Bored of Wii Fit? – EA Sports Active due in 2009
Love it or loathe it, Wii Fit has been the videogame success story of 2008, selling in huge quantities and persuading a whole new demographic to buy a Wii. Never one to miss a money-making opportunity, EA is now preparing to launch its own version of the game, titled EA Sports Active.
I’m not a huge fan of the Wii but I must admit to being intrigued by Wii Fit. Unfortunately, I’ve still not had the opportunity to try the game/lifestyle device as it’s overpriced, and seemingly out of stock everywhere.
What I like about Wii Fit is the idea that it uses a games console in a completely new way. While Wii Sports and the like utilized motion-sensing controls, those games were still quite traditional at heart, whereas Wii Fit is trying to be something original, being an all-in-one fitness center.
With the incredible success Wii Fit has managed, being the second bestselling game worldwide behind Madden 09 over the past three months, it was inevitable that other companies would try to mimic Nintendo and produce similar games. We’ve already heard about Wii Yoga, and now EA is set to cash in with EA Sports Active.
EA Sports boss Peter Moore announced the title, the first in a franchise of fitness games, in an interview with Gamespot. The game is being developed with a more Westernized idea of fitness in mind, rather than the very Asian-oriented Wii Fit. So rather than stretching balance, aerobic and resistance exercise will be the order of the day.
Some exercises in the game will utilize the Balance Board, but only if people have one. It won’t however be a necessity, with EA Sports Active, a Wii exclusive, being shipped with a neoprene peripheral that will allow the gamer to strap the Wii remote or nunchuk to their leg. 20 sports will be included in the game, as well as a virtual trainer and a weight-loss program.
EA Sports Active will retail for just $59.99, considerably less than the prohibitively expensive Wii Fit. I think the game will do brilliantly well, although probably not as well as Wii Fit. However, I can’t help thinking the whole exercise (excuse the pun) is just to make money by latching on to an existing idea and modifying it slightly.
Whether you want gaming to become more casual and mainstream or not, this sort of crossover title is clearly here to stay. Unfortunately, in managing to secure a much wider range of people as potential gamers, there is a danger that those of us who regard ourselves as slightly more hardcore will be left behind and unsatisfied with what looks like being the next evolution of gaming.
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2 Responses to “Bored of Wii Fit? – EA Sports Active due in 2009”
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November 14th, 2008
My girlfriend bought Wii Fit, so I have played it. Like most things Wii it’s fun for a few hours, but then sits in the corner collecting dust. Wii fit’s main problem is the fact that you can not put the exercises into a queue. Every exercise that you do must be slowly selected from a menu, then it has to load, then the instructor goes through a quick tutorial, then they walk you through it – this whole process kills any sort of momentum. You don’t really get any sort of cario or impact benefit from Wii fit in the slightest.
The whole idea of incorporating fitness into games is admirable, but I think you would be much better off saving you money and joining a gym.
November 14th, 2008
@ Barnabe – Agreed.
Purchased wiifiit, tried wiifit, got bored of wiifit, sold wiifit for more than my purchase price