The Outset of an Unique Console

Released in 2006, Wii Sports immerses new players into various sports, including bowling, tennis, golf, boxing, and baseball. While the games are merely shells of the sports, they provide an effective introduction to the console and a great first impression.

For those in US and Europe, the game comes free with the console. Elsewhere, you must pay expensive prices to buy it new or slightly used.

Since you may not have free access to the game, it’s necessary for me to provide critical analysis to help you decide whether to spend that extra cash.

So without further ado, let’s jump in!

Graphics: 3 / 10
While the graphics are simple and unobtrusive, I’m disappointed with their lack of quality. In the golf courses and the tennis court, the graphics look similar to what could be played on consoles Nintendo released years ago.

However, the simple graphics may have been a smart move on the part of Nintendo; they make the game look less daunting and entice friends and family of all ages to try it out. In that respect, Nintendo uses Wii Sports to distinguish the Wii from other consoles.

SInce the characters are “Mii”s created from the console startup, their unrealistic design is intentional.

While the graphics may have been a ploy to enjoy wider success, their poor detail still means a low score for this category.

3 / 10.

Sound / Music: 10 / 10
A strength, the music brings an exciting and carefree atmosphere to the game. The songs are distinct and easily recognizable; They’re meant to be remembered and they do bring back pleasant memories of playing.

The quality of the songs are noteworthy. They appear carefully crafted and the distinct instruments play in harmony. Without a doubt, the impeccable music demonstrates Nintendo’s successful attempt to make a perfect first impression.

Apparent with every move the Mii makes, the sound effects are timed precisely and accurate in their representation of actions. Moreover, they are not excessive and play softly.

Needless to say, I was incredibly impressed. 10 / 10.

Addictiveness: 8 / 10
Without technicality in the sports, the game preys on simplicity to make it addictive. The variety of games allows for one to play it for hours without boredom. Sport matches rarely last more than a few minutes, allowing one to play without tiring after a few rounds.

As a social game, the multiplayer feature in sports calls for unprecedented competitiveness between all who play. Shorter games help with switching out and encourages multiple players to stay engaged while others are playing. Multiplayer matches and re-matches can last for several hours until all members of the group are beyond tired.

There is no doubt that playing multiplayer makes the game more addicting than single player. While single player aims for a high score, multiplayer makes playing a matter of pride and competition. Nintendo’s game design encourages players to seek friends and increases Nintendo’s own sales of the Wii after friends find themselves addicted.

After a few weeks of playing, single player matches are almost non-existent and you are likely to stop playing the game unless with friends.

The decline of addiction to single-player over time decreases the score to a still-impressive 8 / 10.

Story: N / A
While there is no story, the game needs none. Wii Sports is meant for anyone to quickly learn and play with friends who already own the game. Story-based games require new players to start from the beginning to know all details. By avoiding this pitfall, WS only requires a short period of learning and new players can learn how to play and join in within a matter of minutes.

Depth: 3 / 10
With its superficial coverage of individual sports, this game does not rely on depth but breadth.

With only limited depth to the games, technical details can be omitted. However, this does hurt game-play with the most obvious example being Baseball. Without control of outfielders, the game devolves to a match between the pitcher and the hitter. Luck plays an important factor, which decreases enjoyment of the game.

Within games there are three main objectives: to win, to gain enough points to become pro, and to get a highscore (through practice mode).

Other than these three, the game offers virtually no other objectives.

Nintendo combines numerous sport mini-games that would have no chance of selling on their own. As a group, these do comprise an enjoyable game.

While it’s clear that there is basically no depth to WS, the positive aspects from avoiding technically are undermined by a loss of player control during games.

3 / 10.

Difficulty: 2 / 10
The underwhelming difficulty of AI characters coupled with automatic helpful movements from Miis make difficulty non-existent.

Difficulty does increase in Tennis and Boxing as your points rise, but harder AIs still don’t pose much difficulty and are programmed to make mistakes once in a while. Some AIs clearly have exploitable weaknesses based on the pattern of their movements (tennis).

The lack of difficulty makes evident that the game can be played by young kids and the elderly alike. In two out of the five games, you only face yourself, letting anyone aim to beat their own highscore and feel like a winner.

Since the difficulty only arises from hard AIs at really advanced stages of single-player, the difficulty deserves a rating of 2 / 10.

Overall: 6.5 / 10
My holistic comparison of important categories leads to a respectable overall score of 6.5 / 10.

Both the weaknesses and strengths of the game were pronounced. The game achieved the goals of Nintendo but may not fulfill your needs as a player. Having received the game for free, I am satisfied. However, I would not recommend paying the steep prices often asked for the game.

These are the essential qualities of the game that you may decide to buy it for:
1. great addition to social parties, especially where there is a diversity of age

2. family-friendly game for kids to play and adults to later join in

3. quick fun and addictive nature to suit current needs, even with the knowledge that your interest will be temporary.

For those three cases specifically, the game is an excellent choice.

I had much fun playing and re-examining WS. I’m interested to see what you think.

Thank you for reading!

Wii Sports is on of those games where it's fun for a bit then it's just boring. I slightly agree with what you said at the end. It is fun for the family but even then eventually you realize there is not point to the game after a while. We did enjoy doing the fitness test to see who could get the lowest age :p. But very well thought out review and you're right the only reason people probably played it is because it came with the console for free so you really can't complain.

While I don't really ever encourage posting in a review just to say 'good job' or 'nice review', I'll make an exception here.

Great review! Wii Sports isn't exactly a game you can say a ton about, without getting spammy, and you got the balance just right there. I don't necessarily agree with all the categories (I might give a bit more to Difficulty, or a bit less to depth), you did a good job of explaining your position.

Also, how often do you play the game? What game is your favorite?

I was surprised to see that the game only had two reviews and neither of them (even the featured review) gave the game justice. 

So, I decided to make my own.

mrfe : Nowadays, I play once or twice a month at most. I've had the Wii for at least 5 years, so I'm glad I even get around to that. It's only with others at this point. I stopped playing single-player ages ago. 

I can play Wii Sports Resort alone but not this one. 

mrfe and Blubcreator, thank you both for the feedback