PowerPoint PresentationBOOM BLOXOverview (1)Overview (2)Overview (3)Screenshot (1)Screenshot (2)Screenshot (3)Other play modesGame ReviewSlide 11Slide 12SummaryFall 2008 Slide 1CIS 587 Game ReviewFall 2008Michael QuistFall 2008 Slide 2BOOM BLOX•Electronic Arts and Steven Spielberg•Exclusively for Nintendo Wii•“Wild and action-packed block-busting extravaganza”•50/50 puzzle and action minigame aspects•Priced at $49.99Fall 2008 Slide 3Overview (1)•Physics-based game in which player stacks / knocks over / blows up blocks•Several basic modes of play•Explore -- puzzles•Adventure -- story mode•Create -- level editor•Multiplayer -- cooperative and competitive•High production value•Music and sound•Clean cartoon-y visuals, with animated clip scenes advancing the adventure mode•Well-written manual•No apparent bugsFall 2008 Slide 4Overview (2)•Within each level, player interacts with blocks with a specific tool, controlled using Nintendo Wii motion-sensing remote•Throwing baseballs, cannonballs, bombs•Spraying with hoses, shooting with guns•Pushing and pulling with “grab” tool•Variety of block types•Exploding bomb blocks•Chemical blocks that explode when they hit other chemical blocks•Vanish blocks that disappear when struck•… etc.Fall 2008 Slide 5Overview (3)•Level-based gameplay•Player awarded medals for completing levels in few enough throws / losing few enough lives / fast enough•Criteria given before each level determine whether medal is bronze, silver, or gold•Finishing levels and collecting medals unlocks new content (characters, tools, levels)Fall 2008 Slide 6Screenshot (1)Bomb blocksChemicalblocksVanishblocksPlayer goal:protect sheep from monkeysFall 2008 Slide 7Screenshot (2)Player goal:clear path from gorilla to babiesFall 2008 Slide 8Screenshot (3)Player goal:remove point blocks withoutdropping penalty blocksPointblocksPenaltyblocksFall 2008 Slide 9Other play modes•Multiplayer•Compete or cooperate… mostly turn-based, with players alternating attacks on one another or manipulations of a puzzle•Create•Full-featured level builder, with ability to share created levels with others over the internet•Content unlocked in single-player mode available for use in Create modeFall 2008 Slide 10Game Review•What is fun•Block physics are excellent; many puzzle levels are challenging and have interesting / clever solutions•Interface (Wii remote) works well for throwing balls, grabbing blocks, and rotating camera angles•Blowing things up•Creating new levelsFall 2008 Slide 11Game Review•What is not fun•Some levels reduce to trial and error or just throwing hard, leading to “Wii elbow”•Wii-mote control not precise enough for delicate movements; can be frustrating•Multiplayer is slow-paced•Story is “laughably stupid,” according to at least one reviewer… more charitably, is intended for a young audience•Can only use one tool per level… seems as if combined throw/shoot/grab levels would allow much greater diversityFall 2008 Slide 12Game Review•Genre comparison•Puzzle/minigame genre includes WarioWare, Mario Party, Zack & Wiki•Boom Blox is much better single-player game than Mario Party, much weaker multiplayer•More solid production than WarioWare, but less diverse, and humor aimed at younger audience•Story purely decorative, and puzzles all of the same type, unlike Zack & WikiFall 2008 Slide 13Summary•Fun and cute puzzle game, making good use of Wii’s capabilities, and with characters and visuals that will appeal to children•However, levels are too similar, and tacked-on story does little to distinguish different sections of single-player quest•Could be improved by introducing more advanced tools (firehose, etc.) earlier in quest and by replacing “throw and throw some more” levels with levels requiring more than one tool•Worth purchasing at $30 or $40, but $50 is high price point for puzzle
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