Nintendo Showcase – Rhythm Heaven, Super Mario 3D Land and Kirby’s Adventure Wii

As well as playing Mario Kart 7 and Starfox 64 3D we also got some hands-on time three more upcoming Wii and 3DS games at the recent Nintendo showcase. Yeah, we had a busy afternoon at the event.

Super Mario 3D Land:

Nick: The four level demo featured tons of classic Mario gameplay all rendered in fantastic stereoscopic 3D. The power ups available included the Tanooki raccoon suit last seen in 1988’s Super Mario Bros. 3, super mushroom (giant Mario), star (invincible Mario) and fire flower (Mario fires fireballs). I had a great time toasting enemies with fireballs. Best power-up ever. The rest of the time I spent collecting coins, trying not to fall off the many perilous platforms whilst trying to find the end of level flag before the time ran out. The occasional boss fight punctured the level exploration, all of which followed the tried and tested rule of three (i.e. three knock-downs to kill).

I was really impressed by the 3D as it added a lot of depth to the levels. Although I did find it harder to jump into floating powerup blocks on the odd occasion. The graphics were very Super Mario Galaxy like too. Bright and colourful. The demo had clearly been built to show off features rather than levels from the game but it has made me more excited to play the finished game as a result. Much like Mario Kart 7, this Super Mario 3D Land has rekindled my love of Nintendo’s mega-franchises that was on the wain during the Wii years.

Rhythm Heaven:

Debbie: Rhythm Heaven is a quirky little Wii game whose very simplicity belies the level of concentration you need the play it well. It’s a series of mini-games that rely on sound cues for you to do well. The three that I played were:

• A viking stabbing a fork into his peas
• A samurai guarding a cave entrance from emerging monsters
• A dog in an aeroplane rallying shuttlecocks with a cat

Yes, quirky.

I don’t know if this is the case for all the mini-games but these three all involved single-button gameplay; listen to the rhythm and time your presses. It’s a nice idea that quickly becomes mind-bendingly complex when, as the defending samurai, you struggle to remember that THIS sound means a single red-eyed monster is coming to be dispatched with a one press while THAT sound indicates an incoming horde that needs six rapid blows. What more, a fog will occasionally descend, covering the visual cues and forcing you to pay close attention to the music.

Stylized cartoon graphics make the game look good on the Wii and playing it is certainly fun if you have a sense of rhythm. I like it.

Kirby’s Adventure Wii:

Nick: I’m quite into Kirby games at the moment with the excellent Kirby’s Epic Yarn and the bat-shit crazy Kirby Mass Attack dragging little ole Kirby back into my affections. Kirby’s Adventure Wii which goes by the name Kirby’s Return To Dream Land in the US and Kirby Wii in Japan is due to reach these shores just before Christmas 2011 and will probably be the last Kirby game to be released for the Wii.

Kirby’s Adventure Wii is a more traditional side-scrolling platform game. No soft and squishy quilts, patches or yarns to be found here. Instead Kirby has to scour his less squishy home planet of Pop Star in search of pieces of a crashed Spaceship. I used Kirby’s signature skill – inhaling indefinitely – as my standard attack, swallowing or propelling any enemy or object that came close to me. Kirby has a serious pair of lungs on him along with an insatiable appetite making him a tough little cookie.

Kirby had other tricks hidden deep inside in his squishy pink body. When he inhaled certain enemies he would also take on their special powers. During the game I had my Kirby spewing fire, water and even welding a giant sword. When Kirby inhaled a glowing special enemy he went completely nuts and started welding a giant ultra sword. Yeah, the ultra sword of ultra devastation! Drunk with sword-power I carved away massive chunks of the level including many unsuspecting baddie bystanders. Hehe. These special abilities were breathtakingly fun to use as well as being invaluable during boss fights.

Kirby’s Adventure Wii also supports up to 4-players on screen at the same time. When you add in the super abilities to each of the players the screen is soon filled with technicoloured carnage. I also got to play the game with one of the Nintendo reps. The 2-player game worked in a similar vein to Kirby’s Epic Yarn with simple controls making it a real pick and play type of game. I also managed to avoid throwing my team-mate to his death. Win!

Kirby’s Adventure Wii is yet another brilliant Kirby game and one you should look out for in Dec this year.

Rhythm Heaven Wii is due for release early 2012 with Super Mario 3D Land and Kirby’s Adventure Wii due out on the 25th Nov 2011 and 2nd Dec 2011 respectively.