Team LA in Florida - Worlds 2008

Been a while I know. Been wanting to give the site an all new redesign and have everything point to our new URL (http://www.laotaku.com) but I’ve just been so busy.

Anyways, Worlds 2008 returns to where it all started 4 years ago; Florida! Team LA is back in the swamps and we’ll be posting new pics of the adventure every day/night. So make sure to keep coming back and see how we fair with the horrible heat, humidity, and crazy heavy rain (makes us glad we live in good ol’ Los Angeles, CA).

The check out the photo Gallery click here

Pokémon Caramelldansen - AX 2008

September 12 - National Video Games Day
WTF?

No idea when this happen but apperantly today, September 12th is National Video Games Day. To be honest, there are so many made up holidays for just about every day on the calendar that it’s not all that surprising. Just seems strange that not a single gamer ever knew about it.

Holiday Insights does state that eventhough research indicates today to be NVGD it has not been able to track down it’s origin, creator or any form of documentation that does indeed officially decree this day a Video Game Holiday. Whatever, as if we really needed an excuse to vege-out in front of the TV playing all day.

Avenue Q in Los Angeles ‘till October 14

Apperently Leo knew about this two months ago and never bothered mentioning it. The greatest Broadway Play in nerd culture that brought us greatt hits as “The Internet id for Porn” and “If you were gay” is now playing in Los Angeles.

Avenue Q - described as Seseme Street for adults - is now playing at the Ahmanson Theater in Downtown LA until October 14. Make sure you go see it’s in town ‘cause who knows when you’ll get another chance.

Zombie Fluxx on The Printers!

As everyone knows, Looney Labs been working on a Zombie Version Of Fluxx with new game mechanic called Creepers.
Well, good news for all those who can’t wait to get their hands on it!

The started printing them and will start shipping on the first week of October!
And they are accepting Pre-Orders! So go to FluxxGames site and order it!

Hawaii Adventure Part 1

Toilet Troubles

Team LA Webcomic Debut
The One Comic to rule them all...

*Ahem* I am proud to announce that the first comic has launched today on June 19, 2007. You can find it in the “comic” section of the site, of course. There will be much more to come, and the comic will most likely be a weekly thing, depending how busy I am.

ENJOY!

Socky Shenanigans

From Safari for Windows… Hell has frozen over!

In a surprising turn of events, Steve Jobs - CEO of Apple - just backhand bitch slaped Microsoft and Mozilla with the announcement of the Safari 3 - Mac OS X’s new browser which will be availble on Lepeord this October - now being available on Windows XP and Vista at the Apple World Wide Developers Conference that kicked off today. A Public Deta of the browser is now available for download for both PC and Mac.

In fact, this news post was done on the beta and it’s working like a sharm for me (can’t say the same about Ricky).

Chatsworth Spring Battle Road ‘07
The Battle to Worlds starts here!

Where:
Always Gaming
21032 Devonshire St.
Chatsworth, CA 91311
(818) 886-4263 (Store)
(213) 458-2180 (Organizer - Miguel)
neoGreatFox@pokemonlabs.com (email)

When:
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Registration will start at 11:30am.
Tournament will start at 12:30pm.

Entrance Fee:
FREE!!

Main Event Staff:
Tournament Organizer: Miguel Campos
Floor Judge: TBA

Main Event Tournament Structure:
The Main event will be held as a Modified Constructed Age-Modified Swiss Tournament.
Every participant will be placed into one of three age Catagories.
Number of Swiss Rounds will depend on attendance.

Decks must be 60 cards and consist only cards released in:
•EX Deoxys and on (including up to Diamond and Pearl)
•EX Trainer Kit 2,
•POP Series 2 Promo Cards
•POP Series 3 Promo Cards
•POP Series 4 Promo Cards
•All Black Star Promos numbered 029 and up
•Reprinted cards from older sets are also OK

Remember to also bring you POP ID. If you do not have a POP ID, one will be provided for you.

Main Event Prize Structure:
Prizes are awarded to the top 2 players in each age category.

Our age groups are:

Junior Division: Born 1996 or later

Senior Division: Born in 1992, 1993, 1994, or 1995

Masters Division: Born in 1991 or earlier

Top 4 finishers in each of the 3 age categories receive the following prizes:

1st Place
•8 Pokémon TCG: Diamond Pearl Booster Packs
•An addiional 4 packs of Dragon Frontiers
•Paid all-you-can-eat Pizza at Pizzatopia after the Tournament.*
•A Victory Medal —Gold promo card
•Extra Pokémon Product

2nd Place
•4 Pokémon TCG: Diamond PearlBooster Packs
•An additional 2 packs of Dragon Frontiers
•Extra Pokémon Product

3rd-4th Place
•1 pack of Dragon Frontiers
•Extra Pokémon Product

Depending on attendance, I might even extend the Pizza invite to top 4.
If 30 people participate top 2 of each age group will get Pizza Invites. If 40 People participate, Top 4 of each age group get Pizza invite.*

*Pizzatopia info Click Here

Mario Strikers and Matroid Prime 3 release dates announced

Nintendo has finally announced concrete release dates for the much anticipated Super Mario Strikers Charged and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption and they’re coming fast. First of all… Mario Strikers Charged, the anticipated Wii sequel to Mario’s Gamecube hit Soccer game, will hit store shelves in a little more than 2 months on July 30.

