Wii Fit...first impressions (long post)

[Razer]

OK, I'm gonna say this much about the entire Wii Fit package after 13 minutes of registered play time (about 1 hour in total). I wo ill try not to give my opinions on the aesthetics of it (whether I like the particular shade of green they use on the packaging) and stick to how I feel it holds up in terms of what it's presented to do.

First off, I had a problem getting my bigass feet to fit on the balance board. This thing was definitely NOT made for size 13's so if your feet are above a Men's size 10, you may not reflect accurately. It doesn't create a totally incorrectable situation but I did have to move my footing forward to better balance myself on the board. This, however, left my toes hanging off of the front and made me feel like a monkey gripping for balance. Not a "Titanic" level disatster but I have to mention it for those of us that have big feet.

You'll have to sync up the board with the Wii first so make sure you read the manual (I'm one of the few that actually still read all manuals and docs before playing any games). This also creates 2 problems.
The first (minor) is that the board occupies the Player4 slot so if you have a controller connected to that spot in any way, it will be over written for now. The entire game looks to be single player as far as the board goes so that's not a problem.
The second is the major problem for me...The entire game looks to be single player as far as the board goes. You cannot connect two balance boards to the Wii so despite the fact that not many of us will actually drop $200 you can't have head-to-head board competitions. I know We Ski utilizes the board and it's multiplayer so I'll see exactly if it has found an override to this if I get the game. As for now tho, Nin themselves say it can't be done (in the manual).

On to the actual "gameplay". It's not a game so don't expect to be "SSX Blurring" or "Tony Hawking" all over the place. It's designed for fitness. Actual game apps will have to come from other titles/developers. It's (the Wii Fit package) not intended for that so no points lost tho. The board seems to be very precise and it will PO you when you get Wii Fit judged. I'm guessing everyone's read the story of the 11 year old girl who cried after it told her she was obese. Well the board asks for your height and age. It weighs you and then creates it's assessment. It CANNOT tell if you have 20 pounds on your gut or your chest tho so guys who workout (or Godly endowed top-heavy women) will not be judged accurately. 15 pounds of boobs or pecs looks like 15 pounds of stomach or thighs to the Wii Fit board. When it says you're obese or overweight...GET OVER IT! The next section makes it irrelevant anyway.

It then allows you to set your target weight loss goal and tells you how much you have to lose per two-weeks to reach it. Yes, you can have your own Celebrity Fit Club in your own home. I set mine for 20 pounds over the next three months and it showed I had to lose 3.1 pounds per two-weeks. Very useful. Now if I can only stick to the exercises...SUBWAY, bring on the $5 footlongs!!!

I won't go too much into the games because I haven't opened up anything worth mentioning. There's the soccer heading thing, a couple skate/snowboarding things and the stuff you've already seen all over.

Overall, I think it was a worthwhile purchase which will justify itself in reality if I can keep to being dedicated enough to use it. That's the rub. You're bound to see people bitching over the next few weeks/months on how useless it is but it's like signing up for a gym membership and not going. If you can accept that you're out of shape (in whatever way) then it shouldn't be a problem. Should everyone get it? No. If I were 150 pounds at my current height (6'3") then I wouldn't bother because it's not a game. You may have to get it if they never release the board separately but as far as the Wii Fit exercises, only the overweight or undertoned (the aerobics and yoga sections are very good) need apply. I also don't think it can accurately assess children under 16 but that's only my opinion and based on the similarities between it and the Brain Age rating systems.

I don't know if this helped anyone or not but I'd say it's a solid, sturdy piece of kit (been reading way too many British mags) and the programs are cool. Also, at $60 for a Wiimote/nunchuck combo, $70 for the PS3 Eye/EoJ package (where Eye Of Judgment isn't worth the plastic the disc is pressed with), and $55 for a Dualshock 3, the Wii Fit package is not over priced, IMO.

If there any Q's, just post 'em and I'll try to clear up anything.

[Aiman]

I was thinking of getting it. I've been meaning to get my fat ass in shape and what better way than playing Nintendo, right?

Let me know what you think about it. I might pick it up this weekend. So far it sounds like you like it, but you're still holding up on some stuff.

I'll do some research on my own too and see if it's worth it.

[Razer]

I'd always suggest to anyone to that they should do their own research so that's a good idea. The way I am, I never just go "It's great!" (unless it's Pokemon which is...GREAT!) and always try to find the weaknesses or areas that may disappoint someone. That's the kind of review I like and that's the kind I give. The recurring things I've been noticing in reviews of the Wii Fit package is that it fails as a game. Well it should because it is not a game. It's not even where I'd judge it as a minigame fest (unlike Wii Play). I believe that if it's used as a fitness product (for lack of a better term) then it's worth the money. One major thing we Americans have against working out or staying fit is our ego. We're more concerned about someone seeing our fat than we are about losing it. Here, we can work out (lightly) in the privacy of our own homes instead of risking public embarrassment. I had a Bally's membership that I wasted because my ass was too lazy to go. Now i can do my 30 minutes at virtually any time and I don't have to drive to get to it. Works for me.

Now, I don't want to compare whatever workout you'll get with Wii Fit against a real gym membership but in it's extreme examples there was one guy who used Wii Sports as a daily training regimen and lost like 30 pounds and got really toned (somewhere on Youtube, I think) so it's not like you can't do it.

As a gaming peripheral, the Balance Board still can't be judged because there's no games out for it. You do have the mini games included and We Ski so it obviously can be used (and I read that it may be implemented for a version of Tetris coming to WiiWare) but it'll depend on how well developers utilize it.

If you're thinking about toning up and losing a couple pounds but do have any hangups (mine is primarily $90 vs a monthly membership commitment) then I think it's at least a worthwhile purchase. The fact that you can't connect more than one to a Wii is a bit fuct tho and defeintiely limits it's gaming value.

[GAAZ]

Though I think the Wii Fit is dumb because you could sub it out with a block of wood and get the same excersizes if you DL the old Stair master excersize videos. It did create a funny comic:

Located here