So most of the games on my list so far haven't really been games that I grew up with, per se. Some games like Minish Cap and Sonic 3 & Knuckles were games I played as a kid, but I only played them after the fact as I never owned the Game Boy Advance or the Genesis. Wii Sports, on the other hand, isn't just a big part of my childhood, it's the first game I've ever owned, period. I grew up on the Wii Sports games, they got me into the medium to begin with, and their casual appeal and welcoming presentation has permanently shaped my taste in video games. As a result, this is going to be less of a review of these games specifically and more of a love letter to the Wii as a whole.
Before I talk about the Wii Sports games, I want to talk about the Wii itself. Nowadays, the Wii is a divisive console for its usage of motion controls, abundance of "shovelware", and focus on appealing to casual audiences. For some, the Wii doesn't count as "real hardcore gaming". Personally, I think that's stupid. As someone who grew up with this console, it's hard to really understate just how many kids got into gaming because of the Wii, just how many parents who would normally be opposed to an XBOX or a Playstation not only got this console for their kids, but even played it themselves. With the Wii, and by extension the DS, Nintendo managed to make the perfect entry points into gaming for anyone of any age and any skillset. But even years down the line, the Wii is still my favorite console for a reason. Not only does it have so many of Nintendo's best games and a unique charm all its own, but the motion controls led to so many experimental and unique hidden gems that only this console could've gotten, which in turn makes the Wii super rewarding to revisit (look into Elebits, Zack & Wiki, The Munchables, MadWorld, Boom Blox, De Blob, Kororinpa, Muramasa, Let's Tap, The Last Story, The Crystal Bearers, and Pandora's Tower for a good starting point). I've always liked motion controls, for the same reason I like the DS's touch screen. It's fresh to engage with a game in way that doesn't just involve a standard controller, it can feel more satisfying to have a fuller range of motion and precision, and of course, it helps that the Wii Sports games did a damn good job of selling the mechanic.
I hold the first Wii Sports game up as the greatest pack-in title ever made, partially because it wasn't intended on being a pack-in title at all. Miyamoto originally wanted to sell Wii Sports, but Reggie convinced him to give it for free, which was an incredibly smart move. At the time, it was the perfect incentive to get casual audiences to buy the Wii. Nowadays, it helps Wii Sports hold up as a game with an impressive amount of longevity. Wii Sports has five different motion-controlled sports, most of which are still incredibly fun. Tennis, Bowling, and Golf are the three highlights for me. Tennis was always my favorite sport to actually play, and swinging around a Wii Remote like a racket is just so inherently satisfying. But there's also a surprising amount of nuance to the controls, how hard you swing the remote and where you orient it actually plays a big role in where your shot goes. Bowling does the best job at taking a sport that's pretty hard to get into for a number of reasons, and making it accessible for everyone. And Golf simply has the most to it, with an incredibly well-designed nine-hole course and all the features you'd expect from a good golfing game, kept simple to not overwhelm the player. On top of the sports, there's also a bunch of training minigames that are just as fun if not moreso at times. Training Games like Tennis and Golf's Target Practices, Baseball's Swing Practice, Bowling's Power Throws, and pretty much all of the Boxing training games are incredibly addictive and give the sports new spins. And when you add in the Fitness mode, the leveling up system for each sport, and the medals that you can go for in the Training Games, Wii Sports ends up having quite a lot of replay value that encourages you to keep coming back and improving your skills.
But even beyond being just a great game to this day, Wii Sports is just so charming. One of the most beloved elements of the Wii were the addition of those silly avatars, the Miis. You could make your own characters in the main menu and use them in the games themselves, with the Wii series in particular being populated with them. I adore the Miis, I don't think any other Avatar system even compares. It all comes down to how cartoony the Miis are, their facial expressions are lovably simple and you can really play around with the customizer to the point where the Mii you're working on doesn't even look human anymore. This level of charm and silliness seeps into Wii Sports as well, like how you can make all of the tennis players the same person, or how you can throw the bowling ball backwards and people will react in fear, or how your boxing trainer Mii turns out to be the boxing champion as well. There's even a bunch of cheat codes that change the colors of the court or equipment, one of the last Nintendo games to really even do this thanks to the rise of the internet. It's all just so silly and playful, and I feel it shaped me and what I want from a game. I don't care if it's easy or hard, I don't care what genre it is, as long as it's fun. And in a gaming landscape that was increasingly obsessed with being gritty, realistic, and cinematic, Wii Sports was a reminder that games can also just be pure fun.
