Spending quality time with the Wii

After months of waiting, the Wii has finally arrived. While some of you have been lucky enough to snag one of Nintendo’s new consoles by now, chances are many of you are still searching stores in hopes of landing a Wii before Christmas.

For those without a Wii, please allow me to share my experiences thus far with what is quickly becoming my favorite gaming system.

My initial impression of the Wii was shock over just how small the unit actually is. Roughly the size of three DVD cases stacked together, the Wii is downright tiny when compared to the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. In addition to the console, itself, the retail Wii package includes one Wiimote controller, one Nunchuck controller, a sensor bar and holder, a system stand and system stand holder (yes, you read that correctly), a set of standard composite A/V cables, a power cord, some double-sided tape to mount the sensor bar to your television, and a copy of “Wii Sports.”

Nintendo even includes batteries for the Wiimote, meaning everything you’ll need to begin playing is included in the box. Nice.

Setting up the system was quick and painless, taking roughly 15 minutes to complete. If you’ve ever hooked up a gaming system, you should feel right at home with the Wii. The only difference is the sensor bar, which you can be mounted above or below your TV (there are no benefits to either location.) I opted to place the bar on top of my set, and I must say it’s barely noticeable. It’s sleek and blends in nicely.

Since the Wiimote communicates with the sensor bar and not the console, directly, you’ve got some freedom with regard to where you place your system. In fact, you’re only limited by the 10 feet of cable attached to the sensor bar.

Once the hardware was set up, it was time to turn on the Wii for the first time.

When I first turned the system on, I was prompted to set the time and date, as well as name my system. Easy as pie.

Next was the Wi-Fi installation. Actually there was no installation needed. The Wii automatically detected my network and I was able to download Virtual Console games within minutes. There is already an update available for the console which can be downloaded after the Wi-Fi setup is complete.

With the installation out of the way, I could have played some “Wii Sports.” Instead, I chose to visit the Mii Channel, which is where users create their virtual identity — their Mii. Creating a Mii is simple, but can become very time consuming as well. I actually found myself making Mii’s for not only myself, but for my wife, my son, a few of my friends, and people that I don’t even know. Let’s just say that if Peter Griffin or John Stewart were to ever stop by to play my Wii, I totally have a Mii ready for them.

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