Nintendo Land is a remarkable game for the Wii U, and should definitely not be categorized as a tech demo.
Before starting the game, I already liked Nintendo's idea of a theme park oriented video game, with several attractions that would essentially be the minigames. It was a good symbolic introduction to the Wii U. I also loved Monita, the quirky floating computer monitor that is your guide all around the theme park. The monotone voice, along with her 'enthusiasm' for you being there makes for some good laughs. By controlling your Mii, you are able to walk around and choose one of 12 possible minigames to play. Nintendo Land's main premise is that each game is comprised of elements from Nintendo's history, and a lot of their trademark icons are present, such as Mario, Metroid, Pikmin, and F-Zero. There are 6 single player attractions (Yoshi's Fruit Cart, Octopus Dance, Donkey Kong's Crash Course, Takamaru's Ninja Castle, Captain Falcon's Twister Race, and Balloon Trip Breeze), 3 team attractions (Legend of Zelda: Battle Quest, Pikmin Adventure, and Metroid Blast), and 3 competitive attractions (Mario Chase, Luigi's Ghost Mansion, and Animal Crossing: Sweet Day). A final game mode is the Attraction Tour, in which 2 to 4 players can compete in rounds of randomly generated attractions to accumulate points. Nintendo has even went to the extent of including a bonus coin based game, similar to Pachinko, where by earning coins within the game's attractions, you can use those coins in this 8-bit arcade style game to obtain prizes for your theme park.
The visuals of Nintendo Land are absolutely vibrant with colour, and the HD of the Wii U really helps to make the theme park come alive with so many pretty things to see, especially the prizes. The creative components are all there when it comes to the visuals, and that is to be admired from a 'tech demo.' Each game looked spectacular, and notable stunners were Battle Quest, Ninja Castle and Pikmin Adventure.
Almost every single game on this list hits home runs with the gameplay mechanics and incorporated playing styles. Octopus Dance was a drab, move memorization game that did not use the Game Pad to any of its potential. Pikmin Adventure, while gorgeous, was the most boring attraction since it was merely a screen masher with no strategy involved, and it did not help that it happened to be the longest game to beat, level wise. Other than those two attractions, every other one was so much fun to play through.
Battle Quest made you play as an archer with the Game Pad as the camera that you tilt, or a swordsman with the Wii Remote Plus (or Wii Remote with Wii MotionPlus attached). The controls were spot on with each game type, and the on rails component worked in this game's favour. The quests were adventurous, the music was classic Zelda themes remixed, and the challenge was definitely there.
Metroid Blast had you play as your Mii in Samus's armour, inside the Gunship (or on foot, with a Wii Remote). This was more of a free range arcade shooter than a puzzle platformer, but again, the sheer amount of fun you have with the precise controls makes up for it. I can't fully describe how much I enjoyed facing my friends in competitive multiplayer modes, and then playing the solo campaign levels.
Mario Chase was a strictly multiplayer based attraction where you and up to 4 other people can play, with Mario being controlled by the Game Pad, and 1-4 Toads being controlled by Wii Remotes. The game is essentially Tag in a circular arena, where Mario has to run away from the Toads that have to catch him. Stay away for 2 minutes, and Mario wins. Mario can also obtain a Star that turns him invincible for a couple of seconds, which is useful in tight situations. If a single Toad is playing, two robotic Yoshis aid in the process of finding and tackling Mario. Simple game mechanic, implemented beautifully.
Luigi's Ghost Mansion was my personal favourite attraction. The object of the game is that the person with the Game Pad plays as a ghost, and 1-4 people play as differently skinned Luigis with Wii Remotes. The objective for the ghost is to capture any Luigi a total of 3 times to win. Luigi's objective is to shine a flashlight on the ghost, thus eliminating its health, and when the health reaches 0, the Luigis win. The catch is that the person with the Game Pad sees the ghost and the players all the time. The people watching the TV cannot see where the ghost is. How they are able to identify the ghost's location is through level of vibration on the Wii Remotes. Higher the vibration, the closer the ghost is. If 1 Luigi is playing, Monita guards with constant flashlights (unless Luigi is near one) are scouring the area, and the lights on their heads also indicate the proximity of the ghost. Not only is this game incredibly fun, it is challenging and hectic on both sides. A must play for any modern gamer as a shining example for the Wii U Game Pad's potential.
