Wii Fit... Plus

One of my recent posts was about Wii Fit, and how good it is as a trainer. This time, as the title probably tells you, I'm going to go over the sequel, or rather the improved version, of the best-selling exercising game.


Along with all of the activities from the original (plus your cute trainer, the Wii Balance Board), Wii Fit Plus adds 21-that's right, 21- more activities: three new Yoga exercises, three new Strength Training exercises, and 15 completely original balance and aerobics games put into one section, Training Plus. As well as this, Wii Fit Plus has a new section called My Wii Fit Plus. Here, there are many things to do: view the games you play the most and the least, check the food equivalent closest to the number of calories you have burned and set a food goal for every day, check the time and more.


 However, probably the best things you will come across here are two options: Do a set activity routine based on what you're aiming for, or make your own routines, however long you want (that is doable). This is where the first con comes in, though. The only activities you can do for making your own routines are Yoga and Strength Training exercises, severely limiting your choices. Oh, almost forgot: You may notice things called METs located in the description of the activities. As the Balance Board will explain, this stands for Metabolic Equivalent of Task, and represents the intensity level of what you're doing: 1.0 is equivalent to, say, watching T.V, and 4.0 would be akin to a light walk. 


But we've heard enough about what the new features are. How useful are they in general? Well, one of the problems I stated in my other post was the inability to create your own routines in Wii Fit. As you can clearly see, this problem has been addressed very well. You can work out the parts of your body that you want to without having to go back to the menu after an activity, looking for another activity, and repeating the process. It's just much easier. The Calorie Check option is by far one of the best upgrades to the game. As said before, it lets you check the food equivalent to the calories that you have burned (you can check the amount of calories burned in one activity at the end, when the Fit Bank is counting the amount of minutes).


And then the new activities: The 6 Strength Training and Yoga activities are for advanced users, so even I do not know how they are. On the other hand, I have tried all the new Training Plus activities. Out of them, some of the most notable are Island Cycling, a game where you step on the Balance Board to pedal, tilt the Wii Remote to steer and try to get all the checkpoints, Segway Circuit, where you drive your Segway to pop all of the beach balls, Big Top Juggling, where you juggle multiple balls on a beach ball and try to keep off the edge of your stage, and Kung Fu Rhythm, where you follow the Kung Fu moves shown by your fellow Miis. Along with this, three activities from the original (Balance Bubble, Table Tilt and Basic Run) have been revamped for this version, with a "Plus" at the end of their name indicating the upgrade. Many of these activities can really help you and be a lot of fun at the same time, so you'd better check these out.


We can't forget about our dear Body Tests, though. Coming from the original, these have you step on the Balance Board and stand still so it can measure your weight and center of balance using BMI. It is essentially the same, except that 5 new Body Test activities have been added that not only test your balance, but also your mindpower. Also, a new feature has been added called "Simple Test", which allows you to take a body test in less time; the screen where your center of balance is shown is added onto the screen where your BMI is calculated, and you don't have to do the activities. Also related are tests for pets and babies, where you have to hold either one, and the Balance Board deducts their weight. Obviously, babies and pets aren't able to take Training activities.


So, what's the consensus? Wii Fit Plus has definitely improved on its predecessor. You get a calorie check, your own routines, fun new activities. If you've bought the original Wii Fit, you can buy Plus for $20. If not, try the bundle, complete with the Balance Board,  for $99. Trust me- you'll love it.