On the hearty recommendation of everyone here, I dropped by GameStop today after work and bought Boom Blox. I've just been playing it by myself since I got home. It's super fun. I think this is the game that will convince me to keep my Wii. I have been thinking of getting another console (even though I sort of prefer PC gaming), but now I'll be keeping my Wii even if I get something else.
EDIT: Played it for a few hours tonight... it's pretty fun, and it was definitely addictive (kept me glued to my TV for hours). But there are a few criticisms:
- The "grab" levels (Jenga-style "remove blocks from structure without knocking over said structure") are really frustrating. The Wii pointing system isn't precise enough to do this right, and it's too sensitive to up and down motions (which actually lift the block up or down, knocking things over). Especially the last couple are insane and took me forever to complete.
- Throwing balls at blocks is really fun, and watching how everything reacts is mesmerizing. But the motion sensor isn't sensitive enough, IMO. I'm used to Wii games that allow you to just flick your wrist in a small but rapid movement, and that's enough. Not in Boom Blox. You really have to fling your arm around, which tires you out (my wrist is still sore).
- The pointing system is a bit messed up. Well, it's fine, but it gets confused easily. I am constantly having to point at the screen, then away from it for a second, then back at it, just to get it to act properly. This generally happens when the remote isn't pointing at the screen for a little while; that is to say, it happens constantly since you're constantly making the throwing motion for the ball and thus not aiming at the screen. It's like the pointing system is re-calibrating itself a little differently every single time you point away from the screen and back at it. The only way to prevent this from happening is to immediately point the remote at the screen after the motion, which often works, but not always. Pretty often, my pointer gets confused and jumps around or moves at a strange angle. I've never had this problem in any other game, and it's very frustrating. I imagine it would be ten times worse if I had other people over. It's hard enough trying to tell three other people to press the thumb button and the trigger at the same time for Wii Bowling, even with directions right on the screen. How do you get some clueless luddite/non-gamer to learn how to calibrate their remote, on the fly, with no on-screen directions, every ten seconds? Answer: You don't.
- I guess this remains to be seen pending my next multiplayer gathering, but the game doesn't seem to be worth $50. Maybe $30. It's basically a collection of physics-based minigames. Very cool, but minigames nonetheless, and I'd feel ripped off if I spent more than $30 on minigames. Luckily, these ones are so cool and well-done that I don't feel ripped off... not that much at least.
Long story short - very good game. I haven't tried the multiplayer yet but it should be fun. I'd still advocate a rental first, though, or just get your kicks from other games until this one drops in price. Being an EA game, it could do that within 8 months to a year. You can get about as much single player fun as you could want within a single rental period, so unless you have people over all the time and want a different, simpler multiplayer Wii game that doesn't require nunchucks, just rent it for now.
Or, hell, buy it. It's a good sight better than most Wii games out there, and I certainly don't regret buying it.