Wii Sports

"A better pack in game than Mario / Duck Hunt?"

Sometimes it's the simplest of games that are the most outstanding. Wii Sports shows this more than any other game for a modern day console. It doesn't try to be flashy or complicated, and that's what makes it so much better than many games out there today where just the opposite is true. Overall, this game will quickly suck you in and show you first hand why everybody is catching Wii fever.

Making your way past the warning screen, a simple title screen presents itself to you and anyone else who may be playing. Player one holds down A and B, and you move on to the game selection menu. Here you will find everything there is to Wii Sports, which is...

Tennis (sub-score 9/10)

An enticing but perhaps oversimplified version version of the real deal, Tennis has you play a doubles match against a friend or the AI. If there aren't enough players for a doubles team, your player is simply duplicated and you play both spots. Normally this would over complicate things, but each of your players runs automatically, leaving only the swing to be performed by you.

"But how can that be fun?" you may be wondering. Well, it all comes down to the Wii's motion sensitive remote. You must actually swing the remote itself, like a tennis racket, to perform a shot. This requires some actual skill of the person wielding the remote. Hitting the ball at certain angles can cause the player to curve the ball, spike it, or give it backspin. On any other system this would require little more than the memorization of button combos, but the "Wiimote" puts you right in the middle of the sport.

Getting technical, options are quite limited for Tennis. You can choose anywhere between one and four players, but cannot choose teams. Obviously, if you wanted to be on a certain persons team, you would actually have to physically switch controllers. After this, you can choose between 1, 3, and 5 match sets, the only real customization in the game. Like all Wii sports games, you can choose between any Mii you have created to play as, or a few presets if you haven't bothered to make a Mii.

Overall, Tennis is a simple but fun little game.

Baseball (sub-score 8/10)

Baseball is perhaps the least true of all the Wii sports, leaving only tattered remains of the original game.

Of the little you do get to do, you are allowed to bat and pitch. Batting is simple, just swing the controller like a bat and watch it fly. Pitching adds the only real depth to the game, allowing you to choose between a few different pitches depending on what button combinations you hold down while you pitch. Moving the remote faster or slower while pitching also has the same effect on the pitch speed.

What's disappointing, aside from the fact that you can only play 3 inning games and there's no extra innings when the game is tied up, is that fielding is entirely automatic. This factor makes the game very comparable to Nintendo's early NES game, Baseball, which had nearly identical playing mechanics. For anyone familiar with this game, the fielding is thankfully much better in the Wii Sports rendition, though there are occasional errors. What's really annoying however, is that many plays that could have been double plays aren't thanks to an unwritten "one out at a time" rule.

Unlike Baseball for the NES though, even the base running is automatic! There is no control whatsoever. This means that people who could have scored on a sacrifice fly will simply stay on base. Also, the players don't run at all until the announcer tells you the type of hit, which looks very artificial.

There are almost no options when it comes to Baseball. You play either a 1 or 2 player 3-inning game every time. Aside from the shortcomings, however, the game does get addicting, and it is interesting to be able to bat with all of the other Miis of your system.

Overall, fun but way too limited.

Bowling (sub-score 10/10)

Wait, is bowling even a real sport? Ahem....anyways....

As far as realism goes, this one hit the nail on the head. If you tied a few weights to your hand while playing this game, you would never need to see a bowling alley again.

The game puts you in a picturesque little bowling alley complete with a whole bunch of people you don't know (and some you do) crowding you while you bowl. In order to bowl, you must simply hold down the B trigger while bringing your arm back, and release it while you're "throwing" the bowling ball. Sounds simple enough, right? Sorry pal, but like real bowling, there is a curve to your shots that must be dealt with. Thankfully, you can adjust your standing position and angle while preparing to make the shot by using the left and right arrows (and A button to toggle between the two options.) Suddenly, there's allot more involvement in this game, and you'll have to work to get that elusive 300 score.

Thankfully, unlike baseball, you are allowed to play a full bowling frame with up to four people at a time. Everything works exactly as it does in real bowling right down to the pin resetter.

Overall, possibly the most realistic of all the Wii games and definitely a heckuva lot of fun.

Golf (sub-score 9/10)

Golf may not be the most exciting of sports so to speak, but Nintendo did a marvelous job emulating the real sport here.

Golfing, like every other sport covered so far, requires the controller to be swung in some manner, in this case like a golf club while holding down the A button. The accuracy in a precision oriented game like Golf is a bit finicky, but nothing the player can't get used to. The power of the swing is measured by a power bar, as is the quid pro quo of virtual golfing, and swinging over the top of the bars limits causes the shot to hook. At this point control is a pretty standard deal.

Playing into the accuracy of your shot is wind resistance, your choice in clubs (which has been limited down to Driver, Iron, Wedge and Putter), and your kid siblings jumping on you while you're trying to swing. Well, maybe that last one is just me.

There are 9 holes in Golf, each getting steadily more intricate and challenging. These holes can be broken up into 3 at a time as "beginner", "intermediate", or "expert" modes. These holes are probably the best graphic displays seen in the entire game, and some of the views are actually breathtaking.

Overall, a well put together little golf simulator.

***One interesting little thing I noticed about Golf- All of the holes in this game can be found on Nintendo's original golf game, cleverly titled Golf, for the NES. Just another one of those Nintendo easter eggs I guess. Actually, Wii Golf and NES Golf are analogous in many ways, but now I'm editorializing...

Boxing (sub-score 9/10)

Definitely the most different of all the Wii Sports games, boxing is both very addicting and very tiring.

In this game, up to two players try to beat the snot out of each other (or the AI) using nothing but their fists of fury. Unlike all the other games in the bundle, this one has a very different control scheme; one requiring the use of the nunchuk controller add-on. Simply hold the controller in one hand and the nunchuk in the other, and punch away! Block by bringing the controllers back and dodge by bringing them down left or right. Bringing the other persons "health pie" down to nothing will knock him/her down. Do this enough times an you'll achieve a knockout! Doing certain types of punches unleashes limited number of combo moves, but I find that flailing around violently seems to work the best.

Like many early boxing games, you've got three rounds to go at it with the other player, and if no knockout occurs, the game decides who won by determining who won each round, and taking the highest number of round wins. Unlike most boxing games, there is no technical knockout (an automatic win after being knocked down 3 times in one round), so many Punchout fans will be disappointed.

So, if you like boxing games, you'll probably like this.

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Aside from these main games, there are some other things to be found on the main screen, such as...

Wii Fitness- A once a day fitness activity that measures your stamina, speed, and agility. Using these, it determines your Wii Sports age. You can only do this activity once a day, so don't mess up. Overall, an interesting concept.

Training- In other words, Mini Games!!! A bunch of games, based on the Wii Sports themselves, but with some added twist or another. This'll keep you occupied for a little bit.

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Furthermore, if you use your Mii, you can keep track of your personal high scores, your skill points (which ultimately gives you a PRO title at 1,000 points) and your Fitness medals (gold, silver, bronze.)

Well, thats all there is to Wii Sports. I'd recommend that you buy it, but it comes with each and every system, so everyone who has a Wii has this game. In this case, if you don't have a Wii, go get one so you can play this game. If you have a Wii already, my recommendation is that you play this game more often.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 01/03/08

Game Release: Wii Sports (US, 11/19/06)