Buying a Wii. Need advice!

[PortageeExpress]

My soon-to-be 6 year old has been asking for a Wii and I've finally gotten the go-ahead from the wife. So I'm looking online this morning at 'em and my head starts spinning from all the accessories, options, etc. Didn't buying a console system used to be simple?

What are the needs and don't-needs? Nunchuck controllers? Docking stations? Good games/bad games?

Thanks!

My 5 1/2 year old son absolutely loves the Lego Star Wars and Lego Indiana Jones games (his 7 year old sister and 38 year old mom love them too). You might want to check one of those out.

 

[MriswitH]

Got a Wii here, love it.

Definitely get at minimum 2 controllers with nunchuks, although 4 would be a better idea. So much fun doing party games with everyone when they're over. Also suggest getting a rechargeable docking station, batteries get expensive!

Some games your kids will like: Super Monkey Ball, WiiPlay/WiiSports/WiiFit, Lego games, Mario Kart, Mario Galaxy, Super Paper Mario (might be a bit advanced at 6 though).

Lastly: Wii homebrew! Check it out. You can watch dvd's, play NES/SNES/any emulated console game, play your 'legal backups,' you name it. Super, super easy nowadays.

Have fun!

 

[flyangler18]

Heading over to GameSpot today to see what the kind of scrilla they'll give me for 14 Xbox games (mint) and the original console, plus two controllers.

Wii, here I come!

 

[Arkador]

I am buying a new game for myself...
Tiger Woods 10 with Motion Plus
which includes
Wii MotionPlus Accessory for Nintendo Wii

I LOVED tiger99 on the PS1, but did not like the futer versions that required you to use the analog stick to swing.

Heading over to GameSpot today to see what the kind of scrilla they'll give me for 14 Xbox games (mint) and the original console, plus two controllers.

Wii, here I come!

probably $50 or less...... that is why my XBox is hooked up to the TV in my bedroom, also as a DVD player.

 

[nystevecf]

damn i was hoping that CoD4 was on the list... That's my obsession right now. add me on you list r3dn3ckstyl3z is also my gamertag....

360 gt: K9OPS add me, we have a ton of lvl55 10th prestige guys.

Another great game for drinking and playing with friends or even the kids is mario party. Bowling is still my favorite though.

 

[flyangler18]

probably $50 or less...... that is why my XBox is hooked up to the TV in my bedroom, also as a DVD player.

Yeah, not expecting much - and I always have the option to say them to f*ck off and die.

 

[Arkador]

Yeah, not expecting much - and I always have the option to say them to f*ck off and die.

I said that in a more polite way..... But as often as it gets used, $50 is better than nothing. I think i played GTA2 once in the last 4 months for 30min. Mabye I will sell it afterall..... I have about 10 games for mine. I might look into selling the games individually on EBAY, or sell the whole thing on craigslist.

 

[Homercidal]

Got a Wii here, love it.

Definitely get at minimum 2 controllers with nunchuks, although 4 would be a better idea. So much fun doing party games with everyone when they're over. Also suggest getting a rechargeable docking station, batteries get expensive!

Some games your kids will like: Super Monkey Ball, WiiPlay/WiiSports/WiiFit, Lego games, Mario Kart, Mario Galaxy, Super Paper Mario (might be a bit advanced at 6 though).

Lastly: Wii homebrew! Check it out. You can watch dvd's, play NES/SNES/any emulated console game, play your 'legal backups,' you name it. Super, super easy nowadays.

Have fun!

Unfortunately, a recent update to the Wii has so far been able to prevent the homebrew from working once again. I suppose a mod chip is possible, but the ability to simply load some data and run homebrew apps from an SD card seems to have been defeat for who knows how long.

I did not do homebrew and recently ran an update. When it came back and showed the change to the SD channel, I was a bit disappointed. I figured it would be some sort of way to block homebrew software. Turns out I was right. I don't know if there is a way to backrev the OS on the Wii. I think that if you were able to install a Homebrew channel before the update runs, you might be ok.

 

[Arkador]

The WII is a TON of fun even with the legit play... DOn't let the update that borked the homebrew stuff stop you.

 

[flyangler18]

I said that in a more polite way..... But as often as it gets used, $50 is better than nothing. I think i played GTA2 once in the last 4 months for 30min. Mabye I will sell it afterall..... I have about 10 games for mine. I might look into selling the games individually on EBAY, or sell the whole thing on craigslist.

Yeah, I decided against trying to trade the stuff in and threw the whole kit n' kaboodle up on Craigslist a few minutes ago.

 

[Homercidal]

The WII is a TON of fun even with the legit play... DOn't let the update that borked the homebrew stuff stop you.

Oh, yes, no doubt about it!

Just trying to keep updated on the info. And as it turns out, I think 4.0 is the latest, which seems to already have a bypass, so I think it's not blocked now after all.

Now if I can figure out how to download user-created Guitar Hero songs for the Wii...

 

[craigd]

Rock band/guitar hero is a good choice too.

You may want to look at the song list on those before you let the kid play - we got it for our family and my wife was not happy when she walked in on my 10 year old jamming out to Poison's "Talk Dirty To Me." That's always a personal/family choice thing but thought I'd mention in case it is an issue...

