i cant get the second remote to activate for 2 player mode in cooking mama or playground

You need to "sync" your remote with the console. The details are in the User Manual, setup guide. Basically, the simple steps are:

1. Open the access door to the SD card slot on the front of the Wii console. You should see a rectangular, red button.

2. Press the rectangular red button.

3. Remove the battery cover on your Wii remote. You should see a small red button, labeled "Sync" next to the batteries.

4. Press the small red button on the Wii remote.

5. If the sync operation succeeded, you should see a blue light on the face of your remote at the bottom (there are four of these indicator lights). Typically, the main remote will have the first blue light lit. The 2nd remote will have the 2nd light lit; and so on.



Hope this helps.