WiiNintendo

Katsuya Eguchi’s happy face just popped up on the giant screens at Nintendo’s E3 2008 press conference to tell us that — quelle surprise! — Animal Crossingwill be heading to the Wii this year, along with WiFi connectivity and voice chat.
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WII-KLY UPDATE: ONE WIIWARE GAME AND TWO VIRTUAL CONSOLE GAMES ADDED TO WII SHOP CHANNEL

July 14, 2008

Enjoying a nice hot dog, tending to your flowers-not exactly the hallmarks of an adventurous lifestyle, right? Think again. This week’s additions to the Wii™ Shop Channel feature action and excitement in unlikely settings, from super-charged eating contests to a greenhouse that’s been invaded by a certain world-famous ape. We’ve also thrown in a classic scrolling actioner for those who prefer a more familiar brand of fist-flying combat. For WiiWare™ lovers and Virtual Console™ devotees alike, it’s a great week to get some unexpected kicks.

Nintendo adds new and classic games to the Wii Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points™ to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week’s new games are:

WiiWare

Major League Eating: The Game™ (Mastiff, 1-2 players, Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older-Crude Humor, 1,000 Wii Points): The ultimate chomp-off is about to begin. Grab your Wii Remote™ controller and dig into 12 different foods as you compete against the greatest major-league eaters in the world. This isn’t just a race to stuff your face-you’ll need strategy to master a smorgasbord of digestive attacks, defenses and counters. These include the Mega Burp, Gas Attack, Antacid and more. And don’t forget to keep an eye on your Barf-O-Meter, because if the food hits the plate twice, you’re out. Unlock more than 10 characters in single-player career mode, go gut-to-gut against your friends in versus mode, or compete online using Nintendo® Wi-Fi Connection. Online play supports friend codes, random matchmaking and leader boards.

Virtual Console

Donkey Kong™ 3 (NES®, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone, 500 Wii Points): Based on the third game in the enormously popular arcade series, Donkey Kong 3 introduces an exterminator named Stanley as he desperately tries to protect the flowers in his greenhouse from Donkey Kong. Armed only with a can of bug spray, Stanley must force Donkey Kong higher and higher into the greenhouse rafters until Donkey Kong is off the screen and the next stage is reached. Not surprisingly, Donkey Kong isn’t going to move without a fight, so he sends wave after wave of bugs, bees and other creatures toward Stanley. Not only must Stanley repel the insects in order to save the flowers, but he’ll also have to keep an eye out for projectiles thrown by Donkey Kong himself. If Stanley is good enough, he’ll be able to grab a can of more powerful bug spray and really get Donkey Kong moving. It all adds up to frantic fun that anyone can enjoy.

NINJA COMMANDO (NEOGEO, 1-2 players, Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older-Mild Language, Fantasy Violence, 900 Wii Points): NINJA COMMANDO is a vertically scrolling action game released by ADK in 1992. Players choose from among three ninjas-Joe, descended from the Koga ninja; Rayar, a woman who has learned the ways of the Iga ninja; and Ryu, descendant of the famous ninja Fuma Kotaro-as they pursue the merchant of death known as Spider, who plans to use a time machine to bring havoc to the world. The battle spans seven time periods, including the Stone Age, the Egyptian era and the Japanese Civil War era. Each hero features a variety of attack options in addition to their own normal attacks, including a deadly attack that inflicts damage upon all enemies on the screen, special ninja-arts attacks performed by inputting specific commands, and a powerful attack unleashed by taking on the “shape of the beast” when three scrolls have been collected. The game also supports two-player cooperative play, so you’re welcome to bring a friend and enjoy taking on the evil Spider together.

For more information about Wii, please visit wii.com.

[via Nintendo PR]

We have news on two upcoming WiiWare titles. The first bit of news is that Major League Eating will release in the US this Monday, so you’ll be able to download it then. The second bit is that the Bomberman WiiWare title has been re-named to Bomberman Blast. It was delayed before and Hudson said that is because they want to make sure the 8 player online play runs smoothly. Bomberman with 8 players and online sounds amazing to me!

[Via NeoGAF]

I know a lot of you do not like the Everybody Votes Channel.  I agree that sometimes, the questions can be quite odd, but I think it’s still fun to find out what everybody answers.  My fiance really enjoys it too — maybe even more than me.  Anyway, I thought I’d share with everyone this sad fact.  As of tomorrow, I will be gone for 2 weeks.  While I am gone, I will be away from my Wii, which means this will be the first time I’ll miss a EVC question.  So, after 251 votes, I wanted to share my Voting Data with you.  I have won 180 and lost 67 (some questions have yet to come in) with a prediction accuracy of 72.8%.  I currently have 449 points and am 3.6m from the popular opinion.  My highest was when I had 463 points and was 78cm from the popular opinion (at vote count 224).  I was curious about a few things:
1) Who still uses this channel?
2) Is there is anyone else out there who has yet to miss a vote?
3) What’s your voting data like?

