SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs - That Rat Bastard Groundhog Edition

Today is Groundhog Day, and apparently Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow. Therefore, there will be six more weeks of winter. Well, this Phil says that groundhog is a rat bastard. That said, his "weather report" is hardly going to ruin this week's edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs. Instead, I have great tunes for you guys this week, including themes from Parasite Eve, Boom Blox, and Mario Kart: Super Circuit! I see my own shadow, but that's because I'm standing in front of a lamp right now. Anyway, let's get to the cool tunes!

v806. Parasite Eve (PS1) - Primal Eyes

Yoko Shimomura to me is the female equivalent of Nobuo Uematsu. Her composing skills and compositions for the video games she works on are out of this world. She is on a totally different level, just like Uematsu. Her work on Parasite Eve is also fantastic, offering tense, melodramatic, and spacey themes all in one soundtrack.

v807. Boom Blox (Wii) - Blockland

Let's shift gears completely from sci-fi horror to wacky puzzle goodness with Boom Blox. It was part of a supposed three game deal with Hollywood director Steven Spielberg and Electronic Arts. At least Boom Blox made it out, and I'm grateful, as the game is a ton of party goodness fun. The soundtrack was composed by Mark Mothersbaugh, whose music I was first introduced to with his Rugrats cartoon score.

v808. Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (DS) - Weyard

Golden Sun: Dark Dawn was set 30 years after the events of The Lost Age. It saw the children of the heroes from the first game embark on their own adventure. Motoi Sakuraba was brought on board to compose the music for this third Golden Sun game, as he is known to be Camelot Software Planning's go-to composer. While the soundtrack isn't his best work, it still features plenty of excellent tracks, including this world map theme.

v809. Shadow the Hedgehog (PS2, GCN, XBX) - GUN Fortress

We go from a heroic theme to something relaxing and chill with the GUN Fortress level theme from Shadow the Hedgehog. Laced with guitar and percussive beats, GUN Fortress does not have nearly the amount of edge as the other themes in the game. It is a welcome change, as GUN Fortress itself as a level is a much slower paced one.

v810. Mario Kart: Super Circuit (GBA) - Cheese Land

To finish off this edition of SuperPhillip Central's Favorite VGMs, we go to a place where the streets are paved with cheese. No, this isn't "An American Tail", this is Mario Kart: Super Circuit's Cheese Land, a ridiculously zany track concept for even Mario Kart! The song is suitably catchy and will have almost anyone finding the theme bopping around in their heads as they race on this cheesy track.

The 50 Best Nintendo Wii Games - Part One

Generally when I see people say that the Wii's library is one of the worst of any mainstream console, I can only roll my eyes so far to the back of my head before pain sets in. It's just a lazy, thoughtless, misguided statement. Unless one's tastes are severely limited, there is no excuse for such a comment.

The Nintendo DS had its turn for the past five weeks, now the Wii is getting its share of the spotlight as the system is approaching the end of its life as Nintendo's main console. The console has one of the most diverse lineups of software. There's really everything except the Western RPG, I believe -- platformers, action, adventure, shooters, puzzle games, JRPGs, open world games, and so on and so forth for Wii owners to enjoy. So for every vocal minority that says the Wii has few games worth playing, there is a title that appeals to most people, and a library with loads of undiscovered and well known treasures to find. This list of fifty of the greatest Wii games details just that.

Once again, I remind people that only North American releases will be listed here. Sorry, Fatal Frame, Disaster, and Pandora's Tower fans.

Super Mario Galaxy

Super Mario Galaxy is without a doubt one of the greatest platformers of all time, showcasing brilliant ideas and ingenuity in nearly every facet of its design. Taking Mario and friends into outer space, the final frontier, where no plumber has gone before, Super Mario Galaxy utilizes planetoids both large and small to increase the platforming possibilities exponentially. The game also uses a new smart camera that generally focuses on the action in wondrous ways, without the need for the player's interaction like in past 3D Marios like Super Mario 64 and Sunshine. Then there is the fabulous soundtrack, mostly sporting a 50-person orchestra, never before seen in a Mario game before. Super Mario Galaxy isn't one of the top-rated games of all time for no reason. It is absolutely fantastic in every regard. 

Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Not a fighter in the traditional sense, the Super Smash Bros. series focuses on knocking someone out of the ring rather than simply knocking them out. Super Smash Bros. Brawl delivered not only on compelling gameplay (sorry, competitive players), but it also delivered on fan service. Containing characters, stages, and music (the latter being composed and arranged by over 35 unique video game music composers), Super Smash Bros. Brawl is essentially a love letter to fans of Nintendo, with stages from Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Kirby, Pikmin, Kid Icarus, F-Zero, Star Fox, and the list goes on and on. But it's not just for Nintendo fans and nostalgia-lovers solely. No, the fighting mechanics are simple enough for anyone to learn, but they are mighty tough to master. Case in point: Super Smash Bros. Brawl is one of Nintendo's beefiest games, and it possesses enough content, replay value, and action to last you for generations... or until the next Smash Bros. arrives.

New Super Mario Bros. Wii

Mario is back, but this time he's not alone. One of the best selling games of this generation, and rightfully so, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Mario is joined by Luigi and two Toads to rescue the Princess. Of course, you can play the nine worlds (one bonus) of the game alone, but with friends and family, things get all the more hectic, and all the more fun. Star Coins that were once difficult to get alone could be grabbed by a partner doing an amazing suicide leap. But multiplayer alone isn't what makes New Super Mario Bros. Wii so enticing and enchanting. No, the level design in some of the best seen in a 2D Mario. Each level showcases a new concept. From erupting sand geysers to use as platforms to cross bottomless pits to swimming in bubbles that float within dry air, each level brings something new to the table, and makes an already exciting game all the more exciting. New power-ups such as the Ice Flower, Penguin Suit, and one of my favorites, the Propeller Mushroom, liven things up as well. New Super Mario Bros. Wii isn't a ho-hum Mario game. It's an essential Mario game, and one that is essential for fans of the franchise.

Metroid Prime Trilogy

A must-have collection for Metroid fans, Metroid Prime Trilogy is an out-of-print collection of all three Metroid Prime games (Prime 1, Echoes, and the Wii's Corruption) given the Wii treatment with what I consider to be supremely superior controls in comparison to the original two Primes. The pointer aiming is second place only to a keyboard and mouse in accuracy and enjoyability. They alone are worth the price of admission and reliving Metroid Prime 1 and 2 all over again. These two titles almost feel like completely different games, and that is a good thing. Outside of the new controls, an achievement system was implemented, allowing players to earn tokens to obtain artwork, music, and even the Fusion Suit for Metroid Prime, originally only available by linking a Game Boy Advance with Metroid Fusion inserted in it to a GameCube. Additionally, Metroid Prime Trilogy had lessened load times, 16:9 capabilities, updated visual textures, and increased special effects. If you're looking (and can find for a reasonable price) this excellent compilation, do not hesitate to pull the trigger... or whatever you do with Samus' Arm Cannon.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

With some of the most impressive motion controls ever implemented into a video game, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is one of the most satisfying Wii experiences on the market. The near 1:1 swordplay offered new challenges to the combat. You had to smarten up and be quick on the uptake in each confrontation, especially with enemies that could damage you if you attacked incorrectly. Some claim that the controls don't work and the game is awful for it, but some of these people are the same types who "waggle" their way through everything. Skyward Sword altered the formula for the Zelda series quite a bit. It featured a world of puzzles and exploration that extended outside of dungeons and onto the various overworlds. Following Super Mario Galaxy's lead, Skyward Sword's soundtrack mostly consisted of fully orchestrated themes. I consider Skyward Sword's score to be one of the best the Zelda series has ever seen, and the game itself is tremendous in its own right as well, pending you try to learn the controls and be capable with them.

Xenoblade Chronicles

After almost a two-year wait and an online campaign for the game, Xenoblade Chronicles finally reached North American soil, though with the caveat of being exclusive to Nintendo's online shop and GameStop. Regardless, Xenoblade is what I consider to be one of the best RPGs this generation, Japanese OR Western. The world of the game takes places on the bodies of two deceased titans, and these are enormous giants much like the world Shulk and the gang traverses. Gaur Plains alone spreads out so far and is so expansive that you might think you were playing an offline MMORPG. Coincidentally enough, the creators of Xenoblade Chronicles have in the past compared the world they created to such a game. Introducing a real-time battle system, the ability to earn experience through not only slaying monsters but through completing quests and finding new areas, and the time-saving feature of being able to warp to any previously visited destination, Xenoblade Chronicles rights many wrongs of past RPGs. It's an experience many thought was impossible on the modest in power Wii. Those in a state of discontent with current JRPGs should definitely check out this extremely competent 50+ hour quest.

