Neighborhood Games
SCORE: 80
The WMG was very excited to get to play, and review Neighborhood Games on the Wii. This family friendly title comes from JetBlack Games and our friends at THQ. The cute little neighborhood kids competing in 24 different events is an interesting take on the casual genre. The twenty four number is a little deceiving since some of these 'sports' are closely related. An example is Shuffleboard, Shuffleboard Bumpers, and Shuffleboard Rebound. But still if you are into the different mini games then your family will have a lot of fun with Neighborhood Games. This style of game is well represented on the Wii, which makes the WMG wonder why this genre is so under-represented on the Xbox 360, and PS3.
There is diversity in the graphics of Neighborhood Games. There are bright and colorful areas, and then some that look like the ghetto. The cartoon violence is things like shooting people with a water pistol. Sadistic players will probably try to hit chickens with horseshoes. Competing computer controlled characters will try and distract, and taunt the player while awaiting their turn.
The WMG was not fond of the music in Neighborhood Games. It got under the skin, and was annoying. Children that played Neighborhood Games liked the music, so it all depends on the person. The computer controlled characters talk a lot of smack. They are not gracious when they lose, and rub it in when they win. The WMG assumes this was meant as a humor mechanism.
Neighborhood Games has some games that are real gems, and very easy to play. These games can lead to hours upon hours of replay. Most of the games are unlockable, and the better ones are near the end. Multiplayer modes are also available (offline only) so more than one family member at a time can play.
Neighborhood Games has really simple controls, and some of the games are easy to pick up. There are others that frustrated all of us here at Family Friendly Gaming to no end (editor: basketball we are looking at you). There are other family friendly casual games that have better controlling basketball shooting games in them. Neighborhood Games excels in games like Lawn Darts. The controls are simple, intuitive, and very forgiving.
Neighborhood Games is an
interesting idea that could be a great game with just a few small
tweaks. The controls of all the games should be like they are in the
Lawn Darts games. The taunting, and poor sportsmanship should be with a
few characters, not the majority of them. Good start for this Wii
franchise.
- Working Man Gamer
Graphics: 77%
Sound: 76%
Replay/Extras: 84%
Gameplay: 74%
Family Friendly Factor: 88%
System: Wii
Publisher: THQ
Rating: 'E'
for Everyone
{Mild Cartoon Violence}
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