(no subject)
Mike forwarded me an email sent out by Nintendo to anyone who registered a Wii which provided a link to a long list of warnings and do-not-dos. None of these warnings were a surprise to me; they were all enumerated in the Wii operating manual that came with the system. Being me, I read the whole thing.
It's mostly the typical video game warnings--watch out for carpal tunnel, watch out for seizures, watch out for TV burn-in, watch out for electric shock, that sort of thing. But since the Wii has a very unique, very interactive gameplay, there's a whole slew of new warnings--make sure you have a clear space for playing, so you can move your arms all around, make sure that you do not injure fellow players. The most important safety warning for the Wii is don't let go of the controllers, either the remote or the nunchuk. It seems intuitive and a wrist strap is provided, but when people get excited about tennis, stuff like this happens (the blog dedicated to Wii-related injuries and destruction is called Wii Have a Problem).
We personally haven't had any Wii-related destruction, but one time when Mike was playing Zelda, we were both sitting on the couch, me on the Left side when facing the TV, Mike on the right. He was getting really into a battle, and he punched out with the nunchuk (in his left hand), and punched me really hard in the knee. It bruised. Last night I was doing a mission so frustrating, so infuriating, I nearly chucked the remote and nunchuk at the TV. I didn't, of course, and after I just decided not to care ("I don't give a shit if their goddamned carriage burns to the fucking ground, I'm just going to let it burn") I finished it. I ended up squeezing the hell out of the controllers, but even with the worst "normal" damage to a Wii controller (not things like driving a car over it, of course) the controllers don't break. Nintendo may have made a fun if not somewhat dangerous product, but a well-made one at that.
Anyway, I think the best part of the safety warnings is a guideline about never letting go of the remote. They say on their website, "If you are having so much fun that you start perspiring, take a moment to dry your hands." Even when they're talking about people potentially ruining their TVs and items around them, they make sure to mention that this all happens in the name of fun. Which is totally true.
It's mostly the typical video game warnings--watch out for carpal tunnel, watch out for seizures, watch out for TV burn-in, watch out for electric shock, that sort of thing. But since the Wii has a very unique, very interactive gameplay, there's a whole slew of new warnings--make sure you have a clear space for playing, so you can move your arms all around, make sure that you do not injure fellow players. The most important safety warning for the Wii is don't let go of the controllers, either the remote or the nunchuk. It seems intuitive and a wrist strap is provided, but when people get excited about tennis, stuff like this happens (the blog dedicated to Wii-related injuries and destruction is called Wii Have a Problem).
We personally haven't had any Wii-related destruction, but one time when Mike was playing Zelda, we were both sitting on the couch, me on the Left side when facing the TV, Mike on the right. He was getting really into a battle, and he punched out with the nunchuk (in his left hand), and punched me really hard in the knee. It bruised. Last night I was doing a mission so frustrating, so infuriating, I nearly chucked the remote and nunchuk at the TV. I didn't, of course, and after I just decided not to care ("I don't give a shit if their goddamned carriage burns to the fucking ground, I'm just going to let it burn") I finished it. I ended up squeezing the hell out of the controllers, but even with the worst "normal" damage to a Wii controller (not things like driving a car over it, of course) the controllers don't break. Nintendo may have made a fun if not somewhat dangerous product, but a well-made one at that.
Anyway, I think the best part of the safety warnings is a guideline about never letting go of the remote. They say on their website, "If you are having so much fun that you start perspiring, take a moment to dry your hands." Even when they're talking about people potentially ruining their TVs and items around them, they make sure to mention that this all happens in the name of fun. Which is totally true.