| Muscle March | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | Namco Bandai Games |
| Publisher(s) | Namco Bandai Games |
| Producer(s) | Shinya Satake |
| Platform(s) | Wii |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Action |
| Mode(s) | Single-player, multiplayer |
Muscle March, known in Japan as Muscle Kōshinkyoku[a], is an action game developed and published by Namco Bandai Games for the Wii through the WiiWare service. It was released in Japan in 2009, and in North America and the PAL region in 2010. Players control one of seven different bodybuilders and try to catch a thief that has stolen their bodybuilding friends' tub of protein powder. Its gameplay is similar to Hole In The Wall, where players use the Wiimote and Nunchuck to perform specific bodybuilder poses to pass through corresponding holes in walls left by the thief.
Muscle March is based on an unreleased arcade game of the same name, where players used a set of dual joysticks to make a character perform various poses. The arcade version was developed by a team of newcomers to the company and was canceled due to it being too similar to "another arcade game at the time". Company veteran Hideo Yoshizawa suggested porting Muscle March to the Wii as he believed its motion controls worked well with the game. Critics highlighted its bizarre nature and camp style, which they compared to games such as Namco Bandai's sister franchise Katamari Damacy, though its gameplay was criticized for being too simplistic and suffering from unresponsive controls.
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