E3 2013: The Wonderful 101 is well…wonderful

So you’ve got a brand spankin’ new Wii U thanks to recent sales, a bruise on your elbow after you muay thaied your way to the front of the queue and basically no good games to play. It’s a common complaint, but here’s the thing: Nintendo has some solid games on the way. And at E3 last week, The Wonderful 101 got my official stamp of approval.

The idea behind the game is simple. You’re a hero, people need saving, invaders have an ass that needs kicking and you’re just the sort of crowd-organised protagonist that can pull off such feats.

To do so, you’ll need to form your heroes into various shapes and weapons, actions which can be performed on the touch screen. And The Wonderful 101 is a fantastic example of how to use that controller properly. Need a giant hand with which to turn a crank or punch an enemy really, really hard? Easy! Draw a shape, double tap A and voila! Punch to face time!

Want to go long distance instead, and take the form of a gigantic pistol? Draw a quick L, double-tap A once again and you’ll be rocking with your glock out in no time. That’s the real charm of the game, as the Viewtiful visuals are complemented by some absolutely fantastic controls.

It’s the kind of game that really could only work on the Wii U, and it’s absolutely bonkers. Which makes The Wonderful 101 one of the biggest surprises of E3 so far. It’s out in August, and from my playthrough, it felt like a combination of Pikmin and Viewtiful Joe.

If you’re a new Wii U owner, then this might just be the game to have on that console.

Last Updated: June 20, 2013