Puzzles and Controls
If you're looking for a great family title, then Z&W definitely fits the bill. Each stage features a way to defeat the opponent through the puzzle structure. Of course, Zack can meet his untimely demise in many ghoulish ways, but at least these characters can be called heroes in a positive light. Think back to the old days, to a time before Ted Turner took over American TV with his network of couch-potato-inducing channels. Remember when Spider-Man, Superman, Batman and all those heroes never used a weapon to defeat the enemy? That's Zack and Wiki: old school all the way, baby.
And there's nothing wrong with that, is there? Then again, toting guns and swords seems out of place when considering the nature of point-n-click mechanics. The main object is to get from Point A to Point B while avoiding trouble and certain death. In the case of Z&W, their mission is to reach the treasure chest at the other end of the puzzle. The premise behind their adventure is to piece together legendary pirate captain Barbaros. The two treasure hunters - after bailing out of their doomed airplane and floating down onto an island via umbrella - stumble across the captain's animated gold-plated skull. There the ghost pleads for them to find the rest of his skeleton, and in doing so, will restore him back to his former self once assembled. Of course, pirates don't do anything without some reward, and Barbaros promises to lead them to the infamous Treasure Island and his legendary ship as payment. On that same note, pirates can't be trusted, and by the end of the game, the restored Barbaros shows his true colors.
For a point-n-click puzzle game, Z&W clearly sets up to be a successful game with its adventurous storyline and charming visuals. But, as you probably already figured out, the meat and potatoes of Z&W is its use of the Nintendo Wii controls. For this Capcom treasure, players only use the Remote, putting the nunchuck aside and grabbing the controller with both hands (when needed). Zack and Wiki traverse each mission with the movement of the cursor via the remote, and then clicking "A" on the destination point or object. If there's something to investigate, the cursor turns red when placed over an object.
Gamers also use that nifty remote in all sorts of ways, forcing you to actually move something other than fingers. In order to pull a lever, you must hold the remote upright and bring it down as if actually activating that device. Need to turn a key? Thrust forward to insert, then rotate the remote sideways in the appropriate direction. The game requires you to pull it, balance it, lift it, turn it, hold it sideways, push a button; if it has to be done, you're required to do it. You can even make Wiki turn into a bell by shaking the remote back and forth. The bell thus transforms certain creatures, when ringing, into usable objects. For example, you can convert a frog into a bomb; a snake into a slither gripper; a bat into an umbrella and so forth. Naturally, these objects play an important role in solving each puzzle.
Here's an example of one of the puzzles: Zack and Wiki are within one of the stages encompassing Barbaro's ghostly castle. Entitled Mad Science, the object here is to get into the treasure chest locked within a jail cell. Of course, the key is sitting just around the corner from a nasty monster in the shape of an iron maiden (called D.III). If Zack gets near D.III, it will snap open, suck him in and turn the hero pirate into a holy pincushion. How do you get past the menacing beast unnoticed? You use the chemistry set and turn invisible! Duh! But in order to do that, you must turn a snake into a slither gripper in order to get it out of its hole, then drag it across the level to a machine that converts it into a potion. But in order to get to the snake, you have to transform other insects and mammals into objects, slap them in the machine, turn them into liquids and make a concoction that will make Zack small enough to fit into the snake hole. Sounds simple? It's not, but this particular puzzle was one of the easier ones in the game. While you won't find the step-by-step process here, hopefully this scenario will give you an idea of what challenges await each stage.
Lastly, it seems appropriate to mention the actual Sea Rabbits hideout. This serves as a home base, slapping everything that the game offers onto one screen. Most of it seemed useless if you're not interested in collectables, but there are a few notable items to highlight such as Granny's Store, the place to buy continues and hints if you need them. The Bookshelf stores all the information you've acquired, from treasures found to enemies encountered. As the game keeps track of time used, items collected and whatnot for each stage (and awards you points accordingly), Johnny Style is the official record keeper, sitting off to the right. The Barbaros case contains all the skeleton pieces, and Dimmy offers a few tips on what's happening in the area. To round out the secret camp, there's the world map where you can access all seven areas (Jungle Ruins, Frozen Temple, Volcano Cavern, the Airship, Barbaro's Castle, the Pirate Ship and Treasure Island) once they are accomplished. Count on using over 30 hours of gameplay and completing around 24 stages in all.
Join our discussion on this topic
