Disappointing Games

I've written about many games I really enjoy. This might lead people to think I like all games. Not true.

I recently decided to purchase a new Wii game without trying it first or hearing anything about it. Bad decision. The game is "NiGHTS" and though I understand a previous version has a cult following, I have gotten frustrated with the game.

I've given it a few hours, and it started out mostly fun. Sure, there was too much narrative to start things out, but that's acceptable if the game plays well. And, at first, it was enjoyable.

The "pros" and "cons":

Pro:

• It's beautiful. Colorful. Smooth. The cinematics are studio quality, and the gameplay graphics are clear and pretty.
• Flying. Though I am still not very good at the two-handed flying, the game gives you options and one of them is a "point with the Wii-mote option, which works pretty well for me. So, when you're flying on a big screen TV, it's quite engaging.
  
• Non-violent. 'Nuff said.
  

Con:

• Every level is basically the same thing. Chase three birds, one at a time. Then defeat a boss.
• Chasing the birds is flying, but you are on a fixed track! So, you get to fly, but you are essentially flying inside an invisible winding tube, where you can't fly around the entire world. Maybe the cult following liked that in the original, but sheesh, there's a whole 3-D world to explore and I have to stay on this track?
• A corollary to the first two - no interaction with the worlds. Very disappointing after a Mario or Zelda game.
• Forced replay! If I catch the three birds and then can't figure out how to attack the boss, I have to start over again chasing the darn birds!
• Too little information. When the boss level starts, there's a very, very brief statement about what you should do, and then it's trial and error. I hit a level where I'm supposed to "find" the boss. I still don't know what I'm supposed to do, because each time the timer expires, I have no idea if I've done anything even close to right, and then I have to catch the darn birds again!
• Ultimately, it seems like there is just too little to the game. I could be wrong. But the "cons" might discourage me from going on, so I would never know.
  

I remember being disappointed with Luigi's Mansion for similar reasons; especially when I reached a point where I couldn't figure out how to advance and there were no clues and I basically had to just accidentally hit something to open a secret door.

I'll probably read some more about NiGHTS and see if there's some tip or technique that will get me past some of the frustrating parts. If my opinion changes, that will be nice -- because spending $50 should get me more than a few hours of enjoyment followed by frustration.