Wii Must Haves

[Shizelbs]

So, looks like my wife wants a Wii, and I sort of do too. Learn me about it.

What are the must have games and accessories? What are games you would consider are popular and I should probably own.

Also, its the placement of the motion tracking bar thing going to be difficult if I have my entertainment center bridge across the top of the TV? What types of HD video connections will I have as options?

Any other advice for a would-be owner is appreciated.

[jdhdiggs]

Extra controllers and rechargable batteries are definates. The sensor bar can go on top or on bottom of the TV. I hav mine just in front of the TV on the bottom. Beyond that, I got nuthin'

[Silverti]

Hell, Ive wanted to buy a Wii for the kids for 2 months and I cant find one!

[lanion]

Component cables is your ticket to 480p.

Sensor bar placement isn't that critical. There are options for above and below TV, and sensitivity settings you can adjust if you have a large TV.

Wii Sports is an excellent game. Wii Play is trash but only $10 more than buying an extra controller.

I've had a lot of fun with Tennis and Golf on the wii sports, so you might look at Super Swing Golf or Tiger Woods 2008 if you like golf (tiger woods 2007 does not use the Wii controls well at all).

Zelda is an awesome adventure game, of course.

Resident Evil 4 you should buy because it is the best version of, perhaps, the best game of last gen.

[Shizelbs]

If I got a Wii, I would cetainly check out Tiger Woods. I know I would have a lot of fun with that game, swinging the 'club' in the house. I already like the game to begin with on the 360. I'm sure the interface of the Wii would make it exceptional.

[jdhdiggs]

Only problem is the Wii controller swing doesn't swing like a real club

[engtaz]

Wii charger battery with stands and Rayman Raving Rabbits is a must have.

[okiepolkie]

Brain Academy is okay. My wife likes it a lot.
Wii play is worth the $10 extra.
Oh, and I'm about to get the battery and stands.

Anyone play Mario Party 8 yet? That will probably be my next purchase.

Overall we have been very pleased with it.

We've had ours for 3 weeks now. Happened to find 2 of them at a Walmart in OKC on vacation. They got 9 on a Tuesday morning. There were 5 when I got there, and someone else bought the other 3.

[Disc Jockey]

Tiger Woods and Zelda are both a lot of fun. With a little bit of self-training, the 2007 Tiger Woods actually works pretty darn well, the 2008 should be even better. Raving Rabbits was surprisingly fun though we only rented it. Another one someone told me was a lot of fun was some cooking game, I've been looking for it at BB and it's been checked out every time we checked over the last five months or so so that should tell you something.

Definitely get rechargeables. Instead of getting the Wii specific packs, I bought hybrid rechargeables which work great plus I can take them out and use them in other devices if need be. Enjoy, Wii sports is great for parties - even for those that never play video games

[zombie boy 2000]

The wife bought me one not too long ago.... and it has been crazy addictive. Granted I only have the Sport's package, RE 4, and Wario Ware, but all three are a blast.

Resident Evil 4 on any platform is a must-have, but the WII version is definitely the best of the lot.

Wario Ware, if you're at all familiar with the franchise, is like crack. Cannot be put down and will lobotomize you in a matter of seconds with its manic, steady stream of 3 second mini-games. It's even more fun with other people and drinks of the alcoholic variety. I prefer Thunderbird or Mad Dog 20/20. YMMV

[lanion]

Tiger Woods 2007 definately feels like a port. Your swing is basically just like pushing buttons. In the upcoming one the built it ground up for the Wii, so will probably be worth your time more. My friends and I play golf on Wii sports far more than Tiger Woods 07 just because the controls matter so much.

[bdaley6509]

I really enjoy the paper mario for the wii.

[Shizelbs]

I really enjoy the paper mario for the wii.

We watched the demo of that one. It looks like just good old school side to side Mario scrolling action. If and when we get a Wii, I will certainly buy that game.

[Demiurge]

Hell, Ive wanted to buy a Wii for the kids for 2 months and I cant find one!

Same here!

[Disc Jockey]

Anyone play Mario Party 8 yet? That will probably be my next purchase.



My wife just picked this up today. We and our daughter are having a blast playing it!

After further review, gameplay is pretty simple and not a lot of strategy but fun, especially for 3 or 4 players. There is an element of unpredictability in it which I think helps the younger kids do a little better and gives them a chance. Fun party game but I can't see this being a whole lot of fun playing by yourself. This may be typical of previous Mario Party games too, this is the first one I've played so I don't really know. There is quite a bit of instructional dialogue you have to keep pushing A to get through which is kind of annoying. There are a lot of different minigames, some of which make great use of the Wiimote and some of which are just so-so. Overall I think the minigames in Rayman are better, but MP offers the ability of 4 players. Some are free for alls, some 2 vs 2 , and some 1 vs 3.

