Topic: DESCENT FOR WiiWare ANNOUNCED

[-<WillyP>-]

Well if there is another way to play I'm not aware of it. Then again, I didn't read any instructions, just did what the kids told me to do. 

[Scyphi]

Indeed it does seem like a publicity stunt. At least it'll be cheap. You don't need to burn time by making an entirely new game. Just get the controls working and port it and you will be set!

Just keep telling yourself what I've been telling myself. If people like the Descent on Wiiware, then they'll probably like a Descent 4.

[Matthew]

but there doesn't seem to be any way to connect to a secured lan.

Of couse there is. It's in the wii settings.

[Top Gun]

My kids play avatar on the wii. Multiplayer means two players on the same machine, third person view. They have to stay in the same area, of course. We were able to get connected to the internet through an unsecured wireless lan, but there doesn't seem to be any way to connect to a secured lan.

There also does seem to be some options for online play but we hav'nt exploered them as the wii only connects to wii official servers, as far as I can tell. We didn't go any farther than any point where they wanted a credit card. Which isn't very far.

As Matthew said, there's a page for connection settings in the Wii's options menu, and it includes options for handling secure networks.  I think our wireless router is WEP 64-bit encrypted, and our Wii connects to it just fine.  I'm assuming the credit-card point you found was in the Wii Shop Channel, where you can buy both classic Virtual Console titles and new WiiWare games; that would be where you'd buy Descent when it's released.  Multiple Wii titles, such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl, do support true system-to-system multiplayer, though you have to take the somewhat-awkward step of exchanging 16-digit Friend Codes before you can play.  There's even an Internet Channel that you can freely download and is essentially a stripped-down version of Opera.

My greater concern with Descent on the wii is the dumbed gameplay. Every game I've my kids have... Zelda, Metroid, Avatar the gameplay is pretty retarded. Basically, you shake the controller and the game plays for you. Except for Guitar Hero, in GH you need to make some pretty specific button presses at the right time. So there is hope, it is possible to have real gameplay. We also have Backugon(sp?) but I haven't tried it.

I can't speak for most third-party titles, which are largely lackluster, but as other people have stated, I know for a fact that Metroid Prime is far from a "waggle-and-forget" game, and I'm fairly certain that the Wii version of Twilight Princess falls into the same camp.  There was another Wii-exclusive FPS called The Conduit which supposedly had a good control scheme, and I know I heard high praise for the Wii port of Resident Evil 4.  There are plenty of quality Wii titles mixed in amongst the party-game shovelware, and they all require as much skill as a game on any other platform.

[Matthew]

Credit card info is not stored on the wii, so you can buy points without fear of your children buying more without permission, too. At least I'm pretty sure.

[-<WillyP>-]

TG, I did find the screen to enter some code for connecting to our secure network. I've connected my wife's lappy, and that works but I could not get the wii to connect.

We did get it connected to a neighbor's unsecured network, and the kids were able to watch videos on You-Tube, and access some (apparently Nintendo approved) websites.

On the subject of gameplay, I have to admit I didn't really play very much of any game. But to give an example in Avatar, there is a scene where you are fighting and flying. So you fly... but not really, all you can really do is shoot and doge back and forth. You have no control of speed and your path is locked on a very specific track. So then you shoot at something in front of you, and after a while you switch positions and it is behind you and you have to dodge some shots. Whether or not you shoot or doge matters little, would not want to make the kids unhappy by having them actualy get shot down. No, the flying and fighting continues and at some arbitrary point your enamy goes down in flames and the kids are happy because they think they shot it down. The whole game is pretty much like this. There is only a narrow path the characters take and if you don't do something right the game will tell you how. It's not how I like to play a game, remember Space Quest and other games from that era? If you failed you were told you were a loser in no uncertian (but usually humerous) terms. Descent 3 headed in this direction with unlimited lives. I've made two single player levels, ReFactor and IceFactor, where you only get three lives. Even in Co-op! Three lives total!

[TechPro]

The parents or guardian can have the Wii set so that it requires them to input a "PIN" number before allowing purchase transactions.  Having said that, it is then incumbent of the parent or guardian to manage how well they (the parent or guardian) protect the PIN and supervise the times it's asked for.

As for wireless connectivity, the Wii is capable of WEP, WPA, and WPA2 ... Though I've had to allow it to use AES and TKIP encryption types (at the wireless router).  If you're using a wired connection, the encryption/protection is only as good as your in home networking.

