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Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure User Review

A surprisingly charming game, and a steal at $40.

Wii owners rejoice as they've finally obtained a great 3rd party Wii game. Zack and Wiki is a masterpiece of a game that blends point and click puzzles with charming Japanese cartoony graphics and perfect Wii controls.

First I'll talk about gameplay. Zack and Wiki uses only the Wii Remote to control the two titular characters, but this works remarkably well. Zack is smart enough to go to where you want him to go almost every time you click the remote, and Wiki will ring every time you shake the remote. All of the tiny puzzle mechanics also work flawlessly, so you don't have to worry about controls messing with your scores.

Next, lifespan. There are dozens of puzzles to figure out in this game, each taking a good ten minutes to complete the first time through. Each Puzzle also has a high score system, so you can go back and try to reach the Unpuzzleable level on all the puzzles, taking many hours of playtime.

Now the graphics. The game looks great, bringing back waves of nostalgia as I remember all of the old Japanese cartoons I used to watch. The characters animate extremely well, adding to the game's light-hearted, cartoony feel.

Zack and Wiki's sound is it's weak point, however. The voice overs are very weak, limited to simply Japanese coos and shrieks. Plus, some of the sound effects get really annoying after a while. But the background music is fairly passable.

Overall, Zack and Wiki is a very complete game, with hours upon hours of replay value. It also will appeal to all those old anime watchers who loved to waste their lives in front of the 'tube, like me. And at $40, this game is an absolute steal.

Review by Cervantes

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