Little King’s Story

(XSEED for Wii)
By Mike Delano

Just when you thought they’d run out of creative uses for the Wii Remote, Little King’s Story squeezes out another possibility. It’s a scepter, and, as the titular King, you wield it to make your subjects do your bidding. Thankfully, you don’t have to battle with the imprecision of Nintendo’s hardware to get things done since there are no motion controls to speak of, just button presses. But you’ll be on a powertrip just the same, since the game’s dark sense of humor encourages you to conquer the world without hesitation. It plays like a more hands-on version of a real-time strategy title, since you’ll both guide the King around and order units to crush rival kingdoms and fortify your own by building structures and recruiting subjects. Doing so will be a consistently funny experience, between the witty dialogue of the characters, hula hoop-wielding enemies, and never-tiresome grunts and groans of your royal posse. While the game is unlikely to bowl you over with its technical prowess or the depth of its gameplay, its charm is undeniable, from the humor to the well-chosen classical music to the sports ticker-like status reports on bottom of screen.
(www.xseedgames.com)