New Super Mario Bros. Wii: One of my favorite Wii games of 2009

I know what you're thinking: What a shocker! I mean, what blogger/critic/journalist/poet/writer hasn't placed Mario's latest two-dimensional romp through the Mushroom Kingdom at the top of his/her "best Wii game of 2009" list?

As much as I hate bandwagons (they're so bumpy!), I have to take a seat on this one. Sure, New Super Mario Bros. Wii isn't a perfect game, but it is a perfectly fun game. In fact, it's the funnest game I've played in a very long time.

That alone is enough for me to declare New Super Mario Bros. Wii my favorite Wii game of 2009. Yes, other aspects of the title--its charming and colorful graphics, its nostalgia-laden levels, its maniacal multiplayer mode--are worthy of adoration and praise, too, but all of them pale in comparison to its imitable "fun factor."

Since I have so little to say about New Super Mario Bros. Wii, why don't I share my thoughts on the games that nearly topped my "best of 2009" list?

Little King's Story--Yoshirou Kimura, the mastermind behind the bat-shit crazy Chulip, also made this simulation-slash-RPG, so you know it's a little weird and a lot wonderful. (Or maybe a lot weird and a lotter wonderful? You know what I mean.) It's also cute, charming and compelling--and well worth its (current) $43.19 price of admission.

Muramasa: The Demon Blade--button-mashing action RPGs really aren't my bag, baby, but I'll make an exception for Muramasa. Why? Well, for starters, the graphics are amazing. Actually, they're more than that--they're what I imagine heaven would look like if heaven was a two-dimensional video game created by the folks at Vanillaware. Second (and third, I guess), the game sounds and plays like a dream. A wet dream. A wet dream you experience over and over and over again, until you're completely wiped out. At least, that's what it's like for me.

Wii Sports Resort--This sequel/spin-off/whateveryouwannacallit to Wii Sports certainly is a steal. It includes 12 (yes, 12) different "sports," for crying out loud! The funny thing is, you'll probably only care about half of them--if that. It won't matter, though, because you'll really care about the half you care about. (You're following me, right?) For me, the "sports" (sorry, I can't help but use quotes here) that make this title worth the moolah: air sports, archery, frisbee, swordplay and table tennis.