Muscle March

Muscle March is an action game in which players control a bodybuilder trying to stop a thief that has stolen their bodybuilding friends' tub of protein powder. Players can select one of seven different flamboyant characters, which include the Russian Radimov; the top hat-wearing Spaniard, Mr. Pedroso; and a Norwegian polar bear. The differences between each character are cosmetic, and do not affect the gameplay itself depending on which one is chosen.

The gameplay is similar to Hole In The Wall; the thief will crash through walls, leaving holes in the shape of bodybuilding poses, and players use the Wiimote and Nunchuck to match the pose. Failing to match the pose in time will remove a heart from the players' stamina meter. If the meter is fully depleted, the game is over. Players begin at the end of a single-file line of computer-controlled bodybuilders, which one by one are knocked out of play.

Muscle March was created by Namco Bandai Games, a company formed through the merger of Namco and Bandai in 2006. It was originally intended as an arcade game where players used a set of dual joysticks for control. The arcade version was created in 2006 by a team of newcomer employees for the company, who were given exactly one month to make it as a learning experience. They came up with a game where players use the joysticks to make the character perform different poses. Though the prototype was completed and later demonstrated at an arcade tradeshow in Tokyo, it was canceled before its test marketing due to it being too similar to "another arcade game at the time".

The same year the arcade version of Muscle March was canceled, Nintendo released the Wii, a home game console that utilized motion controls. Hideo Yoshizawa, a long-time veteran of Namco Bandai and the producer of its Klonoa series, suggested releasing Muscle March for the Wii, as it was his belief the motion controls would work well with the game. Yoshizawa showed the game to Nintendo, who reportedly liked its concept. The Wii version was produced by newcomer Shinya Satake.

Muscle March received "mixed" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. IGN reviewer Daemon Hatfield considered Muscle March "more fun to watch than it is to play". Reviewers were primarily critical of its controls, which they claimed became unresponsive in later portions of the game. Kotaku writer Michael McWhertor expressed his frustration with the game not being able to recognize controller movements at high speeds, making later levels unnecessarily difficult.

Nathan Meunier of GamesRadar+, though not as critical as McWhertor, felt the controls required time getting used to, and listed it as being one of Muscle March's weakest aspects. The short length and lack of content were also criticized. Writing for MeriStation, Ramon Mendez thought the game was too short and lacked a proper challenge, and wrote that Muscle March was "nothing more than a curiosity".