Carnival Games

The Wii has a reputation for being the home of mini-game collections. It seems that half its catalogue is comprised of collections of little games that involve frantic waggling of the motion-sensing controls.

Carnival Games doesn’t break this trend, it’s yet another bundle of harmless and inoffensive mini-games that will probably appeal to those who want to play the Wii with their family.

There are 25 mini-games in total, each of which is based on fun fair attractions. In single player you play through the games to win prizes and items that can be used to customise your character, and also unlock further mini-games from the initial selection.  You’ll also win virtual prize tickets which can be used to play slot machines.

In multiplayer you can access all 25 games straight away, with no unlocking needed. Nicely, multiplayer does not require more than one controller so long as you don’t mind swapping it between everyone.

So far, so good. The trouble is that Carnival Games suffers from a lack of variation and depth in its mini-games. Many of them are very similar, ring toss and coin collector for example use the exact same mechanics. There are some fun shooting galleries, but many of the games are too easy thanks to predictable patterns.

Verdict: 62%

This is an enjoyable, but very shallow, collection that is fun while it lasts but doesn’t offer any long-term satisfaction. Worth picking up when it’s cheap.