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption &emdash; the once system launch title &emdash; will be blasting it’s way to stores in all its first-person adventure/shooter glory on August 20. Making this summer a very happy one for all those lucky enough to get there hands on a Wii.

The Impact of Parents on Gaming - Bringing Families Closer Together

Every generation has one. “First it was lascivious lyric poetry, then it was jazz, after that Elvis and the Beatles,” (kotaku.com) now everyone’s favorite scapegoat seems to be video games. For years, everyone from politicians to misinformed public interest groups have blamed video games for all of life’s tragedies. From the Columbine School shootings to the recent Virginia Tech tragedy, before all the facts have come in, self-proclaimed “School shooting experts” have appeared on media to immediately blame video games for the incident without a shred of proof (which are usually later proved wrong). Instead of looking into the criminal’s mental health, past, etc, everyone seems happy enough to blame video games. Although some good has come from the bad publicity – like my favorite charity, Child’s Play, which was originally created as a way to show the public and the media in particular that not all gamers are bad people… but that’s besides the point.

While it has been discussed to death, one very important factor does involve parenting. Sure, good parenting alone won’t prevent a future killer (I’m sure some of the worst people in history had great parents) but it does help. You have no idea how many times, while browsing at my local video game store, I’ve seen parents buy young 5 or 6 year old kids an M-rated game. Fortunately, these kinds of parents seem to be in the minority lately. A recent study shows that 90% of parents are aware of the ratings present on video games and that 85% use them when buying games.

However, just understanding a games rating isn’t enough as an article at 2old2play.com so eloquently describes. You can’t just simply plop kids in front of a video game and use it as a free babysitter. That totally defeats the purpose. Just like with music, TV, movies, and the internet, Parent’s have to get actively involved and monitor their child’s activities. Who knows, it might even you bring you closer as a family. I have personally seen this at the many Pokémon tournaments I have helped and participated in. Not only are kids playing in these events but so are a vast majority of their parents (either as participants, staff, or actively cheering on their kids) and they all seem to be better off because of it.

When a parent gets involved, they have an opportunity to teach their kids vital lessons like good sportsmanship, respect for others, how to play by the rules, how to get along with others, and even make good decisions in the future. I consider myself an avid gamer, but because of my parents involvement in my childhood I can say I only own E-rated games. I do have about 3 or 4 T-rated games but they lean a lot more towards E than M. In fact, even looking at my movie collection I see mostly G to PG-13 movies - mostly animated, I love Pixar - with a rare R here and there. All because I was thought early on that I can have a lot more fun with non-violent games (you can only get fraged so many times before it gets really boring).

Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga headed to Wii

Codename Revolution is reporting that a compilation of the Gamecube’s Lego Star Wars and Lego Star Wars II is headed to Wii with enhanced graphics and additional Wii-mote controls. No other info is provided other than this comes from their reliable source from a distributor. It’s not exactly the Light Saber game we were hoping for, but if it’s true you have to wonder why? You can already play both games on Wii thanks to the Gamecube compatibility and do you really want waggle control?

New Fluxx On The Works

We all have played Fluxx and of course Stoner Fluxx (a big favorite), well over at Looney Labs have announce a new Fluxx that they are working on.  What can they add to improve it and makes us get it?  They just ad Zombies to it! Brilliant! lol Everyone loves zombies!

Here’s quick rundown on it ”Yes, it’s Fluxx… with Zombies! The newest Fluxx features a new type of card: The Creeper. It’s like a Keeper you don’t want but must play anyway, and it usually stops you from winning. The good news is, Zombie Fluxx also includes a bunch of Keepers you can use as weapons against the Zombie-Creepers, including the Shotgun, the Chainsaw, and the Can of Gasoline. Plus you’ve got Sandwiches and Coffee and a couple of Friends to help you win. The bad news is, if your Friends become Zombies, you’ll have to destroy them. Welcome to the dark side of Fluxx! Packaging: 84 cards + instructions, in tuck box - six decks packaged in display box.”

Here’s a vid which previews some new cards and the new Creeper concept explained~ Can’t wait for this one to come out ~_~

Miyamoto nominated for Times 100 Most Influential Poeple
Vote and place Shiggy on Times cover

Time has posted their nominees for the top 100 most influential poeple of the year, and on the list is everyone favorite game designer, Shigeru Miyamoto. At the moment he has an average influance rating of 94 on a scale of 1 to 100. Make sure to cast you vote and get him on the final list.

You can vote for Miyamoto at by clicking here

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Source: The Times

Nintendo Signs on as Flagship Exhibitor for E for All Expo

Framingham, MA - Mar 29, 2007 -- IDG World Expo today announced that Nintendo of America has signed on as an anchor exhibitor for IDG World Expo’s newest event: Entertainment for All Expo (E for All), scheduled for October 18-21, 2007, at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Nintendo leads an A-list of game companies signing on for a show that is rapidly shaping up to be the premiere event in interactive entertainment.

Entertainment for All Expo (E for All) is a new event created for people who are passionate about video games and everything related. The Expo was launched in response to strong demand within the consumer audience for an opportunity to see and try new products before they reach store shelves. Event organizers anticipate its mid-October dates will launch an early and successful holiday shopping season for the industry.

