The “Break it Down” Blog

Ok so I finally got my hands on a Wii after 3 weeks of going to stores on launch mornings to get one… I tried all the targets this Sunday as they were all restocked and got screwed at all of them. I finally got lucky at a Toys R’ Us and picked up Zelda to go along with it.

For folks that don’t want to read this whole entire review, here’s the simple take on it:
Conclusion: If you have XBox 360 or PS3, go buy a Wii. It’s the perfect compliment to these harder-core gaming systems that will offer the blockbuster titles, but does not replace them.

Now for a bit more detail:

• The games on the Wii are hugely interactive and a lot of fun, but fun *because* they are interactive, not fun because the graphics are amazing like Gears of War is or other such games. You aren’t going to be oogling any physics, or saying “Wow” when you shoot through glass on the Wii. You are going to be saying “Cool” or panting and sweating because you just got down with Round 4 in Wii Boxing and your arms are actually tired but you landed a few huge uppercuts that felt fantastic because the remote offers audio feedback AND a little rumble effect to, so you know you just smashed the guy in the jaw
• The console ships with composite cables. If your TV is over 42″, I would strongly encourage you to get the component cables. If your TV is over 60″ (like mine is) then you really really should get the component cables. The amount of color bleeding and artifacting that takes place on the bigger sets due to composite really sucks. It’s not unbearable, it just needs to be corrected. The problem is that the component cables are currently the hardest thing to find right now (Nintendo proprietary connection) and are going on eBay for $100. Just wait for end of December or January and you should be fine.
• Get a second controller and nunchuck combo. Again these are quite hard to find, but you really need atleast two, the system is too fun to not play with a friend, so save yourself the time and when you get the system, get an extra set of wiimote and nunchuck.
• Make sure you have room to play. As long as you aren’t the laziest person that ever lived, chances are you are going to be standing up to play the Wii and really doing the motions like swinging, batting, punching, etc. So make sure you have room. We have a 10′ viewing distance from our TV, and I had to move the coffee table out of the room and still wished I had an extra 2′ or so when playing. It’s a really cool experience.
• If you are like me, the major concern I had before getting the Wii is that the remote and whole purpose of the system would be cute, but not cool. That the thing would be gimmicky more than really inventive and stand the test of time. After having the Wii a few days and playing it along with seeing my wife pick it up and right off the bat beat all my high scores in Wii Sports without every played any computer or XBox games… I’m convinced it will stand the test of time.

What I’m really looking forward to now with the Wii, is seeing what all the other developers are going to do with it. I don’t know if Resident Evil 5 is going to find it’s way to the Wii, but if it does, I’m going to scream like a little girl.

Final Verdict: Fantastic compliment to more “classic” high end consoles or must-have for folks that enjoy something fun but don’t want to learn what all 20 buttons on XBox or PS3 controller do. (Moms, Dads, Siblings, Aunts/Uncles, your sort of ‘I’ll try anything once’ crowd that would not invest the time to learn the XBox)

Update #1: I did a review of Zelda…