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Virtual Console 6/25, 6/18, And 6/11: Okay, We Missed A Few Weeks
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Nintendo, Retro, Virtual Console, Wii,
Things happen, and sometimes we miss things. But, in case you weren’t paying attention, let’s pretend like there are nine new Virtual Console games available today! Wow! Yet somehow the number of good games in there equates to about one per week… for shame, Nintendo. We gave you three weeks to get us the goods, and we only get THREE good games at most? Let’s take a look at the list:
- F-Zero X
- Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting
- China Warrior
- Lode Runner
- Sonic the Hedgehog 2
- Golden Axe II
- NES Open Tournament Golf
- World Sports Competition
- Bloody Wolf
Given their prices, there aren’t even three games in their worth their price tags. But at least I can feel like I’m playing a good Sonic game, which is a rarity these days.
Details for all of the games after the break.
Click to continue reading Virtual Console 6/25, 6/18, And 6/11: Okay, We Missed A Few Weeks
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The Adults Only Manhunt 2 Saga
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Corporate News, Nintendo, PlayStation 2, PSP, Survival Horror, Take2, Wii,
Take Two is in what we call a pickle. Manhunt 2, set for release on July 10, has received a preliminary ESRB rating of Adults Only. Initially, this was believed to be a major problem due to the fact that some major retailers – such as Walmart – wouldn’t carry the game. Walmart composes a significant portion of the videogame retail market, making the AO rating a major blow.
Then came word that Nintendo doesn’t allow AO-rated games to appear on its systems. In other words, no Manhunt 2 on Wii, or at least not until the game receives a lower rating.
But as with books, television and movies, different content is meant for different audiences. That’s why the ESRB provides ratings to help consumers understand the content of a game before they purchase it. As stated on Nintendo.com, Nintendo does not allow any AO-rated content on its systems.
How about Sony, who was supposed to see the game land on both the PlayStation 2 and PSP?
Currently it’s SCE’s policy not to allow the playback of AO rated content on our systems.
So where does this leave Take Two and Rockstar? They’re left with a very limited number of options, none of which are particularly attractive.
Click to continue reading The Adults Only Manhunt 2 Saga
Play Smash Bros. Brawl With Four Different Controllers
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Fighting, Nintendo, Wii,
If you haven’t already heard, then you’ll be excited to know that in addition to the previously-confirmed GameCube controller compatibility that Smash Bros. Brawl will feature, you’ll also have three other controller options: Wiimote + Nunchuk, Wiimote turned on its side, or the Classic Controller. This was confirmed on the official Smash Bros. DOJO!! website on Friday, and while details weren’t included, we can infer a few things based upon this news. The fact that the Wiimote only has the 1, 2 and A buttons on its face that are within easy reach (I doubt gameplay itself would require any use of the + or – buttons) and the B trigger underneath, the controls will have to be fairly simple. The news post alludes to more news coming on how exactly the controls will work with the Wiimote, but expect some sort of motion control to be involved. It’ll be interesting to see how the different control schemes mesh with one another.
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| Smash Bros. DOJO!!
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Virtual Console 6/4: Zelda 2, And 1000 Games Per Hour
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Action, Adventure, Nintendo, SEGA, Virtual Console, Wii,
Today’s release of Zelda 2 marks the 100th release on the Virtual Console – not too bad of a library, considering it’s only been a little over 6 months in the making. Nintendo announced a few details about the VC, but first, let’s get to what you really want to know: this week’s list of releases.
Four games saw release today: Zelda II - The Adventure of Link (NES, 500 points), Dead Moon (TurboGrafx16, 600 points), Milon’s Secret Castle (NES, 500 points), and Toe Jam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron (Sega Genesis, 800 points). Not a bad list, and while you may love or hate Zelda, the other three cater to different audiences very nicely.
According to Nintendo, more than 4.7 million games have been downloaded from the VC, which equates to more than 1,000 games purchased an hour since the Wii’s release. Not too shabby considering these games don’t have demos available for them. (Or maybe that’s why they manage to sell so many?) Super Mario Bros. on the NES is the platform’s best selling game, followed by Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, Super Mario World, and The Legend of Zelda.
Click to continue reading Virtual Console 6/4: Zelda 2, And 1000 Games Per Hour
More Than 5 Million Gamers Have Used DS’ Wi-Fi Service
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Corporate News, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Wireless,
Since its launch in November 2005, over five million DS owners have connected to the dual-screened system’s online gaming service. More than 60 games make use of it, some even featuring VoIP communication – most notably, the recent Pokemon Diamond/Pearl. Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime is excited with the news, stating, “The milestones represent millions of hours of fun and camaraderie despite miles between players.”
