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Pitfall from last-gen with Wii controls tacked on. Seriously.

Pitfall: The Big Adventure on the Wii isn't quite a new game, and while ports aren't anything new to gaming, there's generally some type of big hardware gap, or a home console to portable switch going on. Instead, this version of Pitfall is identical to The Lost Expedition, which came out about 4 years ago on all three of the big platforms at the time; however, this time around the developers have tacked on Wii controls.

That's pretty much it too, with the game starting off and looking like the exact same game from four years ago. I couldn't find anything particularly new in the game during my play with it, and at the halfway point I decided I was done with it. If there is new content that was tossed into the back end of the game, then I'll apologize in advance, but honestly, I couldn't see any reason to replay an entire game that I've already played once before, once I got a handle on how the new controls actually worked.

So, with that in mind, if you've never played Pitfall: The Lost Expedition, it might be worth your time to check out The Big Adventure. As far as platformers go, it's a pretty solid title, putting you in control of Pitfall Harry (from the old Atari titles), and it has you traversing a pretty large jungle divided into a series of stages as you advance thru the somewhat lighthearted plot involved. The voice acting is solid, and even the music is generally catchy. As I mentioned earlier though, the graphics haven't seen any real noticeable improvement here, with everything looking pretty identical to what we saw four years ago. It's a shame this aspect couldn't have been spruced up a bit more, considering that we know the Wii is capable of a bit more. I realize the game is priced a bit lower (at $40), but that's not enough of a reason for me to see the game skimp out on a few needed improvements.

The biggest draw, for old and new players, will be how the game controls using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk. It's a pretty solid control scheme really, and works well enough, but the use of these devices isn't quite enough to make the game feel brand new either. All your basic running movement is controlled with the analog on the nunchuk, and combat is perform by just shaking the remote to make Harry strike his enemies. You can roll around by holding down the Z button, and control the camera by either centering it with C, or using the + and - buttons to turn it left or right. Occasionally you'll need to dip Harry into the water, and during these sequences you can make him swim fast by shaking the Remote and Nunchuk up and down. Finally, for swinging, you'll hold the remote vertically and move it back and forth, trying to time it with the back and forward swings of the vine. It's pretty easy to do right off the bat, and I don't see why anyone will have any real issues with the controls.

In addition to the controls, there are about ten different mini-games that you can mess around with, all of which are decent time wasters but nothing that will really draw in the crowds, and nothing that's worth picking the game up for. The other big draw is the addition of two of the original Pitfall titles, which are fun for a bit since it's probably been so long since you've played them, but they also are really showing their age at this point in time. I realize that retro is cool, but it's really hard to get into these games anymore, at least for me.

Still, if you missed out on Pitfall: The Lost Expedition the first time around, then you can pick up this copy and be good to go. It's definitely not the best platformer from last-gen, but it was a decent enough title that was probably overlooked by quite a few. Still, the game could do with a lower price in my opinion, as the additional controls and other small content changes aren't nearly enough to justify a $40 purchase. Wait for this one to hit the bargain bin, and then maybe you won't feel too bad about picking it up.