By holding the preview 89 floors above Melbourne, Nintendo seemed keen to make an impression. And the venue alone for the preview was statement enough (check out some photos in the media panel). To add to that, the event was hosted by another Nintendo Australia celebrity ring-in, Mark Beretta of Channel Seven’s Sunrise fame. Though the setting for the preview was awe-inspiring, the breathtaking views never threatened to distract from Wii Fit itself. The idea of Wii Fit is typically simple - to get people tracking (or in many cases, actually doing) their exercise, and to have fun doing it.
Fit, but my gosh, don't you know it?
For many, the standout attraction of Wii Fit is the inclusion of the new balance board. And baby, these ain’t your mother’s bathroom scales. The balance board is a remarkable piece of engineering that is not only capable of measuring important information such as your Body Mass Index (BMI), but also your centre of gravity. The device has been well-implemented by Nintendo, with Wii Fit featuring numerous activities, all utilising the board and designed to get you working up a sweat, and working down the pounds.
These activities were the focus of the evening, with demonstrations by presenters on stage, and all round encouragement for those in attendance to try them out. The activities range from Yoga exercises to more the game-like ski jump, and both have their place in a plausible daily routine. The stereotypical gamer is going to have a tough time holding the positions thrown at them by the Yoga stages, let alone the step-up, step-down aerobic mini-games which they’ll later encounter.
To infinity, and beyond!
Indeed, the more game-like aspects of Wii Fit proved popular with the crowd. First up, we tried both skiing games. The downhill race was fun, but it raises issues as to how the Balance Board will be implemented in other games (as at least ten other titles are claimed to be in development). There was definitely multiple approaches to actually controlling your skier: one could lean, as is intended, or one could simply press down harder on either side of the board to direct your skier. It was difficult to tell which was actually the more effective technique, but we found ourselves naturally pushing on the board, rather than leaning. Nevertheless, the ski jump game was more successful, and more intuitive. More a matter of timing than anything else, the player is required to bend down and hold their balance while descending the ramp, then bolt upright to jump. After several shoddy attempts at making a decent jump, we asked how much you could actually improve with practice - a question that was soon answered as a Nintendo demonstrator capably doubled our score without blinking.
Next up was the rhythm dancing game, which was basic, yet required constant concentration and movement on and off the board. The rope balancing game seemed to be quite popular, and difficult, as most failed to complete the crossing from building to building. The soccer ball heading game was also present, and probably provides the best illustration of the Balance Board’s amazing ability to measure your centre of balance. Every movement is captured, and it becomes unavoidable to subconsciously move in sync with others while watching them play. There’s also the unflattering hula hoop game, where players are forced to gyrate rapidly and lean to catch additional hoops thrown onto their Mii - the type of thing you can easily imagine being a hit alongside SingStar, Wii Sports and Guitar Hero for gatherings.
The one mini-game that remained underwhelming was the only one not involving the Balance Board - jogging. Jogging requires the player to place the Wiimote in their back pocket. The player then ‘jogs’ on the spot while the Mii on-screen responds to the amount of effort put in by the player. In our experience, this resulted in players making odd motions that looked nothing like jogging, but rather more like they had a particularly dangerous bug underfoot that just wouldn’t die. Still, in mini-game compilations, there are always some misses to sit alongside the hits.
The breathtaking view from floor 89 of the Eureka Tower.
Presentation wise, the game can only be described as trademark Nintendo. The graphics are clean and uncomplicated, and are similar to Wii Sports. The only exceptions are the Yoga poses and Muscle Conditioning sections, which have more realistic visuals to accurately convey the action required. It’s also worth noting that the Balance Board seemingly possesses a slightly disturbing personality. For instance, the game refers to the Board in first person. At one point, the game politely asked “not to step on me at this stage.” Indeed. Wii Fit also has some of the creepiest voices you’ve heard in a game. To our ears, the high-pitched, warped voices that emerged to congratulate or encourage the player sound more like a tiny monster waiting in the balance board to gnaw away all your fat while you slumber. Still, the build previewed appeared to be a half-converted Japanese copy, so maybe this will be changed by the final release.
It’d be very interesting to get a professional assessment of the actual impact Wii Fit has on a player’s BMI, or general fitness levels. Ultimately, however, the actual impact that Wii Fit has on your health is almost irrelevant. All that matters for the game to be popular and enjoyable is if it feels good for you. And it sure does. Nintendo might have baffled fans with Wii Fit’s original unveiling, but there is nothing like actually experiencing the game to persuade critics that the boffins in Kyoto are on to something. The game sold a million copies in one month in Japan, and there seems no reason for its success to be tempered here. Wii Fit, including the Balance Board, is released in Australia on May 8 and retails for $149.95.
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