A. Chandler:

Rating

First, let me say I wear a bodybugg to measure my daily caloric burn. Because I do, I am also able to measure the exact calorie burn of every fitness dvd or wii game I do not only during the total workout time, but also via calories burned per minute…with rigid accuracy. I mention this only so you know what I say about calorie burn is based upon scientific measurement rather than simply perceived exertion or what the game states I burn for the “average” person.

In comparison to my other wii fitness games (and I have quite the collection!) this one hit the bullseye! I burned more calories playing this version than even the original and that one offered great caloric burn as well. (I often burned far more than the game thought I would in their own average measurement and it far outshone the caloric burn of both versions of the wii fit) Incidentally, my own measured calorie burn was just slightly more than what was read on the screen so it’s quite an accurate measurement as most games far overestimate calorie burn but this one was pretty close to being right on the money when compared to my bodybugg readout. (I actually burned 25 calories more than what it told me I burned.)

but, more importantly, this time the focus was on FUN! If you watch the “Biggest Loser” you know that sometimes we push ourselves harder when there is a competitive aspect to our working out, and EA’s “More Workouts” took this into consideration. You sometimes race others and for me personally…that pushes me…but not nearly as much as a workout that takes the “work” out of it as much as possible. The new scenery and the fun “games” aspect of losing weight (reminding me again of the challenges on “The Biggest Loser”) made me not watch the clock but, instead, get into the GAME of losing weight which is, after all, the whole beauty of using the wii rather than a fitness dvd. I had fun and forgot it was WORK!

Additionally, using the fitness band enables me to work out muscles that I don’t normally reach within other workouts. This also adds interest for me as it’s something different than my usual workout routine. Should you advance in the game, just buy a stronger band so you keep working your muscles harder and, consequently, increasing your metabolism via muscle generation.

The game takes into account that the most effective workouts burn high calories during the workout, but add strength training so that you continue to burn more calories even at rest long after the game. And this is one of the benefits of the EA Sports games…my bodybugg showed increased caloric burn due to the strength training long after I stopped the game. And while I love my wii fit for balance, it’s true calorie burn is low, and while I love many of my other wii fitness games for high calorie burn, they often don’t offer strength training to keep up the burn. So this is important for me.

The concentration here is on having fun while you lose weight. And it fulfills it’s goal.

Tip: Don’t forget the game is often reading your wiimote hand controls even during leg exercises to ensure your body is in correct alignment; don’t put down the hand controls when you are instructed to use them and always hold them as shown for best accuracy. Also, doing movements too fast can often have less effect in muscle building so that is why the pace is often important in the instruction.

Although I felt the original EA Sports Active was a knockout for strength and cardio, I like the new workouts even better and, as a set, it’s a winner.

Negative: The only thing I wish they would have done is include a more taut band with this version because the original was quite weak and there were several complaints about it as such. As this is a follow up, most would have progressed past that band strength even if they were a beginner. However, they are cheap and easy to find on the ‘net but that’s really my only gripe.

CONCLUSION: One of my top Wii faves…and a mega winner for weight loss in my opinion.

Bookwormette:

Rating

I have the original EA Sports Active and have completed five 30 day challenges on the hard level. About two weeks ago, I started to become bored (probably because a new one was coming) and started looking for something, but I am glad I waited until I got this game.

I haven’t tried the hard level (because a previous reviewer scared me), but the medium level kicks my behind, which convinces me that the hard level would be too hard for me right now. I have completed two workouts and feel it; it’s going to be a long 6 weeks. I saw results from the original game in about month (probably because I refuse to change my nasty eating habits) and think I will be seeing results that fast if not faster.

The new exercises are fun, but I gave it 3 stars for fun because those core exercises, while much appreciated, suck. Ouch! I really enjoyed the obstacle course and the skipping and stride jumps really got me sweating. Squash (beginner) took a bit to get, but it is fun once you figure out what you need to do. The water skiing is annoying me because I can’t get it, but I’m sure I will in time (I hope…). If anyone has any tips for the water skiing, please share. As someone else noted, the exercises from the original game are not included, but those nasty shoulder presses seemed to find their way into this new game. Another ouch!

Like the original, this game is a good investment in your health and figure. I would highly recommend this game to anyone.

Nutwiisystem.Com:

Rating

I admit, I was a little skeptical when I heard EA Sports was putting out a sequel to their original EA Sports Active so quickly. I’ve seen far too many companies enjoy success with a product and then rush out one substandard title after another in order to cash in.

I’m happy to say that EA Sports Active: More Workouts doesn’t rest on the laurels of its predecessor, but adds an impressive amount of new and original exercises and fitness activities. They’ve also added new tools for managing your weight loss and fitness goals. Finally, they’ve added a well-thought-out 6-week workout program which rivals any program you’d pay much more money for at the gym.

You technically don’t need the original EA Sports Active disc to play this game, although you do need the special accessories that came with it: the Leg Strap for the nunchuk and the Resistance Band. Neither are included in this game, so you’ll either need to purchase the original or buy the accessories separately with the EA Sports Active Multiplayer Pack.

