Well, let's put it this way:

It's good for an iPhone game.

Nonsensical plot, annoying characters, arbitrary good/evil meter, confusing controls, poor pacing.

To elaborate:

Confusing controls: you get 4 special move slots. They are displayed on the top screen (where the action takes place) on a horizonal bar. They are activated by holding R and pressing A, B, X, or Y. There is no indication of which function is mapped to which button. The game tries to auto-aim your attacks and movements. Meaning, if you try to walk into an obstruction, your character will instead walk around it. Result: Opening a treasure chest gets frustrating. As for aiming attacks, it makes it impossible to focus your attention on one enemy out of a mob (such as the boss you need to kill vs. the lackeys you don't). I've also been denied access to my AoE special moves because the game didn't pick out a target properly. Instead of blindly attacking, it just doesn't let me do the move. This can happen while being flanked by 3 enemies.

Poor Pacing: I have a hatred of grinding. That's always a bias, and it comes into play here. Beyond grinding, though, is the amount of HP each enemy has. The average overworld mook takes about 30 seconds to kill, and the combat system is "tap a until it's dead, or use a special move to save time (also, your magic meter decreases in both fullness AND maximum size until you eat food/go to an inn)." A same-level enemy takes around 8 hits to kill, and I've had to hit guys half my level thrice to kill them. This is with the best available gear, and increasing my strength stat every level. Gear has minimum levels, so you can't do a whole lot to increase your power relative to the enemies.

Arbitary good/evil meter: Moral ambiguity at its finest. You're presented with a thing. Do you break the thing or leave it alone? Your shoulder angel and shoulder demon can give no guidance, because the thing's inscription cannot be translated. Which is good and which is evil? DECIDE NOW!

You can certainly kill some time with it, and it's not fundamentally broken, just kind of lame.

Releases This Week (11/22/2010)

Virtual Console:

Spin Master (NeoGeo) 900 points

• A platformer starring a yo-yo enthuthiast. Sorry, it's not Mike Jones!
• An evil doctor has kidnapped your girlfriend as well as your treasure map! That nefarious fiend must be stopped at all costs!
• 5 colorful levels bursting with color featuring a colored boss at the end. Wait, I mean colorful!
• Destroy enemies with your yo-yo, you badass!
• 2 player simultaneous co-op action! Hooray!
• Treasure chests scattered about the levels give you additional weaponry like icicles and boxing gloves.
• Gameplay Footage

WiIWare:

Snowpack Park 800 points

• A surprise release out of nowhere. And who else could be responsible for this but Nintendo!
• A penguin rescue game at it's core. You went to go visit Snowpack Park to play with the penguins only to find that a recent avalanche scared them all away. Now it's up to you to rescue them!
• Play as either a Mii or a premade character.
• Not only do you have to rescue the penguins but you also have to keep them happy to ensure they don't get bored.
• Pet them, feed them, or play with them in special mini-games to increase their mood.
• This is just horrible: a penguin can leave the park by getting bored OR if it aimlessly wanders off into the ocean.
• A second player can join you in your penguin care program.

WiiWare Demos:
After a special trial period last fall, WiiWare Demos have returned! While the demos themselves will only be available for 4 weeks at a time (or more depending on how popular the game is on the Nintendo Channel) the service itself isn't going anywhere this time, so more demos will be added periodically!

And Yet It Moves:
This is an award-winning puzzle game where you must twist the entire world to move on. Also features a unique paper art style. The demo will walk you through the first few levels.

Bit.Trip Fate:
The penultimate entry in the popular Bit.Trip rhythm mash-up series is an on-rails (literally!) shoot 'em up. The demo will take you through level 1 and end right as you face the level 2 boss.

Jett Rocket:
This is an action-adventure game where you traverse a colorful world in 3D. The demo will let you play the first level of the first world.

ThruSpace:
An interesting puzzle game that's somewhat like a mix of Tetris and Hole in the Wall. The demo will walk you through two sets of tutorials and a regular stage.

