels on offer here, so there’s a decent dose of longevity to look forward to, although a few moments of bad level design let down the rest of the stages. Mostly this happens when the flow of the game slows down so Sonic can deal with a puzzle, which goes against pretty much everything Sonic Team should be aiming for. Difficulty-wise, most gamers will coast through a lot of the game, but that’s not to say you won’t be frustrated at times.

Something’s got to be wrong here. The 2D sections of the game are great, the 3D sections have ditched a lot of the frustrating elements of the earlier games, even the bosses manage to not completely suck. I suppose I could criticise the co-op multiplayer mode, which is awkward and boring and reminds of the silly ‘co-op’ gaming of Sonic 2, where speed + keeping two players on screen = a complete disaster. You can play with your Mii’s face plastered over Sonic’s body, so that should keep the kids happy, but other than that, this should be treated as a strictly one player experience. Sonic Colours could have done with a true special stage as these tend to be some of the better moments of Sonic gaming, but the chaos emeralds (and their reward, hint hint) are still here.

Sonc Colours was written very much for children and relaxed players who are not looking for a brain-busting challenge. The storyline is silly but written with its tongue intentionally well in its cheek. It’s intentionally self-deprecating, and occassionally genuinely hilarious. Sonic straight up telling Eggman that he’s being “lame” is brilliant, given the amount of crap he’s put with in the past.

It’s one of those rare adrenaline-pumping rollercoaster ride games, packed with instinctive controls and terribly fun moments, embracing the spirit of the moment and not hanging around to think about things too deeply. It’s not perfect – the gameplay slows down at times and difficulty spikes are a problem – but it has so many good ideas that it should fill all Sonic fans with optimism for the future. Show support for Sonic and pick this one up. Unless you hate fun or something. Good on you, Sonic – you get an 4 out of 5.

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Many of you may believe that keeping fish as pets is a very simple and hassle free thing to do. After all they don’t need to be taken for a walk like a dog and they don’t use your legs as scratching posts as would a cat. However if you really want to keep fish properly you’re going to actually need more care, skill, money and patience than you’d ever expect – keeping a solitary goldfish in a bowl of water just doesn’t count (and it’s cruel).

For one thing; before you even think of buying any fish you’ll need a good size tank, an air pump, gravel, water plants and possibly even a water filter. That’s just for cold water fish! Marine and Tropical fish require a water heater, water treatment and a 24hour backup power supply to prevent the water from getting too cold if the power cuts out. All in all it’s a tough business and not one that you want to jump right into without any preparation.

Well Hudson Software say they have the answer; My Aquarium 2 for Wii is a fully interactive piece of WiiWare software that places a virtual fish tank on your television screen. I don’t know about you but it sounds a whole lot easier, safer and less ethically troubling to me. My Aquarium 2 differs slightly over the original with it’s theme. This time out rather than have a collection of random fish we’re given a more unusual selection of Deep Sea fish and crustaceans, some of which live as deep as 4000m in the real ocean.

Just like before; you’re free to have several aquariums running at once and switching from one to another is as simple as clicking on it’s icon. The reason you’d want more aquariums is because just like real life, if you mix fish of uneven sizes together then they may very well eat start eating each other. Cannibalism may be fun when you watch a Zombie movie but it’s totally different when your Wii tells you that some huge ugly fish has just eaten all the other little fish in the tank for breakfast. Whilst we’re on that topic, no fish simulation would be complete without the ability to feed the little buggers. Thankfully you have an infinite supple of fish biscuits and fresh worms (yummy) to keep the inhabitants of the tank well fed, don’t feed them too much though – fish obesity can be a real problem and could cost a fortune in therapist fees.

Of course there’s no forgetting about the ability to customize your tank; everything from the style, lighting, features and plant-life can be customised. If you want a gloomy looking tank then that’s no problem, those with design skills on the other hand can use the Wii Remote to place objects like rocks, coral and novelty ships and air pumps into position. Each sized tank has a capacity level which you can’t exceed so don’t go trying to shove too much into your first tank, spread the stuff around nicely and keep things interesting.

Last time out My Aquarium for Wii featured WiiConnect24 and Forecast Channel integration and once again they’re both back. Real time weather changes occur in sync with the Wii’s weather app and if you have any My Aquarium 2 owning friends then the ability to view each-others online tanks could get you both really excited.

