My Wii Experience

I didn’t snag any “exclusive” photos or “revealing” insight. I simply sat down with a few friends today and played the Wii. I’ve expressed my feelings that the PS3 is simply out of my price range and that the games don’t seem abundant enough to suit what I’m looking for (fun, in-and-out games such as LocoRoco). The Wii, on the other hand, fits both categories in what I’m looking for. So, I’ll be getting one. Maybe as soon as January? March? September 2009?

Anyways, my Wii experience was very enjoyable. The Wii, at first glance is just how I imagined it: thin, small, and very iPod-like. The white finish is really nice and the docking station is a nice way to keep your Wii standing upright. The CD slot is sleek, as well, and the hidden compartments (for SD cards, GameCube controllers and memory) prevent any of the slots from getting damaged and also continue the clean design without revealing too many buttons or ports.

The Wiimote is very small and extremely enjoyable. Backhanding and serving my way through Wii Sports tennis, I found it was very easy to use and it took only about 10 minutes to really understand the game. By understand, I mean the ability to win. The AI’s on Wii Sports are really easy, which proves that Sports is nothing more than a good way to test your Wii (& clearly not worth $50 at all, but not necessarily fun unless you’re playing with more than one person. My friend only has one Wiimote, so we were trading off. With bowling, golf, and baseball, multiple people can play with one controller.

On the other hand, I felt that the nunchuk was really cheap. It felt like a piece of plastic, even though the analog stick and extra buttons were obviously nice to touch and not awkwardly placed. The nunchuk felt light enough that I could swing it around a few times like a rope without much tug or pull. The Wiimote feels very light, except when in the range of the sensor bar (which I found very sloppy at times). It gets heavier. Small accents like the speaker on the Wiimote, special and familiar sounds, and more all encourage the Wii to be more friendly to gamers than the 360 and PS3.

Zelda’s graphics are superb. Much more than I expected from such a small console that has been ripped by SONY fanboys. And while I must admit that they are probably nowhere near the graphical advancements of the 360 and PS3, they are still pretty damn good. Graphics and HD aren’t necessarily departments where I care to overspend my money. Especially considering that I still lack HD and 420p. Gears of War and Resistance are probably twice as fun, but Zelda is still engaging enough to be a must-have for any Wii owner. Only if the game offered less in-game movies and talking and allowed for gameplay while riding on your horse, etc.

The Mii Creator is really only necessary if you are a) dying to play Wii Sports or b) bored like hell. It is a boring system just to line them up, but it is fun to play with your own creations in Wii Sports (and hopefully in other games for the Wii in the future, as well). I also like the feature of how you can save your Miis on your Wiimote and carry it to a friends. This just increases the opportunities to play with others instead of alone like many people choose to do.

The forecast and news channels aren’t available (forecast arrives 12/20, news 1/27/07) yet but they remain on the Wii menu for just when an update arrives. The shopping channel is bare at this moment, but I’m sure it will pick up in the near future. Overall, my Wii experience was very enjoyable & it makes me want to buy one more and more.