“The E for All Expo supports Nintendo’s mission to reach as many types of consumers as possible to expand the world of video games to new audiences,” says George Harrison, Nintendo of America’s senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. “Our Wii and Nintendo DS systems are all about gaming for the masses, and the E for All Expo will give consumers a chance to try out the hottest new Nintendo video games.”

“Nintendo’s early involvement in E for All demonstrates the importance of a broad consumer-focused event for this industry,” says Mary Dolaher, executive vice president of IDG World Expo. “E for All has been shaped from the ground up with all gamers in mind, and Nintendo has proven its commitment to embracing the spectrum of gamers, as we’ve seen with their launch of the Wii. In addition to being our flagship exhibitor, Nintendo of America Executive Vice President of Operations Don James has agreed to serve on our Exhibitor Advisory Board. I couldn’t ask for a more universally respected colleague in this new venture.”

E for All Expo will offer consumers the opportunity to test-drive the latest in games and gadgetry, as well as purchase products they enjoyed over the course of the 4-day event at on-site retail facilities.

Additional attractions are in the works, including high-profile videogame tournaments; job fair/networking opportunities; and the acclaimed Video Games Live concert. In addition to the Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center, the event will take advantage of soon-to-be-expanded LA Live/Nokia Theatre area directly adjacent.

E for All Expo has been endorsed by the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the U.S. association exclusively dedicated to serving the business and public affairs needs of companies that publish video and computer games for video game consoles, personal computers, and the Internet. ESA members collectively account for more than 90 percent of the $7 billion in entertainment software sold in the U.S. in 2005, and billions more in export sales of U.S.-made entertainment software.

Save PIRN and Internet Radio!

From Live 365:

Recently, the Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) issued the significantly higher new royalty rates for Internet radio for the 2006-2010 period. The ruling ignored webcasting community proposals and set out the SoundExchange proposed “per performance” rates (below) and a $500 minimum fee per channel per year. With around 10,000 stations playing over 250,000 artists each month, that would mean an additional $5 million per year for Live365.

Although there is no clear definition of what a “channel” is, the $500 minimum fee per channel threatens Live365’s ability to help make the small webcasters’ voice heard on the Internet, by effectively forcing Live365 to raise the minimum broadcasting fees to a level that would cause most small webcasters to discontinue their service thus silencing their stations. The CRB’s determination imperils small and large webcasters alike and threatens listening experiences of millions of Internet radio listeners.

To learn what you can do CLICK HERE

Wii to use Game Specific Friend Rosters
"I sense a great disturbance in the Force Feedback"

As it was with the DS, so it shall be with the Wii it looks like. Falafelkid over at Wii: Definitive speculation has stumbled across some potentially very disturbing news for Wii owners hoping for an easy way to hook up with friends online for a little online multiplayer action. Through correspondence with a GameSpy PR rep, he’s discovered that it appears Wii titles will have Game Specific Friend Rosters.

Whether this means Game Specific Friend codes still unknown. However, with confirmation that Pokémon Battle Revolution uses it’s own Friend Codes system; even though it was thought to be the exception since it heavily relied on DS Connectivity, it’s looking more and more likely that it will be the case. Why can’t games simply tap into the Wii’s built in Friend Roster is beyond us. Let just hope this is merely a misunderstanding and and all games will tap into the Wii’s built in Friend Roster and will simply require that you populate Game Specific Rosters using your Wii Code.

__________

Source: Wii: Definitive speculation

*Rumor* Downloadable Wii Demos coming soon
Take with a whole barrel of salt

Rumor is spreading across the inter-tubes suggesting that Nintendo will soon announce that along with classic games, you will soon be able to download demos of upcoming Wii games. The rumor seems to originate from a german game site and it seems to suggest that demos will be downloadable to and playable from either the internal Flash Drive or to SD cards.

Take this rumor with grain of salt (or a barrel full). Without the ability to use an external hard drive or to load saved data from an SD card , demo downloads seems highly unlikely at the moment. DS Demo downloads are more likely at this time. Of course, all that it would take would be a simple firmware update from Nintendo to use external hard drives and load from SD cards.

GameSpy/Nintendo partner for Online Multiplayer Wii Games
As it was with the DS, so shall it be for the Wii

As it was with the DS, Nintendo has announced a partnership with GameSpy to provide developers the tools needed to bring their Wii projects online with Nintendo WiFi Connections.

According to a press release sent out today, Wii’s online features will include friend rosters, advanced matchmaking capabilities and comprehensive rankings data. Does this mean the end of friend codes? The first game to use GameSpy’s Online Multiplayer Middleware is Pokemon Battle Revolution (due out June 25th) and it has already been confirmed that the Japanese version required Friend Codes. Of course, Pokemon might be the exception and not the rule since it heavily uses connectivity to the Nintendo DS and the Pokemon Diamond and Pearl games.

“This partnership will expand our wireless community of players on Nintendo® Wi-Fi Connection,” said Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “Millions of Nintendo DS users have already logged on using GameSpy’s technology, and now Wii owners will be able to do the same in a fun and easy-to-use environment.”

“Nintendo has been an invaluable partner and we look forward to expanding our relationship with them in the future,” said Jamie Berger, Senior Vice President of Consumer Products and Technology for IGN Entertainment. “Our goal is to extend our ground-breaking work on the Nintendo DS to provide Wii users with the social, community and multiplayer tools that we believe will expand the online gaming experience to the mass market.”

