Reviews: There's another fungus among us.
I’ll be honest, if you are reading this trying to find a great platformer for the Wii then you need to stop reading and go grab Super Mario Galaxy. If you are the mood for something a little more mediocre in its execution but still offering up an interesting world, than either (also available on DS) Mushroom Men game will serve you well.
The Nintendo Wii’s chapter of Mushroom Men: Spore Wars, the world is brillant and how can it not be? You have a mutated set of fungi running around forming tribes and politics all the while trying to fend off the rest of the mutations which include some freaky looking rabbits.
The plot follows a ‘shroom named Pax who really just wants to find a place in the world since being orphaned. Along his journey he befriends numerous other vegetation and fungi who are engaged in a civil war between the Edible and the Poisonous. It’s not exactly the most original story for a platformer but what are you going to do?
Surviving in a mutated world involves a lot of waggle and ingenuity. Pax can make weapons out of everyday items like an axe out of a corn holder and a stick and then you as the player can motion Pax into using his makeshift axe to pummel the freaky rabbits and other foes by swinging your arms around. Motioning was flawless and smooth with no hiccups between the sensor bar and my axe-flailing. A friend/sibling/significant other can even help you out by rapidly pressing “A” to fill your health bar - though the game isn’t that hard to get through if you’re some kind of hermit.
Progression through levels is very straight-forward, though the levels are interesting to look at. Still, pretty and imaginative textures and objects are no good if the way they are used isn’t as imaginative - you might as well flip through the game’s gallery.
I’m not a fan, but Primus’s Les Claypool and GL33k did a fine job with the
Spore Wars’ audio ambitions. By mixing a bevy of sounds including those of the nature and tribal varieties, the team really brought the Spore Wars world to life through audio especially with the garbled mushroom language.