Update: Game Over, thanks everyone.  Winner a prizes will be posted tomorrow

Winners, please contact me with your top three prizes listed.
- James (got your email!)
- Age (got your email!)
- Young Link

Archives of the live feed: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/wiinintendo.net

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The game will start at 8:00 EDT.  You’ll see the feed above go in and out until about 7:30EDT.

To change your name in the chat above type “/nick [yourname]“, obviously replace [yourname] with the screen name you want to use.

TO JOIN:

Post your friend code in the chat above, the comments below, or in our forums!
Then add me to your friend list:
1547-5286-1794

Prizes:
WarioWare - Smooth Moves
RedSteel
Madden ‘07
Super Monkey Ball
Free Loader
Wii fan mod
Wii glowing faceplate
component cables
DS case mods
20$ wii point cards

There will be prizes, live feed, chat, etc..

Prizes include:

WarioWare - Smooth Moves
RedSteel
Madden ‘07
Super Monkey Ball
Free Loader
Wii fan mod
Wii glowing faceplate
component cables
DS case mods
20$ wii point cards

SO:

This Saturday at 8pm EDT (The photo is wrong above, I have to climb back up the pole and change it…), that’s 5pm PDT, midnight for people in the UK, and 10am for Australia.  Check what time this is at your location

Hit up our forums to vote on a game and get details:

1. Vote in Poll for which game you’d like to play (voting ends July 4th)
2. Say “You’re in” or “Can’t Make it”

JOIN IN OUR FORUM, WIIFUSE

The Japanese Mario Kart Wii website has updated with info about the next Tournament over WiFi. This new challenge has you collecting a certain number of Coins in Coconut Mall in your fastest possible time.

Click here to go to the JP site and see for yourself!

Starts: July 1st

Ends: July 10th

[via WiiFolder]

Below are 3 direct feeds of “Alone in the Dark”, “Top Spin 3″, and “Guitar Hero III: Aerosmith”. Also don’t forget my “My first 25 min. w/ Mario Super Sluggers, direct feed” posted yesterday.

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My first 10 min. w/ Top Spin 3, direct feed:

Features:
* New gameplay controls: Wiimote and Nunchuk.  It works rather well, the controls were responsive, but working on timing took a bit to get down.
* Signature style: The world’s best players are accurately depicted like never before with actual apparel, equipment and swing animations.
* Tennis legends: For the first time ever, play with or against legendary figures of the tennis world.
* Mini Game Mode - Of course this is in the Wii version…
* All-new soundtrack: New music is included featuring Jamiroquai, Calvin Harris, Boys Like Girls, The Go! Team, Stone Roses, and Franz Ferdinand.

Playable Characters:

Men
James Blake, Tommy Haas, Gael Monfils, Andy Murray, Rafael Nadal (PlayStation 3 Exclusive)[2], David Nalbandian, Andy Roddick, Mark Philippoussis, Tomas Berdych, Mario Ancic, Roger Federer.

Women
Justine Henin, Svetlana Kuznetsova, Amelie Mauresmo, Maria Sharapova, Nicole Vaidisova, Caroline Wozniacki.

Classic legends
Boris Becker, Bjorn Borg, Monica Seles.

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My first 17 min. w/ Guitar Hero III: Aerosmith, direct feed:

Plot - A departure from other games in the game franchise, Guitar Hero: Aerosmith will follow the career of Aerosmith, by playing significant songs in their catalog in a ‘rough chronological fashion’.

The gameplay will follow the band through various periods in its history, spanning from its first show at Mendon Nipmuc Regional High School in 1970 to the 2001 Super Bowl XXXV halftime show, to their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 19th, 2001.

The game will not focus on internal strife and stress within the band; Guitarist Joe Perry stated that the game would focus on the positive aspects of Aerosmith’s history.

Perry has stated that “Having a game built around Aerosmith has been a huge honor and really a great experience for us. We’ve put a lot of ideas into the game so that fans can have fun interacting with our music, getting inside our body of work and learning about the band’s history.”

Even though the player will be able to play as Aerosmith, they will start the setlists as the original band from Guitar Hero III with a rhythm character added as the opening act. After the player has played a song with the characters from Guitar Hero III, Aerosmith will make a dramatic entrance and the player will start the journey through Aerosmith’s career.