The whole bit about Social and Community tools sound interesting. We don’t expect a Xbox Live like network, but at least a centralized game lobby and adding friends easily to a roster without the hassle of having to bother with a 12 digit friend code for every game would be nice.

We can only hope!

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Source: Business Wire

Sonic and the Secret Rings - Review
With such a perfect formula, it's amazing Sonic Team made another flawed 3D Sonic game!

Lets go back to E3 2006. Almost one year ago, Nintendo finally gave us first hand time with Wii. In the sea of commotion, next to Twilight Princess, Metroid Prime 3, Mario Galaxy, and Excite Truck, Sega showed off what was at the time known as Sonic Wildfire. It proved to be one the best 3rd party games on display at the time. It was amazing! It was all what the original 2D Sonic games where. Blazing speed, sharp turns and loops, and quick attacks. The on rails and simple control approach brought Sonic back to it’s Old Skool roots. After one disappointing 3D game after another, many held high hopes that Wildfire would be Sonics big come back to what made him a household name. Come on, how could the possobly ruin it? It’s on rails, it’s constantly moving forward…

Fast forward to today. Sonic arrives on Wii in the form on Sonic and the Secret Rings and it’s nothing like what we saw at E3. Why?

First of all, no one really expected much out of the storyline. All 3D Sonic games have had pretty bland and irrelevant storylines that barely holds the game together. The same is true about Secret Rings. Sonic is flung into the world of 1001 Arabian Nights in order to save the stories from the evil Erazor Djin while on a quest to collect the seven World Rings. OK, this has to be to most insane storyline for any Sonic game ever, but it doesn’t really matter. It’s just used to give the game some context and try to hold it together. The good part is that it does lend itself to present cut scenes in an interesting storybook illustration look instead of full motion video.

As for the game itself, it has it’s good and it has it’s bad. Unfortunately, the bad far outweighs the good. After it’s demo debut at E3, it was widely believed that the game would return to it’s roots. That didn’t happen. The best part of all the 3D Sonic games have always been the linear get from point A to point B stages. No one really liked the boring find the treasure, collect rings, destroy enemies missions Sonic Team would add in order to add more time to the play clock. We only get one “Get to the goal” stage at the beginning of each world. The other stages (or Chapters) of each world consist of other inane missions such as Collect 99 Rings, Defeat 10 Enemies, Don’t break any jugs, Find eggs, etc.

Then comes the odd addition of Experience Points. Clearing mission will gain you more experience points, and each new level gained will add new skills which you can equip Sonic with in order to perform new abilities. It does add some depth to the game allowing to pick and choose what abilities will be best to complete each mission but was totally unnecessary. We should have all these abilities to begin with but we don’t.

The only thing Secret Rings has going for it is the fact that it supports Progressive Scan Widescreen. It does have some of the best stage designs seen in 3rd party Wii games (water and fire effects are amazing). Some textures are heavily compressed when you get to close though. It’s especially evident when playing with Component Cables.

I can only recomend this game if your a Sonic fan. All others should turn a run when they see it on store shelves.

Activision confirms Guitar Hero for Wii!

In a conference call Wednesday, Activision CEO Mike Griffith stated that Guitar Hero will be making it’s way to the Wii:

“The key difference in our strategy versus the prior cycle, is that in addition to full support on Sony and Microsoft platforms, we will aggressively target the Nintendo platforms consistent with our multi-platform strategy and Nintendo’s expected growth. In fiscal 2008, we will double our offerings on the DS and the Wii, including Spider-Man, Shrek, Transformers, and Guitar Hero.”

No other details have been revealed as of yet. Can an all new Wireless Guitar Accessory incorporating a Wii-Mote bay for motion controls be in the future? Eat your hearts out PS2/3 and and Xbox 360 fanboys. Wii will be rocking out very soon!

Wario Ware: Smooth Moves - review
Pick a nose, roll, slice, push, fly, drink, drop, and shake your booty with Wario and Pals

Wario’s at it again with a brand new collection of mini-games specifically designed to take full advantage and introduce new player to the Wii and it’s innovative new input device. If you’ve played any of the other 3 previous WarioWare games, you know what to expect. A slew of bizarre games that make you raise a brow. When it comes to WarioWare, it’s best not to question and just enjoy.

Thanks to the unique aspects of the Wii-mote, you’ll find yourself picking noses, slicing barrels, answer phones, hitting by-standards for no reason, shaving, buzz-cutting, sawing, fanning, pointing, and even dancing your way through a ton a varied and often strange games. WarioWare excels a great way to introduce you the Wii and how to use the Wii-mote. Although, at first there is a bit of a learning curve. All your told is the stance (15 in all) and a quick flash of the goal. It’s up to you to figure out how to accomplish that goal. Fortunately, most are pretty straight forward. For instance, hold the Wii-mote in the remote control stance and “Let, Go”! Literally, you just drop the Wii-mote (you better pay attention when the warning screen tells you to put the strap on). Also, there is a “Form Temple” that lets you play any game you’ve already played through and gives better descriptions of what to actually do (for the most part)

Of course, Smooth Moves really shines as a Multi-player Party game. Up to 12 people can play with just on Wii-mote in a last man standing match. You each take turns handing off the Wii-mote and completing games. Fail one and you out ‘til the last player standing. Of course, you have to have friends willing to let their inhibitions loose. Even-though you can easily perform each game sitting down on your couch, the whole point of WarioWare is to stand up and really let loose. Even look like a flailing fool at times (which is a lot better than remaining seated and looking like a total tool

Bottom line… if you have a Wii (and who doesn’t) you must get WarioWare. It not quite perfect - some of the games still require sensor bar input and some of the stances make that a bit hard to do - but it’s a perfect example of things to come in future. Often, you will play one of the games and start thinking of how a full blown game could utilize that stance and movement. A must have for Wii!