Wario Land: Shake It!

A platformer from a series that was in hibernation for approximately seven years, Wario Land: Shake It! (known as Wario Land: The Shake Dimension in Europe and simply Wario Land: Shake in Japan) is the series's first console installment. If the gorgeous hand-drawn art style doesn't grab you (it's fantastic even in standard definition), the gameplay certainly will. Each level has Wario plundering it for treasure, found in bags that must be shook, and diamonds placed in hard-to-find/reach areas. The true fun comes in trying to complete the game 100% as just running through the 15 or so levels of the game won't last too long, even if you find all of the treasure chests. Getting 100% involves finishing off all of the game's challenges such as running to the goal within a set amount of time (requiring the player to learn the best route to do so), not getting hit within a level, not entering a body of water, and so forth. Alongside the vivacious visuals is a stellar soundtrack that hits all the right notes and contains an abundance of genres like rock, funk, latin, and new age. Wario Land: Shake It! features a splendid art style and the gameplay to back it up.

Kirby's Return to Dream Land

What I love about the Wii (well, one of the things I love about the Wii) is the renaissance of 2D platformers it brought to systems. Kirby's Return to Dream Land is another of such games that brought back 2D platformers to the spotlight. Like New Super Mario Bros. Wii before it, the latest Kirby game (the second one on Wii) offered four person cooperative multiplayer. Unlike NSMB Wii, however, all players shared a life pool, so one player could drag down the entire team. That notwithstanding, Return to Dream Land is one of more impressive and enjoyable Kirby platforming titles around. The levels and worlds are superb, supporting plenty of secrets, trouble spots, and devious designs. The addition of Kirby's Super Abilities means the pink puffball can unleash even more of his pent-up rage onto his opponents as well as come across portals to another dimension. These sections of the game have Kirby (and friends) being pursued by a purple cloud that if it touches the player, it automatically defeats them. These tense sections break up any monotony of the game, though there is hardly any repetition within the game. And those who claim Kirby's Return to Dream Land is a cakewalk have obviously not played the Extra campaign.

Excite Truck

While not the best in the series to me (a later game on this batch of 50 Nintendo Wii games will take that crown), Excite Truck was a Wii launch arcade racing game with loads of fun. The game wasn't simply content with you winning the race. No, no. You had to score stars while doing so through pulling off various stunts like spins. Acquiring enough stars in a given race allowed you to move forward to the next, but if you wanted that all-coveted S ranking, you'd have to trick out immensely and (generally) win first place. Excite Truck featured terrain that could be transformed through passing across certain icons. If you timed it just right, the track could transform while a competitor was jetting across, sending them rocketing way off course or into the air. Excite Truck was one of the first all-motion control games on the Wii, and it worked remarkably well. Through tilting the Wii remote, you steered your monster truck (you started out with only three, but could unlock many more). You could boost to speed past your opponents, but you could overheat if you held the throttle for too long (going through water or letting the booster rest would allow you to cool down). Excite Truck is a significantly entertaining racer, and I hope, I just hope, Monster Games is working on a Wii U equivalent.

Boom Blox Bash Party

You might be thinking, "SuperPhillip. Dude. All of these games mentioned so far are first or second-party ones. Where are the third-party games?" Well, that's a question many Wii owners throughout the console's life asked. They were greeted with shovelware and C-team efforts most of the time by developers who were caught with their pants down regarding the Wii's success and their heavy investment on the HD consoles. That said, don't worry. There will honestly be plenty of third-party efforts within the 50 best Wii games. Boom Blox Bash Party (and its predecessor Boom Blox, for that matter) is yet another great Wii game. It is a physics-based puzzle game featuring over 400 puzzles where you throw a limited supply of balls at towers to earn points, carefully pull blocks from a teetering tower Jenga-style, and other various activities. Two new environments with their own physics, underwater and outer space, joined the party, and originally there was the ability to download and share created levels (EA has since taken down the servers for the game). Still, what you'll find with Boom Blox's sequels is a party that is quite frankly a blast, alone or with family and friends.

