Digital Sportspage Blog

OK. I admit it. I got caught up in the hype of the Wii’s revolutionary controls and secured my launch day system. I lavished praise upon the Wii for its cute, intuitive interface, motion-sensitive controls and family-fun factor. I predicted a long and fruitful future for the console, and expected it to place second in the sales total once the war for this generation ends.

All of those compliments still ring true, but there’s more to my feelings on the Wii now that the launch-window euphoria has worn off. The graphics stink. Yes, I know this console is very explicit in its claim that it’s “not about the graphics”, but every time I power on my Wii I’m left wishing I could meld the fun of Wii Sports with the graphics of the PS3 or 360. Oh, and the controls…STINK. WHAT? The revolutionary control scheme that’s got even grandma rushing out to buy Nintendo’s latest is actually flawed? Well, the truth is YES…and NO. When used to create a simple but fun game like Wii Sports, they work great, but nearly every other developer’s efforts feel tacked on, gimmicky, unresponsive or just plain ‘off’. As for online…well, there isn’t any…Wii’re going to party like it’s 1989.

I hope these issues are related to the development community being caught off-guard by Wii’s success, and that rich and rewarding control experiences (especially for deeper sports games) lie ahead, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a bit concerned. Tiger Woods for the Wii is a good game, it lacks 1:1 control and can be frustrating when a great round is ruined by a drive that goes 40 yds due to an inexplicable response from the controller. I have a solution for more advanced control; listen up EA. There needs to be a wireless ’sensor bar’ released by EA made explicitly for use ON THE FLOOR. The user would have to swing over the bar and it will therefore track precise tilt/angle/speed etc. of the virtual club as it strikes the ball. Without this, your left mimmicking real golf while struggling to ‘trick’ the system into doing what you want - not unlike a pair of analog sticks…Could also prove useful for NHL games and more. The fact of the matter is that Guitar Hero II on the 360 is a more Wii-like experience lately than playing the Wii itself; perhaps controls should be a system peripheral rather than a system itself?

Nintendo needs to get an online game system right away. For a console that’s all about playing with others, it’s shameful not to have head-to-head online play out of the box; not everyone has a stable of family and friends ready or willing to play at all times.

What’s the future for the Wii? Big sales success in terms of the console, BIG sales nightmare in terms of software. What Nintendo seems to have forgotten is that the casual gamer isn’t likely to buy a ton of games; they may just pay $249 for a wonderful Wii Sports player. Without more releases, leveraging the best of what the control scheme can do, people won’t be buying new games.

The Wii is a ‘potentially’ great compliment to my gaming library, but it’s been severely under-used lately; I’m even thinking of picking up a PS3 (the horror!). Without some games, online play, and some serious support for the system’s possibilities by the developer community, Wii may be bored straight to eBay.