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Shakin' It With Samba de Amigo For Wii
Posted by Michael McWhertor at 8:30 PM on April 15, 2008
Sega is revitalising one of its most endeared and niche properties with Samba de Amigo for the Wii, handing of development to Gearbox Studios and trading in expensive, dedicated and unreliable maraca peripherals for a pair of Wii controllers. The Wii version can utilise either a nunchuk-and-Wii-mote combo or, preferably, a dual Wii Remote set up. The latter scheme feels more natural and, if Gearbox Studios gets force feedback and proper embedded speaker output working, potentially more authentic.
But how true to the original will Sega's casual-friendly music game ultimately be?
The alpha version of Samba de Amigo for Wii looked to borrow heavily from the Dreamcast classic and its semi-sequel Samba de Amigo Ver. 2000, as a good portion of the stages were lifted from the original with the "Hustle" mode from 2000 included as a gameplay option. (For those unfamiliar, it adds more "dancey" arm swinging moves to the violent, rhythmic shaking that made the game famous.)
While the game's soundtrack is still to be finalised, a grouping of classic Samba jams was already in place, including "Samba de Janiero," "Cup of Life," "Hot Hot Hot" and "Vamos a Carnaval." We heard that over three dozen tracks would make it into the final version, but Sega reps were mum about what exactly those songs may be.
The game played as one would expect Samba de Amigo to play—simply shake the controller in time and in the right position for maximum monkey satisfaction. A handy calibration mode makes things more accurate, but even factoring that in, there were more than a few shakes that felt a touch off. That may be due to the way that Gearbox is determining the location of the controller, but whatever they're doing, it's better than not having Samba at all.
Samba de Amigo's Wii port was obviously still in the very early stages of development, yet it still remained to capture the gleefully fun experience of flailing about to Ricky Martin songs with plastic controllers in-hand. That said, not having actual maraca controllers, ones that rattle realistically, hurts the experience somewhat. We sincerely hoping that Sega and Gearbox Studios release a proper maraca controller alongside the game for the million of Wii owners who will want the authentic feeling that only maraca shaped controllers can provide.
Check out a new batch of screen shots—portions of which look suspiciously crisp—in our gallery.
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
BlackIceJoe
Posted 9:03 PM 15/4/08
BlackIceJoe
Neo_Deus
Posted 8:52 PM 15/4/08
I'm cautiously optimistic. I want this to succeed, but I still have nightmares about the music boxes in Zack & Wiki...
Neo_Deus
wolfeditor
Posted 8:52 PM 15/4/08
"simply shake the controller in time and in the right position for maximum monkey satisfaction"
Sounds like the Wii pole dancing controls too
I like most kinds of music games but have never tried this one, maybe it's about time.
wolfeditor
Gentleben-Nintendo Club Star Whore
Posted 8:51 PM 15/4/08
Really looking forward to this game. I bet 3rd party companies already have a morracca plastic shell ready to be released.
Gentleben-Nintendo Club Star Whore
Hrist
Posted 8:41 PM 15/4/08
That's terrific, and without the moracca peripherals to boot. A perfect utilization of the Wii's unique capabilities.
Hrist
juliopalio
Posted 9:26 PM 15/4/08
@Neo_Deus: yeah, in that case i saw no problem in finishing the game with 70 percent on each lot of levels.
juliopalio
badasscat
Posted 9:46 PM 15/4/08
Nope. Not Samba de Amigo. The whole point of the maracas is they actually *shake*. It ain't gonna be the same with Wii controllers.
badasscat
Agies
Posted 10:01 PM 15/4/08
@badasscat: I'll take actually register properly over actually shaking any day. The only maracas that ever worked well were the official Sega ones and they ended up costing a fortune. Tape a pop bottle full of beads to your wii remote and it'll actually shake too.
Agies
Phlycheez
Posted 10:01 PM 15/4/08
Phlycheez
foxwarrior88
Posted 9:55 PM 15/4/08
The graphics look nice and crisp. Hopefully the gameplay will be great as well.
foxwarrior88
el_rezzo
Posted 10:43 PM 15/4/08
I want to play this. If the controllers make little maraca sounds I may have to fork out the cash for a Wii.
el_rezzo
Billkwando
Posted 10:36 PM 15/4/08
I have an unplayed DC version of this game sitting around cos I never got around to finding some maracas.
This sounds awesome. I hope they do release maraca attachments. It would be the 1st PRACTICAL wiimote attachment on the market (except for controller grips of course).
