Winter Sports The Ultimate Challenge Reviews

5 Comments

1. S. Sporman says:

   August 6, 2010 at 9:33 pm

   Review by S. Sporman for Winter Sports The Ultimate Challenge
   Rating:
   The first Winter Sports title on the Nintendo Wii is a very solid one, especially at the budget price.

   The presentation is very solid. The game runs with a widescreen mode, has smooth graphics, and good sound. In addition to the in-game music, there are two witty European commentators that provide some interesting and funny banter. There is a very neat opening ceremony, and medal ceremonies complete with national anthems. Load times are minimal, and bugs are non present.

   There are over fifteen events in nearly every Winter Olympic discipline. There are two varieties of Speed Skating, several varieties of Skiing, Skeleton, Luge, Bobsleigh, Figure Skating, and Curling. The majority of the events controls very well and provides intelligent and innovative uses of the Wii remote and Nunchuck. With the sliding sports, for example, while on the track you hold the remote in the Steering Wheel fashion. With Figure Skating, you use the remote and Nunchuck like in a rhythm game, very similar to the method used in the Wii version of “Dancing With the Stars.” Sadly, the controls for Curling seem to be broken or, at the least, extremely difficult to use. But, all of the other events control very well.

   The game has a skill-building career mode, 4-player multiplayer, single event play and traditional tournament modes. Overall, for the price, it’s a very solid package that’s enjoyable in both single and multiplayer modes.
   
2. J. M. Durham says:

   August 6, 2010 at 9:38 pm

   Review by J. M. Durham for Winter Sports The Ultimate Challenge
   Rating:
   We are relatively new to the Wii so I can’t compare it to all of the games out there, but I can say that so far it is a blast for our family and a clear favorite for both the adults and kids. We have played the speed skating, downhill skiing and the luge games and are already addicted.

   The games vary in difficulty and in types of actions–we are still trying to make it down the slopes without wiping out multiple times but the speed skating is fairly easy just a lot of action in the arms. We are enjoying the variety and we still have many games to explore.

   I should also add that so far all of the games have a two-player option with a split screen so you are competing against each other. You can see your opponent whiz by or vice versa as you are racing.

   The realistic/human-like players are nice too. This is not cartoony like Mario but has more life-like graphics. You can’t select your player’s looks but you can choose the country you are competing for.

   Other notes:
   
   Music: good/competition-type music. Fun to play to.

   Sound and graphics: nice and realistic. I especially like the skiing sounds. It makes you feel like you are really on the slopes without the cold. Visually, it is realistic too because there are effects like snow sprays that sometimes partially obscure your ability to see what is ahead, etc. Oh, and the luge is a trip. You feel like you are traveling VERY fast. Perhaps it isn’t the real thing but it is a fun substitute.

   Age level: either a very coordinated 5-8 or 8 and older (might be tough for the little ones).

   I am hoping they will do a summer games version next. I would definitely purchase this again in a heartbeat.
3. M. Rieger says:

   August 6, 2010 at 10:12 pm

   Review by M. Rieger for Winter Sports The Ultimate Challenge
   Rating:
   I took a chance when I saw some of the reviews here. Thanks everyone! This is a surprising winner. Terrific graphics, challenging gameplay (different difficulty levels) and especially the reasonable price, make this a wonderful extension of the wii sports/mario&sonic olympics type games.

   So far we have focused on a few of the events, though we have looked at all of them. The speedskating was the first one we tried. It was great for my 6 yr old. He wouldn’t stop playing. It is challenging to keep the meters at the optimal levels even on the easier difficulty.

   The ski jumping took a while to get the right feel of the controls to time the take off and navigate steadily through the air to a good landing. The controllers were ultra-responsive so you need to have very good touch.

   My favorite was the bobsled so far. Took a run to get the hang of it, but it’s more like a racing game where you try to find the right groove except for the start which is different from what I expected (and not easy ) You have to move your controller in a circular motion to build speed/power. Still haven been able to get the best start. The graphics going down the track are a blast. You even can see the lights showing the optimal location (at least in the easier mode), but it’s not exactly easy to keep the sled there.

   We can’t wait to open the alternate venues too for the events. This game so far seems to be very well thought out and put together. It’s already worth the money and everything else is gravy. This is a great addition to the game library and fun for all ages. The surprising thing is even my wife enjoyed it and didn’t want to give up her controller(s).

   UPDATE on CURLING (3/12): Tricky to get the hang of the controls, but once you do, this game is TERRIFIC. My kids loved curling while watching the last winter olympics. They love watching this but it will surely take a while for them to learn the controls. As a general note: READ THE ONSCREEN CONTROL NOTES. It may take a while, but it is worth it
4. M. Reed says:

   August 6, 2010 at 10:33 pm

   Review by M. Reed for Winter Sports The Ultimate Challenge
   Rating:
   For once, it seems Conspiracy has done something worthwhile. Conspiracy is the publisher for this game, known to create the most painfully bad experiences on the Wii to date (seriously, check reviews of their other games). But, this game is surprising well designed and thought out. The graphics are actually up to par with the other Wii games on the market. The whole game itself iplays like Mario and Sonic at the Olympics, were you have the opportunity to do several games in sequence, or just pick one at a time. The controls are much more intuitive, so therefore the experience is more engaging and overall better. The individual events can actually take some time to complete, which makes the game alot more playable. For 30 dollars, this game is a steal.
5. J. Day says:

   August 6, 2010 at 11:08 pm

   Review by J. Day for Winter Sports The Ultimate Challenge
   Rating:
   After reading reviews on Amazon and other sites I picked this game up. It lives up to the reviews and more. I just finished a 2 hour game session with my wife and we had a blast. The graphics and sound are great and so is the control. The sense of speed on the luge, skeleton and bobsled is amazing (press the 1 button for a 1st person view with insane speed). There are lots of nice little effects when you are performing extremely well that add to the sense of excitement. I am playing this using a 720P DLP projector throwing a 10′ wide image and I’m very impressed.

   The event that really surprised me was cross country skiing the way they did the game play you have to manage your stamina by maintaining a steady pace and gliding at the right times (even slight down hills can gain you some stamina back). The control method of moving your arms forward and back works much better than I would have thought. Since there is strategy with the stamina it isn’t up to the person with the quickest hands, but the best balance steering and strategy. You also need to stay were the previous racers have been or you are slowed down I just loved this event and thought it would be one of the boring ones before I played it.

   Another nice thing is that though the controls are somewhat complex they are partially shared across most events skiing in particular so you can learn the 15 events pretty quickly. The two player split screen works perfectly and leads to great competition.

   If you are looking for a good multiplayer or single player winter sports game this is it and at the price it’s a no brainier. I passed this game up the first time I saw it because I’ve been burned by cheap Wii games before, but trust me this one is head and shoulders above most the full priced let alone the cheap ones.

   Update (for the curling game)

   If your having trouble with the curling controls don’t use the IR pointer to aim as it just doesn’t work. Using the D-pad to aim works fine. The curling throwing motion takes some practice, but once you get it down it works great. I love the fast forward option in the curling for the competition since it hilarious watching them sweep at inhuman speeds. The physics seem right on for the impacts as well. Probably the hardest one in the bunch to learn, but curling is fun once mastered.