While the original Wii Sports probably had the bigger impact on me, though, I think most can agree Wii Sports Resort is the better game. OG Wii Sports was still a tech demo, after all, but Resort really felt like the full realization of Nintendo's vision. Wii Sports was set in a sports club, while Wii Sports Resort was set on an interconnected island you could fly around in. Wii Sports only had five fairly simplistic sports, while Resort had 12 sports each with multiple modes of play. And most importantly, Wii Sports Resort was built to showcase the Wii Motion Plus which added additional sensors to the Wii Remote that would make its motion controls even more accurate. As much as I love the Wii, you can admittedly play a lot of its earlier games by just sitting down and swinging the remote, but with the Wii Motion Plus, that's no longer an option. You have to be far more precise and meticulous with your movements, and a fair amount of the sports in Resort will have you up and moving. Hell, I'd even argue some of them like Cycling and Swordplay could actually work as solid workouts on their own right.
Wii Sports Resort offers so much in the way of content, it feels far more than just a minigame collection and earns that $50 price tag. As I mentioned before, there's twelve sports this time, and they all contain multiple modes, a bunch of achievements to get in the form of stamps, and the return of the leveling up system from the previous game. Swordplay is the highlight both in terms of content and fun factor, boasting a Duel mode, a fun Speed Slice minigame, and a Showdown mode where you fight your way through a bunch of levels, and then do it in reverse. But there's also games like Archery, Cycling, and Power Cruising that use the nunchuck in inventive ways, and even some returning favorites like Bowling, Golf, and (Table) Tennis. And then there's Island Flyover, which is where Wii Sports Resort shines the brightest in my opinion. As I said, Resort is set entirely on a single island called Wuhu Island, with each sport taking place somewhere on the island. It's all interconnected, and in Island Flyover, you get the chance to fly around Wuhu Island and explore it in its entirety, seeing exactly where all the other sports are in relation to each other is incredibly cool. It all helps to tie the whole game together and make Wuhu Island feel like a living, breathing place. On top of that, there's 80 hidden icons to find which will unlock a bunch of neat extras like balloons you can pop, different times of day, and popguns mounted on your plane. It's easily the most substantial mode in a game already stuffed to the brim with content.
And I didn't even get into the music yet! The Wii Sports soundtracks are phenomenal, way better than you'd expect from some minigame collections. I mean, the main theme alone are some of the most memorable pieces of video game music out there, they're so inspiring and do such a great job at pumping you up to do some sports. And the sweeping orchestral remix they gave Resort is even better. Kazumi Totaka's score for the first game is pretty much a perfect video game soundtrack, a bit minimal but incredibly efficient. It's basically the frutiger aero aesthetic in musical form, scored like a fitness training video from the future, with spot on instrument choices, uplifting melodies, and some serious grooves. Meanwhile, Ryo Nagamatsu's soundtrack for Resort is a bit more grandiose and soaring, offering a ton of incredible bangers like Showdown and Cycling. Both soundtracks fit the vibes of their respective games pretty much perfectly.
As you can probably tell, the Wii Sports games mean a lot to me. Wii Sports manages to transcend being a simple pack-in title with its abundance of replay value, immaculate vibe and charm, and how well it sums up Nintendo's core philosophy. Wii Sports Resort refines and expands on the formula with better motion controls, more sports, and a lovely island setting that's utilized perfectly. Both games made a massive impact on me and my taste in video games, and are a big reason why I hold up the Wii as my favorite console of all time. Is this entire placement just pure nostalgia? Maybe, but I'm still playing the Wii Sports games to this day and it feels like they've aged like a fine wine.
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