Deca Sports (Wii) Preview #2
Posted by Ramon Aranda on 04.30.2008
Updated impressions with a new demo.
Late last week, Hudson sent over a demo disc for their upcoming Deca Sports game for the Nintendo Wii. In mid-January I had gone over to Hudson's offices to get my first look at the game and got a few minutes with a couple of the games. The demo disc that was sent over contained four of those games that were playable, not to mention a snazzy Deca Sports headband which I have yet to rock but will soon enough.
The demo disc allowed me to check out Badminton, Super Cross, Beach Volleyball and Figure Skating (the full game includes ten total games).
First I kicked it off with Badminton which was one of my favorite games at the January media day. Unfortunately the game takes control of where your character moves but the game is fairly easy to play. You simply snap the Wii remote to hit the birdie back but if you swing at specific times – which is identified by either a blue or red glow on the birdie – you will either lob it back or try to slam it home. Games can get pretty intense and can last for a good while if both players are pretty good. This is definitely one of the best games of the bunch and will get the most replay value.
Next up for me was Super Cross. The game controls very much like Excite Truck but a tad more on the sensitive side. It took me a little while to get used to turning my dirt bike the way I wanted to and it really helps to get a grip on when to use your breaks to turn otherwise you'll end up face first in the barricade with a mouth full of mud (ok, maybe that's a bit exaggerated). Nothing about this one really stood out but can be a nice little diversion from when you need something a little bit different.
Beach Volleyball was the next game on my list and this one is pretty fun too. Just like with Badminton, you can't control your character's movement which can be infuriating from time to time. Sometimes your guy will be in the right spot and get you a nice shot on the ball; other times he will run around like an idiot. To play, all you have to do is smack the ball up with a swing of the remote if you're in the back. If your guys is near the net though you can smash the ball for a spike once the ball is in mid-air. As a four-player encounter, this one's pretty darn fun but with one player, the action seems bland. Your best bet is to save this one for a group of friends and it may just become the favorite.
The final game in the demo was Figure Skating. This is one of the games that requires that you use both the nunchuck and Wii Remote as the other three games in the demo require only the Wii remote. With Figure Skating, you use the nunchuck to guide your character along a yellow line as you move closer to large colored circles. When you arrive to the circles, you use a little bit of waggle with the remote and the character will perform the appropriate routine. It's all pretty simple and seems kinda cool until you play it a couple of times. Since it's pretty easy to get good at it, there's not a lot of reason to play this more than a few times. There are only three distinct routines available so although the game is fun, there's not a lot to go back to in the end.
With these four titles in the demo, it was cool to check the game out with some improved gameplay mechanics and enhanced graphics.
With the game releasing on May 13th for $29.99, it won't be long before we get our hands on each of the ten games inside Deca Sports. Stay tuned for our full review of the game in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile, check out our exclusive Q&A session with the Hudson development team. We've included a trailer of the game below, straight from Hudson.
