Do you toss and turn at night; mind tormented by the sparsely-toothed Carnies of your childhood fair memories?  Does the phrase ‘winnawinnawinna’ leave you in a cold sweat?  If so, does Wii ever have a game fer you!  (yep – he intended that pun – ED ) Carnival Games, from Take-Two Interactive’s value line Global Star Software, sports that good ole’ timey fair atmosphere complete with cutesy Carnies, cheap, useless prizes, and a respectable showing of those games that left you sobbing into your mom’s sundress when you blew your last ticket to win a stuffed purple bear…and lost.

But Seriously Folks…

Assuming you don’t have an irrational fear of carnivals in general, Cat Daddy Games revamp (if you can call it that) on those ever-so-popular remote-swinging minigames, that permeate the Wii’s current software line-up, won‘t amaze anyone with gameplay mechanics previously unseen. That being said, remote-swinging can occasionally be ‘good times’, particularly when playing with a group of sloshed friends all vying to hold the illustrious title of minigame champ. Also, to be fair (ooh – there he goes again!  - ED), there is a new “dart-throwing” motion, but it’s so awkward it barely even functions.  

I must admit however, that Carnival Games really nails the classic carnival experience; you show up, play some games that hold your interest for a few fleeting moments until those tickets run out, and then you walk away with prizes that would leave Chuck E Cheese in tears.

Step Right Up…Everybody’s…a…Ahem

One upside, sure to appease the younger Wiimote swingin’ crowd, is Carnival Games’ neatly designed customizations for creating your in-game avatar. Cat Daddy chose to do away with the standard Mii’s which were too ‘limiting’ and has replaced them with what we’ll call ‘Mii enchanced’. Imagine a Mii with arms and legs that you cannot use in any other game and you get the idea. The kids will be pleased with the customization options of which there are an average of twelve variations on faces, hair, pants, shoes, and accessories. There’s also a huge amount of unlockable items ranging from entertaining to just plain odd,my favorite being the comically oversized BLING necklace.  The big problem is that while you can quickly and easily alter your character’s appearance each time you load up the game, that customization screen is really the only time you’ll ever see any of your upgrades.  The majority of the games tend to show off the back of your well-groomed Mii-enhanced head, save for a quick full body shot at the end of each round that, by the end of the night, will have you mashing buttons to avoid. 

One big advantage Carnival Games holds over other minigame collections is the speed and ease of all the menus; the layout allows you to easily recall where your favorite games are located, making for quick game changes and the ability to defend your horse-racing honor with instant rematches.  This also might have to do with the fact it contains just over 25 games -- much less than most collections -- including completely worthless ones like the ‘Love Meter’ and ‘Ask the Swami.’  These are even more of a waste of tickets/time than in real life, if you can imagine.  A word of caution though: the menus in a single player game will drive you to tears with a quickness, as you don’t even have the benefit of the down- time between players with which to sedate your rising frustration. 

Guide the Metal Ring Over the Bar, and Other Irritating Classics

Carnival Game’s biggest flaw is the simple fact that most of the games are frustrating and near impossible in real life… So, why would anyone want to have them around all the time?  Granted, the collection has plenty of easy games, such as Alley Ball (Skeeball), but a good middle ground is hard to find - either the games are much too hard or they’re much too easy.  With a group of friends, it isn’t quite as noticeable because everyone’s laughing at the difficulty level together, but alone, I simply found myself bored and/or frustrated. But then, most party games require a party to be present…I suppose?   Culpa Mea.

Carnival Games does manage to nail that ‘authentic’ county fair experience however, minus the animal droppings –ahem. There’s that constant murmur and mumbling of a thousand people ambling about the carnival alleyways, plus the Carnies’ voices are… unique. At first these are entertaining if only for novelty’s sake.  But as the novelty fades away, the constant noise begins to grate and, as all fair experiences go, you’ll find you’re more than ready to brush the sawdust off your shoes and hit the road before long. 

Come N’ Geddit!?

Sometimes it’s nice to revisit our youth, to revisit those childhood experiences and see if they can still elicit those feelings of old.  That said – Carnival Games, in particular, recalls to mind only two reasons to revisit those nostalgic memories in this format.  Either your friend bought the game and is giving you free beer, or you are earnestly passionate about carnivals but honestly scared of those weird-looking guys behind the stands assuring you that finally, yes finally, you’ll be a winner, only to discover in the end that it was all a ruse.  If the latter is the case, I apologize for ridiculing you throughout my review, and please for your own sake, buy the game post-haste.