Billkwando
dreamshade
Posted 10:27 PM 15/4/08
WANT. That is all, thank you.
dreamshade
t0yrobo
Posted 11:10 PM 15/4/08
Sounds alrgiht. Mainly I'm loking forward to it becuase no other game has nailed the mix of early american cartoons and columbian drugs so well.
t0yrobo
PerswAsian
Posted 11:07 PM 15/4/08
@Vandor:
At first, when I thought "hats" as a peripheral, I thought Sombreros. But, you know, not a sleeve for the controller, but an actual sombrero.
Which, ultimately, would be an awesome piece of swag if Sega's reading.
PerswAsian
elementary
Posted 11:03 PM 15/4/08
@PerswAsian: I can't think of a single Wii game who's controls haven't been described as clumsy and perfect, depending on the reviewer.
I wouldn't write off Okami just yet. Sometimes a perfect Wii control setup requires a little practice, which reviewers often don't have time for.
elementary
Vandor
Posted 11:00 PM 15/4/08
Mh, couldn't they just release "hats" for the wiimote and nunchuck that make the appropriate maraca-sound? That would add the feeling without extra costs of real additional hardware.
Or complete bigger plastic housings like the wii-wheel just in the form of maracas.
Vandor
elementary
Posted 10:58 PM 15/4/08
Is this the first game that supports wielding two wiimotes? Did it really take that long?
Well.. other than the shooting range in Wii Play.
elementary
PerswAsian
Posted 10:57 PM 15/4/08
@Hrist:
Maybe it's just me, but I feel like the perfect Dreamcast game to update for the Wii isn't Samba de Amigo, but Jet Grind Radio.
Not that shitty Jet Set Radio Future. No, no... we need that time limit for a sense of urgency.
Of course, hearing Okami, another game with a paint feature that seemed like it'd be perfect for the Wii, ended up controlling clumsily does make me think it wouldn't be as perfect a fit.
Either way, this is a must-buy for rhythm game fans.
PerswAsian
eastx
Posted 10:48 PM 15/4/08
@Agies: But they were worth the money, oh yeah.
eastx
Kanik
Posted 11:26 PM 15/4/08
I was about to repurchase a Wii for this...then I remembered how just about half the games for the system have unresponsive controls.
Though I really want to play it so right now my choices are:
1) Buy $50 3rd party maracas for my dreamcast.
2) Buy eyetoy + PS2.
3) Buy eyetoy + PS3.
Stupid monkey.
Kanik
StupidDufus
Posted 11:25 PM 15/4/08
The cord linking the nunchuk and remote may not be long enough for some people. =/
StupidDufus
Hugoku
Posted 11:23 PM 15/4/08
They better keep "Take on me" in there, or else...
Hugoku
ese
Posted 11:19 PM 15/4/08
@Neo_Deus:
Yea man I understand your fustration. Trying to shake the controller to Bonelich von Skeleski's songs was crazy hard. The accuracy of the mote made it harder than it needed to be.
ese
PositivelyGreg
Posted 12:42 AM 16/4/08
God, I hope they get this right. I love me some hot maraca-shaking monkey magic, but a rhythm game where the controls aren't spot-on is basically a recipe for a thrown Wiimote.
PositivelyGreg
SDreamer
Posted 12:37 AM 16/4/08
How about 10$ maraca attachments on the Wii similar to those sports peripherals out right now, just need the rattling from them to make the experience more authentic. Then bundle it with the game for a total of $55-$59, sounds good to me. Be cool to have a JGR attachment then do movements similar to a spray can for that game. I think someone else mentioned this earlier too, lol.
SDreamer
Yonderboy
Posted 12:30 AM 16/4/08
Finally a name for my band! Look for "The $50 3rd Party Maracas" at an open mic night near you.
Yonderboy
Doomstink
Posted 1:20 AM 16/4/08
Score, they actually kept the Ricky Martin in there. Samba de Amigo was the only game that had a soundtrack my mom approved of. Sigh...
Doomstink
John Laur
Posted 1:03 AM 16/4/08
I thought only first-party titles were allowed to incorporate system Mii's...
John Laur
Kanik
Posted 12:59 AM 16/4/08
@Yonderboy: Definitely sounds better than "Jessy and The Rippers"
Kanik
El Siluro
Posted 1:29 AM 16/4/08
*dusts off dreamcast* *gets maraca controllers from basement storage* *commences shaking*
El Siluro
fuchikoma
Posted 1:26 AM 16/4/08
Who says the wiimotes can't make shaking noises?
