The Best & Worst Games for the Wii/PSP & Nintendo DS

By David Rasmussen
29th Dec 07

Yeah, I know you’d rather know the best and worst of the XBox360 and PS3... But I don’t own either of those. Somebody else will have to write those lists.

For now here’s the Best and Worst gaming on the Nintendo DS, the Nintendo Wii and the PSP.
First off, the bad.

Cake Factory (Nintendo DS)
It’s Christmas (or was depending on when you read this), and to celebrate it somebody put on this computer a shareware game from Gateway Games called “Believe in Santa”. However the game (as you probably already know if you were tricked into playing it) has NOTHING to do with your belief system concerning the big red guy! Nooooo… Believe in Santa is more of a game about the selecting, painting and giving of gifts to hyperactive parents who quickly become impatient! In order to succeed you’ll have to make x amount of money, not as easy as it sounds as you’ll have to work with a mouse doing this (and this kind of game seems to work better with a more direct control device like a Wiimote, or a Nintendo DS stylus). Oh, and the game isn’t as fun as it sounds.

That is basically the same thing with Cake Factory. Your retarded relatives ran their cake shoppe into the ground financially and it’s up to you to save it… by making, baking, decorating and giving cakes to impatient customers. And this gameplay, I am certain, goes all the way back to the old fast food joint promoting beef bowl slinging game from Japan linked to a major chain of fast food beef bowl serving places (whose name seems to escape me right now… though I did write an ancient article about it hidden in a review of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (PSOne) if you are ever interested in learning more about this game).

Yeah. Delivering toys or serving cake to easily impatient people is no fun. Don’t do this.

Oh, and at the rate Nintendo & Sony are going (filling out the yearly release schedule of both the Nintendo DS and PSP in turn with free shareware games off the web like Cake Factory and Diner Dash) I am betting you’ll be seeing Believe in Santa coming soon to a DS or PSP near you.
Avoid it, like you should avoid Cake Factory now. 1 burnt cake offering to the dessert goddess out of 5 delicious favors from same goddess.

Godfather : Mob Wars (PSP)
OK, I can’t remember if this came out in 2007 or I just got it in 2007... But I do know I got this in 2007 and it had a bad, bad, bad review!

It could have been a contender, it could have been more than the bland smathering of missions and the odd “Mob Wars” Risk style strategy “game” (put in as an excuse to squeeze in as much side mission content as possible)… but it wasn’t, so you shouldn’t waste your time or money on this one.
2 Sleeping Fishies out of 5

Harvest Moon DS (Nintendo DS)
No, it really wasn’t bad enough that one Harvest Moon game (Innocent Life) would be insufficient, there had to be two (Harvest Moon DS for the Nintendo DS). With gameplay that most of the time seems like it was meant for the GBA, and a lacking story with repetitive gameplay that is not very rewarding (even with the gimmick of being able to marry a wider range of mate including the Harvest Goddess, a Mermaid and your rival (a Witch)) this is not worth it unless you are a serious Harvest Moon junkie.
And then you have both Rune Factory (DS) and Harvest Moon : Boy & Girl (PSP) to entertain you.
3 classic grim harvests out of 5.

Honeycomb Beat (Nintendo DS)
No, it’s NOT a free game you can get out of a box of Honeycomb cereal… yeah, that would make this game actually worth it. Instead it’s a dull puzzler where you change the color of honeycombs (from lit to not lit or vice versa) in order to win… bleah. Sure it does have lots of “puzzles” to go through, but with the same tired gameplay I don’t see this becoming a must own… unless you find it in a box of Honeycomb cereal, but even then I question it’s keep ability. 1, one, 1 out of 5 (yah yah yah).

Innocent Life (PSP)
Of the two “next gen” Harvest Moon games I reviewed this year there had to be a winner and a loser. Rune Factory (Nintendo DS) is the winner, guess what the loser was!

A game with a lot of innovation but lacking a human soul, Innocent Life leans heavily on the gimmicks and the new tech but forgets the very heart and soul of the franchise (what Rune Factory remembered along with it’s unique traditional RPG hack and slash meets farming game mechanics).
Soulless residents of a doomed island with little (if no) personality, repetitive gameplay with little smidgens of promise of what the game could have been (but wasn’t) in the quest to unseal plots of land on your property through the use of strange crystals that act as keys to unseal the land. And a plot that could have been better if it wasn’t delivered with such a sterile and lifeless delivery as it was.

It could have been better, would have been better, and should have been better.
But could have, would have, and should have won’t make it better. Definitely not.

Still it is Harvest Moon and it is average so… 3 grim harvests out of 5.

Mario Party 8 (Nintendo Wii)
It doesn’t really suck… unless everyone refuses to play it with you, then it sucks because the game is really no fun without human interaction.

