➤ L'isola del tesoro 🎮

The Motion Plus starter was served by Sega and Electronic Arts with Virtua Tennis 2009, Grand Slam Tennis and Tiger Woods 10; products of indisputable quality, but it is evident that the interest of the whole community was projected towards Nintendo itself, and more specifically towards its Wii Sports Resort, as a real indicator of the capabilities of the new peripheral. Now that the most important game of the summer, if not the whole of 2009 for the Kyoto house, has finally arrived on the market, we can put an end to all the questions.

Sport is good for you

It is a pity that the obligations of logos, preliminary screens, titles and above all interminable introductory videos to Motion Plus stand between the player and what is the way in which Sports Resort welcomes him: a spectacular and evocative parachute jump, in which the Wiimote becomes your own Mii in free fall towards WuHu Island, and where every small tilt of the remote determines a change of angle of the character between clouds and crisp air. And while the typical smile generated by a game made in Kyoto is printed on the face, the Nintendo title opens up, immediately offering access to the 12 sports available. If a good day starts in the morning then, the Sports Resort road should be all downhill; in reality at the end of the day, the feeling is that of a title of the highest quality, but which lacks something to rightfully enter the Olympus of masterpieces capable of putting everyone in agreement. But let's start with the merits, above all the most important: yes, the game is fun - a lot - and no, it's not a simple Motion Plus tech demo. Of course there are ups and downs, as is normal for such a robust variety of assets; we have said that there are a dozen, but for many of them variants are unlocked capable of offering experiences even more than significantly different from each other. The result is that, really, there is a bit for all tastes; those looking for an immediate and very "physical" challenge can throw themselves on Chanbara, on the basketball free throw competition or on rowing, while those who want something more relaxing can have fun with Frisbee, archery or golf. The latter, together with bowling, constitutes the "recovery" of disciplines already present in Wii Sports and in a certain sense recycled on this occasion.

Water activities such as Wakeboarding and Moto Surfing, cycling, high altitude sports and table tennis conclude the list. Making differences or rankings between activities would be like trying to say which flavor of ice cream is better: impossible, because every player can find his ideal size within the Nintendo production. Who writes to you, for example, undoubtedly finds in table tennis, archery and acrobatic throwing the best and most satisfying triptych; a bit disappointing on the other hand Chanbara, which often risks ending up in a rambling series of random blows, the shallow wakeboard - probably the weak point of the whole package - and the moto surfing, an all too watered down version (forgive us the sad game of words) of the legendary Wave Race. But, we would like to repeat it, these are indications that for many may not be shared; and it is precisely in this, in the variety, that Sports Resort knows how to offer its best.

A game with something extra

However, it is inevitable to argue that Sports Resort is absolutely and totally a product to be faced in multiplayer; only in this way, in fact, the Nintendo title is able to guarantee that sense of challenge and competition that becomes a fundamental element of its success. And this is because, if played alone, the fun tends to diminish in proportion to the discovery factor; after the enthusiasm linked to the "first time", after having unlocked all the different variations of the disciplines, and after having beaten their records and perfected the technique, what is left for the solitary user is in fact very little. In this sense it is impossible not to criticize for the umpteenth time the anachronistic choice of the Kyoto house to turn its head away in the face of any type of online mode. If the idea of online multiplayer may seem like science fiction, a public scoreboard might have been enough, so as to offer some further stimulus in improving one's performance. But no, Nintendo has decided to remain true to itself, to the concept that to challenge someone this someone must be in the flesh in our living room. While waiting for things to change, perhaps allowing to remove the patina of dust now collected on Wii Speak around the world, there is no doubt that Sports Resort is one of the funniest and most satisfying "traditional" multiplayer experiences currently on the market. And this whether users belong to the hardcore or casual category; there are no distinctions on WuHu Island. The entrance ticket, however, is not cheap: the package with a bundled game and peripheral must necessarily be accompanied by at least one other Motion Plus, provided and not granted that you already have a second Wiimote and Nunchuck. But at the end of the day, is this Motion Plus really the long-awaited revolution? Well, maybe putting it in these terms is frankly excessive, but without a shadow of a doubt the new Nintendo peripheral adds a further dimension to Wiimote control, eliminating in one fell swoop the frustration associated with pointing and detection errors that have often plagued. Wii games. Everything becomes much more natural, to the point that we tend not to notice its presence; or rather, the Motion Plus allows you not to "worry" about its presence, thus giving the possibility to play and execute the movements exactly as you would really do by throwing a Frisbee, or holding a ping pong racket and so on. Sensitivity is really great, and if it still can't be said to be a true 1: 1 detection situation, we're sure damn close. Too bad that it is necessary to recalibrate the peripheral quite frequently during games, aiming at the center of the screen or resting the controller on a flat surface for a few seconds. A quick but not exactly painless operation, which becomes quite boring in the long run. Finally, a few lines regarding the technical component, which obviously maintains the minimalist and stylized style, but by no means poor or modest, of the first Wii Sports.

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Wii Sports Resort it does not have the innovative power of the first Wii Sports; 10 new disciplines and the long-awaited Motion Plus are not enough to unhinge the doors of a new era for the Nintendo console. But to put the perspective in this sense would be wrong; Sports Resort is, quite simply, one of the most fun and valid multiplayer experiences available on Wii (and beyond), and the innovative peripheral "limits itself" to guaranteeing an almost flawless depth and naturalness of control. If you have a few friends or relatives to play with, and you are not afraid of spending around € 75 to take home the bundle and a mandatory second Motion Plus second, undoubtedly you will find very little in the Nintendo production. complain. Solo players, on the other hand, should consider buying more carefully.