Over the past decade, Nintendo has established itself as the home of fitness games. Wii Fit and its improved Version, Wii Fit Plus, have sold more than 43 copies worldwide together, so it was only a matter of time before the company tried to replicate this success on Nintendo Switch. Fortunately, the successor to Wii Fit is much more ambitious than many would have imagined. Released a year ago on October 18, 2019, Ring Fit Adventure is not Wii Fit 2.0, but a full-fledged Fitness RPG with a global story, a skill tree and vibrant and vibrant landscapes. Not only is it much more ambitious than its predecessor in terms of scope, but it also encourages a healthier attitude towards fitness and a friendly tone that is relentlessly encouraging without a hint of judgment, even if it has been weeks – or even months – since you last signed up.
In Ring Fit Adventure, you will team up with a magic Pilates ring to hunt down and defeat an evil bodybuilding dragon named Dragaux, who exerts a dark influence on the country. In your quest for Jewels, you will jog through beautiful landscapes and participate in turn-based battles against fitness-themed monsters (such as a lively dumbbell or a mischievous Yoga mat). To attack or defend, you have to do exercises, and the game finally introduces type clashes-some monsters are particularly weak for leg movements, for example. With four different types of movements (leg, arm, abdomen and Yoga), Ring Fit Adventure offers an excellent full-body workout, and although some levels focus on one muscle group, the possibility of using different types of movements keeps the workout in balance and prevents you from getting tired too quickly.
However, type clashes are only one aspect of the action strategy in Ring Fit Adventure. Foods also play a key role, from Smoothies that regenerate your health and revive you to soups and teas that offer certain Buffs, Such as increasing The attack of all arm movements or turning your type of exercise into Yoga. If you get into a action that you are not prepared for in terms of type, these items can literally save you. Outside of action, there is even a skill tree where you can unlock new moves and increase your stats, and each world has a store where you can buy new clothes to improve your attack or defense, as well as ingredients to cook more food for your battles. In this way, every aspect of the Ringfit adventure helps to make you stronger and give you more tools for the action than just equipping enough arm or leg movements. Ring fit’s embrace of its RPG elements keeps the progression varied and interesting for months of gameplay, and you will continue to unlock new moves, recipes and abilities until after in the game – it will never stagnate. This makes the Gameplay much more engaging than just following the movements on a screen, and especially in boss fights, having the right items available and having the best moves equipped can mean the difference between succeeding and being a knockout. The fact that you can actually lose a action (instead of just being scored like in other fitness games) is especially motivating and challenge s you, both bodyly and mentally, to give it your all in every fight.
At the center of the Ring Fit actionis the Ring-Con, a real Pilates ring that connects to one of your Joy-Cons (while the other slips into a leg strap to surround your thigh). The Ring-Con is remarkably robust and has held up well over the past year without any noticeable changes in its strength or durability. This is impressive considering how hard you pull and push the Ring-Con during the long campaign of the game. Whether you press it against your stomach for a belly protector or lift it above your head for a tree pose, the Ring-Con takes center stage in almost every movement and follows your precise movements. As in other Nintendo exercise games like Fitness Boxing, I found that you really can’t split these exercises in two. In the ring adjustment, ignoring the correct shape means that your attacks do less damage, and if it is a defensive move, you risk a devastating blow. This not only keeps the stakes high in the game; it also ensures that you get the most out of your training and that you prevent injuries. Some of these movements can be difficult to do, but in the game you will have your faithful ring that will give you tips on how to perform each movement correctly with a lot of encouragement.
Ring Fit Adventure encourages you to listen to your body, to understand its needs and not to exceed your limits.
Ring Fit Adventure has an unshakable cheerfulness, and while this is certainly true for many proprietary Nintendo games, it has a deeper impact in the context of a training game. It’s so easy to get involved when you miss a workout or two, and as someone with severe anxiety, sometimes I can’t find the willpower to do anything, let alone strap myself in for a ring session. There can be such negative energy around exercise and the expectations of being consistent or looking a certain way, but Ring Fit Adventure throws all of that out the window. He does everything to make you feel welcome and accepted, regardless of your fitness level or how long it has been since your last workout. When you start the game, you will simply be asked if you even feel sore since the last session and if you even want to adjust the difficulty level. Instead of pushing you to keep increasing the difficulty, the game simply accepts your answer and asks you even if it’s annoying to keep asking. Don’t you want to stretch with Tipp, your friendly in-game coach, today? No problem – the game simply takes you back to where you were in the campaign. By relieving the pressure to perform certain activities or make the Gameplay more difficult, you can improve at your own pace and prevent the movement from taking on a negative connotation, as is so easily possible in the real world.