Wii Fit - so much more than a gym membership

Nintendo Wii Fit has taken the world by storm - not by tell you you're fat but by letting you know you're overweight.

Not only that, the program encourages you to take (fun) regular exercise and keep track of your progress. Like having your own one-to-one train whenever you want.

Keep up the program and you will see results. All the family can use it and as you progress more exercise and game options are unlocked. Don't worry about over doing it as you will be reminded if you're spending too much time burning calories.

It really is a 'must have' item in your home.

With the nations waist lines growing this alone may help you change your lifestyle and make exercise fun.

The balance board can also be used with great effect on other Nintendo games...

How to get fit with your Wii Fit

Fighting Fit?

Setting your own goals becomes compulsive, ensuring you’ll be back time and time again, be it for a few minutes or entire hours.

If you’ve been following our Wii Fitness Club recently, you’ll have an idea of what Wii Fit, Nintendo’s most ambitious self-improvement title yet, is all about. If you haven’t then you should take a look, if only to marvel at how ridiculous we all look attempting Wii Fit’s many balance games, muscle workouts, aerobic exercises and yoga poses.

Broken down into its core components, Wii Fit is really just that; a series of themed minigames with a novel pressure-sensitive stand-on controller, and a progress graph loosely tying it all together. Apply more scrutiny and it starts to look like an interactive exercise DVD; demonstrating movements, gauging successes and offering hints and feedback for better balance and posture.

With further play still, Wii Fit’s many successes and one or two shortcomings become apparent.

Wii Fit makes exercising fun, much more so than going for a run or heading down the gym. It’s also social. You can set up to four Miis to train alongside each other in Wii Fit’s Virtual Plaza, with a colour-coded graph charting their progress. By using Body Mass Index (BMI – height versus weight) Nintendo has opted for a tried and tested way to determine ideal weight range, and setting your own goals becomes compulsive, ensuring you’ll be back time and time again, be it for a few minutes or entire hours a day.

You stand on the board, input your details, get weighed (factoring in clothing), find out if you’re underweight, ideal, overweight or obese, pick a game and go for glory. You compete with others. You challenge yourself. That’s Wii Fit’s greatest achievement, giving everyone from gamer kids and casual-playing parents to exercise obsessives and more the context to burn calories or build muscle with fun regular activity.

Dip-in, dip-out
But Wii Fit slips up on that same everyman approach. Offering upwards of forty minigames, it’s a very accessible, dip-in, dip-out affair, but lacks the structure you’d expect from a product purporting to help tone, shape and train your body.

To its credit, Wii Fit does present a virtual trainer, who will take you through the more serious yoga and muscle workouts and act as a mirror image while you try them for yourself. It also tells you which exercises tone which parts of your body, and upon finishing one will advise you to attempt another that’s complimentary. Finished the Warrior yoga pose? How about Lunge muscle workout too? In that sense, Wii Fit’s great.

But there’s no training regimen. It’s open ended, with no handholding. You do set your own goals, but Wii Fit won’t design a plan for you, advising which workouts to do within a given timescale.

Wii Fit favours the casual player; the Yoga-going housemum; the office worker with a few hours to kill on evenings; the play-together family from the ads. If that’s you, then Wii Fit will be great value. But Wii Fit should be regarded more as a compliment to regular exercise, or a launchpad to it, rather than a replacement for getting out and about.

But gosh, it’s fun. And very inventive. Played together it’s the ultimate take-turns novelty party game; guaranteed to get laughs when someone gyrates madly playing hula hoop, or falls flat on their face doing press-ups. Jogging doesn’t even use the board; you run with the Wiimote in your pocket, and can be done with a friend. And succeeding at exercises not only gives harder versions of them, but gives you time in the Fitpiggy – Wii Fit’s piggy bank, which unlocks new minigames the more you play. So the sense of progress and achievement is pleasing.

It remains to be seen how Wii Fit will endure – but as a concept Nintendo have certainly spotted a gap in the market, and the execution is stylish indeed; all crisp, clean white design and easy-use, hi-sophistication tech. A dedicated training option may be missing and the price may be higher than usual, but massive motivation it gives, the stand-out social aspect, and the probability of a follow-on disc should all make Wii Fit a strong investment.

Review by: Mark 'Muscles' Scott

Wii Fit game sold - every four seconds

The Currys retail chain, consisting of Currys, PC World and Dixons brands, has revealed that it sold a copy of Wii Fit every four seconds across the release weekend, making it the chain's fastest-selling game ever.

The news comes alongside the announcement that the group is also planning to implement its own game classification scheme to try to better inform shoppers as to the suitability of its products for family entertainment.

