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Nintendo DS News is a News and downloads site for All Nintendo Handhelds and Consoles including the Gameboy, NES, N64, Snes, Gamecube, Wii, WiiU, NDS, 3DS, GBA and Snes, We have all the latest emulators, hack, homebrew, commercial games and all the downloads on this site, the latest homebrew and releases, Part of the
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March 10th, 2007, 18:18 Posted By: gunntims0103
news via techwhack
Nintendo to let Wii gamers compare their Miis
Japanese videogame console maker Nintendo has said that they are currently working on developing a new channel for their Wii gaming console.
This new channel would allow Wii gamers to compare their Miis. Mii is a virtual character Wii gamers can create on their consoles. These characters can be used to play games with other gamers on the network.
Nintendo game creator Shigero Miyamoto said in a statement that they expect to launch this new channel soon and it would enable gamers not only to share their custom avatars, but to vote on them in popularity contests.
Nintendo also confirmed that the first of their Mario games for the Wii gaming console would be released later this year. The game has been titled “Super Mario Galaxy”.
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March 9th, 2007, 23:57 Posted By: wraggster
Both Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl -- the true follow-ups to the immensely popular Pokemon RPG franchise -- will hit the Nintendo DS in late April, so it makes sense that, this close to the release, we're finally seeing an English language build. At Nintendo's booth at the Game Developers Conference, that's exactly what we saw. Sort of. The Pokemon Company threw together an extremely limited demo for show attendees, playable for ten minutes or until you get to the demo's goal. Whichever came first.
In the demo playthrough, we're immediately tossed in Jubilee City in the Sinnoh Region, led through a specific path that will take us, eventually, to a cavern. Before we head off to our adventure, we're handed a Pokemon Watch which displays the time digitally on the lower screen.
However, a brief conversation later we're right into a battle with a trainer ready for the pouncing. Luckily for us, we have level 30 critters at the ready, including Lucario, Roselia, and Mime Jr. The first trainer first tried to take us down with his Buizel and Mantyke, but we stood strong and trounced him easily using the easy to navigate touch-screen interface to toss a few attacks in his direction. The second trainer posed no problem, either. He tossed his whole arsenal of Chatot and Pachrisu at us. Again. No problem. The third trainer brought forth his Kricketot and Cherrim, but again, with such powerful Pokemon in our pockets it was hard not to win.
The demo ends right when we strike up a conversation with the person who's blocking the entrance to the cave. A brief "See you when Pokemon Pearl and Diamond are released" message later and the demo comes to an end. It'll also end if you spend too much time lollygagging in the battles or on the path.
If you haven't been following the development of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl, the two games are modest upgrades to the Game Boy Advance titles. Character models, backgrounds, creature designs and other elements mostly consist of skewed 2D sprites and bitmaps, though you might encounter a structure or two that actually pushes the 3D capabilities of the Nintendo DS system. The real hook in the update is the touch screen navigation which, admittedly, makes moving through menus a dream compared to the D-pad/button interface of the previous games.
The final game will feature Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection support so that players can battle over the internet. The game will also interface with the upcoming Pokemon Revolution Wii title where players can link their system and copy of Pokemon Diamond/Pearl so they can battle their characters in 3D on the Wii system. That feature was also demonstrated at Game Developers Conference, though the versions used in the demo were entirely in Japanese. The DS and Wii systems synched up quickly and smoothly, and enabled a full touch-screen control of the battles via the connection.
The DS games, already available in Japan since September 2006, will ship in the US on April 22nd. We'll have more on the games in the weeks leading to their release.
via ign
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March 9th, 2007, 23:55 Posted By: wraggster
via ign
All right, so Nintendo has already established that DS provides exercise for your brain while Wii gives your body a workout. But that doesn't mean that Wii owners can't take part in daily mental training, too. It's with that thought in mind that the company is readying Big Brain Academy for its home console. The title is inspired by the DS-based brain titles before it, but puts the unique abilities of the Wii remote to use in order to enable a fun and challenging multiplayer brain-off.
