Robin won a Wii at a drawing a while back. So, we started having a Game Night every now and then. Wendy, Carolyn and I go to Robin's little house and play games. We started out with the games that came with the Wii...sports like tennis, bowling, golf, boxing and baseball. I actually do okay with most of them. The game tells us when we need to rest. You can get quite winded in some of them.
A person can rent games at video rental businesses, so Robin rented one or two to see what game was enough fun to actually buy. A favorite was Mario Kart. A steering wheel that the game controller fits into is available so that you kind of feel that you are really driving. The steering wheel isn't necessary, but we now have four of them! Some of the games (for instance, boxing) require an additional controller, called a nunchuk. You hold a controller in one hand and the nunchuk in the other so that you can throw a punch with either hand. We all box like girls, but I assume we'd get better if we boxed more often.
Once we had Mario Kart, that's about all we played. Lots of different vehicles to choose from as well as many different circuits with various tracks in each circuit. Some are more fun than others. One is in the sky and I always get sweaty palms when we do that one. When there is only one player, the whole screen is devoted to that player. With two players, the screen is divided in half, and so on. You really need a bigger screen when four players are driving. Especially when two of the players are near-sighted. Sometimes we lose focus and then realize that the car we thought we were driving (and doing really well!) was actually someone else's and our car has been spinning it's wheels against a boulder.
At first, we all had to stand to drive...don't ask me why, we just felt like we needed to stand. I imagine it would have been very entertaining to watch us from behind...lots of english employed to make it around curves and through tight spaces. But now we're able to sit and feel like we know what we're doing.
I must say that our language has suffered somewhat. We probably would not want the little ones around while we play Mario Kart. The room is punctuated with many shouts of "Crap!", "Damn it!!!" and worse as our carts or bikes crash or get blown up by each other or one of the other characters that Wii has inserted in the race.
Mii's are our individual profiles. If I log in under my Mii, I can play in new areas that I have earned by performing well in existing areas. My Mii looks kind of like me. I was able to choose from many different eyes, noses, hair, etc. You can change the color, make features wider or narrower, move them up or down, add glasses and even freckles. Sort of like a sketch artist at the police department! The Wii knows how much I weigh...but, you have to tell it how tall you are. With 20/20 hindsight I realized I should have told it I was a lot taller!
We met for Game Night last night. Wendy couldn't come because they've changed text books again and she is updating her lectures once more.
This time we did Wii Fit. This game is designed to improve one's fitness. It comes with a unit that looks rather like a double-wide scale. It weighs you, calculates your BMI and after a few balance tests gives you what it considers your fitness age. My fitness age the first time was 75! Yikes, I'm 63! I didn't do very well in the balance tests, but was able to do okay in some of the balance games...skiing and hula hoops. There were others, but I can't remember what they were. There are other parts to Wii Fit...yoga, strength training, and aerobics. You are able to set a goal and a deadline for that goal. The balance games are the most fun...obviously, because they're games, while the other (yoga, aerobics, etc.) are actually a workout.
I enjoyed it enough to purchase my own Wii, Mario Kart and Wii Fit. The only one I've actually done at home is the Wii Fit. My second session had me at a fitness age of 55. The bad score on the first attempt was more a result of inexperience. Wii keeps track of the minutes you train in each session and rewards you with new balance games (Yay!) or more difficult moves or more reps. Yay?
A fun way to improve balance and posture. I guess the housework will have to remain in last place.
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