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Speaking of parties, ours has just begun with the Nintendo Wii. Ten more terrific titles for the Wii will be posted next Friday. If you need more of a bash, check out the past five weeks of articles where I listed my favorite Nintendo DS titles:

The 50 Best Nintendo DS Games - Part One
The 50 Best Nintendo DS Games - Part Two
The 50 Best Nintendo DS Games - Part Three
The 50 Best Nintendo DS Games - Part Four
The 50 Best Nintendo DS Games - Part Five 

Have a great weekend!

Top Ten Quirky Gems of This Generation

Gonzo gaming-- a type of gaming experience that many glance over. The following is a list of quirky gaming experiences that I deem most wonderful this generation. But two questions: 1) What do I mean by quirky? 2) What does this generation incorporate? Well, to answer question #1: quirky is defined by being off-the-wall, unconventional, or bizarre, and to answer question #2: I consider this generation to be made up by the Wii, 360, PS3, DS, and PSP. With that out of the way, let's welcome our new gonzo gaming overlords.

10) Boom Blox (Wii)


As a partnership between blockbuster movie director Steven Spielberg and publisher Electronic Arts, Boom Blox was a game where the goal was to topple towers by simulating chucking balls at them. Some games have you defending a fortress from invaders, carefully pulling pieces of block from a tower Jenga-style, and escorting an off-the-wall character across a perilous obstacle-infested platform. The variety and amount of multi-player mayhem Boom Blox offers makes the title one of the Wii's great party games. It's simple to learn but tough to master. The zany creatures from felines to sheep make for a crazy experience which is why Boom Blox and its sequel in Bash Party make my list of quirky games.

9) NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams (Wii)


When you have a genderless being dressed in a jester costume, something is off-the-wall about the game. Coming off the Sega Saturn classic of NiGHTS Into Dreams, Sonic Team came out with a less-than-stellar but still capable sequel in Journey of Dreams. From stopping a bomb from detonating to flying and floating through the air with such poignant grace, there was a lot to love about this Wii exclusive. Sure, platforming and playing as the two child sidekicks in NiGHTS's adventure was a hassle, but the rest of the game was quite entertaining as well as abundantly wacky and weird.

8) Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney (DS)


If someone came to you and suggested that they could create an interesting game surrounding the luxurious life of a lawyer, would you believe them? Perhaps so, perhaps not. I was on the latter side of the fence until I slid the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney game card into my Nintendo DS. The courtroom drama of Ace Attorney has players drumming up evidence at crime scenes, creating compelling arguments for the judge and jury, and following the daily life of one Phoenix Wright in every day situations. The day that Ace Attorney hit store shelves was the day that countless internet memes were born (for better or worse since most memes are obnoxious). Regardless, for an idiosyncratic journey in the life of a lawyer, the Phoenix Wright series is the one for you.

7) No More Heroes (Wii)


Travis Touchdown is short on cash, so he opts to enter the assassin game. Sounds fun, no? This outstanding otaku comes equipped with a beam katana that he ordered off the internet in his attempt to make more money and get some luck with the ladies. Good luck with that, Mr. Touchdown. From bumming around Santa Destroy to doing odd jobs like mowing lawns and catching scorpions, Travis has a lot to accomplish on his way to becoming the number one assassin in town. The action has players utilizing the Wii remote in some creative ways, slicing the heads off of opponents in an oftentimes delectable display of bloodshed, and charging up his limp katana by shaking the remote furiously. This out-of-the-ordinary game from the twisted mind of Suda 51 is a definite entry for my list of quirky titles.

6) Patapon (PSP)


And the beat goes on. Press the proper buttons to march your army of Patapon at offending opponents both small and large. Be sure to keep the beat and memorize the correct button presses at the correct time to fully obliterate the opposing enemy brigades. There's an entire cavalry of patapon types to enlist such as infantry and archers, with many more to unlock. Additionally, players can opt to equip their patapon posse with one of hundreds of weapons to unleash maximum damage to foes. Patapon definitely marches to a beat of a different drummer, and it certainly shows when one plays this crazy little game.

5) WarioWare: Smooth Moves (Wii)


WarioWare's Wii debut put a plethora of uses into Nintendo's unconventional controller. From holding it over your head and performing squats to putting it in front of your face like the trunk of an e5lephant to tilting the remote like a steering wheel to drive through an obstacle-filled road, the micro-games involved in Smooth Moves are the epitome of far out. The entire series is known for its wacky uses of whatever technology and system it is on, and WarioWare: Smooth Moves is no exception.

