Wii-kly WiiWare And Virtual Console Update 12/1/08

For the first week of December we get another two WiiWare games and one Virtual Console classic. In honor of the 30th anniversary of the Space Invaders series, today we get Space Invaders Get Even, a game that lets you control the brightly colored, blocky invaders for a change as you set out to destroy all human civilization. The game looks great and it seems like you control the invaders Pikmin-style, but be careful. Get Even was originally supposed to be a full retail release, meaning the shift to WiiWare has broken the game into smaller chunks. The base game is only 500 points, but that's only one mission. To get the full game and its additional 6 missions it'll cost you an additional 1500 points and add up to almost 700 blocks of memory. Maybe if Nintendo allowed us to play games from the SD card....but now I'm just talking crazy.

For those of you who are fans of unnecessary exclamation points, the WiiWare also sees the release of Pit Crew Panic! which will have you controlling a cheerleader-like pit crew to repair everything from cars to castles and cakes. The game looks delightfully bizarre, so it might be worth the points if your in the mood for something quick, odd, and fun.

This week's sole Virtual Console release is good, but hard to actually recommend. It's Metal Slug 2 which is a great classic shooter. The Metal Slug series is one of my favorites with frantic action and amazing sprite animation. The problem is, Metal Slug Anthology came out as one of the Wii's launch titles and packed Metal Slug 1-6 as well as Metal Slug X. It's hard to recommend buying just Metal Slug 2 when you can get it as well as 6 other Metal Slug games for about double the price of just the one. Although Metal Slug Anthology doesn't support the classic controller, so there's that advantage for the Virtual Console release.

Here's the full rundown of today's WiiWare and Virtual Console releases.

WiiWare

• SPACE INVADERS GET EVEN (Taito, 1 player, Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older-Cartoon Violence, 500 Wii Points): The Space Invaders are back, and this time they're out to get even. Take control of a UFO and make those Earthlings pay by unleashing your fleet of heroic invaders against their puny tanks, fighter jets and artillery-but watch out for the massive boss awaiting you at the end of each stage. Use your invaders' five attack types and the might of the mother ship to rack up high scores, then upload them via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection and see where you stand in the global rankings.
• Pit Crew Panic! (Hudson Entertainment, 1-4 players, Rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): Pit Crew Panic! is a frantic, action-packed game that unfolds on the racing circuit. During the game, the pit crew is not only faced with repairing vehicles, but also various WHATSITs. Handling the WHATSIT repairs is a pit crew made up of legendary beauties. The controls are simple: Just grab a member of the crew with the Wii Remote controller's A Button, then release the button when the Pointer is over the damaged PART, and that crew member will begin repairs. Assign repairs to the members of your team and provide support using the Wii Remote to send a fully repaired WHATSIT out of the pit as quickly as you can. The game features Normal mode, which can be played using one of two rules: Abnormal mode (players split into two teams and compete against each other) and Ranking mode (compete with players around the world for the top record). Each mode can be played with a maximum of four Wii Remote controllers, allowing you to team up with friends and family. Your teamwork could lead to outstanding records.

Virtual Console

• METAL SLUG 2 (NEOGEO, 1-2 players, Rated T for Teen-Blood and Gore, Violence, 900 Wii Points): Released in 1998 by SNK, METAL SLUG 2 is a side-scrolling military-action game. Players choose from Marco, Tarma, Eri and Fio, setting their sights on wiping out Morden's newly remobilized Rebellion Army. Just like the original METAL SLUG, players blaze a trail by shooting and jumping, but METAL SLUG 2 adds a new arsenal for you to command, including a heavy machine gun, a shotgun and even a laser gun, providing players with rich variety. Battle effects are packed in, as well-players turn into mummies after getting caught in poison gas coughed up by mummies. After picking up too many food items, characters turn fat, but they get an attack-strength upgrade. Two-player action is supported, too, so players can have a blast with their friends.

