The first thing I thought after picking up the new Wii Zapper to play a game of Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles was that the Zapper just felt wrong, a wholly disappointing feeling and one I'm afraid won't get rectified before the launch of the product. The handle toward the front is just too small and the trigger too close to actually pull with your fingertip; instead you end up pulling with your first knuckle, causing the entire gun's aim to shake around as you fire.
Wii Zapper quirks aside, the game seems promising enough. Resembling a sort of game like Namco's Time Crisis only with a free-look system operating with the nunchuk's analog stick, the game doesn't look too bad and it's actually quite satisfying to shoot zombies with shotguns, a handgun, and mean old grenades. There are even explosive barrels with which to blast your flesh-loving foes into the air. To reload you just slap the whole thing back, a move which seems natural enough but again feels a little awkward due to the size and shape of the Zapper housing.
The demo on the floor was sadly not configured for co-op play, but the game looks like it will be solid enough once it is actually released later in the year. We can only hope Nintendo's ergonomics wizards decide to put a little more time into the design of the Zapper.
Wii Zapper quirks aside, the game seems promising enough. Resembling a sort of game like Namco's Time Crisis only with a free-look system operating with the nunchuk's analog stick, the game doesn't look too bad and it's actually quite satisfying to shoot zombies with shotguns, a handgun, and mean old grenades. There are even explosive barrels with which to blast your flesh-loving foes into the air. To reload you just slap the whole thing back, a move which seems natural enough but again feels a little awkward due to the size and shape of the Zapper housing.
The demo on the floor was sadly not configured for co-op play, but the game looks like it will be solid enough once it is actually released later in the year. We can only hope Nintendo's ergonomics wizards decide to put a little more time into the design of the Zapper.