Summary
For many people, the Wii feels like a distant memory, having been officially discontinued back in 2013. It’s easy to forget that the console’s release was easily one ofthe most important events of the 2000s in gaming. After all, its motion controls were nothing short of revolutionary at the time.
These days, the Wii is mostly remembered as a pretty child-friendly console, but it did have its fair share of more adult-oriented games, like first-person shooters. Unfortunately, the Wii’s unique controls didn’t lend themselves to hard-core shooters, meaning most of the FPS games that were released on the console have been pretty much forgotten.
Of course, the originalCall of Duty 4: Modern Warfareis anything but forgotten. It is one ofthe bestCall of Dutygamesand turned the franchise into a juggernaut. Anyone who has ever so much as walked past the gaming aisle in a supermarket knows the nameCall of Duty.
ButModern Warfare: Reflex Edition? Not so much. Developed by Treyarch instead of Infinity Ward,Reflex Editionwas a very different beast. Its graphics were lackluster, even by Wii standards, and it didn’t have split-screen multiplayer, one of the original’s best features. Reviews were mixed, with some critics praising the game but others complaining aboutReflex Edition’spoor controls, taking issue with how accurate the nunchuks were. While most gamers have playedCall of Dutyat some point, very few likely rememberReflex Edition.
The originalGoldenEye007is legendary. Every 90s kid either owned it or had a friend with an N64 who invited them around to play it. One ofthe best FPS games of the 1990s, it pretty much wrote the book when it came to early FPS campaigns and split-screen multiplayer.
However, these days, the only people who talk about the Wii remake ofGoldenEyeare game journalists discussing how problematic rights issues are for older games. Because of disagreements over who owns the various James Bond rights, the developers of the remake weren’t allowed to use Brosnan’s likeness for the game and had to use Daniel Craig’s. They also had to make a host of other changes to the original, including plot changes. The result was a forgettable remake that didn’t capture the magic of the original. An even worse remaster of the remake was released the following year for PS3 and Xbox.
To understand whyFary Cry Vengeanceis so forgotten, one needs a quick history lesson. In 2004, Crytek released the originalFar Cry, beloved for its graphics and, at the time, revolutionary open-ended gameplay style. The following year,Far Cry Instincts, developed by Ubisoft, was released on Xbox. A remake of the original, it was worse in every way thanks to hardware limitations. A year after that,Far Cry Evolutionswas also rushed out for the Xbox as a sequel. It also wasn’t very good.
In 2006,Far Cry Vengeancewas released on the Wii, a port ofFar Cry Evolutions. Despite including some extra vehicles, levels, and weapons, it was even worse thanEvolutions. Critics disliked its crummy graphics and comically bad enemy AI in particular. In short, Vengeance was a bad port of a bad sequel to a bad remake of a classic. Or put another way,Vengeanceis forgotten because it’s easilythe worstFar Crygame.
One of the greatest mysteries in gaming is why there are so few dinosaur-killing games. In 2009, Cauldron HQ releasedJurassic: The Huntedto zero fanfare, and the game was pretty much instantly forgotten.
Of the three versions released, the Wii one was the worst. Critics noted its poor graphics and myriad technical issues. The game in general was also just a snooze to play, too reliant on copy-pasted raptor enemies. A forgotten bargain bin game if there ever was one. At least there are stilla handful of great dinosaur gamesfor fans of the struggling genre.
Back in the early 2000s, theMedal of Honorfranchise dominated the world of World War 2 FPS games, but those days are long gone. By 2007,Medal of Honorgames were still being pumped out, but the overall quality was dipping as the pressure from bothCall of DutyandBattlefieldmounted.
Medal of Honor: Heroes 2was released on both the Wii and PSP. It featured a surprisingly solid single-player campaign, decent multiplayer, and even had an on-rails Arcade mode which was a lot of fun using the Wii’s controls. Overall, it was a quality experience, it just wasn’t as fun as what other franchises were offering at the time. There are 17Medal of Honorgames in total, and to be fair, most of them are forgotten at this point.
By 2009, a few FPS games had been released on the Wii, most of them not great ports or remakes of older games. The goal ofThe Conduitwas to prove that an original FPS could be released on the Wii that rivaled Xbox 360 and PS3 games in quality. It looked pretty good for a Wii game and the controls were highly customizable, overcoming the inherent limitations of the Wii controllers.
The game got mostly positive reviews with critics impressed with what High Voltage Software had pulled off on the Wii’s hardware. Unfortunately, the sci-fi story and setting were pretty generic and typical of the era.The Conduitwas a good game, just a forgettable one.
Sometimes there’s seemingly no rhyme or reason as to whether a game will be successful or not. The originalRed Steelgame was released as a Wii launch game to middling reviews. Many loved its looks and sense of style, but many also complained that the controls were a problem. Still, the original is quite fondly remembered by those who played it and the game managed to sell over 1 million copies.
Red Steel 2improved upon the original in every way and was easily one ofthe best first-person shooters on the Wii, yet it’s largely forgotten. It onlysold 270,000 copiesand the publisher, Ubisoft, gave up on it startlingly quickly.
Much likeRed Steel 2,Conduit 2is proof that a sequel can improve upon the original in every way and still be forgotten. Before its release, there was a fair amount of hype surroundingConduit 2, particularly due to its promising graphics and the technically impressive engine the studio built for the game.
To be fair toConduit 2, it kind of lived up to the hype. While notthe best Wii-exclusive game, it was one of the best-looking. Ultimately, however,Conduit 2failed to stand out – its setting was as generic as ever, while more exciting sci-fi games overshadowed it. Like many other FPS games of the era, it was fun while it lasted, but utterly forgettable once the credits rolled.