Rare Founders Leave Game Studio
Tim and Chris Stamper leave Rare Ltd.

Word comes from 1up.com that Rare Ltd. founders Tim and Chris Stamper have left the game studio in order to “Pursue Other Opportunities.” This comes 4 years after Microsoft bought Rare from Nintendo for a cool $375 million. After a disappointing 5 games developed under the Microsoft Game Studios label (2 for the original XBox and 3 for XBox 360) and lackluster sales of Rare’s latest—Viva Piñata—Microsoft is adamant their departure had nothing to do with that.

“Chris and Tim have helped shape Rare into the world-renowned development studio that is it today and their impact on the videogame industry as a whole is well known. They are simply leaving to pursue other opportunities and we wish them luck in their future endeavors.”

While it extremely unlikely that Microsoft has recouped their original investment in Rare, the company maintains that the studio is “the cornerstone of Microsoft Game Studios’ broadening strategy.”

Mark Bryant and Gregg Mayles will succeed the Stampers as Studio Director and Creative Director, respectively.
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Source: 1up.com

Posting from my couch. Wii Browser now live!
Posting from my couch on the Wii FTW!

In case you hadn’t noticed. The Wii Opera browser is now available as a beta for download at the Wii Shop Channel. In fact, this post was done entirely from the comfort of my couch on the Wii after a late night Mario 64 VC session. It still has it’s little quirks to get used to but that’s expected from a beta. More after I put the browser through the paces.

Super Mario Bros. for Christmas morning… Update: CONFIRMED!
Give the gift of Mario... for the 10th time...

Rumors are spreading like crazy with anticipation of what games might Nintendo add to the Virtual Console line-up Christmas morning. Everything from Nintendo’s Online Forums to other site’s “inside contacts” are suggesting that it could finally be the one game that should have been available day one… Super Mario Bros. for the NES.

Others on the rumored list include Urban Champion, Baseball, and ToeJam and Earl

We’l see if this rumor is true come Christmas morning. If so, I know what I’m playing on my day off.

UPDATE: Nintendo just released a press release confirming Super Mario Bros for Christmas.

From the Press Release:

NORTH POLE NEWS: SPECIAL CHRISTMAS TREAT ON THE WAY FOR WII

Dec. 21, 2006

This year Santa is getting some competition from another jolly guy with a big belly and a red cap. We’re talking about video game icon Mario�, of course. As a special holiday surprise for Wii� owners from Nintendo, the original Super Mario Bros. � game for the Nintendo Entertainment System� will appear in the Wii Shop Channel and be downloadable for 500 Wii Points�. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points to download the game. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets.

The classic game will make Christmas morning extra special, just as it did more than two decades ago. Super Mario Bros. reigns as perhaps the best-known and most-played game on any video game system in history. More than 40.2 million copies of the game found their way into homes worldwide. In addition to Super Mario Bros., other top-notch offerings available on Dec. 25 include:

• Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (Super NES�, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): This game revolutionized the fighting-game genre with characters that had unique fighting skills, speed, special moves and unique endings.
• Super Castlevania IV (Super NES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Simon Belmont uses his trusty whip to fight the powers of evil on his way to Dracula’s Castle.
• Toe Jam & Earl (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): Two fun-loving aliens crash on Earth and must find 10 pieces of their spaceship so they can get back home to Planet Funkotron.
• R-TYPE (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): This is a completely faithful port - right down to the character details - of the famous shooting-game masterpiece.

Games available on Jan. 1 include:

• Baseball (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Play nine innings of fierce sandlot competition with classic NES graphics.
• Urban Champion (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Don’t let the big, bad bully of the neighborhood push you around! Players fight for the right to walk the street.

In just five weeks the library of classic games available through the Wii Shop Channel has grown to 33 titles. Every Monday at 9 a.m. Pacific, Nintendo adds more classic games to the channel.

Opera Browser Available Dec. 22

Seems Wii owners are gonna have a good Christmas this year. First with the weather channel up and running early, and now with the announcement that the Opera Browser will be available to download this Friday, Dec. 22.  I was surprise to hear this after not hearing anything about it. They even have a little comic strip just for the announcement:

For moe information or to read the official press release go HERE

Wii Forcast Channel launches early… Today!
Many wake to a warm blue glow from Nintendo

We weren’t expecting it for one more day but Nintendo sent all connected Wiis a little surprise this morning. When I woke up and say my Wii’s disc slot glowing blue, I expected it to be a message from Nintendo about Wiimote safety and possible about the “Safety Exchange” program for the Wiimote Wrist Straps. Nope… It was a message from Nintendo but it was about the availability of the brand new Wii Forcast Channel. A little click on the conveniently placed Update button on the message and a quick little download and the Forcast Channel was up and running.

Finally, a better use for WiiConnect24 than just sending messages and Miis. Although, the last weather update was from about 4am Pacific (four hours behind) so the current conditions weren’t reflective of real time but you still got a 5 day forcast, the day’s highs and lows and a nifty little globe you can spin and view conditions from around the world.

