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For what Nintendo pointedly described as a prototype Battle Mii shows a remarkable amount of polish. Personally, I'd describe it as a party game evolved. It's also a pretty good yardstick for what the new Wii U controller can — and can't — do.
Hey! Remember me?
Basically, we're talking about a three-player, split-screen, third-person arena shooter. The first two combatants run through the map on foot, using normal Wiimote/nunchuck controls. Number three takes the Wii U tablet controller and flies a heavily armed and armored spaceship. It's the pedestrians' job to take that ship out.
Ah, but here's the kicker. You're playing as a Mii, but you're wearing Samus Aran's armor from Metroid. And that UFO is her gunship.
A brief training shows you how to use the controls (almost identical to Metroid Prime's), and even turns that learning process into a minigame as you shoot targets, then chase and shoot a moving target as it floats around the map, then shoot the other players' moving targets to outscore them. When that's done, it's hunting season for real.
The two ground-pounders run or morph ball around (or find secret paths to elevated positions, like I did) gunning for the ship. They can gun for each other, too, but they've got a bigger, more death-from-above-type of problem. Both Samus Miis have three health wedges on their back — instantly recognizable to any Nintendo fan. The gunship has six. Its weapons are semi-auto bursts, and it can pop up above buildings to deliver a powered-up nuclear missile before dropping out of sight again. It's actually smarter for it to hide in the buildings for cover…hovering above them invites the Samus Miis to blast it.
Before and after.
While those Miis handle like any standard Wiimote character, the gunship's Wii U controls take some getting used to. Strafing and ascend/descend are on a stick. Aiming comes down to the accelerometer. You tilt the Wii U controller to aim, and that's not easy. It almost works as a balancing system, given how overpowered the gunship seems. The learning curve isn't insurmountable, but it's far from smooth. I saw far more people losing as the gunship than winning. Matches are timed, so if everyone's left standing, whoever's left with the most health (combined for the Samus Miis) wins.
Tilt-aiming just doesn't feel intuitive…those are learned reflexes. Once I got the hang of it, the ship works well. I took out both my opponents piloting that sucker around, but they definitely pressed me. I had to weave in and out of the architecture, drop super-bombs while retreating, and steal a few power-ups to win.
Not as easy as it looks.
Battle Mii (and Chase Mii, which should feature MIPS but doesn't) might only be a tech demo, but Nintendo should really bundle them with the Wii U as a real game. It's not a killer app like Wii Sports, but it's great fun whether you're in the gunship or on the ground and the balancing feels spot-on…far in excess of what I'd expect from a proof-of-concept game. I'd play play this with friends (online co-op, of course), and I'd return to it regularly.
Take note, Nintendo. Take heed.