Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

Nintendo Wii

By


November is a huge month for the gaming industry. The release of the Playstation 3 and Nintendo Wii is highly anticipated among gamers. Without question though, more gamers are interested in the Wii due to its next-gen control system, which allows gamers to interact more closely with games. A few weeks ago Nintendo invited press to a private event held at their Rockefeller Plaza store in NYC. We got to spend a couple hours checking out new DS, GameCube, and Wii titles all without interruption. After 2 hours though, the Wii left much to be desired.

Nintendo Wii
The Nintendo Wii and Remote Control

Recommended Videos

Upon entering the store, Wii Sports was the first available title on display. They had boxing, golf, and bowling available for play. The games clearly target a younger audience; cartoonish and basic. The golf game is obviously not supposed to be the next “Tiger Woods” competitor, but the game isn’t all that fun. In fact, Wii Sports isn’t that fun in general. The games are great for parties and get-togethers with people who don’t game as much, but the titles will get old very fast. Don’t expect a Mike Tyson’s Punch Out from the boxing game either, although that was significantly more exciting than golf.

Wii Sports
The Wii Sports Display

Related

After grabbing a drink, I headed upstairs and found the good stuff. Here, games like Madden, Zelda, and Call of Duty were available to try out for a while. But before I could even think of checking out games like Zelda, I was asked to try ExciteTruck. I agreed, grabbed the Wiimote and went at it. The game was pretty basic and all you had to do was hold down the A-button to accelerate while you steer by tilting the controller. Fun? Sort of. But what bothered me was that the game had graphics similar to Twisted Metal on Playstation One. This is 2006. Your console may have a completely new way of playing it, but you can make those graphics a little better. It didn’t even look as good as some Nintendo 64 games I’ve played. 10 minutes later and a bit disappointed, I headed over to check out Call of Duty 3.

Wiimote
The Nintendo Wii Remote

Call of Duty 3 looked pretty cool. Things were getting blown up, guns everywhere, and I’m a fan of the series’ previous installments. After watching a guy struggling to play and control the game for 5 minutes, he gave up and handed me the controls. Call of Duty 3 requires you to use both the Wii controller and its analog-stick attachment. After fiddling with the controls for a minute or two, it became apparent to me that this game was impossible to control properly. Shooting at enemies was too hard. My weapon kept flying all over the screen and having to walk using my right-thumb while actually moving my left hand to aim was tricky. The game itself again didn’t look all too great but was a vast improvement over ExciteTruck. After 15 minutes, I too gave up trying to control Call of Duty 3 and decided I should go for the gold: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.

Waltzing over to the Zelda kiosk, I noticed something incredibly different than the other games on display – this one actually looked decent. Zelda looks great, plays great, and is lots of fun. If you’re a fan of the series, you’re going to really enjoy getting in some sword swinging action with Link and crew. I could only spend about 20 minutes playing the game before other people wanted to try, but overall, I was impressed. This is a solid Wii title that makes the system actually worth purchasing.

The Nintendo Wii Kiosk
The Nintendo Store @ Rockefeller Plaza

They also had the new Madden on display for us to see but no one really seemed to be playing it. The graphics actually look competitive with the Xbox 360’s and the controls appear to be solid. Football and Madden fans are going to enjoy trying to be Peyton Manning for once. You too will finally be able to be a 6’5” quarterback with a laser-rocket arm.

Overall, the Nintendo Wii left me feeling disappointed. I didn’t expect 360 or PS3 graphics, but I did expect better. The unique control system the Wii has should only be used for certain games. Madden and Zelda are great titles to get into with the Wiimote but Call of Duty 3 should be played with a regular controller. Nintendo is on to something here and every fanboy will probably be pleased. Those who are on a budget, are new to gaming or game only occasionally, or want Nintendo titles like Mario and Zelda should pick one up for $250. Otherwise, I’d recommend shelling out a little more for an Xbox 360 or a Playstation 3. You’ll be a lot more satisfied with your purchase.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Digital Trends Staff
Digital Trends Staff
Digital Trends has a simple mission: to help readers easily understand how tech affects the way they live. We are your…
Best gaming console deals: cheapest prices on PS5, Xbox S and X and Switch
father and son playing video games

While the latest generation of consoles had a bit of a slow start, things have heated up in the last few years, and for those who have been waiting to pick up a console, now is a pretty good time when it comes to games, accessories and the like. There are a lot of great Xbox Series S and X deals, PlayStation 5 deals, and Nintendo Switch deals for you to check out, and we've collected the best we could find below. That said, it's important to note that we're currently going through a bit of a deals drought, even when it comes to refurbished consoles, so there aren't a ton of options out there, although be sure to check back as we do regularly keep track of deals and will update this article as better deals appear.
Xbox Series S 1TB -- starting at $349, was $380

The Xbox Series S is the less powerful but cheaper option out of the newest generation Xbox line. When comparing the Xbox Series S versus the Xbox Series X, the Series S takes a hit in all the component categories. That means it's not quite as fast. But if you're not hung up on getting the optimal performance out of your system, you'll actually notice very few differences. The two biggest ones are the Series S's inability to play in 8K, and its lack of a disc drive. Most people don't even have 8K TVs, so that shouldn't be an issue. If you're alright with downloading all of your games straight to the console's memory (and you have a separate DVD or Blu-Ray player), the Series S will work fine. It's quite a bit smaller anyway, and easier to fit on a shelf.

Read more
3 retro classics to play on Nintendo Switch Online this weekend (May 3-5)
Kirby and his friends post in Kirby and the Amazing Mirror art.

With rumors of a new Nintendo console heating up, it's once again time to accept that the Switch's long lifespan is coming to its end. 2024 will likely be the system's last full year before a successor steals its thunder. That's apparent in Nintendo's recent first-party offerings, as the system is getting a lot of remasters and niche curveballs this year. As exclusives like Endless Ocean: Luminous underwhelm, you may have found yourself looking for reasons to fire up your Switch.

Thankfully, you have a lot of great excuses to do so if you're subscribed to Nintendo Switch Online. The service is home to plenty of classic games from the NES up to the Nintendo 64. Even if you're a game historian, there's a good chance you haven't played everything Switch Online has to offer. This weekend, I have three recommendations for anyone looking to fire up some great, old games. These aren't random picks; I've chosen three games that feel spiritually linked to some of this spring's biggest games.
Kirby and the Amazing Mirror

Read more
When is Stardew Valley 1.6 coming to consoles?
A player fishes in their local pond.

There are few cozy games as successful and beloved as Stardew Valley, so it's no wonder it has received regular updates since its 2016 release. If you're a fan of the game, you've no doubt been looking forward to its new 1.6 update, which brings some pretty substantial changes and bug fixes to improve the gameplay experience. Unfortunately for some players, the update has only released on PC so far, meaning console players have been left wondering when they'll get an opportunity to see all of the fresh changes in the game. Here's what we know so far about when the Stardew Valley 1.6 update is coming to consoles.
When is Stardew Valley update 1.6 coming to consoles?
Unfortunately, we don't have an immediate answer regarding when Stardew Valley update 1.6 will land on consoles, though we do know it's on the way in the near future. In a social media post on April 26, developer ConcernedApe gave a minor update on the console versions of the newest update, saying, "Console and mobile ports are still in progress, thank you again for your continued patience!" This doesn't answer much, but it should at least give console players the peace of mind that the update is still headed their way and will be available as soon as possible.

In the meantime, you can check out Stardew Valley's 1.6 patch notes to see everything new in the update, which includes a wide variety of bug fixes, translation changes, and gameplay improvements that should make most players happy.

Read more