DSiWare:

Music on: Electric Guitar 200 points

• A virtual electric guitar! Your stylus becomes the pick!
• 32 defined chords with more than 900 chords to discover in all.
• 3 different pedal effects: Delay, Distortion, and Flanger.
• Easy to play, difficult to master.
• Trailer

Supermarket Mania 500 points

• A time-management game. Keep shelves stocked in accordance with the customers supply and demand.
• Meet a certain monetary goal in each level.
• Earn money to pay for more upgrades to your shop and unlock additional inventory.
• 50 levels in the main story, as well as an endless mode.
• SEVEN types of customers, brags the description. We're going to pretend that means the same seven people are constantly coming into your five shops asking for the same 12+ items over and over and over again. Talk about a small town!
• Trailer

Tetris Party Live 500 points

• Tetris comes to DSiWare! This is based off the mode-stuffed Tetris Party game that debuted on WiiWare and later came to store shelves for Wii and DS.
• You'll find the familiar and popular Marathon mode in here as well as the expected vs mode (against both a CPU and real people).
• Also possibly expected is the online mode! Battle anyone, anywhere!
• More unique modes include Duel Space, a battle between you and a friend to cover more area of the Tetris grid.
• Ok, I guess that's it for the unique modes. But if you just want a simple game of Tetris that you can take with you wherever you go, then this should satisfy you.
• Trailer

Releases This Week (11/29/2010)

Virtual Console:

Magical Drop II (NeoGeo) 900 points

• A puzzle game. It's kinda like Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move.
• Colored balloons are at the top of the screen. Control a clown at the bottom of the screen, pressing a button makes a balloon drop down into his arms. Move the balloon to matching colors to clear it. Simple as that!
• Special balloons will help you clear the field quicker by popping balloons of a certain color or in a certain direction.
• Choose from a cast of characters! They won't do anything but choose from them anyway!
• Vs. CPU, Vs. Human, and Puzzle Modes available.
• Gameplay Footage

WiIWare:

Airport Mania: First Flight 500 points

• An airport simulation where you help googly-eyed airplanes land, unload passengers, and refuel on gas.
• Available on PC and iPhone, coming soon to DSiWare.
• Trailer

HB Arcade Disc Golf 1000 points

• This is Disc Golf. You might remember this from Wii Sports Resort. Or Frisbee Golf from Real Life.
• The twist? You play as raccoons.
• Also there's additional courses that you can pay for.
• Trailer

WiiWare Demos:

Cave Story:
Try a free demo of the indie smash hit, also available on WiiWare! Sure you could say that the PC version is demo enough for you but wouldn't you rather be playing on a Nintendo?

DSiWare:

Cave Story 1000 points

• Portable version of the smash indie hit!
• A 2D action-adventure with retro graphics and music!
• Along the way, collect different weapons that can be upgraded with exp points dropped by defeated foes. But watch out because getting hit will scatter collected experience!
• Multiple endings!
• A famously difficult bonus dungeon!
• Originally created for computer by one person over the course of five years and finally released in 2004.
• Features the improved visuals and audio of the WiiWare release!
• Trailer

Frenzic 200 points

• A brain teaser puzzle game.
• The goal is to complete pie pieces. 6 incomplete pies circle a center circle with only a single piece. Move the center piece to one of the incomplete circles to solve puzzles.
• The pieces must also match the same orientation as the empty slot of one of the outer circles.
• Originally for the iPhone, where the game boasted that it made Tetris and Bejeweled look like child's play.
• Trailer

Spot It! Challenge 200 points

• A hidden object game at heart.
• Use the stylus to navigate the area and find hidden objects in 10 themed levels.
• A frantic race against the clock! Find each item in a certain amount of time to earn more points.
• Up to 4 players on one system. Pass around the DSi and take turns finding objects.
• Trailer

Releases This Week (12/6/2010)

Virtual Console:

SonSon (Virtual Console Arcade) 800 points

• An early Capcom arcade title!
• Two player sidescrolling co-op platforming shooting action! Does that make sense?
• Jump from platform to platform while shooting baddies with pellets from your magic staffs.
• Main characters SonSon and TonTon are based on characters from Journey to the West. Trivia is fun!
• Gameplay footage

Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando (Virtual Console Arcade) 800 points

• Another early Capcom arcade title!
• The original Commando, before it spun-off and went Bionic.
• A minor title change here uses the original Japanese title as the main header, with Commando being reverted to a subtitle.
• Play as Super Joe in this overhead, vertically scrolling, on land, shooter.
• Shoot in EIGHT directions!
• Use grenades to destroy the enemy base.
• Gameplay footage

