Games for Lunch: Jenga World Tour
In a nutshell: Jenga without the need to clean up those pesky blocks. Or, y'know, have fun.
5/14/2008 1:55 PM | 0 Comments | Page 1 of 3
Developer: Atomic Planet Entertainment
Publisher: Atari
Release Date: Dec. 7, 2007
System: Wii
ESRB Rating: E
Official Web site
0:00 I've heard pretty bad things about this one, but I just had to see for myself how Atari could mess up a concept as great as moving Jenga blocks with the Wii remote.
0:01 "Jenga: Edge-of-your-seat fun! There is only one Jenga!" brags the introductory animation. The game tells me I need to plug in a Nunchuk. Really? Somehow the real version got by with one-handed controls.
0:02 The word "Jenga" bounces hypnotically on a title screen with undulating colored blocks at the edges and a scrolling, blue, Jenga-filled background. A weird techno-synth-pop background plays. Whoa! Trippy!
0:03 On to the tutorial. "Study this carefully and you should have everything you need to become a great Jenga player!" Should? What if I don't? What then? WHAT THEN?!
0:04 For those who don't know, Jenga involves taking blocks from the middle of a wooden tower and placing them on the top without toppling them over. Also, you should really get out of the house more.
0:05 An announcer that is entirely too chipper explains in excruciating detail how I can move the camera around with the control stick. As I do this, a perky woman tells me "Good job!" I can already tell these voices are going to make me want to rip my ears off.
0:06 Tapping the B button while pointing taps the loose blocks out of position. Which block is loose is indicated by a bright green border when I point to it. That was simple!
0:07 I'm introduced to grabbing, which is the opposite of tapping -- hit the A button and pull the Wii remote backwards. Couldn't be simpler.
0:09 This is possibly the most condescending tutorial I've ever played. They're using whole doctoral theses to explain concepts that most people would understand in ten words. I wish I could type fast enough to capture the ridiculousness.
0:11 When I'm pulling tough blocks, I can "pin" two adjacent block to prevent them from moving. That's funny, I don't remember being able to do that in the real game. Is this a concession to the inaccuracies of the Wii remote? Also, am I detecting some graphical slowdown when I slightly shift the tower? Is Jenga too complex for the Wii? Really?
0:13 Tutorial done, I select World Tour mode because I just have to see how they made a story mode out of FREAKIN' JENGA! My selectable characters include a snowman, a woman astronaut, and a parrot. None of them have names or characteristics or anything, they're just generic pictures. I choose the parrot. My first challenge is set in "U.S.A. Present Day." That's intriguing. Will I be going back in time later?
0:14 "It's time to play Jenga!" says the perky female voice. At this point I should mention the fully 3-D rendered living room that shares the screen with the blocks themselves. It comes complete with a moving basset hound, art deco chairs, aquarium and view of the city skyline. The synth-pop music has only gotten more ludicrous here, too.
0:15 After I make my first move, the computer moves so quickly that I can't see what he did. His pointer just flies off screen and then picks out a block. The camera doesn't move along with him. This is bad game design 101 here.
