May 31st, 2008 by JC Fletcher
Filed under: News, Rumors, WiiWare
Wow, how nice is it to know a game is coming out before it’s released? For once, we get to experience the luxury of being told what’s coming out, or at least we think we do. GoNintendo reports that Two Tribes’ adorable 2D puzzler Toki Tori will be available in the North American Wii Shop this Monday at a cost of 1,000 Points. We aren’t sure where the info came from, but they certainly seem sure.
10 bucks may be a lot of scratch for a WiiWare game, but this is a good one: reputable game blog Wii Fanboy called it “intelligent, charming, well-designed, and addictive.” It’s also hard, which means you don’t run the risk of blowing through it in a couple of hours.
Posted in , puzzle, toki-tori, two-tribes | No Comments »
May 31st, 2008 by Candace Savino
Filed under: Fan stuff
One of the many reasons we love Bionic Commando and want to see it on the Virtual Console so badly is for its awesome, 8-bit soundtrack. So, when Capcom released Simon Viklund’s album for Bionic Commando Rearmed, which reworks the NES songs into a more modern-day sound, we had to have it.
We know that Rearmed isn’t coming to the Wii, despite Wii gamers’ pleas and petitions. Still, there’s no denying the NES roots in Viklund’s music, and just because we’re not getting the actual game doesn’t mean we should deprive ourselves of some great tunes, does it?
In fact, the folks at Capcom are releasing the soundtrack even though they think they’ll lose money on it, simply because they love and believe in the music that much. After listening to it, we have to say that we can see why. If you’re interested, you can get the full soundtrack on iTunes or at Sumthing Digital for $9.99 (or buy the tracks you like separately for $0.99).
[Via Capcom’s Blog]
Posted in , capcom, soundtrack, bionic-commando, bionic-commando-rearmed, simon-viklund | No Comments »
May 30th, 2008 by David Hinkle
Filed under: News
For this blogger, sports is a big part of life. The competition, the stats and the camaraderie of sports is one that will never leave this blogger’s life. And, being a huge game nerd, the love of sports and games both played a big part in developing the individual typing out this post in both Tecmo Bowl and Super Tecmo Bowl. Seriously, you have no idea how many hours were dumped into those games …
And now, like a lost puppy finding its way home, the franchise returns to Nintendo consoles. We don’t have any information other than a confirmation from Tecmo that the franchise is coming to Wii, but we’re pretty sure it’ll be branded the same as the new DS game.
Posted in , tecmo, tecmo-bowl, sports, football, tecmo-bowl-kickoff | No Comments »
May 29th, 2008 by David Hinkle
Filed under: Meta
All of you Nintendo fanboys and fangirls out there are likely as excited by the release of Wii Fit as we are. We’ve been hard at work, churning out features and coverage for the game. You can check out all we have up until now below.
For those of you who don’t give a damn about Wii Fit, did you know we’re giving away a Virtual Console game? Yeah, it’s River City Ransom!
Wii Fit features and coverage:
Stuff that isn’t Wii Fit:
Posted in , weekly-recap, wii-fit | No Comments »
May 28th, 2008 by JC Fletcher
Filed under: Virtual Console, Imports
Japan had to wait long enough for the first MSX game to show up on the Virtual Console that anything extra D4 Enterprise (or Nintendo, or whoever makes the emulators for the VC) could do to make the experience a pleasant one is welcome. Aleste features an extra “MSX Option Menu” that is accessed via the minus button, which allows players to choose between MSX hardware-based music and the more advanced FM music that, back when the MSX was real hardware, required an add-on card.
Impressively, you can also swap the two fire buttons via the “Button Change” option. It’s a good thing for Nintendo that they’ll never bother to release this over here, because the four people who would download an MSX game would get spoiled.
Posted in , japan, shmup, d4, msx, aleste | No Comments »
May 27th, 2008 by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: News, WiiWare
Because we weren’t already excited enough about dipping our fingers into World of Goo, 2D Boy has now confirmed that the WiiWare version will feature a rather lovely, exclusive feature: a two-player co-op mode that allows you and a sidekick to wield a Wiimote each and construct giant, gooey structures to your hearts’ content. The news first hit the internetz via a 2D Boy newsletter, and the ever-helpful Ron Carmel confirmed it to us earlier today.
