Boom Blox
Gameplay
Boom Blox has been described as Jenga meets Tetris Blast, Breakout, Duck Hunt, and Lego. Gameplay emphasises reflexes, dexterity, and problem-solving skills. It features a physics model that ensures the blocks collapse realistically, and also measures the velocity at which an object is thrown, recognising four distinct speeds. In the game, players use the Wii Remote to manipulate bowling balls, baseballs, laser guns, and water hoses in order to knock over structures made of blocks. Alternately, they use the Wii Remote to grab blocks in Jenga-style gameplay, taking care to remove a maximum number of blocks without toppling the precariously stacked tower.
There are different kinds of blocks in the game such as gem blocks, blocks with point values attached, explosive blocks that detonate on contact, vanishing blocks that disappear when struck, wood blocks, and steel blocks. Just as the type of blocks with which the player must contend changes as the player progresses, so do the tactics for completing the level. The player might have to avoid letting blocks with negative point values attached fall while destroying blocks with positive point values attached. In another level, the player might have to set off a series of explosions and domino reactions that target a structure’s weak point or ricochet shots off multiple structures in order to destroy the blocks, all with a limited number of projectiles. Different types of blocks possess different physical properties; their mass and the amount of friction they exert alter the way they will respond to contact.
Adventure and Explore modes
The Adventure and Explore modes are the single-player portion of Boom Blox, constituting over 300 levels. As the player progresses, he or she is challenged with time limits or a limited number of projectiles with which to complete the levels. Each level also challenges the player to get a gold medal, though achieving a bronze medal is all that is required to reach the next level.
Adventure mode is story-based and offers character-driven scenarios that involve defending forts or the various domino-shaped characters from enemy attacks and guiding these characters by clearing the path in front of them as they walk. Explore mode presents puzzle-based objectives that focus on different groups of skills, allowing the player to discover the basic mechanics of the game.
Party mode
In addition to single player, there are also over 100 cooperative and competitive multiplayer levels available in Party mode that can be played by up to four people on one screen, by taking turns, and on a split screen. Cooperative play involves destroying or building structures together with friends and family while competitive play involves playing against others to accumulate the highest scores by destroying blocks with positive point values attached or attacking the opponent’s castle to destroy their gem blocks within.
Create mode
Create mode is a built-in level editor that can be used to create or modify multiplayer and single-player levels. These levels are designed using different types of blocks unlocked by playing through the single-player Explore mode. The player can alter the size, height, and width of the blocks, clone them, and assign them attributes such as point value or type. Then, the user-created levels can be played or sent to people added to the player’s Friend roster via WiiConnect24.
Development
In 2005, it was announced that Steven Spielberg and Electronic Arts would be collaborating to create three new video game titles. Many were surprised when, in July, 2007, EA announced that their first collaboration of the three would be Boom Blox, a puzzle game for Wii. Spielberg explained the unexpected choice, stating that “I really wanted to create a video game that I could play with my kids.” He elaborated his younger children enjoy playing the Wii more than the PlayStation 3 or the Xbox 360, and this was a chance to “show [them] they can have fun playing games that are non-violent and much more creative and strategic”. His children gave feedback for the game because they were allowed to play a prototype.
Initially, the game was to support headtracking: the repositioning of the virtual in-game camera in relation to player’s position in the room. The feature, which was to require two Wii Remotes and an LED headset, was to be included as an easter egg. However, on April 15, 2008, EA announced that the headtracking feature had been cut from the game.
During development, the focus was on creating a video game specifically for Wii, but senior producer Amir Rahimi has indicated that Boom Blox may be ported to other consoles in the future.
Reception
Reception
Aggregate scores
Aggregator
Score
GameRankings
87% (31 reviews)
Metacritic
85 (56 reviews)
Review scores
Publication
Score
1UP.com
A+
Game Informer
8.5/10
GameSpot
7/10
GamesRadar
9/10
GameZone
9/10
IGN
8.1
Nintendo Power
8/10
Official Nintendo Magazine
90%
X-Play
5/5
Boom Blox received many positive reviews with aggregate scores of 85/100 from Metacritic and 87% from Game Rankings. N-Europe gave the game a 9/10 score, praising its “amazing replay value” and its “ingenious puzzles”. Electronic Gaming Monthly out of three scores gave it an A+, an A, and an A-, stating it as “immensely accessible, wonderfully tactile, and stands as one of the best uses of 3D space.” It was awarded Best Wii Game of the Year by Spike TV in their Video Game Awards. It was awarded Best Family Game for the Wii by IGN in its 2008 video game awards. It was also awarded Best Casual Game of 2008 at the British Academy Video Games Awards. It was also nominated for several other Wii-specific awards by IGN, including Best Puzzle Game, Best Local Multiplayer Game, Best Use of the Wii-Mote, and Most Innovative Design.
Boom Blox sold 60,000 copies during its first month of availability in the United States, according to the NPD Group. EA CEO John Riccitiello says that the game met internal expectations, though certain analysts assert that they expected the game to sell more. In July 2008 EA revealed that Boom Blox sold over 450,000 copies during their first fiscal quarter and “continues to sell well”.
