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Not even Bram Stoker could have dreamed up the Uncanny Valley. Four (4!) scientists, mad with power, creating unspeakable monsters - a recipe for disaster found in even the most basic cookbook. One scientist had to become rather... unbalanced... and upset the delicate nature of the alliance. Of course the Mad Scientist Alliance was going to call on you to apprentice, become the fourth, clear the village of the evil Baron Mharti and set things to rights again. These are the stories the best RPGs are... uh, pieced together from... yeah.

Monster Lab is everything a person could want in a classic RPG - stats, loot, story, and quests - with the added benefits of Wii-mote control and mini-games. As a break from the norm, you've landed in a Gomez Addams-meets-Herman Munster world of angles and body parts. Don't worry; you can just hide inside the castle.

A rather bulbous, squat scientist (he looked rather like an anglerfish) known as Professor Fuseless begins you on the path to becoming the spiritual successor to Dr. Frankenstein. You never actually see yourself in the game; you control one of your monsters - one of up to 10. But first, you've got to build one. This is where the fun begins. The good news is you don't start with all of the parts. Associate Producer Kelly Tainton couldn't remember the exact number of pieces but it was somewhere on the number of 20 each of head, body and legs and 60 arms; but you can have different arms. This comes out to about 30 million combinations.

Each piece has stats: Madness Level, Strength (durability), Battery Charge, Defense and Attack. Madness Level is unique. Your monster has an overall madness level slider with an indicator of the optimum madness you can control. As you become a more experienced (read: insane) scientist, you'll be better at reigning in your creations. Should you choose to build creatures that are beyond your abilities, be forewarned they may not always do what you'd like in combat. (Ha-ha...see it run!)

In addition to your basic stats, each component is made from alchemical, mechanical or biological origins. Your basic rock/paper/scissors meets pulp horror. In addition, each has two attributes for battle. They vary from attacks, power-ups, heals or buffs. There can also be enhancements or defects but that's when you create the parts you're building with - I'll get to that in a moment.

My mini-Dr. Moreau with the ogre arm (just one) is now ready to head out on his first quest. Currently available on the map were several areas including Tombstone Rise, the Neverglades and Cobbleshire - our goal. Ready the coffin, and fire!

From here, the game becomes two. You can send your monster on a series of quests, restoring order to the Uncanny Valley (or rather the balance of madness) or simply run around battling creatures, playing mini-games and gathering parts to create additional monsters. The depth is completely dependent on the experience you wish to have. But to get the primary items necessary for building new monsters, you'll need to battle!

Like the meta-game, battle can be an experience of decisions or an all out brawl. Combat is turn based. You'll need to pick which part of the monster's body you want to attack with - this is a monster after all; you can attack with your torso! Then choose which attack/buff/defense to use and where. Dull red on the target and the attack may fail. Bright red to yellow and the chance of success increases significantly. None of which really matters if you just want to get in there and duke it out for fun.

Secondary parts, the stuff used to make primary parts, are found in mini mini-games known as challenges. These can be done over and over again for parts. After beating the bajeezus out of a treasure chest, Mini-Moreau took a two Z-Gyro Batteries back to the lab. I have no idea what they were for but woo...parts. Gots me some parts and gonna make me some more monster appendages.

After returning to the castle you'll need to determine if you want to make mechanical, alchemical or biological parts. Then there are 12 machines in each lab to choose from. As we were still an apprentice mad scientist and working with Professor Fuseless (the Mechanist), we did some metal pressing and welding.

Creating parts uses recipes and determining new recipes is simply a matter of trying out new combinations. Each combination has a set of base stats but bonuses based on how well you perform in the mini-game when creating the part. Weld parts together poorly and the Iron Hook arm you were creating slows down every third attack and misfire. Perform particularly well when pressing a set of servo legs and they'll not only have good stats, but they may be enhanced with the ability to toss fireballs in addition to charging your batteries.

Then there are the epic failures that just blow up the castle. Those are good fun.

Ten monsters at the ready may not sound like much but you can upgrade them at any time, keeping their history of victories. Histories become important if you decide to collect badges. Badges are awarded for every conceivable act in the areas of combat, experiments, monsters and exploration. Not into questing? Just head for the badges.

Finally, there are the "special" parts that can only be earned from online battle. Using friend codes, you can take out your best monsters and see what other creatures are out there. The rewards are primary parts but in this case, some are unique. I want the clown shoes. In fact, I want to make the clown that frightened me when I was 6. Then I'm going to blow it up. Catharsis is good.

There aren't very many RPGs currently available for the Wii; and there aren't very many pulp horror RPGs available anywhere. Monster Lab was a bit of a surprise for me. I expected a simulation. Simulation it most definitely is not. The ability to free play without consequence opens this to the younger crowd while the depth and multi-player gives the older something to sink their teeth into. If you're a Dr. Jekyll looking to release your Mr. Hyde, this may be the game for you.