People love to get together and play games, and thanks to titles like Nintendo’s Wii Party U for the Wii U, the big-screen TV is as likely to be the centerpiece of any game night as the dining room table. Similar to its predecessor, Wii Party, it offers a wide variety of interactive games, including different board game modes. During a recent play session, I and three other players took turns moving our Mii characters across an island full of mini-games and humorous animations.
Both the Wii U GamePad and Wii Remotes (one Wii Remote Plus controller is included) are integrated into the mini-games. For example, I got to shoot hoops by raising my arm while holding the remote, tilt the pad side-to-side in order to direct a ball into a slot, and much more. One particularly tricky mini-game required turning the pad away to face the television, and then tracing a circle on the pad’s touchscreen. That wasn’t easy! Meanwhile, my opponents–and anyone else in the room–were able to follow along with my valiant struggles on the TV.
Wii Party U also features mini-games that stand on their own and tend to go much shorter. In one of my favorites, players took turns either running their Mii selves around in a clearing, or utilizing the GamePad’s touchscreen to drop large stone blocks from above. The game ended when either the timer ran out or the player with the GamePad successfully eliminated everyone else. Once again, up to four players could take part at once.
Now of course, this only touches on a fraction of the 80+ games in Wii Party U. I could go on and on, but better to get it home, plan a day to invite some folks over, and then try out all the various modes in a proper party setting. And remember, you don’t have to put away that dining room table just yet! Instead, use it for serving snacks and beverages.
Wii Party U will be available on October 25 for Wii U.
