Wii-kly WiiWare and Virtual Console Update - 10/13/08

Another week, and another batch of four new games to download for your Wii. Nintendo's on a roll.

I've been hearing nothing but good things about today's WiiWare release of World of Goo. Created by fellow gay gamer and friend of GayGamer.net Kyle Gabler and his business partner Ron Carmel, the game has some seriously addicting physics-based puzzle gameplay. If you want to support indie developers (and you should) then World of Goo is some of the best you'll get. It might be a little pricier than the typical WiiWare game, but as some early reviews have noted, it's more fun and fleshed out than some of the full-priced retail games for Wii. Plus, the art style is absolutely beautiful, so you really can't go wrong.

Nintendo also dropped a bombshell this week in the form of the SNES classic Secret of Mana. So those wanting to relive one of the greatest RPGs of all time will finally get the chance to do so.

For those who don't want to play with gooey physics or 16-bit fantasy, Nintendo has released Street Fighter II: Special Champion Edition from the Sega Genesis and a new entry it the Art Style series with Art Style: CUBELLO. The last Art Style game was actually really good, so gamers wanting something unique (after you've already played World of Goo to death) might want to check it out.

WiiWare

• World of Goo (2D Boy, 1-4 players, Rated E for Everyone--Comic Mischief, 1,500 Wii Points): World of Goo is an award-winning, physics-based puzzle/construction game made entirely by two guys. Grab living, squirming, talking globs of goo to build structures, bridges, cannonballs, zeppelins and giant tongues. The millions of Goo Balls that live in the beautiful World of Goo are curious to explore--but they don't know that they are in a game, or that they are extremely delicious. World of Goo Corporation is contractually obligated to state that everyone is a winner, and is enthusiastic to celebrate everyone's Goo building opportunities equally.

• Art Style: CUBELLO (Nintendo, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 600 Wii Points): Art Style: CUBELLO mixes the strategy and feel of a traditional puzzle game with the precision and reflexes required in a shooter. As each stage begins, various colored cubes form into one large object called a Cubello, which floats and rotates as you play. Launch additional cubes from your magazine and try to connect four or more of the same color, removing them from the Cubello and eventually leaving only its core. Take on the challenge of either Stage or Endless mode and watch what happens when Bonus Time is activated. The straightforward controls and goal ensure that anyone can play, while offering enough depth that even advanced players will find themselves quickly addicted to the unique world of Art Style: CUBELLO.

Virtual Console

• SECRET OF MANA (Super NES, 1-3 players, Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older--Mild Fantasy Violence, Mild Suggestive Themes, 800 Wii Points): Good and evil battle for a young warrior's heart. There is one force in the universe that keeps good and evil in perfect balance. It is called the tree of Mana. But a magic sword has tricked a young warrior into upsetting this balance, spreading evil throughout the land. Thus, the warrior must undertake a dangerous journey to find the seeds of the Mana tree, which have been hidden for centuries. Only then can perfect harmony be restored. In this incredible adventure, things are not as they seem. Magic swords release evil as well as fight it. Treasure chests hold booby traps. Monsters are friends and friends are enemies. Potions give power, black magic takes it away. Dragons fly, weapons change. It's a world turned upside down that you must help the warrior make right. And the only way to succeed is to solve the Secret of Mana.

• STREET FIGHTER II: SPECIAL CHAMPION EDITION (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, Rated T for Teen--Violence, 800 Wii Points): STREET FIGHTER II': SPECIAL CHAMPION EDITION was the first STREET FIGHTER game released for the Sega Genesis console. The STREET FIGHTER series can be considered one of the first fighting games to popularize competitive video game fighting. This version of the game contains both the CHAMPION and HYPER rule sets, from the two editions released in the arcades. It also introduced an exclusive Group Battle mode that is now a general feature in most fighting games. Play as one of 12 different characters, each with their own distinctive fighting style. Try single-player mode or challenge a friend in this legendary, classic fighting game.