Something for everyone
The original Wii Sports may not have been the most engaging game ever made, but it was a fantastic pack-in for Nintendo's then new console. It showed off what the Wii was capable of, and made the experience attractive and accessible to a wide variety of people. Wii Sports Resort is much the same, as it introduces the power of the Wii Motion Plus in a tidy and accessible package, yet remains relatively shallow all the while. It's still a worthy multiplayer experience, however, making Wii Sports Resort a reasonable purchase for any fan of minigame collections, or even someone just looking to pick up a Wii Motion Plus.
Perhaps the best part of the original Wii Sports was that it came with the Wii console itself. It's a game that might have gone relatively unnoticed otherwise, but became synonymous with the console in the early days. Nintendo has attempted to repeat that success with Wii Sports Resort and the Wii Motion Plus, by packing them together under a slick $50 price tag. Seeing as the Wii Motion Plus sells for $20 by itself, you're essentially getting Wii Sports Resort for the budget price of $30. Therefore, the decision to pick up Wii Sports Resort seems like a no brainer for anyone looking to get their hands on a Wii Motion Plus. It's a game that will have legs years into the future, and is something you can play with anyone- even your everyday non-gaming friends. I feel that most people will get $30 worth of entertainment from Wii Sports Resort over the long haul, making it a solid purchase for anyone in the market for a Wii Motion Plus.
As for the game itself, Wii Sports Resort is a bit more of a mixed bag. Its collection of sports themed minigames has expanded since the franchise's last outing, and the resulting plethora of minigames hits more extreme highs and lows than before. Games like table tennis, frisbee, and sword fighting are pretty neat, and make clever use of the Wii Motion Plus. The motion isn't always perfectly one-to-one, but it's close enough to simulate their respective activities in an intuitive fashion. It's fun to put spin on the ball in table tennis, or curve a frisbee around a tree in a game of frisbee golf. At the same time, games like wake boarding, canoeing, and cycling all feel stale, repetitive, and boring. But with such a wide selection of minigames, it shouldn't be a problem for most people to ignore some boring ones in lieu of their favorites. Everyone is bound to find a handful of games that they can get behind in Wii Sports Resort.
The main sizable downer in Wii Sports Resort is simply the fact that there isn't much depth to the individual minigames- especially when playing alone. They're only going to have substantial lasting value if you have a consistent group of friends to play them with, making it a hard sell for the single player crowd. But if that doesn't bother you, Wii Sports Resort is a great way to pick up your first Wii Motion Plus, and should provide something for any group of people looking to have a good time.
For additional information on my review style and scoring system, click here.
