Nintendo Wii hands-on

We’ve just come from our first play with the Nintendo Wii, and we liked what we saw.

It was our first experience using the fabled Nunchuk motion sensing controller. It was with relief and excitement to discover that it’s damn near perfect. The sensitivity in default setting is just right. Not too vague, or equally, not over-sensitive. The weighting of the unit itself was also pleasing. It was heavy enough to allow a feeling that as you move there’s some momentum, but not too much that rapid changes in direction require anything approaching effort.

In fact, we honestly found it more natural and intuitive than even a mouse. It’s a little wonder, and we can confidently say will herald a new era in gaming.

Wii will launch in Australia on December 7th for an RRP of $399.95. Only one controller will be included, disappointingly as the very social nature of many games makes a second controller essential.

The graphic power of Wii is its weakness. The games look not much better than GameCube, at best. It’ll be eaten alive by 360 and PS3 for graphics, but as so often been said, Nintendo’s strengths lie with the games.

And never has that been more true than with the Wii Sports tennis game. It was, quite simply, the most gaming fun I’ve had in years. The game is part of the Sports pack that’s bundled with the Wii, so really, you could sort of consider it a freebie. Graphically it’s primitive, but the degree of precision you have with the Nunchuck is just astonishing. It plays exactly like real tennis, and you can do almost anything with the ball. Scoop it up for a lob, edge it over at a sharp angle, whack it down the baseline. Whatever. It’s insane fun and in my opinion, now makes any other tennis game redundant.

You’ll literally be jumping around, lunging at shots, and swingling like a total legend. Smashing a powershot is joyously satisfying, equally is planting a dropshot short of your opponent. It’s just fantastic and I can’t stop raving about it.

At the other end of the stylistic scale is Wii’s Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. It’s the most visually ambitious, which unfortunately showcases the Wii’s limitations. If there’s anything the game desperately needs, it’s antialiasing. The jaggies were impossible to overlook, and given the simple textures and geometry, it compounded the problem. In any case, control was effective, with the left hand analogue joystick moving the character around, and the Nunchuck used as a weapon. As a sword it slashed fine, but a very steady hand was needed in archery mode. The game will be huge, and in no time players will get used to the controls.

All I want now for Christmas is a Wii. It’s a beautiful system and having experienced the wonder of its controller, my only reservation is dispelled.