Licensed video games based on television game shows can be a bit hit or miss. I don’t know about you, but as a kid, these were the last kind of games that I wanted to buy myself or receive on birthdays or holidays. As I get older, though, I find it interested to see how developers adapted these into video game form and the same can be said about Wheel of Fortune on the Nintendo 64. Did developer GameTek do enough to bring home the look and feel of the show on Nintendo’s 64 bit platform? Let’s get into it.
Release
Wheel of Fortune came out on the Nintendo 64 in North America only in early December 1997. This was developer/publisher GameTek’s first release on the Nintendo 64. It shipped on a a 32 megabit (4 MB) cart and retailed for $55. Believe it or not, the title actually proved to be quite popular, having shipped 185,000 units by mid December of the same year. Unfortunately for GameTek, this release was a bit bittersweet as the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the same month. It’s a bit ironic given that the studio was originally part of an elite group of developers being touted as the “dream team” of developers for the Nintendo 64. Even with that level of confidence behind them, Wheel of Fortune and the early 1998 release of Jeopardy (you can read our review here) were the only releases from GameTek on the console.
Gameplay & Modes
Once the (abbreviated) intro song plays, you are brought to the main screen where you are prompted to press start. From there, you can Change Player Information (set up computer or player controlled contestants and choose one of six avatars), Set Skill Level (Easy, Average or Hard), Set Game Length (3, 4 or 5 Puzzle, or a “Full Game”), and the very top option, On With the Show. Pressing Z or A is used to confirm throughout the game. If you choose a Full Game, things will go for up to six rounds or until the time is up. Personally, the quick 3 puzzle length was perfect for me, but it’s great that there are some longer form options. Additionally, to touch on mutliplayer, even though there are only three contestants in the game, you can control one of them against the computer, or even up to all of them if you wish. There is even an option to make use of four controllers. Per the game’s manual,
“Although the maximum number of players is 3, you can use “Change Player Information” to make a controller active through the fourth controller plug.”
I was just playing by myself, and even if you are short on controllers, you can still enjoy the game with friends by passing around the controller. Interestingly, the Rumble Pak is also supported. It’s a bit superfluous, but worth checking out if you have the accessory.
The rules of this rendition of Wheel of Fortune are identical to what’s shown on the real show (circa the late 90s). When starting out, you’ll need to spin the wheel and guess letters that can help complete the puzzle. Once you start gaining some money, you can use it to buy vowels, but by and large, you’ll be spinning quite a bit to make progress. As long as you don’t hit the “Bankrupt” or “Skip a Turn” spots of the 24 available sections on the wheel, you can keep playing until you’re ready to solve the puzzle. If you’re awarded the “Free Spin,” you are able to guess another letter (without compensation) to guess again. Of course, if you guess incorrectly, it’s the next contestant’s turn. The goal here is to gain as much money as possible and solve the puzzle. These range from categories such as simple phrases, people, landmarks, quotes, well known facts/people from various decades (1960s to the 1990s) and more. There are 3,879 puzzles across 34 different categories, offering quite a bit to tackle.
Gameplay isn’t going to knock your socks off, but what’s on offer is appropriate. Choosing the appropriate letters for responses is handled through an on-screen keyboard with a handful of options on the side for guessing consonants, buying vowels, solving and a free turn (when available). Players also have the ability to spin the wheel with the joystick. This can vary depending on how hard you flick the joystick. Of course, just like the real game, it’s all luck based, but it does feel pretty satisfying when you get a strong spin. I will say that if your N64 joystick is a little bit loose, you may find that the strength of the spin can be effected. I would slam the stick almost every time, but would sometimes have it register as a very weak spin in-game. This is definitely something to keep in mind if you are playing on original hardware.
Visuals, Audio & Presentation
There is no getting around it. The graphics, and, to some extent, the audio in Wheel of Fortune on the Nintendo 64 are disappointing. On the plus side, the team at GameTek managed to get co-host, Vanna White to be front and center. Still, the blurry contestants and low resolution Vanna walking across the stage look pretty underwhelming. Part of the real show would have Vanna touch (or in the old school version, turn) the panels on the board to reveal the correct letters. Just having her walk across the stage and then have the letters appear is a let down.
Even with that said, what GameTek managed to include on the smallest cart size is actually quite impressive. Although they take up a small portion of the screen, the addition of roughly ten minutes of FMV clips with Vanna, as far as I know, are the first of their kind to appear on the platform. Sure, they’re primitive and grainy, but their inclusion is great. While muffled, the contestants also speak out the letters that you choose with a bit of variety between males and females. A portion of the theme song is also present alongside pretty realistic camera cuts while the wheel is spinning, which adds a more realistic and dramatic effect to the game. GameTek could have just ignored many of these aspects, but having them helps enhance the presentation greatly.
One of my main gripes outside of what’s already been mentioned is the lettering on some of the menu options. Some have capital letters at the start of each word, while others are all, or mostly lowercase. This probably won’t bother many of you out there, but to me, it’s just a bit sloppy and inconsistent. I just can’t unsee it! Again, this is very much a “me” problem and it most likely won’t bother many others.
Compared to GameTek’s follow up title Jeopardy on the platform, things in Wheel are a bit sparse when it comes to presentation. Sure, the addition of White is huge, but having the main host of the show, Pat Sajak, could have made for a more complete project. I will once again reiterate how impressive it is to see what GameTek was able to do with video and audio here given the small cart size. Kudos to the team for that.
Conclusion
Although the main idea of the game show remains intact, the graphics are a bit rough. Even with the said, the gameplay and the presentation, the aspect of the game that replicates the actual show, are a very good representation of Wheel of Fortune from this specific era in time. While it’s great to see Vanna in the game, I feel it would have felt a bit more complete with the addition of Sajak, but I digress. If you’re looking for a surprisingly fun N64 game to play, you can do a lot worse than Wheel of Fortune on the Nintendo 64. If you have nostalgia for the show from the time period, this is worth at least trying out.
But, let’s turn things over to you guys. What do you think about Wheel of Fortune on the Nintendo 64? Did you play this as a kid? Did you watch the show back in the 90s? Sound off with any and all comments below. We’d love to hear from you.
by Danny Bivens
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