8:15 AM. July 26th. Somewhere in the Pacific… we think.
We were somewhat knowledgeable of our predicament: search out the passengers of a flight that went lost in May, some of which were on the fated Oceanic flight that went down 3 years ago. Something tells us that lightning doesn’t strike twice all too often. Our search and rescue team was implemented with Wii Motion Plus, a special tool attached to a Wii remote that can track true 1:1 location… something that would be needed, should we suffer the same fate as the castaways.
It was a difficult and bumpy flight, so we had to eject. Free-falling for some varied distance, we could see the island quickly approaching. The interesting occurrence was that the movement of the Wii-Mote was dead on with how we were falling. Every twist, turn, and even flick of the wrist translated perfectly. Connecting with the other skydivers was enjoyable, although difficult at times. As we dove we snapped photos of each other, some of which included my head buried under the armpit of Chewbacca, a Mii that was automatically imported via the integrated Check Mii Out channel. While the sky dive wasn’t anything more than a tech demo, it was a nice way to engage into the island.
As my chute opened and we touched down, we landed right in the middle of a shower of arrows hailing down upon us. Rather, they were whizzing past us. We were instantly under attack by some unseen individuals! As none of us had done much archery in the past, we did not know what to expect when we grabbed the bow and arrow, but our Wii-Motes reacted flawlessly. The further away the targets were, the more important the wind and strength of the draw became. My aim was dead on for my first few shots, but after that it was a task to hit anywhere near the center. I extremely enjoyed firing at the targets (which were oddly shaped like targets) to the point where I took another few tries at it. Unlocking the other modes were just as enjoyable. This was a great way to get engaged with the Motion Plus. The archery takes place around Wuhu Island, so we managed to scout out our next search locale: an odd rock formation where a dog and a Frisbee laid waiting.
As cute as the Nintendog puppy was, he seemed to be hiding a secret. Throwing the Frisbee to him was awkward and often way off target, prompting him to leap incredible distances as he caught it. Was this some kind of super dog? What more could this island do? I liked popping the balloons, but never really enjoyed much more than that. Upon further inspection, a Frisbee golf game was revealed. This, although fun, was not nearly as enjoyable as the archery.
The puppy led us past a strange lighthouse (or was it a giant foot of a statue?) towards a strangely fenced in area that reminded us of a basketball court, complete with baskets and a 3-point arc. The coconuts lying around reminded us of basketballs, so we were compelled to throw them towards the hoops. The makeshift 3-point contest was incredibly fun, even though our first game had us missing the hoop left and right (I myself did not land a single shot, and I fancy myself a sportsman). Frustrated, I challenged my wife — who also happens to be my co-pilot — to a rematch. A few shots in and I realized that I had to throw the ball (coconut?) at the peak of my jump. The responsiveness of the controller showed off the ability to map my actual throw virtually. It was astounding. My wife, a former junior-varsity middle school basketball all-star, did not fair well, losing the second match 15-8. There would be no rubber match as we were startled by a large rumble.
Turning around, we saw a vast army of people wearing protective pads and brandishing rapiers! The dog had led us into a trap!
We quickly grabbed the nearest swords, which just so happened to be on top of a large, suspended target and practiced our skills. My partner cleanly won against me, due to her flailing. I was much more methodical in where I placed my swings. Once our enemies reached our location, a bridge across a ravine, they engaged us in combat. Each was wearing a protective suit of armor, and apparently had no idea how to block. Reaching their boss, a gentlemii simply named “Gill,” I could tell there was something different about him. For one, his protective gear was much bigger and, well, more protective than his peons. He must have significant power over this tribe! A few good swipes felled him and he retreated across the bridge into the forest.
Although tiresome at times, as my arm often would wear out from the heavy swings, the sword fights were action-packed and often lengthy depending on how experienced my opponent was. The blocking was simple and effective, and the swipes seemed to be of only a few different directions. Nonetheless, we had no fear and enjoyed the experience.
