LostWinds -- a gust-powered platformer debuting as a downloadable title at the launch of Nintendo's WiiWare service in May -- started out as a game idea without a game system. The product of weekly brainstorming sessions at UK-based Frontier, LostWinds features two characters that you control simultaneously. The first is tyke hero Toku, who can move left or right but lacks any attacks. The second is wind spirit Enril, who uses gusts of wind to propel Enril in the air or keep enemies at bay.
"It's like a single-player co-op game," says Frontier founder David Braben, famous for cocreating the 1984 space shooter Elite. "But we weren't sure how to make it work." And then Nintendo launched the Wii, giving Frontier a system for its game. LostWinds has you moving Toku with the Nunchuk's analog stick and guiding the gusts of Enril with the Wii Remote. Jerking the Remote directs a strong gust, which launches Toku in the air or moves objects in the environment. Twirling the Remote creates vortexes that can trap enemies. You'll also build up breezes to whisk along pods that grow into useful objects -- a wind-catching cape for Toku, spring-loaded launchers, etc. -- when you get them wet. The farther you get in the game's 22 levels, the more powerful your gusts will become. Eventually, you'll want to revisit earlier stages to reach previously inaccessible areas with Enril's boosted breezes.
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Click the image above to check out all of the LostWinds screens.
Although we didn't get to play it, LostWinds seems like a particularly feature-rich and complete game for a downloadable title. It offers a vibrant 3D world that actually looks much better than what you'll find in most full-priced Wii games. Braben wasn't offering any price-tag details, although he did hint that it'll be much closer to the admission price of current Virtual Console games rather than the $40 boxed titles you buy in stores. Unlike Xbox Live Arcade games and some PlayStation Network titles, no demo will be available; Braben says demos won't be part of the WiiWare interface. He also adds that, despite LostWind's hearty experience, it will be a reasonably small download and won't eat up the Wii's memory. "Elite fit in 22 kilobytes after all," he says. "It's not the size of the game that matters -- it's what you do with it."
Despite its simultaneous two-character setup, LostWinds is aimed at the Wii's wide-open market. It has enemies, of course, but fewer bad guys than your typical Mario-style platformer. "It's actually quite a relaxing game," says Braben. "You don't have any time pressure. You can explore these beautiful worlds." Braben seems quite proud to see this game finally find the right system. Although LostWind is in the hands of a 12-person team at Frontier, it's ultimately the product of input from everyone in the 160-employee company. "When it comes to internal feedback, our ideas are like taking a leg of lamb and hanging it in a river filled with piranhas," says Braben. "The water fizzes up and you pull out what's left, but whatever idea is left is pretty tough."