Nintendo showcased a fully playable version of Big Brain Academy at the Game Developers Conference 2007 in San Francisco and naturally, we were on hand to give it a try. The project can be enjoyed by a single-player, but one of the main advantages of the Wii build is a two-player challenge and Nintendo encouraged gamers to try out the mode at its GDC booth. In it, two gamers square off in vertical split-screen brain tests. Some will be familiar to those who played Big Brain Academy on DS, but others are brand new to the Wii build. Nintendo says some 15 activities spanning five categories, from memory and analysis to number crunching, visual recognition and quick thinking, are new to the console version.
Gamers who have never played any of Nintendo's brain games will find the experience similar to Wario Ware on some level, meaning that mini-games rotate in and out of the screen and players have only seconds to complete them, either correctly or incorrectly. The big difference, of course, is that the minis in Big Brain are, in fact, designed to give one's mind a good workout and in some cases, a hard walloping. Using the Wii remote, players interact with on-screen puzzles and aspire to best them quicker than their opponent. We're not embarrassed to admit that our initial attempts at some of the mind twisters resulted in poor completion times only comparable to Neanderthal man or perhaps well-trained monkeys and we're only a little embarrassed to admit that we were playing on easy.
Some of the puzzles were simple. For instance, five different numbers appear on screen and you have to eliminate the a couple of them with the Wii remote so that the end sum forms the five, or three, or two, or whatever predetermined figure the game has selected. In another, players must watch as characters are placed underneath rotating cups and then identify where they are hidden when the objects finally stop moving. In one more, the object is to snugly fit two different protruding pieces of a 3D cube together. In one more, gamers must draw the pathway for a railway. Finally, gamers may have to pop a series of balloons with numbers painted on them in order of lowest to highest. None of the activities require any complex movements from the Wii remote; rather, in most cases, a simple point and button press will do. Obviously, Nintendo's plan is to keep the presentation simple so that - like the DS versions - players of all ages can enjoy the experience.
The graphics are simple - so much so that it's easy to see that they were inspired by the DS version. And yet, the colorful, stylized presentation does have a charm all its own. It is, at the very least, inviting, which is probably the goal.
It may still be too early to tell if Nintendo can duplicate the handheld success off the Big Brain series for its Wii console, but from what we've played so far, it's off to a great start. Not only is Brain Age Academy as pick-up-and-play friendly as its DS predecessors, but it's also challenging and it sports a two-player mode that adds a much-needed competitive element.
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March 9th, 2007, 23:53 Posted By: wraggster
Nintendo of America was on-hand at the Game Developers Conference 2007 with a handful of playable Wii titles, including the anticipated platformer/RPG Super Paper Mario. We took the gorgeously stylized sleeper for a spin and walked away completely dazzled. The title, which was originally planned for GameCube before it made the jump to Wii, is a sequel to the hit GCN game Paper Mario and bears many similarities to its predecessor. For one, it is brought to life with a quasi-2D style made possible with cardboard cut-out visuals. Mario is literally paper thin as he walks through colorful storyboarded environments complete with blocky clouds and skinny enemies. In addition, the title is neither a dedicated platformer nor RPG, but a combination of the two. That being said, in our experience Super Paper Mario leans closer to the former than the latter, as some of the turn-based battles of previous games have been thrown to the wind in favor or new real-time action. But the commonalities seem to end there because Super Paper Mario takes the 2D/3D relationship several steps farther and really bathes itself in new and improved play mechanics, which are deeper and more engaging than ever before, even as it oozes enough style to satiate any desire for nostalgic presentation.
In Super Paper Mario, gamers control not only Nintendo's classic Italian plumber, but also Peach and Bowser, too. The characters become unlocked and join Mario's party, so to speak, as he progresses through the adventure, which Nintendo promises will be lengthy and challenging. In fact, a company representative suggested that the title could take some players upward of 40 hours to complete. Gamers grip the Wii remote classic style and move the mascots through the levels with the D-Pad, sacrificing true analog controls - and trust us, nobody is even going to notice. The 2 button causes the selected hero (or heroine) to jump into the air and the 2 button executes special moves endowed by floating collected Pixls, which we'll explain in detail momentarily. But the most important function falls to the A button, which literally transforms the play field from 2D to 3D in an instant.
full article at ign
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March 9th, 2007, 23:43 Posted By: wraggster
Nearing the end of his anticipated Game Developers Conference 2007 keynote, Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto played a short, but incredibly sweet new video of Super Mario Galaxy in motion. The movie showcased less than two minutes of new gameplay footage, but it was enough to ignite a wave of applause from excited Nintendo fans.
