I'm not sure. All I knew about LostWinds when I purchased it is that everyone except GameSpot (of course. It's a Nintendo exclusive) gave it great reviews. And I knew it was short. That's it. I didn't know it was platformer (I was actually expecting like...a light RPG or something XD) and I didn't know it was episodic. Going into it and knowing it would be a short-lived experience was fine because it was fun. But for it to end just so abruptly without any resolution just "To be continued..." appearing on the screen... it was really annoying. This game is like the first level of a much larger game. A game that I would like to play. Okay, review time. :D STORY: Standard adventure platformer fare. There's an evil-doer. Now go collect stuff. AUDIO: There's three songs in this game. That's it. The title screen, which doubles as the credits theme. The battle theme. And the main theme that plays everywhere regardless of where you are or what you are doing. The main theme is nice. It's relaxing and zen like and lends itself well to this short pick-up-and-play title. But when you travel through different villages, and fields, and through caves and it's the same tune... I dunno. I would've liked at least a separate cave theme. There might've been a theme for the final boss, but I didn't notice. VISUALS: I like the art direction in the game. It's just pretty and cute and light. The style looks a bit like the Tak games, but that's okay. GAMEPLAY: You control Taku (I think that's his name) with the control stick. You just move him left and right. Everything else is done through the Wiimote. You really play as the wind in this game, not Taku. Use the wind to make him jump and fall smoothly. Use it to light torches, defeat enemies, carry water, toss rocks, etc. And it's the basis of the few attacks you learn. I like this concept and it's fun using the wind just on everything just to see it move. The reactions of people you annoy are amusing, especially the old guys. All that said though, I think it would've worked better on the DS. The stylus is just more accurate and precise than the Wiimote, but I got over it quickly. The enemies you defeat are very primitive and Goomba-like. Just blue blobs. The just latch on to you and you take damage. To defeat them just shoot a gust of wind at them. That's it. The blobs disguise themselves as birds and crabs sometimes and you have to use some other attacks that you've learned to defeat them. Non of them are much of a threat. You just wander around the world and use the wind to get you places. You're looking for treasure chests that contain the memory of some guy name Deo. First two take a bit of time to find, but then the last two are just too easy and require little effort. Then you beat a boss and the game ends. Should take you under three hours to beat, maybe a bit longer if you want to find all the hidden idols - WHICH DO NOTHING. WTF? Why did I go out of my way to collect them? No extra move. No extra level. Not even a congratulations. The end doesn't change either - I decided to do the boss again after finding the idols to see if something was different. Nope. So, in a nutshell the game is ridiculously easy, but cute and fun. It's like Kirby's Dream Land but easier. It'll probably replace Kirby as the game that you go "If you can't beat this... @__@" It's too short and while I appreciate the art style and the ability to control the wind I don't think it was worth $10 - especially when you can get some amazing and classic N64 titles for the same price. Should've cost as much as a NES game. I did like it though. And I want to play the sequels when they're released. I just wish they're longer - unless it's a limitation of WiiWare in general. :x