Disaster: Day of Crisis

"2 years was well worth the wait. You should buy a Wii just for this game!"

Introduction:-
Disaster: Day of Crisis was first shown as a 5 second clip at an E3 conference in 2006 and on a DVD that came with an issue of ONM before the Wii was released. This showed very little (obviously) leaving people wondering what on earth it was.

Gameplay:- 9.5/10
This is one of the most varied games you will ever play. It has several gameplay elements such as, adventure, platform, driving, rail gun shooting, real time actions, skydiving. Most things in the games aren't repeated so is not repetative and there is something new to do in each chapter of the game. As you play running around you enter a Time Crisis kind of play where your character moves automatically and you shoot. As you progress through the levels there are also NPCs who you can chose to save them from whatever catastrophe has befallen them, these range 'finding some guys bag with his medicine in' to 'riding the waves on a billboard to rescue a guy holding onto a lampost against a tsunami'. Minor flaws in the controls.

Story:- 10/10
Nothing you haven't seen before, but not in the way that this game is done. Best way to describe it is as a cross between 24 and The Day After Tomorrow. Terrorist kidnap a seismologist to determine when the next earthquake will be so that they can use it as a distraction to steal a nuclear warhead and demand money from the president. The seismologist just so happens to be your dead friends sister who you promised to take care of after he died. There is more depth which I wont go into, to avoid spoiling it.

Graphics:- 8/10
The graphics are really good for a Wii game, and the involvement of the scenery as you play is great. For example, as your running down the street a building in the background begins to collapse, or a volcanic rock hits a truck sending it flying narrowly missing you. The only unrealistic feel that you get from the game are some of the cutscenes bring you out of the fact that you are watching a movie to making you very aware that its a game cutscene with some of the unrealistic shoot outs. Another problem is that when you load up the game you are presented with a beautiful CG movie with clips from different parts of the game. Unfortunately none of this CG ever shows up whilst you are playing the game. Reminds me of Baten Kaitos.

Sound:- 10/10
The sound tied with the camera angles in the cutscenes gives it a real movie feel. The music is always just right for the situation that your in. Pure genius.

Play Time:-
Approx 10 hours if your looking for every survivor (which aren't hard to find).

Replayability:-
This could be easily enjoyable several times over, just because you will want to do parts of the game that you only get to do once in the entire game.

Final Recommendation:-
If you already own Super Smash Bros. Brawl, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn on your Wii, then make this the next game you buy. It is a great game for any type of gamer or even casual players.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/27/08

Game Release: Disaster: Day of Crisis (EU, 10/24/08)