Abysmal
This might be one of the worst games ever made. Big Blue Bubble may have started out not horribly with their simulation release of Home Sweet Home, but they have clearly hurt their name by releasing the extremely shallow Hockey Allstar Shootout. This is really the type of game that hurts not only those who made it, but the Wii brand itself, further divulging the Wii into the stereotype that nothing but shovelware comes out for this console.
There are three modes to choose from, Head to Head, Sharp Shooter, and Power Shot. Head to Head is basically you against the goalie. To shoot the puck, you hold the trigger on the Wiimote and swing your arm. This might be amusing the first 2 or 3 times you try it. But after a while, one starts to wonder why there isn’t more to this game. I mean, that’s it. There are five shots before the round is over and the mode starts from the beginning.
Okay now let’s move on to Sharp Shooter. There are bulls eye targets on the corners of the net and the goal is to hit each of them. Again, this might be fun the first time you try it. But the controls here are so inconsistent that it becomes nearly impossible to figure out how to really have a chance at the target being aimed at. I must have aimed high above the net a million times only to see the puck scampering along the floor leaving me in puzzlement as to why the result ended up like that. Even if I had figured out the controls though, there is just no depth to doing this. This seems like something that should be a bonus mode in a full fledged hockey game, but it shouldn’t be a mode that one pays money to play.
Finally, there is the Power Shot mode. In here, one has to hit the puck as hard as they could in order to knock down some blocks. Again, there is no consistency to what the puck does. Also, in here you are liable to hurt yourself. My right shoulder is seriously sore from trying to figure out how to get the most speed out of the puck. With most Wii games, flicking the wrist gets the job done, like when playing tennis in Wii Sports. But flicking the wrist will get you nowhere here. You really have to go at it and hope for the best. There is a special bonus option called Light’em Up which seemingly helps the shot speeds and makes them go faster on the whole. But the results of my shots were still not very consistent with where I was trying to aim. The controls just seem like they have a long learning curve for them, and for a game that is supposed to appeal to the casuals, I don’t see how this works out. The casuals will be more confused by this game, then bored by the lack of options, rather than having a good time.
There isn’t much to say about the graphics, other than the same goalie, net, targets, and blocks will be seen the whole time. This isn’t a fully hockey game, so there really isn’t much to look at other than the area around the net. Oh yeah, there are Miis in the background. Once in a while they will do the wave for you. I suppose that amused me somewhat. Overall, the presentation is just too cheap and lazy looking.
I haven’t tried the multiplayer mode, but from what I hear, the goalie becomes controllable with 2 players. This might add a smidge of fun to this title, but then again it’s hard to imagine going more than a few rounds, even with a friend. There are NHL games for the Wii by 2K Sports available. That series has gotten mediocore reviews by other sites, but if you are looking for a hockey title this Christmas season, spend the extra money and get one with more features at retail, rather than WiiWare. Either that or use the 500 points that you would have spent on this and buy one of the classic NES hockey titles available on Virtual Console.