Unlike what Nintendo did with Wii Fit Plus, where they included both old and new features in the new version, EA Sports Active: More Workouts contains a new set of 30 exercises and 6 fitness activities which weren’t in the original. I did like how they came up with a set of totally new and original exercises, but I’m not crazy about the fact that I can’t integrate any of the old exercises in the new game. Luckily, for the most part the new exercises are an improvement, so I don’t miss the old ones too much.

When you start up the disc for the first time, the system detects your old EA Sports Active profile data (if you have one) and instantly converts it. It’ll also ask you to validate your vital statistics. One huge improvement is that now you can use the Wii Balance Board to check your weight. The Balance Board is still optional, but the new exercises make such good use of it I highly recommend it.

You can choose a male or female trainer (they’re slightly less creepy than in the first version), and customize your on-screen character. I would have liked a little more control over what you look like: you’re still limited to only a handful of body types, skin colors, and hair styles (but for some reason you now have 25 caps to choose from and 24 pairs of shoes)!

Once you get to the main menu it looks about the same as the original version, with the same catchy music which you can’t get out of your head (do-do-dododo-do-do-do). The most obvious difference is that instead of a 30-day challenge, you now have the option to take a 6 week challenge.

The new 6 week challenge is a vast improvement over the 30-day challenge. The length is a much more realistic one for weight loss, the workouts are much better designed to focus on different muscle groups more intensively throughout the workout, and you can choose from easy, medium, and hard levels (where hard really does mean hard). One other major improvement over the 30-day challenge is the ability to choose the days of the week to work out, rather than being forced into every other day. For me, I chose Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday, mainly because I’m too busy during the week to take more than two weekdays.

Another improvement is the Journal. This is where you can keep a virtual diary of your overall diet and exercise progress. You’ll also be able to take daily surveys which ask you questions such as “how many glasses of water did you consume yesterday” and “how many restaurant/fast food meals did you eat”. Like a personal trainer, the Wii will give you advice based on your answers (although I would have preferred to see the trainer change your actual workout based on what you say). There’s also a place in the journal where you can enter other physical activity you did outside of EA Sports Active More Workouts, letting you choose from a wide range of activities from walking to dancing to yoga.

The reporting tools are also more impressive than in its predecessor. You can look up a weekly fitness tracker that shows calories burned, a chart of your weight, and the number of workouts, total exercise time, and number of miles covered in your EA Sports Active workout.

EA Sports Active More Workouts has lots of new exercises. The 30 new exercises are improved over the original version and work out every part of you, from lower body to upper body. One other nice addition is a warm-up and cool-down period, just like a real training program. While I was never a huge fan of the “resistance band” (I thought it was a bit too flimsy for a Wii accessory), they did think of new and creative ways to use it. For example, to do “one-arm rows”, you’re instructed to fold the band in half and step on the band in a way that you really do get great resistance on your biceps. As before, you get comprehensive video demonstrations for each exercise.

The highlight of the title has to be the new fitness activities. As with its predecessor, EA Sports Active More Workouts has some great fitness activities: water skiing, paddle surfing, cardio boxing, step aerobics, squash, and an obstacle course. As with the fitness activities of the original, these are not so much accurate simulations of sports activities as they are clever ways to get you to mimic exercise movements (like squatting and lunges) in repetition without getting bored. While it’s tedious to go through countless reps of squats and arm movements; on the other hand, it’s a blast to be doing it playing a fast-paced game of virtual squash (and quite a workout).

The controls are spot-on. Unlike games like The Biggest Loser and Jillian Michaels Fitness Ultimatum 2010, which passively “check” to see if you’re making the right movements (and not always accurately), EA Sports Active’s on-screen character will actively reflect your exact movements as they’re making them. Every now and then the controls do get frustrating (not registering something when you know you’ve done it), but not too much to ruin the experience.

The game, of course, takes place on an island. Seems to be the trend these days, and I admit it’s nice to feel like you’re “getting away” for a workout. Another nice improvement is that you have the option to work side-by-side with someone else (you’ll need two Wii remotes, nunchuks, resistance bands, and leg straps), and you can see both of you on split screen.

The game also comes with a small book of excerpts from Bob Greene’s The Best Life Diet and The Best Life Diet Cookbook. The cynical among us may think it’s more of a marketing gimmick to sell Bob Greene’s books, but I admit there was enough substance in there to be useful to me as far as motivating me and giving me a couple good recipes to try. And I thank EA Sports for giving this to us in book form rather than on-screen like The Biggest Loser.

All in all, I was impressed with EA Sports Active: More Workouts being an improvement over the first version. Admittedly, Wii Fit Plus is more “fun”, has better graphics, and has better responsiveness. But with EA Sports Active, the workout regimen itself is a tougher one which really gets you working out. As of right now, it does the best job of any Wii Exercise Game to balance fun and fitness.