STACK #210 Apr 2022

GAMING FEATURE

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Badminton: A newcomer to the series, this racquet sport has players hitting a shuttlecock – a conical feathered rubber ball thingy – over a net.

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Sports launched as revolution. N this month’s Nintendo Sw ow, some 16

years later, it itch Sports .

Volleyball: Another Wii Sports debutante, you likely know the drill – punch, bump, spike and otherwise do anything that you can to keep the ball from hitting the ground on your side of the net.

So, what do we have to look forward to? At launch, Nintendo Switch Sports will feature six games, with two extras – football matches and golf - slated to arrive later in the year via free software updates.: Tennis: The classic returns, new and improved. Get your timing down and rally your way to the tennis crown!

• Nintendo Switch Sports is out on Apr 29

H ow did one game

change the way many people looked at video

games? By delivering accessibility for even the most non-gaming types. Wii Sports included tennis, baseball, bowling, golf and boxing games, which required no complicated button presses thanks to the Wii’s then revolutionary motion control system, allowing the Wii Remote to imitate the functionality of real-world objects. So, it became a tennis racquet, a baseball bat, a bowling ball, a golf club or, erm, a fist (coupled with the Wii Nunchuk as the other hand in the equation). This egalitarianism led to Wii systems truly breaking the age barrier for gaming, with young kids able to have a swing and “casual” gamers getting involved, while many older folks took to it as a valid form of exercise – and, of course, fun! A sequel to Wii Sports appeared in 2009. Wii Sports Resort took us to the lush Wuhu Island, where we could partake in such sports as swordplay, Frisbee, golf, wakeboarding, archery, basketball, table tennis, an upgraded bowling (thanks to the newWii MotionPlus accessory), power cruising, canoeing, cycling and various air sports. It became the third best-selling Wii title ever, sitting behind its originator and the mighty Mario Kart Wii . Nintendo’s comparatively unsuccessful Wii U console also saw a sort-of new entry in the series, in Wii Sports Club . This one took the original five Wii Sports games and gave them a slick coat of paint and control upgrade. Despite the series’ massive success, until this month it had been all quiet on the Switch front. Soon, however, we’ll all be up and about again and, with the extra abilities of the remarkable Switch Joy-Con controller echoing real-world movements in-game, it’s looking like it’ll be more fun than ever for up to four players at a time – locally or online.

Chambara: A relative of Wii Sports Resort ’s swordplay, this one involves knocking your opponent off a platform while retaining your spot upon it.

Bowling: Another old Wii Sports fave, whether you hit the lane straight or add a bit of curve, knocking down all the pins will see you scoring big.

Football/Soccer: There’s a leg strap attachment to hold a Joy-Con included with Nintendo Switch Sports , and this is why. Yes, leg motion comes into play in a version of the beautiful game that involves a very, very big ball.

HAVE A BALL! The arrival of Wii Sports also saw the release of innumerable

weird and wacky plastic accessories aiming to add realism to the game. Flimsy tennis racquets, golf clubs and baseball bats abounded, but our favourite was the bowling ball that you jammed your Wiimote into and pretended to hurl towards the screen. What could possibly go wrong…?

PLASTIC ACCESSORY DISASTERS Nintendo were very careful to urge players to use the wrist straps provided with their Wii Remotes when playing Wii Sports . Sometimes, however, due to misuse or lack of care these straps were known to break, with several Wii players the world over reportedly left crying over smashed TV screens. It should be noted that the straps on the Switch Joy-Cons are made of much sterner stuff.

34 APRIL 2022

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