Gamabunga

Trioncube

5.5 / 10

Trioncube

Cérébrale Académie

7.6 / 10

WII
7.6 / 10
États-Unis

Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree is largely a success, which makes it -- like Wii Sports -- a surprisingly difficult project to rate. As everyone knows, the title falls into the emerging "casual" sector -- a target demographic less concerned with graphics and more concerned with accessibility, or so we're told. From that perspective, the title is great -- it is both easy to pick up and really fun to play, especially with friends. What Wii Degree demonstrates is that Nintendo really has the magic touch when it comes to the utilization of its remote. Very few third party titles incorporate that tangible, tactile responsiveness -- the sensitive controller rumble you feel when you're navigating menus in Wii Sports, for example. Wii Degree is fun to play partly because you really feel like you're reaching out and touching the puzzles and objects in the game with Nintendo's controller. That sense of polish goes a long way. Of course, it's also fun because the puzzles themselves are smartly developed and very engaging, if not downright hard. I swear, every time I encounter the bird cages I want to pull my hair out. There is no doubt that the effort was inspired by its DS predecessor, but with new minis, a robust multiplayer mode and even WiiConnect24 support, it certainly distinguishes itself and gives Wii owners a reason to take notice. It's not perfect, though. It's shallow, for one. It only features 15 or so activities that you'll burn through quickly, even if you'll keep coming back. A couple of challenges fall short, like those that rely on the Wii remote's internal speaker. The hallways and rooms of the Big Brain Academy are presented in 16:9 widescreen mode, but the minis themselves unfold in 4:3 for some stupid reason. And I honestly think Nintendo dropped the ball by failing to include a genuine online mode for over-a-network mental battles. I think Wii Degree is a really strong first effort -- one that I can recommend to everybody. However, it also feels like a foundation -- the beginning of a home console franchise with a lot of room to grow. You're going to have fun here, but in three or four years we'll look back at this game and it will pale by comparison to its inevitable sequels.