Oddly enough, the introduction is in widescreen but the actual gameplay is 4:3. Graphics are very colorful but otherwise what you'd expect from the Wii

[Shizelbs]

Well, I got one. I went to Best Buy today to look for some accessories for our new Zune and just sitting on the shelf, ready to be scooped up, were six Wii consoles. I walked out with a Wii, extra controller and nunchuk, component cables, Super Paper Mario, the Zelda game and Wii play. Should be fun.

[polkatese]

Cool, Shelby! For me, it didn't give me the same kick as playing GRAW on 360, but the kids love it more than I do. It's all good.

[okiepolkie]

Well, I got one. I went to Best Buy today to look for some accessories for our new Zune and just sitting on the shelf, ready to be scooped up, were six Wii consoles. I walked out with a Wii, extra controller and nunchuk, component cables, Super Paper Mario, the Zelda game and Wii play. Should be fun.

Were you limited to just one of them? I could only get 2 of the 5 that were at walmart the day I found mine.

Been playing Meet the Robinsons and it has been pretty good for me so far.

Didn't know what to expect from Mario Party 8, but I rented it and haven't enjoyed it as much as I thought. I find myself sitting a lot, just waiting for the other computer players to take thier turns.

[Shizelbs]

The limit was 3 consoles. I thought about trying to sell one on ebay, but I bet thats not a viable way to make a buck anymore. Besides my bill was already pretty high by the time I saw the Wii, and it was much higher afterwards.

[tryrrthg]

I scored one today at circuit city's web site. They were selling some bundle package. You couldn't just buy the console. I got the console, extra controller and nunchuck, tiger woods '07 and 20 point wii card (cheapest option, plus I can download old NES games with it).

Keep an eye on http://techbargains.com they posted the wii bundle for sale at CC this morning, they're all sold out now.

I'm still on the fence whether to keep it or not. I'm not a huge video game player but I played my brother's wii sports for hours last week on vacation. I haven't had that much fun playing video games since I was a kid.

[okiepolkie]

Bundles are in stock at walmart online for those of you interested.

[Shizelbs]

Hooked it up last night. Its weird not plugging in a optical cable for surround sound with a new piece of electronics.

Anyways, I am very glad I got it. Its very fun. Easy to play, but there is still lots of challenge. So far it seems more or less perfect. I had a blast playing with my wife. We were laughing the whole time, mostly at each other.

[tommyboy]

Hooked it up last night. Its weird not plugging in a optical cable for surround sound with a new piece of electronics.


And a huge mistake by nintendo, optical outs are not very expensive at all and even a $200 surround system has opt in. I just can't add it together why nintendo didn't include that option...

But what does it matter i guess, they are selling systems like hotcakes and almost back on top.

[okiepolkie]

And a huge mistake by nintendo, optical outs are not very expensive at all and even a $200 surround system has opt in. I just can't add it together why nintendo didn't include that option...

But what does it matter i guess, they are selling systems like hotcakes and almost back on top.


I haven't seen it as a huge deficiency. It would have been nice, but these type of games seem to be okay with PLII for me.

[Shizelbs]

Eh, I really couldn't care less that it doesn't have surround sound. I'd rather have a cheap system thats easy to program for. I'm sure its hard enough to right the code for the motion of the remote, let alone worry about surround placement for effects and music. No one is buying the Wii for state of the art breakthroughs in technology. The Wii is for simple fun.

[Shizelbs]

Couple thoughts about my Wii experience thus far.

Setting up the wireless connection is so easy. I think I clicked two or three buttons and it was done.

The photo browser is the best I've seen to date. Its clearly better than the Xbox 360's, which I thought was good too. Switching between pics is very fast. The serene piano music in the background is a great touch.

I love how you can save things to your remote. We loaded our Miis onto our remotes last night before we went to our friends for dinner. We got to use our own Miis on their system. Very cool.

[Disc Jockey]

I love how you can save things to your remote. We loaded our Miis onto our remotes last night before we went to our friends for dinner. We got to use our own Miis on their system. Very cool.


Now that you have the wireless set up you can network you and your friend's system so you can e-mail your miis over there and put them on your friend's system permanently.

[Shizelbs]

Had to run to GameStop to get a new component cable for the 360. While I was there I figured I might as well pick up some new Wii games. I got the new Mario soccer game, Super Swing Golf, Resident Evil 4, and Red Steel. I think the four games came to just over $100. Not too bad!

