Conan O'Brien recently defeated Serena Williams at Wii Sports Tennis. What does this mean for the legitimacy of Wii sports or any future sports game developed for the Wii? Does the Wii provide a level playing field for people of all skills to play against one another? Does real sports ability supplement Wii gaming skills or not?
This is hard to say, but as someone who has played Wii Sports I can say that my limited sports skills did seem quite amplified by the Wii's gyroscopic controllers. We've all seen one of our friends, too cool for school, refuse to get in a batter's stance and still perform well at Wii Baseball merely by snapping his wrist.
The thing is, the very first thing my father taught me as I swung a bat for the first time as a child was to snap my wrists as I connected with the ball. So how much of the mechanics of the swing is taken into consideration with games like Wii Baseball, or for that matter any of the games in Wii Sports?
There are definately ways to hack the motions while playing Wii Sports. Other future titles may reduce these 'hacks' with better software, but the Wii is primarily a 'social' gaming system. It is designed to get everyone in the game and for everyone to have fun.
I personally am undefeated at Wii Boxing amongst my friends. So I know that there is also a level of skill that is taken into consideration. Games don't end in a tie and they are usually not close either. There is definately still a place for skill in the Wii system. How it is taken advantage of in future titles will spell the ultimate success of the Wii as a gaming and entertainment system.