4) Katamari Forever (PS3)


Roll up anything and everything in Katamari Forever, a game that could be considered a greatest hits collection in the Katamari Damacy franchise. You play as the Prince, a celestial being tasked with rolling up various doodads with his katamari, a spherical orb that can grab anything as long as it is larger than what it tries to roll up. The King of All Cosmos has monumental things in store for his son as well as the player, so don't let him down! Roll through city streets, sushi bars, and Japanese temples in search of items of varying sizes-- attempting to create the largest katamari possible to please The King of All Cosmos. Nothing says quirky like that type of gameplay... or does it?

3) The Munchables (Wii)


These guys sure have one insane appetite! The goal of The Munchables is to slowly but surely gobble up as many enemies as possible while the clock strikes closer and closer to zero. The catch here is that you can only get a taste of foes that are smaller than you. As you chomp on tinier enemies, your Munchable character grows, allowing him or her to dine on larger enemies. This process continues until you reach the goal. If you want to broach about a game being quirky, where else can you take on a broccoli monster or creature made up of grapes? Even the music is out there and presents itself as bizarre.

2) LocoRoco (PSP)


The LocoRoco series on the PlayStation Portable has players using the shoulder buttons to slant the playing field to slide their mass of LocoRoco left and right. Press both shoulder buttons at the same time to make the LocoRoco army leap into the air to pass over gaps, chasms, and jump into enemies. Discover hidden fruit in the myriad of levels to grow the size of the LocoRoco. The soundtrack is especially endearing using childlike vocals and percussive beats. If you haven't guessed it by now, LocoRoco isn't your conventional platformer. Far from it, but that's what makes it such a blast to play.

1) LittleBigPlanet (PS3)


Join Sackboy as he traverses through many imaginative levels of thrills, chills, and danger in LittleBigPlanet. Dress up your personal Sackboy however you see fit. If you like, turn him into a Sackgirl-- no operations required! LittleBigPlanet permeates charm from every orifice from its ingenious level design to its eccentric narrator. When the pre-made levels aren't enough for you, try dabbling in the fine art of creating your own worlds with more tools than you can shake a Sackboy's arm at. Then challenge your friends or total strangers the world over to take your crafty designs on and attempt to achieve a high score. Whether you're running through the zany levels or making your own, LittleBigPlanet is quite quirky, indeed!

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The amount of bizarre, unorthodox gaming experiences this gen has been incredible. For those who think the industry only knows how to make gritty first-person shooters couldn't be any further from the truth. You just need to know where to look like with any gem. What about you? Did I leave out your favorite quirky jewels of gaming goodness? Let your opinion be heard (or at least read) in the comments section.

Boom Blox Bash Party (Wii) Review

Last year, Boom Blox came out for the Wii, and it surprised a lot of us by its quality. Great fun with friends to this day. You should still check it out despite the sequel that's out, Boom Blox Bash Party. Speaking of which, here is the review-- you should look into this one, too.

Behold the Building Blocks of Fun

When acclaimed Hollywood film director Steven Spielberg and one of the most powerful third-party developers in the video game industry today, Electronic Arts, announced that they were teaming up to create video games, assumptions were made that their projects would all be blockbuster epics just like Spielberg's work on the big screen. Instead, Wii owners were greeted with an action/puzzle hybrid featuring deformed animals, colorful visuals, and physics-based gameplay. This little-title-that-could was the original Boom Blox. A plethora of copies sold and a year later, the team is once again at it with the sequel, Boom Blox Bash Party, promising new puzzles, gadgets, and fun. Is this a party that will rock your block, or is this bash best to no-show?

The new virus blocks infect all around them.

While the title of the game suggests blowing up blocks, there's really more to the Boom Blox series than that. The most basic types of puzzles simply require you knock all of the blocks or gems to the ground in as few throws as possible. The game relies heavily on strategy as well as trial-and-error to figure out the best way to go about toppling over a behemoth structure of blocks. Some puzzles score you by how many throws it took you, some by how many points you've accumulated, and some by how many gems have been collected. At the end of a puzzle, you're awarded a bronze, silver, or gold medal depending on how well you played. More difficult puzzles of a level theme can only be unlocked by winning silver or better on a round of puzzles.