PC and console titles will be tested by a selection of families, while some products will also be labelled as suitable for customers over the age of 60.

"The notion that videogames are played by teenagers tucked away in their bedrooms is past its sell-by date," said Amanda Clift, Currys' head of brand. "Videogaming is now a mainstream form of family entertainment and we've seen a huge surge in the number of non-core gamers purchasing consoles and games.

"This new scheme will allow us to rate a game based on the collective feedback of a large number of families so our customers can quickly and easily identify which games are going to provide the best form of family entertainment."

The move follows the release of the Byron Review last month, which recommended stronger measures to highlight and encourage recognition of videogames ratings.

The company also released a top ten chart of its best-selling 'family-friendly' titles, as follows:

1. Wii Fit (Wii)
2. Singstar (PS3)
3. Gran Turismo 5: Prologue (PS3)
4. Buzz Hollywood (PS2)
5. Big Brain Academy (Wii)
6. Mario Kart (Wii)
7. Brain Training (DS)
8. Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 (Wii)
9. Sun Crossword (DS)
10. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games (DS)

Mad Catz Introduces Wii Fit Kit

Mad Catz, a leading third-party interactive entertainment accessory provider announced today the release of an exciting new range of accessories compatible with the Nintendo Wii Fit system.

Currently featuring a range of four individual, unique and innovative accessories, each product has been thoughtfully designed to enhance and maximize exercise regimes.

The Wii Fit Rechargeable Battery Pack plugs quickly and simply into the Wii Fit balance board, eliminating the need to purchase expensive batteries. Providing up to 20 hours of game play from a single charge, the Rechargeable Battery Pack draws power from the Wii’s own USB output, removing the need for a separate power pack and keeping obtrusive wires to a bare minimum.

Fashioned from high quality weather-resistant materials, the Wii Fit Travel/Storage Case provides ample space for the balance board, software and accessories. Durable and practical, the Wii Fit Travel/Storage Case provides an ideal solution to housing and transporting your Wii Fit balance board when not in use.

Designed with comfort and safety in mind, the Wii Fit Exercise Mat adds increased stability and protection to any Wii Fit workout. Protecting the user when playing on a potentially slippery or hazardous surface, the Wii Fit Exercise Mat features a durable textured surface which improves traction whilst helping decrease impact during intensive workouts.

Keeping the hardware in premium working condition, the Wii Fit Protective Silicone Cover attaches instantly to the balance board, protecting the unit from outside elements and damage. Constructed from lightweight yet durable silicone, the Wii Fit Protective Silicone Cover provides stylish protection and helps ensure accurate operation of the Wii Fit balance board.

Darren Richardson, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mad Catz commented, “Wii Fit is yet another example of how gaming continues to grow in an organic fashion, providing a compelling experience for the entire family. Mad Catz is delighted to further enhance this innovative release with a range of useful and eclectic accessories which we feel will prove enticing to consumers everywhere”.

The Mad Catz range of Wii Fit compatible accessories is expected to be available across Europe in April 2008 and the United States in May 2008.

Wii Fit sold out before launch in UK

All Gamezplay Wii Fit posts here...


A quick check round the retailers in the UK found that they all stopped taking orders for the Nintendo Wii Fit game well before launch.

There appears to be a shortage... as with the Nintendo Wii they cannot supply as demanded.

This isn't a shortage in the UK it's worldwide - the US cannot supply demand.

Great game no product another Nintendo blunder...

Get The Family Fit For Summer with Wii Fit on Nintendo Wii

Wii Fit is a new exercise game that launches on 25th April at Gamestation stores nationwide. Designed to get you and your family up on your feet and moving, Wii Fit combines fitness with fun by using the all-new ‘Wii Balance Board’.

Allowing you to get fitter in the comfort of your own home the Wii Balance Board has been created exclusively for the Wii console and is fun and simple to use. It’s pressure sensitive as well as wireless so that it easily goes on the floor in front of your TV.

Helpful tutorials are provided throughout the game by a personal on-screen fitness trainer who is on hand to offer encouragement and set improvement goals for you and your family. Allowing up to 8 people to monitor their progress and performance at any one time, players can calculate their BMI and measure the center of their bodily balance to establish their Wii Fit Age.

With 4 training categories including Aerobic Exercises, Muscle Workouts, Yoga and Balance Games, Wii Fit will help to improve your body balance and control, burn fat, tone and increase aerobic stamina. With an array of activities including the likes of Hula Hoop™, Ski Jump, Press-up Challenge, Rhythm Boxing, Rowing Squat, Lunges and Yoga, players can be sure they won’t get bored!

