EA Playground [Wii]

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Recess: For most kids, it's the highlight of the school day (well, other than the part where you get to go home). But what if you're not as sharp at your social sports skills as you'd like to be? EA Playground is here to help, and lets you have some fun with your Wii remote at the same time.

A selection of schoolyard activities await. Some consist of you enjoying a little solo time, while others feature a more competitive atmosphere. Playground staples like tetherball, free-throw shooting and wall ball seem like natural fits, but the designers got a little creative as well. Where else can you pilot a paper airplane from the cockpit's point of view, or have access to an outdoor slot-car track on school grounds? EA even seemingly made up a totally new sport: Kicks. It combines soccer and volleyball into one fast-paced competition.

Every game uses the Wii remote to its fullest. To hurl a dodgeball, simply make a throwing motion (with remote strap snugly on your wrist, of course). To unleash a barrage of Nerf-style darts in the first-person shootout, just point and fire. EA Playground's gameplay is simple to grasp, and even features animated pictures of each control function. It's worth noting that you can leave your nunchuks at home -- everything is handled with just the remote.

Just because these games are easy doesn't mean your computer opponents will be pushovers, however. You might dominate at first, but there are several curveballs EA Playground throws at you. For example, after you beat someone at dodgeball, they may dare you to last 10 seconds being bombarded by balls without being hit. Rules are highly customizable, and can drastically change the landscape of a game.

These rules also come in handy for multiplayer, which is bound to be where a lot of gamers get their kicks. Play on the same team as your buddy, or face off to see who's best. Tweak the difficulty, number of rounds, or even set up a multi-gamed tournament. Up to four people can participate in several of the events for a Playground party.