To WII or not to WII?

[vaclav]

They are making a version of MotoGP '08 for the Wii. It was due in December but got postponed to February. I haven't bought a gaming system since original Playstation but we thought the whole family would enjoy it so we bought the Wii. The wife and I have previewed it (it is going to be a Christmas present) and it is pretty fun for us. Of course we have no basis for comparison against other modern systems.

[erkishhorde]

They are making a version of MotoGP '08 for the Wii. It was due in December but got postponed to February. I haven't bought a gaming system since original Playstation but we thought the whole family would enjoy it so we bought the Wii. The wife and I have previewed it (it is going to be a Christmas present) and it is pretty fun for us. Of course we have no basis for comparison against other modern systems.

I think the Wii is a good family system. I used to be a gamer (not hardcore, but still a somewhat serious gamer) and regret that my parents let me waste my childhood in front of a computer or a TV. While I thoroughly enjoyed playing games as a kid I've had to work pretty hard to build up my social skills. I think the Wii and it's larger variety of social games help a lot. Also the fact that almost anyone can play a Wii game with a very short learning curve helps adults play and still have fun (look at the seniors playing Wii sports).

My dad would sometimes try to play games w/ me when I was younger but his reflexes are slow and he's not as dexterous as your average gamer (precision movements on the little joysticks are actually pretty tough) and he never really had much fun. He tried playing Little Big Planet w/ me on my PS3 and had a blast but sometimes would get frustrated when couldn't do precision things like jumping over large gaps onto small pedestals and then would want to give up for a while.

[toaster]

just get a wii and you will love it.  i wanted one from the first time i saw them and once i got it im glad i did.  as stated before, they make the perfect party system.  there is nothing more fun than getting a bunch of drunks up and about playing bowling.  you can have the most shy person at the party and once you get them into the game they seem to open up and are more fun than ever (and stay that way) because you can have fun even if you have no skill.

last time we partied with it was a thanksgiving deal with lots of adults and they picked it up in no time and were having the most fun ever.  i actually felt bad for everyone because there were three people there that decided they wanted one and its all my fault.

now if only they could come up with a way to do wii beer pong.

[NAKID]

I still with they would have kept the working name: "Nintendo Revolution"

[Triple J]

We got a Wii last night.

It's fun as hell.  We only have the standard sports games now, but I'll be making a trip to the store this weekend. 

[KnightofNi]

we just got a game called "boom Blox"

it's got a jenga style game on it. that was friggin hilarious to play hammered.

[mdriver]

Do not listen to the man in the tin foil hat!
He plays with a pocket calculator that we tell him is a Wii.

After talking to 4 of my friends that either own or have owned a Wii I feel comfortable calling it an electronic board game. The only time any of them ever use it is when they have a party.

[KnightofNi]

Do not listen to the man in the tin foil hat!
He plays with a pocket calculator that we tell him is a Wii.

After talking to 4 of my friends that either own or have owned a Wii I feel comfortable calling it an electronic board game. The only time any of them ever use it is when they have a party.

hey now. i know my calculators, and sir, what you told me is a wii is not a calculator. well, not unless it's one of those supr fancy texas instruments ones that are banned from SAT testing rooms

[slowpoke13]

Broke down and bought one Friday. It's been loads of fun. All I have is Wii sports and I'm enjoying the hell out of it. It is fun drunk, that's a given. It's overly simple, which I like. And, it's freakin fun. Bought 2000 Wii points and plan on getting Techmo Bowl, blades of steel, and a few other choice classics tomorrow.

Will it surpass a PS3 or XBOX? Negative. Is it a lot easier and simpler to just pick up and have fun? I think so.

[Triple J]

So my initial excitement for the Wii has gone down a bit. 

Saturday I went and got the Wii steering wheel, a Ferrari race game, and a fancy aftermarket bowling game.

The Wii steering wheel sucks ass...at least for this game. It's not accurate enough. You'll try to turn, and nothing will happen, then it'll turn after you leave the course...and on and on. WTF! I've tried everything...no go. $40 for the game, plus $15 for the steering wheel wasted. 

Next up...the new bowling game. It also sucks. The game can't tell when you're trying to put a spin on the ball...or can barely tell, so gameplay is very inconsistent. My wife and I both tried various methods for an hour before giving it up...even though the directions say you play the game just like the Nintendo version. Another $20 wasted. 

Conclusion: aftermarket games suck for the Wii. The non-Nintendo manufacturers haven't figured out how to make the technology work well. It works...just not well. At least for these 2 aftermarket games.

Oh well...the Nintendo sports games work great and are still fun.

[KnightofNi]

i don't have any issues with my non-nintendo brand games.

check your batteries, and make sure no buttons are being pressed. (or held too long)

also check the angle to your sensor bar and make sure that you have the system set up correctly to know where the sensor bar is. mine got knocked off at an agle and it threw us way off.

[Triple J]

All that stuff seems fine. As soon as we started playing the standard Nintendo sports games everything worked great. Batteries are new, and the bar is in the same place it always has been (above the TV).

Maybe it is just the 2 games I bought. 

[KnightofNi]

interesting....i hope it's just the games, and not your system.

[Statler]

We have one or two games where the controls just don't work.   One has lawn darts similar to bowling motion that just has zero control.

Other games work just fine...Mario Cart is great.

I've found unlike other systems, for the wii it pays to read the 'pro' reviews or rent first.

[yamifixer]

my wife just bought me one. it's been 5 days and i'm adicted to it.

drunk party bowling is a blast and Mario cart is great for showing you why drinking and driving is VERY bad idea.