That’s one down… two to go. Now we just need the News Channel and Opera Browser.

Wii Forcast Channel on the 20th
Finally... onc more Wii Channel to keep us busy

From That Game Blog:

If watching The Weather Channel on TV isn’t enough for you then rest assured that in just a few short days, you can take it to the next level and check the weather around the globe whenever you want with some Wiimote wielding action.

Wii.com now says the Forecast Channel is coming December 20th. There’s also a 1m13sec video available that shows just how cool this thing is

So remember, make sure to download the latest Wii Update to this Wednesdayto to finally active and use the Forcast Channel (not to mention make more use of WiiConnect24). Now all we need is the News Channel and the Opera Browser.

Game Specific Friend Code required to play Online Wii Games
We already have a Wii Number, no we need firend codes

When we saw that the Wii had it’s own friend code, the world rejoiced! At last, we’d no longer have to exchange friend codes with our friends if we wanted to play each other online. We just had to do it once for console specific number and we’d be set for life (or at least the console’s life). Well… guess again. Pokémon Battle Revolution has been out in Japan for a little under a week and reports of Game Specific Friend codes are rising. Turns out the game still has to assign you a Friend Code specifically for it thats completely different from the Wii Number.

It has not been confirmed if whether this will be the norm for all future online enabled Wii games of if it just has to do with Battle Revolution’s ability to connect to your DS. We can only hope but it we wouldn’t hold our breaths.

Toys R Us Final Fantasy Deal
If you din't know about it till now, your too late~

I don’t know how many of you are in the Toys R Us mailing list but right now the have a promotion the call the Twelve Deals of Christmas.  Basically everyday you get a page of deals of the day, then you click on it and you can print the coupon from home. Its like the third day and I got my email from them and looked through it real quick expecting nothing good. But I see mention of Final Fantasy, so i stop to see what is it about.  I clicked on it and go to the description. To my surprise, the deal was 50% of FFIII (DS) or FFXII (PS2) (so FFIII=$20 and FFXII= $25)

BUT thats not all (as good as it is already) besides that, you get a free FFIII bag w/ screen cleaner for the DS Lite (post pic later). Was that a good deal or what? As soon as I could I printed both and went to my local TRU, but FFIII was sold out (booo) but i’m like, i have access to a PS2~ so i went for it. A newish game and FF for $25 was still too good to let it pass~

Wireless Wii Sensor Bar for $31
48 hours or Wireless play for... well, not so cheap

Do you have a large Home Theater set-up with a projection screen? The Wii’s Sensor Bar wire making your set-up much to hard? Well, some enterprising individuals just might have what your looking for.

We all by now (I’m still surprised so many didn’t know before hand), the Sensor Bar is nothing more then two IR sources that the Wii-mote’s built in 1MP camera picks up to determine it’s position in space. All the wire does is provide these sources with power. So naturally, a battery powered solution should work just as fine. Wireless Sensor Bar.com has just that solution for those without do-it-yourself savvy. For $31 (including shipping) they will send you a homemade wireless sensor bar that runs on a 9-volt battery and lasts for 48 hours of continuous game play.

With so many complaining that the Sensor Bar’s wire just isn;t long enough for their TV Set-up, this is the perfect solution until the big boys finally release their own (and most likely cheaper) version.

Dragon Quest IX: Hoshizora no Mamori Hito coming to the DS

In a surprising announcement by Square-Enix, the next installment of this popular series will be coming to the DS.  titled Dragon Quest IX: Hoshizora no Mamori Hito (One Who Protects the Starry Sky).  The game is being developed by Level Five, Koichi Sugiyama will continue composing the music, and creator Yuuji Horii and character designer Akira Toriyama are deeply involved.


During the press conference the showed some gameplay and some 3D screenshots (not available yet). The game play seems to be more action based (my favorite) and will support 4-player op (wifi? probably~).


They also stated that it is an installment to the series and not a sidestory.  Some believe they might go in the direction that the FF series is taking~ but doesn’t seem like it to me (for now).  It seems the DS is gonna start getting more loving after beating the competition this year worldwide.


The game is stated to be released by the end of 2007 (in japan).


Can’t wait to hear more on this and hopefully the screenshots will be posted up soon and maybe some video.

*Update : US Name~Dragon Quest IX: Defenders of the Skies

*Update : Heres a video of it in action:

Zelda: Phantom Hourglass Delayed!
Why? Why do they keep doing this?!

The new Game Informer is out and has a lot of Zelda info. First of all, the Phantom Hour glass has been delayed, so no more by the end of this year (~in japan). BUT thats not all. It wasn’t change to early next year, but until October 15, 2007! According to them, their revamping it (same thing they said about Twilight Princess) and changing it~ I kinda understnd the Twilight Princess one but this? It’s still for the DS~ Unless they adding Wii elements or…


The other news is that Nintendo has been working on a new Zelda game and has been for a year already (that’s the good news i suppose).  I just hope it’s not a Wind Waker sequel right now, and make the Phantom Hourglass connect with it. I don’t feel like I need another Waker on the console, I only accept it on the DS. Plus, after playing Twilight Princess I only expect that style on the the console and if anything TP needs a sequel.  Especially with that ending and all the missing Zelda elements.


Well, I hope we hear good news early next year. 

Excite Truck - Review
The only time that totally wrecking your car is a good thing.

