'Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit'

Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit

I'm not a fan of racing games, as they tend to be far too similar to each other. Only the Burnout series caught my attention, primally satisfying in its exhilarating action with a focus on wrecking other racers and events designed to cause as much destruction as possible. So when I saw that the developers of Burnout were making this year's Need for Speed title with a cops-versus-racers theme, I salivated like Pavlov's dog. While not as chaos-oriented as Burnout, Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit (on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii) is still a wickedly fun experience.

Kirby's Epic Yarn

'Kirby's Epic Yarn'

I sold myself on Kirby's Epic Yarn (released in October for Wii) almost immediately based just on the presentation. With almost every game I play trying to create realistic settings or characters, the pink puff ball's adventure in yarn form gave me a childlike sense of awe at first sight. What followed is a game with minimal challenge, but it's enjoyable nonetheless. It is undoubtedly a kiddie game, but you might find it surprising how delightful it can really be.

Metroid is one of the few Nintendo franchises focused on hardcore gamers. A story in space involving aliens known as Metroids that absorb energy from living beings, space pirates looking to weaponize the Metroids, and a single bounty hunter burdened with the task of eradicating both sides definitely strays from the company's family-friendly norm.

The previous-generation Metroid Prime trilogy focused strictly on first-person shooting and was a different take on the franchise's story. Metroid: Other M (on the Wii system) takes a gamble by returning to the original continuity and a third-person action style. It pays off big, though, with fantastic high-speed combat and a deeper perspective on the Metroid universe.

Sony's PlayStation Move

Appealing to both hardcore gamers (with the franchises they love) and casual gamers (with ease of use), Nintendo's Wii has been a powerhouse in the video-game market. This success has led Nintendo's main competitors, Microsoft with Xbox 360 and Sony with PlayStation 3, to develop their own motion-control schemes -- which will be hitting the market in the next few months.

2007's Super Mario Galaxy followed the tradition of Mario games moving platforming in a new direction. The consistently changing gravity combined with the series' top-tier movement controls delivered an experience that felt familiar but different at the same time. While it was a fun gameplay experience, the story was too bland to hold my interest against competing titles such as Mass Effect. Two and a half years later, the Wii exclusive Super Mario Galaxy 2 offers dozens of new levels to explore and power-ups to abuse. The game is just as gratifying as its predecessor, but it once again leaves a bitter taste in my mouth with its retread plot.

No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle

With the Wii game lineup containing so many titles geared to children and family play, 2008's exclusive No More Heroes made a statement that "mature"-rated games can succeed on the motion-based system. Its intense action combined with a crazy yet compelling story and parodies of the gaming industry convinced me the Wii wasn't just for casual players and tapped into the "mature" market, which only consisted of Resident Evil titles at the time. The new sequel, subtitled Desperate Struggle, continues the story with new methods of madness to boot.

Several years after protagonist Travis Touchdown becomes the top-ranked assassin in the fictional city of Santa Destroy and walks away from the profession, his former promoters are trying to drag him back into the fold. He has no interest in climbing the rankings again, but the murder of his best friend motivates him to enter and name his reward: his best friend's killer served to him on a platter.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Since his 1981 debut in Donkey Kong, Mario has been a staple of the platforming genre, but in recent years he's branched out, taking on go-kart racing and fighting tournaments with other Nintendo characters, for instance. In New Super Mario Bros. Wii, the original magic that caught our attention decades ago returns, along with the sadistic difficulty some have come to love and hate.

'The Beatles: Rock Band'

With three Rock Band titles and a whopping 11 Guitar Hero titles that have popped up in the past four years, plus another three coming before the end of the year, figuring out a starting point or must-buys for the music-simulation genre can be overwhelming. With Guitar Hero 5 and The Beatles: Rock Band released earlier this month, this is an excellent time to evaluate what's available.

Wii Sports Resort, the long-awaited sequel to 2006's Wii Sports, puts players in a tropical resort loaded with new activities to show off the Wii MotionPlus accessory that's bundled with the game, offering near-perfect motion control. There are 10 new game types, and most have variations to change things up.

Breaking the $49.95 package down, you essentially get a $30 game with the $20 MotionPlus controller add-on, and it's not a bad deal when you find a few games that get your blood pumping and keep you coming back for weeks on end. Everyone will have their own personal favorites, and it was easy for me to pick mine.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10

The Tiger Woods golf games have been a solid play experience for the past few years on every platform. The Xbox 360's and PlayStation 3's easy-to-learn controls combined with strong online support have ensured a high replay value. Fans had hoped the Wii's motion controls would improve the game further but were generally disappointed.

Enter 2009 and the new Wii MotionPlus accessory, giving the remote control near one-to-one motion detection for games programmed to use it. Simply put, your movements will be perfectly reflected in games. The upcoming Wii Sports Resort and Red Steel 2 include swordplay to highlight the enhanced motion detection, but Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 was one of the first games available using this new add-on. If you're a golfer, you'll be hard-pressed to find a better golf simulator for use at home.

Pages