Wheel of Fortune for Nintendo Switch | Review

Disclaimer: The version of the game that I'm reviewing is also available for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. I have not played those versions, meaning I am unqualified to review them. My praise and criticism may apply to those versions as well, but the version released for the Nintendo Switch is the only one I have any ability to accurately review.

Wheel of Fortune is a popular game show where the players must guess letters until they know what the words are. The simple premise of Wheel of Fortune makes it a prime candidate for video game adaptations, which is why the earliest one dates back to the Commodore 64. There's no need for fuzzy logic, which is needed for many other game shows like Jeopardy and Family Feud. Unfortunately, the simplistic gameplay doesn't save Wheel of Fortune for the Switch.

My very first impression with the game was weird. At the same time that I launched the game, my family's internet went out. After I closed the game the internet came back. After more testing I have determined that, when the Switch is connected to the internet, the router is unable to remain powered. This honestly sounds fake, but I have to conclude that Wheel of Fortune prevents the router from working. If you have any idea why this is, please let me know. Honestly this makes so little sense to me that I question if it's a coincidence, but it has happened countless times without fail. UPDATE: I have seen this glitch get patched, only for it to then continue happening. It affects the majority (if not all) games that use the Ubisoft Club.

Once I got passed that issue, I was immediately met with another one. I can find no way to allow player 2 and player 3 to use their own profile. This means means a few things:

1. The customized characters for player 2 and player 3 are temporary and will be overwritten if you play in single player.

2. The game has no way of tracking which player solved which puzzle after a round is over. All level ups and item unlocks are tied to player 1's Switch account.

3. Player 1 is the only one whose name is actually listed. The game shows stats in the top right corner for each player, but "player 2" and "player 3" are listed as just that. Player 1 is given the same name as the Switch profile that launched the game.

Is this a huge issue? Probably not. And that's a running theme with all of my issues. Wheel of Fortune for the Switch has several small issues that result in the game seeming much worse than it could be. The core gameplay is great. Wheel of Fortune works well as a video game. But let's continue to the most irritating part of the game.

The game has an inconsistent amount of input lag. This isn't really an issue until you're trying to pick a letter, but then it becomes a massive issue. The actual user interface for typing in a letter is honestly quite nice looking, but a UI is either good or bad based on the usability. Getting well acquainted with this game's typing seams like it would be impossible.

It's also hard to imagine, but even the act of pressing and releasing a button is horribly programed. Pressing Y to solve a puzzle will take you to a screen where you type in the letters, but you need to release Y before that screen loads. Releasing Y once the screen has loaded will trigger the player passing their turn, which is also triggered by the Y button.

But even without control issues, this game has one insanely idiotic bug. Sometimes the wheel is inaccurate. It's unfortunately not that uncommon for the game to say that one of the neighboring spots on the wheel is the one it actually landed on, most often this results in the one on the left being chosen.

I will say that I really like how this game looks. It clearly aims for realism, but ends up looking more like a Sims game. It's a good look in my opinion.

Controller Report:

The game is completely compatible with Joy-Con controllers and Pro Controllers, including using a single Joy-Con on its side. The game also has almost full compatibility with the GameCube controller, with just the absence of motion controls that honestly don't work that well to begin with.

One issue with using a GameCube controller is that the game doesn't say "press x". It instead says "press the top button". This means that the player will have to figure out what button on a Joy-Con and Pro Controller translates to "right face button".

While input lag is an issue with every control scheme, I found it to be the least problematic with the GameCube controller, even compared to playing in handheld mode. If you can translate the button placement in your head, I would strongly recommend using a GameCube controller.

Suggestions:

This isn't something I normally do for a game, but Wheel of Fortune for the Switch is really close to being a great version of the game. There are a few issues that need to be addressed.

1. Reduce input lag. I'm not sure what the cause of the lag is. My suspicion is that it's related to the framerate, which is also inconsistent. There isn't much going on in Wheel of Fortune for the Switch, but the floor is reflective, and in quite high quality. My suggestion here is to reduce the quality of the reflection or remove it altogether. It's hardly noticeable;e in the first place

2. Fix the wrong space bug. The game sometimes thinks that the wheel stops in a space where it didn't. I honestly don't know why this bug occurs, but it needs to be fixed.

3. Allow other players to use their Switch profile. One of the most frustrating parts of playing a multiplayer game is when a game treats everyone other than player 1 poorly. This game should track stats (primarily level ups) based on the user. Player 1 gets special treatment in this game, as is evident by them being the only one with an actual name.

Overall Opinion:

I don't hate this game as much as I probably should. At its core it's a Wheel of Fortune video game. What makes this version so frustrating is that it comes so close to being a really solid one. A few issues make it hard to recommend.

While I don't recommend the game in its current form, here are some links to where you can buy the game:

Note: the game is available physically as well, but it comes bundled with Jeopardy and costs $40. I have not played Jeopardy on the Switch and cannot make an accurate statement on its quality.

Nintendo Switch: eShop | Amazon