14 DAY TRIAL // Ever since Nintendo released the record-breaking Wii Fit video game, which has now taken the Xbox 360's blockbuster Halo 3 title in terms of sales, a lot of things have been said about it. These have ranged from debates on whether it can make you fitter, as it is a fitness game, to propaganda about it being responsible for injuring or, even worse, brainwashing people.
But last week, the president of the Japanese company, Satoru Iwata, revealed that the game was actually one of the best things that ever happened to a lot of families in his native country, especially for the dads. He said, in a recent company report, that the game had offered dads in their 40s and 50s the chance to interact more with their loved ones and spend time with them.
“We also researched Wii Fit users here in Japan, and we found that this game has had a positive influence on users,” Iwata said. “Men in their 40's told us that the best thing about Wii Fit was that it provided them with more opportunities to talk with their children (19.8%), and men in their 50's said that they enjoyed playing Wii Fit with their spouses (59.7%).”
Even though this situation may sound a bit strange, let's not forget that a lot of Japanese families dedicate the most part of their every day to work, so the opportunity to unwind alongside their children by playing a game is something extremely precious.
Wii Fit is one of the most successful titles of last year and the beginning of this one, as it has almost all the worlwide charts under its “sweaty” grip. And it is bundled with the Wii Balance Board, on which people can exercise and have their body weighed, so that they can track their own fitness performance.