Boom Blox (Wii) - Review by Chris

Introduction

Electronic Arts are widely known for their continuing saturation of the sporting genre with their annual releases, bringing little more than a slight polish and a few extras to the tables. However, while this attitude remains today and will continue, they have begun to show a new side to their development and, over the last few months, have begun to release new IPs for consoles and handhelds showing that they are capable of new ideas. Boom Blox is a prime example of this and represents the first time that EA have collaborated on a game with world recognised director and producer Steven Spielberg. However, the end product isn't the type of product you'd expect to see Spielberg's name attached to.

Gameplay

The premise of Boom Blox is simple enough that inexperienced gamers can grasp it yet complex enough to entice the more experienced lot. The game has no definite gameplay style, mixing together different ideas which keep the gamer on his or her toes as to what needs to be done. For example, in one moment, you'll be trying to knock over all of the gem blocks on a level in as few throws as possible, using a collection of supporting special blox to help you achieve this. In another, you'll be pulling blox out of the way to help the progression of characters from one area to another within a time limit and without letting them fall off of the stage. This only represents a small look at what is achieved with Boom Blox's gameplay as there are other moments where you'll be in an arcade style setting and have to shoot bloxs to rake up a score.

The game boasts a truly impressive amount of stuff to do, with there being over 300 levels and scenarios for you to work your way through as well as a good selection of modes to cater to all needs. There is the obligatory Adventure mode where you'll work through a series of scenarios in different themed stages, such as Medieval and Jungle, asking you to undertake many different tasks.

Complimenting this is a mode where you can play through stages designed to make specific use of one of the special blox or power-ups you will encounter through the Adventure mode. In all of these, both Adventure and the latter mentioned arcade style mode, you'll be either pitted against the clock, made to reach a certain points total or use as few throws as possible, with gold, silver and bronze medals given for completing. There is also a hefty amount of unlockable material coming from these modes for use within the Create mode, where you have freedom to create and come up with your own stages to test not only yourself but your friends. The Create mode is very robust and allows for a good level of creation and with the inclusion of WiiConnect24 capabilities, you are able to send your creations to your friends, which is a nice touch and warranted.

And like many puzzle titles, it wouldn't be complete without a Party/Multiplayer mode and this is indeed included. This mode lets you play competitively with friends or cooperatively and there is a decent selection of puzzles to play through in a variety of gameplay styles. However, it could perhaps have done with a slight increase in the modes for multiplayer but what is there is good enough and is great fun.

Controls

An area where puzzle games need to be on the ball is in the control department and Boom Blox hits the right notes, for the most part. Controlling the game is as simple as pointing the Wii-mote at the screen and manipulating the on screen cursor to where you need it. Holding the A button locks the cursor in position and using a throwing gesture results in throwing your object at the area you are aiming. It's an incredibly simple control mechanic however I feel that the need to ask the gamer to constant replicate throwing gestures is unnecessary what with there being buttons available to use that could easily replace this mechanic. However, it works and work well apart from the odd occasion when your real life action isn't carried through into the game and it costs you a throw or some time which can be frustrating.

The only other control mechanic used in the game is that of the camera and this can be manipulated by holding the B button, locking the cursor in place, and motioning left, right, up or down to turn the camera in the direction you want it. This is a game where getting angles correct for toppling blox is important and thankfully EA have given a competent camera control system that allows freedom to search the stages for those angles with as little hassle as possible.

Graphics

The game uses a mixture of 2d and 3d graphics for stage pieces and stage objects. All of the characters and blox are created in full 3d, although colouring is kept to simple, single colours and the characters and their design are of a slightly low quality. This low quality extends to the 2d scenery pieces which look quite blocky and stand out with a strange white border encompassing them. They get the job done but they are of low quality compared to the 2d graphics we have seen being produced on the Wii. But the drop in graphical quality can be forgiven once you start playing and see why it was necessary. Every blox and character have their own realistic physics attached to them and will react realistically towards the other blox when they are toppled or hit. When there are a large number of blox on the screen being toppled or blown out of place, the game does slow down. From this, it's good to see EA have sacrificed graphical quality to allow for a more realistic representation of the action and the downgrade in graphics isn't a huge problem as they aren't the main attraction: the gameplay is.

Sound

This is an area that the game doesn't particularly excel in. The music is forgettable but the sound effects are decent enough and you'll be hearing them a lot while progressing through the game's many levels. But this is an area where the game didn't need to excel and, just like the graphics, it isn't the main draw for the title.

Final comments

EA's continuing support for the Wii is really garnering some impressive exclusive titles and this is one of them. While the title may have Spielberg's name on the box, many will be left wondering what input he had at all in the game's development. Putting that aside though, what you get is a truly fantastic puzzle title, something that the Wii is missing, taking the idea and puzzle staple blocks and creating a new and simple concept which will appeal to all gamers. Luckily, EA have already committed to a sequel so we can look forward to more of the concept on the Wii in the near future.

Pro: Unique concept, plenty of stuff to play through, robust creation mode
Con: Some slow down when the screen gets busy, graphics aren't up to the standards we've seen on the Wii
Final score: 9

Share on Twitter or Facebook

Comments