EA Sports Active 2

I've only had the game for 1 day but I spent quite a bit of time playing with it and I also have the Active 1 game. The quirkiness of Active 1 where you have to point or orient the remote and nunchuck ever so precisely to get the game to register your movements has been eliminated as the remote is rarely used and the nunchuck is completely gone. I am a little disappointed that of the 3 versions of this game (Wii, PS3, and XBOX) the Wii version is the only one that isn't completely hands free because there are times you must hold on to the Wii remote. In fact when I saw the packaging with the picture on the box showing the woman doing arm exercises still holding on to the remote I was a little mad because that was one of my biggest gripes with Active 1. However it's not that bad and I'll explain further.Here are the best improvements to the game from Active 1.1. The leg strap - the Active 1 leg strap is awful and breaks after a short time using it. Plus you are constantly retightening it as it continues to slip down your leg. However with Active 2 all of the straps are an elastic fabric with loop on one side and rubber gel lines on the back to grip. I did a very hard workout last night involving lots of sprinting and I didn't have to adjust the leg strap (or any of the straps) once. They stayed in place and because it isn't lycra covered neoprene I think it will last a long time.2. Hands Free Exercises - I'm not sure if all the arm exercises are hands free but all the ones I tried were in fact hands free where you do not have to hold the Wii remote. This is fantastic because with Active 1 I couldn't use a resistance band with nice foam grips and the nylon handles that it came with hurt my hands. Now I don't have this problem. Plus now I can use hand weights when I want to. You may be wondering how it registers movement on the arm without a sensor but they changed the arm exercises slightly from Active 1. Now the arm exercises have you move both arms at the same time (both arms do the tricep kickbacks, bicep curls, etc) rather than one arm at a time and the game just assumes you are moving the arm without the sensor. I also love that now you don't have to waste time putting the nunchuck in the leg strap and then taking it out for a different exercise as you do in Active 1. The game moves much better because you don't have to do those things anymore.3. The Heart Rate Monitor - I like the addition of the heart rate monitor. It is nice to see how hard you are working. Supposedly as you continue to workout it will track how well your hear rate recovers which would be cool to know. I think it probably results in more accurate calorie calculation as well.4. The game is MORE like a game - Active 1 is nice because it was like having a personal trainer at home. However you will work harder with Active 2 and have more fun. It has a mountainboarding exercise where you have to jump from one leading foot to the other and has points you can get on each side. You also have to squat and jump and then run up hills. In addition it has a Fitness Trail - Sprint Outrun exercise where you have to actually catch up to and outrun 6 runners on the trail. The thing is that when the other runner sees you getting closer they start running harder so they are hard to pass. This got my heartrate up to 185 bpm trying to pass the other runners. It definitely pushes you harder. I am disappointed that additional motion sensors aren't sold at the release of the game because I would like to race my husband on some of these games and will be buying the extra sensors as soon as they become available.5. The Wii Balance Board can be used to weigh yourself. However don't feel the need to get the Wii balance board if you don't have it because every exercise that uses the Wii balance board also has the same exercise which doesn't use the Wii balance board. In fact I probably won't use the balance board much with Active 2 because there is a flaw in the game concerning its use which is irritating to me. I'll list the flaw in the diappointments below.6. Custom Workouts - There are 13 Upper Body, 22 Lower Body, 11 Full Body, 12 Cardio, 26 Fitness exercises (including boxing, step aerobics, mountainbiking/boarding, dance, & kickboxing), 6 Core, 15 Basketball, 15 Soccer, 8 Warm Up, and 8 Cool Down exercises to choose from. Most are between 1 and 2 minutes long with some like the Step Aerobics actually lasting 10 minutes. You can create a custom workout with a combination of any of the these exercises to make longer or shorter workouts as needed.7. Online Community - With Active 2 you can join online workout groups which hopefully will help you stay motivated. I joined one and time will tell if it really helps me but it can't hurt and it's nice to see there are other people like you trying to get fit.Here are my disappointments1. I wish the game were completely hands free. I feel like the PS3 and Xbox versions are better than the Wii because they are truely hands free. I have read some reviews on the Xbox though and it seems the Kinect is not all worked out yet so maybe just the PS3 version is better. I haven't had a chance to do all the exercises but I won't be surprised if I don't run across an arm exercise that requires the remote be held since the packaging show a woman doing this. I just don't understand why the PS3 version comes with 2 arm sensors and the Wii version doesn't. In addition the PS3 and Xbox versions will be able to download new workouts in the future but the Wii version won't be able to. If I had both the PS3 and Wii game consoles then I would have bought the PS3 version of the game.2. I wish the extra motion sensors were available now as it would be fun to play with another family member. Sure they could do it with you but you'll push yourself more if you can race them. EA has stated they will sell additional leg/arm sensors but hasn't given a date as to when yet.3. I wish the workouts on the 9 week challenge would allow you to choose how long you want to workout. All of the workouts are around 30 minutes long. I would love to have the option of doing a 1 hour workout. I can achieve this with the custom workouts but it would be nice in the challenges too. The game will also formulate a workout for you based on what you want to workout but again it will only make a workout that is up to 30 minutes long.4. The resistance band that comes with it is still cheap. Go buy the resistance tubes with nice handles for $10 - $15.5. Active 2 has an annoying flaw concerning the Wii remote and balance board. First the Wii remote is not needed for much of any given workout but the game is constantly looking for its presence. Therefore when you don't use it for about 3 min or so the remote shuts off to preserve batteries. As soon as it does the game is interrupted until you can push a button on the remote and turn it back on. I have resorted to pushing the A button on the remote in between each exercise just to make sure the remote doesn't turn off. The same thing goes for the balance board. The workout may only use the balance board for one exercise at the beginning of the workout but the game will keep looking for its presence throughout. When the balance board shuts off the game stops until you turn it on again regardless of whether the balance board is being used. Leaving it on for an hour during a workout just to actually use it only 2 or 3 minutes is a waste of batteries.All in all though this is a fantastic fitness game. I workout with a trainer too that does much of the same things throughout his class. He is impressed with the game and will be helping me choose which exercises to do so I can make some great custom workouts. If you don't lose weight and get fit with this then it's because you eat too much and don't actually play the game very often.

