Feb 26, 2009

Indy's Back!



No, I'm not referring to Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. By now you should be in the final stages of repressing Jones' recent calamity. His next adventure will take place in the palm of your hand! Er, hands. Indiana Jones and the Staff of Kings is coming to the Wii.

Set in 1939, a year after Last Crusade, Indy finds himself in search for an old colleague who went missing on a quest to uncover the staff of Moses. You know, the one that parted the Red Sea? The biblical route always seems to work for Indiana Jones. The Ark of the Covenant in Raiders, and the Holy Grail in Last Crusade. Of the novels, the most successful and fan favorite was The Genesis Deluge which dealt with Noah's Ark. Sorry Sankara Stones and (stupid) Crystal Skull.

As you may expect, legions of enemies will be ready stand in the titular archeologist's way: from spiders and snakes to Lao Che's thugs to those ever so lovable rascals, the Nazis. A new villain, Magnus Völler, will be Jones' nemesis for this excursion. As for his main squeeze? No news as of yet, but I'm sure they'll throw at least one strong and sassy female Indy's way.

The Wii's motion controls play a big part in the game. You'll hold down B and swing the remote to crack Indy's whip. The whip can disarm enemies, grab enemies, swing across pits, interact with items that are out of reach, or may be needed to disarm traps. Hand-to-hand combat will also use motion control. You'll hold the remote and nunchuck in each fist (just like boxing in WiiSports) and the controller will mimic your blows. So if a few light jabs don't do the trick, give 'em Indy's mean left hook. The game boasts a very interactive environment. Indy isn't necessarily the strongest fighter in a scrap, be he keeps his wits about him. At a nearby pool table, for instance, Jones can pick up a cue and break it over an adversary's head. Or, grab the balls from the table and lob them at the bad guys from across the room. Grab an enemy and rush him head first into a gong...or concrete wall...or throw him off a ledge.

Aside from the main story mode, the game also features a co-op mode with it's own original story! The second player wasn't announced, but it is someone we'll know from the series. Henry Jones, Sr. or Sallah, perhaps? The co-op focuses on cooperative puzzle solving and the like. If that wasn't enough, there is also a four-player mode where you can have aerial dogfights! All of this sounds very promising. It delivers a new story while retaining everything we've come to love from the original adventures. And no contributions from Lucas! That's always a good sign. However, I would accept a written apology from him for making Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Somehow I doubt anyone'll see one of those.

In closing, I'm super excited for this game! Couldn't you tell? I love Indiana Jones, and adventure, and video games, and though its sad I'll probably never have another Indy film (that is watchable) at least he can still make use of his fedora in other mediums. Look for it this Spring.

3 comments:

  1. Dear Dask,

    I think I might want to watch Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull again. Is there something wrong with me?

    Anxiously awaiting your prognosis,
    Ben

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  2. This game looks bad ass! Post-release, I think a trip to New Mexico is in order!

    Garrett, your oicture really freaks me out man. - I know a couple photographers if you need me to put you in touch.

    Cheers, Jeremy

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