Wii Sports Resort Review - Screenshot 1 of 2

Golf

Golf feels very familiar to the original Wii Sports version, but there are a few added twists courtesy of Wii Motion Plus that do make things a bit more interesting. Now there's a lot more sensitivity in the actual swinging process. No longer can you just swing the desired speed - now you must lock your wrist into place in order to keep the power bar from weaving to one side or the other thus making your shot draw and fade at times when you need a straight shot. Of course if you want to purposely add a little draw or fade to your shot, it's as easy as twisting your wrist as you follow through with your swing. There are three Classic courses and three Resort golf courses to play and you can choose to play each of them in three, nine, or eighteen hole modes with up to four players alternating turns. The addition of the Wii Motion Plus takes what was already a solid Wii Sports game and makes it even more playable and realistic, not to mention adds in a ton of new holes to take on. As good as Golf was in the original Wii Sports release, it's that much better in this title.

Wii Sports Resort Review - Screenshot 2 of 2

Bowling

Bowling consists of three games: Standard, 100-Pin, and Spin Control game modes and can all be played with up to four players taking turns. The Standard game will be quite familiar to fans of the original Wii Sports release as they're almost identical, albeit with a bit more control sensitivity courtesy of the Wii Motion Plus peripheral. While the aiming is still the same, this time pressing the (B) button will only prepare your bowler to begin the throwing motion. Your player will not begin moving forward until you draw back your arm with the Wii Remote in hand. This adds a bit more realism to the experience this time around. You can still impart spin on the ball by twisting your wrist one way or the other as you are throwing the ball down the alley. The added sensitivity of Wii Motion Plus makes it much easier to do so as well.

The 100-Pin game mode is where things get a bit more interesting. Instead of the usual 10 pins to knock down, this game presents you with 100 of them. While the goal of the game is still basically the same, there's nothing quite like knocking down 100 pins with one shot to get you fired up. Not to mention some of the insanely tricky spares you'll have to try to pick up.

The Spin Control game mode is where your skills will truly be tested. The bowling action is fairly standard, but now there will be various barriers placed along the lane that you must spin your ball around. And as if that weren't enough, some of these barriers will be moving back and forth. If your ball is stopped by a barrier, you won't score any points at all for that throw, so you'd better be careful how and when you make your throws. You'd also better learn to put a lot of spin on your ball if you're going to have any chance at mastering this tricky bowling mode. Bowling was good in the original Wii Sports title, but it's absolutely fantastic in Wii Sports Resort.