In the video, Mario again collects stars and soars through space, landing atop giant spherical bodies complete with enemies and platformer obstacles. In addition, though, the footage debuts a variety of different, never-before-seen planetoids, baddies, and challenges, all of which look incredible. In older demos, Mario could be seen traveling across more traditional asteroids and planets, but in the new trailer he is shown bounding across enormous eggs, glass cylinders, exploding volcanoes, through stars, onto grassy knolls, on wooden planks, and even onto gargantuan apples, among other objects. It's clear that Nintendo has absolutely abandoned any attempt at keeping a galactic logic of laws with the game, which is, we're sure, just fine by everybody.
Although regular-sized worlds make up the backgrounds in many of the galaxies Mario explores, the mascot seems to traverse much smaller bodies, going from spheres to apples, from volcanoes to glass cylinders, and so forth. Gamers expecting giant land masses are - at least so far - out of luck. That noted, Nintendo has done quite a lot with the objects and obstacles in place as many of them seem to change dynamically or are altogether interactive.
When Mario reaches the end of a grassy peak, a beanstalk sprouts from its edge, rises into space and eventually connects to another body, enabling Nintendo's iconic mascot to jump to it. Later in the footage, Mario stomps a protruding cork into an oversized apple and a greenish walkway extends from the giant fruit. Mario is sent flying over flowing volcanic landscapes and crashes through pillars in the process. All of the planets share one trait in common, which is that they ignore gravity, which means that Mario can run up and over or down and under anything he sees. As readers can imagine, the physics go hand-in-hand with a series of impressive environmental puzzles. In one sequence, gamers must use the Wii remote to first point at and then drag Mario through a hazardous obstacle course made of fiery planets, but the satellites spew flames as he nears them.
Mario is seen swimming and battling what appears to be a fish boss of some kind in one snippet of the footage. In another, a spiral galaxy twists in the depths of space as he flies to a nearby ship. It's evident from the footage that gamers have only seen a very limited selection of the game's variety.
Galaxy is probably the prettiest title yet for Nintendo's new console. Not only does the art design shine with stunning characters, worlds and enemies, but the mascot and environments come to life with a host of graphical effects. The title's crispy-clean textures look to be bump-mapped in some cases, and we can't recall spotting better particle effects in a Nintendo title. Plus, everything runs in progressive-scan and 16:9 with a silky smooth framerate.
Via IGN
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March 9th, 2007, 23:29 Posted By: wraggster
New game from hewenxie:
This is my first DS game which build with palib! It's a pretty simple card game, this game has sound and a bad AI (I learned C only about 1 year, and many things not very clear)
I test it on Ewin2 and SC and run well build with old palib, But I use the newest palib+devkitPro, it can run well on r4, but running on Ewin2 the touch screen not work and in Emulators will crash!
rule is 3 same card>royal flush>same color>flush>double same>nothing(I'm sorry my English is poor)
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March 9th, 2007, 22:49 Posted By: wraggster
via dsfanboy
Oishinbo is a manga about cooking that is apparently well-known for featuring delicious food. And now it's a DS game that features, well, pretty much everything. Usually licensed games aren't renowned for their innovation, but this thing looks nothing short of amazing.
Oishinbo Recipe Shuu features recipes, of course, keyword-searchable with handwriting input, and browsable images. It also has a quiz game (about food), manga-style tutorials of cooking techniques, and-- here's where it gets pretty impressive-- Oishinbo manga with links to the recipes shown in the manga. We love it! Well done, Bandai Namco. You've gotten us interested in a cooking game!
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March 9th, 2007, 22:47 Posted By: wraggster
via siliconera
Back in the mists of time 6 AA batteries could only buy you 4 hours of handheld dogfighting in a pseudo-3D 16-colored environment of a game heavily inspired from Sega’s Afterburner arcade. The game was Blue Lightning and ran on Atari’s now-forgotten Lynx. Apparently 15 whole years ago. Funny thing is Jet Impulse, an import game for the Nintendo DS, immediately reminded me of said game. Then my Nitnendo DS died a particularly gruesome death and I got myself a nice (and rather used) replacement unit.
