I’ve never met the man and I don’t know what goes on behind closed doors at Nintendo, but Reggie Fils-Aime seems like a pretty decent guy. In an interview with GamePro, the Nintendo of America CEO speaks candidly about the state of the gaming industry, Nintendo’s seemingly-eternal Wii shortages, online console gaming, and predictions for the future. → Read More
For those of us who have been impatiently waiting for Mario Kart to be released on the Wii, that wait is finally over. Almost. Actually, not almost. Not even close. Nintendo announced today that Mario Kart would hit the shelves sometime in the first quarter of 2008. What?! That’s in, like, a billion years. I’ll be old and grizzled by then. By 2008, I’ll probably have my own compact car that shoots turtle shells and other delightful objects at passing motorists. If you’re still in the market for Mario Kart by the time it comes out, you’ll be happy to know that it’ll feature online play and will come with it’s own gimmicky plastic steering wheel for you to snap your Wiimote into. A price hasn’t been set yet but if Nintendo stays with the whole “no game over fifty dollars” pledge, you might be able to grab the game and the wheel at a pretty decent price. If history is any indicator, Mario Kart should be a huge seller for Nintendo. Plus, the online play is going to bring a whole new element to the game. I will be purchasing it the day it comes out, despite the exasperated tone of this post. You had me at “Lets-a-go!” Mario Kart. How could I ever stay away? ‘Mario Kart’ coming to the Wii with online play [CNET News.com] → Read More
EA, the gaming company we all love to hate (or just plain hate), has come up with a way to drain even more money from even more people. A new feature called EA Family Play will debut with the three main sports titles for 2008 for the Wii, Madden, NBA Live and FIFA Soccer. “FP,” as I have now just nicknamed it, dumbs down the controls to the point where “the console controls the rest.” You, dumb user, simply whip the Wii remote around in only the most basic of movements and Manning will throw a touchdown pass, King James will dunk all over everyone and Messi will dribble from his own half (see above) and score a goal much like Maradona’s most famous one. Got it? EA FP simplifies the controls to the point where even complete blockheads can think they’re Fatal1ty or whoever the current pro gaming champion is. EA → Read More
The “in” thing to do seems to be ragging on the Nintendo Wii because it’s not as powerful as either the Xbox 360 or the PS3. (Sales numbers show that end-users really don’t care, though.) One of EA’s developers said that the Wii is only as powerful as the original Xbox. It’s about as powerful as the original Xbox. The video hardware unfortunately is not as powerful…. Overall though it’s pretty much what the original Xbox was. It’s clear that the developer wasn’t really harshing on the Wii here, but rather just making a well-informed observation. And yet, I’m sure the long knives will be out for him nonetheless. Tim Schirner and Brad Porteous Q&A [Eurogamer via GameIndustry.biz] → Read More
The ideal price for a video game console is $199, says Microsoft, and Wall Street analysts believe the company will slash the price of the Xbox 360 this holiday season in order to approach that price. One of the company’s group product managers admitted that it was “well aware” of the magical number and attributed much of the Nintendo Wii’s success to its low price (and not its games or funky controller?). → Read More
As if you needed any more confirmation on just how great the Nintendo Wii is, the latest Japanese sales numbers show a 5 to 1 advantage in terms in consoles sold compared to the PS3. Again, this doesn’t mean that the Wii is any better than the PS3, but it does show that Nintendo’s gamble of tapping into the non-gamer market is paying off. (Compare that to the PS3 where you need to take out a loan just to afford the thing.) → Read More
War is hell; there is no denying it. Yet conflict makes for a good backdrop for gaming. While upcoming titles such as the newly announced Call of Duty 4 and the next Brothers in Arms are still months away, you can get in on the action now. Several games have slipped under the radar this spring, and these offer salvos of action. And war games not need be limited to first-person shooters. Strategic games that let you play as an “armchair general” can be just as exhilarating. It is time to lock and load, and get ready to sortie. On this anniversary of D-Day, which began the liberation of Europe (and made for an impressive scene in Saving Private Ryan 9 years ago), we look at some of the military sims that will put you on the front lines. → Read More
There’s a veritable dearth of gaming news here today—let’s fix that. Mortal Kombat Armageddon just came out for the Nintendo Wii. The Wii controller (are we no longer allowed to say “Wiimote”?) is used to pull off all the special moves, fatalities included. Midway just published the full list of all the jukes and jives you need to do to lop off your opponent’s head. Here’s a video of some guy doin’ it up. So am I the only one who think the Mortal Kombat series died when the second movie hit? Move List (PDF alert~!) [Midway via Mortal Kombat] → Read More
Wow, purdy. It’s the Wii Crystal Cooler from Brando, a stand and system fan for the Nintendo Wii. Unlike the fan we saw last week, this one actually looks pretty great, what with its shiny blueness and all. Thankfully, you can turn the LED off with the flick of a switch. Somewhere, Mike Elgan is very pleased with himself. $20. If I had a Wii, that is, if I could find one, I’d be all over this. Product Page [Brando Workshop via New Launches] → Read More
