Closet door gets the Wii badge of honor*

Patrick is fortunate enough to have a dedicated games/movie room in his house. No ceiling fans and overhead lights, none of the usual living room clutter, perhaps not even a window, so you might think he was set up with the perfect, Wii-friendly pad. If this story tells us anything, it’s “Where there’s a Wii, there’s a way”. (sorry)

This is what happens when Patrick invites his 4 friends round to try his new Wii.

The game is Wii Sports Tennis and Greg has the racket. As a newbie, he is getting totally absorbed in the game. With one huge cross court smash the Wiimote leaves Greg’s hand, caught only momentarily by the wrist strap (which does the inevitable) and flies full pelt into the closet door.

You’ll find a close-up of the damage after the break.

Continue reading Closet door gets the Wii badge of honor*…

Engagement ring gets crushed

This small, blurry cameraphone photo shows Emily’s engagement ring, after it got caught between the Wiimote and the kitchen table. Erik, her husband was there to witness another enthusiastic bowler lose themselves in the game and forget they were in the kitchen. (Wii in the kitchen? Why not!)

Erik reports: “While playing the Wii Sports bowling game, my wife swung her arm back. Hard. Unfortunately, behind her was our kitchen table. Fortunately, she didn’t break anything (bruised and pained, yes, but not broken)…but her engagement ring has seen better days. It’s being Wiipaired now.”

So, what damage to the ring?
“The sapphire in the middle chipped and the ring totally bent into an oval”
Wow, that must have made it difficult to take off…
“It was VERY difficult”
That sounds like a costly clash - what is your ‘Wiipair’ bill looking like?
“It’s estimated to be only 21 dollars. We’ll see when we get it back”

Phew! What could have ranked up there with the TV repair bills of the rich and sweaty turns out to be fairly modest this time round. You got away lightly there Emily. (But these puns are getting Wiily Wiily bad!).

Nintendo miss Christmas with new straps

With the announcement of Nintendo’s Wii strap replacement programme last week, these broken strap images that have surfaced across the internet (and in my inbox) will be a thing of the past, right? I’m not so sure.

Looking at the small print on their website they state the following: “We expect to begin shipping replacement straps around December 21st. It will take 5 to 9 days for delivery depending on your location”. By my calculations, that means the new beefier straps can be expected on December 26th at the earliest. Yoiks! And that means no new straps for Christmas.

Expect this conversation to play out under the Christmas tree in homes across the planet:
Son: Oh Dad, a Wii, that’s the best present in the world! Thank you. Quick, let’s set it up.
Dad: Not so fast son. We’ve got to register for the strap replacement programme. Now, where’s that serial number?
Son: Are you serious?
Dad: After what’s happened to some of those spoilt kids who got their Wiis before Christmas, I don’t want to see that remote getting anywhere near our new flat screen TV.
Son: No way! Are you saying it’s going back in the box until our new strap comes through? But that could be 2007! Oh, Daddy I want to play my Wii NOW.
Dad: Sorry Son, but we can’t be taking any chances. Now, go and thank your mother for those new socks.

If this happens to you, read on for some great advice on how to get your Wii out of its box on Christmas Day.

Continue reading Nintendo miss Christmas with new straps…

Big overhead smash in Wii Sports Tennis

If Wii Sports Bowling was made for TV damage, Wii Sports Tennis leaves light fixtures vulnerable.

Linsey Fryatt is based in London and writes for stuff.tv - the website of the magazine of the gadget. Not many UK folks have a Wii, what with all 50,000 selling out on day one (last Friday). But I guess if you work for one of the leading game console review publications, you’ll have a few of these kicking around. And so it is that Linsey got in touch. In her own words:

“The Wii has me peeved. Not because those wacky little games have seriously dented my social life. Not because my Mii has more fashion sense than the real me. Not even because Wii Sports has tricked me into some gentle exercise.

I’m peeved because the Wii-related damage to my home has now reached hundreds of pounds, thanks to the heady mixture of Polish vodka, Scottish bravado and a particularly strenuous game of Wii tennis (note to self – glass lampshades DO NOT make a good substitute for tennis balls…)”

The damage was actually deliverd by a “particularly strenuous smash by my so-called friend, Email”. Email? (Go figure, as our US readers might say). I guess he doesn’t get out much.

That’s not all for overhead smashes - see some painful consequences after the jump.

Continue reading Big overhead smash in Wii Sports Tennis…

Wii makes a big impression

Let that be a lesson to you son! Nintendo go to great lengths to tell you to keep your distance from their totally absorbing games but here we’re seeing the whole family get drawn in, with painful consequences.

Picture the scene. It’s Thanksgiving down at Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, and the family have got together to celebrate. Parents are doing their usual boring ‘chatting’ and to keep the kids amused they’ve found the perfect toy. The next generation Wii games console.
Enter the main charaters:

Continue reading Wii makes a big impression…