Wii Fit To Keep Americans Moving at $89.99 on Nintendo Wii

In anticipation of the U.S. launch of Wii Fit™, the new interactive fitness game for the popular Wii™ system, Nintendo of America Inc. has announced pricing details for this groundbreaking release. Available at Nintendo World store starting on May 19, Wii Fit and the innovative Wii Balance Board™ accessory will be bundled and sold together at a suggested retail price of $89.99.

Boasting a dynamic mix of more than 40 yoga, aerobics, strength training and balance activities, Wii Fit provides consumers with a fun, easy and affordable way to incorporate exercise into their daily routines. Using the included wireless Wii Balance Board accessory, every member of the household can step up and stay active, setting individual fitness goals and tracking their progress over time.

Consumers in the New York area who pre-order Wii Fit from the Nintendo World store in Rockefeller Plaza will receive a special bonus item. From April 18-20, the first 1,000 consumers who place a $5 deposit for Wii Fit will receive a limited edition Wii Fit T-shirt featuring the image and reproduced autograph of legendary Nintendo video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto.

Through mid-February, Wii Fit had sold more than 1.4 million copies in Japan since its Dec. 1, 2007 launch.

Nintendo - Wii Fit sold out at Play.com in one day

Play.com has sold out of its entire allocation of Wii Fit in just one day, ahead of the games official release on April 25 in the UK.

Pre-order demand has "overwhelmed" the online retailer, following success in Japan that saw the game sell one million copies in just over a month on sale.

"People continually look for new and fun ways to stay in shape and it’s fantastic to see exergames in big demand," commented Gian Luzo, head of games at Play.com.

"Wii Fit is going to be huge – let’s hope that we can keep up with demand. We are expecting more stock before launch," he added.

Pokemon Ranger - Batonnage tops Japan games chart

Pokemon Ranger: Batonnage has beaten off the opposition to take the Japanese chart top spot, selling almost a quarter of a million units in the process.

The data, compiled by Media Create for the sales week ending March 23, saw a completely new top four, with Deca Sporta for the Wii in second place, Armored Core for Answer on the PlayStation 3 in third and SimCity DS 2: From the Past to the Future in fourth place.

Wii Fit in fifth was one of only three titles to remain in the top ten from last week as a plethora of new titles saw releases in Japan.

Tales of Rebirth for the PlayStation Portable was another new entry in sixth, followed by Super Smash Bros Brawl, which will have surpassed the 1.5 million mark in Japan this week.

Crayon Shin-chan: Arashi wo Yobu Cinema Land took eighth spot, DS Beautiful Letter Training was ninth, and Time Hollow: Seeking the Lost Past rounded out the top ten.

Although eight of the top ten titles were on Nintendo platforms, there was some good news for Microsoft, as two new entries for the Xbox 360 made it into the top twenty - Armored Core for Answer on that console made number 13, while Army of Two was number 20.



The full top ten is as follows:

1. Pokemon Ranger: Batonnage (DS)
2. Deca Sporta (Wii)
3. Armored Core for Answer (PS3)
4. SimCity DS 2: From the Past to the Future (DS)
5. Wii Fit (Wii)
6. Tales of Rebirth (PSP)
7. Super Smash Bros Brawl (Wii)
8. Crayon Shin-chan: Arashi wo Yobu Cinema Land (DS)
9. DS Beautiful Letter Training (DS)
10. Time Hollow: Seeking the Lost Past (DS)

Source: Games Industry

Get fit in May with Family Trainer and the Nintendo Wii

Namco Bandai has a fitness oriented game too, but Family Trainer: Athletic World feels more like a game compared to Wii Fit. In one event players stand shoulder to shoulder on a mat and jump to vault over logs on the screen. In a different game players control a mine cart by lifting up their feet.

These activities may not tone your body as much as Wii Fit’s push-up trainer, but they are pretty fun. I played this almost a year ago at Tokyo Game Show and I’m looking forward to getting the final version when it comes out on May 29 in Japan.

Oh yeah, the mat pictured above comes with the game. Not a bad deal for 7,140 yen ($71). Yeah, that sounds expensive, but Wii Fit costs 8,800 yen ($88) and Super Smash Brothers Brawl commands a premium price of 6,800 yen ($68) in Japan.

Source: Siliconera

Nintendo Wii Fit US campaign to be biggest in history

Nintendo of America is believed to be planning a huge and historic campaign to support Wii Fit.

Wedbush Morgan's Michael Pachter has said that although US video game retailer GameStop is reporting record sales of US$7.1 billion, the company is set to lose ground to retailers like Wal-Mart and Target in the future.

