The search for budget-priced Wii RPGs

A common misconception among the gaming population is that the Wii is home to mini-game collections and family friendly shovelware. While there is a substantial amount of sub-par games, there are many quality games as well.

Another misconception is that there are no Wii RPGs. It’s true that there aren’t very many RPGs in stores, but they are there if you pay attention and look for them. Plus, there are quite a few classic RPGs available on Virtual Console for between 800 and 1000 Wii Points ($8-10).

To get a better idea of what’s available for budget conscious gamers, I decided to do a little bargain shopping and research to see what kinds of affordable RPGs are out there for Wii owners. I didn’t look at GameCube RPGs, though there are quite a few like Baten Kaitos that are cheap and easy to find at your local GameStop.

• Alien Syndrome is one of the cheaper Wii RPGs. It’s an action RPG follow up to the 1988 Sega game also called Alien Syndrome. Players step into the shoes of Aileen Harding as she finds herself on a foreign planet fighting aliens. It has a devastating score of 48 on Metacritic, but if you’re willing to take a chance it’s only $14.99 used at GameStop and $19.49 new at Amazon.
• Baroque is an affordable Wii rogue-like, dungeon crawling, action RPG. It’s interesting as dying is a good thing in the game, and ends up unlocking more information concerning the game’s story. It’s also an incredibly difficult game. It received a score of 50 on Metacritic and is a good deal at GameStop, where it is $19.99 new or $17.99 used.



• Dokapon Kingdom is a Wii party RPG. The goal of the game is to be the player with the most money, so you can become the next king of Dokapon Kingdom. While it is best enjoyed with other human players, someone can play through the game alone. It’s a bit like Monopoly with RPG elements, since you engage in random battles, fight bosses and other players and liberate occupied towns. Out of the three RPGs we’ve looked at so far, Dokapon Kingdom‘s the highest rated on Metacritic, with a score of 72. It’s $19.99 new at both GameStop and Amazon, and $17.99 used at GameStop.

Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors is a good bet for Wii owners who enjoy action RPGs and using the remote as a sword. It’s a first person, on-rails Dragon Quest spin-off where the player is the only warrior capable of defeating an evil demon. It’s Metacritic score is 65, and it’s available new at Amazon for $19.75.

• Okami, the action RPG starring the wolf goddess Amaterasu on her quest to bring color and life to a world under the influence of the evil Orochi using the celestial paintbrush, is available for a reasonable price. The brush mechanics may be a bit finicky in the Wii version and the ending may be chopped off, but Okami is still a classic. It’s also the budget-priced Wii RPG with the highest score, earning a 90 on Metacritic. It’s still slightly pricey at GameStop, but Amazon’s selling it new for $18.99.
• Opoona‘s the last Wii budget priced RPG I managed to find. This unique RPG that is controlled soley with the nunchuk has a young, shipwrecked alien boy and his siblings fighting on the planet of Landroll to defeat rogues, complete jobs and reunite with their parents. It received a score of 65 on Metacritic, and is the most affordable game on this list, costing $14.99 new or $12.99 used at GameStop.

Site [Metacritic] Site [Amazon] Site [GameStop]