Much has been said about Wii Music since its initial debut as a tech demo some while back. Some believe it hasn't changed much at all despite Nintendo's efforts to try and show us otherwise. The general aftertaste in gamer's mouths from their 2008 E3 press conference seems to be an unfortunate deciding factor in determining whether Wii Music is worth a look -- a shame, really, since it certainly merits at least a little of anyone's time, if only to discover whether you're the type whom it will appeal to or not.

First and foremost, let us clear the air and set one thing straight -- Wii Music is a music game. It is not a rhythm game, like Rock Band, Guitar Hero, or Dance Dance Revolution. Allow me to explain: back in the day, such games were referred to as "Rhythm" games because that's what their focus was: doing something in rhythm to the song. Wii Music, on the other hand, has no rhythm constraints -- there is no score, and any song can be played any way you want. The focus of Wii Music to arrange music, to make it different, put your own spin on it -- NOT to merely imitate it the exact same way every time. In this way Wii Music has reminded me of what Guitar Hero and Rock Band really are: glorified versions of Simon Says. Wii Music, then, is a glorified MIDI sequencer. A great analogy I've heard is this: if playing a real instrument is like painting on a canvas, Wii Music is like a basic coloring book and Guitar Hero/Rock Band are like connect the dots. This metaphor is pretty much perfect in explaining the appeal of Wii Music, as it actually allows one to show off creative juices and musical skills in a very basic fashion. This is not to say that rhythm games are not great, but rather to specify that comparing Wii Music to them is like comparing apples to oranges -- they are both fruit but have very different tastes and nutritional values.

Wii Music starts players off with a basic tutorial on how to play the game: the way most instruments are played, how to follow the beat of a song, and some ideas of how to start improvising. From there, players have a sparse number of beginning songs to experiment with and many of the instruments aren't immediately available -- an issue many will find is that most of the soundtrack must be unlocked. Fortunately, it's quite easy to unlock most of what isn't available, though it is somewhat tedious: simply play some songs, create some music videos, and complete a more advanced tutorial section which eases players into how to overdub on top of themselves and play different parts of the song to create a track that is entirely their own. Once the more advanced tutorials come into play, basic music theory is also laid on the table, which is a very welcome feature in a music game and something that often gets overlooked. For example, you may be tempted to overdo every instrument you play when going through a song -- overdubbing all of these parts together will create a chaotic mess that sounds awkward. That's because it's key to make sure the right parts of your song stand out and are more prominent than others. Composition is not for the faint of the heart, and very basic composition arrangement is what Wii Music is about. If players don't put in the time and attention to little details and execute adequate timing, they will likely not be pleased with their results -- you even rate your pieces yourself when you are done, further perpetuating the concept of trying to make music that you yourself are pleased with. Children will likely just find more enjoyment out of what they put out because they're less critical, but those who are more critical will put the time in to make songs that sound good despite the audio limitations.

There are some minigames which help players learn a sense of rhythm (with bells), figure out when is best to change the tone and pace of a song (with the conducting game many might remember when the Wii was first debuted), and lastly, a sense of pitch, which is developed through a series of pitch-based minigames that actually become fairly challenging by the end. Each of these minigames may not see a lot of play time, but each of them will help instill different elements of music that will help players perform their own pieces better -- and some songs and the like are unlocked along the way.

Once all fifty songs are open, players will find the meat of the game in the Custom Jam section: here, one has control over some tempo variation, all of the instruments of a song, and, most importantly, how each instrument is played. Up to six parts can be added or removed from a piece: two for percussion, chords, bass, harmony, and melody. Each one contributes to an overall piece of music, and depending on the song and the way you wish to approach it, some will be more or less prominent than others. After picking a part and choosing an instrument, the song begins. Bouncing notes in the corner of the screen along with a metronome from the Wiimote speaker help indicate the rhythm of the song -- the metronome sound is subtle but a perfect use of the Wiimote speaker and is very practical. A guide can be brought up which shows the measures and where the "intended" notes are. By striking the instrument where these beats land, players will play the song as it originally sounds. This, of course, is not as entertaining as it would be in Guitar Hero. That's where Wii Music really separates itself into a different kind of software altogether, because, again, it is not about mimicking a song but making it your own.

