If you have seen the commercials for the Wii — you have seen that Nintendo has created a new remote (wiimote & sometimes the nunchuck addition is needed). These remotes move the way you would move your arms if you were in these situations. Try Wii Sports which comes with the Wii and you can play baseball, tennis, golf, boxing and even bowl and do this standing next to your child and/or spouse. You create Miis on the Wii that look like a cartoon version of you or you can choose a pre-made character and you are ready to play. It gets you standing and interacting with the screen like you would if you were out playing these games. It even got my 72 year old step-dad who has never had any interest in video-games off the couch bowling. I read an article recently where it was being introduced into nursing homes to get people up and moving and enjoying playing games together. The Wii is ALWAYS a hit at my house. When friends come over it is pretty entertaining to set a couple up to box each other (talk about STRESS relief!). You attach the Nunchuck for this one and hold each part of the wiimote in each hand and just punch and bob and weave in front of you like you were really boxing. If you have had it for a while and have a bunch of characters it is funny to be playing baseball and it show up that “grandpa” or a friend you entered in months ago is in the outfield or up to bat. Also on Wii Sports is the Fitness Training option where you WILL get a workout as it takes you through different activities related to the sports on the disc. For example, you will have to hit 50 tennis balls in a row, then box a round, then hit 20 balls in a row in baseball, etc. This can be a real workout and is much different than the traditional sit on the couch and play a game standard.

There are many games for the Wii. While there is only one I could find that is truly EDUCATIONAL (Big Brain Academy ) the Wii takes games to a new level and there is something for everyone. Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree offers 15 Activities that challenge your brain in single-player Test and Practice modes, Big Brain Academy Wii sees how you measure up in five categories: memory, analysis, number crunching, visual recognition, and quick thinking. You can play with up to 8 players. In the Nintendo tradition there are far more family related games than violent games so you would have no problem finding something that appeals to every family member. Our favorite besides Wii Sports is Mario Party 8 — which has a ton of mini games with Mario, Luigi and Princess Peach as some of the characters you can be. You can play a board game version which is tons of fun and includes some of the mini-games or you can just freely play the mini-games once you have unlocked them. My husband and I play with our 8 year old son and 4 year old daughter and have lots of laughs and fun.

Nintendo has once again gained the respect of the gaming community. They have surpassed the X-Box and the Playstation in demand and sales. They are the least expensive console system and the most revolutionary. Can’t wait to see what they come up with next!

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I have loved Nintendo and their quality kids and adult video games since they started. I am so pleased to see that they not only have stayed the most inexpensive hand-held and console game system available but the one with the HIGHEST QUALITY for family content and education. I resisted getting my son a hand-held gaming system for a few years after he started nagging me for one. I felt he had his computer and didn’t need another distraction. I worried that he would be constantly wanting to play and that the games would have no educational value. I started researching the hand-held systems a bit more last year and was happy to find out that Nintendo offered VERY educational games for all ages — sorry I EVER doubted you Nintendo! At age 7, last Christmas, Santa was nice enough to bring him a Nintendo DS Lite .

The GREAT things about the Nintendo DS Lite are the great games available, the ability to draw with the stylus right on the screen, the dual screen graphics, the built in microphone that WORKS, the fact that it uses rechargeable batteries instead of replacing batteries and the ability to play some games wirelessly with up to 8 players. Once again Nintendo has exceeded even our wildest imaginations in the gaming industry and lead the way to the next level.

My favorite educational games broken down are:
Big Brain Academy: In Big Brain Academy you are working towards building your brain bigger and bigger. The puzzles are split up into five areas – thinking, memorizing, analyzing, computing and identifying. Each area has 3 games, with multiple difficulty levels — so at 15 games total you are getting a lot of entertainment and learning in.

Brain Age: Yes, Santa Brought this for ME but don’t tell my son that! He also gets enjoyment out of it and now that he is in 3rd grade and is learning multiplication and division he can use it to sharpen those skills as well. My whole family loves this game. There are a bunch of short games on this program that help with logical thinking, memory, math, reading (yes, there is a game where you read INTO the DS) and there is also Sudoku on it for those addicted where you use the stylus to write the numbers in the boxes. These games are truly addicting and you are learning at the same time. My husband said he noticed a marked improvement in his memory skills after a few days of playing this “game”.

Brain Age 2: I have not received this yet (my son will for his birthday in a few weeks — whoo hoo!) I will update this portion with my opinion once I wrestle it out of my son’s hands! : ) But I have heard great reviews and if it is anywhere as good as the first I see many hours building my brain ahead! The description is that there are 17 new activities that are all designed to help work your brain and increase blood flow to the prefrontal cortex. Whether you’re playing simple songs on a piano keyboard or monitoring the photo finish of a footrace, you’ll love your new mental workout! You can get this bundled now with the new Nintendo DS Lite which is cool black and maroon colors for only $149.99.

There are TONS of educational games for the DS Lite depending on what you are interested in or what you feel your child needs brushing up on. Nintendo makes learning fun and the DS is an amazing tool Whether it be Spelling, Math, or even the NY Times Crosswords, the Nintendo DS offers tons of ways to exercise your brain for the whole family.

Thank you Nintendo for maintaining your quality and cost over the last 25+ years!

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