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Wii Fit

One month of sweating. One month of pain. One month of balance acts. One month to think about Wii Fit.

Late you say? We know Wii Fit has been on shelves for over a month now, and yes, many other websites have sweated out their reviews and are now getting stuck into the media’s next darling. Yet N-Europe are posting their review now? Why? It’s simple - because we wanted to explore every single moment Wii Fit offers. (Plus we also wanted to sit and drink Coke and play Mario Kart like the gamers we are!) It’s easy to go into something like Wii Fit full of gusto. But what about now? A month later, would Wii Fit still offer all it initially promised?

It’s not everyday you get to review a product which has the power to change your perception of videogames. It’s not everyday said product launches alongside a new, potentially game-changing peripheral either. We embarked on our Wii Fit expedition and knew we would have to take our sweet little time.

So were did we actually begin? Like everyone else we let Wii Fit set the initial pace. As documented in our initial week of play we were sweating hard just getting to grips with the product.

The Wii Balance Board. For ultra difficulty, try all exercises doing a hand-stand!

As some of you may have noticed, unpacking Wii Fit makes you realise that the balance board is a hefty piece of kit and certainly carries a lot of technology under the hood. The precision of the board is certainly impressive and instantly understands large and subtle shifts in movement. There is literally nothing wrong with the Wii Fit board. It is developed to do exactly what it should. We still hold it close at night, listening to it’s whispered future promise as we caress it’s technology-laden heart.

In a similar vein to holding a Nintendo controller we were glad the board was perfect. We had secretly hoped that we would forget we were ever standing on a piece of plastic. Rest easy as for the most part this is certainly the case. The only thing which (at times) shatters this illusion is the height of the board. It’s only a few centimetres but certainly reminds you that you are off the ground.

In typical Nintendo fashion there is nothing to worry about on the presentation/characterisation front. Simple menus litter Wii Fit with a quirky characterisation of the board helping you get to where you want to go. All of this is backed up with a simple gym “hub” offering all forms of exercise. This brings us to the core work-outs of Wii Fit: Muscle (strength), Aerobic, Balance and Yoga workouts. Yes, Wii Fit hopes to improve all of these aspects of your body. Yet to properly complete in these activities you must initially register, (using your Mii) supplying your height and age and let the board do the rest. It’s quirky, fun and informative. And “guests” can even take this ‘test’.

The B.M.I. index - not to be taken too seriously.

It’s not difficult to put your age, height and (most importantly) weight against a Body Mass Index scale to get an understanding of your expected health. And that is exactly what Wii Fit initially does.

B.M.I is a recognised form of “classifying” body types so when Wii Fit tells you that, at 10 stone and aged 25 you are at the average expected level of weight/health, it’s accurate. The problem with measuring BMI is that muscle and fat cannot be differentiated. This can rear it’s ugly head when a 30yr old muscle man can be deemed obese. Not a pretty sight. The good thing is that most health professionals know that B.M.I measurements are best used as a guideline. The bad thing is that Joe public doesn’t know this - that’s why we see puppy fat teenage girls complaining. Nice.