Game Review - by Jeremiah Pratt
Shiny, the creators of 'EarthWorm Jim' have brought a nifty little clone called 'Wild 9' into the video game world. As the hero, Wex, you are equipped with a big laser rope called the 'rig', which you can use to rescue your zany buddies, and zap your wacky enemies. The enemies seem to look different on every level but still fire missiles and don't get any stronger.

Storyline:
This is the story of the Wild 9; a non-stop thrill ride bursting with action and adventure, and filled to the brim with wild humor. Join Wex Major, a teenager lost in another galaxy, as he is brought together with a motley group of 8 alien teenage orphans with whom he bands with to lead them as the 'Wild 9'. Wex Major reluctantly discovers that he is rumored to be the 'Great Champion' who will operate the magical 'Rig and Glove' weapon and liberate the billions of inhabitants of the Andromeda Galaxy. Together the Wild 9 embark upon a 'David vs. Goliath' battle against 'Karn' - a 376-year-old enormous 'face' whom has the power of a god, yet the temperament of a toddler. Karn has set his sights on harnessing the ultimate power of The Glove and Rig, as well as the only one capable of using it; Wex Major. Welcome to a world where evil black sheep walk upright and wield chainsaws. Where a psychotic with 176 separate personalities can be considered a 'good guy', where a heroine can draw her power from a magical tartan superhero outfit, and where a normal teenage boy can be the savior of an entire galaxy.

Features:
Wild 9 takes a big kick in the butt features wise. The vibration control seems really erratic, and can go as far as overused. Plus the general manipulations of objects, via rig can get frustrating. The bread winner feature of Wild9 is the Rig. This bad daddy is a laser, bungie cord what ever you want to call it. Well when this puppy gets a hold of an enemy watch out. Time to lay the smack down. There are no multiplayer options; it's just you and the alien world.

Gameplay:
The game itself gets going right away. Gameplay wise, Wild 9 is like Earthworm Jim in the sense that you run, jump and shoot things. Wild 9's key game play element, is the Rig. As I mentioned before the Rig is Wex's primary weapon and it can be used in several creative ways. This weapon expels an energy beam that can be used to grab enemies or items. The rig can also be used to move objects and to swing from place to place AKA Bionic Commando. The majority of the Wild 9's fun and creativity extend from the Rig's abilities. The strange part begins when your foe(s) life reaches low , at which point you can subject them to torture. These methods range from half humorous ways, such as electrocuting your foe, to downright disturbing ways, like impaling the opposition and leaving them there. It's mindless and idiotic, and, although amusing for a while, it quickly grows old. Other than that element, there's really nothing new in the gameplay.

Graphics:
The game's graphics look like a much revised version of the graphics used in Kalona, Namco's 2 1/2-D platforms. The graphics are sharp with little pixelization, and the special effects are excellent. I almost immediately got deterred when I found out it was 2D. You ask why three words 'Heart of Darkness", I prayed to god, this wasn't another on of those. That kid had a laser ray that zapped the crap outta everything. Here Wex has a Rig, similar weapon. But in Wild9 the level design is incredible. Given that EarthWorm Jim feel we so learned to love.

Sound FX:
Ouch, you may want to or wait better yet need to shut the sounds off, the voice effects are just too silly. There's a definite line between silly and humorous. And it's not humorous, although the music track is kind of interesting. It's not good enough to save this section. Just a complete mishap here, don't know what else to say.

Overall:
This game is short. Some levels you can easily beat in a minute or two. But other levels can take forty-five minutes even out this problem. That's not too long but there are some areas that you'll have to play over and over again until you finally understated what you have to do and get the rhythm down. . Again the SoundFX, in my mind took a step back. Those cheesy one liners are the culprits. If you enjoy 2 1/2-D platform games, or you are a big fan or Earthworm Jim, give Wild 9 a try, as you might enjoy it for a while. However, I'm disappointed that, after a few years in development, there's nothing really new or innovative in the gameplay, and I still think that platform games haven't taken enough bold steps since Super Mario. In fact, Wild 9 goes back in time, not forward.