Still, arcadey flight sims are too much of a childhood favorite to allow me to fret over such minor disturbances, especially when they come all the way from Japan (uhm, the flight sims, not the disturbances, that is), feature a distinctly manga/anime storyline, 19 missions usually broken down in 2 to 3 stages and engrossing gameplay. You see, Jet Impulse is the product of one of those rare moments Nintendo comes up with a new franchise and thus is extremely polished, highly enjoyable and quite addictive. It also is another game designed especially for handhelds, which mean it’s perfect for a quick 10 minutes long bus-ride, what with its non-existent loading times and short but frantic levels.
The game, in essence a pure 3D shmup, plays rather traditionally for a DS title. The top screen is where the main action takes place, while the touch-screen serves mainly as a zoomable radar and a handy way to alternate between missile types. The d-pad controls the plane’s movement, R+L buttons its throttle and you got one button for selecting targets, one for shooting missiles and one for the machine guns. Nothing fancy really, but a tried and tested control method that feels intuitive enough to overcome the games’ Japanese manual and instructions.
In-game updates, objectives and mission descriptions in Japanese, on the other hand, do pose quite a bit of a problem. I for one spent hours chasing a certain red plane I should have simply ignored. I did hone my flying skills mind you, but the futile chase and pointless waste of enough tons of ammunition to take down a moderately sized army got incredibly boring and frustrating. Then, I just discovered the damn thing wasn’t supposed to go down. I was supposed to merely avoid it and run away. Moral of the story? Either learn Japanese or use a walkthrough.
Speaking of stories, well, the story of the game, lavishly as it might be narrated, is equally incomprehensible to objectives written in Japanese. Then again, it’s probably a tacky near-future superpower vs superpower affair.
It’s moments like speeding with a jet-fighter through heavy rain, climbing above cloud level and enjoying a serene silence only marginally spoiled by two enemy bombers, that are eloquent beyond the barriers of language and show off the sheer class of Jet Impulse. Same thing goes for huge naval battles, stealthy night missions and most of the set pieces the game has to offer. Actually, baring a few lengthy cutscenes and the odd incomprehensible objective, the language is more of an atmosphere enhancer than a problem. Especially considering that the English version of the game (to be released at some undefined point in the future) will be shockingly called DS Air. Don’t believe me? There’s a whole website to prove the truth of my words, even though there’s only this humble article to tell the western world how great a game Jet Impulse is. Not innovative, neither ground breaking or visually impressive, just great.
As for the online element of Jet Impulse utilizing the DS’s WiFi capabilities, well, it seems pretty darn impressive, giving access to downloadable game content (via the official Japanese website) and the ability to go head-to-head against players over the Internet. Problem is my wireless connection has been generally non-existent for the past weeks, which means I’ll be covering online play at some other day, provided I don’t first microwave my router. Oh, and there’s a 1-4 players wireless multiplayer mode, too.
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March 9th, 2007, 22:36 Posted By: wraggster
Eke-Eke has released a new version of the Master System Emulator for the Gamecube and Nintendo Wii (gamecube slot)
This is a sourcecode only release, info below:
- updated to last version (1.3) from Charles McDonald ( http://cgfm2.emuviews.com/): added TMS9918 display mode support for SMS2 and GG video chips.
- corrected NGC savestate loading (fix FM & graphics problem on loading state)
- added an option to change Joypad Type in Misc Menu (SMS button 1 is assigned to Button A (typeA) or Button B (typeB))
- updated Sound Engine (same as Genesis Plus)
Heres more info:
Notes:(1) You have to compile SMSplus sourcecode on your own as it needs a rom to be linked with... NO SMSPLUS BINARY sorry
(2) Binaries were compiled & tested with Libogc previous version (28/07/06). If you want to compile with the last one, it seems to be some problems with the actual sdcard code so use AT YOUR OWN RISK.
(3) If you force game settings (region, cpu peed,..) in misc options menu, you have to reload the rom to take it in effect.