When it comes to the pinch My Aquarium 2 for Wii does what it promises but no more than that. There is still little fun to be had with a virtual aquarium unless you are a real fish lover. Aside from the small description of each fish there is also not too much to report on in terms of education either. The graphics and sound of My Aquarium 2 for Wii are average to say the least, perhaps I’ve been spoilt by the HD version on the PS3 but for whatever reason things look muddy, blurry and very pixelated on a high-resolution screen. Those with standard definition TV’s may fare better but don’t go expecting too much.

Sadly I can only really recommend My Aquarium 2 for WiiWare to those who really did enjoy the original or those with passion with virtual fish. Even with 5 DLC packs available for download by the end of the year I can’t see it being enough to keep my excitement level up. 2 out of 5.

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Offers: To save money the next time you buy athletic shoes over at Eastbay use our East Bay codes, plus use our Footlocker coupon codes handy when buying athletic style shoes at Footlocker.com. Plus you can also save yourself some money whenever you buy custom tees and apparel at Zazzle.com when you use our Zazzle promo codes when shopping. There are no Amazon coupons available, however we’ve got a useful article showing you how to get a free Amazon Prime trial to save some money off your video game purchase. Use the CCS coupon ‘AFGAME15′ to get 15% off orders over $75 and ‘AFGAMEFS’ to get free shipping on orders over $30.

Related: Best Wii games for Christmas 2010, My Aquarium review

PokéPark

PokePark Wii: Pikachu’s Adventure for Wii is the latest adventure for everyone’s favourite yellow Pokémon; Pikachu. Join Pikachu and friend on an adventure like never before, that’s right a Pokémon theme park full of fun games and challenges. If you know a child that loves Pokémon then they’ll love PokéPark for Wii.

Just Dance Kids

Just Dance Kids for Wii is the latest game in the series and this time you won’t find any music here for old fogies like me and you. 40+ hit picked and choreographed especially for younger gamers; any children that love to boogie will really enjoy Just Dance Kids Wii.

Babysitting Mama

Yes Babysitting Mama is the stereotypical game for young girls who love dolls and who already have been cajoled into thinking that they want babies. Damn you television! Babysitting Mama for Wii is from the same people who brought us Cooking Mama, expect lots of fun little minigames with a babysitting theme.

Bakugan Battle Brawlers

Bakugan Battle Brawlers: Defenders of the Core for Wii is just the title for the robot and dragon loving kid in your life. Why? Well because it’s full of giant Robotic Dragon machines that battle eachother. What more could they possibly want?

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Harry Potter, that’s another thing that kids love. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows for Wii is the brand new video game adaptation of the latest Harry Potter movie. Fun for every little Wizard or Witch in your family.

Related: Top kids Wii games, Nintendo Wii buying guide for Christmas

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Well get ready to react in that very manner because Jett Rocket for Wii is a 3D Platform Adventure game which takes great inspiration from Nintendo’s Gamecube classic. Before things get too silly I’ll point out right away; Jett Rocket is not as good a game than Sunshine – but that doesn’t mean it’s bad either, let’s find out more in this Jett Rocket WiiWare review.

Jett Rocket is a peaceful ecological superhero who looks a bit like Ben 10 crossed with GI Joe. Not everyone cares about the environment and it appears that the evil Power Plant Posse have invaded a peaceful planet called Yoroppa. Not only have they installed horrible fossil fuelled power plants all over the once beautiful planet; they’ve left lots of horrid robots guarding them all too. Just as you or I would, Mr Rocket vows to clean up this mess once and for all and promptly gets down to the planet’s surface to sort matters pronto.

So far you’re probably wondering about the afforementioned similarities to Super Mario Sunshine; well wonder no more. You may remember that in Sunshine Mario had a three function water pack called Fludd? Well Jett Rocket can’t quite afford expensive tech like that but don’t worry, he does at least have a standard jet rocket pack and if it means he can float about the place does it really matter what fuel it uses?

Ok so both games feature a rocket pack but what else do they have in common? Well each of the three world locations (Tropical Island, Snowy Artic and Toxic Swamps) are distinctively themed and split into levels. At the start of each level you’re given a quick scan of the horizon in a mini cut-scene which usually (in combination with the level name) gives you a clue of what your goal is. From here on it’s down to you and Mr Rocket to get the job done.

