The Fun Factor 7.02.07: Elebits
Posted by Cory Moore on 07.02.2007
Capturing bite-sized critters while breaking your mom’s antiques and tossing yard ornaments down the street? The Wii needs more games like this!
Kiddie game.
That's one term that is used way too often in gaming today. The title of a "kiddie game" used to be reserved for Barbie and Sesame Street. Now, fanboys and media know-it-alls have taken it upon themselves to expand the term to cover a larger scope. I can't say I get stomping mad over the subject, but it does confuse me.
For the life of me, I don't see where people get off labeling some franchises as kiddie games. The biggest undeserving targets are games that extensively utilize animation. Just because they're animated is justification to talk them down? Give me a break. People don't compare Anime with Disney. Why should video games be any different?
So whenever I hear the term, I cringe. In some cases – games based on Disney and Nickelodeon tween shows come to mind – the term is appropriate. But more often than not, great games are now thrown under the bus because of their image. These games go unrecognized because of a stupid gimmick that some gamers just won't (or can't?) shake. For example…
Elebits
Wii
2006
The Controlled Substance
Elebits follows the story of Kai, a young boy who is not especially fond of the creatures that provide electrical power in his day, the Elebits. The small critters are usually of the friendly variety, but lately they have been acting strange. Kai's parents, both researchers, go on a mission to find the source of the mysterious occurrences. Kai is stuck at home and the power in the neighborhood is blown out, leaving him stranded without his favorite TV show. He eventually restores power to his home, and then curiously explores throughout the town on a quest to face his nemesis and restore balance to the power grid.
The main goal of Elebits is to capture the little creatures, which vary in color and personality. Green Elebits – for example – roam in the open, while the red type tends to be shy and flee if there is too much activity in the immediate area. By aiming and blasting your capture gun with the Wii Remote, you manipulate objects in the environment to uncover the Elebits. By netting the critters, your gun increases in power, new elements become accessible, and the previously-dim environment lights up. Levels are completed when you withdraw a predetermined amount of the Elebits' energy before the time limit expires.
The Fun Factor
Elebits is – first and foremost – a glorified scavenger hunt. Everyone loves a good scavenger hunt, right? It's one of the few concepts that is unique and hasn't been beaten to death in video games…yet. It's surprisingly fun to roam around a dark room and activate appliances in order to capture the little critters. Since the missions are timed, you have to be constantly thinking and exploring, which makes the experience fly a lot faster than you'd expect. The Elebits are rather crafty as well, so you must act quickly to succeed. Solving side puzzles within the level to reveal hidden Elebits – such as throwing a basketball through a hoop – adds a sense of creativity and lots of replay value for the title, too.
Elebits' environments – while cartoonish – only add to engaging you in the experience. When you start the game in Kai's house, you can only pick up small knickknacks, such as vases and pizza boxes. But as your gun gains energy, you advance to heaving HD televisions and massive sound systems. It's one thing to toss around a house plant. When you capture and hurl a car into your annoying neighbor's yard, though, you experience another kind of virtual adrenaline rush.
Ultimately, though, the use of the Wii Remote is the real home run hitter here. Instead of reaching for some outlandish control scheme, Elebits keeps things simple. The use of the nunchuk's analog stick for moving about the room is nothing fancy; it just works. In a game that is built around fast but precise gameplay, aiming the capture beam and the camera with the Wii Remote is hassle-free and responsive. From opening doorknobs by twisting your wrist to opening appliances by pulling the remote toward you, the little gameplay nuances of Elebits feel natural. In the future, developers for the Wii should really look at the blueprint Konami set out with this game, because it's a real treat to play.
The 411
So far, Elebits has been one of the few games on the Wii to provide gamers with a fresh experience. The control scheme is perfectly suited for the system. Its simple and straightforward approach appeals to hardcore and casual gamers alike. The game received high reviews in the media (in the range of 7.0-8.0), but it's largely considered a diamond in the rough. I'm guessing here, but it's probably safe to say the sleeper status is because of the game's cutesy image.
So, how has the "kiddie game" tag become so widespread in the last few years? Maybe we've been spoiled by top-notch, realistic visuals, which have led to gamers viewing anything less as an inferior product. Or it could be that gamers are getting too sophisticated to use their imagination. Maybe it's both, maybe it's neither. I don't know. All I'm saying is that we need to open our minds once again, because there are some worthwhile experiences hidden behind a stigma that should be reserved for the real offenders of the gaming crop.
