Two Tribes has highlighted a couple of the game’s characteristics in a new blog post.
Play on the GamePad
First of all, you can play all of Toki Tori 2 on the GamePad’s screen. Unlike some other games, they don’t mirror the two screens: you either play on your TV or on your GamePad, and you can switch between them with the Select button or via the options menu.They are highlighting this as a big pro: the deisgners figure that your eyes won’t be constantly drawn to the game pad when you are playing on the TV screen or vice versa.
This setup also makes it possible to display some extra info on the GamePad when playing on the TV, similar to what many Nintendo DS games do. For example, it will show where Toki Tori is in the current scene, as well as the songs you’ve discovered so far.
Tokidex Camera
When they announced the Wii U version of Toki Tori 2, we also revealed the Tokidex. Collin then described it like this:
The Tokidex feature allows you to scan the area around Toki Tori for creatures and objects by using the Wii U Gamepad as a virtual camera with a viewfinder. Any creatures photographed will be added to the Tokidex. It’s quite fun to do, especially with creatures that move quite a bit!
All of this is still true. The Tokidex Camera is a fun little feature, reminiscent of golden oldies like Pokémon Snap. There are almost 40 pictures to shoot and it’s a bit of a puzzle to figure out which objects are ‘snappable’. Finding everything unlocks a nifty easter egg*.
*Not an actual egg.
Aside from these features they also use the touch screen in smaller ways, such as placing pins on the world map or navigating the pause menu quickly.
The Future
The possibilities of the Wii U really stir the team’s imagination, so you can bet they’re thinking of other ways to use the Wii U. And some of that will likely be added in updates down the road.
First of all, the level editor. As you’ll know if you’re on the Steam alpha list, the editor they use to make the game is powerful. They’d like you to be able to create your own puzzles, and the Wii U GamePad lends itself to this pretty well. Some of you will expect the editor to be available at launch: unfortunately, it’s quite a challenge to make a level editor accessible and fun to use. At this point, they would rather use the time and energy required to polish the core game.
They are also looking for new and inovative ways to tie Toki Tori gameplay and the fan community into the Mii-verse, so stay tuned!
