Wii Sports

Wii Sports is a collection of simplified sports games which employ the innovative Wii controller to mimic an action in real life, such as swinging a golf club. Currently, the confirmed sports available in the Wii Sports package include baseball, tennis, bowling, boxing, golf, and possibly Airplane if it appears on Wii Sports instead of Wii Motor Sports. Wii Sports will be a launch title for Wii in Japan, and included in-pack in other territories. It is part of an ongoing series of games including Wii Play and Wii Motor Sports. As Wii Sports is part of Nintendo's campaign to target so-called "non-gamers", it will come bundled with the Australian, Canadian, European and US versions of the Wii Console, the first game included with the launch of a home console since Super Mario World for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System in 1991. It will be available separately in Japan (But will be sold with a Wii remote). It also features simplified rules for the sports included, as well as a very bare-bones visual style, in order to emphasize the features of the Wii controller and the unique gameplay it enables.

E3 2006: Nintendo

At the press conference Nintendo held at the Kodak Theatre, Nintendo displayed Wii Sports as both a video demonstration and as a playable demo. The playable demo was the only one to feature someone who was not a Nintendo employee - Scott Dyer, who won the chance to play from a contest. He and Shigeru Miyamoto played a doubles tennis match against Satoru Iwata and Reggie Fils-Aime. The screen was divided in two, one for each team's court. The game appears to be very pick-up-and-play oriented, as the first to win three points won the match. However, it was stated at the conference that this was a condensed version of the gameplay mechanic. The match was won by Scott Dyer and Shigeru Miyamoto.

Features

Takashi Tezuka has revealed in interviews that Wii Sports will take advantage of the 'Mii' feature of the Wii to allow players to use their custom made characters in the game.

In an interview with IGN, Katsuya Eguchi mentioned that he is experimenting with using the WiiConnect24 feature of the Wii console. He mentioned: "..we are planning on having, maybe through the WiiConnect24, a leader board that will be posted online. Maybe for a Home Run Derby or Most Wins in Tennis."

Games

During E3 2006, the tentatively planned control methods for the various sub-games in this title were revealed.

* Wii Tennis - In Wii Tennis, the character automatically moves to where the ball will land. The player then has to use the correct stroke and swing to hit the ball. Nintendo states that the remote is sensitive enough to make it possible to add spin to the ball. Players grab the controller like a racket and swing; the game will register forehands, backhands, volleys, lobs, slices, spin, and power depending on how fast the user swings and at what angle. Multiplayer with up to 4 players is supported.

* Wii Baseball - The character stands at home plate, and is required to hit a ball thrown by a computer pitcher. Players grip the controller like a bat and swat fastballs out of the park in a home run derby, but it is up to the player to use the correct timing and positioning to hit the ball. Again, Nintendo has indicated that specials such as spin will be possible. In the two player game, one player pitches and the other bats.

* Wii Golf - In Wii Golf, the controlled character always faces towards the hole, requiring the player only to choose the appropriate strength with which to swing. After each swing, the player moves to the ball's new location and swings again. The faster players swing the controller, the further the ball will fly. Putting requires more delicacy and may involve lining up the actual putt.

Two additional games were revealed during the September 14, 2006 Nintendo event.

* Wii Boxing - This is the first Wii Sports title to use both the controller and the nunchuk attachment. The player holds one in each hand, then jabs to punch. Raising both hands (controllers) blocks punches from the opponent. Two players can compete on a split-screen view.

* Wii Bowling - In Wii Bowling, the player swings the controller backward, and then pushes it forward to roll the ball, similar to the motion required for golf. Spin can be put on the ball by tilting the controller on release.

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