Nintendo Okie

Hey everyone.  Yesterday we brought you our Top 10 DSiWare games of 2009.  Today we’re going to be looking back at the releases that hit Wii’s downloadable service.  There’s no denying that WiiWare grew into a proper platform this year and saw a lot of quality releases.  Which do we here at Nintendo Okie think were the best?  Well read on to find out.  These are presented in no particular order.  They’re just the best 10 games that we played during 2009 and each of them is worth a look if you haven’t played them already. 

NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits

Tony Says:  NyxQuest: Kindred Spirits started out life as Icarian: Kindred Spirits.  Despite the name change, this is one of the best experiences out there on Wii.  People were hoping to see the revival of Kid Icarus this year, but that didn’t materialize.  Instead, fans of the winged warrior could partake in Over the Top Games version of the legend.  The platforming was solid, motion control was used appropriately and wasn’t tacked on.  The co-op play made for some experiences that made two people really work together to accomplish their goal.  If you like Greek Mythology, pine for Icarus’ return or just like good platformers, don’t pass NyxQuest by.  

Final Fantasy IV: The After Years

Matt Says:  If you only play one cell phone ported, episodic sequel to a beloved SNES RPG classic, make sure it’s  Final Fantasy IV: The After Years.  While the game play is the same active time battle system you’ve come to know and love; returning to the land of Baron is still an exciting prospect when you’re doing so twenty years after you originally saved it.  Although the moon phases changing battles doesn’t quite pan out, one can’t complain with it’s nostalgic drenched prose. 

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a Dark Lord

Tony Says:  2008 brought Square’s initial WiiWare offering My Life as a King where you took control of a fledgling kingdom and returned it to prosperity.  The announcement of My Life as a Dark Lord brought warm thoughts of the flip side of that role.  Much to our surprise we received a tower defense game with a twist.  You actually defended a single tower, which housed the spirit of your father at it’s top.  You spend currency in the game to add floors to the tower and populate it with monsters to stop the endless horde of heroes bent on bringing you down.  It was a great twist on an established genre and brought something new to the table we didn’t know we wanted. 

Contra ReBirth

Ed Says:  Contra Rebirth – to put it simply if you like side scrolling old school style shooters give this game a shot. Its not the easiest thing on the block but if this style of game is your bag it should hold you for a bit. 

DRiiFT Mania

Tony Says:  Arcade racers today are generally still done with highly stylized 3D graphics and huge tracks.  It was quite refreshing to see Konami take it back to the single screen racer for DRiiFT Mania.  This game plays much like you would expect this style of game to play, but adds loads of unlockables, fun tracks, and the ability to race as a freaking train.  The drift mechanic makes this stand apart from other racers of its kind. 

LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias

Matt Says:  If ever there was a game that was a “proof of concept” for what the Wii is capable of, it’s LostWinds.  Taking what they had, Frontier Developments launched a wonderfully colorful puzzle/platform title that made you forget you where “waggling” anything and just having a great time.  It’s sequel, Winter of the Melodias, upped the ante by taking Toku and Enril’s move set and finding new and unique ways to use it.  On top of that, there’s the ability to change seasons which added another layer to this brilliant series. 

Swords & Soldiers

Tony Says:  We saw a bit of a resurgence in 2D gaming this year, but no one thought that would apply to the RTS genre.  Ronimo Games did just that and created a fun, light hearted RTS that played quite well.  The zany story, different factions and great visuals combined for one of the most memorable WiiWare experiences of the year.  

Excitebike: World Rally

Matt Says:  As interesting as ExciteTruck and ExciteBots were; neither of them captured the simple magic that their forefather, Excitebike, gave to NES gamers back in the day.  And while World Rally doesn’t set out to change the world in anyway; the great new venues, cute aesthetic and online play help update it and give us all a friendly reminder that even the simplest of games can hold their own in a world filled with ever-increasingly complex games. 

Tales of Monkey Island – The Entire Series

Tony Says:  While I was not a fan of the point and click style adventure games before, this reinvention of the Monkey Island franchise got me interested in them.  The puzzles felt like something straight out of the genre when it was most popular in the early 90’s.  Pop culture references make appearances that fit in with this world of piracy and Guybrush Threepwood is one of the funniest characters I had the chance to see this year.  The story spanned five releases across five months and kept you engaged until the very end.  Is this the end of the road for the mighty pirate?  Signs point to no. 

Bit.Trip Core

Tony Says:  The Bit.Trip franchise has brought retro gaming back and introduced the music genre into the mix.  There were three games in the series released on WiiWare, but I think Bit.Trip Core stands above them all.  The four areas that you needed to pay attention to, combined with simple game play that was difficult to master reinvigorated the rhythm genre and they’re not done yet.  There are six games planned in the series and it can only get better from here.  

There you have it folks.  The games we think shine above all the rest on WiiWare for 2009.  If there are any that we missed or you think deserve recognition feel free to leave us a comment and let us know, or head over to the forums to discuss it there.  Stay tuned for tomorrow when we take a look at the Top 10 DS games of 2009.