Ring Fit Adventure is the next accessory and game that Nintendo has released to help gamers become comfortable with fitness. In this game, you are your own avatar trying to defeat the evil body builder Dragaux. The method of beating this bad guy? Your own perseverance and fitness techniques! Along with the main game, you will also receive a leg strap and a ring-con in the box. Both are essential to playing this game. Your left joy-con goes into the leg strap and it measures your leg movements.
The game asks you to squat, get down on the ground and do leg lifts, and even run upstairs and through murky swamps using high knees. While using the leg con, I found that it kept slipping while wearing it over my workout shorts, but if I put it directly on my skin, it would not slip. The right joy-con goes into the ring-con accessory. It is essentially a pilates ring that you can attach a joy-con to. You can squeeze it and pull it to pull off certain actions and attacks in the game. Overall, both the leg strap and ring-con are working together to make your workout complete.
The Good
After using this game for a few days, I can definitely say that my limbs are hurting. That is the sign that the workout regime is doing what they say it’s supposed to do. During the campaign you will face different colored monsters. Each color is based off of a different type of workout. This works out well so that you are not completely focusing on one type of workouts. For instance, I did not care for the yoga stretches, but if I came across a green enemy I did them so that I could get an advantage. Each time you turn on the game, your workout starts with stretching and at the end of each play session you do a cool down stretch. The joy-con on the ring-con can even read your heartbeat by using the IR sensor in the right joy-con. There are also a variety of mini games that you can play. During the campaign you can play them at certain spots in your adventure to earn experience. You can also play them with your friends and family to have a fun time and try to beat each other’s scores. There is also a mode that allows you to get reps in without the television being turned on.
The Bad
The story of Ring Fit Adventure is not captivating at all. It’s your typical the big bad boss stole these important items and now we must go and find them. The main reason you should pick up and play this game is not because of the story. You should play this game to help you become healthier. Also, your avatar is really generic. It would be nice to pick a different body shape with the avatar and to change it as I’ll hopefully be using this game for a while. Just like any exercise routine, if you get out of the habit of using it, these items will start collecting dust like all the Wii Fit Boards around the world.
Is this alright for children?
This is a tough question to answer. My 3-year-old daughter was doing the exercises right next to me, but she did not pick up the ring-con or use the leg strap. I do not think the leg strap would stay on tiny legs very well. The ring-con is also hard to squeeze tightly, which may make it hard for some kids to progress in the story.
Conclusion
Ring Fit Adventure tries to break the mold of fitness games by adding an RPG experience while working out. Just like any fitness game, it will only be worthwhile if you continue to keep up with your exercises. This game is exactly what I need to help me to work out and become healthier. This dad gives it a big thumbs up! Now I’m going to crash out on my couch because my legs hurt too much.
What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!
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Michael Duetzmann 
Stephen Duetzmann