Given it’s success in selling the Wii, you’d probably imagine that Wii Sports would be a key game in the library for Nintendo’s future consoles too. After all, it’s one of the best selling titles in history, and one of the most accessible games on the market overall.
Yet that wasn’t really the case. Indeed, the Wii U launched with Nintendo Land and made its version of Wii Sports an episodic experience, whereas the Switch came with 1-2-Switch instead. It was a baffling decision both times, and one which made us wonder if Nintendo was trying to bury the brand in an attempt to move on from the era.
But now it turns out that’s not the case. Why? Because in yesterday’s Nintendo Direct, the company announced a new follow up to Wii Sports would be heading to the Switch, complete with a brand new art style. Take a look here:
As you can see, the game’s now titled Nintendo Switch Sports, and includes avatars with a very different style to those in the Wii era titles. Indeed, whereas Miis were the focus on the original game…
It seems like these ‘Sportsmates’ are the Switch equivalent:
It’s an interesting change to say the least one, and which has garned some rather… mixed reactions.
Indeed, as it turns out, many fans rather like the Miis, and find these Xbox Avatar like folks rather uncanny by comparison. As a result, a decent number of people have been left wondering why the Miitopia ones weren’t chosen instead. Or why Nintendo bothered to update the character designs at all.
Regardless, the Miis are still an option here, and the Sportsmates don’t seem to be their Switch wide replacement:
In #NintendoSwitchSports you’ll have plenty of different, all-new customisation options for the Sportsmates. In addition to the Sportsmates, you’ll also still be able to select and play as your Mii character! pic.twitter.com/QZHStLzN80
— Nintendo UK (@NintendoUK) February 10, 2022
So they’re mostly just an option for those that want a change.
And the rest of the game looks as good as you’d expect. All the traditional sports are here (with the exception of golf, which is being added via a free update in Autumn this year…
Whereas the online multiplayer options seem to be getting some decent attention too, with a playtest from February 19th to February 20th existing to test how it works and make improvements to the netcode side.
So all the ingredients are there for a system seller here. You’ve got a game that’s been well liked on the Wii, updated with new graphics and features for the Switch era, with a focus on multiplayer in a time where real life options are thin on the ground. It’s certainly promising to say the least.
But what do you think? Are you excited to try out Nintendo Switch Sports when it’s released on April 29th this year? How well do you think this Wii system seller will do on the Switch in this new instalment?
Tell us your thoughts in the comments below, or on our Discord server today!
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