The secretive Wii Fit rival - Rocket's Wii Exercise

Ever since the official unveiling of Wii Fit, many a third party developer has expressed interest in making use of the Balance Board accessory in their upcoming games. Some of the most notable examples so far include Electronic Arts and THQ, who have confirmed that Skate It and All Star Cheer Squad will have gamers on their feet thanks to Nintendo’s new-fangled hardware.

In fact, EA has also announced that it is working on a direct rival to Wii Fit; a title that will offer a tougher, more "westernised" workout. However, they aren't the first company to divulge such intentions.

Say hello to Rocket Company's little-known Wii Exercise, a fitness game for the Nintendo Wii that was originally planned to hit stores ahead of Nintendo's globe-conquering title.

Originally announced in mid July 2007, Wii Exercise was intended to be a Balance Board-less fitness program for the Nintendo Wii, which offered players an aerobic workout by taking them through a variety of boxing moves (Wii Remote and Nunchuck controllers in hand). In addition, it planned to include a feature that allowed players to plan their own diet via the software, making their exercise and eating habits easy to monitor together.

However, following the official announcement of Wii Fit just a few weeks afterwards, The Rocket Company went right back to the drawing board, realising that their own game could be much more effective if it made use of the Balance Board accessory. After a few months of silence, the developer once again piped up about Wii Exercise - this time to announce that it would, you guessed it, be compatible with the Balance Board accessory.

In addition to boxing gestures, Wii Exercise, it was confirmed, would now include strength training activities such as squats, push-ups, and sit-ups, to buff up muscles and offer more of a full body workout.

Wii Exercise is said to be planned for a springtime release in Japan - although we have yet to hear anything of it since last Christmas, and no screenshots or video of the title have seen the light of day so far, which leads us to believe development has been delayed.

Could this be a true competitor to Wii Fit’s crown? Only time will tell.

Posted by Andrew at 13:56