Pressing buttons to punch someone's face pales in comparison to using one's fists. Electronic Arts must know this since it brings gamers closer to it in the Wii exclusive video game, The Godfather: Blackhand Edition. Instead of mashing buttons to intimidate people, players grab and then beat them using the system's motion sensitive controllers, alternating with rights and lefts by punching air with the remote and nunchuk. The enjoyment that comes from turning faces into raw hamburger almost hides the fact that the game contains most of the content from the original version. Then again, with the ability to throw Molotov cocktails and plant car bombs, perhaps gamers won't notice.

Based on Mario Puzo's classic novel and the award winning film, The Godfather, Blackhand Edition challenges players to become a powerful Don in New York City, circa 1945. Over time, they interact with the Corleone family, taking jobs and terrorizing the game world's shopkeepers in an effort to offer them "protection" from rival forces. Although much of the game follows the tired Grand Theft Auto formula, with the player terrorizing non-playable characters and "jacking" cars, Electronic Arts did a masterful job at capturing the likenesses of several important characters including Don Vito Corleone, Sonny Corleone and Tom Hagen, voiced by Marlon Brando, James Caan and Robert Duvall respectively. Furthermore, all of the cut scenes capture the essence of the film, right down to the signature Godfather music. For fans of the book as well as the movie, the game serves as a nice addition to one's collection.

Fortunately, EA did more than create a simple port. As previously mentioned, players utilize the Wii's motion sensitive technology to shake down the game's citizens. After locking onto someone with the nunchuk's Z button, gamers grab them by bringing both controllers up and then tossing them through a window by flicking both controllers towards the glass. Or, they head butt them by quickly pulling both controllers upwards. They can even aim guns by pointing the remote at the television screen, much like one would in a Wii first person shooter. Precision targeting allows players to pinpoint body parts in the hopes of wounding someone. Doing this keeps the person alive, allowing their attacker to execute them in a most brutal fashion. Each of the game's weapons -- machine gun, handgun and baseball bat, among other toys -- contains a signature execution, and gamers should experience them all, providing they don't mind watching polygonal people meet tragic ends.

Unfortunately, most of the missions were yanked from the original Godfather. Players take missions to execute people and cause havoc. Intimidating people, thankfully, remains enjoyable for quite a while. When "clients" don't respond kindly to simple threats, players bust up their shops with a baseball bat and then shake down the proprietor, mashing his face until he caves, forking over money as well as valuable information. Not only does this give people another piece of the Big Apple, NPCs remember how they've been treated and will react accordingly the next time players speak to them.