A run-down of each sport
VolleyballVolleyball, which involves two teams of two players, is certainly the most enjoyable of the six sports, especially with three other people and it’s also the most responsive and the most physical. It basically consists of three movements that mimic those of a real volleyball game.
You serve by holding down the A button and then swing the Wii-mote forward. You then grasp it horizontally with both hands and bring it upwards towards your chest to send the ball over to your partner (who you also control) and then you lift the controller up with both hands over your head to send it to your partner again to set him up for the smash and then finally you raise the your Wii-mote and swing it forward over your head to smash it across to the other court.
The game has a good flow to it, it’s a good physical work-out and it’s fairly challenging in terms of getting your timing right.
American Football
It’s a strange one is American Football because you feel like you should be able to control the movement’s of your character, but they actually do there own thing once they have the ball in their possession and you merely have control over dodging left and right by swinging your Wii-mote. Once again it’s a four-player game, either human or AI controller, and you simply snap the ball with the A button, watch your partner’s run down the beach and then swing the Wii-mote forward as if you were throwing the ball. You have no control over whether the receiver catches it or not, that’s done automatically.
When it’s your turn to defend you can try and intercept a pass by swinging the Wii-mote in an upwards direction and you can tackle by shaking the controller. The controls are very simple and sometimes it feels like you’re not completely in control of the outcome of the game, but its fun in short bursts. I just feel more could have been done to make it better.
Cricket
Cricket reminds me of Baseball on Wii Sports. Rather than over-arm bowling, which you can do here, you can get away with throwing like a pitcher and when batting you simply need to time when the ball is coming toward the stumps and then take an almighty swing at it. You can add spin to it by tilting the controller left or right, but it doesn't always seem to go where I wanted it to and frustratingly I’d get called out on a run even though I’d blatantly reached the crease before I was stumped out.
There’s not much thought been put into it and you lack the freedom to hit the ball to certain areas, plus you never really feel that your actions have any solid bearing over where the ball will end up.
Boules
Boules couldn’t be simpler. It’s the most basic and weakest of the games on the roster and frankly quite dull. You simply use an underarm movement with your Wii-mote to throw a target ball and then you and your opponents take it turn to throw as close to that ball as possible. You can use the d-pad to choose the direction of your throw, but it’s instantly forgettable and certainly doesn’t capture the same feeling as Bowling did in Wii Sports.
Football
This it’s certainly one of the better games out of the six sports, but not as must fun or responsive as volleyball, mainly because there are quite a few different movements to think about and sometimes it seems to muddle them up. The two teams of two move around of their own accord and you pass to the nearest or furthest player by pressing A or B and shoot at goal by shaking the Wii-mote. There’s a range of other moves requiring you to move the Wii-mote in different ways to head the ball or volley pass, shoot or execute an over head kick.
Although it’s pretty good fun when you’ve got four human players playing, you’re still restricted by having the AI control your player’s movements. Like Volleyball, this is another team game where implementing the Nunchuck so you could actually move your characters would have been so much better.
Disc Golf
It’s golf basically, albeit with a Frisbee in place of ball. You have three different types of moves that you can pull off with the Wii-mote by switching stances. Executing a backhand, forehand and hammer throw to launch the Frisbee works well and it’s one of the few games on offer where you feel you need real skill to pull it off. You need to take into account the wind direction and speed and also the orientation of your Wii-mote. Not bad at all.
You will have noticed that all the team games in Big Beach Sports have four players on the pitch which opens it up nicely for multiplayer bouts and its multiplayer that you’ll certainly enjoy the most. Personally I’ve enjoyed playing three out of the six games (volleyball, football and disc golf), but realistically I’d probably only ever go back and play volleyball and that would only be if I had friends around. Looking at it from a kid’s point of view, I can see how the instant accessibility, the customisation and the fact that you can jump in and have a game with the family might be appealing, but I wouldn’t’ expect this to keep anyone amused for too long over the summer.
Hang on a second! The retailers must know (I mean think) that this isn't going to sell. After writing this review I've noticed that Play.com has Big Beach Sports available for £12.99. Now, that's cheaper then a night on the town. It's worth that, but only just.
Pros
All games cater for 4 players
Volleyball controls are excellent
Customisation and funny outfits may appeal to youngsters
Cons
Not enough games to keep you amused for very long
No Nunchuck implementation
Some of the games are far too simple and boring