The game encourages players to not rely too heavily on these notes, as they are merely a guide or an indicator rather than a strict set of rules. The entire purpose of Wii Music is play around and think about how to give the song new life, a different style, a new flavor. By changing instruments, tempo, and altering when and how notes are played, a song can sound completely different. The default settings for "Scarborough Fair," for example, feature bagpipes and sound like a classic European folk song. Two versions I have created sound like a ballad from the Wild West and blues jazz. By altering the speed and delivery of notes, removing notes, adding extra ones in, syncopating, and more, a surprising amount of variation can be put on a song. Wii Music enables players to do a lot with a little, and the potential depth is somewhat surprising. The thing is that this depth must be unearthed to be appreciated -- if you have no interest in arranging music and don't have the patience to sink some time into thinking about how you want a song to sound as well as the practice required to get the timing just right, you'll be hard pressed to come up with anything that sounds both creative and well-executed.

There are some other problems with Wii Music that prevent it from really stepping up to compete with other music-based games in the eyes of the mainstream. For one, its musical selection -- fifty strong -- is comprised of pretty much nothing modern. Classical songs, folk songs, oldies, and a handful of Nintendo tracks round out the collection. It's actually a pretty varied and interesting bunch of songs for those open-minded enough to enjoy older pieces. Those who can't appreciate anything that isn't rock/metal/less-than-five-years-old will probably not find much they like, however. That said, it can be an interesting challenge to bring new life to songs you think are boring -- you'd be surprised at what can be done with "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" when one puts some creativity into the mix. Overall, though, the soundtrack is decent enough but could use some more quantity and variety -- and certainly more Nintendo songs, if you ask me.

Another feature many might be turned off by is the quality of the audio samples -- as stated before, this is basically a MIDI sequencer, and some instruments sound just fine, overall, while others can grate the ears a bit if not used sparsely. The problem is that the quality of these instruments really can't be anything better than MIDI while still allowing for the improvisation and customization offered. I'm sure better MIDI samples exist, though. The quality is generally fine, and if you can find beauty in a song despite the quality of its samples (and let's face it, many gamers can), you likely won't be bothered much by this seemingly unavoidable aspect of the title.

If we're getting nitpicky, there are a few other things that could stand for some change: when saving a music video, there are no options to customize how the camera runs at all -- it's nice to not worry about it if one doesn't want to, but it'd add a lot of flair to be able to control how the camera operates. It's also kind of difficult to distinguish how extra notes are incorporated: overall, it seems as if the program working behind the curtain has to make up notes inbetween the main ones. Sometimes they sound very pleasant next to each other, yet other times, not so much. It's a bit unfortunate to play through a song's melody and add one too many extra notes at the end and have that one note just not quite sound as good next to the others. This, of course, discourages one from going overboard with extra notes, but I can't help but feel that some extra work could be done to make the system more effective. Lastly, getting used to how the Wii controls will sense strikes for notes can be a bit iffy -- and timing is crucial to make music sound good. Some will get a hold of it quicker than others.

The above-mentioned issues will definitely prove to be an insurmountable hurdle for some gamers. This is understandable, but also kind of unfortunate, because Wii Music will find many fans who can appreciate what it offers despite its flaws. If we're lucky, we could see a sequel down the road with some of these issues looked at. Just a new set of songs (or a way to download new ones) would warrant some attention from those who end up falling for its charms. And that's something that Wii Music does have a lot of: an innocent charm that really tickles the creative bones inside you. I couldn't help but smile at the quirky Muppet-like tutor and think to myself that a lot of the ideals expressed through the game are just plain healthy and encouraging to anyone who may not be very confident in their creative abilities.

Wii Music does have some issues that could really improve it and put it solidly into the top tier of music-based games, and many of its design choices will not be understood or appreciated by many, but that doesn't detract from its overall quality. Stacked up against other casual-oriented games like Wii Sports, Nintendogs, and Brain Age, Wii Music is a very great addition to games that many types of people will love and others won't comprehend at all. It is more a basic piece of music-arrangement software than a "game," and those who need some kind of quantitative measurement in order to feel satisfied just won't get it.