This week is the big video game trade show of the year. The Electronic Entertainment Expo or E3 as it's commonly referred to. So it made me think that I had to talk about something video games related on AN this week.
I recently got a Nintendo Wii. Many of you know I love gaming as a hobby. It's something I do to relax me. So I'd heard about the Wii and the only game that really interested me on that platform was Wii Sports. I thought it would be cool to have a more interactive way to get involved. Especially for sports game lovers.
So I got a Wii and it was a blast making Miis, which are essentially mini-avatars of you, your family or anyone else that you can think of (everyone from Michael Jackson to Adolf Hitler have been created using this functionality). I had fun making avatars of myself, my wife and my daughter. She also loved seeing herself in a game. But seeing herself in a game would have to wait. The Wii that I got had a Wii Sports disc that was broken. I had to call Nintendo customer service, but they quickly sent me out a new one and in no time, I was playing the game that I got a Wii for.
Wii Sports features golf, tennis, baseball, boxing, and bowling. My favorite is probably tennis, followed by bowling. I don't like baseball. At all. First of all, the harder you throw overhand doesn't necessarily make pitches go any faster. I figured out that if I throw like Chad Bradford (OK, not THAT low), I actually get a 94-95 mph fastball and an 87 mph curve. I can also throw a nasty screwball and I limp on my left leg at times because of two knee surgeries, so I felt like Jim Mecir. I'm just too much of a realist for it, I think. Balls that should be caught and are flubbed are called singles. A long shot that rattles around in right center field is only a double and a guy standing on first NEVER scores on it. Plus, the pitchers who are pitching to you throw ridiculously easy to hit stuff right over the middle of the plate. The multiplayer stuff is fun if you have a second Wiimote. I wasn't expecting Wii Sports to be an accurate representation of baseball, but you can't do a lot of simple baseball things, like field or steal bases. It wouldn't have taken much I think to include this.
That being said, I've bought a few other Wii games and Wii Sports is the best experience I've had with it so far. And the console is definitely more kid friendly than either the PS3 or the 360. My daughter loves the art for the games. She also tries to play some of the Wii Sports games, although the bowling is tough because you have to let go of trigger at the right time, otherwise the character never releases the ball.
If you have young children, a Wii is a good buy. But if you're the main one in the house using games and you want to play a realistic baseball game, go with MLB 08: The Show on PS3. MLB2K8 is not up to snuff.
What's your opinion of a good baseball game out there? And did you like Wii Sports?
