Wii (video game series)

Last updated
Wii
Wii.svg
Genre(s) Simulation
Party
Sports
Fitness
Developer(s) Nintendo EAD
NDcube
Ganbarion
TOSE
Eighting
Publisher(s) Nintendo
Platform(s) Wii
Wii U
Nintendo Switch
First release Wii Sports
November 19, 2006
Latest release Nintendo Switch Sports
April 29, 2022

Wii is a series of simulation games published by Nintendo for the game console of the same name, as well as its successor, the Wii U. After a seven-year hiatus, the game Nintendo Switch Sports , described officially as "a new iteration of the Wii Sports series," was announced, the first game to drop the "Wii" from its title. [1] These games feature a common design theme, with recurring elements including casual-oriented gameplay, casts consisting mostly or entirely of Miis, and control schemes that simulate real-life activities.

Contents

The Wii series was conceived by Nintendo executive Shigeru Miyamoto to package and sell similar Wii Remote prototype games in a single package. [2]

Gameplay

The Wii uses motion sensors in its Wii Remote to allow gameplay that incorporates physical movements by the player to control action within the game. For example, in the Baseball game included in Wii Sports, the player holds the controller like a baseball bat and swings it in order to hit the ball in the game. [3] However, in Wii Chess , on the menus and in actual gameplay, the control scheme makes use of the D-pad on the Wii Remote instead of the Wii Remote Pointer.

Games

Wii has become one of the best-selling video game franchises, with each Wii game selling millions of copies. Wii Sports in particular is regarded as the fourth best-selling video game of all time, as well as the best-selling single console game of all time. [4] By June 2009, Wii Fit had helped the health game genre to generate collective revenues of $2 billion, most of which was grossed by the game's 18.22 million sales at the time. [5] The largest subset of the franchise is Wii Sports. [6]

Wii Sports

GameConsoleRelease dateDescriptionSales
Wii Sports Wii
  • NA: November 19, 2006
  • JP: December 2, 2006
  • AU: December 7, 2006
  • EU: December 8, 2006
The first game in the series and a launch game for the Wii console. The game was bundled with the console in all regions except Japan and South Korea. Wii Sports is known for starting a new development direction for Nintendo involving simple gameplay, simple graphics, and motion control. It is one of the best-selling video games of all time, as well as the best-selling single console game of all time.82.85 million [7]
Wii Sports Resort
  • JP: June 25, 2009
  • AU: July 23, 2009
  • EU: July 24, 2009
  • NA: July 26, 2009
Successor to Wii Sports. It is one of the first titles to require the Wii MotionPlus accessory, which was bundled with the game. Though the game was initially sold separately, it was later bundled with the Wii console. It features ten brand new sports while only two sports reappear from its predecessor, Wii Sports, which was bowling and golf, making it a total of twelve sports games overall.33.08 million [7]
Wii Sports Club Wii U Tennis & Bowling
  • JP: October 30, 2013
  • NA: November 7, 2013
  • EU: November 7, 2013
  • AU: November 8, 2013
Golf
  • WW: December 18, 2013
Baseball & Boxing
  • NA: June 26, 2014
  • EU: June 27, 2014
Retail
  • EU: July 11, 2014
  • JP: July 17, 2014
  • NA: July 25, 2014
A remake of the original Wii Sports game, requiring the Wii MotionPlus accessory. Each sport was originally sold individually, with a retail release with all five sports has also been released.
Nintendo Switch Sports Nintendo Switch
  • WW: April 29, 2022
Golf
  • WW: November 29, 2022
A new entry utilizing the Switch's Joy-Cons in order to play. It added 3 new sports, while 3 sports returned at launch from previous entries, bowling, tennis and swordplay, renamed to "Chambara", making it a total of 6 sports at launch, and 8 sports as of Golf's and Basketball's inclusion.12.48 million [8]

Wii Play

GameConsoleRelease dateDescriptionSales
Wii Play Wii
  • JP: December 2, 2006
  • AU: December 7, 2006
  • EU: December 8, 2006
  • NA: February 12, 2007
A launch game for the Wii in Japan, Europe and Australia, it features nine minigames used to teach the user how to use the Wii Remote, including Shooting Range (inspired by Nintendo’s Duck Hunt ) and Table Tennis. Wii Play was bundled with an extra Wii Remote and is one of the best selling video games of all time. [9] 28.02 million [7]
Wii Play: Motion
  • NA: June 13, 2011
  • EU: June 24, 2011
  • AU: June 30, 2011
  • JP: July 7, 2011
Includes twelve minigames and is bundled with the Wii Remote Plus, which is required to play. The minigames were created by various developers, including Good-Feel, Skip Ltd., and Arzest Corporation.1.26 million [10]

