It’s hard to review a collection of mini-games with any merits anymore, especially when it comes to the Nintendo Wii. When a copy of the very eagerly anticipated but not so greatly selling "Let’s Tap" arrived at my doorstep, I wa...
It’s hard to review a collection of mini-games with any merits anymore, especially when it comes to the Nintendo Wii. When a copy of the very eagerly anticipated but not so greatly selling “Let’s Tap” arrived at my doorstep, I was intrigued as to how a game could hold my attention for so long. That being said, while Let’s Tap is a mini-game compilation at heart, it does things differently enough to warrant just another look from cynical Wii owners. So, how does the famed creator of Sonic’s new invention fare? It’s a bit of a mixed bag, really.
Let’s Tap is an extremely colourful game and that’s already eluded to from the box. The graphical style takes a very basic and simplistic approach with hardly any detailed models being included in the game, bar some abstract shapes and backgrounds that would come from an interesting amalgamation of Tron and Rez. While in any other case this would be regarded as “bad” visuals, the game’s style really suits it and it’s nothing overly detrimental to the gameplay. What is shown on screen is smooth, runs nicely and the combination of colours with strong whites really make the presentation of the game stand out. There is one part, in particular, where players can manipulate water in a small koi pond, and while being the only realistic part of the game graphically, it does look very nice.
One of the biggest redeeming factors about Let’s Tap is its interesting approach to the already unique motion control scheme of the Nintendo Wii. Instead of waving your Wii Remote around in order to elicit responses from your on-screen avatars, Let’s Tap requires you to put your remotes face down on a solid surface, and, well, tap. All of the five mini-games, as well as menus, are controlled by tapping on the surface that the Wii Remote is sitting on. The game even knows when the player is tapping too hard, with a nice reminder appearing in the top corner of the screen to remind players not to tap too hard. While it does work for the gameplay, I encountered some problems with navigating the menus though the Wii Remote can be picked up and used normally, which was a relief.
So, all in all, Let’s Tap contains five games with varying objectives. The first, Tap Runner, consists of four differently coloured stick men running across an orange luminescent path in an effort to get to the finish line first (just like any other racer). In this mode, players tap their play area in order to get their man to run, with faster taps naturally replicating faster running in the game. When the player comes across hurdles, however, they must tap much harder in order to make their stick man jump, otherwise they’ll trip over and lose their position in the race. Obviously, the aim is to tap as fast as possible without the game registering a jump, and that makes it challenging enough. Upon completion of the races, players can unlock more races with different structured courses. There’s quite a few races to finish, so there’s quite a bit of longevity in this mode alone.
The second mode is probably something everyone knows about or has at least experienced in the past, Rhythm Tap. Similar to Guitar Hero, players can tap to a bunch of tunes that they’ve probably never heard of in varying ways (fast tapping, slow tapping, incrementally increasing tapping). Rhythm Tap is probably the most, well, boring of the games simply because it’s been done to death before.
The third game that Let’s Tap offers is called “Silent Blocks” and is probably one of the most fun elements of Let’s Tap. Silent Blocks is essentially a Let’s Tap version of Jenga. There is a stack of blocks with a “goal” on top. The aim of the game is to slowly remove blocks from the stack without making the goal fall over. Each level gets progressively harder and the game incorporates some very impressive physics too. Players tap to select which block they want to move, and tap again to select the direction in which the block will be pulled. Naturally, pulling a block too fast will make the stack fall over, while pulling lightly (or tapping lightly) will ensure a safe removal of the block. In addition to this “classic” mode, Silent Blocks also features an “alchemist” mode which allows players to connect a bunch of similar coloured blocks to create bigger blocks, with the goal being to create a rainbow stack of blocks. Finally, there is a mode where players can set a pre-determined goal and race towards it. While these modes are a nice alternative, the classic mode was more appealing to our group of friends.
The fourth game, Bubble Voyager is a side scroller platform-esque game, in which players play as the heroic Bubble Voyager, travelling as far as he can in the ENDLESS VOYAGE! While it’s not anywhere near as exciting as it sounds, the game is quite fun. Players tap their area to move the bubble voyager up while they cease tapping to move him down. Navigating through a set of obstacles, the goal of Bubble Voyager is to get to the end of each level, collecting power ups along the way and destroying enemies with projectiles, which are fired with a firmer tap. There is a lot of fun to be had here with a competitive mode for multiple players as well as a lot of power ups to vary up the experience.
