Theocacao: I Finally Got a Wii

I Finally Got a Wii

I've been interested in getting a Wii for a while, but never quite enough to stand outside in the cold for two or three hours. So, thanks to Craigslist, I found someone selling a sealed Costco bundle at a very minor premium. Patience pays off. I'm realize Wii impressions are not breaking news, but it just wouldn't be Theocacao if I didn't talk about new Nintendo stuff.

The interface is brilliantly designed. Fun, simple, responsive. The weather and news channels are crazy ideas that work. There's something so surreal yet so appealing about seeing the weather report on a tiny little white gaming box. I love the Globe view. I like the Mii a lot concept too. The "live" aspect of the thing really adds a lot to the experience. It's like Nintendo has create a virtual universe all their own.

The Wii web browser is crazy fast and renders Theocacao, Cocoa Dev Central and Cocoa Blogs shockingly well. Go Opera. Go web standards. Even YouTube works, which — navigation issues aside — is maybe more interesting to watch on a TV than a computer monitor.

The only game I've had in there so far is Zelda. That's really the reason I bought the thing. I'm glad I didn't just settle for the GameCube version because aiming is infinitely easier with the remote than the joystick, and widescreen does make a difference. I wasn't sure how the remote/nunchuck combo was going to feel, but much like the DS stylus, it's surprisingly natural.

One thing I figured about within the first hour of Zelda is that composite video at 4:3 doesn't look so hot, particularly since I'm used to watching movies on a nice computer monitor. Then I remembered my TV actually does support 16:9 (widescreen), so I switched over to that. Better, but still muddy. I went out and got a component cable. Wow — what a difference. Well worth the investment.

The Wii works seamlessly with Airport Express, which I'm very thankful for. I created some Miis you guys and gals may recognize. My Wii code is:

5079 6348 8331 7417

I poked around the virtual console games. Mario 64 and Sonic look interesting. It's nice to see Bonk's Adventure in there, and I'll probably pick up Super Mario Bros just because. I also think this may rekindle my interest in GameCube games. I never did get around to checking out the most recent StarFox title. By the way, this page is very helpful in explaining which controllers work with which games.

Can I tell you how much I'm waiting for Metroid Prime 3? What games can anyone recommend? Zelda and Excite Truck came with the bundle. Elebits looks interesting, too. What's a good site to keep an eye on for Wii news? I'd rather find something a bit more low key than huge multi-platform sites.

I Finally Got a Wii
Posted Jan 28, 2007 — 18 comments below

Damien — Jan 28, 07 3446

http://gonintendo.com is a good site for news, so it Cubed3. As for games, there is not much at the moment although I found Call of Duty fun. Metroid and such are coming out soon as is SSX which is the most promising 3rd party title so far.

I also like gamespot for finding out games.

Enjoy the Wii, it does indeed rock.

Carl — Jan 28, 07 3447

I'm enjoying Elebits. It's a fun way to throw stuff around and practice your aiming, etc. If you're looking for cheap 'Cube classics, Gamestop.com has an insane deal: Donkey Kong Jungle Beat with 2 Sets of Bongos, $14.99 plus shipping. I bought it the other day and have been having fun with that.

Add me: 4602 4785 1228 7232.

Carl — Jan 28, 07 3448

Hmm, looking at it now, it seems that Gamestop is charging $10 for shipping, but I think I got it with like $3 shipping. Oh well, I guess they realized how insane their deal was and backed off a little.

Gareth — Jan 28, 07 3451

If you're looking for some multi-player fun you really cannot go past Wii Play.

It comes with a wiiMote as well which makes the game cheap if you were planning to get an extra controller anyway.

It has about 10 mini games that are fun to play against a friend. The duck hunt copy and the tank games are my personal favourites.

Bryant Luk — Jan 28, 07 3453

WarioWare is actually a fun collection of microgames. Besides Wii Sports, it is probably the best game to show others what the Wii is about at the moment. The graphics aren't cutting edge but they weren't meant to be.

Wii Play should also be good but good luck getting a preorder online. I think the big retailers, Amazon, GameSpot, etc. finished taking preorders by the beginning of January.

As far as Virtual Console games, Bomberman '93 (again, great multiplayer game) and Zelda: A Link to the Past (duh) are probably the best so far. Mario Kart 64 comes out tomorrow.

Preston — Jan 28, 07 3454

Trauma Center is great!