Near the beach where the fight with “Gill” took place was a small powerboat. The boat could not fit us all, so I drew the shortest straw and was relegated to tying a rope around my WiiMote and wakeboarding behind the vessel. The boarding was simple, asking for us to go from side to side. Upon crossing the wake we were asked to land safely and parallel to the ground, something my wife could not handle and crashing her board after we switched turns. We managed to do some tricks and flips while we were at it, by moving the WIiMote in all manner of ways. Rotate one direction to cause a 180 reverse, flick it up to flip upside down. The tricks were handled well and the controls, although not quite relating to what we were seeing unfold in front of us, didn’t slow us down at all.
Upon reaching the other side of the lighthouse we saw what appeared to be people practicing ancient arts, specifically table tennis. Further exploration revealed that not only were we watching the ancient art take place but we were now in ancient times ourselves! Somehow while riding the water vessel in its pre-determined direction we had crossed some sort of time shift! Astounding!
We made our way to the individuals playing the sport and asked a few questions. Namely, what was up with their strange jumpsuits with the octagonal logo on it. The words “Dharma Initiative” barely made it out of their mouths before they asked us to join in on the game. “Why?”
“Because this table tennis will remind you of other motion tennis minigames you might have played.” Consider this ping pong match as our “constant”. Taking up the paddle I quickly noticed that serving, although not able to pick up my hard swing, did manage to relate the curve and topspin I was placing on the ball. The further along the match went, the more I stepped back away from the table, and the more my spins were able to go from one side to the extreme opposite. Glorious!
Winning the match not only helped return us to the present day (in a wild flash of light nonetheless) but it also must have proven to the jump-suit wearing individuals that we were trustworthy as they told us their story: They were the survivors we were looking for! But now the question remained:
How do we get back home?
The answer: the airplane anchored off the coast at the home base of the “Others”, the individuals who had been attacking us.
We took jet skis towards the plane, noticing how the slightest turn of the WiiMote over-steered watercraft. My crew, the castaways and I raced to the plane, bumping into each other and hopping waves along the way. It was a fun wave race, but I was hoping for something more.
The plane was waiting for us, as if beckoning to our desire to go home! We all climbed aboard but kept wondering if something was not quite right. To no surprise our feelings of insecurity were justified as another plane appeared in the sky, launching “bullets” at us. It was Gill! We took off from the water and launched into the air, circling around Gill as he continued to try and shoot us down. We were on HIS island! He knew it better than us… there was no place to hide. Our only resort was to give up… or… We had an idea!
If we were to beat Gill, we had to scout the island ourselves, avoiding his blasts along the way. Only then would we be able to find someplace to lose him! We powered around Wuhu, picking up signals from various locations on the island in a collection-oriented game. The plane flew accurately, as we only had the WiiMote and Motion Plus to steer it. Slight twists to the front allowed us to do barrel rolls. A quick turn to the right and we were perpendicular to the sky.
While flying, we noticed something that we had taken for granted earlier: the extremely polished visuals and graphical layout. The “menus” within Wuhu were easy to navigate and pleasing to the eye. The island itself was vibrant and alive. The cast of characters we had come across looked more detailed (and tanned) than any other Miis we had ever met. And while not quite high def, the imagery we were seeing were a vast improvement over those we saw when we visited the original Wii Sports country club. Were we still in some kind of alternate universe? This was the same country club only bigger, with more activities, and feeling “alive” and connected.
Suddenly we found our exit: a narrow pathway cut into a rocky overhang. We would fly through the minuscule space and evade Gill, allowing us to make our escape back to civilization!
The plan didn’t quite work out that well, however, as the Wii Remote couldn’t turn quickly enough for us to avoid getting our wings jammed into the side of the rocky face. The sudden impact left us crashing to the earth until…
Until we heard an alarm. Well, not we, but someone named Hurley. You see, our escapade was nothing more than a dream that Hurley was having, induced by a late-night chocolate bar snack binge.
At least it was a great dream. And at least we felt as if the 1:1 motion controls had been almost fully realized. Wii Sports Resort delivers on all of its promises for an engaging, fun multiplayer experience. Perhaps one of the better gaming experiences with friends to appear in while, and a definite must if you own a Wii. The only thing getting LOST was our perception of time as we enjoyed the latest mini-game infused bundle of joy.
[Images and video courtesy Nintendo and ABC]
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