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March 9th, 2007, 22:29 Posted By: wraggster
Eke-Eke has released a new version of the Genesis Emulator for the Gamecube and Nintendo Wii (gamecube slot)
Heres whats new in this release:
- little rendering code speedups
- modified HV counter tables (fix graphic glitches in Skitchin's sky, Lotus 2 Recs, Panorama Cotton, Dashin Desperados & maybe more)
- completely rewritten DMA timings emulation so that it works for all games (no more cpu freezing)
- added all DMA tranfer rates handling for each three DMA modes and added dma busy flag emulation
- modified interrupts handling on VDP register #0 and #1 writes (fix Lemmings status bar)
- added VDP RAM write latency (fix Chaos Engine/Soldier of Fortune gfx glitches)
- slight modifications on FM timers handling a bit (fix Vectorman2 music)
- corrected Sprite Limit rendering (fix Sonic 1 & Micromachines 2 title screens)
- corrected IO Registers writes (fix Decap' Attack controls, no more need for alternate input)
- corrected 6 Buttons Pad emulation (fix 6buttons detection in Mortal Kombat 3, Comix Zone and other 6-buttons compatible games)
- slight sound mixing modification, according to Generator sourcecode (FM and PSG ratios seems more correct)
- added separate CPU Region (USA, Europe, Japan,...) & Speed (PAL or NTSC) choice in menu options
- modified main frame synchro in PAL mode (fix sound glitch in this mode), thanks to Softdev for the solution
- added savestates support (go to SRAM menu, memory card supports only)
More Info
About savestates, please note that only memory card support is actually implemented as I don't have SDLoader to test with (if someone wants to add a similar state managment as in snes9xGX2, you are welcome).
One file takes 19 blocks on the card so don't expect to save as much files as you want
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March 9th, 2007, 22:12 Posted By: wraggster
via infendo
Waiting for the Miyamoto keynote to start, I’m sitting three rows from the front. Close enough to see Nintendo’s resident BMOC, Reggie Fils-Aime at the front of the crowd, working it with his trademark smile and good will. He poses for pictures, he signs Wiimotes, he presses the flesh with a good natured ease that would make even the most seasoned politician weep with envy.
“Kick his ass and take his name!” someone shouted from a few rows behind me.
“Who?” answered Reggie in mid-autograph.
“Phil Harrison, front row!” Sure enough, there was Phil Harrison, seated dead center, front row. Looks like he could show up on time for Nintendo’s keynote, but not Sony’s.
With a grin and a chuckle, Reggie replies, “Some would say we’ve already done that.”
Touchdown. The crowd goes wild.
Truth hurts. But it's damn funny.
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March 9th, 2007, 22:07 Posted By: wraggster
press release:
You know how it is. You’ve got the family around, drinking your wine and munching their way through your groceries, happily chatting about a previous family meeting. Thing is, you’ve a great home video of the event. You filmed uncle Harold making a fool of himself dancing to MTV, your kid brother tripping over the dog and your cousin and her new boyfriend snogging on the sofa when they thought no one was looking. You just have to show them to your folks…
Trouble is, the movies are on your computer, and your computer is elsewhere in the house. In a tiny room. Which is full of your junk. There’s no way you can squeeze the entire family around your PC, so what do you do? Easy! You use MAX Media Manager Pro, and watch them on your Wii…
MAX Media Manager Pro for Wii is the perfect media management solution. You can transfer MP3s to your supplied SD card, and even rip CDs. Video footage can be converted and condensed, and you can subscribe to Podcasts, manage your picture collection and even swap gamesaves with people from all over the world!
MAX Media Manager Pro for Wii’s audio manager lets you rip the tracks from your CDs and transfer them directly to your 1GB SD card using your PC. Alternatively, copy your digital music collection instead. Just insert the SD card into the supplied USB SD Card Reader and plug it into your PC. When you’ve transferred the files, you can remove the SD card and play back your tracks on your Wii. 1GB is enough to store around 250 songs, or approximately 35 hours of listening.
Video files can be converted and transferred too. You can control the precise size, aspect ratio, zoom, bitrate and audio settings, and encode your movies to fit precisely on the available space on your SD card, ready to be watched on your Wii. You can even rip DVDs directly to the card, as long as they’re not copy-protected.
Viewing your digital photos and other such images on your Wii is really easy with MAX Media Manager Pro for Wii. You can stretch, zoom, resize and generally mess around with your photos as much as you like, then transfer them to your SD card for viewing on your console. As a gigabyte is enough for over a thousand standard digital photos, you’ve the means to make a really impressive slideshow.