Completing a level is usually a simple case of running around solving some basic puzzles such as hitting switches, throwing bombs into containers or finding hidden batteries to power a stone cannon (weird eh?). On your way you need to collect as many Solar Panels as possible because these are your ‘Power Stars’ to unlocking the next world. Jett’s ship needs as much power as possible and the only way to power the transporter is to install those solar panels pronto. Now Jett doesn’t quite have the move set or aerobatic fluidity of Mario so you can forget about cartwheels, backflips and what not because you’ll mainly be running around doing the odd bit of jumping, smashing and floating with your jet pack. Nevertheless apart from the stiff robotic feel to Jett and his movements (even though he’s human), exploring the area does trigger that 3D Mario feel much more than you’d expect. Of course at the end of each world is a boss, none of ‘em are super tough but not they’ll not be walk in the park for you either.

Now let’s not get over ourselves here; Jett Rocket will not worry Shigeru Miyamoto and the Mario legacy but for once this is an example of a non-Nintendo developed 3D platformer that doesn’t just fall flat on its face.

If you just give the game a chance then Jett Rocket will give you that nice warm Super Mario Sunshine glow for a few hours, probably enough to whet your appetite for finishing off those missions you’re stuck on in Super Mario Galaxy 2. The control system is a basic Wiimote and Nunchuck affair, Jett is controlled with the analogue stick and jumps with a press of the A button (and floats with A held down), attacking comes in the form of swishing the Wiimote motion style and it works well. I’m no Wii Waggle advocate but this is very inoffensive and suits me just fine.

Jett Rocket features fairly decent graphics and audio; neither will stun you into a fiery oblivion but don’t forget that squeezing anything gorgeous into the 40MB WiiWare storage limit is a tough task for anyone. The levels are pretty enough and the special effects are good enough for any self-respecting game lover, it’s all crisp, smooth and does the job. For me a game with no slowdown and a half decent game camera goes a long way to being playable, Jett Rocket easily manages this and more.

For just 1000 Nintendo Points you can have a good dose of retro 3D platforming action. Gamerscore junkies will be pleased to see that there are plenty of achievements to earn as well. Of course being a Wii title they don’t really mean anything (they’ll not appear on your Xbox 360) but it’s certainly nice to see some effort towards WiiChievements, especially when Nintendo aren’t bothering. Fun stuff indeed! 4 out of 5.

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Related: Super Mario Galaxy 2, Free Nintendo Wii Points

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Related: Donkey Kong Country review, Donkey Kong Country for the Wii

We’ve had; Mario Party, Paper Mario, Mario Tennis, Mario Golf and a Mario Baseball title. One thing games have in common is that they’re not in fact developed by Nintendo themselves. Instead they’re farmed out to 2nd or 3rd party developers and quite frankly it usually shows because most of the time the games are poor.

This year Mario returns once again in Mario Sports Mix and as it sounds you can expect a party game based around sports, starring Mario. The game features four sports:

• Volleyball
• Basketball
• Ice hockey
• Dodgeball

Of course you can expect the usual cast of characters; Mario, Luigi, Peach, Bowser, Wario and the rest. As this isn’t a Sega title I’m afraid to say you shan’t be able to pitch Sonic against Mario this time. Mario Sports Mix looks like a great title for this kids but don’t expecting this to rival Wii Sports Resorts. The Mario Sports Mix release date is currently scheduled for early 2011.

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Related: Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games review, Best Wii games for kids

Rather pleasantly this isn’t just a Mario cash in; just like Wii Sports everyone can use their Mii avatar instead of the Mushroom Kingdom characters.

The Wii Party release dates is pencilled in for fall 2010, we don’t expect this one to slip because it looks like a perfect family Christmas title on Wii.

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Related: Mario Party 8 review, Rabbids Go Home review

But did you know that hit party game Just Dance has joined such illustrious titles in selling multiple million copies. With such success you shouldn’t be surprised to hear that Ubisoft have just announced Just Dance 2 for Wii. Featuring over 45 new tracks which are a mix of classic hits today’s chart-toppers. Combine that with a whole new overhaul to the dance system and plenty of new routines choreographed by real experts and you’ve got yourself a game to buy the girls this Christmas. The Just Dance 2 release date is October 12 2010.

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Related: Dance Central release date, Wii Fit

Kirbys Epic Yarn for Wii is a brand new title in the long running Kirby franchise, just as with most of the previous games this is a 2D Side Scrolling platformer. As you’ll probably already know, Kirby is a flying shape-shifting pink blob that can absorb special powers from the enemies he eats. This time around though most of Kirby’s amazing powers have been stripped away and it is you and your Wii Remote that has the power.