Animal Crossing: Sweet Day was not a particularly favourite attraction, but the premise is well made and solid nonetheless. The Game Pad controls two guards, each one with their respective analog sticks (guard carrying the fork is controlled by the left analog, guard holding the knife by the right). The player(s) with the Wii Remote(s) controls a particular animal, such as an elephant. The object for the animal, if playing alone, is to gather a particular amount of candy (the more you carry, the slower you walk), and all of it must be put in flagged spots in order to win. The guards must move around the arena (which gets distorting frequently since both guards have to be played at the same time) and tackle the animal(s) a total of 3 times to win. If more than 1 animal is playing, the object for them is to simply gather a larger amount of candy, and not place it at any flag poles.
Yoshi's Fruit Cart is simply genius. The object of the game is to steer Yoshi towards the goal door of the level to move on to the next, by drawing a line on the Game Pad. The catch is, all of the fruit scattered around the level must be eaten within that drawn path. The other catch is, the fruit can only be seen on the TV, and not on the Game Pad. To beat the level, the terrain is coloured and has scenery on both the Pad and the TV so that the player can determine where the fruit specifically is on the map. Yoshi also has an energy bar, so if the path is too long, you might tire out and lose a life, which makes for serious hand eye coordination gameplay. Another must play.
Donkey Kong's Crash Course is, to put it as blunt as I can, hard. You take control of a vehicle with two wheels, and by tilting the Game Pad, you are able to maneuver it throughout a reincarnation of the Donkey Kong construction site from the NES days. The physics put in DKCC is balanced accordingly, so when you die, most likely, it is your fault. However, the game does have minor technical issues when traversing down lower platforms, as it will get stuck for no reason sometimes. Fortunately, by pressing X, you can start at the latest checkpoint. Fun, but brutal.
Takamaru's Ninja Castle is a clever, beautiful FPS. I say it is an FPS because you take control of a ninja that shoots shurikens from the Game Pad (which the side of is faced towards the TV). The objective is to make your way through each level by shooting, using the Game Pad's stylus, shurikens towards differently coloured ninjas, each with their own difficulty. The attraction does offer power ups to your primary weapon, such as bombs and a slow motion effect. You reload your shurikens by bringing the Game Pad upwards. Not the most compelling game on the list, but if you are a fan of this sort of style of gameplay, it is a sweet ride from beginning to end, despite not having much appeal once it is finished.
Captain Falcon's Twister Race is a driving simulation that goes back to the F-Zero games from Nintendo's older consoles. The Game Pad is held vertically, and to drive, you tilt the Game Pad left and right. By pressing on the screen, you can brake. Despite the Blue Falcon moving much slower than actual F-Zero titles normally let it move, the game is still surprisingly fun and replayable. The courses offer much challenge as you progress, and challenge is always good in driving simulations.
Balloon Trip Breeze is an interesting game. It takes gameplay from the NES title "Balloon Fight". You control your Mii, who has two balloons floating off of his/her back, which causes them to float. By swinging the stylus in a particular direction on the screen, you make a gust of wind in said direction, which causes your Mii to float towards that direction. The level scrolls automatically to the left, and you must make sure not to pop your balloons on spikes or get eaten by the big fish at the bottom of the sea, all while trying to accumulate points by popping other balloons and popping enemies' balloons. Reach the end, and move on to the next level. While I don't particularly come back to Balloon Trip Breeze that often, it is still very well controlled and the gameplay is never a dull experience, especially in the more challenging levels.
In Nintendo Land, there are in-game achievements that you can earn for your profile. As mentioned, there are prizes you receive from the Pachinko style arcade game, where coins are earned from playing the attractions. There are also trophies of Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum for each game, depending on the number of points earned. There are also a total of 80 stamps, with each game having a certain number of stamps you can earn. These are generally minor accomplishments like obtaining 100 Rupees in Battle Quest, and some are downright cruel, such as obtaining a Perfect Run on Captain Falcon's Twister Race. The challenge to get all of these rewards makes Nintendo Land a very replayable game.
The music is all comprised of songs from Nintendo's past, along with some newer tunes for the theme park. Catchy and pleasant to the ears. It also helps that the jukebox in the theme park allows you to select any song you want to listen to.
Overall, Nintendo Land is a fun, boisterous game, and a wonderful tech demo for the Wii U, even though it deserves to be called its own official retail game. The amount of content, along with the incredible visuals and sheer amount of fun, make this game worthy of buying separately, if you bought a Basic Set. To all who purchased the Deluxe, enjoy Nintendo Land!