References
^ a b c d e f Casamassina, Matt (2008-05-06). “Boom Blox Review: Play it with friends and you won’t want to put your Wii remote down”. IGN. http://wii.ign.com/articles/872/872031p1.html. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
^ a b “EA Mobile Strengthens Commitment to Nokia N-Gage With New Global Games Line-up”. Electronic Arts Inc.. http://news.ea.com/portal/site/ea/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20081029005449&newsLang=en. Retrieved 2008-10-30.
^ “Nintendo Japan Official Wii Page”. Nintendo. 2008-06-25. http://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/index.html. Retrieved 2008-06-25.
^ a b “IGN: Boom Blox”. IGN. http://wii.ign.com/objects/892/892269.html. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ East, Tom (2008-02-06). “Boom Blox – First Screens Of Spielberg/EA Collaboration”. Official Nintendo Magazine. http://www.officialnintendomagazine.co.uk/article.php?id=3146. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ Crecente, Brian (2007-07-10). “EA Confirms Spielberg Games”. Kotaku. http://kotaku.com/gaming/e307/ea-confirms-spielberg-games-276790.php. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ “Boom Blox Released”. Official N-Gage Blog. http://blog.n-gage.com/archive/boom-blox-released/. Retrieved 2008-12-04.
^ “Boom Blox Review”. http://gamefreaks365.com/review.php?artid=1426. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
^ a b c Yin-Poole, Wesley (2008-05-02). “Boom Blox Interview”. Videogamer.com. http://www.videogamer.com/wii/boom_blox/preview-909.html. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ a b Gibson, Ellie (2008-05-12). “Boom Blox Review”. Eurogamer. http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=139278. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
^ a b c d e Thomas, Aaron (2008-05-07). “Boom Blox for Wii Review”. GameSpot. http://www.gamespot.com/wii/puzzle/pqrs/review.html?sid=6190544. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
^ a b c d e f g Theobald, Phil (2008-05-13). “Boom Blox Review”. Gamespy. http://wii.gamespy.com/wii/electronic-arts-steven-spielberg-project-2/873800p1.html. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
^ a b c d Chick, Tom (2008-05-06). “Spielberg’s explosive puzzle game knows what boys like”. Yahoo! Games. http://videogames.yahoo.com/wii/boom-blox/review-1210112. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ “Coke Zone Boom Blox demo page”. cokezone.com. 2008-06-16. http://www.cokezone.co.uk/loyalty/loyalty.jsp?page=gotoProduct&id=prod340011. Retrieved 2008-06-16.
^ Kolan, Patrick (2007-07-11). “E3 2007: ‘Blocks’ Eyes-on”. IGN. http://wii.ign.com/articles/803/803651p1.html. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ a b c d Jongewaard, Dana (2008-05-06). “Boom Blox (Wii): Steven Spielberg can make movies, but can he make games?”. GameTap. http://www.gametap.com/articles/gamereviews/boom_blox_wii-05062008. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
^ a b c Suttner, Nick (2008-05-06). “Boom Blox: An explosively good time”. 1UP.com. http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3167698&p=44. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
^ a b Kohler, Chris (2008-05-06). “Review: Spielberg’s Boom Blox Rocks”. Wired. http://blog.wired.com/games/2008/05/review-spielber.html. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
^ a b c Manuel, Rob (2008-05-06). “Boom Blox”. X-Play. http://www.g4tv.com/xplay/reviews/1775/Boom_Blox.html. Retrieved 2008-05-16.
^ Bishop, Stuart (2007-07-13). “E3: Spielberg’s Wii game Blocks revealed”. CVG. http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=168078. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ Tom Chick (2008-12-08). [http://videogames.yahoo.com/celebrity-byte/steven-spielberg/1271249 “A Close Encounter with Steven Spielberg”]. Yahoo!. http://videogames.yahoo.com/celebrity-byte/steven-spielberg/1271249. Retrieved 2008-12-11.
^ Miller, Ross (2008-02-21). “GDC08: Boom Blox to include head tracking. Seriously”. Joystiq. http://www.joystiq.com/2008/02/21/gdc08-boom-blox-to-include-head-tracking-seriously. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ Stern, Zack (2008-04-15). “Head-tracking feature pulled from Boom Blox”. Joystiq. http://www.joystiq.com/2008/04/15/head-tracking-feature-pulled-from-boom-blox. Retrieved 2008-05-14.
^ a b “Boom Blox Reviews”. Game Rankings. http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/941974.asp. Retrieved 2008-05-06.
^ a b “Boom Blox”. Metacritic. http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/wii/boomblox. Retrieved 2008-05-12.
^ Stephen Woodward (2008-05-27). “Boom Blox Review”. GameZone. http://wii.gamezone.com/gzreviews/r34664.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
^ Lopes, Joo (2008-05-10). “Wii Review: Boom Blox”. N-Europe. http://n-europe.com/review.php?rid=372. Retrieved 2008-05-27.