Gone are the cutesy cartoon graphics that you remember, bring in a lush vibrant and very detailed world of Cloth and Textiles. Everything in Kirby’s Epic Yarn (including Kirby himself) is made of fabric and boy does it remind me of LittleBigPlannet; but in a good way. Expect a world of unique puzzles that use this new graphic style and gameplay to match. The Kirby Epic Yarn release date is 31st October 2010.

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Related: Smash Bros Brawl list of characters, Nintendo DS buyers guide for Christmas 2010

For starters we now know that Skyward Sword for Wii is a MotionPlus only title, the add-on unit for the Wii Remote will provide greater accuracy and more realistic sword fighting and archery skills. Next up are the graphics, everyone was wondering if we’d see another Realistic Zelda or more Toon Shading. Turns out we have both; the adult Link from Twilight Princess returns in a colourful but not garish cell shaded world. I’m quite excited by this hybrid of Wind Waker Twilight Princes. I can’t wait for the Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword release date of Quarter 1 2010.

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Related: Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks review, 3D Dot Game Heroes review

Metroid Other M is a third person adventure which fuses the classic retro 2D Metroid gameplay with modern first person shooter action. You control Samus in an almost isometric over the shoulder viewpoint whilst you run, jump and morph ball around the environments. What’s new is that at any time you can point your WiiMote towards your TV and instantly switch into a static FPS mode which literally puts you behind the visor for pixel perfect shooting.

The Metroid Other M release date is August 31st 2010 for both North America and Europe, we can’t wait.

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Related: Metroid Prime 3, Onslaught

The NBA Jam Wii release date is October 5th 2010, until then you’ll have to make do with the Basketball mode in WiiSports Resort for the Wii.

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Related: Pirates vs Ninjas Dodge Ball review, WiiSports Resort for the Wii

Just like last year, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 for Wii sees small but nonetheless impressive improvements over the previous year’s releases.

This year Tiger Woods 11 for Wii once again has additional support for the Wii Motion Plus addon which enables much more fluid and almost 1 to 1 golfing controls.

Here are just some of things you can expect in Tiger Woods 11 for Nintendo Wii this golf season:

• Ryder Cup Challenge with full roster control
• Improved MotionPlus support
• Tour View, an exclusive first person golfing viewpoint
• Play Frisbee/Disc Golf on most of the world’s best courses

Don’t forget you can get $20 Amazon credit by preordering before the Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 Wii release date on June 8th in North America. European golfing fans will have to wait just a little bit longer for the Tiger Woods Tour 11 Wii release date on July 2nd 2010.

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Related: Wii Motion Plus, Grand Slam Tennis review

Building upon the impressive but flawed online modes in the original, we can expect a much more exciting range of features in the sequel. Details announced so far include:

• Team Invasion Mode, a 4 player online GOW style Horde Mode
• 12 Player online deathmatch
• 20+ Weapons
• Improved online security to stop cheaters and hackers
• Wii Speak voicechat support

Recently confirmed is the option to add WiiMotionPlus to your controller for improved accuracy, no word yet on a pack in deal but stay tuned for information if it happens. Currently the North American Conduit 2 release date is November 2nd 2010; hopefully that will be the same across Europe because that just happens to be my birthday.

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Related: The Conduit review, WiiMotionPlus

Just announced from major third party peripheral maker Nyko; Type Pad Pro for Wii is a portable QWERTY keyboard that plugs directly into the WiiRemote itself for quick and easy use. It’s a battery free design features a port pass through port for your WiiMotionPlus or Nunchuck accessories. Available right now from Amazon for under $30; sounds like it’s time to start writing those emails from your couch on your Nintendo Wii to me.

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Related: Using Guitar Hero controllers with Rock Band for the Wii, Logitech Wii Cordless Keyboard

I don’t know about you but after playing through the previous (dark and scary) Harry Potter game for Wii but I am quite looking forward to a less serious take on the series. Lego Harry Potter for Wii is promising to deliver the traditional light-hearted Lego fun as well as a deep Potter experience full of all the Wizardry activities you know and love; Spells, Quidditch and more! The Lego Harry Potter for Wii release Date is June 29th 2010 in the States and June 25th for those in Europe.

