WarioWare: Smooth Moves: Nintendo Wii

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which is very hard to do in the 2 second span between each 5 second game. So it ends up being this impossible juggling contest, and half the time losingbecomes your opponents fault because the damn strap got stuck (and you have to use the strap, because some of the moves require it). So the multiplayer is waaaay too frustrating to bother with.

Maybe if this game were like ten dollars it would be a good buy. But an hour and a half or so of game play with no other real features is NOT worth more than that. Do yourself a favor, kids, and rent it. You'll feel better in the morning, when you still have some money for a game that will last longer than one afternoon.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves: Nintendo Wii

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in that, the game doesn't offer you much.

On the positive side, the game does make great use of the Wii remote, and the presentation has a decent sense of humor. I admit that some of the mini-games made me laugh because they were either completely absurd or cute. The graphics are variable in quality, but they are purposefully tailored to each mini-game.

The story behind the game is quite silly and irrelevant to the game play, and the story mode of the game is quite short. Within an hour, you should be able to perform almost all of the different uses for the Wii remote.

Overall, I recommend Warioware: Smooth Moves as a rental first. I find the game to be overrated, and I'm certainly glad I didn't trust the reviews and dole out $50 unnecessarily. The game makes a good effort to incorporate the Wii remote, but I lost interest quickly.

WarioWare: Smooth Moves: Nintendo Wii

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tasked with accomplishing anything from tossing some stir-fry in a saute pan to flipping pancakes, or shooting cans or even bouncing a tennis ball on a racquet. There are forms like "The Handlebars" where you hold the Wiimote crosswise with both hands, or "The Diner" where you hook up the nunchuk attachment and hold the two controllers like a fork and knife.

Pretty much every microgame is timed to last just a few seconds so you have to think - and act! - quickly. The more you play, the better you'll recognize the challenges, but that doesn't mean they're easy! Each type of microgame generally has at least three levels of difficulty, and in addition to getting harder you'll typically find that either you have less time as you get farther into a series of challenges.

The single-player game is really just about introducing the various forms and unlocking different activities, culminating in unlocking the multiplayer games. You should be able to complete the single-player portion in an hour or two to unlock multiplayer mode.

Multiplayer mode offers additional games (two to start, and playing through each one unlocks another game, which unlocks another, for a total of 7 or 8 multiplayer styles that accommodate anywhere from 2-12 players, depending on the game. This is where what I see as the first real shortcoming of Smooth Moves comes in... you can only use one Wiimote at a time. It seems pointless to force player to pass the Wiimote back and forth (especially since the action is usually happening fairly quickly, and Nintendo insists that you must wear the wrist safety strap, which can make it sometimes difficult to get ready in time for your turn). Allowing the use of up to 4 Wiimotes would be much preferable.

If you are not into the multiplayer experience, then you will definitely want to pass on this game. It's a fun game to run through, but after a few hours you would be bored out of your mind. This is primarily a party-oriented game for 2-4 players (though as I said, some games allow for up to as many as 12 players taking turns). It's kind of like the popular card game Uno.. not so much fun for two people, and much better with four - the more people you get playing the more fun it is for everyone. A lot of the games cause you to do crazy things that everyone will be laughing about so it's not a lot of just sitting around, waiting for your turn.