Wii Sports - Impact

Impact

Wii Sports, a major factor in the Wii's worldwide success, was the first release among a number of core Wii games being developed at the same time, with the same philosophy; others were released as Wii Play, Wii Fit, and Wii Music. A direct sequel to Wii Sports, titled Wii Sports Resort, was released in 2009. The game, along with Wii Fit, has been credited with attracting more casual, female, and elderly gamers. It has also been cited as a game that can provide a bonding experience among family members, and as a means of exercising and losing weight when played regularly. A study involving 13–15 year old teenagers was conducted by the Liverpool John Moores University and concluded that players used 2% more energy than by playing on other consoles. They stated that it was no substitute for playing a real sport, but could contribute to weight management. Wii Sports has been used to aid in the physical therapy of a boxer at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital in Canada, stroke victims in Minneapolis, Minnesota and Raleigh, North Carolina, and injured soldiers in Prescott, Arizona; Washington, D.C.; and Landstuhl, Germany. Wired included the game in its list of "The 15 Most Influential Games of the Decade" at #8, for its role in popularizing motion controls and having a major impact on the "videogame landscape."

After the Wii's release, players began incurring injuries while playing Wii Sports, among other games, when they accidentally hit other players or objects while swinging the Wii Remote. This string of accidents, and others related to players throwing the Wii Remote while playing Wii Sports, prompted Nintendo president Satoru Iwata to develop a campaign to reduce such incidents. In regard to the issue, Nintendo spokesman Yasuhiro Minagawa commented, "People tended to get a bit excited, especially while playing Wii Sports, and in some cases the remote would come loose from their hands." Nintendo responded by offering replacement Wii Remote wrist straps that were almost twice as thick. Other injuries include muscle, tendon, and ligament injuries from excess playing of simulated sports on the Wii—dubbed "Wii-itis".

Wii Sports has become a popular means for social gatherings and competitions. Residents at senior centers and retirement homes have formed leagues using Wii Sports bowling. After its Australian release, Nintendo and Myer, an Australian department store chain, held a Wii Sports tennis tournament in January 2007 in Melbourne, Australia. The winners competed against professional tennis players Pat Cash and Mark Woodforde, and were awarded new Wiis. An unofficial Wii Sports tennis tournament titled "Wiimbledon" was held in the Brooklyn, New York bar Barcade on June 23, 2007. It featured 128 competitors, many of whom were dressed in costumes.

Wii Sports has been featured on television multiple times. The game was featured in commercials for the Wii system, and in news features on ABC and NBC. The game has appeared on various comedy shows. An episode of Late Night with Conan O'Brien featured host Conan O'Brien competing against his guest, tennis star Serena Williams, in a match of Wii Sports tennis. On an episode of the Rick Mercer Report, former Canadian prime minister Jean Chrétien beat Rick Mercer in a game of Wii Sports boxing. The boxing game also appeared on an episode of The Colbert Report where a clip featured Mii versions of Stephen Colbert and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi boxing. At the 80th Academy Awards Show, host Jon Stewart and Jamia Simone Nash were caught playing Wii Sports tennis on one of the event's gigantic projection screens after a commercial break as part of a joke. Wii Sports has also been featured in mainstream movies such as Tropic Thunder and in commercials for products such as Kellogg's Smart Start.