Preview: G1 Jockey Wii 2008

KOEI's G1 Jockey Wii 2008 was released for the Nintendo Wii in North America in February of this year, but the firm recently announced that for its European release later on this year, the horse racing simulation will also include added functionality with the Wii Balance Board.

G1 Jockey 2008 is actually a port of the same title on the Sony PlayStation 2, made 'unique' thanks to the Nintendo Wii's motion sensing wizardry. Whereas in the US (Wii) copy of the game players would use the Nunchuck to tell their horse to jump, if you're a European with a Balance Board, you'll now be able to use the feedback from to initiate fence-leaping instead. Leaning left and right, meanwhile, sees your trusty steed veering from side to side.



Successful racing is all about the type of horse you choose, and the pacing and timing of your actions during the events. Whether you decide to break off from the back of the pack near the end of the race; shoot off from the start, or jostle from position in amongst the crowd is down to you. Mid-race, you'll need to keep an eye on your horse's stamina, and judge when it is best to give them an encouraging whip to aid your progress.

While it all sounds like good, simple fun, be warned that G1 Jockey is actually padded out with a lot of RPG elements - meaning lots of stats, figures, and talking head conversations in between races where you'll negotiate buying and selling animals and make friends with other races.

If you can put up with that, it will take you a long while to gain all of the trophies and achievements that G1 has to offer, and the Balance Board use will hopefully add another positive spin on what was already an innovation in the horse racing videogame genre.

G1 Jockey Wii 2008 is released across Europe this September.

Posted by Andrew at 14:45