E3: Wii Sports Impressions

Substance over style – that’s Nintendo’s mantra and it comes through on it’s collection of sports titles. The selections that were demoed where its flying simulator (think Pilotwings), Tennis, Golf, and Baseball. Basically all the games revolved around the use of the Wiimote exclusively, and the titles hardly used any buttons either. It’s important the state now that the same problems that plagued my playing of the Metroid demo affected this title.

First, I tried out the Tennis game and it might just be worth the price of admission alone. Supporting up to four players simultaneously, Wii Tennis looks promising as a simple, yet addicting party game. All players have to do is hit the ball as it closes in on their avatar – players don’t even control their avatar’s movement. Then, depending on the speed and the direction of your swing, the ball follows that path. Despite some problems that I felt came from the controller (though it could really be me, I suck at tennis) as I was surprised at the fluidity and accuracy of how my motions were represented on screen. I attempted a few lobs and ‘smashes’ (my version of a smash is me flailing wildly) and they were represented as such on the screen. The only thing I couldn’t get used to was the correlation between my angle on hitting the ball, and where it would end up on the screen. The game was, unexpectedly, a lot of fun, and I’m definitely looking forward to it when it comes out.

Next up was golf. I proved to be a surprisingly accurate simulation of golf (I overheard people saying that it could actually help them with their real life golfing game). Not much to say about the title other than that it’s accurate, fun, and useful as more than just a game.

I personally didn’t play the flying game, but it seemed like simple fare. Players took the Wiimote and turned it sideways and held it with both hands. The game reacted wonderfully to minute movements and it really looked like a great flight simulator. Whether or not they’ll be missions and objectives a la Pilotwings has yet to be seen.

Lastly, I tried out the Baseball title. The mode I played was basically a home run derby (though I believe a normal game of baseball is also included). I only played Baseball for a minute and, admittedly, I sucked. However, a home-run king came up after me. His stance was perfect, his swing was strong, and he had excellent follow through – and he kept hitting homers. Thus, I was lead to believe that these games really reward playing the sports ‘correctly’. When I missed, it was my inexperience that was to blame, and when a skilled person came up, he did well. With this level of sensitivity, I believe Nintendo is truly making innovative titles and I am beginning to understand their stance on ‘Next-Gen’.

Substance over style – that’s Nintendo’s mantra and it comes through on it’s collection of sports titles. The selections that were demoed where its flying simulator (think Pilotwings), Tennis, Golf, and Baseball. Basically all the games revolved around the use of the Wiimote exclusively, and the titles hardly used any buttons either. It’s important the state now that the same problems that plagued my playing of the Metroid demo affected this title.

First, I tried out the Tennis game and it might just be worth the price of admission alone. Supporting up to four players simultaneously, Wii Tennis looks promising as a simple, yet addicting party game. All players have to do is hit the ball as it closes in on their avatar – players don’t even control their avatar’s movement. Then, depending on the speed and the direction of your swing, the ball follows that path. Despite some problems that I felt came from the controller (though it could really be me, I suck at tennis) as I was surprised at the fluidity and accuracy of how my motions were represented on screen. I attempted a few lobs and ‘smashes’ (my version of a smash is me flailing wildly) and they were represented as such on the screen. The only thing I couldn’t get used to was the correlation between my angle on hitting the ball, and where it would end up on the screen. The game was, unexpectedly, a lot of fun, and I’m definitely looking forward to it when it comes out.

Next up was golf. I proved to be a surprisingly accurate simulation of golf (I overheard people saying that it could actually help them with their real life golfing game). Not much to say about the title other than that it’s accurate, fun, and useful as more than just a game.

I personally didn’t play the flying game, but it seemed like simple fare. Players took the Wiimote and turned it sideways and held it with both hands. The game reacted wonderfully to minute movements and it really looked like a great flight simulator. Whether or not they’ll be missions and objectives a la Pilotwings has yet to be seen.

Lastly, I tried out the Baseball title. The mode I played was basically a home run derby (though I believe a normal game of baseball is also included). I only played Baseball for a minute and, admittedly, I sucked. However, a home-run king came up after me. His stance was perfect, his swing was strong, and he had excellent follow through – and he kept hitting homers. Thus, I was lead to believe that these games really reward playing the sports ‘correctly’. When I missed, it was my inexperience that was to blame, and when a skilled person came up, he did well. With this level of sensitivity, I believe Nintendo is truly making innovative titles and I am beginning to understand their stance on ‘Next-Gen’.