What Really Went Wrong With Wii Music
The Wii's motion controls were quite revolutionary for the gaming industry back in the mid 2000s. Nintendo struck gold when the console dropped and was praised for having incredibly addictive and interactive games like Wii Sports. That title in particular really demonstrated what the Wii's motion controls were capable of, leading to adults and children alike were swinging Wii remotes like baseball bats and golf clubs from the comfort of their living rooms.
After the success of Wii Sports Nintendo attempted to follow up with Wii Music, another motion control title. The title was released in 2008, and it did not resonate well with critics and audiences alike. While the game was really trying to show off more of the Wii's capabilites, it ended up being a sloppy disaster that just couldn't hold a candle to its predecessor, and other music game competitors at the time.
Here's what was wrong with Wii Music.
Bad controls and boring gameplay held Wii Music back
During the time of Wii Music's release, interactive music franchises like Guitar Hero and Rock Band were already dominating the scene. Wii Music was essentially Nintendo's response to these massive IPs, but it sadly didn't stand a chance. Developers really tried to lean on the Wii's motion controls as a way to incentivize players to get the game since they wouldn't have to buy a separate set of plastic drums or guitars. The problem was that the controls in Wii Music were so janky that it really hampered the experience. This was even embarrassingly displayed during an E3 demonstration of the game in 2008.
Bad controls aside, the game just generally wasn't very engaging. Gaming outlets really honed in on the fact that most players would probably be bored of Wii Music after just a few minutes. Instead of the fun gameplay and replayability that Wii Sports gave, Wii Music had players wiggling their controller around in hopes that they would sound kind of good.
The game was a flop for Nintendo. It did not perform as well as intended, and showed the cracks in the Wii's controls. Thankfully, the Wii Motion Plus and Wii Sports Resort mostly rectified these issues a year later.