Wii Review: Nyko Charge Station

Price: $29.99

Platform(s):Wii

Developer: Nyko

Website:www.Nyko.com

Rating:

Playing games for a great deal of time will wear down a wireless controller, real fast. So instead of wasting money on a bucket full of batteries that won't last you day's worth of incessant Twilight Princess gaming, you can slap up to two Wii-motes in the Charging Station and call it a day.

Next-generation gaming is an expensive hobby. $50 a game and up to $50 for a Wii-mote and Nunchuk combo, has turned video games into one of the biggest wallet zapping ways to have fun. Heck, having to buy batteries for a couple of wireless controllers doesn’t make matters any better. Especially when non-stop Wii-moting will kill two AA batteries in no time flat. So why waste anymore money than you have to, just to play the games you already own? So stop already. The Nyko Charging Dock is a perfect way to keep your Wii gaming gear at the top of their game, without spending extra cash to constantly replace the batters in the Wii controllers.

The Charge Station has a sleek pearl-white and silver color scheme and an anti-slide rubber stamp at the bottom. Packaged with the curvy little charging dock are two rechargeable NiMH battery-packs and two rubber-padded battery covers. Conveniently, the Charging Station is small enough to fit in just about anywhere – and the six-foot cord gives it a bit of stretching room – so it shouldn’t be too difficult finding a decent outlet for it.

While the Charge Station has great aesthetic appeal, easy-to-read LED charging indicators and a simple plug-n-charge mechanic, the downside is that you can’t play while the Wii-motes charge for 8 hours. Yeah, so I’m sure a lot of you are throwing batteries at your monitors right now...but really, in comparison to the Dual Charger for the PS3 the Wii Charge Station just doesn’t let you keep your game-on while the controllers charge. It’s petty nitpicking...I know. But that’s my job, remember?

Overall, though, Nyko’s Charge Station for docking two Wii-motes is definitely not a bad deal for what you get. In fact, it’s an excellent deal for what you’re getting: Two NiMH rechargeable batteries that last up to 25 hours of consistent play, two battery covers and the dual docking station. Plan and simple, though, this is a must-have for any serious Wii-gamers...and you can’t get a better product for the price.