jorimslist.com - Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure ESRB content review

Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure

Content review for this game:
Pertaining to the ESRB rating and My age rating.

Content-wise: With the fact that Zack's monkey sidekick, Wiki turns into a bell and rings to turn enemies into useful objects, and back into their former selves (there's no combat or killing), the content is suitable for all ages.

Difficulty-wise: About 1/4 of the game is kid 7+ friendly, but a little more than halfway through, most puzzles (starting with a certain mirror puzzle) will stump even the most able adults, let alone kids (for good). So, for the later puzzles I recommend going to a site like gamefaqs (linked in upper part of this page) for walkthroughs if (and when) you get stuck. As for younger ages, devoid the fact that its story is told only in text, you can guide them through the first couple of levels and let them play with the control, otherwise, there is no way they could complete anything—its difficulty is just more suited to kids 10+.

Fun for: With its charming visual style, giberish-speaking characters, deep and long gameplay (over 15 hours), and the fact that the majority of its puzzles will take the intellect of an adult (and probably a hint or two on top of that) and this is a perfect example of a game that is equally fun for kids and adults.

Gameplay sum up: Gameplay is in the style of point & click adventure games, which now seem to be a rarity. Control is done entirely with the Wiimote and is simple and straightforward. You point the Wiimote at the screen and move the cursor to a desired object; Zack will then move to that item, and depending on what it is, he will examine it, pick it up, or activate it. You can look around the area by holding the B button and moving the Wiimote around, and you can also manually move Zack by holding the A button, and then dragging your cursor to the desired location. Another mechanic involves interacting with almost every item or device you come across. For instance, if you see a lever and select it, Zack will go over as the screen zooms into it. You then take the Wiimote, hold it like a lever, pull, and voila, the door opens. Or when you need to cut down a tree with a saw: you take the Wiimote, hold it like a saw and move it back and forth until you cut the tree—it's all brilliant and simple.

Cartoon violence: As the game's title suggests, Zack and Wiki are on a quest for the treasure of Barbaros', and thus set off in their plane to ultimately reach the place it is held, Treasure Island. They soon come upon Barbaros himself, who's been cursed and turned into a floating golden skull, and says if Zack and Wiki will restore his body and break the curse, he will reward them greatly. And so their journey begins...

The violence presented is as tame as it gets, and in fact, is quite a bit more mild and kid-friendly than even your average Saturday morning cartoon. The combat (if it can be called it that) involves Wiki (a golden monkey, and Zack's companion) turning into a bell and ringing until enemies disappear into a purple puff of smoke. However, Wiki actually doesn't destroy enemies but instead, transforms them into the items you use to complete puzzles. You can also use Wiki to turn the "items" back into their former selves, meaning you could say there is actually no combat, just puzzle solving. There are also many scenes of silly and cartoony antics involving the game's characters, but beyond this, there's nothing to worry about; very mild stuff.

Content review posted: 06/30/2008

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Available on: Wii
More information: Wikipedia
Cover scans: MobyGames - CoverGalaxy
GameFAQs.com: Wii
Press: IGN: 9.0 - GameSpot: 8.5 - Metacritic (average): 87

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