Travis — Jan 28, 07 3455

I second Trauma Center. I started with it and Zelda and found it pretty entertaining. The premise is simple but it's easily addicting. I have found that it's more challenging than the DS version (it was ported from DS to Wii) and any sort of hand shake or tremors can affect the "perfect incision."

Jared Hanson — Jan 28, 07 3456

Have fun with the Wii, its a great gaming console!

I'll second Elebits. Childish, but fun. Rayman Raving Rabbids is good as well. There is something oddly satisfying about shooting plungers at bunnies. And don't forget the included Wii Sports, which is particularly great when entertaining guests.

Manton Reece — Jan 28, 07 3457

Elebits and Trauma Center are probably my favorites, though I've hardly gotten anywhere in either of them. I also picked up Rayman shortly after launch but feel it is more suitable for the $10 bargain bin a year from now. I've since scaled back my purchases and am just going to focus on Zelda for a few months.

Definitely looking forward to Metroid 3 and Super Paper Mario, though. As for blogs, GoNintendo and 4 Color Rebellion should have you covered. Enjoy!

Mr eel — Jan 28, 07 3458

Listen to carl! Donkey Kong Jungle Beat is one of the best games to ever come out on the Gamecube. Using the bongos as a controller in a platformer is so unusual, but it's so well designed it's a total blast to play.

I know it's not a Wii game, but I think it's so under-appreciated that I have to pimp it to everyone I can.

Lemont Washington — Jan 29, 07 3460

I finally got one too this Sunday. Thanks to Craig's List I only paid 60$ above retail. Seems an enterprising couple from Long Island saw it at a GameStop and purchased it and placed a craigs ad. The 60$ was worth not having to keep going to game stores and getting the "Please don't ask if we have any more Wii's " look from store employees for another month or two...

Tony — Jan 29, 07 3462

Congrats! My roommates and I love our Wii. We have a few beers and play Wii-sports on our 32" LCD. Good fun! It has been a long time since there has been a great, simple game included with a new console.

Personally, I'm looking forward to the next Sonic, coming out on February 28. I hope that it can redeem the plethora of trash that my favorite hedgehog has been in since the original trio for genesis.

Tony++

James — Jan 29, 07 3463

Enjoy the new toy, I know we are. Wii Sports has been the first game in a long time my wife will actually spend time to play along with me; especially since she's stomped me at just about every round of bowling. Zelda has been absolutely fantastic, and I'm about 15 hours in.

Wii Fanboy has been the most focused source of Wii news that I've been using:

http://www.nintendowiifanboy.com

Finally, here's the friend code, maybe I'll finally have some Miis in a parade...

2673 9928 6435 4057

Chris — Jan 29, 07 3464

@Carl

Is the Donkey Kong Jungle Beat new or used and are the Bongos the Nintendo branded version? I have heard the 3rd party versions are pretty bad.

I didn't get a Wii, but a fellow family member did. He loves Zelda (plays it all day; lucky college kids) and said the bowling was the best and boxing was the worst games in Wii Sports.

I personally took my Wii money and bought Mindstorms NXT. I'm going to wait for Mario to come out to get Wii.

I wish the virtual console games were cheaper. Toe Jam and Earl has my interest.

Felix Schwarz — Jan 30, 07 3465

I don't own a Wii myself, never owned any gaming console myself, just the Wii controller(s). But I have to say that this is one amazing device to play with and it sure was fun to add support for it to my software Remote Buddy (although writing multithreaded Bluetooth driver code is not particularly THAT much fun ;). There are still a lot of discoveries to be made, but from a developer's perspective, if you have a look at the Wiki at http://www.wiili.org/ and see how much features this tiny controller has to offer (and you consider its price, too), then one sure understands why the Wii gets so much more media exposure and (real) user excitement than the Xbox 360 or the PS 3. Nintendo brought "new" controller technologies to the table and with that enabled new gaming concepts - whereas the competitors more or less just upgraded their hardware.

Jacob Wyke — Jan 30, 07 3466

Finally managed to get my hands on a Wii today...My Wii code is 6509 6884 0221 0347 if anybody wants to add me.

Rob — Jan 31, 07 3467

No, No, you are supposed to say ...

... I finally took a Wii !!! or ...

... I gotta take a Wii !!!

Johnk — Feb 20, 07 3608

I love wii, best game i love is the tennis, but my wife beats me mostly everytime.

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