Tracklist - “Song” Artist

“All Day and All of the Night” The Kinks
“All the Young Dudes” Mott the Hoople
“Always on the Run” Lenny Kravitz
“Back in the Saddle” Aerosmith
“Beyond Beautiful” Aerosmith
“Cat Scratch Fever” Ted NugentTed Nugent
“Bright Light Fright” Aerosmith
“Combination” Aerosmith
“Complete Control” The Clash
“Draw the Line” Aerosmith
“Dream On” Aerosmith
“Dream Police” Cheap Trick
“Guitar Battle vs Joe Perry” Joe Perry
“Hard to Handle” The Black Crowes
“I Hate Myself for Loving You” Joan Jett
“King of Rock” Run-D.M.C.
“Kings and Queens” Aerosmith
“Let The Music Do The Talking” Aerosmith
“Livin’ on the Edge” Aerosmith
“Love in an Elevator” Aerosmith
“Make It” Aerosmith
“Mama Kin” Aerosmith
“Mercy” Joe Perry
“Movin’ Out” Aerosmith
“No Surprize” Aerosmith
“Nobody’s Fault” Aerosmith
“Pandora’s Box” Aerosmith
“Personality Crisis” New York Dolls
“Pink” Aerosmith
“Rag Doll” Aerosmith
“Rats In The Cellar” Aerosmith
“Sex Type Thing” Stone Temple Pilots
“Shakin My Cage” Joe Perry
“She Sells Sanctuary” The Cult
“Sweet Emotion” Aerosmith
“Talk Talkin” Joe Perry
“Toys In The Attic” Aerosmith
“Train Kept A Rollin” Aerosmith
“Uncle Salty” Aerosmith
“Walk This Way” Run-D.M.C. featuring Aerosmith
“Walk This Way” Aerosmith

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My first 40 min. w/ Alone in the Dark, direct feed:

Plot - Set during 2008, the story continues with Edward Carnby, the main protagonist from the original game, looking for answers to strange supernatural and bizarre occurrences while battling his way through the opposition in New York City’s Central Park.

The game story centers around rumors, allegations, and suspicions of clandestine activity in tunnels found below the park.

Subjects of investigation include possibly mutated trees, unusual aviary migration behavior in the park, astounding insect invasion problems, as well as the park’s value in real-estate; which is stated to be in excess of $528,783,552,000, a finding produced in 2007. In addition, the park’s value is compared to the national defense budget, with the park being 26% higher in value than the defense budget in 2007. Also, to further support rumored reports of tunnels found below the park, it is said that the atom bomb was invented by instigation of the Manhattan Project (Central Park is located in Manhattan). Conclusively, at the time of writing, there is a historical reference to a treaty between The Dutch and The English in 1667, in which The Dutch gained the island of Run in exchange for the Manhattan Islands.

Alone in the Dark will develop ties between these mysterious aspects of the park, while dealing with supernatural elements as well.

My Impressions:

Deep down, there is a really interesting game here, but my impressions would be best expressed with bullet points:

- Too Dark, not evil/dark or scary/dark, dark/dark.  I couldn’t see a damn thing and had to turn up my TV’s contrast to make out things.
- Not able to skip cut scenes even after you already saw them, some last for 3-4 minutes
- Controls are horrendous, not because of the Wiimote.  I’m sure on any platform they would be terrible, except maybe when you have to drive the car, that was hell.
- Storyline was great, decent voice acting, and some really great environment interactions

I know many (if not most) of you are upset with the Friend Code system on the Wii and DS.  In fact, you have probably tried several ways to get around the process of sharing your new 12-16 digit number every time you get a new Wi-Fi game.  Might I suggest one more?  Because Facebook is quickly becoming one of the most popular social networks online (some even say the best), you may want to look there to share your FC’s.  Some of you have probably already tried these applications, but if you haven’t, I suggest that you do.  I have tried several, and I would like to review and suggest a few.

My first goal was to find applications that shared FC’s for individual games.

• Guitar Hero 3 Stats:  This is the first one I found.  It’s actually the best, in terms of an individual game application.  The reason is because you can access your GH3 stats through their website (not Nintendo run), and then import them to your profile page.
• Mario Kart Wii:   This is pretty cool.  You can share your FC and post it in a cool looking box on your profile.  However, it does not have a search feature where you can see who else is posting theirs.  You actually have to go to their profile page and just look.
• My Smash Code:   You can add your SSBB FC to your profile in a small little box and then see other friends who’ve added it.  Not too bad but nothing exciting.

I then tried to find applications that shared your Wii Number along with your games.

• Wii Would Like to Play:  This seems like a cool application.  You can add your Wii #, all the games you own, and the FC for each Wi-Fi game.  This seems to only be for the Wii (obviously), and it is rather simple.  You can also see a list of your friends who have installed this application and added their info, along with searching through everyone else.
• Gamertags:  This is an application enables you to add your Wii #, Wii FC’s, DS FC’s, and others (XB360, PS3, and PC).  I just added this one, and it seems to work well.  There doesn’t seem to be a lot of people using this one, as it seems very homemade.

I’m sure, if you’ve been watching TV, surfing the web, or watching the Nintendo Channel on Wii, you’ve been seeing several commercials featuring 3 famous women and our beloved Nintendo DS.  According to these commercials (and the website started for this endeavor), America Ferrera has been playing New Super Mario Bros., Carrie Underwood keeps busy with Nintendogs, and Liv Tyler is training her brain with Brain Age 2.  Is this an effort to sell the DS, market it more to females, or sell these specific games?  I say all 3.  No matter the reason, I’d recommend checking out iplayforme.com.  You can check out the videos and behind-the-scenes shots with the 3 ladies, which I’ve got to say is quite humorous.  You can also see a list of recommended games and learn about the DS (as if you don’t already know what it is).  All I can say is that with this additional promotion of the Nintendo DS, I’m ready for more interconnectivity with the Wii.  Anyone with me?