Johnstonian Era » wii

WiiSpeak

Ryan — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 15:10:37 +0000

After the E3 2008 conference, I was very disappointed in Nintendo’s “big news” for this year. All they could come up with is WiiSpeak? Seriously… This doesn’t look like a decent product to me. It sounds like something MadCatz would release as a peripheral. Based on the information currently released the microphone is supposed to let gamers communicate from room to room. How is the microphone going to mute out all the other ambient sounds in a room, such as a baby crying, or a dog barking? I’ve used several types on microphones in my day, and all the “room” microphones I’ve used often cut out very easily, making “room to room” communication impossible. Hopefully Nintendo can pull this one off.

I hope this doesn’t turn into another one of Nintendo’s fad peripherals, much like the Super Nintendo Superscope…

Wii Fit + Carpet = Inaccurate

Ryan — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 16:40:49 +0000

First things first. I love Wii Fit! I’m not knocking the game. Just thought others might find this information useful. There are plenty of other articles about this issue, but I want to add my experience with it.

As you may already know, Wii Fit (out of the box) is configured to measure your balance, weight, and BMI assuming you are on a flat surface/thin carpet. It has been argued that the Wii Fit Balance Board is more accurate than the average scale you buy from Target (pronounced Tarjey… it sounds French and sounds cooler). And I totally agree, it is more accurate, but only if you have your Wii Fit Balance Board correctly configured for your specific floor situation.

Assuming, my carpet isn’t the “thick” kind, I boot up the game and get my initial reading saved. Come to find out, my weight in the game is 20 lbs. lighter than my actual weight. Which throws off my BMI to 20, which looks really good and the in-game narrator is impressed!

After further reading online and in the Wii Fit manual, I find out there are extenders for the Balance Board that increase the accuracy of the Board’s readings on carpet. I attached those extenders and, eureka!, my weight measurement is now accurate.. I’m now at a BMI or 23 and some change, which isn’t bad. But it looks bad on the daily graph because the first day I was 20 lbs lighter. Now one day later I’m 20 lbs. heavier and the Wii Fit Balance Board narrator is astonished! He asks what I’ve done to gain so much weight in such a short time…. None of the options fit my scenario.

I thought about removing my profile in Wii Fit and starting over… but then I would lose all the activities I’ve already unlocked and reset my in-game “stop-watch” of gameplay back to zero

My advice… if you are playing Wii Fit on carpet, regardless if it is thick or thin, pop on those extenders before you start playing.

That being said, Wii Fit is a great game and truly is a workout! I love it.

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed

Ryan — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 13:40:52 +0000

Call me a total nerd, but this game looks awesome ( wikipedia article)! I can’t wait for it to come out on the Wii so I can wield my Wiimote like Ghyslain, The Star Wars Kid.

Wii Loop Machine v2.0 video demo

Ryan — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 15:27:51 +0000

Whoa! This is an awesome app using the Wiimote. This dude is the shizat!

video link

Mario Galaxy

Ryan — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 23:01:42 +0000

I’m very excited about renting this game for the Wii. But unfortunately Blockbuster doesn’t have this title available yet

I’ve been reading reviews on the game and many people are giving it 11 out of 10 stars! Wow, didn’t know that was possible. It has to be awesome and that just makes me want to play the game more.

There is a nice review of the game here as well.

I might have to break down and buy it…

Words can’t explain how much I am jones-in(sp?) to play this game

Apple, Wii, Pizza

Ryan — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 21:25:19 +0000

This is my first blog entry. You’ll find many things here relating to Apple products, technology, web design, my fascination with the amazing Nintendo Wii, and last but not least; pizza!