The Family That Games Together

I always look forward to Thanksgiving with my family. The food is amazing (gained 8 pounds in one meal) and it's nice to catch up with cousins that I haven't seen since, well, most likely last year's Thanksgiving. But what I look forward to most though is the games. My family is a family of gamers. Mostly it's board and card games with Risk, Clue, Settlers of Catan, Boggle, Scrabble, Apples to Apples, and Hearts being the driving force behind our family interactions. In hopes of expanding my family's game repertoire I brought my consoles along with some games to this year's Thanksgiving. Boom Blox was by far the family favorite, with everyone wanting to join in and try their hand at knocking down some towers. Mario Kart Wii,Tetris Party, and Little Big Planet were also games that I got my whole family to play, and it was great to see my family of board gamers expanding into the virtual realm. The highlight though was showing my cousin Fallout 3, since he lives in Washington D.C. He'd point out street signs and landmarks I hadn't noticed, and was generally laughing the whole time at what the game predicted for his hometown. "My house is right around that gaping hole in the ground." Oh the family memories.

Do you game with your family at all? Not just videogames, but board games and card games as well. Have you ever tried bringing videogames into the mix? Tell us your own family game stories. Or if you don't have any stories yet, go try and make some family game time. After all, the family that games together has more fun together.

Nintendo Not Satisfied Until It Tops Ocarina Of Time

Well, I can't actually speak for all of Nintendo, but Zelda series director Eiji Aonuma at least isn't satisfied to rest on his laurels. To celebrate the tenth anniversary since Ocarina of Time's release, Nintendo Power did an interview with Aonuma looking back at the classic and also looking forward at the future of the series and the not-so-secret Zelda game currently in development.

I'm happy that a title I worked on some time ago remains highly praised to this day, but that also shows how none of the subsequent games in the series have surpassed it. As someone who is still working on the series, I have mixed feelings about that. Because I haven't yet surpassed it, I can't quit. Surprisingly, that simply motivation may be the reason I continue to work on the Zelda series.

Do I sense a bit of a rivalry going on over at Nintendo? After all, Shigeru Miyamoto was the director for Ocarina of Time with Aonuma taking over directing duties starting with Majora's Mask. Sounds like a classic case of the disciple wanting to surpass their master to me. And I hope he pulls it off, because a Zelda game that can beat Ocarina of Time would be an amazing game.

As a quick aside, has it really been ten years already since Ocarina of Time released? I realize it is now two console generations later, but it still doesn't seem like it's been that long. Maybe it's because we haven't seen the same monumental shift in games since then like we did with the shift from 2D to 3D. There have been subtle shifts, like online gaming and HD graphics, but nothing that fundametally changes the way games are designed like the 3D shift did.

As for Zelda, though my opinion may be a little controversial, I have a suggestion for Aonuma on how to make a Zelda game to beat Ocarina of Time. He simply needs to play two games: Beyond Good & Evil and Okami. Those are the two games, in my opinion, that have managed to out-Zelda Zelda (yes, I used Zelda as a verb there). They capture the immersion in the world, puzzles, and dungeons that the Zelda series is known for, and then ups the ante. Beyond Good & Evil did so by crafting a story that was both epic and driven by character emotion rather than simply a need to save the world. Okami did so by seamlessly merging dungeons, towns, and the overworld so that the overall pace and flow of the game was more natural than a sequential town-dungeon-overworld rinse and repeat formula. If Aonuma can combine Beyond Good & Evil's personality and storytelling with Okami's pace and then bring it all into the masterful world of Hyrule with the characters and locations we all know and love, it will surely be a game to top Ocarina of Time.