My Sims (Nintendo DS)
Not as horrible as you may think, but if you are hooked on the Wii version be advised that this Nintendo DS version has absolutely NOTHING in common with the Wii version (other than this being a cheap tie-in game trying to milk as much out of your pockets as possible). It does have a few things unique to the game (like mini games and a classic Sims slash Animal Crossing style of furniture collection and room furnishing) but overall it won’t fill the void that needs to be filled after you fell in love with the Wii version of this game.
3 bus rides out of 5.

Spider-Man 3 (Nintendo DS/Wii)
Let’s see… I didn’t play the DS version but I’ve seen enough to know it sucks.
I DID play the Wii version, and while it didn’t get a 1 out of 5 ala X-Play I did give it a low score (2 out of 5 to be precise).
What? What did I think about the PSP version? Actually I didn’t play it.
Don’t plan to, but if it’s like the PS2 version then at least it should have a saving grace score of 3 out of 5... As long as it doesn’t have the glitchey glitches of the PS2 & Wii veresions.

Touch the Dead (Nintendo DS)
No, no, I really did miss The Suffering (PS2) and zombies enough to want to see a poorly made set in prison zombie shooter for the Nintendo DS. 1 lurching zombie out of 5.

Wii Play (Nintendo Wii)
Wait. A game with Wiimote included? No, I’m sure the box should have read Wiimote with free game included (not so free as the Wiimote accounts for $40 of the $50 paid for this), which means the game is worth $10 if most of this game‘s cost can be attributed to the Wiimote... Which is just about right for an underwhelming set of Wiimote games that really could have been better, but weren’t.
1 Wiimote and 1 game (2) out of 5.

And now… my 15 favorites for all three systems!

Dungeon & Dragons Tactics (PSP)
Yes, the game seems to have a few hardwired glitches (game freezes up at times, and occasionally saved data can become “corrupted” and irretrievable), and the whole concept of virtual dice rolling EVERYTHING from hits to saving throws sucks… but it is still the best D&D game out there on the PSP, mostly because it’s the ONLY D&D game on the PSP. Now bring on Ravenloft Tactics!

Final Fantasy III (Nintendo DS)
Looking for a classic retro FF fix? Here you go, and dammit it’s fun! Go get it!

Final Fantasy XII (PS2)
Final Fantasy is on it’s way out the door with the PS2 (the FFXIII tie in game doesn’t count since it’s more like FFVII : Dirge of Cerberus then FFXIII proper) and leaves in style with FFXII. Sure, the game plays like Everquest or certain other MMORPGs instead of classic FF gaming of old (which sets the stage for the evolution of the FF franchise we’ll hopefully see more of in the PS3 FFXIII release), but that’s the fun of it… oh, sucks though if you’re a fan of a good FF Love Story (because there’s none here).

I’m still planning of getting one before my PS2 truly becomes obsolete, then I’ll review it in the future.

Final Fantasy Tactics : War of the Lions (PSP)
I seem to have lots of Final Fantasy on my list! Here’s the PSP outing, and it’s got a lot for FF fans to chew on (and swallow smoothly with a sweet aftertaste). I heard there’s new job classes in this one, and the gameplay is amped up, making for a better experience than the GBA version of old which people seemed to hate a lot. It’s on my short list for reviews in 2008, so look forward to it!

Godfather : Blackhand Edition (Nintendo Wii)
The best version of the game to date, the Wiimote/nunchuk make gameplay smooth and flawless. Occasional hiccups in gameplay are there, but for the most part it’s a better game and really shines over lesser next gen burp-ups of this game. 4 mob hits out of 5.

God of War II (PS2)
Yes! I do have one of the best games closing out the lifespan of the PS2 on my best list! The long awaited sequel to God of War, God of War II takes you back to that happy place in ancient times where fun can be had by all decapitating all sorts of evil things (and taking your blade to Dancing with the Stars alumni Harry Hamlin aka Perseus)!

Think of it this way, if you must play one game associated with Dancing with the Stars (this or the gaudy claptrap of a wiimote waver bland up and coming rising genre known as the TV game show tie in game Dancing With The Stars Wii Edition game)… play this. Even if Harry Hamlin’s appearance is short at least it’s better than wasting hours of your life waving away with Dancing With The Stars the Wii game!
5 out of 5.

Grand Theft Auto Bundle Pack featuring GTAIII, GTA:Vice City & GTA:San Andreas (PS2)
Yeah. Sorry, these are the Post “Hot Coffee” Censorship games, but it’s still GTA even if it’s been spade and neutered of “Hot Coffee” mod. 5 out of 5.

