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WiiNintendo game impressions by hattrick.

Bit.Trip RUNNER (WiiWare)

I spent some time with Aksys Games, playing Bit.Trip RUNNER at PAX East on March 27, 2010.  Here are my impressions on this upcoming WiiWare title.

In a world of HD graphics, retro games are on the rise. While some are overwhelmed with trying to create the most realistic looking game, Aksys Games is busy going back to the basics.  Jumping on the rhythm bandwagon, Aksys has found a way to combine 8-bit graphics and a steady beat.

This is the fourth game in the Bit.Trip series.  While the previous installments (BEAT, CORE, and VOID) were based around simple Pong-like graphics, RUNNER takes a platform approach. With a look similar to Pitfall, you control a character who is constantly moving. Use the Wii Remote (turned sideways) to jump up stairs, slide under enemies, and kick destructible obstacles while trying to make it to the end of each of the almost 50 levels.

It has already been stated that this game falls into the “retro” style for graphics, but it also falls into that same category for gameplay. Simply put, this game will have you coming back for more over and over again.  Each time you die, you start that specific level, with unlimited continues. However, the loading time is so quick, that this will only make you think, “I can do it this time!” If this were an arcade game, there is a good chance that you would be popping quarters in for hours.

Bit.Trip RUNNER is a good move for Aksys Games, as it was great to advance beyond the dot-and-line styled game of the previous titles. All along, they have kept the rhythm element, as each jump, slide, and kick completes the music for the game.  RUNNER is a welcome addition to the retro-rhythm style they have been perfecting over the past year.

Bit.Trip RUNNER will hit the North American WiiWare service in April for 800 Points.

WiiNintendo’s interview with Aksys Games concerning Bit.Trip RUNNER

Reef Entertainment has released some new Sniper Elite screenshots, featuring the Flak Tower Bonus level. The level takes place after the original 28 missions, and sees Karl Fairburne re-entering Berlin to help take out the Flak Tower, an impenetrable fortress armed with row after row of anti-aircraft cannons which are decimating the allies’ airborne assault.

Here’s Massi Di Monda, CEO of Raylight, talking about the Flak Tower level:

“By the time the player reaches this level we expect them to be fully versed in handling the controllers, especially the Wii Zapper rifle add-on, so their sniping skills will be well-honed and they’ll have to be for this level! The pace of the game to this point has been up and down – full-on action coupled with slower sniping/stealth-style gameplay – so we’ve ramped up the tension and action to make Flak Tower a truly explosive and fitting end to one of the best sniping games around!”

Sniper Elite is due to be released for the Nintendo Wii in Q2, 2010.