New Wii Fit offers physical exercise
With young and old alike flocking to the appeal of the new Wii, some are questioning whether the Wii is taking place of regular activity.
Questions have arisen regarding the Wii’s impact on physical activity and whether or not it is a replacement for physical exercise.
Wii aficionados, however, say they believe the Wii has benefits to offer.
“They develop advanced depth perception and hand-eye coordination at a rapid rate,” said freshman business major Jackson Pierson Plesa.
Other Wii supporters say the Wii is like nothing seen before because it offers a different experience for gamers.
“The point of the Wii is to immerse the player in the experience on a broad scale,” said Adam Barenblat,a senior film studies major.
Barenblat says the Wii appeals to a broad audience.
“The Wii is appealing to every single age group right now,” Barenblat said. “There are retirement homes that are installing these things. It’s different and that’s a great thing.”
Regardless of the debate on the benefits of the Wii, Barenblat said the newly designed Wii Fit will provide exercise. Barenblat attended the 2008 Game Developers Conference that was held in San Francisco, Calif. where he had the opportunity to test what is currently the only Wii Fit in the country.
“Wii Fit is a pad that you stand on – it’s called a Wii Balance Board,” he said. “As you perform the actions on the screen it measures the pressure on certain parts of your feet to make sure you’re doing the exercise correctly. It’s difficult.”
The Wii Fit offers an opportunity for gamers to exercise while engaging in a game. Developers say the Wii Balance Board was inspired by Sumo Wrestlers.
“I wanted to make something unique, something very different,” said Shigeru Miyamoto, creator of the new Wii Fit.
The new game will be released in the United States for the Nintendo Wii on May 19.
Outside of new releases such as Wii Fit, gamers entertain various notions regarding the future of the console and exercise.
“I believe the future of Wiis and videogame consoles in general is a vest worn in which you play video games and the vest stimulates you according to the damage your character takes because hardcore gamers would be thrilled by the excitement and realism,” Pierson Plesa said.
Other gamers say there’s no telling what game developers will come up with in the future.
“Nobody has any idea what they’re going to do next,” Barenblat said. “That’s the great thing about Nintendo. Six months before [Wii] was released it was called Revolution. They were trying to start a revolution, they were trying to change things there is no telling what they’re going to do next.”
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Angela Cleary at Angela.cleary@colorado.edu.
