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Nintendo presents the spiritual sequel to the collection of sports games from the Wii console and tries to recreate the magic, but is it really successful?

Julia Balo

19/06/2022

Sunday, 19 June 2022, 19:05 Updated: 19:09

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If you came out and by chance you have not heard yet: Nintendo recently released its collection of sports games for the Switch console - the Nintendo Switch Sports, which is supposed to be the spiritual sequel (or upgraded version) of the original game since the days of the classic Wii console.

Yes, those games that introduced you to sports where you used the console's motion sensors and waved the signs to hit the ball, control the sword, or perform a variety of sporting activities.

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Nintendo Switch Sports (Photo: Official Website, Nintendo)

Some history

The original Wii Sports was a dizzying success in its day when it first came out, and is considered the best-selling console game ever.

Although on paper the concept sounded simple and were fairly standard sports games, the technology that allowed players to control the game through the swings of the signs and the use of motion sensors felt futuristic and really fun, and no one thought "finally play video games and not just sit on a chair ?!"

It did not cross his mind.

Not long after that came the sequel - the Wii Sports Resort, which took the game to a whole other level.

Compared to the first game, which is considered an experience that players get with the console to experience the features, it contained only five sports, so the resort had 12 games, including the classic five.

Nintendo has also introduced the use of Wii Motion Plus technology, which has greatly improved the responsiveness to gamers' movements.

matching expectations

And now back to the present.

Nintendo of course did not give up on the dream of reviving the game, so we got another sequel, and this time, to Nintendo Switch - its portable console.

Of course my expectations for the game were higher than usual.

The resort came out in 2009, which means that Nintendo had 13 years to take a game that is already great, add color to it, maybe raise the level of graphics, and on the way also invent futuristic sports games and incorporate response technology to suit 2022.

Then came the personal and painful experience.

As we got the game, I grabbed my friend and the console and we started playing.

Of course I will mainly address our expectations, compared to the actual game.

Nintendo Switch Sports (Photo: Official Website, Nintendo)

The game starts to shape your character (why not?)

Let's start with the fact that the game shows an improvement in graphics, and it is beautiful, colorful, and wanted a much higher quality than its predecessor.

For those who remember in previous games we won avatars called mii's, there were a lot of design options and it allowed for self-expression and a great source of humor.

Now Nintendo has decided to make the avatars much cuter and simpler.

And no, that's not my problem, but rather the fact that the design capabilities are considered to be much more limited compared to the original mii's, at least in the beginning, because as you progress in the game and win, you get more designs that can be used.

Immediately afterwards choose one of the available sports:

.

Nintendo promises that Golf will also join the list soon.

We wait.

The first blow to me is that in the new Switch Sports there are only six games compared to the 12 that were then at the Resort.

And it's a little disappointing that three of them are games that have been in the past.

Remember I talked about how much they had the option of introducing futuristic and flash sports?

So in the end we got old and fixed.

But okay!

I have not played in Sports for at least a decade, so at least I will enjoy the nostalgia in high graphics.

At least that's what I thought.

At the beginning of each game there is a detailed explanation and learning process for each player, it is very abstract and clear, which will probably also make it easier for children at a young age to understand the rules.

In addition, probably following quite a few incidents of this kind and other, warnings pop up to stay away from the TV and tie the signs in your hands.

Nintendo Switch Sports (Photo: Official Website, Nintendo)

And how are the games themselves?

Volleyball was the first game we played, the game that follows a classic volleyball played by four players, with two on each team.

Most of the gameplay is about jumping and hitting the ball at the right timing and picking up a player who is with you in the team so that he can land the strong blow.

The game was overall likable but got boring very quickly, maybe part of the problem was that we only played two players in it which brought each side a bot player.

Now bots are nice and all as long as they do not interfere with my spotlight (angry face).

In terms of visibility the arena was very colorful and everything was very clear, there were also visual cues to identify when the right timing for jumping and hitting.

From the first game I realized that this release of Nintendo is intended for a young audience and families: everything is very accessible, there are explanations of everything and colors for easier separation and understanding.

This on the face of it is not a bad thing, but it greatly hurts the competitive aspect that characterized the original games.

And you will immediately understand how it affects the rest of the games as well.

