Boom Blox

Never before has a video game made my wife and I tell each other "YOU FUCKING SUCK I FUCKING HATE YOU" in such loving and bonding ways.

When word was let loose in 2005 that Stephen Spielberg was going to dive into the video game world, the internet was abuzz with speculation. Slated only for the Wii, there was little info available aside from a few cutesy squarish animals.

Here it is 2008 and finally we're playing "Boom Blox" on the Wii and as it turns out, it was well worth the wait. Comprised of a series of mini games, the key to "Boom Blox" is physics. The base game is much like the carnival milk can game on steroids; there are a number of block worth positive or negative points. You throw a baseball and knock them over, all while strategizing your throw to maximize your point total. And that's it in a nut shell.

To keep it interesting however, the developers have tacked on many different game elements. In grabber mode, the game turns into 'Jenga', the wooden block table top game of your. Use your rubber hand to remove blocks without disturbing the giant negative on top. Bomb blocks explode grandly when struck, aim your throws to knock chemical blocks into each other to cause even greater explosions, chuck bowling balls, the list goes on.

The multi player element is laid out well also, even though there is a sad lack of online functionality. Regardless in competitive two player mode you work against each other as you use all of the single player game elements, against each other.

The greatest thing about "Boom Blox" is the detail that has been lavished on the physics engine. This game takes all factors into account; the angle of your throw, the strength of your throw. After a day or two of familiarizing myself with the game I soon found myself experimenting. If I hit block A at this angle, can I make it fly accross the ground and hit Block B in that other stack to make it topple? Let's find out! And that's the beauty of the game; you can experiment with it however the hell you want.

It turns out, "Boom Blox" is a great game. This even more apparent for the Wii where great games seem to be few and far between. Sure, it's not "GTAIV" or "Bioshock" that caters to the hard core; it's a heck of a lot of fun that caters to the 'gamer' in all of us.