Finally, we have visualiser, more of a “playground” for the Let’s Tap interface. In the visualiser mode, players can choose from five different effects and tap to create visual effects. There’s a choice of fireworks, ink, paint and a river. Correctly tapping in time will create specific patterns in your environment, a specific formation of fireworks or a painting of a tropical beach, for example. Otherwise, though, the visualiser mode is pretty mindless and is something you’d sit your kids down with and let them enjoy themselves. It’s definitely not for anyone of a developed mind.
All in all, the games all make perfect use of the tap mechanic. PROPE did a brilliant job in adapting the Wii’s motion sensing technology into a unique and ambitious control method. While it does have the occasional hiccups, most players who pick up Let’s Tap will find little fault with it and will most probably enjoy everything the game has to offer. But, if you’re reading this review wondering “is there any teething problems?” or something along those lines, you need not worry, for the game features a very comprehensive tutorial upon the first boot of the game, explaining the game mechanics pretty extensively.
I previously mentioned that the game’s artistic direction reminds me a lot of Rez, a SEGA published game that utilised a lot of electronica music. Well, just as Rez used electronica music, Let’s Tap uses a lot of ambient electronica music too, and it fits in with the “action” quite well. Naturally, there are some faster paced beats playing during the races and some more action orientated sequences, but the crux of it is ambient electronica. It’s a very nice collection of tunes and it compliments the game quite nicely.
Probably the biggest question hanging over Let’s Tap’s head is whether or not the overall package is worth the cost of entry. While on one hand, Let’s Tap does provide some fun, on the other, a lot of people probably wouldn’t spend more than thirty minutes with it. What’s great about this is that SEGA has essentially acnowledged this with a lower price point, however some players may still feel the price is a little steep for the almost bare bones package that is here. There are additional races in one mode, more songs in another and several different gameplay scenarios including multiplayer modes for each mode – so it’s not like there’s a lack of content. It’s just that with some other minigame compilations on the market with more games, a lot of buyers may see “Let’s Tap” as being less value for money. I assure you, however, it’s not.
All in all, Let’s Tap is a very enjoyable experience which is further augmented with the introduction of a control scheme that probably wasn’t meant to be used in the way Nintendo intended. That being said, it works surprisingly well for the most part. At a budget price point with some interesting and quirky activities, Let’s Tap is probably one of those games you should look into picking up – or at least wait until it’s reduced even further (but seriously, it’s so cheap anyway). An interesting project that makes me look forward to PROPE’s future titles.
Lets Tap is an interesting party game that uses the Wii Remote in ways never seen before, while still maintaining a fairly comprehensive way to control the game. While there are only five games to choose from, players shouldnt find much problem in having fun with them and their various different ways of playing. While its hard to recommend to every gamer, at this budget price point I think its a package thats hard to pass up.
The visuals presented in Lets Tap are a very interesting combination of abstract shapes and bold colours that really enhanced the visual quality of the game. The menus and user interface take a very clean and minimalistic approach and make finding whatever you need really easy.
There is a lot of different ways to play Lets Tap, and each of them is just as interesting as the last. While the games are really enjoyable, its hard to say whether all Wii owners will see much incentive to play Lets Tap for more than an hour at any given time, considering that once youve played all the games, well, youve played them all.
A very eclectic mix of ambient electronica music with some more higher tempo pieces for the action orientated scenarios. Lets Taps soundtrack is very impressive and suits its visual style well enough to complement the entire package.
While Lets Tap features only five mini-games, there are extra modes of play for each one that extends the experience. The single player tapping experience will probably find little replayability in Lets Tap. However, for those looking for a decent multiplayer experience, Lets Tap is best played in short bursts, and is probably not going to get a second look upon completion by single players.
Despite the fact that I did find a few faults with Lets Tap, I found it extremely enjoyable. The games unique control scheme really pulled in a few of my friends to give it a try, while the multitude of game modes, particularly the addictive nature of the Jenga-style game, Silent Blocks, really kept the game going for quite some time. Make no mistake, this is party gaming, but its an exciting and different form of party gaming.
Update: Round 1 drawn.