Wii Fit Plus game usability review

I recently did a game usability review of Wii Fit. I  suggested a couple of changes, and ended by saying that I wouldn't be getting it myself due to a lack of space - at least until we move. I haven't moved, but I have broken and got Wii Fit Plus. What can I say? I'm weak. That and whenever we visit my brother, a proud owner of Wii Fit, the girlfriend and I are always on it. The decision was made (... that and we suddenly realised we spend far too much time sitting on our behinds doing very little).

So - my game usability review for Wii Fit Plus.

In my last write up I suggested for 3 key changes.

1. A shortcut to switch between players profiles when several people are playing together.
2. A choice to allow people to hide their BMI/weight from other players.
3. Multiplayer - to allow people to play together.

I made these suggestions after playing the original Wii Fit. This was before I got my grubby hands on Wii Fit Plus. So how does the second iteration of Wii Fit do? When compared to my suggestions I'd give it a 1 out for 3.

It DOES offer a shortcut to switch between players. You've now got a small button in the bottom right corner, allowing you to select other Miis. This means if/when several of you are playing together you can much more easily switch between you (meaning the balance board won't complain when someone else tries to gets on as you).

It DOESN'T allow players to hide their BMI/weight when joining.

It DOES allow exercising in a pair - but only jogging, not anything else. This is fine, not many houses have multiple balance boards anyway. The game also offers a multiplayer option, allowing lots of you to play together.

So why not 2 out of 3. The 2 it DOES do aren't done properly (see below).

Alrighty...

Issues

The 'multiplayer' mode doesn't save your 'progress'. The length of time you spend playing and the high scores you achieve are lost ("fit cash")(both when you leave multiplayer mode and in someone elses training after using the 'switch' control). Why? They should be saved in the player's Wii Fit profile (if they have one).

Switching between players isn't a true 'switch'. The advanced levels a player has unlocked aren't offered - only those associated with the original player selected. Also getting a high scores doesn't have any effect (i.e. achieving a good score won't unlock the advanced mode). However if you are the original player selected then you CAN unlock advanced modes.

Players are going to get confused - "Why can't I play advanced cycling? I unlocked it yesterday!", "How come you just unlocked advanced? I got a higher score!". The game should properly switch between players, all unlocked advanced modes for that players account should be offered, as well as allowing the player to unlock further advanced modes if they do well.

Whilst the game does offer 2 player jogging, only 1 '2 player' mode is offered. I'm not sure why a 2 player option isn't offered for all the jogging modes?

Additional suggestions from my girlfriend - The ability to turn off tips. She sees them a "patronising, annoying little shits". Also - to have the ability to play without music. We wanted to listen to a new CD yesterday, but couldn't as the games often needs sound to play well. Joggers often have an MP3 player with them - it's easier and more fulfilling to exercise with your own music playing. The game should support this.

General list of positives

So I've been rather down on the game. But overall I am a fan. Here's some positives:

• The game uses other Miis whilst playing - there's nothing like throwing a snowball at your mother or seeing your housemates doing the activities with you.
• Allowing you to create and personalise your own exercise regimes is a nice touch, meaning you don't have to interrupt your heavy yoga session selecting the next exercise. BUT the process to set up the regimes is FAR too complex (a blog post in itself I believe...)
• The Wii Fit age is a great way to both measure your progress and get competitive with others - I went from 20 to 38 years in a day though, so I'm not entirely convinced of it's reliability.
•  Great new games (cycling, segway, tilt city and the obstacle course stand out) and more advanced versions of old classics (table tilt and balance bubble)
• Overall a good variety of activities - yoga, muscle workouts, balance games - there's not many games about that allow you to do some yoga, then some kung fu, before finishing off flapping like a chicken!

As I say, I'm a fan of Wii Fit generally, it's a great game. But there's lot of little snags that noticeably reduce the user experience in this version. This wouldn't be a major issue, but a lot of these are pretty simple stuff, and as I mentioned before, this is a sequel, this sort of minor issues should be ironed out by now. Nintendo must try harder...

Late Wii Fit game usability review

Although Wii Fit Plus is already in the stores, I thought I'd get down my game usability thoughts on Wii Fit, and aspects of the game that should be considered for Wii Fit 3 - Wii Fit Cubed maybe...






Playing in a group

You can tell Wii Fit is designed to be played alone. Essentially all the activities require the Wii fit balance board. But we treated it as a party game. I had my family round my brothers copy, and we all did exercises together. However, after we all created our profiles changing between them was very hard work. After completing an exercise/minigame, to change player you had to:

1. 'Quit' out of the exercise/minigame
2. Exit the exercise/minigame 'channel' selection screen (yoga, muscle exercises, balance games)
3. Exit the welcome screen
4. Select the new player
5. Select the right 'channel' on the welcome screen
6. Select the right exercise/minigame

6 steps! Far too many for quick switches between players.

This sits poorly against the games apparent attempts to encourage group play. Whenever someone new enters the game, the other players are told of this, and says how good it is to play Wii Fit together. The game encourages people to play it together, in spite of the effort required to do so!

Wii Fit 3? Ensure there's a shortcut to change between profiles.

Personal details

People are sensitive about their weight. They don't like to tell others, and they don't want others to know. But when first joining Wii Fit, it announces your BMI for the whole world to see! There is no option NOT to see your BMI, it is plastered all over the TV. Anyone else in the room will have seen it.

The designers seem to have been aware that people wouldn't want others to see their details, and there's the ability to protect your information behind a password, but not on the first go...

Wii Fit 3? Offer new players the ability to NOT see their BMI when they join.

Multiplayer

When My girlfriend and I were playing Wii Fit, 1 of us did the exercise on the balance board, the other did the exercise alongside. We were exercising together. That's the next step... 2 balance boards on a machine at the same time. This would encourage us to use Wii Fit and exercise far more than any other change.

Wii Fit 3? Make sure people can exercise in a pair, using 2 balance boards at once (if they're sufficiently monied to have 2 boards).

Why I'm not getting Wii Fit

I really like Wii Fit. It's fun, and it really would keep me active. Anything to get my rotund behind moving is fine by me! BUT I'm not going to be getting it. Partly for the reasons above, and also partly because the game needs a large amount of space in front of the TV. I don't have that, and I can't get that... at least until I next move house.

Also, it's dependent on everyone around having a relaxed open attitude. To play Wii Fit in front of others is essentially to make a fool of yourself. You do yoga, poorly, you try and balance, you wobble, and you sweat. You need people around you who are willing to let you do all these things and not judge you. Alas, where I currently reside, I don't have these people. I can't exercise if front of my current housemates, I won't be able to relax. I'll feel like I'll be judged.

Ah well, just means I get to play it once a month whenever I visit my brother. No losing weight for me just yet.