Endless Ocean: Blue World Review for Nintendo Wii

System: Wii	Review Rating Legend
Dev: Arika	1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid	4.0 - 4.4 = Great
Pub: Nintendo	2.0 - 2.4 = Poor	4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy
Release: Feb. 22, 2010	2.5 - 2.9 = Average	5.0 = The Best
Players: 1	3.0 - 3.4 = Fair
ESRB Rating: Everyone 10+	3.5 - 3.9 = Good

Unfortunately, there are a few design choices that were annoying and hampered the experience somewhat. For example, my intellectual pursuits were occasionally interrupted by aggressive animals that would smack me, wresting me away from my desired course, if I didn't deal with them first. Worse yet, you can only have one tool equipped at a time. That means while scanning the ocean floor, you won't be able to bring up the mini-map to keep you on track, nor will you be able to research new species while healing sick ones. The constant switching between tools was tedious - favorite tools should have been mapped to the D-pad for easy access.

Endless Ocean: Blue World screenshot

Blue World's presentation is pretty darned good. The visuals, for instance, are some of the best on Wii. This is especially so whilst underwater. From whales to sea slugs, sharks and tangs, you'll be treated to highly-detailed visuals that look great despite their 480p resolution (of course, I still wonder what the franchise would be like if moved to the HD consoles). Sounds don't fare quite as well. Undoubtedly, many will enjoy the relaxing tunes on offer (after all, 'Endless Ocean Soundtrack' is a Google search suggestion), but I found them to be too cheesy to be enjoyable. Additionally, any punch the story might have had is softened by an utter lack of voice work. That being said, the dialogue on offer is so trite, spamming through the text rather than slogging through poorly-voiced conversations might be far more desirable. Finally, the sound effects are good, but they aren't quite enough to really immerse you in the diving experience.

Endless Ocean: Blue World is another enjoyable adventure in the unexplored vastness of the Earth's oceans. As long as you can deal with the action-lite gameplay and lackluster storytelling, there is a lot to like.

By Jonathan Marx
CCC Editor / News Director

RATING OUT OF 5

RATING DESCRIPTION

4.3

Graphics
The underwater environments and varied fish species are some of the best visuals we've seen on Wii. The surface views do suffer from jaggies, and the character design is pretty unimaginative.

3.5

Control
The Wii Remote alone is very functional, but the Classic Controller is best. After tweaking the defaults to my liking, the game was easy to control but would have been improved greatly if favorite tools were mapped to the D-pad.

3.5

Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
The music is relaxing but very cheesy. There is no voice work (which could be a plus), and the sound effects aren't as evocative as they should be.

3.6

Play Value
Diving, exploring, salvaging, and learning about ocean wildlife is actually quite satisfying. Of course, the lack of action makes this a niche title rather than one with particularly wide appeal.

3.6

Overall Rating - Good
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

The ocean is teeming with life. Hundreds of real-life species are there to be discovered, from seahorses to giant whales.

Are the local fish sick or agitated? Players can view their health status and then use a tranquilizer-like tool to zap the ones in need of rehab with healing energy.

The game also includes a storyline that players can follow as they choose. The plot involves Oceana, a woman who investigates the "Dragon's Song," which her father, a prominent ocean explorer, was searching for just before his death.

While at Nine Ball Island, players can become friends with a dolphin and teach it some new tricks. When ona dive, players can even bring along the dolphin, which players can hold onto for extra fast swimming.

For the first time in the series, friends who have broadband Internet access can connect and dive with one another via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, while using the Wii Speak microphone to converse.

Players: 1, 2 via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.