Smarty Pants (Wii, 2007)

The game's structure is very simple with three available options: Play Game, Options and View Profiles. Before the game starts, in addition to choosing such settings as game length, each character must create their own Mii profile for themselves. This is actually a pretty important step since the game will track progress significantly. It will record such data as which question sets you're best at, how many questions you've gone through, and so on. I applaud the game for it's question base which extends well beyond 10,000 questions, and the categories are quite interchangeable.

During the game, you'll use the Wii Remote to spin the wheel and buzz in for a question. You can even nudge the wheel to a category you want it to land on with timed shakes of the Remote. You'll also stumble across item cards that can change things up a bit, allowing you to switch to an easier or harder question, gain more time on the timer, that sort of deal. Also, short mini-games will offer opportunities to snag a given amount of points from your rivals. You'll be shaking the Wii Remote to "dance", play a game of Tug-of-War, shoot targets and more. Although there is some variety here, it will likely get repetitive for anyone who isn't a young child.

Multiplayer can be fun at times, albeit it only lasts for a short while. What makes this game especially enjoyable is the fact that questions are suited to your age group, meaning you won't have to worry about having questions that are clearly geared towards adults. Item cards can make the game a bit suspenseful when they're used at times when players would least expect it. For example, changing the question to an even harder one when you know someone knows the answer. Between tedious mini-games and "throwing" card items, it can get boring at times and when compared with other trivia games, this one is more likely to lose your attention if you're a teenager or older. But families should get a few laughs from this game.

While admirable, the game's attempts to mix it up (e.g., via short mini-games) actually hinder the cause. EA is commended for at least trying to make an otherwise predictable game into something more creative, but it isn't particularly fun for anyone over a certain age group. The short mini-games almost become more annoying than anything else, especially when you play a long game. Smarty Pants tries to justify Wii controls, but as a whole, they feel tacked on. The entire game could've easily been mapped to button controls, and even just simulating the action of "throwing" a card for play is a bit much. It's all fairly limited when it comes to how intuitive the controls are and it becomes clear that the only reason for it being on the Wii is to satisfy the "casual gamer" market.

If you give it a rental for a weekend gathering, then you might find it fun for a short while, but little more beyond that. I will say that the idea of having questions based on your age group is a fantastic idea and I only hope future developers take notice. There are some annoyances to be had that may affect how often you play this game, but for a family if you can find it for $20 or less. Be prepared to have another game on hand, though, because more than likely, those who play this won't be fond of it for too long.

+++++++++

Visit Wiiloveit.com for a full review of this title, as well as other releases:
http://www.wiiloveit.com/​games/smarty-pants---wii-revie​w

My sister (who is not a video game expert by any stretch of the imagination)sent this to us as a Christmas gift. I was less than optimistic that this would be a decent game.

After we played the other games we received that day(mega hit titles like Resistance: Fall of Man, Unchartered-Drake's Fortune, Guitar Hero III, Ratchet and Clank Future Tools of Destruction, and Super Mario Galaxy) we decided to at least see what this game was like. What a surprise! This is the only game of all those I listed above that my son and I actualy played together. And we had a wonderful time.

The questions are great and it's well designed. It incorporates elements of classic Nintendo goofiness (like whacky minigames to set the value of a question). My son, who's 12, excelled at questions about video game characters and current celebrities while I was entertained and answered questions about science and history. It worked for both of us very well (part of the set-up is to input your age, questions are then based on knowledge of your individual era.)

A game can be played in as little as 10 minutes. So if you're a parent that would like to join in the fun and spend some time with your child - doing something they love to do (play video games)...well, this game is for you.

Smarty Pants is a trivia game with a few cute little twists to it. The questions range from very easy to moderately hard. It is somewhat comparable to Trivial Pursuit in terms of the variety of questions (there are eight topics: Science, Art, Books, Entertainment, People & Places, Sports, Fashion, and Games). You can play this game solo, competitively or cooperatively. What makes this game different is the "cute little twists". Do not think you will just be sitting around answering questions all day. Oh No! There is movement involved. Questions are selected by spinning a wheel. You have to use the Wii Remote to spin the wheel and you have the ability to "nudge the wheel" to land on the desired space. There are helper cards you can play that will improve your chances on answering more questions. You may play the card when indicated, but it does not stop there. In order to take advantage of that card, you may have to play tug-of-war (yes I said "tug-of-war") against your opponent to use the card, or you may have to dance your way to bonus points opportunities, literally. In cooperative mode, while one person answers a question, you may have to jump, dance, wave, or shake, to extend the time on that question. Graphics are nothing to brag about, but do you expect graphics in a trivia game anyway? The game can get a little repetitive in terms of the routine, but so far, I have not seen any repeated questions and I and/or my wife have played it via a rental about 10 to 12 times over the past 4 to 5 days. In any case, I would recommend this game for trivia buffs, especially those with active school-aged children that simply hate to just sit around. This game is appropriately rated "E" (for Everyone). Smarty Pants promotes activity and take good advantage of the Wii Remote abilities. It is easy enough for kids and the non-savvy video game player. I would recommend an average spend of $35-40 (including shipping).

I bought this for my 10 year old daughter because it looked like fun and I found it on ebay pretty reasonably. Well I have to say, I got a heck of a deal!!! Not only do her, her friends, my nephew, and his friends love it, but so do all of us adults. lol Its a cool trivia game (with some fun twists and turns lol) where the questions are based on the age of the person being asked so its a little challenging but fun for everyone. There also some other fun things added to the game but Ill let you find that out on your own. lol Id pay $40 for this game easy and I got it for much cheaper than that on ebay. This is a MUST for your Wii game collection. I recommend it for anyone ages 5 and up.

This game is a lot of fun. You spin a wheel for the category you want. There's a trick to nudge the wheel in your favor. You can play timed or shoot $ amounts for value of questions. Whoever "buzzes" in first gets first chance to answer questions. There are cards you can get that allow you to steal questions from your opponent, make questions harder for other player, easier for you, give you more time or eliminate one of the choices. If you like trivia games, this one is a lot of fun. Categories include: Entertainment, Games, Science, People, Art, Books & Fashion. I think that's all of them.