WiIWare:

Fireplacing 500 points

• A virtual fireplace.
• Choose between a Classic, Christmas, or Romantic Theme.
• Manual or Automatic modes. In Manual you start the fire yourself. In Automatic, it's already done for you.
• Will not actually burn you.
• Trailer

Fluidity 1200 points

• A new game from Nintendo! With the help of Curve Studios.
• The main character of this game is water. Finally, you can play as water!
• A magical illustrated book called the Aquaticus has been tainted by a vile of evil ink called Influence.
• With a unique comic-booky art style, you'll play as water (as well as taking on it's various forms such as steam and ice) to save the Aquaticus!
• Collect Rainbow Drops to restore the Aquaticus to it's former state.
• Collect hidden Puzzle Pieces to unlock playrooms to mess around in.
• Not sure if this is up your alley? Try the demo!
• Official website with gameplay footage and more.

Racer's Islands - Crazy Arenas 600 points

• A follow up release to Racer's Islands - Crazy Racers.
• More battle-focused with five modes in dedicated areans.
• In addition to standard capture the flag and deathmatch modes, theres also an ice hockey mode and a race up a track to avoid steadily rising water.
• Take part in championships with against 3 friends to see who wins. Three rounds of the same game.
• The Mega Championship has you go against your friends in one round of each of the five modes.
• Trailer

WiiWare Demos:

Fluidity:
A new game from Nintendo! Play as a sentient pool of water in order to save the magical book, the Aquaticus from a vile bottle of ink called the Influence. Take on various stages of water such as clouds and ice to work your way through the comic-book style pages of the Aquaticus and defeat the Influence.

DSiWare:

Dairojo! Samurai Defenders 800 points

• A tower defense game with samurais, set in the Edo period.
• A fast-forward button to speed up the gameplay.
• 2 player Versus Mode available over DS Download Play. That means anyone with a DS can play with you!
• Trailer

Rytmik: Rock Edition 200 points

• A follow up to the hit music making DSiWare game Rytmik. For the incredible bargain of 200 points!
• Create music from scratch or piece it together from pre-recorded loops.
• Rock Edition features a new palette of heavy metal instruments like keyboards and electric guitars.
• Overview Trailer

Space Ace 800 points

• The spiritual successor to Dragon's Lair (before it got an ACTUAL sequel).
• Play as the daring Ace as he attempts to save the Earth from the evil Commander Borf.
• Same familiar Dragon's Lair gameplay. Now with alternate correct paths!
• Beautiful Don Bluth animation!
• Gameplay footage

Releases This Week (12/13/2010)

Virtual Console:

Darius Twin (SNES) 800 points

• A horizontal shoot 'em up from Taito!
• Fight against a Fish-like empire!
• Two player co-op!
• Multiple Paths for Multiple Endings!
• Gameplay Footage!

WiIWare:

Family Games 500 points

• A collection of pen & paper games in one downloadable package.
• Games include: Squares, Nine Men's Morris, Safe Cracker, Matchsticks, Tic-Tac-Toe, 4 in-a-row, BattleFleer, and HangMan.
• Play against a computer, against a friend, or start a four player tournament.
• Trailer

lilt line 500 points

• An award winning rhythm game on the iPhone!
• Tilt the Wii Remote to control a line.
• The line is in an enclosed space that'll twist and bend! Don't hit the edges or you'll lose points!
• A Score if already given to you when you start a level, you lose points every time you screw up.
• Big Thick Vertical Lines will be spread around the levels. Hit any button as you pass through them to keep the rhythm going.
• Not sure if you'll like it? Try the demo!
• Trailer

Violin Paradise 700 points

• A cooperative rhythm game.
• 4 players pick to be one part of an orchestra (conductor, violinist, violist, and cellist) and play classical music together.
• The better you play, the prettier the scenery becomes.

WiiWare Demos:

lilt line:
An award winning game on the iPhone! Guide a line through a path full of twists and turns all while making music!