You can also subscribe to Podcasts and have them downloaded directly to your computer. Using RSS for automatic updates, the shows of your choice are saved to your PC, ready for you to transfer them to your Wii for listening, or even viewing – video Podcasts are automatically transcoded and saved in a format your console can play back.
Last, but by no means least, MAX Media Manager Pro for Wii is your key to a world of downloaded gamesaves. You can download saves from the internet for use with your favourite Wii games, back them up to your PC and even email them to your friends.
MAX Media Manager Pro for Wii contains a 1GB SD card, a USB Card Reader for your PC and a MAX Media Manager Pro software disc. Everything you need to open a whole world of multimedia marvels! It's also your ticket to a thriving gamesaves community! What more could you ask for?
coming Soon
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March 9th, 2007, 22:03 Posted By: wraggster
In an otherwise un-noteworthy article about the "console war," BusinessWeek reveals that Pandemic Studios is developing a concept title for Wii. So would that be Project B, Q, X, Y, or Z? In other words, we can rule out another version of Mercenaries 2 -- apparently this Wii project "could attract younger players."
We don't know how you all see it, but when it comes to the children, 'Pandemic' is for the children.
via joystiq
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March 9th, 2007, 22:01 Posted By: wraggster
Speaking about the history of upstart developer That Game Company at GDC, President Kellee Santiago revealed an extremely interesting tidbit as to where flOw was heading on consoles. Two companies were interested in the title: Sony, as we all are now aware of, and Nintendo.
"That was the hardest decision we ever had to make, choosing between Sony and Nintendo," admitted Santiago. Speaking during the Q & A, Santiago clarified that "they weren't right for us at the time. Sony kind of came to us with the process of incubation ... They helped us get our studio started." Nintendo did not approach them; the team actually cornered them about Cloud at a prior Game Developers Conference. FlOw creator Jenova Chen chimed in, saying "in the end, we are game makers and not console makers," expressing his satisfaction working with Nintendo on other projects. That Game Company did not rule out working on the Wii in the future.
From our current impressions, we think Nintendo missed a golden opportunity here. We'll have more on That Game Company's presentation later in the day.
via joystiq
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March 9th, 2007, 17:43 Posted By: wraggster
via wiifanboy
We've had enough time now with the Wii to discover some real gems (how many hours have you put into just Wii Sports so far?) ... but like any system, there are also a few duds, particularly within the launch window. If you're looking to expand your collection, or if you're one of the Wii-less trying to figure out how to budget when your day comes, we're here to help you find the best and the worst of the Wii so far.
First up? The five best games according to metareviews of those titles released so far:
1. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Metascore: 95%
Maybe everyone doesn't agree -- and we know some of you aren't terribly enthused by the Wii's premiere launch title -- but reviewers on the whole had nothing but praise for Link's latest epic adventure. And with the sales the title has boasted, unless you have been living firmly under a rock, it should be no surprise that this is tops on many Wii lists.
2. Wario Ware: Smooth Moves
Metascore: 83%
There's nothing like a game that encourages players to use the Wiimote to pick their noses. Wario Ware: Smooth Moves deserves the second slot on this list if only for all the comedic fodder and raised eyebrows it brings to this series of tubes we call home.
3. Madden NFL 07
Metascore: 81%
We've seen such mixed player reviews on this one that we're surprised it pulls in at number three. For football fans, the Wii's Madden NFL 07 seems to be a love-it-or-hate-it proposition, and enough reviewers loved it to make up for those who didn't.
4. Trauma Center: Second Opinion
Metascore: 80%
While we didn't find this particular edition of Trauma Center quite as soul-crushingly difficult as the DS version, we were definitely pleased with the move to the Wii. We're not surprised to see this one here at all, particularly after watching random people encourage others to buy it, sight unseen.
5. Rayman Raving Rabbids
Metascore: 76%
There are a lot of things that bunnies can't do, but we'll tell you what they can do, and that's rock your socks. While Super Monkey Ball has a few gems (though they're in the rough), and Wario Ware is a fun, frenetic challenge, Rayman Raving Rabbids shows us exactly why minigames are just so good on the Wii. This one has it all.
