Deca Sports

***Deca Sports*** (***Deca Sporta*** in Japan, ***Sports Island*** in Europe) is a sports video game for the Wii developed by Hudson Soft. It is a collection of ten different sports simulations controlled with the Wii Remote.

The game was released in Japan on March 19, 2008, and was released in the rest of the world later in the year. In late 2007 Hudson conducted a poll to determine a new title for the Western release. The game features sponsorship by Adidas.

An mobile phone titled ***Deca Sporta MOBILE*** was released on July 22, 2008 in Japan.

## Gameplay

*Deca Sports* features a number of different game modes:

* Open Match: A quick start match that allows you to immediately jump into any of the 10 available sport events.
* Tournament Mode: Tackle one individual event to become the champion at that particular sport.
* Deca League: Take on a number of different teams at every sport available in the game.
* Deca Challenge: Test yourself at each sport in specialized events designed to hone your skill and control.

*Deca Sports* does not feature the use of Miis. Instead, eight different teams (Average Joes, Speed Strikers, Hard Hitters, Crusaders, Boost Force, Mad Maidens, Team Thunder and Disco Knights) are available for selection in the various sporting events. Each team is made up of small, medium and large players of both genders. Small athletes are nimble, but are not too strong, while large athletes are powerful, but are slower and a little harder to control. Medium-size players provide a compromise between speed and strength. Team member size becomes more important during Deca League, where playing one team member for too long will result in fatigue and decreased performance.

There are 10 different sports listed, each of which having its own control scheme specific to the Wii Remote. For *Beach Volleyball*, the game controls the movement of the player and the teammates as the player pulls the Wii Remote to return and pass the ball to the opponent's side of the court. Different variations of serves and volleys can be performed. In *Figure Skating*, the player uses the Nunchuk's analog stick to skate along three different predetermined routines which are tied to music. While navigating the skater along a line with yellow dots, large circles that differ in color type will appear. Once they enter those circles, shaking the Wii Remote will execute the maneuvers.

* Archery: The player holds down the B Button on the Wii Remote and pulls it back to draw the arrow, then aims with the pointer. Within ten seconds, he/she must release the B Button to launch the arrow at the target.
* Badminton: The Wii Remote is used as a racquet in this sport. The player must swing the Remote with good timing to return the shuttle towards the opponent, and can also control which way the shuttle goes by moving the Remote left or right after a downward swing.
* Basketball: The player uses the Nunchuk's analog stick to move a player, while using buttons to pass to or control teammates and Wii Remote gestures to shoot or steal.
* Curling: The player holds down the B Button, which causes a power meter to increase and decrease, before flicking the Wii Remote right at the moment the desired power level is reached to launch a stone down the ice. If the stone needs to coast further, the player shakes the Wii Remote to sweep the ice in front of the stone.
* Football (soccer): The player uses the Nunchuk's analog stick to move a player, buttons to pass to or control teammates and Wii Remote gestures to pass and shoot.
* Kart racing: The player holds the Wii Remote sideways as if it were a steering wheel and tilts it to steer while using the number buttons as pedals.
* Snowboard cross: The player points the Wii Remote at the lower part of the screen to accelerate down the slopes, while twisting it left or right to steer and being careful not to over-turn and wipe out.
* Supercross: Controls are similar to that of go-kart racing, but the player can also shake the Wii Remote to execute tricks or roll it backward or forwards to make a good landing after a jump.

## Development

The game was initially revealed at TGS 2007 under the title of *Deca Sporta*, a planned December due date in Japan. A representative for Hudson claimed that the studio didn't anticipate high review scores, noting the simplicity and graphics quality as "typical complaints of Wii games". In April 2008, the game went gold with an announced release date of May 13 for North America.

Mike Samachisa, the head of Hudson's console team, mentioned that localizing Deca Sports for the English version made sense, as the sports contained are played around the world. The idea was to combine sports events from Summer Olympic Games, Winter Olympic Games and X Games, creating a compilation game that would have a wide appeal. Every mode is unlocked within the game right from the beginning as everything was designed to be accessible. Adidas signed a partnership with Hudson, allowing its logo to appear in-game.

The developers opened a poll on the Deca Sports' official website, where people were able to decide which events would appear in the next title of the series.