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Nintendo Land

Nintendo Land: Hands-On

As you gather your friends around during cold winter months, Nintendo Land may be the ideal attraction to help you think of sunnier days while experiencing the features of a brand new console.

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Nintendo Land is to Wii U what Wii Sports & Wii Play combined were to Wii. However, given the Wii U GamePad isn't the game changer the Wiimote was (unique motion control, instant accessibility) this is probably not going to become a comparable mass phenomenon.

Though the reaction to both titles remain similar. Both were initially ignored, only to earn fan anger from both those seeking hardcore products and those who saw them as crude imitations of popular Nintendo universes.

And much like Wii Sports & Wii Play, it's in the hands-on that Nintendo Land starts to prove itself and the new control system.

Now, with almost all attractions tested and the fun factor proven at Nintendo of Europe's Wii U Experience, it has become one of the must-haves at launch.

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If you look at Wii U's launch lineup, almost all games use the Wii U GamePad as a means to provide further control options or to play directly on the small screen without turning on the TV. Nintendo Land ignores that concept. Instead it fully embraces the Wii U GamePad and serves up a dozen games, multiplayer and solo, only possible thanks to the new tablet-controller.

We've visited the Nintendo amusement park twice and sampled seven of its twelve attractions, here's your guided tour:

Balloon Trip Breeze | Single Player

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Nintendo Land

A tribute to the classic Balloon Fight and one of my favorite experiences with Wii U so far.

It could actually have been perfectly suitable for Nintendo DS or 3DS, using a stylus on the bottom screen (in this case the GamePad) while the action takes place in the top screen (in this case a huge TV).

However, the amount of effects and details, and the number of items that appear on the screen during your flight, would not have been possible on a handheld.

In fact, the GamePad screen, aside from providing us with the control method, zooms in on areas of the TV, allowing you to see in greater detail and giving you the ability to tap on rivals or special balloons.

Given that we played it with the final Wii U GamePad (battery included, which made it a tad heavier), it was the only game we felt a bit arm-tiring, as you hold the device with just one hand while pointing with the other.

However, we soon discovered a favourable position by holding the tablet like a book, resting the device on the forearm, and continued soaring the skies (and remember this was standing, at home you'll likely rest it on your knees for support).

By drawing quick lines with your stylus, you control the wind to carry your little character to the next island. The controls are sharp and very accurate, allowing you to always calculate inertia and the angle of descent. That's all well and fine until the screen is full of dangers, and the rain does obscure your vision while hurricane winds push you in the opposite direction at full speed.

As in the classic game, you have to make do with two balloons, so you better beware of enemies or sharp obstacles. In addition to inclement weather, sometimes you have to take a gift box from one point to another, which increases your weight and makes your flight more hazardous. If you weren't a delicious temptation for hungry fish already, the present will push them over the top.

A good thing is that if you're real close to the water you get to use a balloon with special powers, such as slowing the game down or making you invisible. A helpful aid as you try and best your opponents.

We were not privy to the exact structure of the game, but hopefully you'll be able to share scores and access more complicated days/levels straight from the menu.

Metroid Blast | Multiplayer

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The classic space shooter with a Wii U twist. The first thing to note about this game is that the GamePad player uses tilt sensors to control Aran's ship, while four other players use Wiimotes and Nunchucks.

The control is precise, although I must say that the camera leaves much to be desired (you must press A to move it). You shoot with the pointer while using the Nunchuk stick to move.

The player with the GamePad can ascend, descend, boost, strafe and aim and turn the ship by moving yourself while looking through the GamePad. You can use laser blasts or a powerful shot to hit multiple enemies.

What enemies? Well, here there are two game modes: cooperative (a kind of Horde mode in which the ship and the soldiers face the Space Pirates) or competitive, in which players with Wii Remote should take down the GamePad-controlled ship.

Pikmin Adventure | Multiplayer

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This is the most intense button-mashing attraction in Nintendo Land. And the one closest to an action-RPG. And probably the one that will appeal most to veteran players (along with Metroid).

Here you whip out the stylus again to tinker on the touch screen of the Wii U GamePad. No swiping here, rather a quick Tap-tap-tap to throw your Pikmin on the specific point and do their job. It turns out that these Pikmin aren't the real deal, but Miis of your friends dressed as Pikmin! Whistle like Captain Olimar and they'll come back to you.

Your pikminified friends will level up, become stronger, taking down enemies faster and laying waste to the level with more ease.

The variety of enemies and situations shows promise. The sense of controlling your friends as a 'puppet master' is quite satisfactory, and overall offers a beautiful and frantic attraction to Nintendo Land.

The Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest (multiplayer)

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Perhaps the most boring game at the Wii U Experience. Nevertheless the bow and arrows gestures worked well.

The biggest problem is that it's the only attraction that limits your freedom of movement. It plays on rails, which immediately brings Link's Crossbow Training to mind. There are of course some benefits to this design, such as the well choreographed waves of enemies you face.

The player with the GamePad can point his bow in first person, moving the tablet controller with precision and loading and firing arrows by pulling the right stick. And if you point the GamePad down, it reloads the quiver. Not bad.

The rest of players, two in this case, use their Master Swords to cut through the attacking waves. It's a bit strange that the player with the GamePad keeps moving and (virtually) aiming in all directions, while others look at the TV (this is something that also goes for Metroid Blast).

Of course, the archer should take care of enemies that hang back, while swordsmen offer melee resistance. The health bar is once again shared between players.

Mario Chase | Multiplayer

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Nintendo Land

The silliest of the bunch, and certainly the one that caused the most laughter, is Mario Chase. It's a classic game of tag, but with a couple of twists that take advantage of the GamePad for added excitement.

When I approached the stand of this attraction I asked to use the GamePad: it means you play with your back facing the TV, and control the Mii dressed as Mario. The other four players (Toads), Wiimotes in hand, with their eyes on the split-screen TV, must catch you. That's all I knew jumping in.

You run to hide in a maze that's divided into coloured sections. A-ever present aerial map lets you see where your pursuers lurk, so you have an excellent overview of the situation. But do not think it's easy: although they will blindly seek you with their ground level camera, we're talking about four people who can communicate, organise the hunt and let each other know where to look ("I have seen him in the green zone!").

They also have an additional clue I had not noticed at first. On the touch screen of GamePad it said " turn on / off camera" - the controller was capturing my own face live on TV. My expression was perhaps the best possible clue as to whether they were approaching, and also another way to provoke laughter.

I dodged my captors for most of the session, sometimes taking advantage of the corners and another time catching a star that made me fast and invulnerable. Unfortunately, I was caught with just three seconds remaining. So close!

At the end of the session all participants discover the route taken by all players, revealing if they ever came close or if Mario was always smarter. I predict I will spend many hours with Mario Chase and my friends come November 30.

Luigi's Ghost Mansion | Multiplayer

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Another chasing game.

Here the roles are reversed: the player with the GamePad is the ghost that has to go hunting the other players, while dodging the beams of their life-depleting flashlights.

As you are a ghost, you can only see yourself on the GamePad's screen. Those who play on TV feel your presence and try to catch you when the remote vibrates to indicate your closeness.

The concept works, but the closed corridors and more subdued theme make it less exciting than Mario's version. As always, Luigi always comes in second...

Animal Crossing: Sweet Day | Multiplayer

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Nintendo Land

We're treated to yet another chase game. A funny and paradoxical detail is that you go slower the more sweets you catch because of the weight. So your two goals - gaining 50 sweets and escaping from the guards are at odds.

Another nice feature is that the player with the GamePad controls not one, but two sweets guards: one per analog stick. Keeping in mind the position of your two characters while pursuing others through the happy village is not easy (especially when the camera zooms out), so cross your fingers that greed overcomes your rivals.

Donkey Kong's Crash Course | Single Player

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This was the first attraction I sampled in Nintendo Land and also my first experience with Wii U. The truth is that you do not use the tablet controller in any revolutionary way, but it is certainly a clever concept nonetheless.

The idea is to move a cart through the circuit and, as the famous ape demands, get all the bananas. If you are too heavy handed, you crash and have to start over.

The control comes by tilting the Wii U GamePad and touching a button to activate traps. However, as in the attraction Balloon Trip Breeze, the TV has a HD image with full width, full of little elements, while the GamePad's screen offers a closer view of your cart and the
next obstacle, offering both options at a glance.

It's a game that requires a lot of precision, and if you get hooked you will spend hours trying to beat your record (which is why we expect the level selection to be generous).

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The Adventure Continues

We have not yet had a chance to sample Yoshi's Fruit Cart, Octopus Dance, Takamaru's Ninja Castle or Captain Falcon's Twister Race, but we now have a good idea of what to expect from Nintendo Land.

The visuals need to be applauded, not only because of their HD detail and rich colours, but also because they are designed as imitations of the originals with fabrics, wood, metal, sheets, and customes underlining the theme park nature of the game.

As a place simply made for Mii's to dress up and enjoy some of the most famous, as well as some forgotten, Nintendo franchises, and offering a gentle introduction to some of the system's key control methods, Nintendo Land succeeds in its mission to introduce us to the Wii U. Roll on November 30th.

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