The anticipated Tournament of Legends has arrived on the Nintendo Wii that offers owners of this console, a not so standard fighter... more specifically a weapon's figher. As opposed to the Street Fighter, Tournament of Legends takes a different tact with the story and takes the player back to antiquity where 10 mythological legends have been summoned by the gods to fight. But if you're looking for Street Fighter... look elsewhere!

The standout aspect of the game, apart from the gameplay was the graphics and on the Nintendo Wii, this is one good looking 3D fighter. However on a down side, the battle system is a little simplistic and there are some graphical issues but overall, I enjoyed fighting with these mythological legends. With the limited fighting system, sometimes people don't want to remember 429 manoeuvres per character and thankfully Tournament of Legends doesn't do that!

The story of Tournament of Legends is well written and the cutscenes have this great modern comic feel to them which actually works well with the mythology of the characters as they attempt to bring down Thanatos, the Greek God of Death. Each of the characters you play also has their own reasons and motivations for taking down Thanatos and I must admit that as opposed to some other fighters where you only enjoy a handful of characters, the majority in Tournament of Legends  are quite cool. The main mode of play is story which takes the player through each of the different mythological characters and contains some interesting cutscenes along the way. With other modes for a quick fight here or there, the game does support a 2-play mode for some local multiplayer fun.

At its core, Tournament of Legends is a 3D fighter and each of the fighters that you control, has their pros and cons. The controls are quite simplistic on the Wii which is due to the limited attacks that your player can perform such as basic strikes, blocks and a personalised special attack. With that said, anyone can pick up the Wii controller and start playing but more for advanced gamers or fans of this genre, Tournament of Legends is a little simplistic in terms of what your character can perform.

For a fighter, the game even supports quick time events which is quite popular on other consoles and it does enhance the gameplay and also wakes you up from the simplistic control system. Add in some mini-games that can go hand in hand with the fighting and these offer the players bonuses and other incentives. In relation to controls, this game does feature quite a few different variations from classic controller (preferred option) to the modern Wii control system that suits the mini-games better as you dodge or collect health.

Graphically as mentioned, Tournament of Legends is a good looking game on the Wii and the developers have successfully created a surreal mythical world with various areas to fight in. The characters are animated well and it's quite a slick looking game. In relation to the quick-time events which the developers have also implemented, it flows quite well with the main gameplay, without too much of an interruption.

One issue with the graphics is the camera angles that at times does hamper the gameplay, especially when it changes so rapidly or goes into a strange view. Personally it seems that the developers were trying to be “arty” as opposed to a bug but it does cause some frustration. Super Smash Bros. does the whole camera action thing a hell of a lot better. In regards to sound, the effects suit the game well with all the grunts, sounds of swords and shields plus the soundtrack which has this retro meets antiquity.

Final Thoughts?

Tournament of Legends doesn’t break the mould for fighters but it’s always refreshing to play something different as opposed to traditional fighters. Even though the developers have kept the controls quite simplistic, it does allow for some strategy, especially with the quick time events but more seasoned gamers may find the basic nature of the fighting, a little tiresome. It’s definitely a game for newcomers to the Wii that features good graphics, a gaming engine that works but is slightly hampered by the wild camera action and lack of varied combat moves.