Wii Fit

GameConsoleRelease dateDescriptionSales
Wii Fit Wii
  • JP: December 1, 2007
  • EU: April 25, 2008
  • AU: May 8, 2008
  • NA: May 21, 2008
The first game to use the Wii Balance Board peripheral, which it was bundled with. As a fitness-oriented game, it measures a user's weight, telling the user their health based on body mass index, and features minigames for the user to exercise or to improve posture.22.67 million [7]
Wii Fit Plus
  • JP: October 1, 2009
  • NA: October 4, 2009
  • AU: October 15, 2009
  • EU: October 30, 2009
An enhanced version of Wii Fit. Included a new Training Plus minigame category, My Wii Fit Plus, an area that allows the player to perform workouts that they created, and premade workouts, a Multiplayer mode, and the ability to register babies and dogs/cats.21.13 million [7]
Wii Fit U Wii U
  • AU: December 7, 2013
  • EU: December 13, 2013
  • NA: January 10, 2014
  • JP: February 1, 2014
A new entry expanding on some of the content added in Wii Fit Plus, including a new Dance minigame category, new workout options, Miiverse support as a Gym Community, and the ability to use a Fit Meter, a pedometer specifically made for Wii Fit U that tracks steps and elevation.

Wii Party

GameConsoleRelease dateDescriptionSales
Wii Party Wii
  • JP: July 8, 2010
  • NA: October 3, 2010
  • AU: October 7, 2010
  • EU: October 8, 2010
Players partake in various party games, similar to the Mario Party series. [11] 9.32 million [7]
Wii Party U Wii U
  • NA: October 25, 2013
  • EU: October 25, 2013
  • AU: October 26, 2013
  • JP: October 31, 2013
A sequel to Wii Party for the Wii U console, developed by the same team behind the original Wii Party. [12] 1.35 million [13]

Other titles

GameConsoleRelease dateDescriptionSales
Wii Chess Wii WiiWare
  • EU: January 18, 2008
  • JP: September 30, 2008
A chess game playable in either single player or online mode. The game was released under the name "Tsūshin Taikyoku: World Chess" as WiiWare in Japan, and the physical release was exclusive to the European market. The game was never released outside Europe and Japan.
Wii Music Wii
  • JP: October 16, 2008
  • NA: October 20, 2008
  • AU: November 13, 2008
  • EU: November 14, 2008
Players use the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to simulate playing instruments.2.65 million [14] [15]
Wii Karaoke U Wii U
  • JP: December 8, 2012
  • EU: October 4, 2013
Players can either use a USB microphone or the microphone on the Wii U Gamepad to sing along to the music.

Related Research Articles

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<i>Wii Sports</i> 2006 sports video game by Nintendo

Wii Sports is a 2006 sports simulation video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game was released in North America along with the Wii on November 19, 2006, and in Japan, Australia, and Europe the following month. It was included as a pack-in game with the console in all territories except Japan, making it the first sports game included with the launch of a Nintendo system since Mario's Tennis for the Virtual Boy in 1995. The game was later released on its own as part of the Nintendo Selects collection of games.

<i>Wii Music</i> 2008 music video game published by Nintendo

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<i>Wii Play</i> 2006 party video game published by Nintendo

Wii Play is a party video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii console. It was released as a launch game for the console in Japan, Europe, and Australia in December 2006, and was released in North America in February 2007. The game features nine minigames, including a Duck Hunt-esque shooting range, a fishing game, and a billiards game, each of which are designed to showcase the features of the Wii Remote controller.

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<i>Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games</i> 2007 video game

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<i>Mario Kart Wii</i> 2008 video game

Mario Kart Wii is a 2008 kart racing game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It is the sixth installment in the Mario Kart series, and was released in April 2008. Like its previous installments, Mario Kart Wii incorporates playable characters from the Mario series, who participate in races on 32 different race tracks using specialized items to hinder opponents or gain advantages. The game features multiple single-player and multiplayer game modes including two- to four-person split screen. Online multiplayer was supported until the discontinuation of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection in May 2014. Mario Kart Wii uses the Wii Remote's motion-controls to provide intuitive and conventional steering controls. Each copy of the game was bundled with the Wii Wheel accessory to augment this feature and mimic a steering wheel.