^ “Best Wii Game”. SpikeTV.com. http://www.spike.com/event/vga/page/vote/category/29533. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
^ “IGN Wii: Best Family Game 2008”. IGN.com. 2008-12-18. http://bestof.ign.com/2008/wii/17.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
^ “IGN Wii: Best Puzzle Game 2008”. IGN.com. 2008-12-18. http://bestof.ign.com/2008/wii/5.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
^ “IGN Wii: Best Local Multiplayer Game 2008”. IGN.com. 2008-12-18. http://bestof.ign.com/2008/wii/18.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
^ “IGN Wii: Best Use of the Wii-Mote 2008”. IGN.com. 2008-12-18. http://bestof.ign.com/2008/wii/22.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
^ “IGN Wii: Most Innovative Design 2008”. IGN.com. 2008-12-18. http://bestof.ign.com/2008/wii/24.html. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
^ Brightman, James (2008-06-13). “Wii Third-Party Struggles Highlighted by May NPD”. GameDaily. http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/news/wii-thirdparty-struggles-highlighted-by-may-npd/?biz=1. Retrieved 2008-06-16.
^ Brightman, James (2008-06-17). “EA Satisfied with Initial Boom Blox Sales”. GameDaily. http://www.gamedaily.com/articles/news/ea-satisfied-with-initial-boom-blox-sales/?biz=1. Retrieved 2008-06-18.
^ http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/ea-reveals-40-games-in-development-for-wii-and-ds
External links
Boom Blox at Electronic Arts
v d e
Steven Spielberg filmography
1970s
The Sugarland Express (1974) Jaws (1975) Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) 1941 (1979)
1980s
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) The Color Purple (1985) Empire of the Sun (1987) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) Always (1989)
1990s
Hook (1991) Jurassic Park (1993) Schindler’s List (1993) The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) Amistad (1997) Saving Private Ryan (1998)
2000s
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) Minority Report (2002) Catch Me If You Can (2002) The Terminal (2004) War of the Worlds (2005) Munich (2005) Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
2010s
The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn (2011)
Future projects
Lincoln (2011) Interstellar (TBA) The 39 Clues (TBA) Oldboy (TBA) Chocky (TBA) Pirate Latitudes (TBA)
Production credits
I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978) Used Cars (1980) Continental Divide (1981) Poltergeist (1982) E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) Gremlins (1984) Back to the Future (1985) The Goonies (1985) Young Sherlock Holmes (1985) The Color Purple (1985) An American Tail (1986) The Money Pit (1986) *batteries not included (1987) Harry and the Hendersons (1987; uncredited) Innerspace (1987) Empire of the Sun (1987) Three O’Clock High (1987; uncredited) The Land Before Time (1988) Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988) Back to the Future Part II (1989) Always (1989) Dad (1989) Arachnophobia (1990) Back to the Future Part III (1990) Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990) Joe Versus the Volcano (1990) An American Tail: Fievel Goes West (1991) Cape Fear (1991) We’re Back! A Dinosaur’s Story (1993) Schindler’s List (1993) The Flintstones (1994) Casper (1995) Balto (1995) Twister (1996) Men in Black (1997) Amistad (1997) Deep Impact (1998) The Mask of Zorro (1998) Saving Private Ryan (1998) The Last Days (1998) The Prince of Egypt (1998; uncredited) The Haunting (1999; uncredited) Evolution (2001; uncredited) A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) Jurassic Park III (2001) Shrek (2001; uncredited) Men in Black II (2002) Catch Me If You Can (2002) The Terminal (2004) The Legend of Zorro (2005) Memoirs of a Geisha (2005) Munich (2005) Monster House (2006) Flags of Our Fathers (2006) Letters from Iwo Jima (2006) Disturbia (2007; uncredited) Transformers (2007) Eagle Eye (2008) Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) The Lovely Bones (2009) Hereafter (2010) True Grit (2010) The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn (2011)
Television
Night Gallery (1970) Amazing Stories (19851987) Tiny Toon Adventures (19901992) A Wish for Wings That Work (1991) Tiny Toon Adventures: How I Spent My Vacation (1992) Family Dog (1993) seaQuest DSV (19931995) Animaniacs (19931998) ER (1994) Pinky and the Brain / Pinky, Elmyra & the Brain (19951999) Freakazoid! (19951997) Toonsylvania (19981999) Band of Brothers (2001) Taken (2002) Into the West (2005) On the Lot (2007) United States of Tara (2009resent) The Pacific (2010)
Games
Boom Blox (2008) Boom Blox Bash Party (2009)
Short films
Tummy Trouble (1989; played with Honey, I Shrunk the Kids) Roller Coaster Rabbit (1990; played with Dick Tracy) Trail Mix-Up (1993; played with A Far Off Place) I’m Mad (1994; played with Thumbelina)
See also
Firelight (1964) Amblin’ (1968) Duel (1971) Something Evil (1972) Kick The Can (1983)
Filmography Amblin Entertainment DreamWorks USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education
Categories: 2008 video games | Electronic Arts games | Mobile phone games | N-Gage service games | Puzzle video games | Wii games
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