Test of Time [Nintendo Power]
[via Kotaku]

Overlooked: Hotel Dusk Room 215

One of the breakaway hits on the Nintendo DS has been the Phoenix Wright series. Many gamers, like myself, hoped that from Phoenix Wright a rebirth (if you'll excuse the pun) of point-and-click games would emerge, but developers have been mostly avoiding the genre. What few point-and-click games are released are mostly ignored because of poor marketing. Hotel Dusk: Room 215 is one such hidden gem, and when I saw in a recent GameStop news letter that the game is being reprinted for the holidays as a part of Nintendo's "Touch Generation" series, I knew that I had to get the word out so this amazing game would not be ignored again. Hit the jump to find out why it would be a crime for this detective story to be overlooked again.

Review: Resistance 2

I did not like Resistance: Fall of Man. Let's just get that out the way first. Somewhere between the ruined landscapes painted only in shades of gray and brown and the fairly emotionless narrator driving the game forward, I realized that I just wasn't having very much fun. I turned it off and never looked back. Now our PS3 consoles are graced with a return to the Chimera-infested alternate history with Resistance 2. Having heard about numerous changes from the first game, I decided to give the sequel a shot. Did I finally find the PS3 first-person shooter I had been looking for, or would this be yet another game worth resisting? Read on after the jump.

Wii-kly WiiWare And Virtual Console Update 11/24/08

This week brings something new, something familiar, and something odd that I never thought I'd see again. First up is Boingz, the new physics-based puzzle game for WiiWare that has you flinging tiny, multicolored creatures around the level like rubber bands to open new paths and reach the goal. It's been getting a lot of positive press and was co-developed by Ninjabee, who has been responsible for some of the best games available for download on XBLA, so if you're looking for something new and sproingy (no it's not a word, but it should be) then give Boingz a shot. But if you're looking for something a bit more familiar you could also download Sudoku Challenge! You know it's good because the developer put an exclamation point at the end of the title. I personally never got into Sukoku puzzles, but if you're a fan then the WiiWare download's over 1 million puzzles is probably more than you'd find in $5 worth of Sudoku books. There's also a Grand Sukoku mode which has 5 Sukoku boards intersecting with one another, at which point my head starts spinning and I need to lie down.

Those looking for a blast from the past this turkey day week will be greeted by the Sega Genesis platformer Boogerman: A Pick and Flick Adventure. This game relies entirely on fart and snot jokes for it's theme, so I never expected it to see a virtual console release. I do remember having fun with it when I was a kid, but I can't remember if that was because the game was actually good or because that's what entertained my sense of humor when I was 8. Here's the full rundown of each game this fine Monday morning.

WiiWare

• Boingz (RealArcade, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Stretch, flex and flick your way to freedom. A truly mind-bending experience, Boingz introduces you to cute, colorful, stretchable friends lost in an alien world, searching for the magical gates that will take them home. Boingz springs to life with 30 levels of puzzle-platforming fun. The Boingz are bendy little critters that can be pulled, stretched and flicked from place to place like rubber bands. It's a team effort, as all the Boingz will have to work together to unwind the game's puzzles. What's more, many of the Boingz have fallen into a deep slumber, and you'll have to lead the stronger Boingz to find and wake up their sleepy friends. Explore surreal landscapes, sail through the air like a trapeze artist, walk along the seafloor, and collect the Twinklies to power up your elastic-powered flights.
• Sudoku Challenge! (Digital Leisure Inc., 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 500 Wii Points): Now's your chance to play the brain-busting puzzle game taking the world by storm. With over 100 million Sudoku puzzles, you'll never see the same puzzle twice in Sudoku Challenge! You can select the classic nine-by-nine Sudoku game boards as well as Grand Sudoku, which challenges you to complete five intersecting Sudoku boards simultaneously. Just a beginner? Don't worry-with three difficulty options, even a novice player can complete a Sudoku with ease. But if you're a seasoned pro, challenge yourself in Expert mode and test your true skills. It's time to get your thinking cap on and see how many Sudoku puzzles you can conquer.