Another thing we noticed is that the signs do not always respond 100% to traffic (and remember that my comparison is to technology that was also in 2009) there are occasional double jumps, incorrect perception of traffic and "help" with blows that they miss a bit, ie even if You missed the timing but you were close, the game corrects your blow to be more correct.

Now I know what you guys think, the last part is not a bug but a feature, but trust me, he deserves to be on this list.

Nintendo Switch Sports (Photo: Official Website, Nintendo)

Tennis, also known as a classic of sports games, is designed for four players and is reminiscent of the game of volleyball, only here however, as in the classic game in reality, do not give up with the ball but protect your half on the court with everything you have.

This means that there is one player standing close to the net and one standing behind him, if the player close to the net misses a hit on the ball then the one behind him can still save the situation.

There is also weight for proper deployment in the map and analysis of the opposing team (which side they will hit the ball on) and compared to the tennis game of the Wii, here too a certain accessibility was felt which in my opinion does not contribute to the game but sticks it more.

The speed of the ball did not change no matter what our hitting speed was, which means that even someone sitting on the couch with two legs on the table will hit just as hard as a player standing and swinging the sign at record speed.

The Battle of Swords, or rather, the Chamber as the industry is called in the game, features a 1-on-1 battle and is based entirely on defense and attack.

The goal is to attack the opposing player enough times until he falls into the water.

The sword can be defended and attacked diagonally, horizontally or vertically, and the defender must anticipate what form the attacker will attack and aim his sword accordingly.

There are also elements of charged sword that occur when defending multiple times correctly and choosing weapons at the beginning of the game.

I personally enjoyed this game, but maybe it's mostly because I got to hit my friend with a glowing sword.

who knows.

Nintendo Switch Sports (Photo: Official Website, Nintendo)

Bowling on the other hand was a serious fall.

A game designed for up to 4 players but even two can play it without a problem.

In the game, everyone rolls the ball at their own pace to drop as many pins as possible (maximum 10) and this is by swinging a hand forward from below.

The very fundamental change that Nintendo has brought to this game compared to the Wii is that they have created a strip that shows exactly where the bowling ball will roll when aiming, which means all you need is to aim in the middle and throw in a straight line, which is 10/10.

Here in my opinion this is the most prominent example of excessive accessibility of the game specifically for children and people who do not play video games, and as we said, it lowers the element that leaves room for improvement, or competitiveness.

The badminton is for two players, and it is very reminiscent of the game of tennis but the essential change that comes in is the control of the strength of the blow, which was actually great because you can really surprise the opposing player with strong or suddenly very weak blows.

And let's not forget football, one of the new additions Nintendo has introduced for two players.

What surprised me about football is the fact that in the game package, we got a strap that ties to the leg and can hold the sign.

I of course, thought I was going to play football with my foot, but it turned out that the foot strap is only meant for a short penalty game, and in the game itself you hit the ball with the waving of the signs in your hands (playing with two signs instead of just one).

The visibility of the game actually winked at me, a huge ball and small players entering it on the field to move towards the goal, the part that it kinda reminded me of another game, well you know, this one with the cars?

Yes, Rocket League, only my player's name is a car that can fly and spin in the air, but let's not get into the subtleties.

Nintendo Switch Sports (Photo: Official Website, Nintendo)

Bottom line

It is important to remember that Nintendo Switch Sports is a game designed for children and families, first of all.

But his big problem is that he just is not that much fun.

The game's incessant involvement in the gameplay lowers its competitiveness and makes it feel more stuck and less flowing.

I understand that the prevailing thought is to create games that are as understandable and simple as possible, but we were also kids when we started playing Wii with friends, and although the games may have been harder at first, the improvement trend is what created the real fun, and healthy and fair competition.

Although this is a column of disgruntled gamer opinion in her 20s, everything I have written comes from a place of constant comparison and grasping at previous experiences and nostalgia.

I came up with a high level of expectations and unfortunately I'm not the only one on the net with gentle words, "did not connect to the game", and Nintendo has already received a lot of negative reviews about the game.

But what about the kids?

Your cousins, nephews, or even your kids will probably enjoy playing it together.

And let's hope that in the next sports games or a close update there will be Quidditch, or even space basketball.

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