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Related: Lego Indiana Jones, Lego Batman

Now in 2010 Sin and Punishment 2 arrives from Treasure software and is pushing more pixels than any other Wii game to date. I can’t wait to find out how well Sin and Punishment Star Successor for Wii now plays with pointer aiming controls and eye popping 480p visuals. This is the ultimate for Bullet Hell loving shooter fans and best of all the game features a 2 Player coop mode as well as online leaderboards through the Nintendo Wi-Fi connection. The Sin and Punishment Star Successor release date in the US is June 27th 2010 and is out now in Europe.

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Related: Too Human review, Alien Breed Evolution Episode One review

You take control of Flo who pretty much has to do everything in her restaurant minus the cooking. You’ll be seeing customers to their seats, taking their order, giving them the bill and then clearing up their plates when they leave. That’s the basic gameplay out of the way but it’s not as easy as it sounds. Once your restaurant starts getting busy with many customers arriving in quick succession you’ll find keeping up with the orders a real task. Flo is the only waitress and if you don’t keep the customers happy and seen to quickly then their happiness hearts will quickly decrease.

If all their hearts disappear then that means trouble for your chances of passing the level as well as dampening your high score. Your woes can easily continue with one simple mistake such as putting a party of two on a six seater table, thus not having enough seats for a party of five or six. Guess what happens if you’re carrying a dirty plate and a freshly made meal to the washing bin at the same time? Yes that’s right; the fresh food goes in the washing bin along with the dirty plate. Now the chef has to remake that order which can add a significant delay to the customer. All of this and more will drive you insane with fury but Diner Dash is so addictive that you’ll want to keep playing.

Finishing every level (unless you are playing endless time mode) requires you to reach a set number of points before closing time. Almost every task you complete gives you points but sadly you’ll need to put in extra effort to achieve an expert rating. This means matching the colour of a customer’s clothes to a particular chair to get bonus points as well as performing multiple chains. Chains require you to perform the same task multiple times in a row for an increasing multiplier score but as soon as you switch chores the multiplier resets to zero. Things are getting a bit tough and so you are given a little bit of help in the form of additions to your restaurant. Such additions include a drinks machine which can help satisfy customers waiting to receive their food and a podium which will let you recharge the heart meter of people waiting for a seat in your restaurant. The downside is that serving drinks and standing at the podium saps time you could be spending serving the customers already seated.

If you get stuck trying to make a success of Flo’s restaurant career then maybe you’ll want to attempt to play Diner Dash with friends. You can head online play hard head to head match with others via the Nintendo WiFi connection.

Diner Dash for Wii is a basic yet addictive casual title. Costing just 1000 points on the WiiWare shop channel means it’s not too expensive compared to a disc based game. The visuals are bright and colourful but don’t look as sharp as the HD console versions, perhaps even a little blurry in comparison. The music and sound effects are basic too, bippy boppy tunes that will get you by but not make you interested in owning the soundtrack. The simple and intuitive one button control scheme means almost everyone will be able to pick up play and enjoy Diner Dash. With no motion controls it also means that for a change you won’t need to wave your arms about like a madman.

Diner Dash for Wii brings nothing new to the table but is a nice little game you can load up at any time for a spot of time management fun. 3 out of 5.

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Related: Diner Dash for the Xbox 360, Hysteria Hospital Emergency Ward review

So what is Military Madness for Wii all about? Well the first thing to mention is that Military Madness Nectaris for Wii is a remake of the classic 1989 Turbografx-16 game that most of us never played back in the day, either because we didn’t own the Turbografx or that we were born years after the game came out. Whichever the excuse; Hudson Software and Backbone Entertainment have resurrected the franchise and you now have no excuse not to get into the action; but before that – the story:

There are two factions battling for supremacy on the moon in the year 2156 and as with any War we need to look into the past to understand why it started. Due to an ever increasing population and therefore a total lack of space to build anymore luxury villas on the Spanish Rivera; somebody had to find a way to free up a bit of space on Earth and do it quickly. With Ethnic Cleansing (or to give it it’s correct name; Genocide) being out of popularity the only other option was to move all of the World’s criminals to a new hyper prison newly built on the Moon.

But wouldn’t you know it, there was another reason why cheap labour being sent up to the Moon seemed such a good idea to those on Earth. There just so happened to be a wonderful, powerful and valuable new element under the Moon’s surface which needed to be mined, refined and sent back to Earth right away. Jump forward a few more years and we find that the prisoners have managed to revolt against their captors and have managed to take over the moon and use that aforementioned new mineral to start developing a massive super weapon that could destroy the Earth.