What's more relevant, however, is that Pachter also discussed that Wedbush expects a "repeat of the 2002 phenomenon in 2008," meaning that hardware sales are anticipated to be flat to slightly negative for the industry.

"We expect overall Wii and PS3 dollar sales to grow by approximately $400 million per console in the U.S., but expect the other consoles to decline by around the same amount," Pachter added. "At the same time, we expect the Wii supply situation to increase by 150,000 per month, on average, with allocations of hardware favoring the mass merchants once supply and demand are in balance."

And the first glimpse of that, according to Pachter, will occur on May 19 when Nintendo debuts Wii Fit. Further on the subject of the game, Pachter expressed that he's learnt that Nintendo of America plans to support the game "with the biggest marketing campaign in its history."

Pachter added that Wedbush believes "it is unlikely that such a large marketing campaign is intended to disproportionately benefit GameStop. Rather, we think that the Nintendo campaign is likely to feature key retail partners such as Target and Best Buy, notorious for attracting so-called ‘couch potatoes’.”

Nintendo Wii Fit event in London March 26

Can video games really make you healthier?

Fitness and gaming explored in new event at Science Museum's Dana Centre

Slimmers and gamers have the opportunity to visit the Science Museum’s Dana Centre this March to discover if video games could aid weight loss.

Play away the calories, taking place on Wednesday 26 March, will allow visitors a special preview of the new Nintendo Wii Fit (due to launch across Europe on 25 April) to ascertain if modern, interactive technology could really increase fitness levels.

Visitors will have the opportunity to try out Wii Fit for themselves and watch as its effectiveness is put to the test in a series of live tests. Human guinea pigs will be put through their paces exercising on a treadmill, testing out Wii Fit and playing a more sedentary game, whilst measurements of their heart rate and oxygen consumption are taken to calculate how much energy is burnt.

Throughout the evening sport scientists, physiologists and games experts will be on hand to engage and discuss whether gaming can promote a healthy lifestyle. Epidemiologist Andy Jones from the University of East Anglia will examine how and why adult obesity has quadrupled in the last 25 years and will look at the role technology has played in creating a more sedentary life.

Andy Jones said “Today individuals lead much less active lives than we used to. Levels of employment in manual jobs are falling and we drive everywhere rather than walking or cycling.”

“We need to do lots of things to combat the problem but should try to incorporate activity into our everyday life rather than expecting everyone to go to the gym. We need people to exercise without seeing it as such! So making games more active is one way forward.”

Gaming expert Margaret Robertson will reveal the history of healthy gaming and why this area has failed to make a significant impact before. Visitors will be able to test past examples of gaming technology aimed at promoting a healthy lifestyle, such as the original NES fitness games and dance mats.

Gaetan Lee, Dana Centre event organiser said “The Dana Centre aims to explore the most exciting subjects of contemporary and controversial science and technology. Play away the calories is no exception and promises adults an energetic night of game-playing and discussion.”

The Science Museum’s Dana Centre café/bar provides visitors with the opportunity to explore and discuss the latest issues in contemporary science, medicine and technology through informal, interactive and stimulating events. All events are free. The centre is open to over 18s only.

Play away the calories takes place at the Science Museum’s Dana Centre on 26 March, 19:00-21:00 and is sponsored by Nintendo.

Balance Wii Fitness with feeling the fool

Later this year Nintendo plan to release a new game called Wii Fitness (or Wii Fit if you are outside Europe). Consisting of 40 or so fitness games, it also includes a 'Balance Board' that gives feedback on how the prancing folk in front of the TV are doing. Basically it's the workout version of the popular DS game, Brain Training. In Japan, Nintendo shipped over one million units for launch and have managed to sell them. Obviously there is a demand but, would you use one? I think it's safe to say that if you're a male sharing a flat with a couple of other male friends, then breaking a sweat on your Balance Board is going to invite all sorts of abuse. In a fatigued state, you may well be too exhausted to fight your flatmates off, verbally or otherwise.

However, an easy way to workout in your living room that can avoid boredom is bound to be popular with people. I could do with dropping a few pounds but I just don't know if this is something I want. I think it's due to all the ratings and feedback that are offered. I'm in my 30s and I really don't want a game telling me I have the fitness of a man in his late 40s. Perhaps if the fitness rating were based on animals I would be happier. I can live with being told I am at a badger's level in fitness so I could perhaps aim towards being rated as something such as a squirrel or a lima. It's pretty much the same reason I have never played Brain Training on the DS. As well as yogic balance and press-ups (yawn) there are some fun mini games involved in the Wii Fitness, such as ski jumping and hula hooping, so I might find I love it when I actually have a go.

More from: Times Online