Game Two: Walk With Me! Do You Know Your Walking Routine? (Nintendo DS, 2008)
With the highly influential Nintendo DS and Wii game systems, Nintendo created a large quantity of videogame releases that challenged perceptions of what gaming was all about and what it could bring to the content table. A lot of these games on the DS were from the Touch! Generations series, which attempted to get more players of all ages leaping onto the portable gaming bandwagon. Centered around walking, jogging, and running as the main gaming material, the DS exclusive titled Walk With Me! Do You Know Your Walking Routine? from 2009 aimed to encourage physical activity and could track how many steps you and up to three other people took on a regular basis.
The player’s steps were tracked via one of two pedometers that came with the package, which linked to software that transferred the data to the game. Should you want more than one of these nifty devices, they could be purchased separately. So, how did the game actually create a picture of what is happening, aside from the pedometer accessory? That’s where the charts, graphs, and statistics would come into play. Fitness goals could be set and there were unlockable mini games and Wi-Fi integration crammed in, which meant you could send data to online leader boards and contribute to a global step count where everyone’s efforts were merged into one giant statistic. Mii enthusiasts would have appreciated the integration of those long standing characters in Walk With Me!, with only two DS games in history actually boasting such a feature. Either create your own Mii within the game or transfer ones from the Wii via computing wizardry.
Numerous reviews seem to be pretty upbeat. That said, the now-defunct Official Nintendo Magazine, while awarding it 75%, did question whether this game was actually needed in the first place. Walk With Me! wasn’t a conventional videogame and was more of a lifestyle tool where function rather than fantasy was the emphasis. There were no battles, brawls, bashing or Bowser in there, but this is one Nintendo title that could still potentially be a useful long term tool today, if you have a Nintendo DS. Think of it as something in the vein of Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training or Wii Fit: well put together and with self-improvement being the aim of the game. Should it sound enticing, you can get a copy of Walk With Me! here.
Words by James Gillespie
Support The Indiependent
We’re trying to raise £200 a month to help cover our operational costs. This includes our ‘Writer of the Month’ awards, where we recognise the amazing work produced by our contributor team. If you’ve enjoyed reading our site, we’d really appreciate it if you could donate to The Indiependent. Whether you can give £1 or £10, you’d be making a huge difference to our small team.