Nintendo to slim fatty gamers on May 19 with Wii Fit (News)

Blake Snow, GamePro (online)

21/02/2008 11:06:05

While Wii Fit aims to disguise fitness as entertainment, Nintendo said the included Wii Balance Board "could hold great promise for future game development" and that "third-party publishers are already working on new games and applications that will make use of the Wii Balance Board."

The fitness/mini-game bundle includes four exercise types: Aerobic Exercise, Muscle Conditioning, Yoga Poses, and Balance Games, including ski-jumping. Players, err trainers, will be able to practice Yoga, do push ups, step aerobics, head soccer balls, roll balls, hula hoop, jog, and walk a tightrope to name a few.

Despite selling an impressive 1.4 million units in Japan since its launch on Dec. 1, video game analyst Michael Pachter expects Wii Fit to sell roughly 500,000 to 1 million copies stateside in the US; a success if accurate, though not to the extent that Nintendo is hoping for.

"Wii Fit is for fatties like me, not for gamers like you," said Pachter when speaking with yours truly on Wednesday. "It won't have the same mind share as Wii Sports, unless Nintendo markets the hell out of it or Oprah and Ellen plug it."