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new toy

We've got a Wii!

I have to say, they are one awesome bit of kit. Normally we'd be a bit leery about shelling out that much money on something non-essential, but we had some vouchers which we didn't know what to do with, and we'd played on Wii's a couple of times at friends' houses, so... we decided to splash out and have a bit of fun.

So far we have mostly tried bowling and tennis, plus a bit of boxing where Graham pummelled me to a pulp several times and then felt too guilty to continue! It's really good; the software is sensitive enough that it feels very realistic, while simultaneously being much easier than in real life, so you get that additional boost of feeling like a pro. A triple strike (turkey) in actual ten-pin bowling is beyond my wildest dreams, yet I've achieved it a couple of times on the Wii. Likewise the most I can do with a real tennis racket is maybe hope to hit the ball, but we got up some fun rallies with our virtual doubles.

What I also like about it is that it's quite sociable. It's fun to play in groups and it's funny to watch others waving their arms about when you're not playing. With your average video game, watching someone else playing is about on a par with watching paint dry, and the players tend to be very isolated from anyone else in the room. The Wii is a fun after-dinner activity - even if it has a tendency to extend the after-dinner time until one in the morning: "OK, just one more game!"

We like Wii. Here endeth the advertising.
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