Amongst Twilight Princess and Wii Sports, you’d almost forget Nintendo had one more launch title to offer. Excite Truck borrows its name from Excite Bike (NES). Other than big air jumps, that’s were the similarities end. Unlike Excite Bike and Excite Bike 64, Excite Truck doesn’t have a track editor, but it still packs tons of fun. If your looking for a realistic racer, turn away now. Excite Truck focuses on totally unrealistic big air and crashes; hence the EXCITE. But if you just want to get down and dirty and moe down everything in sight, this is the game for you.

Graphics:
First off… it can display in Progressive Scan and 16:9 Widescreen modes, so if you got an HD or ED set, make sure to get your hands on some elusive component cable (which as of this review are now back in stock at Nintendo’s online store and Pelican now has some at stores as well). The draw line is very impressive spanning all the way to the virtual horizon. The off road mountain environments are very lush and spectacular. Of course, the real time land deformation is totally awesome.

The bad news is that it runs at 30fps and occasionally dips. But with so much going on, who can blame it. Tracks are full to the rim with tons of partical effects from bloom lighting to transparent smoke as well as very lovely water reflections and splashes.

Sound:
Sound is not half bad, but it’s not half good either. The engine, crash and environment sounds get the job done. The sound track in the other hand is a bit annoying. It can only be described as quick paced, redneck, racing rock. luckily, if you have an SD card with some MP3s you can change the music. Before each race, your given the option to change the music settings. There’s just something satisfying about going downhill in a massive 4x4 truck with Escape from the City (Sonic Adventure) or Slider (Super Mario 64) blazing in the background.

Controls:
What can be said about controls. You can’t get more basic controls on a Wii title than this. You hold the Wii-mote in the “classic” position (horizontal) tilt to steer, 1 and 2 are for brakes and gas and any button on the D-pad for boost. Simple as that. Yet, with such simple controls it still takes a bit of learning and skill to get the job done. Without any sort of feedback, it’s hard at first to keep your truck going in a straight line. You’ll be fishtailing all over the place at first, but after a while you’ll learn to get more control over your truck and start performing stunts in no time.

Gameplay:
Jump. Big Air, Drift, and Crash are the names of the game. Unlike traditional racing games, first place doesn’t necessarily mean win. With Excite Truck it all comes down to points. The bigger the air, the more destructive the crash, the longer the drift, the more points you get. You’ll get points for pushing others out of the way and if you can get them to crash you’ll get even more points. You’ll even get points if you manage to send other airborne when you deform the terrain by collecting an Exclamation Mark. The better your score the more you’ll unlock. It makes for a great way to have some fun while wreaking you truck and you’ll keep coming back in search for that elusive S-ranking.

Unfortunately, so much work was put into the single player matches that multiplayer suffers. Sure you have split screen two player races; but think F-Zero GX. It’s just you and the second player all alone on a track. It’s OK while it lasts but get real old real quick. Your better off getting this game as a single player game rather than a multiplayer.

The Verdict:
As single player game, it’s tons of fun. But don’t get it as a multiplayer game. There are other games that are much more suited for that. This game is all about catching big air and causing big wrecks all in the comfort of your couch. As a launch title it’s a great game to get, but in the long run it will most likely get outdone by a much better racer of the same type down the Wii’s lifespan. Nevertheless, Excite Truck is very much recommended. 

Playing Wii on a 1.5 inch TV
Who need HD when you got a 1.5 inch TV

When most are upgrading to a new Wide Screen HD set to go along with there brand new Wii or PS3, this guy enjoys Wario Ware for Wii and his real cool 1.5 inch TV… I want one now!

Rayman Raving Rabbids - Review
Who would have thought crayzed bunnies would be so much fun!

Another of those games announced at E3. With the noticeable absence of Mario from the Wii launch line-up; it was Rayman’s job to fill the platformer gap Mario left. Until later in the year it was announced Raving Rabbids would no longer be a platformer. Rather, in order to take full advantage of the Wii-mote’s full range of fetures, it would now be a series of Mini-games. At first I was reluctant. I really wanted a platform game to go along with my purchase of Zelda and Excite Truck. I almost didn’t pick the title up. Now I’m glad I did. Raving Rabbids is by far the most fun I’ve had with mini-games since Mario Party and it’s about the Bunnies!

Gameplay:
The game starts off with Rayman enjoying a picnic with his friends when suddenly bunnies appear and take him prisoner. The only way out is to survive a series of challenges designed for the crazed out bunnies’ amusement. After you complete a set of challenges your awarded with… well, a plunger. Doesn’t seem like much, but a few rounds you discover that you can use these plungers as a later and reach your freedom by jumping out a window way up high in you prison cell. As you progress, the bunnies will go from hating your guts to praising you as you gain their respect.

But wait, these aren’t your regular run of the mill gladiator type challenges, they’re a series of 70 over of this world mini-games that take full advantage of the Wii-mote. Some games will see you tossing a cow as far as you can, picking worms out of a bunny’s mouth, milking cows as fast as possible, racing worthogs, dancing on stage with bunny back-up dancers, or in a plunger shootout with an army of “Raving Rabbids.” Each mini-game is funnier and more disturbing then the other and the fun doesn’t stop there. Get together with another 3 friends and you’ll be having a blast ‘till the Wii-hours of the morning (sorry, had to do it). The fun factor jumps ten-fold when compete with each other in these hilarious mini-games.

