"You get your money's worth, which isn't all too much."

First of all, let's be clear on one thing. You don't get a Wiimote for free with this game, it's the other way around. You get this "game" (almost) for free with a Wiimote. As long as you don't expect more than what you're paying for (which is €10), you won't be disappointed.

Wii Play is a collection of mini-games, utilizing every aspect of the Wiimote's functionality in turn, teaching the player what this new toy can do. Which is basically all this game does, and all it was meant for. It succeeds marvelously at this. Newcomers only need to pop in Wii Play, try every game once, and they will feel right at home with the Wiimote. It becomes second nature that quickly. Won't other games do the same? Sure, but maybe not as smoothly. Sadly, this is a moot point for Wii-ers in the US, because Wii launch will be 2 months old when Wii Play arrives, and without it's purpose, it will mean a lot less to players. Even so, for the little you pay extra, you still get your money's worth. Some nice hours of fun, and even a bit to return to.

Just a snippet about each game:

Shooting Range
Games are unlocked in sequence, and Shooting Range as the opening game is not the right choice. It's a shooting gallery game, which centres around aiming, but also about quick reflexes. If this is the very first Wii experience for you (and if you start with Wii Play, it will be), it may be moving a bit fast for your comfort. Shouldn't be too much of a problem, I thought I was doing bad but passed it on the first go. However, the fact it doesn't feel too welcoming contributes to the lack of replayability. It doesn't invite you back anytime soon.

Find Mii
This would have been the better starting game, also focusing on pointing the Wiimote, but without the speed (starting out, at least). This game uses your Mii(s) in a game of "Where's Waldo?", with varying tasks. You may need to find two of the same Mii's, find your own, find odd Mii's (looking away from the ball in a tennis match), find lookalikes in the dark, on escalators, while rotating, swimming, one being faster than the others, you name it. Clicking on the right Mii(s) adds seconds to your timer, selecting the wrong one takes time off. When the timers reach zero, it's game over. This game is actually a lot of fun, getting quite frantic later on when time is running out, and you have to find three lookalikes in the dark, on moving escalators. Another thing this game demonstrates well, is the incredible likability of self-made Mii's. Seeing your own Mii in the game, or your sister/husband/whatever instantly brings a smile to your face. "Look, it's you!". Great stuff.

Table Tennis
Rockstar needn't be afraid just yet, this is no competition to their table tennis sim. This game centres around moving your Wiimote side to side, and so that's all you do. No hitting the bal, moving forward/back or up/down, only left to right. You can't win the game, it's only a matter of returning the ball as many times as possible, until you fail. So, Pong, but worse. No fun here, move along.

Pose Mii
Now things are getting a bit more complicated, in another fun game. You need to match poses of Mii's-in-bubbles dropping down the screen, and you'd better be quick about it. This game uses three different functions, making it a bit more interesting. First of all, you will need to point in the right direction, to match the Mii's location. Secondly, you will need to twist the remote, to match the Mii's angle. Finally, pressing A/B changes the actual pose, you will need to match it perfectly. Early levels are friendly, but it gets absolutely mad later on, using all the different poses in varying angles, all over the screen. When you see a glowing Mii, hit it to freeze time for a short while, giving you a breather. Great fun, working well to learn you twist.

Laser Hockey
Exactly what the name implies. Two bats trying to shove a puck in the other player's goal. What you learned in the previous lesson, comes to fruition here. You point at the screen and move the Wiimote, to move the location of your bat, but you also twist it to hit the puck at an angle. On top of that, altering the speed at which you hit the puck, will also have effect, as will twisting as you hit it. This game does require you to keep your cool. Have the bat whizzing about, and the puck will find your goal soon enough (especially with a good second player), so take it easy. As much fun as laser hockey can be.

Billiards
The only game I keep returning to, and often at that. A simple game of billiards (shouldn't that be 9-ball?), where you pocket balls in correct order. Try to do it in as few turns as possible, while avoiding fouls (pocketing the cue ball, or not hitting the correct ball first). The pointer is used to take direction, and also to indicate where you want to hit the ball (top/back/side spin are all possible). The big fun (aside from pool being fun as it is), is in executing the strike. You swiftly pull back the Wiimote while keeping B pressed, then thrust forward and releasing B. Great sense of connection to the game, like you are physically in control. Very nice.

Fishing
Boring, boring, boring. It's like the kids game, where the fish are snapping and you need to lower the bait into their mouths. This one centres around spatial awareness, you move the Wiimote about (forward/back, left/right, up/down) to aim your hook at the fishies. Once a fish bites, jerk up to catch it. Wii could do much better in fishing, the sense of attachment really isn't there in this game. I'm sure, with practice, it could work better, but it doesn't invite you back for more.

Charge!
After Billiards, this is the most fun. You race a cow, trying to hit scare-crows and jump hurdles along the way. You control the cow by holding the Wiimote sideways and moving it forward/back to accelerate/brake and sideways to steer. This bodes well for racing games, as it works like a charm and is a lot of fun to play. Trying not to make too sharp a corner, as not to lose to much speed, while still going for all the scare-crows.

Tanks
Actually a proper game all by itself, this is the one game to also use the Nunchuck (though you can also play it with just the Wiimote). Using the Nunchuck's analog stick (or the Wiimote's d-pad) you move your cute li'l tank across the battle field, to engage enemy tanks. The pointer aims you cannon (fire with B), while A drops a land-mine. Control of the tank is rather charming, they feel like proper (toy-)tanks, the way the turn and slowly move about. The levels are fun, more so because of how your rockets ricochet of walls, adding some strategy. You can also use your mines to destroy walls, since you can shoot at them to detonate them. Several different types of enemy tanks await you. Solid fun.

Some obligatory audio-visual comments: it's all functional, that would describe it best. Fishing tries to look different but just looks bad, some others look like Wii Sports (centering around Mii's, of course). Special mention is due to Laser Hockey, though, because even though it looks incredibly simple, the neon borders and the way they light up when hit looks quite pleasing and serves the smokey arcade feel which tables like this usually appear in.

Once you've gone through each game once, you will most likely already have singled out a couple of them, which will entertain you for a while longer. Likewise, some will be dismissed never to be played again; it's a mixed bag, sadly not all of the quality of the better few. Maybe the suite of games should have been enhanced. Alternately, the game could have been entirely free, instead of almost, to increase it's value. As it is, it does what it intends to, and a bit more for the few games you'll enjoy most.

Overall score - 6/10

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 01/10/07