There's different types of blocks as well as gadgets the game throws at you. For my sanity I'll be using the traditional "blocks" spelling. A baseball can be chucked swiftly, but it doesn't have as much oomph to it compared to a bowling ball. New tools such as the slingshot have you grabbing onto any block inside the puzzle area and ricocheting it to cause as much carnage as possible. Aside from returning types of blocks like the explosive bomb blocks, disappearing vanish blocks, and chain-reaction chemical blocks, a new block type in the form of the virus block vary the puzzle design splendidly. When hit, the virus block infects blocks touching it, effectively destroying them.

This new mode requires you to match three
circles of the same color side by side.

A theme park area serves as Bash Party's level hub. Just select a ride, and a bounty of challenges will unveil themselves. There's three different types of levels in each ride. Each type of level has a different goal to them, and the variety of puzzle types is astounding. Apart from the aforementioned knock-the-tower-down-in-as-few-throws-as-possible puzzles, there's challenges where you need to pull blocks from a tower or structure without knocking down all of the penalty blocks which will deduct points from your score. There's also missions where you need to bomb a block structure in order to excavate all of the hidden gems in five throws or less, slide a puck around trying to hit point multipliers on something resembling a miniature golf course, and puzzles where the goal is to hit as many score blocks as possible for a high score.

Space is one of the new level themes introduced to the series.

Some of these challenges will be familiar to Boom Blox veterans, but there are two new types of levels that change things considerably: underwater and zero-gravity levels. Underwater levels have floaty physics where blocks fall at a much slower rate whereas zero-gravity levels force the player to hit blocks out of a zone in order to score points. These two types of levels really bring something new to the formula. Another something special and new are achievements-- blatantly ripped off from the Xbox 360 line, but they do give expert, proficient, or persistent players goals to shoot for.

While there is no online multiplayer, that's quite all right. This type of game just screams satisfying social interactions anyway, and Boom Blox Bash Party delivers them in spades. Totally different puzzles are available for versus play. Some of my favorite modes include a simple premise where you take turns trying to knock down all of your player color's blocks before your opponent or opponents. Another has you alternating tossing bowling balls at each others' fortresses, trying to knock down their horde of gems. Finally, there's a mode where you toss a paint ball at a set of blocks, trying to color as many as possible under your possession. At the end, you try to knock your colored blocks down. It's hilarious albeit pride-killing to unintentionally knock down your opponent's blocks while you just knock down one or two of your own. That's just a small sample of the bounty of modes available in versus. Co-op has two players trying to solve puzzles together. Again, these are exclusive to co-op mode just like the versus and solo puzzles are exclusive to their respective modes.

The new underwater areas provide slower, more floaty physics.

With 400 levels total spread out among solo, versus, and co-op modes, there's enough content here to last months. However, if that number isn't enough you can always design your own levels, and this time share them with the world. The level creation process is much more streamlined and accessible giving you all the tools, blocks, and gadgets you'll need to create your own levels. If you lack the creative touch, you can download new levels at any time. You can even search the highest rated, most played, and newest levels from the easy-as-pie search system. As of right now,the quality of created levels is pretty much on the uninteresting side, but already there appears to be some incredibly intriguing ideas being displayed by the community. Regardless, EA is also applying new official levels to this service on a constant basis if 400 levels already available aren't doing it for you.

Dare I say that this game is a blast to play?

Boom Blox Bash Party is a more difficult game compared to the 2008 original. Some puzzles you'll barely achieve a bronze in while others will simply seem impossible. There's a level batch in particular where you have to pull blocks out of teetering tower, Jenga-style. The only problem is that the Wii remote doesn't give you the amount of precision needed to pull them out in certain puzzles. You'll accidentally run the block you're grabbing into another block for a very frustrating experience. Furthermore, on levels where you have to chuck balls at enemies and blocks in a rapid-fire manner are annoying since the Wii remote doesn't always register your throw when you're doing them in a quick succession. Such puzzles are a chore to trudge through, but this time around you can use boom bux, collected by earning a medal on a given puzzle, to purchase locked levels and challenges. So if a certain puzzle is giving your problems, you can just bypass it by purchasing the next puzzle or series of puzzles.

Boom Blox Bash Party isn't just a sequel. It's a worthwhile progression and evolution of the franchise with new modes, blocks, and tools. This is all the while retaining the fun, accessibility, and charm that the original was praised for. This is a game that anyone physically-able can get into and enjoy. Boom Blox Bash Party is a terrific party game, a wonderful solo game, and a worthy addition to any Wii owner's library.

[SuperPhillip Says: 8.75/10]