DSiWare:

Jam Space: PocketStudio 500 points

• Another handheld music editor.
• Two modes: Quick Jam and Studio.
• Quick Jam makes creating tracks easier. Studio gives you full access to a MIDI editor.
• Trailer

Just Sing! Christmas Songs 200 points

• A karaoke game. Sing into the DSi microphone.
• Christmas-themed, but with only two songs: Jingle Bells and Silent Night.
• Trailer

Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ 800 points

• Released in stores 2 years, the full game is now available as a DSiWare download!
• A fractured retelling of the original Red Riding Hood. That's not a bad thing!
• Zombies have invaded Storyland! Pinnochio, the three little pigs, Santa Claus, and more childhood favorites have been infected!
• Play as either Red Riding Hood or Momotaro.
• Equipped with a gun, you'll guide your character vertically upwards through the levels, blasting every thing in your path.
• Trailer

Yet another weak week.

Not in the least! lilt line, Darius Twin, and Zombie BBQ make this a pretty strong week.

Nintendo Download has had plenty of good releases lately. Just because we get stuff like Fireplacing doesn't mean that's the general quality of every release out there.

He's got a point, Steve. I agreed with you too, though, as soon as I saw the Virtual Fireplace.

Meh. Downloaded the Zombie BBQ.

Mildly entertaining, but by no means impressive.

Releases This Week (12/20/2010)

Virtual Console:

Mario Party 2 (N64) 1000 points

• The follow up to 1999's last year's Mario Party! The original new game from Nintendo that mixes Mario characters with board games!
• This time around, Mario and friends will be traveling to five-themed boards, with an extra Bowser-themed board.
• Dress up in funny costumes depending on the theme! Going to Western Land? Not without a cowboy outfit! Heading to Space Land? Don't forget your space suit!
• Over 60 mini-games! Play them at your leisure in Mini-Game Land!
• Play as Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario, Donkey Kong, and Peach the rest!
• Maybe when Mario has a party next year we invite some more people?
• Gameplay

WiIWare:

Frobot 1000 points

• The funkiest robot in video game history! A game so funky it has 'singleplaya' and 'multiplaya' mode.
• Frobot's five girlfriends have been kidnapped! Blast your way through 20 levels to save them.
• Touted as a combination between Wii Play's Tanks and Legend of Zelda, you'll be shooting enemies and solving puzzles.
• Collect Power Pricks to improve your weapons and earn Blitz Bling by beating levels in record time. Blitz Bling unlocks more Multiplaya Maps.
• Weapons include the Dynomine that functions as a remote mine and the STUD missile that'll destroy almost anything in it's path.
• Not sure if you'll like it? Try the demo!
• Funky Trailer Rap

Inkub 500 points

• You are in charge of protecting incubators from various organisms, viruses, and bacteria.
• The enemies will slowly work their way through tubes towards your incubators. Upgrade your tube system with weapons to keep the enemies at bay.
• An adventure mode with 40 waves of enemies split across 5 worlds. As you progress, you'll unlock more weapons and special abilities.
• A survival mode with 5 different scenarios to keep your incubators alive as long as possible.
• Trailer

WiiWare Demos:

Frobot:
A robot with an afro is trying to save his five girlfriends. The demo will take you through the first few funky levels.

DSiWare:

Cosmo Fighters 500 points

• A 4-player brawler.
• Go up against the CPU or your friends.
• Owners of the game can transmit a demo to anyone with any model DS.
• Friends can join in the fun as long as one person has the game. Download Play let's 4 players duke it out. No DSi needed.
• Trailer

Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp 800 points

• The direct follow up to arcade hit Dragon's Lair and third game animated by Don Bluth.
• As Dirk, rescue Daphne from the evil wizard Mordroc.
• Holy cow, Dirk and Daphne had a lot of kids.
• Classic Trailer

Just Sing! Christmas Vol. 2 200 points

• Follow up to last week's karaoke release.
• This time sing along to We Wish You a Merry Christmas and Deck the Halls.
• Trailer

Paul's Monster Adventure 500 points

• Baby Paul from Paul's Shooting Adventure is all grown up.
• In this game, you find yourself in a magical world surrounded by monsters that used to be bosses.
• The people in this land defeated the bosses by stealing their food supply. It's up to Paul to save the bosses by feeding them and helping them avoid total starvation.
• If the inhabitants catch you feeding food to the monsters, they'll become aggressive and try to stop you. You are equipped with a powerful hammer that'll knock them out.
• Trailer

In Mario Party 2, there's a train that has eyebrows. Can you believe it?!

