Improving one's self in Wii Sports: Bowling

Joystiq's own Kyle Orland sat down with the Wii and looked to test out the learning curve. In choosing Wii Sports: Bowling, he looked to see if Nintendo's motion-control scheme was as intuitive and easy to use as the company had marketed. So how does one accomplish this? By playing a lot of Wii. Going through natural motions and even trying to "trick" the game, Kyle's results were as follows:

• Game 1: Having trouble letting go of the "B" button in mid-swing. The result is a late throw that ends up dribbling down the lane for a few pins. Score: 110

• Game 2: Better with the timing, but the ball has a natural curve at the end that makes most shots miss the mark just barely. Score: 116

• Game 3: Consciously focusing on keeping the ball straight. Throwing it at less than full power seems to help. Score: 146

• Game 4: Confident in the straight game, I focus on adding some spin to the end of the shot. Most shots end up too turning too much or too little. Score: 145

• Game 5: Working off a surprise strike from game 5, I decide to try a standard first shot for all ten frames -- full power, straight on from the right edge with maximum leftward spin. I get two strikes but miss a few easy spares. Score: 147

• Game 6: I try shooting with an approach from the extreme left side, angled towards the center with a slight spin. No strikes, but I pick up the spare on all but one frame. Score: 166

• Game 7: No set strategy -- I pick shots based on flights of fancy. Pick up eight spares and two splits. Score: 159
  

• Game 8: Arm is getting a little tired from 140+ straight throws without a break, so I try to fool the system by sitting down and just flicking my wrist. The results are disastrous. Score: 111

So what did Kyle find? He found that over these 8 games, in slightly adjusting his movements, he actually got better at the game. Also, trying to trick the game by flicking the Wiimote fast did little to improve his score. So what does this mean? Well, if you're good at bowling in real life, you'll probably be good in Wii Sports: Bowling.