Having tried the game ourselves, we can see how well such a mode would work. We’re no closer to a release date yet, but we advise you set aside money for a second Wiimote and some Wii Points now. Oh yes, and if you’re us, acquire a friend.
Posted in , puzzle, multiplayer, co-op, 2d-boy, world-of-goo | No Comments »
May 26th, 2008 by Phil Larsen
Filed under: Interviews, News
Speaking with the local paper merchants, Nintendo Australia’s Rose Lappin seemed to like Wii Fit’s chances against the current everywhere-but-Wii juggernaut Grand Theft Auto. After starting out with standard banter concerning the Wii and DS dominating Aussie sales charts, Lappin confidently talked up the ability of Wii Fit to snag the majority interest of gamers over the long-term.
A bunch of sweaty Australian fitness fanatics have already been doing push-ups (read: smashing guns) for almost three weeks now using Wii Fit. During that time, the Balance Board of Justice stole the top sales spot away from GTA IV (irony is funny), and it hasn’t been able to reclaim its crown.
Lappin reassures us that Wii Fit will be supported for a long time, and is also pleased to see some physical education programs in local schools using the package to transform John Q Kid into Lil’ Rambo. We’re sure this is music to the ears of many parents in Australia, who would love to keep their chil’n away from Niko Bellic and his array of misadventures.
[Via Aussie-Nintendo]
Posted in , balance-board, australia, exergaming, fitness, wii-fit, grand-theft-auto, grand-theft-auto-iv, rose-lappin | No Comments »
May 26th, 2008 by Kabalyero
Want to get your hands on some easy Linden Dollars (L$)? You can with SlamX 50,000L$ Treasure Hunt.
The HUNT will take place at ADC Island, home of SlamX in Second Life, and to participate you must first join SlamX, register here. SlamX offers their members with various ways of earning money inside and outside Second […]
Posted in , Second Life, second life, earn linden dollars, slamx, adc island, treasure chest, treasure hunt, treasure seekers | No Comments »
May 25th, 2008 by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: Video
After its laughable coverage of Brain Training’s “discriminatory” stance on accents earlier this year, the BBC had some work to do to get back in our favor. The feature above, part of a recent edition of flagship news program Newsnight, does just that.
Rather than automatically accusing videogames of having a negative effect on children (a default position for countless media outlets), the piece suggests that games have helped to produce brighter kids now than at any stage in history. Leading the charge for this side of the debate is Steven Johnson, author of Everything Bad Is Good for You. Johnson contends that because so much modern media (the internet, interactive television, games) is no longer consumed passively, many children grow up to be “more creative, more dynamic.” Later in the piece, he also suggests that games help us to believe that “complex problem-solving is fun.”
There’s some solid evidence to support Johnson’s claims, most notably in the IQ scores of children, which have climbed considerably over the last century. Could computer games truly be assisting in making today’s kids the smartest yet? We’re not certain there’s a conclusive answer to that, but it delights us to see the BBC covering the debate in such a measured fashion.
[Update: Not actually shown in the UK on Friday, as original post stated.]
Posted in , media, kids, bbc, children, iq, newsnight | No Comments »
May 24th, 2008 by Chris Greenhough
Filed under: News, Interviews
According to Time’s latest interview with Shigeru Miyamoto, there may have been some genuine upending of tea tables during the making of Wii Fit, as opposed to the metaphorical kind that Shiggy prefers.
Chatting to the publication to promote the game, Miyamoto confessed that the he and his team felt “a lot of nervousness” while developing the title, and that the lofty expectations of other people caused some stress. The article also mentions that the game’s development “nearly led his 15-person development team to quit in frustration,” though we’ve no idea whether that’s Time slightly embellishing a story, or what Miyamoto actually said.
All this talk of feeling stressed, Shiggy, and yet our letters offering slow, sensual shoulder rubs still go unanswered. He can’t complain.
[Via Go Nintendo]
Posted in , exercise, exergaming, fitness, miyamoto, wii-fit, shigeru-miyamoto, development, shiggy | No Comments »
