Wii U Critic Reviews

ESPN Sports Connection's biggest problem is that it feels like it was slapped together in a manner of months, with seemingly little interest to exist beyond merely existing - someone had to make motion-controlled tennis, right? Noble perhaps to take one for the team like that, but families looking to replicate that Wii Sports magic this hardware launch are better off with a ticket to Nintendo Land.

Not the evolution we expected.

Sports Connection tries to ride the Wii Sports-esque wave of success. It fails horribly at doing so, it isn't even fun. Graphics and sound are weak, loading times are too long, the handling simply isn't accurate ... in short: This isn't the party game you're looking for.

Insanely long loading times. [Feb 2013, p.76]

The best location for this game is a shelf, but not a shelf in your home exactly. A party game that lacks fun. There are definitely better alternatives for Wii U.

Overall, things just feel broken here. The visuals have issues in every sport, and the game just doesn't look that good. The navigation is also confusing at times, and the title doesn't feel like it was designed solely for the Gamepad. It is also troubling that you are required to have a Wiimote for half of the titles. This just screams "rush job." There is nothing redeeming about ESPN Sports Connection.

Overall, ESPN Sports Connection was a frustrating experience from every angle. It's sad, but it feels like the game tries to fill a void that simply isn't there.

Everything ESPN Sports Connection does has been achieved already. Older sports games - including the original Wii's pack-in, Wii Sports - accomplished the same goals better and without embarrassing technical issues.

Even the most casual gamers will find little in the way of redeeming qualities with this mish-mash of mini-games.

One or two interesting ideas show up in ESPN Sports Connection. Sadly, these ideas do not make up for the rest of the game's shortcomings. Between terrible controls, iffy graphics, and lack of any coherency, I cannot recommend this to anyone to play. This is one of the worst Wii U launch titles and should be avoided like a baseball to the face.