Customer Reviews

Quick Yoga Training

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Ever since I got the Wii Fit, I have been into Yoga. However, Konami's Let's Yoga for the DS was a superior piece of programming for the lifestyle/fitness genre. What "Wii Fit" started, "Let's Yoga" finished up.

Therefore, I was anxiously awaiting the next Yoga cart, "Quick Yoga Training". And with its promised "over 180 poses", it looked like a natural progression from "Let's Yoga" after I exhausted its "only 80" moves.

"Quick Yoga Training" starts off with the typical questionnaire stuff. But then the cart looked to be something very different when it had a breathing exercise/test and those results would be used in all the yoga poses. Very nice.

However almost immediately after that I ran into trouble. The menus are a confusing mess with no thought on how a user might use the program on a regular basis. Of course there are menu items that take you into poses but its not user friendly and I'm still not comfortable navigating around the menus.

Still, the worst was yet to come. When you do get to the poses not only is there no voice over narration, but the fonts are hard to read and many times blend into the background. Because you are dealing with the small screen DS, the only way to really learn the Quick Yoga poses is to carry the DS along with you while you are doing the exercise. . .

I wonder if UBIsoft did any playtesting with this cart? Clearly this was not ready for release. I guess the people over there don't realize that a good fitness cart can stay on the shelf for years. Ubisoft should have cut down on the poses and instead worked in some voice over. Perhaps when the price drops and you already know some yoga - "Quick Yoga Training" may be of some benefit. For for all newcomers, my advise would be to get the cheaper and far superior "Let's Yoga".

First off, let me say that I love yoga and have been practicing for 12 years (on and off - not continuously!) and am certified to teach therapeutic yoga. So, I got this game not to learn yoga as a newbie, but to mix up my practice and have fun with the technology.

Unfortunately, despite a long background in yoga, I have had a hard time following the programmed practices because of the lack of narration. I was hoping there would at least be an option to turn the narration on or off, but it's not available at all! That's not so bad for standing poses, but when you're lying on the floor and the pose calls for both hands to be outstretched with palms down, how do you look at the screen? It doesn't even have sound cues to tell you when to switch from your left side to your right side. In fact, the game tells you where to put your gaze for each pose: guess what, it's never "look at the DS screen" which is required if you want to know when to come out of the pose. One of them even says "Close Eyes." Um, then how do you know what you're supposed to be doing, since there is no audio cue?

Even if you are looking at the screen, the cues are not explicitly clear. For example, to begin Warrior Pose II (Virabhadrasana II), you are first instructed to turn your right foot to the right. After getting into the pose and taking a few breaths, you are then instructed to straighten the right knee and turn the left foot to the left. What happened to the right foot? Is it still turned to the right? I know what to do because I'm familiar with that particular pose, but the lack of comprehensive instruction bothers me because I know yoga newbies will be trying this software and might be confused.

Another beef with the game is the lack of transition between each pose. One second you're lying on the floor, then the screen goes to the next pose and suddenly you're standing. Safe, mindful transitions are key to a pleasant yoga practice. And, none of the practices I've tried so far end with Savasana (corpse pose), the traditional relaxation posture that allows your body to adjust to the changes that took place during your practice.

On the plus side, it does have an excellent variety of challenging poses and makes good use of the sanskrit translations for each pose. I also like the ocean sounds in the background, though you can choose from 3 different music options if ocean isn't your thing. And, the tones that tell you when to inhale/exhale help to keep your focus on the breath throughout the practice, which is important.

Overall, though, I like Let's Yoga much better. It has voice narration, safe (and well-explained) transitions between poses, and every routine ends in Savasana. It has some other details that I personally enjoy, like the expanding mandalas for the breath, but that's just a personal preference! I'll probably keep Quick Yoga Training just to mix things up, but I'll definitely keep using Let's Yoga much more often. Quick Yoga Training is not "bad" or even unsafe, it's just sloppily put together. It could have been great with a few more months in production, but as is, it's below average.

Do not buy this game!!! I recieved it as a gift. I thought, Oh, I love doing yoga and it says it has voice recognition and hands free operation. This will be great. Or, so I thought. Not only is this the most frustrating game I've ever played but when I contacted the makers(Ubisoft) of the game, wanting to know how to unlock the voice recognition and hands free operation which is advertised on the back of the box, which would make the game worthwhile...they wrote that it was a "mistake printed on the back of the box. Sorry..." (Isn't that false advertising? Any attorneys out there?)Well, that is the only way this game would be worth using. It is useless to try to do the yoga poses while watching and reading the wording(which by the way, blends into the background of the screen)unless you enjoy being stressed by doing yoga. The company apparently has no intention of patching this. In other words, the game is useless unless you plan to memorize the routines and practice without any prompting. (Just contacting the company is a test in one's patience. There's actually a tutorial on how to contact them, which is also a frustrating experience and forget about signing on. But that's another story) The worst part is: once you've opened the box, thinking the game will actually work the way it advertises that it will work, you can't return it. All in all, I don't think I've ever been so frustrated with a product. DO NOT BUY THIS GAME!!!

This game lasted an hour. After that hour it was back in the box, put in my purse and returned for "credit" towards something else.

It has all good intentions, but when your head is facing your back, your feet and arms interwined and the DS behind you, its impossible to see or hear whats going on.

It attempts to teach you to breathe.. if you're a bird you will like responding to 'tweets, if you are a marine creature, you will enjoy the sounds of the ocean to remind you to exhale and inhale.

This game is a test in patience. Hold your breathe, turn purple, become annoyed.

I bought this game to try out yoga for the first time. It is instructional and helps me get where the poses are going. It has been pretty good for a beginner like me.

This program is useless. Too difficult to use. Not at all practical. You will hate yoga if you get this program. Should not be on the market. Claims to have voice narration and it does not. The packaging lies.

I am please with this fittness product for my Netendo Ds..I hope other fitness exercises weight lifting, walking, ball fitness ect..will follow suit for the convenience and portability of this product..I can workout any where with it..Thanks