LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias (Hands-On) (Wii) Preview

The Wii console was meant to be all about making clever use of the newly devised motion control set-up that had been introduced by Nintendo into the home console realm, yet many developers simply turned their first products into constant controller-shaking marathons that left gamers fairly let down. UK developer Frontier, though, had a different idea, letting players control Enril the Wind Spirit in an extremely intuitive manner by using the Wii console's pointer system. This wind mechanic allowed protagonist Toku to be swept upwards in order to scale previously unreachable obstacles, as well as manipulate various objects around the world, including flames that could be used to burn down barriers, thus aiding with progress. This time round, Frontier has considerably expanded the gameplay elements, settings of the adventure and main story, with Toku and Enril heading to the picturesque Summerfalls Village, which has been struck by eternal winter, and through the Chilling Peaks in search of the magnificent Melodia City to rescue Toku's mother, Magdi, and being able to play around with seasons.

Despite the game almost nearing completion, only a small offering was served up for this particular hands-on session (I did skip straight to the main game for about thirty seconds before the guy talking me through realised, reset the console and steered me to the specific save file I should have been using), but within moments of taking control of both Toku (with the Nunchuk) and the Wind Spirit, Enril (with the Wii Remote pointer), the reason behind all the love for the original LostWinds came flooding back. Toku cannot jump, so as you meander through the luscious locales he relies on Enril to blow him upwards for a short time so he can land on various platforms and progress further into the land of Mistralis, or receive help from Enril to let the young boy float down from high up ledges by causing constant slipstreams to appear beneath his feet. Enril also plays a vital role in puzzling solving along the way, with various barriers to break down, as well as the need to despatch any enemies that could prove to be a source of danger for little Toku, by merely picking them up and slamming them on the ground using the wind power at your disposal.

For those wondering if this will be more of the same, fear not for there are changes a-plenty that all help to expand upon what was already a highly entertaining formula. Toku can now leap into the depths of nearby pools and swim under blockades, for instance, whilst Enril can now produce mini tornadoes that suck up all sorts of elements or lift Toku higher than ever when he grabs hold of special helicopter-like plants, plus there is the inclusion of a handy map to prevent gamers becoming lost in the significantly wider world. However, the major addition is the season change mechanic, where Toku can use statues of Sonte, a spirit who is friends with Enril, dotted around the world to switch from summer to winter, and vice versa. Once the world has been turned to ice, Enril can manipulate the falling snowflakes to create snowballs that either can then be lobbed at enemies, or used as part of the solution to the many puzzles found within the game.

For the want of explaining how the new season mechanic works, here is an example of one particular puzzle shown off at the recent Nintendo European Media Summit in London. Toku is faced with a closed stone door and two deep holes - one of which has a switch that opens said door located at the bottom, submerged in water, and the other being completely empty. Whilst Toku can now swim, reaching the switch and holding it down is certainly not a workable option. The trick in this case was to first of all use Enril to suck up all the water into a cloud, blow the cloud across slightly and then make it rain into the empty hole. Following this, the season had to be changed to winter, a whole host of snow formed using one of the new moves included, and then dropped onto the switch to keep the door open. This snowball technique also comes in handy when facing off against flame-filled enemies, dousing their flames with ease as they freeze momentarily then smashing them into the floor.

It should also be noted that if Toku is left for too long in the Winter mode, he does indeed begin to freeze to death, with chunks of his energy bar gradually being eaten away. Therefore, it is wise to either do what you need to do as quickly as possible and switch back to Summer, or just look for the nearest source of warmth (there are normally flames somewhere nearby, and at one stage Toku does in fact obtain a piece of clothing that protects him from the chill). There are also some odd creatures that rear their head from time-to-time in the snowy areas of the background scenery, but currently they are to remain an enigma since neither the gentleman guiding me through the game, nor David Braben himself, were letting slip what they were or what role they play. Clearly it must be something intriguing, though, hence the secrecy. Winter of the Melodias promises to throw up a plentiful supply of new surprises and David Braben told Cubed3 he simply does not want to spoil them all before release. After all, a large part of the fun factor is discovering them yourself!

As with the original outing, considering the 40-45MB file size restriction enforced by Nintendo for download titles on its WiiWare service, Frontier has done an absolutely fantastic job squeezing everything in. The first game was around the 37MB mark, and although it was quite a well-contained world, the amount of coding 'jiggery pokery' involved was a marvel to see indeed. Winter of the Melodias, on the other hand, is set to be a grand adventure with many more locations on offer than the first time round, leaving the original looking like nothing more than a demo release. However, Frontier has tweaked the game engine to perfection and managed to add all the extras it could possibly fit into the confines of WiiWare. Whilst some developers may turn their nose up at the restrictions Nintendo has set in place, Frontier chose to see it as a challenge, faced it head on and has proved that nothing can hold the team back!

As if the gameplay was not enough to keep you satiated, the visuals are also simply gorgeous, with stunning water rippling effects, massive attention to detail on the vegetation littering the world and a dazzlingly high standard that is definitely not found in many other releases that have hit the WiiWare service so far. The same goes for the melodious musical score, with its soft, lilting pan-pipe and string harmonies floating through the game, adding a strong sense of atmosphere to proceedings. If LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias is what Frontier can develop when faced with such tight limitations, then who knows what could be done with a full retail release! Yet given that one is not being discussed right now, readers are thoroughly advised to keep an eye out for this on WiiWare when it launches towards the end of October.