Go Vacation is one of those few titles that individuals of all ages can appreciate and be challenged by; where a number of all-ages titles are made too easy for the older set, I feel that Namco Bandai’s Go Vacation will challenge all equally. The narration of the titular activity is such that players will be entered into their own world after they pick from a wide array of avatars.
The control scheme on the Wii is such that a few minutes of fiddling with them will provide all one needs to know about the games that are to follow. Different mini-game comprise the bulk of this title; Go Vacation succeeds where a great many similar titles have failed because they are able to properly differentiate the experience that individuals have when they take on the game’s new challenge. Picking up stamps, hang-gliding, playing a game or two of tennis, and golfing just represent a small fraction of the things that a family can get into with Go Vacation.
Here’s to hoping that the company can release updates to this game (or an outright sequel) a year or so after the release of this inaugural title. Believe that being able to break free from the split-screen similarity that is required in other games of its ilk will be how Go Vacation distinguishes itself. With a tremendous amount of activities that are available to players, there is no reason why this should not stick in a Wii for months after purchase. With the holiday season rapidly approaching, I cannot think of a better Wii title to pick up – if one is 8 to 80, this will likely be one of the best things they receive in their haul.
Rating: 8.4/10
Go Vacation (Nintendo Wii) / 2011 Namco Bandai / http://www.namco.com