Also, Frobot is fun. It plays like a series of simplified Zelda dungeons. It's nothing surprising, but the gameplay is solid. Your main attack is to shoot a slow-moving bullet, and your bullets will bounce off of walls, so you can do some cool reflecting shots to hit enemies indirectly.

What the shit? The good Mario Party isn't on the VC? The only reason rotation was a problem was the damned N64 controller sticks.

Mario Party 2 is the good Mario Party.

Though I will admit that I enjoyed 1 and 2 most of all the Mario Parties.

Releases This Week (12/27/2010)

Virtual Console:

Fighter's History Dynamite (NeoGeo) 900 points

• Sequel to Fighter's History. A Data East fighting game that was so similar to Street Fighter II that Capcom sued them over it.
• But Data East prevailed so that must mean something!
• 13 fighters, including the iconic Karnov. Karnov is iconic right? He had an NES game named after him, he MUST be iconic!
• Every character has a weak point; some part of their body that'll take more damage than usual. And no, it's not ALWAYS the testicles.
• Scenery changes in the background. Day will even turn to night. And if you're fighting for that long, what's wrong with you?
• Gameplay footage

Magical Drop III 900 points

• The more popular entry in the Magical Drop franchise.
• Essentially the same thing as the last game. Colored balloons take up the the top of the screen and you control a clown that pulls them down and shoots them back up to create matching sets.
• More playable characters and a new Magical Journey adventure mode make this one more fully featured.
• Gameplay Fotoage

WiIWare:

Around the World 500 points

• An edutainment game where you can improve your geographical knowledge or compete with your friends on who is the most well-traveled.
• Trailer

chick chick BOOM 800 points

• Originally a Flash game released in spring 2007 and backed by Nintendo of Europe.
• Two teams of five round little chickens are on opposite sides of the screen, taking turns throwing whatever they can at each other.
• Bombs, weights, and plants are your main categories of attack. Icons representing them are at the bottom of the screen. Click on an icon for a connect-the-dots puzzle to come up. The faster you can connect the dots, the more damage your attack will cause!
• Each team has a set amount of ink to use. Use ink to draw a line on the battlefield and hopefully create a barrier to protect your chicks.
• Ink can also be used to interrupt the opposing team's barrier. Just when they think they've got the upper hand, you can use your ink to ruin everything!
• Special events on each of the three different arenas will allow both teams a chance to draw on the screen at the same time in a race to connect the dots first.
• 5 teams of chickens are unlocked at the start with 10 to unlock. The difference is purely aesthetic but they look so silly in these viking hats!
• In addition to the standard Duel Mode, there is a Time Mode where you and the opponent's chickens are constantly replaced to see who can knock out the most before the time runs out.
• There is also a Pro Mode where you alone battle an endless supply of opponent chickens.
• 4 players can play! Hooray!
• Trailer

WiiWare Demos:

Max & The Magic Marker:
Play as a young boy with a magical marker that can create whatever you can think to get over, around, and through any obstacle.

DSiWare:

DodoGo! Challenge 500 points

• The sequel to the hit DSiWare release, DodoGo!
• Primarily meant for players of the last release as the difficulty begins where the last one ended.
• A Lemmings style game where eggs will automatically traverse the levels, while you use items at your disposal to ensure that their journey is a safe one.
• Dig holes, set fire to things, and cut ropes to guarantee that the eggs stay out of harm's way.
• Over 100 levels with more to unlock.
• Trailer

Fantasy Slots: Adventure Slots and Games 500 points

• Port of a WiiWare game.
• Virtual slot machines. That's all it is. A five-reel slot machine and a three-reel slot machine. You can choose what decorative themes they can have.
• Six different themed bonus games.
• You won't be playing for nothing! Use that Virtual Money in the Virtual Store to buy fancy items for your Virtual V.I.P. Suite.
• Trailer

G.G. Series: Z•ONE 200 points

• A short and sweet shoot 'em up. Like Gradius. But simpler.
• Floating pods in front of the ship can fire at the enemy in 8 directions. Move the ship in the OPPOSITE direction that you want your pod to fire in for it to work.
• Navigate through narrow tunnels in increasing levels of difficulty and speed.
• Trailer

Ooooh, new DodoGo! And I even got some Nintendo points for Christmas.