Red Steel (Wii)

I thought I was the only one that thought this game rocked. I was pretty shocked to read the very mediocre reviews form the "experts" like gamespot which gave this game a 5.5

Most of the "experts" seem to base their opinions mostly on the control scheme. I admit at first it was a bit unwieldy, because instead of using a control pad or 'joystick' to aim the gun/reticle, you use the remote to point. As such it did seem a bit too sensitive, but once you play for a while you get very used to it. At least I did, it felt almost second nature to me. The sword fighting is a bit janky but still good, your motions doesn't necessarily translate to what happens on the screen.

I thought the whole storyline and scenarios were very clever (one stage even had you trying to escape from an amusement park while being hunted). The graphics I thought were very good. In some of the harbor scenes, the shimmering waves were amazing, and the little attention to details such as the scratches on the elevator doors, was a nice touch. I do admit to being a bit disappointed that the graphics in this game aren't like the ones you see on the official trailers for Red Steel. But the way some of the reviewers are talking about the graphics you'd think they were reviewing a playstation one game. One can only get excited to know that the graphics can get even better.

The bottom line is that out of the five launch games I got, Red Steel is the one that I keep coming back to the most, because to me it is FUN. I don't care what the reviewers think, that's the way I feel.

I found this game to be very dull at first. The early stages of the plot are far from exciting but I soon realised that they are nessecary to set the scene and to get the player used to the control system for moving, shooting and sword fighting. Once the on-the-job training is done the plot moves on at a quick pace and you start to understand whats going on.

The cut scenes are a bit of a cop out graphically but they do feel Japanese and are very similar to the acting - its like a very cheesily dubbed japanese action movie. (Japanese speaking english with American accents)

The game is very difficult to get to grips with at first as the wiimote is quite sensitive and leaves quite a small window in the center of the screen where aiming does not mean turning rapidly.

I found the uzi very hard at first - I kept unloading 45 bullet clips and missing completely! After a while it just becomes second nature and very very satisfying when you are confident enough to charge through corridors gunning down enemies as you go. The shot gun is a good gun for begginers and once this is learned you should be more confident with the uzi.

Sword controls are not perfect as others have said. They are still acceptable but the control system does not allow the sword fights to be as enjoyable as they could have been.

Again at first I was not impressed by the graphics. But after a while I was so engrossed with the relentless action I forgot to notice. And again some of the graphics actually start looking quite good. Explosions are superb.

I have not played multiplayer yet so cant comment on that. I imagine that playing against someone of equal skill would be great fun.

Overall this game is definately fun no question about it. The shooting will have you immersed until the end as long as you can stick it out long enought to learn how to get the best from it and appreciate its action packed and long levels.

Red Steel sees Nintendo take a darker path. Which is does not normally do. But Nintendo have suceeded in producing a really fun title. It is challenging with very good graphics (for a Wii game). But of course, it is certainly not perfect.

General Gameplay: The gameplay is brilliant. However, there is a fairly large learning curve before you can really start to enjoy this game. The controls are somewhat awkward, but ive mastered them in just a couple of hours of game time.

Controls (in more depth):
The controls are actually very effective, even though it may not seem like it at first.
Holding and firing a gun is as simple as it could be. You hold the Wiimote up to the screen, press the B button to fire, use the nunchunk controller to move whilst shooting, and lock on to an enemy and push the Wiimote toward the screen to zoom-in. (The zoom-in may seem like it is annoying, but it's a very nice touch indeed).
As for sword fighting, you simply use the wiimote to stike at your opponent, and the nunchunk to dodge and parry incoming attacks.

Graphics:
I was pleased with the graphics on Red Steel. I got the Wii Console, Zelda and Red Steel for Christmas. And before then I spent lots of time on YouTube just looking at trailers and gameplay shots, of which some looked great and others looked poor. This made me become very unsure about this game.
However, the enemies look good (from a distance, they can look somewhat fake up close), the scenery is very detailed and the weapons look brilliant. However, the best piece of graphics on the game is easily the explosions. They are arguably some of the best explosions effects I have ever seen.

Bugs/Glitches:
There are a few problems:
The enemies sometimes exert strange and unrealistic behavior, when you shoot them they sometimes die and end up shaking ferociously on the floor, and the sword combat (which is very good), but it doesn't really interpret your motions on the screen that well.

Nevertheless, this is the 2nd best launch title (after Zelda). If you own Zelda and want another game, get this!