Wii Sports Club

The next generation of the classic sports game allows online play too

Wii Sports Club
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Publisher: Nintendo
Reviewed On: Nintendo Wii U
Cert: 3
Available On: Nintendo Wii U

One of the major draws of the original Wii was Wii Sports. Nintendo has been drip-feeding the next generation of the game since last year, releasing bowling and tennis first, then golf, baseball and boxing. Each was available for download separately, to buy or rent, with the final installments released last month. The sports are now all available in a box set.

Wii Sports Club follows the tried-and-tested path already walked by Wii Sports, offering a bit of comic relief and a lot of physical exertion as you watch your friends and family flail about in front of the screen.

But it's more than just a simple port of the original game. Online play is available, opening up your potential pool of competitors. Sports Club tries to foster a sense of community, with players joining clubs and battling online against other clubs across the world. It removes the comedy element of watching real-life players, but it adds a new layer of competitive spirit.

The GamePad is also brought into the mix. Now you can use it to communicate with other players through the Miiverse, or in some of the games. Golf, for example, allows you to put the GamePad on the floor and swing the remote over it, while pitches in baseball can be aimed using the GamePad.

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The game also brings in Wii Motion Plus, an add-on that allows the game to pick up more precise motion and new moves for some of the sports. It makes them more challenging – you have to be more precise with your movements rather than simply waving the remote at the console. The one exception is boxing, which has apparently gained nothing since the original version.

One thing it does retain is the original's sense of fun. Wii Sports Club shows off the console's motion gaming, especially the GamePad. Although you may have played these sports before, you've never experienced them quite like this.

Ciara O'Brien

Ciara O'Brien

Ciara O'Brien is an Irish Times business and technology journalist