Wii Play
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo
Genre: Mini-games
Rating: Rating Pending
Number of Players: TBD
Expected Release: January 15, 2007
Wii Play Gallery

Following in the simplistic footsteps of Wii Sports comes Wii Play; a Wii exclusive mini-game collection designed to appeal not only to less familiar gaming audiences, but also the more time constricted of individuals. Just as in Wii Sports, Wii Play offers full utilization of Nintendo's Mii Channel. (An avatar/profile customizer.) Players will be able to use the Mii characters created in their likeness to compete in a reported nine different games.

Table Tennis: Table Tennis is just as it sounds in Wii Play. The faithful recreation of the Forest Gump past time pits two players against each other in a spirited game of pong with the added depth of strength of return and ball physics.

Laser Hockey: Very similar to Air Hockey found at your local Chuck E. Cheese (minus the grease stains), Laser Hockey is a one-versus-one game where players defend their goal while attacking their opponent's. Players we use the Wii Remote to direct the paddle. In an E3 2006 interview with gaming blog site Kokatu, Shigeru Miyamoto himself was even heard stating that the physics engine used to calculate the velocity and position of the shots rivaled that of the Havok engine. (The Havok engine is used in Half-Life 2.)

Fishing: Fishing for Wii Play will not be ripped right out of Animal Crossing as in WarioWare: Smooth Moves; instead, it will be its own unique venture, complete with paper fish and pond. Players will compete against one another to see who can catch the designated fish the fastest. Hovering over the pond with the Wii remote, players will yank up to hook the poor little guys.

Find Mii: In Find Mii (catchy title, eh?) the objective is to pick the detailed Mii character out of a crowded screen. The Where's Waldo? of the Wii will test the player's attention to detail under the guise of Mii-ridden streets.

Pose Mii: A Know Your Shapes meets Dance Dance Revolution game of sorts, Pose Mii asks players to move their Miis into shadowed character outlines, matching the poses as the Miis run down the screen.

Shooting: This Duck Hunt-esque aimer presents players with various targets flying about the screen. Everything from clay pigeons, ducks, and balloons will fill the field as up to four players play against one another.

Pool: Another table-top game, Pool is your standard game of 9-Ball Billiards. Just as one would imagine, players line up and execute their shots with the Wii remote.

Charge!: Perhaps the wonkiest of games, Charge! uses the Wii remote like a steering wheel as players ride wild bulls into scarecrows to score points. Go figure!

Tanks: Tanks has players use the Wii remote to aim and control a tank, thus blasting away opponents.

Perhaps the biggest draw to Wii Play isn't what is inside it, but rather what comes packaged with it. Bundled with every Wii Play in North America, Japan, Australia and Europe is a free Wii remote (without the nunchaku attachment). The Wii remote, which MSRPs at about $39.99, makes the purchase of Wii Play an enticing deal. The maximum number of players has yet to be confirmed, but it should be noted that a maximum of four players has been seen in at least one of the mini-games. While not confirmed, it should also be noted that if Wii Play is anything like Wii Sports, one can expect to see training modes for certain games, such as an assumed trick shot mode in Billiards. Hey, we like to set the bar high! Check out more on this title when it hits U.S shelves January 15, 2007.