The top 7 Wii games to look forward to in 2007.

The start of 2007 seems to be much like the end of 2006: Wii shortages and Twilight Princess. By spring time, the shortages will stop and people will be eager to play some games other than Twilight Princess and WarioWare: Smooth Moves.

7. Cooking Mama: Cook Off

Last year, Cooking Mama for the DS wowed lazy men across the world by making cooking a blast. Players diced, chopped, mashed, and stirred their way to culinary perfection using the DS stylus. This year we get to use the Wiimote for our simulated cooking fun. I can’t wait to see how many Wii injuries and broken TVs result from omelet flipping.

6. The Bigs

The most underrated game in Wii Sports is baseball. Match up with somebody of a similar skill level, and the competition can last for hours. However, the game still left very much to be desired with the absolute lack of fielding controls and NO extra innings when the competition gets fierce.

2K Sport’s, The Bigs might fill in that empty void left by Wii Baseball. This arcadey baseball game has the potential to pick up where Wii Baseball should have left off.. a fast and fun game with surprisingly great control over the action. If the controls are right, this could be an extremely great purchase for any baseball fan.

5. Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Newcomers Pit (Kid Icarus), Wario, and friggin’ Solid Snake join the madness this year for Super Smash Bros. Brawl. This guaranteed smash hit (err…no pun intended) gets even sweeter with the inclusion of online play and possible special moves. Add this to WarioWare, Wii Sports, and Mario Party to have yourself quite an excellent party.

4. Bob Ross: The Joy of Painting

This might be one of the most far-out, yet greatest game concepts ever: a painting simulator in the style of Bob Ross’ PBS show, which aired in the 80s and early 90s. I assume the game would have you painting “happy little trees” and “happy little clouds” with your Wiimote. If so, then consider me a “happy little gamer”. Unfortunately, the game’s original developer dropped the project and things are kind of suspended up in those happy little mountains.

If this game does not get released by someone, anyone, this would not be a happy little accident as the late Mr. Ross would say. Instead, this would be a grave, grave mistake.

3. Metroid Prime 3: Corruption

Even with amazing concepts like simulated cooking and painting, most gamers still want to just blow some crap up. Enter, Metroid Prime 3. While the graphics take us back to the Gamecube, the controls will definitely be a model to follow for all future games. Not only do you point and shoot with the Wiimote and nunchuk, but players will also perform other maneuvers with the Wiimote/Nunchuk combo. Thrusting the nunchuk forward will activate the grapple beam, while pulling back and turning a switch with the Wiimote might open a door.

Originally a launch title, the game has been pushed back to be released sometime this year. If history has anything to say, it’s that we should embrace delays, as they often result in some pretty darn good games (*cough twilight princess cough*).

2. Sadness

The old standby argument of “Nintendo systems are just for kids!” is just about to suffer a severe blow. Sure, there was Eternal Darkness and Resident Evil 4 on the Gamecube, but Nibris’ Sadness looks to really take the cake for mature games. Unlike 95% of mature games out there today, Sadness does not rely on shooting hundreds of creatures as they spill out Kill Bill amounts of blood. Instead, this psychological thriller relies on a dreadful Vicrotian-era atmoshphere and elements of schizophrenia to induce fear into the player.

Nibris is also striving for a totally immersive experience by taking away any in-game menus and displays, while using the Wiimote as the essential tool of survival. Sadness has the player using the Wiimote to climb up walls with a lasso, driving away rats with your torch, or using shards of glass to kill an enemy. Details are scarce, but this title sounds really promising if Sadness can come through with the whole experience. If not, then…sadness.

1. Super Mario Galaxy

The obvious choice for number one. After a disappointing Super Mario Sunshine, I am looking forward to this game with high hopes. The amazing New. Super Mario Bros. only increases my hopes for a possible rebirth of the Mario franchise. So why so much excitement for somebody who hasn’t LOVED a Mario game since Super Mario World?

- It’s Mario in space! The game has you going throughout the galaxy in every which way. This can be taken quite literally as while in zero gravity, Mario can explore in any direction. Yes, this means upside down at times.

- The camera is now fully automatic. No more moving the C-Stick every second to follow the jolly red plumber around. Need the camera centered right away for your exploring needs? Just tap the C button on the nunchuk.

- Super intuitive Mario! The controls are super easy to work with and feels like second nature within minutes of starting the game. Great news, since we have plenty of explorin’ to do!

- Speaking of controls…Mario really sounds like he has an impressive set-up for his new adventure. The control stick on the Nunchuk moves Mario around his little planetoids. The A button makes him jump just like the good ol’ days. Holding the B button will help our friend interact with objects, while shaking the Wiimote/Nunchuk will cause Mario to perform a spin move. This nifty spin move could stun enemies, gather items, or help Mario launch into space!

Fully describing a game like this is almost impossible to do through text. Or images. Or videos. I guess we will just have to wait until it’s release to truly realize what nirvana is.