While we can mostly agree with the above as a representation of the best the Wii has to offer right now, we have to say ... as great games go, those scores seem a little low overall. Since the SSX Blur debacle, there have been some rumbling questions about reviews for Wii games in particular. Is the system so different that the old reviewers have trouble adjusting? Do you think the above scores are fair ... and are there other games that you think are better overall?
It's not all about reviews and scores, though. Sometimes, a game just has a certain something that defies all logic and reason, and even we here at Wii Fanboy are not immune. We'll even own up to our guilty pleasures.
Alisha: I can't deny it -- I spent a ridiculous amount of time playing Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam. I didn't even particularly like the game at first, but I'm what you might call a Tony Hawk obsessive devotee, so I had to give it a fair shot, and it quickly grew on me. I found the controls much more engaging than Excite Truck (which is somewhat similar in control style), and it's definitely fun for multiplayer races.
Dave: Elebits, because I never really grew out of loving to play hide and seek. That and I get evil fun from trashing the neighborhood capturing those poor, defenseless, cute little guys.
Frankly, we're shocked. Shocked! That Dave seemed like such a nice fellow.
But what good is a list of the best without a little something to balance it out? While we love the Wii like ice cream, we're not above admitting that not everything has been exactly spectacular. So which three games have racked up the worst reviews so far?
1. Far Cry Vengeance
Metascore: 38%
At first, it seemed like everything was gonna be okay ... and then ... well, the review scores are worth a thousand words. So far, Far Cry Vengeance sports the worst scores of any Wii game, and serves as a good lesson that sometimes, graphics do matter.
2. GT Pro Series
Metascore: 41%
Once we saw the first screens from GT Pro Series, it quickly became the game everyone loved to hate, and for good reason. We've seen better pictures slapped onto refrigerators with a magnet before.
3. Rapala Tournament Fishing!
Metascore: 42%
Fishing may seem like a natural fit for the Wii, but this isn't the game to prove it. Shoddy controls and subpar graphics mean that not many are nibbling at Rapala's hook.
So there you have it -- the top contenders and the bottom of the barrel. With a lot to look forward to in the coming months, we doubt that the top five will remain static until the end of the year. Is it possible that something could take the top spot away from Twilight Princess? 95% is tough to beat, but we'd be willing to bet that Trauma Center and Rayman at least will slip off this list ... and that's a little sad, because those games deserve the attention they've gotten so far.
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March 9th, 2007, 17:38 Posted By: wraggster
New from SuccessHK
Specialise in design for Wii remote control, multi-color and design bring to you different mood.
Special craftwork treatment and no remnant pastern
With preventign slippery function, let you reach success easily in the game.
Precision measure and easy to use.
Protecting your remote control completely and can be reuse.
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March 9th, 2007, 17:07 Posted By: wraggster
At the Nintendo keynote address delivered by the company's creative guru, Shigeru Miyamoto, the Mario creator spent much of his talk lecturing game developers about the creative process.
However, amid tales of getting his wife to play Wii Sports and focusing on entertaining not only players but also those around them, there was one nugget of new information.
Miyamoto divulged that he was working on a new Wii Channel for Miis. Whereas the current Mii Channel focuses on the creation of the cartoonish avatars and occasionally swapping them with friends, the new Mii-centered channel will sport a so-called "popularity contest," where users from all over the planet can showcase their Miis across the Internet.
Miyamoto did not mention a name or release date for the new channel.
via gamespot
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March 9th, 2007, 17:03 Posted By: wraggster
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, was almost the last ever Zelda, Nintendo's manager of software development, Eiji Aonuma, said. Speaking through a translator, he told how the previous game, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, hadn't been hugely popular in Japan, although it had been reasonably well received in the West. One of the reasons for this was that the Japanese market in general was moving away from games, he said, and this was well publicised, and known as "gamer drift."
So, in order to make a successful game that would appeal to this disenchanted audience, and continue his beloved Zelda series, Aonuma said, "We needed a new style of gameplay to breathe life into the market."
Eiji Aonuma poses for photos before his talk.
Aonuma was speaking at GDC in a talk titled "The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Reflections in the Hourglass." The event was hugely popular, and before he started the talk, Aonuma posed for photos, and signed autographs while a long line of attendees filtered in hunting for seats in the hall.
