Following the announcement of Global Star Software's Carnival Games, I settled into Wii mini-game apathy. After playing Milk Bottle Toss ten times in a row, I have to admit, I can be a sucker for crap like this.

Take-Two Interactive's budget label is tapping into the desire of those who pine for the simpler days of gaming, knocking down weighted milk bottles, sinking some poor sap into a dunk tank, winning reems of tickets at Skee-Ball, but without that meth-addicted inbred carny odor.

While the groans of "not another mini-game collection" are easily understood, there's something oddly addictive about the selection of games. They're made even better by the fact that special "sideshow" modes of many, plus the comforting knowledge that the games aren't rigged, add variety and the potential to win fairly.

Carnival Games' rewards are akin to what you'd win at a real carnival, stuffed animals, goldfish, even accessories that your Mii-like avatar can wear while playing the 25-plus included games.

Among the games available for play during the Nintendo Media Summit today were Alley Ball (a renamed Skee-Ball, presumably for trademark reasons, that plays nearly identical to Wii Bowling), Nerves of Steel (a shocking, Irritating Stick-like game of concentration and steady Wiimote precision), Ducky Hunt (the classic tin duck shooter) and Day at the Races (requiring you to hold the remote sideway, and "roll" rubber balls up the game alley). All controlled surprisingly well and featured realistic physics courtesy of the Havok engine.

There are plenty of other mini-games that will see little more than one or two play throughs—the hammer swinging Test of Strength comes to mind—but like most carnival-style games you'll be tempted to revisit them again and again, for "just one more time" chances at a better performance and more tickets. Those tickets can be used in a series of mostly non-interactive bonuses, for instance in the game's Magic Eight Ball-like fortune teller.

At $40, it may seem like a pricey me-too collection of casual games, but there's a surprising fun quality to it. Carnival Games will definitely appeal to those looking to marginally improve on their mini-game scores or collect item #239 in the virtual prize list. However, with a seeming flood of similar titles, it's going to have a more difficult time standing out and justifying its worth in the crowded field. Michael McWhertor

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