 

[Trubadour]

What do you use the Wii homebrew for? I'm reading about it now, and it looks like you can watch dvd's, but what else?

 

[BrothersBrewing]

get an Xbox 360..play on line and get netflix right to your tv in HD...

 

[FireBrewer]

My 5 1/2 year old son absolutely loves the Lego Star Wars and Lego Indiana Jones games (his 7 year old sister and 38 year old mom love them too). You might want to check one of those out.

Got it. Thanks.

 

[uglygoat]

my suggestion is to rent one, or borrow one first if you can, and see if he and you really enjoy it. then fish one off the used online marketplaces, i wouldn't pay full price for the wii after borrowing my little brothers for a month. the kid got bored with it really fast, but she prefers trekking around outdoors till the coyotes come out.

 

[cuinrearview]

my suggestion is to rent one, or borrow one first if you can, and see if he and you really enjoy it. then fish one off the used online marketplaces, i wouldn't pay full price for the wii after borrowing my little brothers for a month. the kid got bored with it really fast, but she prefers trekking around outdoors till the coyotes come out.

Good timing.

We've been to friend's houses with the Wii and other consoles. My son(10) has a PS2 in his room. SWMBO and I polled the kids(son and five-year-old daugther) today about what things they'd like to buy/do while I'm on vacation. The top answers were play catch(son), which we do EVERY F'ing DAY until his/my arm falls off, and my daughter wants to swim. We have a long winter here as well but the kids just want to be outside, which I push them to do as much as possible. Sorry to preach but six is too young to put in front of a television IMO.

 

[flyangler18]

Sorry to preach but six is too young to put in front of a television.

I know both of FB's kids quite well at this point, and they are incredibly active both indoors and out. Hardly poster children for a sedentary lifestyle.

Given the choice, I'd say they'd still be outside at every opportunity.

 

[cuinrearview]

I know both of FB's kids quite well at this point, and they are incredibly active both indoors and out. Hardly poster children for a sedentary lifestyle.

Given the choice, I'd say they'd still be outside at every opportunity.

Wasn't trying to judge, just sayin'

 

[FireBrewer]

That's the truth!

I disagree. TV in moderation isn't going to kill a child. Mine get a little here and there (less than most of their friends from what I've seen) and neither of them have a TV/PS2/Xbox/etc in their rooms, nor will they until they move out. But that's a topic for the Debate Forum, of which I have no interest in debating.

Carry on...

 

[ohiobrewtus]

Madden '10 comes out on 8/14.

...drool...

 

[Arkador]

Sorry to preach but six is too young to put in front of a television IMO.

an hour of playing a game on the WII is alot better than watching a mindless movie while we make dinner or mow the lawn.
Plus the WII devops hand/eye coordination, and actually gets your kids rear out of the sofa and active.


Ooh, played Tiger10 last night, it was awesome! I didn't have time to do more than the tutorials, but I REALLY enjoyed it. Hopefully i can play a full 18 tonight and get some practce in... the online tournaments are a great idea~!

 

[SchizoFilly]

I've got a Wii with two controllers and a handful of games I would be willing to part with. Oh, and a Wii Fit that got used maybe three times.

Just don't dig the Wii.

 

[dataz722]

what games?

 

[greencoat]

The Wii is very easy to waste money on. Nintendo has little to no quality regulation for third party game developers. If the game isn;t developed by Nintendo themselves, it will most likely be abysmal (maybe not by 6 year old standards, though.) My personal favorite Wii games: Super Mario Galaxy, Mario Kart Wii, No More Heroes, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Your kid might dig Mario Party 8 (and you could play it as a family - it's a board game style thing.)

 

[r3dn3ckstyl3z]

that why it's all about CoD4 and Xbox 360

 

[greencoat]

that why it's all about CoD4 and PS3

Went ahead and fixed that for ya.

 

[FireBrewer]

In terms of FPS games like CoD4, I'm a fan of the PC versions. Maybe I'm just used to the controls.

 

[no1likesme]

I was too lazy to read this whole thread so I will just post my recomendations.

2-4 controllers with a nunchuck for each
2-4 gamecube controllers (wavebirds are awesome)
at least one classic controller (if you plan on using the virtual console)

games:
Super smash bros brawl
wii play (comes with a remote and a few of the games are fun)
Mario Kart
Super Mario Bros (nes version on the virtual console)

you may want to rent the rayman raving rabbids games (they are fun but can be completed easily in a day or two)

I really didn't like the zelda game, But I have never been a zelda fan.

I prefer the puzzle/party game stuff on the wii (I have my pc for FPS and the like) and almost never play it by myself.

 

[jkarp]

The Wii is very easy to waste money on. Nintendo has little to no quality regulation for third party game developers. If the game isn;t developed by Nintendo themselves, it will most likely be abysmal (maybe not by 6 year old standards, though.) My personal favorite Wii games: Super Mario Galaxy, Mario Kart Wii, No More Heroes, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Your kid might dig Mario Party 8 (and you could play it as a family - it's a board game style thing.)

Don't know that I'd agree with this at all. 14 of the top 20 all-time ranked Wii games are 3rd party. Tiger Woods? Resident Evil? Zack & Wiki? Boom Blox? Guitar Hero?