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WiiWare – Nintendo’s New Downloadable Game Service
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Nintendo, Virtual Console, Wii,
Sure, the Wii already has the Virtual Console, but all we get there are straight ports of classic games. Great for those of us who may have missed games or want to play them again for nostalgia’s sake, and Nintendo & co. can make a ridiculous profit. Xbox Live Arcade, and PlayStation Network, to an extent, on the other hand, are home to original titles and encourage independent developers to create titles for the platforms.
WiiWare is Nintendo’s answer. We don’t have many details yet, but we know the first content for the platform should be appearing in early 2008. Pricing has not yet been announced.
Read More 
| Red Herring via Gear Live
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Virtual Console 7/2: A Different Take On Mario
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Nintendo, Retro, Virtual Console, Wii,
You either loved or heated Super Mario 2. With its choice of four characters to play as and plentiful numbers of turnips & co. to be tossed at enemies, it was clearly an acquired taste. If you’ve never had the chance to play it (for shame), you can now do so as it’s available on the Wii’s Virtual Console for 500 Wii Points. Joining Mario 2 are Ecco: The Tides of Time (800 points) and the unfortunately capitalized DRAGON SPIRIT (600 points).
Check out after the break for all the details.
Click to continue reading Virtual Console 7/2: A Different Take On Mario
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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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
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
Virtual Console 5/14 Releases: Pac-Man Is A Ninja, Apparently
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: Nintendo, Retro, Virtual Console, Wii,
Today saw the release of three moderately priced Virtual Console games – Pac-Man, Ninja Gaiden, and Ninja Spirit. I guess the logic was that Pac-Man is like a ninja; evading ghosts without being seen, only to strike when the opportunity (or those corner dots) present themselves. For $5, Pac-Man might be in over his head… which is coincidently his entire body. Pick up the XBLA version (which supports leaderboards and achievements) if you’re really interested in some nostalgia.
The official Nintendo descriptions for each game can be seen after the break.
Click to continue reading Virtual Console 5/14 Releases: Pac-Man Is A Ninja, Apparently
GoldenEye On Arcade Or Virtual Console? “It’s Possible,” Says Rare
Posted by Chris Pereira Categories: First Person Shooters, Nintendo, Rumors, Virtual Console, Wii, Xbox, Xbox 360, Xbox Live, Xbox Live Arcade, Xbox Live Marketplace,
GoldenEye 007 is one of those titles that most gamers have fond recollections of. Released in 1997, it was the first console FPS that really got it - that is, up until that point, everyone looked at FPSs as something that only worked on PCs. But with a solid combination of single player and multiplayer mayhem, it captured the hearts of N64 owners to the tune of eight million copies sold. It seems only natural that a classic of this caliber would eventually makes its way onto the Virtual Console.
But there’s one problem – when developer Rare was sold to Microsoft, the rights to the title became, as Rare put it, “… caught up in a convoluted web of rights the likes of which would make the Weaver from Perdido Street Station jealous. That doesn’t mean it won’t happen, just that a lot of people with a lot of different perspectives are involved.”
Click to continue reading GoldenEye On Arcade Or Virtual Console? “It’s Possible,” Says Rare
Read More | Scribes via Cubed3
Castlevania Heads To Virtual Console
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Nintendo, Retro, Virtual Console, Wii,
Headlining this week’s Virtual Console releases is the original Castlevania for the NES. At 500 points, gamers can explore the origins of the franchise as it appeared on the Nintendo Entertainment System. Those used to the later entries in the series will find this version somewhat limiting – the exploration elements and many of the control refinements wouldn’t appear until later releases. Instead, gamers will get six levels of sidescrolling platform action.
The other two releases this week could best be defined as “cult classics.” The Legend of the Mystical Ninja for the SNES probably didn’t have a huge following on its original release, but for 800 points gamers can experience the US-localized version of the Goemon series from Japan. The gameplay is fairly strong and graphically the game holds its own. Shockman is another arcade like title that mixes standard platforming stages with 2D shooting. At 600 points, the Turbografx16 title adds another quirky entry into the Virtual Console catalog.
Nintendo’s full press release continues below.
Click to continue reading Castlevania Heads To Virtual Console
It’s Official: Neo Geo Games Heading to Wii
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Nintendo, Retro, Virtual Console, Wii,
IGN.com announced today, via an interview with SNK Playmore USA President Ben Herman, that indeed, SNK is planning on bringing many of the classic titles for the ill-fated but well-powered Neo Geo console to the Wii’s VC service.
While the interview is scant on details (Herman dodges most of the real questions, like price, release dates, and number of titles), there are some interesting tidbits. For one, Herman says that he expects the VC titles to retail at “just a little above the Super NES price point”. Given that SNES titles are $8.00, and N-64 titles are $10.00, I think it’s a safe bet that thetitles will thus rest somewhere in the $9.00 range. He also notes that SNK has “120 different titles” to choose from. Finally, he discusses the possibility of bringing SNK compilations over to the Wii in disc form and notes that future compilations WILL be utilizing the classic controller (one of the only reasons I didn’t pick up Metal Slug Anthology was its awkward control schemes).
I think I may squeak with delight when I see King of Fighters in a VC update… for now we’ll just have to hold our breath and hope that SNK brings the best of the best to the Wii, hopefully in a timely fashion!
Read More | Wii.Ign.com
Punch Out!!, Virtua Fighter 2, Bonk’s Revenge Hit Virtual Console
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Internet, Nintendo, Retro, Virtual Console, Wii,
Are you ready to rumble??!? Seriously, are you ready to punch, kick and headbutt your way to victory? Well, for the strong amongst you, Nintendo brings you this week’s Wii Virtual Console titles, which includes Punch Out!! (NES), Virtua Fighter 2 (Genesis), and Bonk’s Revenge (TG-16), for the punchers, kickers, and headbutters, respectively.
Both Punch Out!! and Bonk’s Revenge bring back fond childhood memories (yes, I was one of THOSE kids that owned a TG-16), so I’ll probably pick them up, but it’ll be interesting to see how these titles have aged. What about the rest of you out in the ether? Anything catch your eye this week? Or are there titles you’ve been waiting for forever that STILL haven’t made it to the ol’ VC?
Read More | Wii.Nintendo.com
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