I never played a lot of video games as a kid. I chose to spend my time outside or on a stage. Thank goodness Parish isn't a big-time gamer, although Madden almost ended our relationship in college (but, that's a different blog entry). He does enjoy video games, but not to the point of compromising our marriage.
Perhaps I spoke too soon...about six-months ago, he began talking about this thing called a Wii. The more I learned about it, the more I thought it would be fun to own. Stores couldn't keep this game system in stock and with the three-digit price tag, I thought we could hold off. Parish continued to talk about it and the more I heard about it, the more I wanted to play it too. An interactive game that gets you off your tookus and whips you into shape...um, yeah! All the lights went on around our one-year anniversary and I made it my mission to find a Wii and surprise Parish. My mission was more complicated than I thought and after calling 400 Targets, in Arkansas and Colorado (I was desperate!) I located a GameStop that had it. Only thing was, the store was about an hour away from Little Rock. I sent an email to my (very understanding) boss and headed out to complete my mission. Two-and-half hours later, I had the coveted Wii. I thought to myself, "This thing better be a load of fun...or else!"
Needless to say, we joined the masses and enjoy bowling, tennis, golf and boxing from the comfort of our living room. The only thing I didn't know is that Wii is a drug. Okay, not in the physical sense, but very much in the MENTAL sense. The people at Nintendo know what they're doing. First of all, only one controller comes with the system, if you want to play with another person, (i.e. have fun) you need another controller. One of those puppies cost $60 and, oh yeah, you have to get this other controller in order to play some of the games. Price: $20. Eighty-dollars later and you haven't even turned the thing on! We might be eating rice and beans for the next couple of months, but at least we're having fun!
Turns out, Wii is A LOT of fun. The first day we got it we played it for at least three-hours. GH was the same way. The games require much more movement than I expected. After a couple rounds of boxing, I had to get water and sit down. Seriously! Parish enjoys tennis and we both like bowling. There is a feature on the system called Mii and you can create characters. The created characters show up in the game later on. You can create Mii characters to look like you or create a funky person and give them a name like "Lulu B" or "Lil B." I honestly have just as much fun creating a Mii than I do playing the actual game, true story.
Guitar Hero is another story. It is more frustrating than I imagined, although I'm slowly getting the hang of it. I've only thrown it once. Parish is catching on a lot more faster than I am (of course). GH brings out my competitive side and it is NOT pretty. Perhaps the jump from no video games to the most interactive games on the planet wasn't the best choice. But nonetheless, we have invested too much time and money to turn back now. Wii like to play.