Anyway, I mostly played this game on a Dreamcast controller, so I'm just happy to get it in some shake-based form.
fuchikoma
Jenstar
Posted 1:25 AM 16/4/08
@Vandor: I agree. I'm sure there will be many maraca add-ons to come. Hell, Sega should make their own and make an extra buck.
Jenstar
TheTwizzler
Posted 2:45 AM 16/4/08
TheTwizzler
TrekVogel
Posted 2:44 AM 16/4/08
They better not mess this one up. If they do, I'll hate Sega forever. There's only so much a guy can take from a company.
What I wonder about is how they do it. How do they make the wiimote register top, middle and bottom? Or am I really that simple that I can't figure it out?
TrekVogel
jynxycat
Posted 2:35 AM 16/4/08
They announced this game like a year ago.
How hard can it be to port a music game ? :P
jynxycat
jackal888
Posted 2:55 AM 16/4/08
jackal888
Konchu
Posted 4:24 AM 16/4/08
I'm curious how well the controls will work. I personally found the official maracas fairly accurate. I think two wiimotes will be fine though sound wise they have little speakers so they can do all the shake noises right out of the controller. I'm guessing the controls will be based more on the tilt of the controller than hight of the old controllers. Will just have to see how that works out. I can see poses working pretty ok.
Konchu
djgil
Posted 4:58 AM 16/4/08
The really cool thing about this edition of Samba is that it's a re-release of the japanese "sequal", Samba 2000. Which included new songs and the "2000" mode where the player has to pull ordered actions (like rotating a maracas in a big circle) more than just shaking to hit the usual marks. Plus it was made much tougher than the original Samba.
I personally hope for some maracas accessory to be released, official or not.
djgil
sandwiches
Posted 5:31 AM 16/4/08
@badasscat:
Agreed!
However, if Sega/Nintendo decide to go cheap and not offer maracas, then I pray a wireless nunchuck comes out in time for Samba because that fucking corded nunchuck is a nightmare to swing around.
sandwiches
sandwiches
Posted 6:23 AM 16/4/08
@Tetrad: ...if I had 2 Wii remotes. :(
sandwiches
Tetrad
Posted 5:36 AM 16/4/08
@sandwiches:
You wouldn't need a wireless nunchuk since you can just play with two wii remotes.
Tetrad
VioletArrows
Posted 7:32 AM 16/4/08
I thought there was a 3rd party wireless nunchuk out already.
VioletArrows
Kimiko
Posted 8:53 AM 16/4/08
@jynxycat:
You really don't know how complicated it is do you?
Kimiko
quen
Posted 9:20 AM 16/4/08
Looks cool, but another in the 'wait and see' category.
@John Laur: Is that apart from all the third party titles that already incorporate system Miis, then? The first third-party game was I think some bizarre shitty Japan-only pachinko game or something, but they've been in several others.
@sandwiches: Maybe it's because I have genius-level IQ but I think I'm beginning to have the inklings of a potential solution to your problem. (Subtle hint: BUY ANOTHER REMOTE.) Of course, for two-player it's a bit harsher as you would then need four remotes... but still if you play two-player you probably have enough friends that you might want to get in some four-player Wii Sports or whatever anyhow?
quen
sandwiches
Posted 10:34 AM 16/4/08
@quen: ...owning more than 1 Wii remote is for people with money and friends.
So, today I've learned:
1. I'm poor, and
2. I'm friendless
Thanks, Kotaku!
sandwiches
Freakeeg
Posted 12:25 PM 16/4/08
There's just one problem: maracas are not used in samba music.=P
Freakeeg
Onizuka-GTO
Posted 8:33 AM 20/4/08
@sandwiches: With those criteria, it's hard to not sympathize with you.
should of got a 360 or a pc, at leased you can have internet friends to play with.
:p
Onizuka-GTO
blackcube123
Posted 8:14 AM 16/4/08
btw Samba is a brazilian music style. wtf a mexican monkey is doing there? and with MARACAS? what the relation of maracas with samba, its damn rare to see a maraca in Brazil?
[en.wikipedia.org]
blackcube123
blackcube123
Posted 8:07 AM 16/4/08
I am really disapointed...
They named the game "Samba de Amigo" <- writing in portuguese (Brazil is the only country in south america that speak portuguese)... and the toon is a monkey using mexican (all latin american countries speak SPANISH) dress and maraca.
blackcube123