Wii Love: A Review By A Bore in Media Fri Apr 25, 2008 at 06:56:02 PM EST Tags: wii, gaming, love, Nintendo (all tags)
	Nintendo redefined the relationship between man and games console with the creation of the Wiimote, and continued to riff on that successful theme. Ever since the Wii came out, Wii crossbows, guns, wheels, golf clubs, baseball bats, tennis rackets and balance boards have all appeared. In their latest release, Nintendo continues to push the limits of a games console with the release of Wii Love. For the uninitiated, Wii Love isn't really a game, but rather a lifestyle accessory. Similar to Wii Fit, Nintendo have co-opted a boring and mundane everyday activity and made it fun and engaging. I managed to get my hands on a (second hand) early preview box from a corporate client, so I thought I'd give you a quick look at the technology that wowed the crowd at the Nintendo stand at the last E3 conference, and has taken Japan by storm, shifting over 2,000,000 units in the first three months.

First impressions The initial feel of the new Wii peripherals is surprisingly good. As ever, Nintendo's design philosophy has resulted in a solid, quality build that combines the requisite lightness with an impression of durability. Nintendo has had to increase the Wii Love peripherals capacity to compensate for the larger European consumer. The male peripheral ("Miimote") is comfortably designed, with the Wiimote fitting snugly into the top of the unit, and the female peripheral ("Fiimote") seems similarly well thought out. Both 'motes have an expansion port for the nunchuck for dual wielding, but this is recommended only for the advanced user, as the analogue stick is awkwardly placed. After attachment and adjustment, the true beauty of the Wii Love package becomes evident. Softly easing the disk into the machine, you are greeted by the chirpy ambient music and pastel shades we have come to expect from Nintendo. A short introduction guides you through calibrating the Miimote, with a few questions to help the device work better. The use of Mii characters is slightly off-putting, though it does help tie this peripheral in with the "family" of Nintendo titles, and would help new users familiarise themselves with the capabilities of their new kit. Users are introduced to the Miimote (or Fiimote) through a series of gentle exercises, tightening muscles on command and swaying. The sensitivity and softness of the device is really quite startling, and one of the highlights of the package. After Setup The main activities are where Wii Love really shines. The male orientated ones include entertaining subgames such as "Catch the Donut", "Poke the Penguin" and my favourite, "Holes of Glory". These are quite simple on early levels, becoming increasingly difficult as the game progresses, with pictures of Margaret Thatcher or your mother flashing up to reduce blood flow, and thus your ability to catch, prod or poke the requisite item or animal. The male games can be played alongside the female ones, thus allowing couples to play together, swapping scores and competing up against each other. The game also includes a full position trainer, where you (and a partner if desired) try to follow on screen instructions and assume the same position as the Mii's on screen, with the Mii/Fiimotes monitoring your success. This was a lot of fun, and very educational, although the Japanese version has several seemingly impossible positions that you would have to train and practise to achieve, aiding longevity, which is the holy grail of these kinds of games. The main usage of this package however has to be through the specially created Wii Love channel, where people all over the world of various shapes and sizes can meet, chat and use their Wiis together. This functionality was inaccessible to me, using a japanese import, but the little I could see, I liked. In the full European release high definition video transfer and headset compatibility should make this section one of the most popular of the package. Similarly, the tracking of basic physical attributes, volumes and scores online on the leaderboards is a lot of fun. One clever feature that caught my eye is a continuance and elaboration of the "age" scale from Brain Training and Wii Fit. The Wii Love package estimates your "slag age" (which cannot be below 18 here; 13 in Japan) and encourages you to increase it by the available exercises or random encounters. To those concerned that the Wii Love will be a "one-night-stand" to be discarded once the novelty has worn off, I can confidently assert that this is not the case. The addictiveness in improving scores, unlocking further minigames, items, locations and partners should not be underestimated. Although fully featured out of the box, these unlockables add a lot of replay value, and you will find yourself coming back in them again and again. A European-culture themed package is badly needed however - some of the Japanese objects and activities were bizarre and distasteful to my personal palate, making parts of the game slightly nauseating. Nintendo have assured gamers this is well in hand. Final thoughts Overall, the Wii Love package is probably worth the £69.99/$80 price tag. The Mii/Fiimotes are well designed and easy to clean, and the new nunchuck controller coming out should solve the issues regarding the original's girth and shape, which only make it suitable for a handful of people. The new 'motes are comfortable and non-chafing even with constant use; it is easy to forget you are wearing one, which can be embaressing. Nintendo continue to forge new territory, making a "games machine" less about simple, preprogrammed activities and more of a "lifestyle machine". This fun and engaging package rightly belongs up there in Nintendo's Pantheon with Wii Fit, and just increases my eagerness to see Miyamoto's rumoured Wii Dump prototype, previewing early next year.

Related Links

Also by A Bore