Harvest Moon : Boy & Girl (PSP)
The classic PSOne game Harvest Moon : Back to Nature is re-revived once again, this time for the PSP with Harvest Moon : Boy & Girl (featuring the rarely seen Japanese female version, which in turn spawned off Harvest Moon : More Friends of Mineral Town (GBA) and Harvest Moon : Another Wonderful Life (Nintendo GameCube)). 4 out of 5.

Legend of Zelda : Phantom Hourglass (Nintendo DS) and Twilight Princess (Nintendo Wii)
No, it’s not a bundle pack… but Nintendo owners should demand such a pack! Pack in the GBA game Minish Cap and GameCube classic Windwaker and we got ourselves the ultimate Zelda bundle.
5 “Nude Zelda” non-exsistant codes out of 5.

MARVEL Ultimate Alliance (All Systems)
What a wonder this game is, and not just the fact it takes the gameplay best known from the X-Men Legends games (which came in turn from the Champions of Norrath games) and made it shine. No. It’s also the fact it took said gameplay and made it shine on the PS2, the PSP, the Nintendo Wii AND the Nintendo DS (which is oftentime a hardsell in terms of making said game shine and excel).
4 out of 5 is it’s individual score, but for being perfect on ALL systems I think it deserves a group score of 5 out of 5 for being just that special.

Okami (PS2)
A unique calligraphy system, RPG style gameplay , freeform gameplay (from my understanding of it) with maybe over 100+ of gameplay included? How can that NOT be a perfect game! I still have to review it but when I do? I expect it to shine brightly with a good score.

Poke’mon Diamond or Pearl (Nintendo DS)
It brings back the classic Poke’mon gaming of old (too much if you ask some), and throws in WiFi useage to allow you to combat players from around the world. Too bad it’s Wii counterpart (Battle Revolutions) was no Poke’mon Collesum, but at least this game rules. Another game on my to review list.

Resident Evil 4 (Nintendo Wii)
Loved the GameCube version (5 out of 5), ranted about the PS2 version (still have to play it though), and now recommending the Wii version! Why not! Go out and kill a new breed of “creatures” in the name of your humanity! (Only downside? It should have been based on the PS2 version with the added content instead of the original GameCube version).

Rune Factory (Nintendo DS)
A Harvest Moon that goes all medieval on your butt, throws in a hack and slash RPG style gameplay (complete with abilities you level up as you use them, magic and weapons combat) and the humanity of a good Harvest Moon game (unlike Innocent Life which had all the gimmicks and none of the heart) and you got yourself the first perfect next gen Harvest Moon. 4 Swords of Harvest out of 5.

Super Mario Galaxy (Nintendo Wii)
The must own Wii game of the Christmas season. Nuff said.

And that’s that.
Let’s see, besides the games above what else am I looking forward to reviewing in the brand spanking new year! Let’s see…

Elder Scrolls Travels : Oblivion (PSP)
If they ever get this game out (and fix it’s woefully inadequate amount of gameplay as opposed to the 100+ endless gameplay a traditional Xbox Original, XBox360 or PS3 Elder Scrolls delivers) I’ll review it.

Final Fantasy : Crystal Chronicles (Nintendo Wii)
They said it’ll be better than it’s GameCube counterpart. Not much about that since I think just about any game could be better than the original GameCube Crystal Chronicles. So we’ll see if this truly is better when it comes out. Oh, yes, we shall surely see!

Final Fantasy Tactics A2 (Nintendo DS)
I figure this game is a sequel to FFTA for the GBA (thus the A2 designation on the title), but is it as bad as the GBA version? Here’s a hint… I heard a few comments about the game and so far it doesn’t look good for this game. I’ll review it all the same to find out the truth.

God of War : Chains of Olympus (PSP)
If they ever stop delaying this game and release it? Then we’ll see if this game lives up to it’s rep that it earned on the PS2.

Grand Theft Auto : San Andreas Stories (PSP)
I played Vice City Stories (just never reviewed it), now I’m looking forward to a trip to San Andreas and SAS… if Rockstar ever gets about to making the game, soliciting the game, ect. Ect. Ect.

Manhunt 2 (PSP or Nintendo Wii)
Rockstar spade and neutered the game after it was slapped with the dreaded “Scarlet Letter” of Adultery, the ESRB sinner letters AO(+18), so let’s see how the game fares after it’s lobotomy. Is it still intelligent or does it have the intellectual prowess of Bill O’Reilly? You be the judge!

Silent Hill : Origins (PSP)
Hmm… do I want to waste so much money on a game that probably won’t last as long as, say, Trace Memory (Nintendo DS) did… and that game lasted 10 or so hours? Hmm… decisions, decisions.

Well that’s that. Until next time (and my review of reviews coming post Christmas) then! Bye!

-- David Rasmussen 29th Dec 07