Project Treasure Island Z Hands-on

April 14th, 2007, 19:06 Posted By: wraggster

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At its Gamers Day 2007 event in San Francisco, Capcom debuted the first playable version of its quirky, stylized puzzle game, tentatively titled Project Treasure Island Z. We can tell you for certain that eventually the offering will be given a new name, but for now that's the official moniker. Treasure Island Z's producer, Hironobu Takeshita calls the endeavor a "sort of puzzle-adventure game in which you use the Wii controller to solve many different puzzles," and adds, "Wii is a very innovative piece of hardware. What this game represents for us is that we've tried to think through the best and most interesting way to be as innovative with the controls as Nintendo has with the hardware."

Some snobby Wii elite wrote this title off as shovelware from the moment Capcom released the first screenshots of it -- it employs a cel-shaded technique very similar to The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker (and just as beautiful, based on some of the gameplay scenes we've witness in motion). We, on the other hand, were always intrigued by the style and hoped that there would be solid content, controls and challenge to match. There is. With this game, Capcom has created a title that harkens back to the beloved adventures of old and frankly, having gone through a four-level demo during its presentation, we concluded that it was one of the best efforts at the event.

This is Zach. Get to know him.You play as Zack, who aspires to become the greatest pirate who ever lived. The character is flying through the sky in his ship when it is shot down, leaving him to land -- float down, really -- to an island below, where he discovers hidden treasure and the prospect of helping a cursed pirate. The game is comprised of seven major theme worlds and more than 20 sub-areas to explore and you will over the course of the adventure make your way through jungle ruins, ice temples, airships, ancient castles and more. There are also, incidentally, more than 35 enemies to encounter, 80 objects that can be manipulated in some fashion and 500 items to search for and collect. Capcom is promising upward of 40 hours of gameplay, which surprised us in a big way. The locales are vibrant and remarkably pretty -- the simple cel-shaded graphics may not be the ideal solution for gamers who seek gritty, realistic affairs, but nevertheless Treasure Island effortlessly ranks as one of the most striking titles on Wii.

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