Let's be perfectly honest. Wii Sports, the pack-in offering from Nintendo for its newest console entry, is a tech demo of what players and early adopters can expect from the hardware and its unconventional capabilities. This is not a slide against the title or the Wii itself, merely a fact. Few of the title's included games are fleshed out to the point of inspiring continued play beyond an hour or so. Instead, the bulk of the title's various motion-based games serve as an almost perfect introduction into what we can expect from the Wii in the months to follow the console's debut. Inserted into the Wii, the console becomes an instant conversation piece, drawing attention from anyone within visual range of players as they move and wave their arms while taking part in the experience. The Wii is an experience, and Wii Sports is a perfect demonstration of that experience.Nintendo is blazing a new and largely unexplored trail with the Wii in its desire to appeal to gamers and non-gamers alike, and while time will tell if the gaming community at large will follow, for the short term Wii Sports makes perfect sense as an introduction to the Wii's mechanics. Not everyone has played Super Mario Bros. or The Legend of Zelda , but everyone who picks up the Wii remote is likely to be familiar with baseball and knows full well how to swing a tennis racket.

The included games, from baseball and tennis, to bowling, golf, and even boxing are admittedly simplistic caricatures of their real life counterparts, but the emulation is such that they do not have to be realistic. That's not the point. Rather, the point - an area where Wii Sports excels - is to get people engaged in a party-like atmosphere where those watching the game are just as engaged as those actively participating in what is taking place on the screen. While the game itself may not be played much in the weeks to follow the Wii's debut, newcomers asking the inevitable question of "What is that?" when gesturing toward the Wii will almost always inspire a Wii Sports breakout session of short term but hilariously entertaining fun.

Bowling is by far the most fleshed out entry in the collection, and this, along with perhaps tennis, will likely get the most play time. The game, which can be played with up to four participants, requires players to stand up, hold the Wii remote to their chest while pressing and holding the B button, and then replicate an arm swing and release B as if they were throwing a real bowling ball down the lane. Aim can be adjusted as well, and the game can even detect whether or not a spin was pit in the throw for a reasonably accurate representation of the sport.

While bowling my be the most accurate of the bunch, tennis is perhaps the most entertaining. Always played as doubles and allowing up to four players to compete simultaneously, the game is a riotous party game that will have players clamoring for the Wii remote for a chance to whack the virtual ball over the net.

Golf is perhaps the one included game i was most excited to get my hands on, no doubt due to my affinity towards Sony's always entertaining Hot Shots franchise. While Wii Sports' replication of the golf experience is even more simplified than Sony's take, the control more than makes up for any shortcomings. Complete with a variety of courses and a short list of clubs, Wii Sports' golf is an instant attraction, especially for fans of the sport. It's sometimes difficult to guesstimate how hard or soft to swing your arm to hit the virtual ball, but otherwise, this is another worthwhile addition to the collection.

Unlike the other sports represented in the set, baseball is a fairly oversimplified hitting and pitching simulation, with even pitching taking a fairly muted back seat to the hitting mechanic. The player playing as the pitcher simply motions toward the television and presses either the A, B, or both buttons to instigate a certain type of pitch while aiming with the d-pad. The batter, on the other hand, simply swings the Wii remote like a bat in predictable fashion. Despite not having much to it, hitting the ball is actually a good deal of fun, though the lack of any control of the outfielders is a bit disappointing. Even so, like each of the other entries, this is perhaps a taste of what other companies may bring to the Wii as part of a more robust simulation of America's favorite pastime.

Of all of the games included in the compilation, boxing is the only one to require the Wii remote's optional nunchuck attachment, and it is likewise arguably the weakest entry in the set. In taking both control components in hand, one or two players literally throw punches toward the screen as their avatar duplicates these motions by punching the on-screen opponent. While a variety of different types of punches are recognized by the Wii, simple jabs are oftentimes the most effective recourse. This, of course, results in matches being distilled to a player simply throwing his or her arms at the screen as fast and manically as possible. It's humorous to watch, but not much fun for those doing the actual playing.

Wii Sports' presentation is as simplified as its content, with simple 3D shapes adorned with either pre-generated or customized Wii facial features perched on top of their geometric frames. The game also allows for the use of customized Mii avatars, which further add to the hilarity of the experience. Of course, as has been Nintendo's idiom since embarking upon this path, the graphics are downplayed to the point of obscurity with Wii Sports, and that alone will make this game an acquired taste for some. However, one need only pick up the controller and play a game or two of tennis or bowling to fully realize its charm. This is a simple game about simple fun, and everyone owes it to themselves to try it out to get a taste for what the Wii may in fact have in store for us all very soon.

Score: 80%

Nov 15, 2006 | 0 comments
Jason Dobson