Virtual Console

• Boogerman: A Pick and Flick Adventure (Sega Genesis, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone-Comic Mischief, 800 Wii Points): In this top pick from the Sega Genesis, play as Boogerman, the heroic alter ego of Snotty Ragsdale. While investigating Professor Stinkbaum's lab, Boogerman stumbles upon a strange machine that opens a portal to another dimension. Boogerman has a nose for adventure, but has he met his match in this sticky situation? Journey through dangerous worlds while battling wicked enemies like Fly Boy and Deodor Ant. Deal them a blow with Boogerman's super abilities: pick and flick with deadly precision, belch, and use his deadly signature stomp.

Square-Enix Goes Console Agnostic, Working On Downloadable Games

Despite their affinity for re-releasing their classic games, Square-Enix has been up to a lot more than business as usual. Between announcing Final Fantasy XIII for the Xbox 360, opening their first US development studio in LA, and creating at that studio their first game implementing middleware with The Last Remnant's use of Unreal Engine 3, Square-Enix is changing to become a more global company. Square-Enix US president John Yamamoto gives some insight into their philosophy for the changes.

With increased competition from overseas developers, Japanese companies must recognize the need to appeal to a broader audience.

Japanese videogame software sales represent less than 15 per cent of the global market. It's my job to communicate to our headquarters in Japan that the western market is growing rapidly and that it is extremely important for Square Enix to be a major global player.

And how does a company branch out into the broader global market? By releasing games on a broader selection of systems of course.

Not so long ago the PS2 dominated the market so if we developed an exclusive game for PS2 then we could enjoy a very good profit. But that time is already over. To maximize and spread our games to as many users as possible I think we have to go to multiformat - the Xbox 360, PS3 and also the PC as well.

The Japanese market is very strong and back when we could concentrate on developing games for just one console, business was very good. But the one-console market is over.

This multiformat strategy is already taking effect with Final Fantasy XIII, The Last Remnant, and most likely Star Ocean 4 coming out for both the Xbox 360 and PS3. But it doesn't stop there. Yamamoto also noted that one of the focuses of the new LA studio is going to be downloadable games, citing Xbox Live, WiiWare, and PSN all as services that Square-Enix will be releasing games for. They will also be experimenting more with middleware solutions after the success of working with Unreal Engine 3 for The Last Remnant. What will come from the downloadable games is anyone's guess. Will it be classic Square-Enix games ported for the thousandth time to a new system? An episodic RPG perhaps? Einhander 2? Only time will tell.

I've been expecting Square-Enix to go multiplatform in this console generation, and I'm happy to see that they're actually making an official statement supporting it. Development costs are just too high for a company to risk missing potential customers by releasing a game for only one system. Fanboys and Fangirls may whine that a series is no longer exclusive to their system of choice, but if they're a true fan of the games then it shouldn't make a difference. And that goes for all games, not just Final Fantasy.

Square Enix LA studio to focus on digital titles [gamesindustry.biz]

GTA IV Episodic DLC Revealed: Join A Biker Gang

Those 360 owners itching to return to Liberty City through the promised episodic content will be in for a bit of a surprise on February 17. Much like the Halo 3 Recon expansion, GTA IV's downloadable expansion will drop main character Niko Bellic in favor of new character Johnny Klebitz. Titled The Lost and Damned, it will follow Johnny's story as a member of Liberty City's biker gang The Lost. Rockstar Games VP of creative development was very tight lipped on story specifics though.

"Johnny is a very different character than Niko, with a very different background. I can't go into too much detail on the story, because we try not to give away too much plot before the game is released. But I can say that the story will show you a different side of Liberty City.

The story is not directly impacted by decisions you took in the main game, but tons of details and mysteries from the main story get explained, so it will add a lot of color to the main story."

A biker gang is definitely a new direction for the series so it will be interesting to see where Rockstar takes it from here. Rockstar also wants to reassure fans that the episodic content will provide hours of gameplay, although for a game like GTA that could just mean that they expect you to drive around the city aimlessly for hours. Analysts expect the DLC to run between $15-$20, so get those MS Points ready for February.

