Lostwinds: Winter of the Melodias

Its a rare occurrence when a hardware developer such as Nintendo has a third party software developer use the technology it created exactly for the purpose which it was designed and succeeds perfectly, however that is exactly what Frontier Developments have done with Lostwinds: Winter of the Melodias.

Lostwinds: Winter of the Melodias is the sequel to the highly successful WiiWare title Lostwinds and engages gamers to harness the power of Enril the wind spirit using the Wiimote and take them and the brave adventurer Toku on a journey through some of the most beautiful scenery the Nintendo Wii has seen to date. The story line fits the game perfectly with Toku braving some harsh environments and see’s him traversing Mistralis on a quest to save his mother and along the way dealing with an ancient curse and the vile Balasar. Essentially the game is a platform and puzzle game with clever twists put on how elements of wind, water and fire can be used to assist you. However its more the way in which this game has been carefully created, crafted and thought through in every aspect that makes it shine above all the other titles currently available on WiiWare and the Nintendo Wii in general.

The gameplay is so simple, yet so effective and through controlling Toku by use of the nunchuck to move in all four axis its the use of the wiimote to elevate Toku that has to be mastered to progress through the levels. Gently lifting Toku by creating a breeze underneath him is simple and the double jumps that are required take a little time to get used to but you never feel out of control and the control method is seemless and very enjoyable. Creating slipstreams of wind is also another great tool at your disposal and this can be used to light torches to ensure your hero doesn’t freeze to death as well as creating snowballs to smash through walls, with some other great uses as you progress through the levels. Later in the game you will even be able to change the seasons to complete the puzzles and again its another twist that makes the game an absolute joy. Its one of those titles that as you progress you can’t wait to see what the developers have in store for you next and a gaming experience that you want to finish and then play all over again. Even the save game option is very well executed as you pass the totem poles and press Z on the nunchunck the poles simply spin and the game save file is complete without any interruption to the gameplay at all.

Its difficult to compare anything else to this Lostwinds sequel and its fair to say that its head and shoulders above anything else available on the WiiWare channel never mind the Nintendo Wii as a whole.
The game itself will take around 4 – 6 hours to complete and this is ideal for a title that costs 1000 Wii points, in fact I would suggest the game could command a higher price and wouldn’t look out of place as a boxed title in any local game shop. Lostwinds: Winter of the Melodias is simply stunning from the beautiful artistic style to the great storyline and effortless control system and should be in every Wii owners collection regardless of their age. Its the game that the Nintendo Wii was made for and blows everything else away but leaves you wanting more and more.

Lost Gamer Verdict: 9/10

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