So it’s time for you as leader of the Earth’s Military to put a stop to this mess by flying to the moon and engage in a series of turn based battles to defeat those nasty baddies.

Military Madness is a strategy game set in the future on the Moon. For the most part the setting doesn’t matter because you’ll really only be concentrating on one thing: numerous amounts of futuristic tanks shooting at each other against a bland grey Moon backdrop. Nectaris for Wii is split into two straightforward modes; a Single Player Campaign and Multiplayer. In single player mode you start with a series of small enclosed maps with normal difficulty and then when you’re done with those you can move onto some larger more advanced maps.

The goal of each map is to defeat the opponent by either capturing their home base or destroying all of their units. Both require quite different tactics so which you’ll choose to do is entirely up to you, your play style and how well you are doing at the time. Each map typically starts off with both forces on opposite sides of the map with their units spread out around their home base. To confuse things a little I must explain that each of those units is actually a placeholder for up to eight actual units. To put it another way, instead of having a cluttered map the number of onscreen units is limited by grouping eight individual units into one big unit. These units never separate into their individual parts but individual ones can be destroyed when you enter battle – I’ll come to battle in a moment. Teams take it in turns to move all, some or even none of their units. Units can only move set distances and this will also vary depending on the type of ground. Flat ground is easy land based units will only move slowly across rough land and slopes.

Let’s take a look into the strengths and weaknesses of these units:

• Walking Armour – Super tough but slow. Very effective against land and air based units.
• Transporters – As the name suggests these can transport other units around the map at high speed. They’re rubbish in battle though.
• Tanks – You already know what Tanks are. Very strong, but a tad slow.
• Aerials – These are very fast and agile but not the toughest by any means. It’s best to keep moving these around attacking in short bursts.
• Infantries – The weakest but also the most useful. Human’s in armoured spacesuits with jet packs capable of flight. These are the only units which can capture an opponent’s home base.
• Technicals – Unlike the other units these can attack and then run away afterwards. Quick and agile but very weak too.

When it comes to attacking other units it all comes down to RPG like stats. Although the main factor in any battles is the unit(s) strengths and weaknesses, there are other things to consider. If friendly or enemy units are directly surrounding in the battle then that will alter the stats. Another contributor is if units are on flat, unstable or higher ground. Ideally you want to surround an enemy with several of your units trapping them on lower ground; this will give you the upper hand even this will not save you if you send a weak unit up against something very strong. Units can be repaired in factories but they will lose a movement turn whilst under repairs and at any time the factory could be captured by the enemy if not guarded.

The Military Madness Multiplayer mode is very similar to the single player campaign featuring just a few gameplay tweaks not really worth mentioning here. The good news is that you and up to three others can battle each-other locally or online. Sadly just like my experience of Military Madness on PS3, the Wii game also features a distinct lack of people playing online in random matches. This isn’t too bad if you have friends with the game but it may turn out you’ll be playing offline more than online until more people buy the title.

Interestingly enough the WiiWare version of Military Madness stands up very well against its higher def sibling on the PS3. Sure Military Madness on Wii is in low definition but unless they were running side by side you could probably not tell the difference. Everything looks near identical to the game on PS3 just without being displayed in high res. It’s just a shame that the moon maps are very bland (understandably I guess) and the units all look more or less the same. Sometimes the similarity in appearance was to my own detriment; a couple of times I got a bit mixed up and sent in low powered units up against tough ones. Apart from the bland visuals and a lack of analogue or pointer controls I was very impressed of the Wii port of Military Madness and award it 3 out of 5.

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Related: Military Madness: Nectaris for the PS3, Onslaught Wiiware review

The Red Steel 2 release date is March 23rd and if you own a Wii then this is the must have title to own before the upcoming Metroid and Mario games. Unlike the original; Red Steel 2 for Wii is no longer set in Japan, instead you’re thrown into a futuristic Wild West setting. It’s still a first person action game and yes you’re equipped with your trusty pistol and a whacking great sword. Check out these Red Steel 2 screenshots to see the excellent Cell Shaded graphics, very slick looking and probably the best visuals on Wii so far.

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Related: Wii MotionPlus, Tiger Woods PGA 10

Buy Metroid Other M now
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Related: Metroid Prime 3 Corruption review, Moon for the DS review

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Related: Review of Spectrobes: Beyond the Portals, Ultimate Band review