To wii or not to wii?

[MouseThatRoars]

My son is nearly 9 and, apparently, the only kid in the class who does not have a wii. I have resisted for ages but I am coming round to the idea (especially as I would like to use wii fit!) As a wii costs far more than I would spend on one child's birthday I am thinking of buying it as a joint birthday/xmas present for my son and xmas present for my daughter on the understanding it is a game for all the family. Does anyone out there regret buying a wii? How do you ration time spent on the wii? I would love to know everyone's experiences, positive and negative.

There's a new wii coming out v soon so wait for that. Dd is 11 and likes the wii, as do I. Most boys her age seem to like xboxes now.

We have a Wii and are very strict about only using it on a Saturday (unless we are too busy Saturday then he can play Sunday morning). The first few weeks DS (6) asked to use it constantly but he never asks now & even when friends come & ask to play he will tell them no sorry we only play it on Saturday.

you can buy a preowned console from gamestation and other stores which carries a limited warranty if money is very tight

also I wouldnt get it as birthday and xmas for one child and just xmas for the other (even if ds birthday is near xmas) - this doesnt seem fair - why not get it as a joint xmas gift for everyone including you then there will be no issues later of bad feeling with the kids trying to tell you its their console so you cant tell them what to do with it

imo 9 is a good age to start with the wii, much younger and some kids become obsessive and cannot seem to think of anything else

wii is a good choice for a family console due to the mechanism (ie no fiddly joy pads) and because there are limited choices in games, far fewer teen and adult type games

I would say not to bother. Ours was used a lot to start with, then not at all. Waste of money.. Buying 2nd hand a very good idea.

Thanks for your thoughts everyone. I have taken the plunge and bought it as a family xmas present (thanks catstail!) Argos has quite a good deal on the original wii if anyone else is looking to buy. Now all I have to do is make sure it doesn't take over our family life! Will be very strict with the rules on usage