I am actually glad I didn't check the reviews here before I ordered EA Sports Active 2. I might not have ordered based on some of the problems some of the reviewers seem to have experienced. I've been working out with EA Sports Active 2 for a little over a week now, and so far I haven't experienced any of the technical issues. The peripherals all seem to be working fine and I love having the heart monitor. The workouts are all intense enough to produce sweat (and results!), and yet they vary enough to be interesting and keep you motivated. I have found that although I'd been working out for the last 8 months doing various dvd's and walking outside when the weather was nice, with EA Sports Active 2 I can workout regardless of the weather, and I actually look forward to doing it because I don't know what to expect and so it hasn't gotten stale. Also, even though I have been working out regularly for 8 months, the progress has been slow and frustrating and now I've lost more in the week of doing these workouts than I did all last month. And right now, I'm choosing workouts that average about 25 minutes and I have yet to choose one that says HARD in the description, because frankly, I'm not sure I can do it! The ones I've done are seriously challenging. I'm glad this version of EA Sports Active 2 includes warm up and cool down options, because I felt they were lacking in previous incarnations. The main reason I bought this was to get some core options, and this certainly does work your core. If I had one complaint about the product it's just that it seems to take a long time to load each exercise, certainly longer than EA Sports Active 1, and then there's the business of both the Wii remote and Wii Balance Board losing communications with the Wii system and so you find that you have to stop mid exercise and press buttons, which is distracting and annoying. Someone here suggested making a habit of pressing the A button on the Wii remote while waiting for each exercise to load (since you're just standing around anyway) and that mostly eliminates the problem. I tried that today and it does seem to work, it just seems like the makers of EA Sports Active 2 should have figured out a better way than that. However, all in all, it's a minor inconvenience and hardly makes a blip on my radar screen as long as I'm getting a good, consistent workout and seeing the fabulous results I'm seeing so far.