'Grand Theft Auto' yields road to the 'Lost and Damned' [USA Today]
[via Kotaku]

Indie Games Invade Xbox 360

Today the New Xbox Experience is finally upon us, and after I set it up and made my avatar I decided to wander around the new settings and features for a while. While exploring the marketplace I came across a new feature that I hadn't heard much about: Community Games. Community Games are indie games made using Microsoft's XNA toolset that haven't gone through the whole Microsoft certification process, but were ranked high enough by other members of the XNA community. There's already over 30 of them available, all of which have a free trial version as well as a full version with pricing similar to XBLA games. There are some really good and interesting games here, and I highly recommend checking out the selection. I have already fallen absolutely in love with the game Artoon for it's beautiful style and In The Pit which has you playing as a blind monster in a pit (the screen is completely black at all times) hunting and eating victims based purely on sound. Some other ones I highly recommend checking out are Being, Bloc, Blow, and Weapon of Choice.

Hit the jump for a full list of the Community Games available so far, as well as videos when available. And after you've looked at them online, check them all out on your 360 and post your own favorites.

Wii System Update Fights Piracy And Likes Keyboards

I woke up this morning to find that the blue light on my Wii was blinking. I had mail. I never get mail on my Wii, so I knew that it had to be something important. I quickly turned the system on and checked my message. Wii Menu version 3.4, oh goody! What does it do? Parental controls have been "enhanced" (though it doesn't say how), a USB Keyboard will now work with the Mii Channel, and "system functions have been improved" (another ambiguous and meaningless statement). Huh, not especially exciting after all.

But wait, what's this farther down in the message? Wii Menu version 3.4 hunts down and deletes any unauthorized save files on my Wii? So that's the real reason for the update. Come on Nintendo, keyboard support for the Mii Channel? If you want people who are using homebrew software on their Wii to update their systems, at least offer an update that they'll really feel that they need. I don't use any homebrew software, but if I did I just wouldn't download the update. Or at least, I wouldn't download it until I bought a new game that required the update, and by then the update would be hacked anyway. It's an endless cycle and I'm on the sidelines, amazed by the determination of both sides, and just wanting to play my games in peace.

Rare Teases At More Sequels in Banjo-Kazooie

Dear Rare,

Ok, I think the teasing has gone quite far enough. It was funny when you mentioned Killer Instinct 3 in your holiday card last year. I even got a chuckle out of the Killer Instinct pinatas. I never played much of the Killer Instinct games, so the teasing never really got to me. But then you had to go and do this teaser in Banjo Kazooie: Nuts & Bolts. Battletoads and Jet Force Gemini aren't names to be tossed around lightly. I had all but given up hope for sequels to either of those games since it seemed like you had forgotten about them. But now I can see that you had been thinking about them all along and doing nothing. Why Rare, why? Is my childhood just the punchline to some joke for you?

Some actual games had better start materializing from these teasers. You know what, I'll make it easy on you. It doesn't even have to be a new game at this point. I'd even be happy with XBLA releases of Battletoads and Jet Force Gemini. But if you do decide to make sequels, I just have one simple request: please put a new, and incredibly difficult, speeder bike level in Battletoads. I haven't had a game that challenging since, well, since I last played Battletoads.

Sincerely yours,
NaviFairy

P.S. what ever happened to It's Mr Pants?

