I’m not much of a gamer myself but I am partial to a bit of Guitar Hero on the Xbox 360 and own a Nintendo DS. I was quite happy with leaving my gaming at this.
I heard about the Nintendo Wii and was curious to see it in action. The other night I pooped round a friends house and saw someone playing bowling. It looked like a great novelty so after very little persuasion I decided I simply must have one to play on myself.
Here is the first negative. I started at my local blockbuster video store where I knew they sold it. I was told that there was no stock and there was no expected date. I thought this was fair enough as they are only a small store. Off I went to PC world – I hate this store. You can never get anyone to help you in there. After standing around for a while I decided to queue at the checkout and ask the operator there. No stock and no due date. I then headed off to Currys, Comet and Toys R Us. Exactly the same story. This was becoming a joke. It would appear that Nintendo had not supplied nearly enough consoles for the demand.
So I went onto eBay and saw that second hand Wii consoles were going for the same price as new. This was obviously a nationwide issue. I checked for people listing the Wii in my area and got someone to agree to a quick sale. Very pleased with myself, off i went to collect my Wii.
I was surprised how small the Wii was at first. it looked no bigger than a CD- ROM drive that a normal PC would have! Technology these days! In the box came the Console, one remote, one nunchuk controller along with the sensor bar that goes on top of the TV. Of course, also included was the Wii sports game.
Once plugged in it seemed easy to navigate through the menus. just pointing the remote (or Wiimote as it is called) at the TV you get a hand that you can point at the options – similar to a PC mouse pointer.
The Wii sports package consists of 5 games, designed to show the capabilities of the Wii. Tennis, baseball, bowling, golf and boxing. The game I had previously seen which inspired this random impulse purchase was the bowling. This is where I headed first.
It feels very strange to begin with as you actually really have to imitate bowling to throw the ball. In fact if you are not on your won you feel like you quite possibly look like a bit of an idiot as you chuck the ball down the ally. It’s a little tricky to get right away. My ball kept veering off to the left. I found that if you let the ball bounce slightly down the ally it actually goes more on target. Soon I was hitting the occasional strike and getting reasonable scores.
The next day I couldn’t work out what this pain was in my right arm. It was only in the evening when I decided to play the Wii again that I realised. I had strained one of my minimal muscles in what can only be described a virtual sporting injury! How crazy is that! Funnily I was not the only one to get a wii sports injury. A friend who got so into his throwing badly pulled a muscle in his leg and someone else had a very achy arm! Something tells me I am not in very good shape for this to happen!
The other great thing I love about this is the fact you can design your own person call a Wiimii (wee me) which holds your scores so if you get a record or beat your best score it will hold this to your name. It will also monitor your players fitness levels and progress. Obviously being so new to this I have not really progressed here.
So the verdict? Well after the first evening I was tempted to put it back on eBay as it was a novelty and an impulse purchase that I couldn’t really afford. Plus the fact I would get more money back as you simply cannot get these consoles anywhere at the moment but after day 2 I developed love for it and I simply cannot get rid of it right yet.
If you are looking for something new and unique you will love the Wii. The only negative is it is a little annoying having to stand up to play a computer game but after a few drinks it really is incredible fun.
last night i was @ my m8s house and we was playing with her nintendo wee and i did tenis bowling and boxing my body is aching today ive also struggled through an hour of netball and an hour of basketbball from this point so i am really aching now im thinking about not getting 1 now i was going 2 for crimbo but dunno now
yes the Wii can cause injuries. I am now suffering a strained right arm from baseball!
I wasn’t convinced about the Wii until I played it at a friend’s house. I haven’t had so much fun gaming in a long time. And the Wii Fit exercise games are a terrific way to increase your activity level and have a great time doing it! I can’t wait until the Tai Sukkiri! Exercise game is released.
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Well, i for one can not understand the hype over the Wii. I’m not saying it’s not a good gaming system, but to me it’s overrated. For hardcore gamers like myself, graphics are important and the graphics on the Wii are so bland it makes me want to cry.
I may end up getting one just because of Mario Kart and the Goldeneye remake that my be released. I had so much fun playing Mario kart on the Snes years ago, so i imagine that with online play, the newer version will be extremely fun to play.
I love my Wii. I like how the games make you work. The games are some what good, but i wish they can make better games.
We already have an xbox 360 but my son has been pushing for a Wii. That’s all we need is another game system! I’ve heard it is fun though.
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I agree with you 100% that the Wii is perfect for people looking for unique gameplay. It provides a completely different gameplay experience than any of the other next gen consoles.
The xbox 360 is pretty sweet but the nintendo wii has the best unique gameplay–it’s only downfall is that the media center sucks and the graphics need serious work.
I must say I still like the wii but wish it had some better games now. most seen to be gamecube games ported over.
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I agree with John, I don’t fully get all the hype, except for the fact that Wii is backed my millions of dollars with a marketing machine. If graphics aren’t that important to you, then I suppose it’s as good as any….
I absolutely love the Wii!! Although it took me quite a while to finally get my hands on this console, it was definitely worth the wait. Wii Fit and Wii Sports have made exercise fun for me; thank you, Nintendo 🙂
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I have seen reports of people getting sports injuries from the Wii. Makes sense to me your actualy throwing or playing harder since you do not have the resistamce you would in real life with ball or raquet in hand. I still think it is alot of fun but could cause problems if you play too much.
I think Nintendo Wii is one of the best innovations ever! Look at the charts it is taking them all and the games for it are just amazing. I also love the new Wii motionplus accessory, looks really good.
I personally think that the Xbox 360 has no rival except for the PS3 in todays market. The Wii is fun, but isn’t really suitable for a hardcore gamer.
I was in love with the wii at first, but now it has fizzled for me. I guess I’m a sucker for graphics. I mean the concept is great, but give me something with halo type graphics with wii style controls then i’ll be happy
I think for many people it may have been a novelty but with games like Wii Fit and the very active dance games now available, it kind of makes a move into the lifestyle sector. No doubt that’s why it has been so popular because you can enjoy a different kind of gameplay that’s beneficial for you physically. Not only that, there are now karaoke games….
That’s quiet hilarious to come to think off it that virtually you get your muscles pulled and strained… I mean it truly is whacked out to come to think of it that you like an idiot have to imitate as if you are throwing the ball but in reality you aren’t. And you end up with muscles strains even without actually throwing a live ball. That’s just out right funny….
I’m technologically illiterate, but never ceases to amaze me the constant innovation of the technology in Wii. I enjoyed reading posts about Wii best price, purchase wii, buy Nintendo Wii, accessories, game. The Wii game was one of the hottest gifts last year. I have one and I love it! it’s a big hit when having family visit or company gathering. it’s definitely a very user interactive game.