Apparently, the original Wii Play sold over nine million copies in Europe - whether that's down to it being the best value way to get another Wii Remote, or whether there are a heck of a lot of mini-game obsessed Europeans out there, who knows. Never one to miss out on a trend, however, Nintendo look set to do it all over again, some five years later, with Wii Play: Motion - a collection of mini-games that promise to make the most of the Motion+ accessory, and comes bundled with a Red Wii Remote+ controller (or boring black in America), which gives you the precision of the Motion+ accessory, without the added bulk.
Nice colour, too.
Like its predecessor before it, Wii Play: Motion is set to have twelve mini-games designed to show off the Motion+ controller in every way possible. Each minigame also looks set to pack several different game mode variations, much in the same way as Wii Sports Resort, where in the Table Tennis (for example) you have a choice between a normal Match, or the Return Challenge, where you have to knock as many cans off the table as you can. Each game can also be played in single player and multiplayer, with up to three others.
To give you an example of the sort of thing you can expect, in "Wind Runner" your Mii's on rollerskates and holding an umbrella as they travel down a windy course. Your Wii Remote controls the umbrella, which can be angled to make your Mii turn, jump and avoid various obstacles on it's way to the finish line. "Treasure Twirl", meanwhile, has you using your Wii Remote as a winch to haul treasure out the sea, while "Cone Zone" sees you tilting the Wii Remote to balance an increasing number of scoops of ice cream on a virtual ice-cream cone - which sounds a lot like the present balancing minigame in Wii Party...
Making up the ranks is "Skip Skimmer", where up to four players can take it in turns to skim stones across a lake, gaining points as they pass through rings to reach a target at the end. "Spooky Search", on the other hand, is the most intriguing sounding game, which uses the speaker on the Wii Remote to help you locate various ghosts that have scattered themselves around your living room. By pointing your Wii Remote away from the screen, and moving it round the room like a torch, you'll have to track the ghosts down (they presumably make a noise), and 'drag' them from their hiding place onto the screen to score points.
So if you're in need of a new Wii Remote+, or just fancy a new set of mini-games, Wii Play: Motion is due out on the 24th June this year. That's all the information we've had so far, but feel free to check back, as we're sure to get more news on it closer to the date. And maybe some screenshots too.
