The controls are an interesting hook. Actually slugging it out with your targets by swinging the Wii Remote and nunchuk is fun, and the shooting elements are handled well by making the pointer aspect of the Remote a "precision targeter," rather than your sole firearms control. Lock on, and then you can move the targeting reticule with the Wii Remote for a level of precision shooting that is very slick. Fist fighting gets old quickly, but it's also not a very efficient play style, so don't worry about that. Executions get dull much less quickly when you physically slap the Wii Remote to the side to deliver the slap before you smash a spine under your boot. Compared to a traditional gamepad, I can't imagine wanting to play the game on anything but a Wii control setup.
One thing that the Wii doesn't deliver is looks. The equally content-heavy PS3 version of The Godfather isn't particularly attractive to begin with, and this version is considerably nastier looking. Nasty is really the term, even with the smooth animations of the characters. But, it is ten bucks cheaper than the PS3 version, and the controls make the Wii version a lot more fun.
No, a licensed game doesn't need to be slavishly adhered to the property it's coming from. And the actual gameplay here isn't half-bad. But like slapping the word "art" on a toilet, there's a constant dissonance between the license and the gameplay. Consider pretending that you're playing The Untouchables and you'll probably feel better, but this will still be a minor-leaguer if some truly creative gameplay can't sneak into the sequel.