Nintendo released the final version of the Opera Web browser for the Wii on the console Internet Channel. The browser is free until the end of June and brings the wonders of the World Wide Web to TV screens, much like the DreamCast did so many years ago. The final version of the Web browser shows a number of improvements like smoother scrolling and collapsible toolbars. No one said the Opera browser was trying to reinvent the wheel here, folks, but being able to browse fun Web sites like this one using the Wiimote does look fun. Nintendo releases finalised Wii browser [GameIndustry.biz] → Read More
Remember the “Hold Your Wee for a Wii” contest? It’s coming back, sort of, thanks to Opie and Anthony. Right now, we only know that it’ll involve lots of water and the winning of a still hard to find Wii. This story is developing as we speak (that is, they just announced it on their FreeFM show), so be gentle if the information is still a little raw. But kudos to the Opie & Anthony show. I’m sure they’ll create innumerable new fans by doing this. Opie and Anthony → Read More
Since Blake is apparently taking a cat nap and watching COLT flicks at GDC, I’d like to bring something to your attention. They had a round of talks at GDC called “Burning Mad – A Game Publisher’s Rant.” Basically, a select number of publishers and developers got to scream about whatever they hate. When Chris Hecker of the Spore team got his turn, he went on a crazy tirade on how Nintendo sucks. Chris has declared that “The Wii is a piece of shit!” and that Nintendo should make a console that doesn’t “suck ass”. Why is Chris so frustrated? The craptastic Wii’s processing power isn’t sufficient enough to develop next-gen games on and Nintendo only wants to make “fun” games. And did you know Nintendo just doesn’t see video games as art? Terrible! Where do I sign up for the Chris Hecker fanclub? Spore developer lambastes Wii [Games Are Fun] → Read More
on a Hand-Held Computer Interactive Device which details the controller. → Read More
Let’s face it our hands and brain are stuck in the past when it comes to playing Mario and Tetris, the Wii-motes just don’t cut it. The spacing of the buttons is all off and it’s just plain awkward. Muscle memory can be a bitch but if you have NES controllers lying around, I know the Nintendo Fanboys do, well you’re in luck. The RetroPort lets you plug-and-play your original NES controllers on the Wii via the USB ports which i haven’t found a use for until now. Awesomeness for a mere $22. Product Page [Retrozone] → Read More
Jeremy over at Digitalsomething got his hands on a Toys “R” Us ad for an upcoming sale next sunday that includes Wii’s. If you’re still looking to pick up one up then be sure to camp out at your nearest Toys “R” Us so you don’t get left behind…again. Wii Wii [Digitalsomething] → Read More
Well The Ninja Team may have all the hype right now with their Wiinja mod chip but the boys over at Maxconsole have their hands on the CycloWiz mod chip that’s expected to start shipping by weeks end. Seems to be a quicksolder job and the ability to play Wii backups, Gamecube backups/homebrew/Imports, built in Audiofix, DVD+-R support and a few other goodies. We’ll see how legit this is by weeks end. So beat that Ninja Team! Wii Hacks [Maxconsole via Digg] → Read More
I got a Wii, I got a Wii, I got a Wii, I got a Wii, I got a Wii!!! → Read More
That’s basically it, Circuit City put the axe on any potential Wii shoppers from using their $40 off coupon this weekend or any other day for that matter. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. Have a good weekend. [Digg] → Read More
Amazon.com released its year-end “Best of” lists, which tallies up not only the best-selling items for the site’s various stores, but also the most positively reviewed, most wished-for and most frequently purchased as gifts. Apple’s 30GB 5G iPod nearly swept electronics, only losing “most positively reviewed” to the Sony DSCF707 Cyber-shot 5-megapixel digital camera. Dissappointingly none of the tech best sellers were shocking, with World of Warcraft taking the software category, iPods (various) for electronics and the Nintendo DS Lite in Polar White winning the computer and video game top pick. (Though I’m not sure what the company’s definition of “software” is ’cause WoW is definitely not MS Word.) The more interesting picks are on the Wish Lists. → Read More
The Joytech PowerStation for the Nintendo’s Wii provides you with two rechargeable battery packs (finally!) for your Wiimotes. The PowerStation also acts like a dock, allowing you to store your Wiimotes and charge them at the same time in a provided cradle. Each PowerStation can house two Wiimotes and connects to your Wii via USB. The docking station also has handles sticking out on each end giving you storage space for your Nunchunks. The Joytech PowerStation has a release date of Jan. 26, will be going for $39. Seeing as how this is probably the best accessory for the Wii so far, I’d probably preorder it when available because this peripheral is going to be in very high demand. The Wiimotes are hard enough to store to begin with (unless you just throw them in a box with all your other controllers), throw in a docking station, Nunchuck holders, a cheap price and you’ve got a great Wii accessory. Joytech releasing Wii rechargeable battery packs with PowerStation charger [video games blogger] → Read More
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