Nintendo Wii Fanboy

The first gameplay footage of Crazy Mini Golf is in, and it isn't nearly as crazy as Data Design would have us believe. Sure, there's a few loops and tunnels here and there, but where's the emotion? The random strangers running back and forth with arms flailing wildly? Straitjacket as far as the eye can see? Yes, we're afraid Crazy Mini Golf is less crazy than your local Scientology clinic.

The level shown above is situated inside a volcano, which is somewhat badass. However, first impressions are not all that great. We were hoping for a smooth, fun mini-golf experience, but the video shows rather awkward controls, a jerky camera and unimpressive ball physics. It seems like the worst possible footage to show with the first trailer, because if a mini-golf game doesn't look like much fun at the outset then there's a serious problem. We'll wait and see -- ultimate judgement shall be reserved until we're whacking the little balls into the clutches of Lord Xenu himself.


[Via press release]

Finally, Data Design Interactive has gotten the message, and added the single feature to their Wii offerings that audiences have been clamoring for since Ninjabread Man: knockoff Mii creation. And the NuYu system looks pretty okay! It's easily one of the better things this particular company has done.

Now that they've finally added support for user-created avatars, which we're certain was the only impediment to a larger audience, have you been convinced to try out Crazy Mini Golf or to keep a closer eye on other upcoming Popcorn Arcade series games?

If the current you isn't really working out, why not try a Mii? If the Mii just doesn't cut it, you'll want another you. A new you. A ... NuYu?

As an alternative to the Mii system everyone knows and loves, Data Design Interactive has decided to come up with their own unique character creator. Officially titled NuYu Editor, it lets you build little buddies to play with -- exclusively in Data Design's range of Popcorn Arcade games. The first game to include the editor will be Crazy Mini Golf, which looks to be a pretty solid casual fun-fest.

NuYu has the usual stuff for building a boppy lil' gamer -- hair, eyes, glasses, makeup -- and the screens in our gallery appear to be pretty comprehensive with more options than the standard Mii creator. Is that a good thing? We can't pretend the NuYus in the gallery look all that great, whereas some Miis look outrageously cool. In any case, the NuYus have no impact on gameplay, and if a Popcorn Arcade game comes your way there might be a few worthy little critters just waiting to be created by your artistic genius.


[Via press release]