Wii Sports Resort – Reviewed

Hey all, it’s been a while since I’ve submitted Wuup content, but here I am. Back in business and ready to drag another game title through Jigsaw’s house to see what comes out the other side.

So, after a year’s absence, and two Wiis later, I’ve got myself a copy of Wii Sports Resort. What could be considered the true sequel to the flagship (well, freebie) Wii Sports included in the clinically beautiful Wii console packaging; Nintendo has once again lured us into the psychotically jolly world of the Mii and their obsessive sporting pursuits.

Wii Sports Resort is essentially an extension of its older sibling, reintroducing you and your novice gaming family into the world of the commercially reliable lure of motion sensor technology, all wrapped up in a simplified controller and trademark Nintendo graphic appeal. In this sense it isn’t truly a game. As with its predecessor, Wii Sports Resort is more of a promotion of the latest Nintendo hardware release, the ‘Motion Plus’. Yes. Plus. Click this onto the butt of your remote and you get an extra motion sensor – which arguably should have been there in the first place.

Regardless, snap it on and play away on some fairly pleasing little mini games. Firing up the game for the first time, your Mii is thrown out of a plane: but don’t worry! This is Nintendo so no real danger here. Just bright colours, smiley faces and fun controls. Settling into the familiar tabular menu presents you with a hefty choice of games, each with their own unique setting on the resort: the hilariously named Wuhu Island.

Choosing your sport will gently push you through a painless tutorial; complete with rosy music you’ll be subconsciously bobbing your head to in no time. One particular favourite of mine is the anger management favourite ‘Swordplay’. Recreating a scene from the awesome 90’s TV Show Gladiators, you slap and block your way to prodding your opponent off the fighting platform and into the drink – all with your remote. This comes complete with ear pleasing sound effects and eye pleasing squints of pain on your opponents face. Just try not to contort your own face into embarrassment as you get carried away beating up the cute characters.

Moving on to the other side of the island, try your hand at archery, another entertaining ten minutes. Simulating the bow for your remote and your nunchuck as the arrow flight, pull back your hand and release a button to send your deathly weapon into the target and receive a friendly pat on the back from the super duper happy commentary.

In addition to the fairly simple tabular choice of sports is…erm, not much else. Where tight fisted households leaned towards remote sharing games such as the bowling in the original Wii Sports, you will find yourself missing out on some multiplayer larks due to lack of hardware again. It seems that in reality, being a smiley, white trouser wearing, yoga practising, Ant and Dec befriending Wii nuclear family is an expensive undertaking.

This is a real shame, and is something that Nintendo may have attempted to fix with a simple online gameplay feature to patch up missed multiplayer opportunities in what could be fairly fun gaming ditties. Alas, as with the entire introduction of this motion plus, I can hear the Nintendo cash register ka-ching-ing with all its might.

But as a simple hour or so of relaxing with friends or family over Christmas or before a drink fuelled rampage through town, Sports Resort does the job. It may not truly warrant a full price purchase for a single player fanatic or a friendless loner, but if you’ve got some spare cash around and fancy buying the motion plus for future games, Nintendo wants you to press through this ‘promotion’ sequence one more time.