The company found that Wind Waker's cartoon-like graphics were alienating the lucrative teen audience in North America, who would look games of that style and think they were for kids, he continued. With the Japanese market in the midst of the dreaded "gamer drift," and the North American market much stronger, Nintendo decided to give the US what it wanted--a realistic Zelda. He said, "We had to make a game that met expectations of fans in North America. If it didn't, it could mean the end of the franchise."
The decision was also made for Link to have the ability to turn into a wolf. "This kind of disruptive breakthrough was just what we needed for the staff to change their way of thinking."
But still, the game needed something more, something to make it truly innovative. It was around this stage that Aonuma was talking to Nintendo senior managing director Shigeru Miyamoto, who told him something along the lines of, "It's as though the Revolution (later renamed the Wii) was designed just for Zelda! Why don't you try making a Zelda for the Revolution?" In the end, believes Aonuma, the kind of direct control offered by the Wii Remote was exactly what was needed to breathe life into the game.
So the decision was made to bring the game to the Wii. "Creating a launch title was a first for the Zelda franchise and we had no idea what a challenge it would be," he told the audience.
The company also felt strongly that it did not want to disappoint all the GameCube owners who had been waiting patiently since the game's announcement back in 2002, so it decided to push the game back to 2006 to be able to release it on both formats.
Developers experimented with switching to a first-person session for Twilight Princess' combat sequences with Link's sword movements being controlled by moving the Wii remote. However, it soon became apparent that there was a fundamental problem with this idea... "Link is left-handed, so when a right-handed player swings the sword, it felt awkward...So we abandoned the idea." In the end, the problem was party resolved by flipping the world laterally in order to make Link right-handed.
Aonuma said he realised that the game was a success when, "I saw some of our female employees swinging a sword to defeat a huge monster. Then I was convinced Zelda had been reborn."
He also filled in some gaps on the upcoming Nintendo DS version of the series--The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. There will be a Wi-Fi enabled battle mode nicknamed Wi-Fi Hide and Seek. The game is a Pac-Man style chase, with two players taking on red and blue versions of Link.
Players must pick up "force gems" in order to see the positions of the phantoms on the board. However, carrying these also has a penalty--they will slow the player down, making it easier for the player to be caught. The other controls the phantoms, using the stylus to move them around to chase Link, and hopefully bring him down. Aonuma commented, "The more you play, the more you get to experience the other player's habits, so it's very addictive."
via gamespot
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March 9th, 2007, 16:58 Posted By: wraggster
Square-Enix has confirmed that Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales will be available throughout Europe in May.
The game sees you take the role of a chocobo, who has to save the day by stopping Darkmaster Bebuzzu from regaining his devastating array of powers. Because he's evil, as highlighted by the name.
Your epic journey will challenge you with more than 40 minigames, each successful one bolstering the deck you use in Pop-Up Duel Card Battles.
As usual, the stylus and touch screen are being put to good use, and you'll be able to use the DS Wi-Fi connection to battle your friends in duels or minigames.
"Fans of Final Fantasy both old and new will love the colourful cast of characters and fun minigames," said John Yamamoto, president and CEO of Square-Enix. "With adventure, puzzles, multiplayer and the impressive Pop-Up Duel Card Battles there is something for everybody in the game."
The game is due for release on 3rd April in the US, and is already out in Japan.
via eurogamer
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March 9th, 2007, 16:51 Posted By: wraggster
The Super NES version of the rock-hard classic, Super Ghouls and Ghosts has arrived on the Virtual Console.
For 800 Wii Points, you can once again play as Knight Arthur and run through zombie-packed levels to rescue his girlfriend. Well, that's the idea anyway, but unless you're some kind of super gamer you'll be spending more time looking at the Game Over screen - it's a classic but it's freakin' tough.
Fixed-screen NES shooter, and 1981 arcade hit, Galaga has also turned up, and clearly showing its age. That one will cost you 500 Wii Points.
And Double Dungeons has been added to the Turbografix collection - a two-player co-op RPG quest, and another game that has us thanking the stars for the technological development of games in the past 15 years. 600 Wii Points will get you in one that.
A Link to the Past, where are you?
via cvg
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