Issue 23: Ammo/Cash

Bang!

That’s what Wii was supposed to be to the First Person Shooter genre. Finally, a console that would offer true, PC-style, mouse-like precision to aiming. No fiddling of your thumbs to position on the X, Y and Z axis. You just drag your cursor to orient yourself, draw a bead on your target and pull your trigger finger. That’s first-person shooting magic.

Yet somehow, we’ve gotten more light gun games than first-person shooters. And in spite of the hopes of starry-eyed fanboys such as myself, Nintendo’s equivalent Halo– or better yet, GoldenEye 64– failed to materialize. No generation-defining first-person shooting experience came to life on Wii, selling systems left and right and taking over dorm rooms and Wi-Fi connections around the world.

That’s not to say we’ve not had some great first-person shooters on Wii (and some great light gun games too, which I’m not ashamed of loving). We get ports of (most of the) Call of Duty, Medal of Honor and James Bond games. We have our exclusive FPS franchise (if two games a franchise makes) in The Conduit. Metroid Prime 3 was pretty great and the new GoldenEye remake is kick ass.

Yet as much as FPS games define this video game generation even more than the last, they’ve not become a major part of Wii’s success. Is it demographics? Hardware horsepower? Console gamers completely accustomed to and happy with dual-analog controls? Probably a combination of all three, but for anyone who’s played a Wii FPS with great remote/nunchuk controls, the lack of more Wii FPS games is a sad, lost opportunity.

But like I said– we have some good games on the system, and we’re not in a vacuum over here. Even without being the leading console of choice for FPS fans, we have plenty to say on the topic this week, and we hope you enjoy getting into the debate with us.

Enjoy,
Noah

Issue 23: Ammo/Cash

Oh, Snap! by Andrew Hsieh
You don’t always need guns for FPS. Pokémon Snap gave us first-person shooting with a camera, and it was pretty sweet.

Tidman’s Take: Not Sold by Matthew Tidman
They’re the biggest genre in gaming, so see why this staffer has issues with them. Hint: It’s not because they have guns in them.

Duty for Greatness by Andy Hoover
Take a look at the intense history of this generation’s biggest franchise, and why it’s relevant to Nintendo fans.

The Stumbling Chronicles by Aaron Roberts
How one major franchise went from riches to ruin in three Wii titles.

Hot Air: Shooted by Aaron Roberts
Why are shooters still popular after so long?

Nester64x: Run ‘n Gun by Nester64x
There’s only one shooter that’s real and that’s Contra.

Slow on the Draw by Andy Hoover
Why Wii could have defined first-person shooters but hasn’t.

Brand New Eyes by Adam Sorice
Let’s give classic Nintendo franchises a fresh (first-person) perspective.

Versus! Worst Person Shooter by Evan Campbell and James Labalokie
James and Evan get to brass tacks on why Wii is– or is not– the best system for FPS games.

HowardNTR Vs Nester64x: Realistic Vs. Sci-Fi by HowardNTR and Nester64x
Enough of all this debate on mechanics. What’s really important in an FPS is theme!

Additional features in this issue…

Monday

• Nightly News Roundup by Carter Fagan
  

Tuesday

• Nightly News Roundup by Abhinay Sawant
  

Wednesday

• Dojo-Show-Go! Episode 116 by M. Noah Ward
• Nightly News Roundup by Evan Campbell
  

Thursday

• Nightly News Roundup by Andrew Hsieh
  

Friday

• Nightly News Roundup by Aaron Roberts
  

Coming Up Next Week…

Issue 24: Rumble in the Jungle
Anticipating the release of Donkey Kong’s new adventure next week, we’re busting out bongos and bananas.