Reggie also went on to tout the fact that it’s a free service that allows for global competition. He didn’t happen to mention the inevitable frustration the system’s friend codes have caused, but we’ll let that slide for now, especially when you look at the figure for total number games played: more than 200 million.
Read More | GamesIndustry.biz
Smash Bros. Wii Site Updates w/ Pit Information
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Fighting, Nintendo, Screenshots, Wii,
OK, so the countdown to the Smash Bros. site going live was somewhat of a letdown… but if this week’s news is any indication, things might start heating up on the site real soon now. This week, we’re treated to some more info about Pit, the new character of Kid Icarus fame. He can fly! He can shoot arrows! He can do all those things you’d expect a cupid-like kid to be able to do! Alright, so it’s not exactly groundbreaking but there are some pretty cool screencaps!
Head over to the official smash bros site to see the latest postings… or just click the jump below for the new screens!
Click to continue reading Smash Bros. Wii Site Updates w/ Pit Information
Read More | Smash Bros. Dojo!!!
Virtual Console 4/21: I’m Blown Away By The Awesomeness
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Action, Nintendo, Retro, Virtual Console, Wii,
Following several weeks of overall disappointing releases, Nintendo has dropped three top-notch titles onto the Virtual Console this week. Now available are Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy Kong’s Quest, Streets of Rage 2, and Blazing Lasers. You may not be familiar with that last one, but it’s an excellent vertical-scrolling shooter – and it’s definitely worth the price tag at $6. And unless you’ve played them to death, there’s no reason to not pick up DKC2 and SoR2 for $8 apiece.
Descriptions after the break.
Click to continue reading Virtual Console 4/21: I’m Blown Away By The Awesomeness
Gaming at the Maker Faire: Huge NES, Doom3 Mods, and More
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Culture, Nintendo, PC, Puzzle,
The Maker Faire was held this past weekend at the San Mateo Fairgrounds in sunny California. For those of you who haven’t heard, it’s basically a huge collection of engineering- and creativity-inclined nerds having fun with robots, fire, accelerometers, and anything else they can get their hands on.
Well of course, any time you get that many nerds together in one place, there’s going to be some gaming involved. Here’s a quick summary of the gaming-related wackiness that could be seen at the Maker Faire, with more pictures and videos after the jump. Exhibits included:
- A huge, working 2-person-sized NES controller
- The Doom 3 Case Mod From Hell (nyuk nyuk!) with working air-locks and remote control integrated display
- Push-button LED Tetris
- A life-sized crocheted Atari 2600, complete with 2 joysticks and TV displaying Adventure **
- Microsoft reps using Wii remotes to control RC Cars (I kid you not… I asked them if this was a conflict of interests and they laughed) **
- Build-your own accelerometer-based game interface using gloves, a flyswatter, or a frying pan **
** = Not pictured. The Faire was totally overwhelming, which affected my photo-taking abilities. Sorry!
Oh, and there was a huge Tesla Coil that shot 14.7 million volts. That was OK too I guess 😉
Click the jump for more pix and movies!
Click to continue reading Gaming at the Maker Faire: Huge NES, Doom3 Mods, and More
Read More | MakerFaire 2007
Nintendo’s Megaton Morning: Metroid in Summer, Smash Bros. Live
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Trailers, Wii,
Nintendo certainly gave Wii gamers some reasons to be excited this morning. First off, we have the announcement of titles that will hit the little white box this summer. It looks like August 20th is going to belong to Nintendo - not only will Metroid Prime 3 hit, but Brain Age 2, the sequel to the smash hit for the DS, will be launching as well. The pairing of these two titles seems like a pretty strong statement that Nintendo is indeed going after both the “core” and “casual” gamers, respectively.
There’s some more great surprises in the list, but we won’t spoil it all for you here. So, click that jump for all the summer release dates!
Oh, and if you needed another reason to get excited, the Smash Bros. Dojo!! site should be going live in a matter of hours.
Click to continue reading Nintendo’s Megaton Morning: Metroid in Summer, Smash Bros. Live
Countdown To New Super Smash Bros. Website
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Fighting, Internet, Nintendo, Rumors, Wii,
No, not a countdown to the release of the game. The official Super Smash Bros. Brawl website has been updated with a countdown to the launch of a new official game website. Next week we’ll see its unveiling and hopefully, in the process, learn some new information about the game. Maybe some screenshots, character lists, or (crosses fingers) word on online play? Given that we’ve heard next to nothing about Brawl, any tidbit will undoubtedly be drooled over by Wii owners dying for the next big thing.
Be sure to keep your eyes open for the release of the website.
Read More | Smash Bros. Dojo
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