[tryrrthg]

Questions about the Wii.

Can you only get 480p through component cables? I found these at monoprice pretty cheap LINK (http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=108&cp_id=10830&cs_id=1083001&p_id=3490&seq=1&format=2)

Also, does anyone know if you can use gamecube controllers to play the older games that you can download to the Wii?

[Shizelbs]

Yes, only up to 480p. It looks great though. You could tell me its high def and I would believe you, at times anyways.

[tryrrthg]

Yes, only up to 480p. It looks great though. You could tell me its high def and I would believe you, at times anyways.
but do you need to buy component cables to get the 480p? the Wii only comes with composite...

[Shizelbs]

That I'm not sure about.

[tommyboy]

but do you need to buy component cables to get the 480p? the Wii only comes with composite...

If you want 480p, you have to get the component cables or above(HDMI etc). It doesn't matter what system or dvd player you have.

So I guess they actually sell the component cables in stores now. For the Gamecube, the only way you could get them is through nintendo's website.

[Bill Ayotte]

I would suggest the wireless sensor bar as well, the wired one that came with it wasn't long enough for me to put the Wii where I wanted it, and IMO, the NYKO wireless one is a little more sensitive....It is also real easy to connect to the internet with it....The component cables are about $20-30, compared to $50-60 most paid for the PS2.....I am going to have pick up the rechargeable batteries soon...I also suggest the cheap little sleeves for the controllers, but only the actual Nintendo versions, the other ones feel cheap and get slippery after about 10 minutes...Thank god for that dummy strap, I would be on my 6-7th DLP because of those cheap slippery sleeves.:eek:

[Silverti]

Still haven’t been able to find a Wii. I’m hearing from a lot of people that they think they made a mistake buying the Wii (they are selling). Most of these guys are in their late 20's and early 30's with no kids. But I know for sure that the Wii is going to be HOT for my kids and that’s what I want it for. Even though we have aPS3, they don’t really play it much (since I use it for HT). The Wii is just so much better for kids that are 5 and 7

[Bill Ayotte]

Still haven’t been able to find a Wii. I’m hearing from a lot of people that they think they made a mistake buying the Wii (they are selling). Most of these guys are in their late 20's and early 30's with no kids. But I know for sure that the Wii is going to be HOT for my kids and that’s what I want it for. Even though we have aPS3, they don’t really play it much (since I use it for HT). The Wii is just so much better for kids that are 5 and 7

It is kind of a steep learning curve at first, and some games require a lot of coordination. I am waiting for some of the big titles to come out before I decide on mine...To be honest, I actually like playing the Wii Sports every once in a while...Wii Play is actually kind of fun for the Duck-Hunt type games they have on there...

[Kearin]

First system I have found that my parents love to play and they are 58+. At first there was a curve but once they got the hang of it they couldn't put it down. I think when they came over to see the grandkids the other night they were up later then the wife and I.

I wish there were more titles available for it but there looks to be quite a few coming out for it in the coming months. One of the these is the new metroid coming out this month. There isnt a lot of fanfare about it and got snuffed at the E3 for nintendo but it looks to be a solid title with hours of gameplay. Super Smash Bros Brawl will be the title that will be played for years to come. Of all the games I have I have to say Madden Football, Zelda and RE4 are my favorite ones.

[scottvamp]

80% of people are playing the Wii sports. I love it. No stand alone sports game has been as fluid as Wii Sports. I can't believe they have not released a second edition yet or in the works. But i just found a sleeper hit for Bowlers.
Brunswick Pro Bowling Comes out next Tuesday for only $29.99
If it makes as good or better control of the Wii remote than Wii Sports, this is a must buy for me.
http://cravegames.com/games/Brunswick_Bowling/index.html

[Bill Ayotte]

super swing golf s a fun game as well, a more refined version of Wii Golf......

[scottvamp]

super swing golf s a fun game as well, a more refined version of Wii Golf......
I totally hated it. It only registers you're "extreme" back swing, and them automatically pre-renders the rest of the front swing. Made no cents to me and was nothing like the full "real movement" swing in Wii Sports. Tiger Woods was alot better but still did not have that same level of control and feel.

[lanion]

Super Swing Golf --- I just picked it up and I love the controls. Tiger Woods was just confusing but this is incredibly awesome... I played a 9 hole game with my friend last night and it was great fun. I don't know what you mean by pre-rendered front swing. If you don't swing really hard you don't get full strength, and you can add slice/hook at will, or if you screw up your ball will fly off to the side (I'm not good at golf, so this happens to me fairly often).