Are Wii Having Fun Yet?

Alright, so the title is a little cheesy, but what can I say...I'm hooked...


I have heard about the Wii for quite a while now, and by all appearances it is a hit. In particular, the Wii Sports games are the hottest item, specifically the tennis game. I have wanted to try it out for as long as I've known about it, but this has been difficult thus far because (1) Wii is not yet available for sale in Taiwan and (2) when it is eventually released, it will probably be the Japanese version.


At present, the only way to get the Wii is through local importers that buy them in Japan and bring them over for sale in Taiwan. Many of my colleagues have been chomping at the bit for Wii, and thus given the recent delays and shortages, they finally decided to take the plunge and just buy one of these imported models.


It was thus that a Wii appeared in our conference room just after lunch today, along with an extra controller and the Wii Sports game pack. When I found out what was going on, I was suddenly struck with both fear and excitement. I was excited to be able to finally try this sucker out, and afraid that I would like it as much as I thought I might.


Turns out that I was not disappointed on either count...


After about 30 minutes of playing both the tennis game and the boxing game, I consider myself a believer. My arms are tired, and my back is tight, yet I keep finding myself glancing back towards the conference room of temptation. I have boatloads of work to do, and yet I still catch my mind drifting back towards getting another crack at the tennis game.


This will sound like crazy talk and thinly veiled justification, but I really think that this will actually help the workplace be more production. All of the boys in the office are naturally hooked as well, but we are all showing self restraint in playing during work hours (thus far). Folks have only gone back to play for a few minutes at a time during their breaks as kind of a reward for cranking through the tasks that they had on their plate. I for one have found myself more focused and efficient because I am motivated to get done so that I can go back and play without too much guilt. Plus, it's a fun group activity, it really (REALLY) is pretty good exercise, and it brings an element of fun into the office that raises morale.


I just hope it does not cause any incidents with folks slacking when they should not be, which I really doubt will be a problem. I'm guessing this will pretty much have the same effect that the foozball table at our headquarters had on the office - good fun during breaks, but generally not an issue.