I have to be honest I never played the previous two Raving Rabbids games for the Wii. I've read great things about both games and heard from friends that the games were a blast to play. I finally decided enough was enough and I had to get the newest version to hopefully find out just what I was missing. Well, TV Party might not reinvent the party gaming experience for the Wii but it’s still a blast to play, this time either solo or with friends.

The premise with TV Party is that the Rabbids are stuck inside a television and they start re-enacting the shows in their own unique wackiness. All of the games are actually episodes based upon shows you might even recognize today. For example, you get a Dancing with the Stars knockoff that has you competing in a dance competition with the Rabbids as the judges. Then you get a COPS-like show where you’re trying to escape from the police. Each episode/game is presented in the crazy humor that the previous Rayman Raving Rabbids games have been known for.

The overall structure of the game is played out in a TV guide presentation. There are certain blocks of time made up of three hours that you have to play through. Once you select a block you then are presented with the channel guide to pick the show you’re going to play.  During the games you’ll have to earn a specific score to unlock the next block of time and the next day. Honestly no one should have a problem scoring enough points to keep the game moving and unlocking the additional blocks and days.

The games do a solid job of keeping you entertained without feeling like you’re being swallowed up into a real game. The games are all short mini games that last no more than a few minutes. You get a decent variety in different genres from racing, light guns, dancing and even a music game. The controls felt solid and responsive in most of the games with only the music game being the exception. You have to wave your nunchuk and Wii-mote to match the onscreen scrolling chart. For some reason the Wii-mote waves had a problem being registered by the game. It was never enough to cause me to really screw up but it did cause some minor headaches.

What seemed to be the big difference maker, to me anyway, with TV Party and the other party games on the Wii is using the Wii Fit Balance Board. TV Party uses the Balance Board in many of the games and even pokes fun at Wii Fit by including a fitness game with huge out of shape wrestlers for you to follow. You get several different control setups depending on the game you’re playing. For example, some games will have you sitting on the board and leaning left or right to steer. Another game will have you putting your feet on the board while sitting in a chair and using the board as a gas and brake pedal. Other games have you using the board like a surfboard or using it as a dance pad to make moves. The nice part of the game is that you don’t have to use the Balance Board for these games. You can still play them with the Wii-mote and nunchuk. Yet if you own a Balance Board TV Party is a great reason to break it out and use it.

Even though the games are fun there still seems to be a lack of variety in the games. After playing for a few hours you start to notice that you’re playing the same games over again. You’re progressing to different parts of those games but the actual experience is still the same. So you’ll find yourself having to play what feels to be the same games over and over again. But this is the similar curse of other mini-game collections for the Wii. You only get so many mini-games before you start playing the same ones over and over again.

For multiplayer you do get a Party Mode that can support up to eight players. Sure, the system might support up to four Wii-motes and nunchuks but TV Party allows you to rotate the controllers among all of the players. The Party Mode offers Sabotage moments that allow gamers sitting on the sidelines to interfere with the players currently playing. You can have to look out for these moments since they show up only briefly before disappearing. There are also even smaller mini games that resemble game shows or news bulletins that will pop up from time to time after playing a game in Party Mode.

For me the best part of the game was the humor. This game is a riot to watch. There are plenty of funny moments with the Rabbids acting completely absurd at all times. The overall look of the game does a great job of replicating the feel of the craziest and wackiest television programs you’ve probably have ever seen. My favorite was the Dawn of the Rabbids light-gun games, based on the Dawn of the Dead zombie movie. You shoot not the zombies but the Rabbid chickens running around the set trying to ruin the movie. It was a great tongue in cheek type of moment that I loved.

Overall TV Party is another fun and entertaining collection of mini games that we’ve come to expect from the Wii. In my opinion this is one of the best looking and most humorous games you’ll find for the Wii. The Rabbids are just plain silly and absurd which is the overall vibe of the game. The graphics keep the cartoony look intact during all of the games which fit the tone of the game great. If only we had more variety in the actual mini, then the game would definitely score higher. But even then TV Party is still what a game should be: fun!

Gameplay: 8.0
Besides the quirks with the music game the controls are solid, regardless if you’re using the Wii-mote/nunchuks or Balance Board.

Graphics: 8.1
I loved the look of this game since it looked like one of the strangest and silliest collection of television shows you’ll ever see.

Sound: 7.0
You get plenty of yells and screams from the Rabbids that fit the wackiness of the game. However during the music and dance mini-games the actual songs are covers or remixed versions that really lacked the same appeal as the original versions.

Concept: 7.0
TV Party is still at its core just a collection of mini-games. Honestly, just how many Wii games aren’t a collection of mini-games?

Multiplayer: 7.7
The Party Mode is where the multiplayer shines with TV Party. The actual Wi-Fi mode is limited to just two modes, submitting high scores and the Pimp My Rabbid game. The Pimp My Rabbid game is where you dress up your Rabbid in the most ridiculous outfit possible to be judged.

Difficulty: Easy
Really no one should have a problem getting into or playing the game.

Overall: 7.6
TV Party is a fun game that will keep you and your friends entertained and laughing for hours. Sure, you might notice playing the same games over and over again but the humor in the game just can’t be avoided.  As with the almost limitless number of mini-game collections coming out for the Wii, the overall goal is to have fun. If you can’t find something fun with TV Party then I don’t know what game you’re playing.