Wii SPORTS
This is not the X-Games, even if you’re playing in Aspen

By Jack Pfeiffer

“Wii Sports” is the variety sports game that’s packaged with Nintendo Wii—if you’re fortunate enough to have gotten your hands on the system. This game’s got variety and by variety, I mean everything from bowling to boxing and baseball to tennis. Okay, so there’s no yoga.

Nintendo had a choice to make when producing these system “extras.” They could have gone for quality not quantity. But instead they opted for quantity, and not quality. Only two of the games—bowling and tennis—are worth loading into the system. The graphics are passable, but nothing worthy of a hi-def TV. Make that nothing worthy of even a 26” TV.

The single most important aspect about these collected sports games is that players can create their own character or chose from a healthy list of stereotypes.

In all, Wii Sports is no reason to buy a Wii. Unless you’re gaming with friends, the single player mode is completely worthless. With all the popular attention across this nation on obesity and transfats, the geniuses over at Nintendo apparently thought it would be a good idea to add an optional counter for the calories that you’d burn if you were actually really participating in the sport on the screen in front of you…probably as you sit or even lie on the sofa. I beg you, don’t count this as exercise; it’s a video game!

Jack says: Wii Sports is 3 out of 5.