There is not a single Wii owner who didn’t get several hours out of fun gameplay from the original Wii Sports. People held Wii parties, bragging how they owned this innovative and fun system. Like a virus, non-gamers couldn’t resist the fun and vibrant lure of the Nintendo Wii. Unfortunately, most of those Wii owners have since abandoned the console for a good book or a night on the town. Now, Nintendo has released Wii Sports Resort, an upgraded version of the original 2007 Wii Sports. There are 12 games included in Sports Resort, some of which offer multiple modes of play. Like its predecessor Wii Sports, most games you will find gameplay more rewarding when played with multiple people. The major different between the two releases, however, is the advent of Wii Motion Plus. This peripheral has become a godsend to the console, finally allowing the Wii to have the responsive control Nintendo always claimed it possessed. If you don’t have Wii-Motion Plus you’ll be out of luck if you want to play Sports Resort. All the games included require the accessory. And, fortunately, it’s all for the better.
Golfing, Bowling and Table Tennis have all had a Motion Plus upgrade from the original Wii Sports. Golf allows you to do drifts and fades much like this years Golfing hit Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10. Although this mini game is not nearly as robust as Tiger Woods 10, it is a large step ahead of the original Wii Sports Golf release. Table Tennis will mimic your hand movements as you tilt the paddle. Bowling is a lot less forgiving than the original version due to the responsiveness to your hand movements. So, several gamers who thought they were bowling aficionados after Wii Sports will have to get some practice in to match their previous levels.
Swordplay has three modes: Duel, Speed Slice and Showdown. In Duel mode, you and other player fence each other similar to the style of Joust on American Gladiators, where you win by knocking your opponent off the platform. Slashes are performed flawlessly with Wii-Motion Plus. At first, the game really comes down to who can waggle the Wii-more the fastest. But, once you learn that blocking with the B button stuns your opponent, there is a small level of strategy that comes into play. In Speed Slice mode, you will have to compete against your opponent to slice one of several objects first. Each object will require a different directional slice, making this an entertaining quick-draw game. Showdown mode is relatively boring. You simply move across the bridge waggling your Wii-mote at several Mii’s, all lacking good AI.
Wakeboarding is a fun event, especially when challenging an opponent. You hold the Wii-mote horizontally like you would hold the rope handle, while Wakeboarding. You flip the Wii-Mote up against each wake, created by the boat pulling you. As you fly into the air, your motion with the Wii-mote will alter the tricks your Mii performs. For the trick to count, you must bring your Wii-mote back to a horizontal-resting position as soon as your Mii lands back on the water. If you don’t, your Mii’s board will sink several inches into the water and you will not earn any points. This is one of the few games that is fun to play on its own, as you can continue to play to best your personal score.
The Frisbee mode includes an unlockable Frisbee Golf game. The motions with the Wii Motion plus are excellent 1 to 1 movements. As you move back so does your Mii. Tilts left, right, up or down will affect your throw. Just like the golf game enclosed this is a game of precision.
Archery is great game in Sports Resort. You pull back on the nunchuk attachment as if it were the string of your bow, while holding up your Wii-mote vertically as your bow to aim. There are three levels of difficulty. As you progress, distance, moving targets and obstacles all help to raise the stakes on complexity.
Basketball has two versions: 3-on-3 Play or a 3-Point contest. The 3-point contest is great to play in groups, since you are thrust into the feel of the NBA All Star Game. However, the 3-on-3 Game is probably the worst mini-game packaged in Wii Sports Resort. The dribbling controls are not intuitive and playing is a chore that will sap the life from your party.
Power Cruising is a motorboat game, where you hold the Wii-mote and nunchuk in your hands much like holdings the handlebars on a bicycle. As you navigate through different checkpoints on the course, you can do different tricks for added points. This game requires some getting use to in order to not drift off the course. However, once you get the hang of it, there’s definitely fun to be had.
Remember how I said that 3-on-3 Basketball was the worst game in Wii Sports Resort. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. There are three other games that are so bad, that I wish they were not packaged with this otherwise fun and entertaining release. Canoeing, Cycling and Air Sports seem to have been thrown into this release simply as a means of getting the number of mini-games to a nice even number over 10. In Canoeing, you will need to hold your Wii-mote vertically like a paddle, and paddle left and right to keep your canoe straight. It sounds simple, but you will have to do this motion very fast in a race to win. Kids will enjoy this, but I’m sure the adult gamers out there are tired of the excessive gaming workout. Cycling isn’t much different. This minigame requires you to pump the Wii-mote and nunchuk quickly to accelerate. Each gamer has three hearts, and if you pump to quickly, you will get exhausted and your head will turn blue. Fun? Not really. Air Sports is surprisingly labeled “Recommended” within the game. Skydiving and Island Flyover are complete wastes of time, and I won’t bother discussing the particulars. Dogfight is the only game that requires two players, but should really require four. If you ever played Starfox on the N64, you can immediately guess why. 1-on-1 matches are just not as fun as four on four.
The graphics in Wii Sports Resort are an immense step above 2007’s Wii Sports. You’ll see more refined textures on grassy surfaces, as well as more motion in the water. In Wakeboarding, the wakes and water splashes help show off the game’s responsive physics system. The sound isn’t anything too amazing. The music sounds like the music you’d expect in a resort lobby. It’s upbeat and soothing at best, but goes well with the game’s resort style.
Wii Sports Resort is definitely one game to own on the Wii, especially if you only bought the system after playing the original Wii Sports. This game serves as a marketing promo of all the great new things (hopefully) you can expect from Wii gaming, thanks to Wii Motion Plus. However, you’ll need to go out and pick up an extra Motion Plus accessory so that you can engage in some competitive play. There are a few games included, like Wakeboarding and Archery, which only require one player to game at a time in competition. Just remember that for games like table tennis, you won’t be able to play 1-on-1 without the accessory. If you are a hardcore gamer or loath Wii-parties, this may not be for you. However, it is worth checking out, if only to see the capabilities and power of Wii Motion Plus.
source: buzzfocus.com
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