It is a shame that this debut of Square Enix’s unsung hero will probably fall between the cracks of traditional board game lovers and video game players. Boom Street is an original game that deserves to do well in the West. It is well presented and provides a big challenge for single players and lots of game time for board game aficionados.
With Fortune Street, all the fundamentals are there, but the devils pop up in the details. For starters, it takes forever to play through your average game. The game itself moves along fairly quickly, without too many lengthy animations to sit through, but there is just so much to the game and it's so hard to win (or lose) that it just goes on and on and on. I've played a match online that lasted five hours (though my average match has been closer to two to three hours long). That would be okay if you could save and quit, but expecting anyone to spend half a work day playing a board game simulator is asking a lot.
There is also the fact that, in order to unlock all the game's boards, you have to play through the exceptionally long and repetitive campaign mode. This goes for a lot of the Mario-based content, too. Many of the boards and their accompanying musical themes available from the start of multiplayer mode are based on the Dragon Quest universe, and as such, lack the pep and punch necessary to keep you from falling asleep during one of those two to three hours games. I had a hard time keeping my friends playing past the third round on the first board we played on, which featured some slow baroque jams and a relatively lifeless castle in the background.
Even if you work your way through the option menus to select the speediest settings for everything, I'm not entirely sure who the audience for this game is meant to be. Kids drawn in by the licensed characters are going to be disappointed that they're getting a crash course in personal finance and supply and demand curves rather than a trip through the chocolate factory, while those looking for a properly complex board game probably don't want to have to faff about with the Wii in order to enjoy themselves.
Boom Street is an interesting little title that certainly won't appeal to everyone, but will please fans of traditional board games. It adds enough changes to the standard Monopoly formula to make it feel unique and the Easy Rules option means family members of all ages can get involved. An interesting addition to the Wii library.
While you can tweak the amount of gold you need to win, playing Fortune Street is still slow and you don’t have friends to talk to while other players are rolling the dice. A book kept me company when someone was deciding whether to sell stock or not. Because of the game’s pace Fortune Street probably won’t suit the button mashing Mario Party crowd. Fortune Street requires patience and maybe a little investment savvy to enjoy.
Yeah, I know Fortune Street is supposed to be a "party" game. It’s designed to be played with friends (the option that reads "play alone" in the beginning is rather depressing), but I ground through the tours to unlock everything. Even as a "party" game, Fortune Street moves at a glacial pace. Most of the time, you’re watching other players move the Dragonlord around and buying lands. The arcade breaks up the monotony with passive mini-games. There is Round the Blocks, which is essentially a slot machine, a dart throwing game (where you just press A), and slime races… that you watch. Fortune Street can be frustrating in a group too because one player can be so far in the lead it’s impossible for anyone else to catch up. The game just doesn’t feel fun when player one is rolling in gold coins and everyone else is just rolling the dice waiting for him or her to win.
Get the full hands-on impressions at the source link
Your mileage will depend entirely upon the patience of those you play it with, and not all gamers will stick around long enough to learn the nuances of the game's strategy. Those who do, however, will be glad they did.
#gutcheck
If they've been making versions of the Nintendo Wii's new board game for 20 years, if Nintendo themselves are publishing it—choosing to sell this to us this holiday season instead of other Japanese games still awaiting translation—then surely it must be good and worth buying? More »
Fortune Street is a deep board game experience that is great if you have people to play with, but it can overstay its welcome in single-player. If you have friends that love Monopoly, or if you want a deep and lasting experience for the Wii, Fortune Street is one of the best of its genre on the system.
Fortune Street, developed by Square Enix, brings together the characters of both the Mario and Dragon Quest universes into one gaming experience. Now fans of the two series can finally see Yoshi stand alongside a Slime, or Mario face off against a Platypunk just not in the way you're probably expect...
Fortune Street has no respect for players' time, turning what should be a breezy pastime into a languid, dull experience. Or, in honor of my friend Slime, a "lan-goo-id" experience.
Fortune Street only suffers from a few small issues. As I mentioned in my recent preview, the lack of thematic applications for individual board spaces is disappointing and makes the licensed tie-ins seem essentially superficial; buying a generic bake shop is a lot less interesting than buying Princess Peach's Cakery Bakery would be. And the uneven single-player experience is a letdown, though perhaps that's to be expected from a board game.
There is a lot to grasp, at first, in Fortune Street, but when everything clicks -- especially with four players -- cutthroat economics have never been so much fun. That said, this game is definitely of an acquired, sophisticated taste.
it's like mario party except nothing like it
