Graydon Webb – The Contrarian American

Happy Feet (Nintendo Wii)

Ahh, remember licensed games? The good old days, when every film had its own terrible video game, complete with buggy gameplay that could never hold up against other games of its time, as well as a bunch of levels that absolutely did not represent the events onscreen. I think a lot of us have some licensed games that are near and dear to our hearts, though we may feel reluctant to say such a thing out loud. Well, I’m here to state my piece on the matter, as I’m not ashamed to admit my first game on the Nintendo Wii – after receiving the console for Christmas in 2006 – was Happy Feet: The Video Game.

I don’t expect anyone in the world to remember this game even existing, so I’ll give you a quick rundown from what I can remember. The game consisted of three main level types, each making use of the innovative new motion controls the Wii had to offer. Dancing involved moving the Wiimote in time while following Dance Dance Revolution-esque prompts. Swimming and sliding followed similar gameplay, with the former requiring you to collect power-ups to refill your breath meter, and the latter having you avoid the obstacles in your path.

The game was fairly simple, looking back on it. However, as a nine-year-old, that shit was damn frustrating at times. I look back on this game fondly, despite these issues, though I can’t exactly put my finger on why. The graphics weren’t great, the gameplay was repetitive, and the voice acting was… well, surprisingly, full of some all-stars. Maybe that was one of its redeeming factors. I do recall the dancing being fairly entertaining, too, but that’s probably because I was a tubby kid who enjoyed Wii dancing games. What? They made me feel better about myself.

In the end, I’m not going to say this was a must-play on the Wii. It’s probably fallen into shovelware buckets over the years, and that’s totally fine. You don’t have to go find this one at a flea market. In fact, leave it on the rack. It’s totally okay to skip Happy Feet: The Game. But personally, this game will always stick with me. I still own it, actually! Might break it out for some nostalgia, as we head into the next console cycle. I’ll always remember that image of my Wii and Happy Feet sitting by the TV.

I hope a lot of kids get that feeling this year. They deserve it, after all this.