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<i>Pokémon Platinum</i> 2008 video game

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<i>Wii Party</i> 2010 party video game published by Nintendo

Wii Party is a party video game developed by NDcube and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console. The game heavily borrows game play elements from the Mario Party series, another Nintendo franchise. It is also the first game in the Wii series that Shigeru Miyamoto did not produce. The game was released in Japan on July 8, 2010, in North America on October 3, 2010, in Australia on October 7, 2010, and in Europe on October 8, 2010. Wii Party was revealed by Satoru Iwata in a Financial Results Briefing on May 7, 2010. It received mixed to positive reviews from critics and sold 9.35 million copies worldwide as of September 2021. A sequel, Wii Party U, was released for the Wii U on October 25, 2013.

The following is a sales history for the Nintendo DS family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wii U</span> Home video game console by Nintendo

The Wii U is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wii U GamePad</span> Primary game controller for the Wii U

The Wii U GamePad is the standard game controller for Nintendo's Wii U home video game console. Incorporating features from tablet computers, the GamePad has traditional input methods, touchscreen controls, and motion controls. The touchscreen can be used to supplement a game by providing alternate, second screen functionality or an asymmetric view of a scenario in a game. The screen can also be used to play a game strictly on the GamePad screen without the use of a television display. Conversely, non-gaming functions can be assigned to it as well, such as using it as a television remote.

References

  1. ↑ Nintendo Switch Sports - Announcement Trailer - Nintendo Switch. February 9, 2022. Archived from the original on February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  2. ↑ Kohler, Chris (April 5, 2017). "Q&A: Design lessons learned from a decade at Nintendo's EAD". Gamasutra . UBM TechWeb. Archived from the original on April 6, 2017. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  3. ↑ Davis, Ryan. "Wii Sports Review". GameSpot . Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 3 March 2013.
  4. ↑ Tom Ivan (May 8, 2009). "Wii Sports The Best Selling Game Ever?". Edge . Archived from the original on 2012-08-20. Retrieved 2011-04-29.
  5. ↑ Kris Pigna (2009-06-28). "Health Games Generate $2 Billion in Worldwide Sales". 1UP.com. Archived from the original on 2012-07-28. Retrieved 2011-05-01.
  6. ↑ Kyle Orland (January 28, 2011). "Super Mario Galaxy 2 Sells 6.15M Worldwide, Wii Sports Series Passes 102M". Gamasutra. Archived from the original on 2013-11-15. Retrieved 2011-04-29.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Nintendo Top Selling Software Sales Units: Wii". Nintendo. 2012-03-31. Archived from the original on 2019-06-15. Retrieved 2018-07-04.
  8. ↑ "Financial Results Explanatory Material 3rd Quarter of Fiscal Year Ending March 2024" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2024-02-06. Retrieved 2024-04-24.
  9. ↑ "Financial Results Briefing for the Six-Month Period ended December 2009" (PDF). Nintendo. October 31, 2009. p. 11. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved January 29, 2010.
  10. ↑ "Financial Results Briefing for the Q3 Fiscal Year" (PDF). Nintendo. 2012-04-27. p. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-02-15. Retrieved 2012-05-14.
  11. ↑ Harris, Craig (October 3, 2010). "Wii Party Review". p. 1. Archived from the original on November 6, 2012. Retrieved December 6, 2010.
  12. ↑ "Wii U Party Will Get The Family Together This Summer". Nintendo Life. 23 January 2013. Archived from the original on 2018-07-05. Retrieved 2018-07-05.
  13. ↑ "IR Information : Sales Data - Top Selling Software Sales Units - Wii U Software". Nintendo. Archived from the original on 2015-10-28. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
  14. ↑ As of March 2009.
  15. ↑ "Financial Results Briefing for the Fiscal Year Ended March 2009: Supplementary Information" (PDF). Financial Results Briefing for the 69th Fiscal Term Ended March 2009. Nintendo. 2009-05-08. p. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2019-05-04. Retrieved 2009-05-08.
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