Wii remote not working? Here's how to fix it

Ever since the Wii console arrived in our house I can count on one hand the number of days that it hasn't been used.  From Yatzwii on the Homebrew channel to an earsplitting gig on Rockband it's kept us well and truly entertained, so much so that I can't imagine not having a Wii.

Imagine the inconvenience of discovering that one of the Wii remotes (Wiimotes) has developed a fault and no longer registers movement properly.  In fact in some games (the driving game Jeep Thrills for instance), no movement is registered at all in one direction.  It just appeared to stop working one day and you don't know why.  You go through all the usual things to try and fix your Wii remote.  You change the batteries even though they were replaced a couple of days ago.  You change the position of the sensor bar and you reboot the Wii console until your finger hurts.

You try an assortment of different games with similar if not the same results.  You're car won't turn to the left or you're swing in golf is suddenly back to front and you feel like an idiot thrashing around and trying to compensate for the malfunctioning device.

Relax though.  You're Wii remote probably isn't broken at all.  What you're experiencing is probably a "stuck" accelerometer, most likely as a result of having dropped it on the floor. Here's how to fix your Wii remote in no time at all.  By the way, you're Wii remote doesn't have any fancy gyros or complex technology inside it to register movement.  The accelerometers are pretty dull looking actually but they do get stuck.

Fixing your Wii remote

Take the Wii remote in one hand, imagine it's a rolled up newspaper and slap it down square in the palm of you're other hand.  Repeat this five or six times and then test it out on you're favourite game.   If the Wii remote still isn't working properly repeat the process again.  Seriously this works!   I know force doesn't normally solve problems and I'd normally be the first to advise against striking a piece of technology because it stopped working.  This time however, it's the right thing to do and darn... does it make you feel good!