Wii Fit Plus

Wii Fit Plus is exactly what it sounds like--a revision, rather than a revolution, of the 2008 game that almost single-handedly propelled the fitness genre into the mainstream. The core experience hasn't changed, but Plus is a big improvement over the original Wii Fit thanks to the ability to create your own tailored workouts and the introduction of plenty of fun new balance games. And while there are still some head-scratching omissions (and some questionable health advice), Plus' excellent integration with the Wii Balance Board peripheral and its solid presentation make it an ideal tool for those wanting to improve their fitness without having to trek to the gym or publically expose their downward facing dog in a yoga class.

While it's essentially the same game as its forebear--a series of muscle, yoga, and balance game exercises which (mostly) use the board peripheral--there are enough reasons here for those who bought the original game to dust off their balance boards and shell out cash for Wii Fit Plus. Extra activities are the most noticeable additions: Plus features three new yoga poses and three new muscle workouts, all of which are tailored for more advanced users and nicely round off the existing offerings (and bring the total to 18 yoga and 15 muscle exercises overall). While the actual number of exercises hasn't increased significantly, the way you access them within Wii Fit Plus has been given a positive makeover, making workouts a much smoother experience.

First, all exercises are available to try from the get-go; you don't have to unlock them, which was the case in the original. More importantly, you can now easily string together individual exercises into routines, remedying Wii Fit's most glaring omission. Plus comes with its own preset routines bundled into different target groups. The Form group, for example, has three routines (each made up of three individual exercises) which target hips and behinds, arms, and figures, while the Youth grouping targets posture, mind and body, and legs and hips. You can join these preset routines together to create a longer session, or better still, you can create your own routine from scratch. Plus allows you to create a session of up to 60 minutes in length, but it strangely lets you choose only from muscle and yoga exercises. Creating your own routine is a more-than-welcome addition, but not being able to include some of the more aerobic-heavy games such as Hula-Hoop, Jogging, or Rhythm Boxing seriously hamstrings Wii Fit Plus' effectiveness as a total fitness tool.