Rare Drops A Massive Bombshell In Banjo Kazooie! [Cranky Gamers UK]

Wii-kly WiiWare And Virtual Console Update 11/17/08

This week the WiiWare gods have deemed to give us Strong Bad Episode 4: Dangeresque 3. Yes, it's been a long time coming, but Strong Bad's cop epic Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective is finally upon us. And as a game no less. Needless to say, for any Homestar Runner fan, this is a must buy, but just like the past episodes of Strong Bad's Cool Game For Attractive People, the game is still going to be hilarious and accessible to people that aren't as familiar with Homestar Runner (and if you aren't familiar with it yet, what are you waiting for). If laughing and joy aren't your thing, then you can always download this week's other WiiWare offering Target Toss Pro: Bags. Apparently tossing beanbags, or "cornhole" as the Nintendo marketing blurb calls it, is "the nation's hottest backyard and tailgate sensation." So if you want to experience the backyard and tailgate sensation of corn-holing with your Wii, then this is the game for you. Now if you'll excuse me, I feel absolutely filthy and need to take a shower.

But wait, I can't go yet, there are two new Virtual Console games this week. That's twice as many as last week! This week's theme: shooting aliens. First up we have Space Invaders: The Original Game from the SNES for anyone wanting to replace their other, unoriginal versions of Space Invaders. After all, it can never hurt to have an arcade-perfect port of a classic game. Then from the Sega Genesis side of the field we have Forgotten Worlds, a side-scrolling shooter by Capcom that boasts being one of the first games to allow 360-degree aiming and shooting.

Here's the full rundown of each game.

WiiWare

• Strong Bad Episode 4: Dangeresque 3 (Telltale Games, 1 player, Rated E10+ for Everyone 10 and Older - Alcohol and Tobacco Reference, Crude Humor, Mild Cartoon Violence, 1,000 Wii Points): Move over, generically buff action heroes. Strong Bad is here to show you how it's done in his hand-crafted cinematic masterpiece, Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective. You play Dangeresque, a dirty cop in pursuit of a little action and several big sacks of cash. Can our hero stay alive long enough to defeat his arch-nemesis, save the world and get the girl? Looks like he's gonna have to jump.
• Target Toss Pro: Bags (Incredible Technologies, 1-16 players, Rated E for Everyone, 700 Wii Points): Target Toss Pro: Bags is a new video game based on beanbag toss, the nation's hottest backyard and tailgate sensation. Bags - or Cornhole, as it's called in some parts of the country - originated in the Midwest in the 1960s and has since become a staple at outdoor social events from coast to coast. Similar to horseshoes, Bags is a deceptively simple yet extremely competitive game where players try to toss beanbags into a hole in a slightly raised platform or "box" for points. Whether at a tailgate party or a summer barbecue, the game has become a social focal point, and the unmistakable thud of bags hitting the box is now a universal party soundtrack.

Virtual Console

• SPACE INVADERS: The Original Game (Super NES, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): Experience one of gaming's iconic franchises in this perfect rendition of the arcade classic. Take aim at the field of invaders relentlessly marching toward you. Move quickly but carefully, using the barriers for protection as you avoid missiles fired by the aliens and try to destroy all of them before they reach the bottom of the screen. Further enhance the nostalgia by choosing from several modes that simulate different versions of the arcade game (such as upright cabinet or black-and-white). Or if you want to prove your superior skills to a friend, try the new VS mode and see who can stop the alien menace the quickest. All in all, it's pure gaming at its best, now with no quarters required.
• FORGOTTEN WORLDS (SEGA GENESIS, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone - Fantasy Violence, 800 Wii Points): FORGOTTEN WORLDS is a one- or two-player side-scrolling shooter made by CAPCOM. It was one of the first games to incorporate 360-degree aiming and shooting. This SEGA GENESIS version provides the same impact and intensity of the classic arcade game. In the 29th century, without warning, warships broke through the sky, loaded with fiendish aliens. They rained down fire, bombs, missiles and napalm, leaving the land barren and inhospitable. Humanity was enslaved and Earth became known as the Forgotten World. In a hidden place, a group of brave humans raised two male children in secret. They brought up the young men as warriors, training them for battle. The two warriors emerged as armed machines of might, strength and super power - the Nameless Ones. Fight the hateful invaders as the powerful Nameless Ones. Collect Zenny to upgrade your weapons and satellite, and free the planet.