I was so excited this get this game/workout, but was soon disappointed.Why this game is not worth it:1. The graphics and menu setup in the game are not worth the $100 price tag (now $52). They look really plain and cheap.2. The game is SUPER glitchy when using the Remote and Balance Board. If you are in an exercise that doesn't use the remote (like stretching, lunges, etc...) the remote will turn off (battery saving mode) and the workout will STOP and wait for you to activate the remote again. This is really stupid!Also, if you setup the game with your Balance Board, the SAME thing will happen. Even if you aren't using the Balance Board in a particular exercise, your workout will STOP and wait for you to activate the board again (even if your board is across the room)This is such a battery waster! Especially if you arent even using the board!3. The leg band doesn't work properly all the time. I've had to skip certain exercises because while I was doing a Lunge it said I was "too low"....when I moved up it said I wasn't doing it correctly. It can be so frustrating.4. ITS NOT FUN!!! The warm up routines are repetitive and boring. Watching a guy show me how to stretch and follow him is super boring and can be done with a $10 Generic Workout DVD. Nothing about this game motivated me to keep playing it.5. The included resistance band is super cheap. Its just a mint smelling piece of green stretch thingy that you have to tie to the separate handles. If you purchase this game, you might as well add a real fitness resistance band to your cart.Now I understand why the price of this game has been drastically slashed. Its definitely not worth $100 or $50. This game should cost no more than $25. It just has too many problems.

Muy buenas rutinas para el ejercicio, lo mejor es que son variados

Un engaño, solo manda el juego sin los accesorios ni nada de lo que aparecen en la descripción y el título. Además que los accesorios son imprescindibles para usar el juego. Siendo el precio de 80€ engaña porque piensas que es todo el paquete y lo que envían es el juego solo.

I Have used 4 different exercise products for the wii. And this is by far the best one I have used. I actually work up a sweat after doing the work out and feel it the next day. I didn't realize until I got the game that it is compatible with the Wii fit board. This was a great surprise, if you don't have the board don't worry you can still do all the exercise's without it. But you can track your weight ect. with it. I was really looking for something that had a step class with it and there is a large assortment of them in this game. The 90 day challenge is great, and you get some new "games" all the time so it keeps it new and exciting. I would really recommend this product. I am a mother of 2 and no longer have time for the gym, but want to get rid of the baby weight. I have only have had this product for 2 weeks and already am feeling results and have lost a few pounds already.The only complaint that I have about this game is that you really have to mirror the way the character is standing at the start of every set otherwise it won't sync properly and it won't think you are doing the motion properly. Which can get a little annoying but if you figure out how to do it you will be golden.I also Loved that it sets up work outs for you or you can set up your owm. That I have never seen in other games that you have to continue to select the different exercises and it takes for ever and you loose the momentum.Over all REALLY happy with this product. Well worth the money

I used this program to lose 140lbs 4 years ago. LOVE IT. It is NOT a game, they kick your butt! I use hand weights rather than the stretchy band, and I love that this version allows you to customize your weights. The 9-week challenge is just that.. a challenge. By the end of week 9, the workouts are killer. But so very very worth it. For anyone of any fitness level - you can choose easy, medium or hard. I was 280lbs when I started using it - so if I could use it then, anyone can. It really is a shame it was discontinued - I hope to see something similar from EA Sports sometime in the future. Also not having to use a nunchuk with this version is great. It is just an awesome program all around, I have nothing bad to say about it.

A lot of activities are proposed. I find the training programs to be very useful