[Matthew]

WillyP, I'm not sure if you wrote down the WEP code (I'm assuming that's what you're using, it's fairly typical for home installations), if you did, just type it in on the screen and you should be good to go. It will look like essentially a long arbitrary mix of numbers and letters. If you didn't right it down, assuming your router is on default settings, in any web browser connected to your network, type in 192.168.1.1 in the address bar. This should prompt you for a password, most likely Admin Admin, which will take you to your router. Look around (but don't change anything) for your WEP code. It will almost certainly be under some security-related tab.

Keep in mind this is all assuming that every router is the same as mine, which is a linksys. And no my password is NOT Admin for my router, so don't don't launch into a security lecture TP.

[Top Gun]

On the subject of gameplay, I have to admit I didn't really play very much of any game. But to give an example in Avatar, there is a scene where you are fighting and flying. So you fly... but not really, all you can really do is shoot and doge back and forth. You have no control of speed and your path is locked on a very specific track. So then you shoot at something in front of you, and after a while you switch positions and it is behind you and you have to dodge some shots. Whether or not you shoot or doge matters little, would not want to make the kids unhappy by having them actualy get shot down. No, the flying and fighting continues and at some arbitrary point your enamy goes down in flames and the kids are happy because they think they shot it down. The whole game is pretty much like this. There is only a narrow path the characters take and if you don't do something right the game will tell you how. It's not how I like to play a game, remember Space Quest and other games from that era? If you failed you were told you were a loser in no uncertian (but usually humerous) terms. Descent 3 headed in this direction with unlimited lives. I've made two single player levels, ReFactor and IceFactor, where you only get three lives. Even in Co-op! Three lives total!

Well, yeah...the Avatar game is based on a (very good) cartoon series.  Other than Goldeneye 64, has there ever been a licensed game for a current movie or TV series that can truly be called excellent?

[D2Disciple]

Just to clarify, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, like it's predecessors, really doesn't rely on combat as much as it relies on adventure elements. It's true that fights sometimes devolve into waggling (or button mashing on the Gamecube version, which I have), but the game is certainly more taxing on your brain in other areas (though the game is indeed entirely too easy).

Metroid Prime 3 can be BRUTALLY difficult simply on Veteran difficulty with the controls set to Advanced mode. There's no waggling there - you have to have a steady hand and a quick trigger finger to fight. Sure, you can lock the camera to an enemy, but should you take damage while locked on an enemy (which is almost inevitable), you'll lose the lock. Most of the game revolves around the ability to enter "hypermode," which makes you invincible and gives you some wicked-awesome firepower, but at the cost of a whole energy tank (100 hit points) and at the risk of becoming corrupted and severely harming yourself (if you don't use all your power up within a certain amount of time). Boss battles are massive and take more than a couple of minutes to defeat (in Metroid Prime 2, I remember one that took me around 45 minutes to beat). Sure, you technically have "unlimited lives," but that hardly makes it easier. It's an absolutely massive game with an absolutely wonderful control scheme that makes constant use of the Wiimote's abilities without ever feeling gimmicky. Metroid Prime 3 sits on my list as one of the finest games in history, period, and possibly as the greatest groundpounder ever made.

I beg you, WillyP, to sit down one day when the kids are gone, set the difficulty to veteran, go to the options menu and set your control scheme to "advanced," and play. If you like good action games, I can pretty well guarantee that you'll be hooked.  

[TechPro]

Keep in mind this is all assuming that every router is the same as mine, which is a linksys. And no my password is NOT Admin for my router, so don't don't launch into a security lecture TP.

OK, I won't ... however I will say that WEP is not very secure (these days it's easily hacked within a short amount of time).  WPA is better,  WPA2 is even better (of course).

[Matthew]

Keep in mind this is all assuming that every router is the same as mine, which is a linksys. And no my password is NOT Admin for my router, so don't don't launch into a security lecture TP.

OK, I won't ... however I will say that WEP is not very secure (these days it's easily hacked within a short amount of time).  WPA is better,  WPA2 is even better (of course).

Assuming of course that you can get within the about 10 feet of my house you'd need to get a signal from the rotuer in the basement.

[-<WillyP>-]

WillyP, I'm not sure if you wrote down the WEP code (I'm assuming that's what you're using, it's fairly typical for home installations), if you did, just type it in on the screen and you should be good to go.

Matt, I have done this about a half dozen times, the raw numbers, the key, tried changing on the router and entering the new numbers... so far no luck.

TopGun, the game, unfortunately, is not based on the fabulous cartoon 'Avatar, The Last Airbender', but is based on the movie 'Avatar, Which Has Great 3d Graphics But Is Otherwise Pretty Lame'. 

[Matthew]

Hmmm... Did you double-check the router's access point name and make sure you have the correct security type set? Otherwise I've got no clue, sorry. Techpro?

[-<WillyP>-]

There was no place to enter the router access point name or security type.