What are the best games for the Nintendo Wii?

I've had a Nintendo Wii for about a year now and while we don't play it too often (generally I don't like my kids to play video games during the school year) when we do, I'm always impressed with just how fun it is. I've owned quite a few different video game systems but since I'm not a hardcore gamer, the graphics and complexity of a game don't tend to impress me. Instead, I look for playability, for whether the game is actually fun or not.

Further, of course, without knowing more about what kind of games you like, I can only tell you what Wii games I think are best and what are the most popular in different genres.

Wii Sports for the Nintendo Wii

And I'll start off by saying the #1 game for the Wii, the one that I believe they should just include in the box it's so good, is Wii Sports. Universally, everyone I know who has a Wii has this game and loves it. Whether it's playing tennis with three of your friends, bowling or baseball, they're simple, fun games that brilliantly show off the motion controllers and let you see just how far the system has come from the old days of Pong!

Wii Fit for the Nintendo Wii

Next up on my must-buy list is the Wii Fit, if you can find one. A wireless platform -- called the Wii Balance Board -- that looks like a weight scale, it comes with a bunch of very entertaining games and, as a parent, it's great to watch your kids jumping around, running, wiggling, and otherwise doing stuff rather than just sitting passively on the couch. If you're really good, practice both the tightrope game and the highly entertaining hula-hoop challenge!

In terms of specific games that don't require special hardware, my kids really love Super Mario Galaxy, Animal Crossing: City Folk and Mario Kart Wii. They're all great fun for everyone, and I'll note that the first two especially are good for hundreds of hours of play as you try to figure out the entire game and explore its world.

According to popular site Gamespot, the most popular games for the Wii overall are:

• Super Smash Bros. Brawl -- Where you can fight with your favorite Nintendo characters. I'm not a fan of fighting games, so I haven't tried this.
• Call of Duty: World at War -- A World War II battle game, including the chance to fight Imperial Japanese forces in the Pacific. Again, not my thing.
• The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess -- If you haven't heard of the Zelda series, well, you've been under a rock. This sprawling magical adventure game is great fun and perfect for girls and boys too. I greatly enjoyed some of the earlier Zelda games.
• World of Goo -- This is a puzzle game where you use "goo" droplets to build elaborate structures. Sounds fun, I haven't tried it.
• Mario Kart Wii -- As I said earlier, this is a great multi-player (including online competition!) driving game with a whimsical touch that's classic Nintendo.
• Animal Crossing: City Folk -- This game is all about collecting stuff, customizing your house and interacting with cute animal neighbors as you explore an astonishingly large universe. And yes, this has a strong online component too.
• No More Heroes -- This "shooter" has you playing Travis Touchdown, helping him rise to the top of an assassin's league. Definitely not my thing.
• Wii Fit -- As I said earlier, this includes the Wii Balance Board which you stand on while doing various types of exercise, including calisthenics, yoga, and balancing.
• Guitar Hero World Tour -- This includes lots of hardware (and is expensive) but lets you and your friends play as a rock and roll band with a guitar, drums, and microphone. It's a great party game!
• Rock Band 2 -- The competitor to Guitar Hero, it's now somewhat difficult to differentiate between the two as they both include multiple instruments and have you playing as a rock band. Again, great fun for groups.
• Super Mario Galaxy -- As Gamespot describes it, "Super Mario Galaxy finds Mario taking his adventures to new heights as he soars through space from planet to planet in search of stars." It's tricky, but definitely fun and good for little folk too.

Regardless of what you buy, though, congrats on getting a really fun, really cool, and really entertaining video game system, your Nintendo Wii!