The Wii Fit helped revolutionize the workout genre of video games, and thanks to the Xbox Kinect and the Sony Playstation Move the games took an even greater step forward. With the launch of the Wii U this past November the games have evolved once again, and one of the first in the genre for the new system is Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2013.
Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2013 has four main modes: Workouts, Classes, Program and Activities.
If it’s a specific area of your body that you want to target, such as your abdominal muscles or butt, you can do it in the Workout mode. Here you will find a series of workouts that help tone and shape your body the way you want; one area at a time. Each level of difficulty increases the number of reps and increases the pace, so even the most avid fitness buff should find them self sweating.
The Classes mode will take you through a series of workout moves the way a class would at the gym. This mode doesn’t focus on any specific area, but is more of a whole body experience. You can take dance, kickboxing, zen (which is basically martial art blocking, dodging and punching), yoga, power training, or pilates. Again there are multiple levels of difficulty in this section so you can choose the level that is perfect for you.
The Program mode is whatever you want it to be. Here you tell the game what you want to focus on (increased strength, improved stamina, toned legs, etc), and what aspect of the game you find the most enjoyable (dancing, fighting or zen). After telling it how many weeks you wish the program to work for, and how many sessions a week you desire, the game will create a program specifically tailored to you. The game will even remind you when it’s time for you to do your workout. If you find it tedious navigating from exercise to exercise and just want to work out, this area of the game is for you. You can even find over 150 recipes that will help you eat right as you get yourself in shape.
The final mode is Activities, and it is here a lot of people will probably find themselves heading first. You can dance along to Lady Gaga or LMFAO, or play one of a series of mini games with the Wii U Gamepad while holding yourself in a Yoga position and breathing properly. While this mode is fun, you will probably find it a little tedious the longer you play it.
Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2013 is a complete package, but if you are looking for something more than a workout game you may be a little disappointed. While the dancing is fun in the Activities mode, there are only a handful of songs available to dance to, and the Zen mini games aren’t too challenging. There are other games you can purchase if you are looking for something to dance to however. The main focus of this game are the 125 different workouts and 215 move sets. The game expects that you will be able to follow the lead of the trainers as none of them hand-hold you through the positions, which is kind of a relief since most other games out there tediously walk you through each move. The graphics are sharp, and take full advantage of the Wii U’s 1080p definition, but there are times that there is too much going on in the background which can be more than a little distracting. At times you will find that the motion detection isn’t spot on, which can be a little frustrating, but it’s really not something that pops up too often. It’s a shame that the rumored Wii Fit U Balance board hasn’t come out yet because it would certainly be useful here. Don’t expect to use the Wii U gamepad very often either, as it’s mainly used to make your workout selections and to play the Zen games. Throughout the game you can gain coins that help you buy different trainers and harder workouts, which should help motivate you to train every day so you can unlock everything and obtain new high scores.
Overall Your Shape Fitness Evolved 2013 is a great step forward for fitness games. It’s fun, and something that could very easily help motivate you to work out each and every day.
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