The holidays are upon us. Thanksgiving kicks off the first of many family gatherings where mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, Uncle Bob and little Stevie will all assemble in front of the television. The Nintendo Wii brought video games to the mainstream and this year, parents have a new option for distracting their kids: lightsabers.
Thanks to the latest Star Wars game for the Nintendo Wii, Star Wars The Clone Wars: Lightsaber Duels, family members can grab a Wii Remote and attack each other to their hearts' content. The Wii has a very simple set of controls, so everyone in the family can wield a lightsaber with these three tips.
1. Stay Relaxed!
When the match begins, it's easy to get frazzled and start wildly shaking the Wiimotes. Don't let this happen to you since short and frantic motions aren't usually enough to register with the Wii. Instead, watch your character on screen.
As your on-screen character follows your movements -- perhaps swinging his lightsaber to the right -- wait! Many players will swing wildly, not realizing that the motions do almost match up, and if you swing too early Anakin can't keep up! Because of this, solid swings as though you're actually holding the lightsaber allow for much greater control.
2. "Quicktime Events" can turn the tables fast!
As each battle progresses, there are "challenge" moments that appear. In the gaming community they are called 'Quicktime events', but you might know them better as controllable cinematic moments; places in the game where the perspective changes, and each player is asked to make quick motions in a certain amount of time.
These moments are integral to any battle, and even more important to those players who can't quite get the regular fighting right. When these moments start, sets of circles will appear over each character with a diagram displaying the Wii Remote and Nunchuk pointing certain directions. When this happens, follow the movements as quickly as you can.
The winner of the mini challenge can take the upper hand drastically, even if they were being soundly beaten. It would behoove any new players to practice the few movements (up, down, right, and left) so they can react quickly. Nothing feels quite as great as grandpa taking down little Stevie with a come from behind victory.
3. If all else fails: WAGGLE
Lets be honest here, and admit that the chances of beating the family gamer are rather slim. All the practicing in the world can't make up for the level of skill your resident 8-year-old has mastered over time. What are the inexperienced players in the family to do? The answer is easy, shake the Wii-Mote like an intergalactic maraca.
The Achilles heel of the skilled player is commonly referred to as those who play 'cheap'. Fighting games are rife with players who win by doing the same thing over and over again, and many of the skilled players have no defense against it.
Because of this, start waggling your Wii Remote until you start to notice certain waggles do certain things. Does an upward then downward waggle strike your enemy? Do it again! And again! Sure, you won't win any world championships, but it will certainly tide you over until the turkey-coma sets in. In the end, it's really just about spending some time kickin' your family's butt.
