Today I am going to talk about a quirky little game that I found a few years ago that is super challenging and fun to play with a gorgeous graphic style. Ivy the Kiwi. I first read about it somewhere online and made the decision to procure it. It was originally released as a mobile game I believe but then ported to the Wii and DS. I picked up the Wii version and it really does make excellent use of the Wiimote.

It was created by Yuji Naka which probably means nothing to you, but he is best known for creating the original Sonic the Hedgehog games. There are two main points that really make this game stick out to me. Firstly, the ingenious use of the Wiimote. The gameplay really lends itself to the technology. Essentially you need to guide Ivy through 100 levels whilst avoiding spikes, enemies and through a maze of blocks often using a boulder to bust your way though areas to find her lost mother. Ivy is constantly on the move and it is up to you to create vines with the Wiimote to guide her around the level. Here is where it gets tricky. You can only have 3 vines at a time and they often need to be placed in the perfect spot in succession to achieve the desired result. Secondly, the graphics are just gorgeous and super cute. Check out a few stills below.

The main drawback is that the later levels are crazy hard. I think I am around level 80 and I rage quit often. But I always manage to come back to it and keep trying to get past it. One day I will finish the game. Until that point I will play, rage quit, eventually come back to it after a sufficient break and repeat