Graphics:
Unfortunately for such an awesome game, Ubisoft didn’t put much work into making high-res graphics. All the artwork is excellent. Animations are fluid and hilarious but textures are decidedly of lower quality. Everything looks pretty blurry and if your TV supports it I highly suggest component cables as it will noticeably clean things up a lot. The problem isn’t that the textures are heavily compressed but that for some reason, Ubisoft decided not to have Rayman run in progressive scan mode. The game still supports 16:9 wide screen but the lack of progressive scan severely hurts the quality of the images. Yet, the developer did a good job of compensating with varied, lush environments. Each with it’s unique backdrop and sense of mood.

Sound:
Quite possible one of the best (if not the best) aspects of the game. What truly makes the game is the nonsensical screams, yelps, grunts, and burps of the crazy bunnies. You’ll be laughing your head off every time you hear bunnies. The music is top notch as well, especially in the dance-off stages where you’ll hear bunny remakes of Girls Just Want To Have Fun, Stay In The Light, and La Bamba among others. All in Dolby Pro Logic II.

Controls:
The only game so far that makes full use of the Wii-mote and Nunchuk. Each mini-game requires you to do different actions from Pointing with the Wii-mote to shoot and shaking the Nunchuck to reload to spinning the Nunchuck over your head to send a cow flying in the air, to listening to the built-in speaker for audio cues to avoid underground bunnies, this is what the Wii-mote is all about. Having free full range of motion while having fun. It just doesn’t get any better then this.

The Verdict:
You still here!? What are you waiting for? Go out and get this game. It’s a must have. The bunnies alone make this one of the must have launch titles for the Wii; not to mention is one the few games made specifically for the Wii and it’s innovative new controls from the ground up. Here’s hoping the bunnies make a return very soon.

Wii Sports - Review
Is it any good or was it a pack-in for a reason

Zelda it most certainly is not! It’ simple graphics wont make anyone do a double take. But that’s not what Wii Sports is all about. Back in E3, when it was first revealed to the world, just about everyone gave a collective WTF!? Sure, Wii isn’t about Super HD graphics so realistic that you can the the individual drops of sweat on your character; but no one really expected a game with such simplistic graphics from Nintendo as a launch title. We all tried it out once on the show floor and just about all of us left with the same impression… “It better e a pack-in cause there is no way I’m paying for a game like that.”

Well, turns out we were wrong! First rule of E3… it’s not an ideal place to demo games to there fullest, especially Wii titles. After finally finishing Twilight Princess last week, I’ve finally had the chance to put some good quality time into this little freebie from Nintendo. I had tried it out a bit before loosing myself into Zelda and had some fun. But it was usually with my brother or the rest of the family for a quick round of Tennis or Baseball. Now that I’ve spent more time with it I’m very impressed. My original thoughts on the game have been completely blown away and I can’t seem to drag myself away from it.

Graphics:
First of all, the graphics have been improved upon quite a bit since we last saw it at E3. The Tennis court has a lot of texture to it, some nice looking trees and excellent background. Golf courses are very beautiful with plenty of Trees, gorgeous water effects and an impressive draw field. The Baseball stadium is well designed, Bowling alleys have lots of reflections and excellent texture work. It’s not going to push the Wii to its limits but it still presents quite a wonderful environment that wasn’t present back in the E3 build.

Best of, it the first (and so far only) game that lets you use your personal Mii created in the Mii Channel. Even though Miis are ver simple in there looks, it is a big welcome to the game. Mii’s will populate your Baseball teams, you can pumel your friend’s Mii in Boxing, and Mii’s are used to track your personal stats in the game, but I’ll get back to that later. There just something so cool about seeing one of your Miis playing in the game that’s just can’t be expressed fully in words, you just have to experience it for yourself.

Sound:
Amazingly enough, Wii Sports supports Dolby Pro-logic II Surround Sound. There’s not a lot in the sound but what there is is excellently put together to deliver a very fun little package. Tennis balls will bounce, feet will screech, Bowling Balls will bounce and roll, the wind will blow, and punches will all sound as you would expect. There even crowd cheers and reactions to various actions you make. Best of all, some sound effects, like the swing of your racket or the crack of your bat will emit from the Wii-motes built in speaker. Wii Sports wont win any sound editing awards, but it gets the job done without flooding you with tons of sound to do it.

Controls:
This is what Wii Sports is really all about, the controls. There’s a reason why it was included free as a pack-in with the system. Wii Sports is all about showing you just how the Wii-mote works and is suppose to be used. Just about all the controls are very intuitive and very responsive with the exception of Golf and Boxing. For Baseball you hold and swing the bat as you would a real bat, Bowling feels just like bowling, and you swing and hold the Wii-mote as a real racket in Tennis. Of course, to get the pefect hit of the stadium, hit that perfect serve, oh perform the greatest spare pick-up all take some timing and practice, but after a while your up and running like a pro.

The only issues we have have been with Boxing and Golf. Now, Boxing could very well be the funniest game in the whole package. No other time will you see your family and friends look like total idiots while still having tons of fun; but the controls aren’t all the responsive. It’s the only game that uses both the Wii-mote and Nunchuk attachement but they don’t seem to work just fine. You’ll find yourself swinging your arms like crazy and only pulling half the puches if your lucky. Still, if you want a great work out, it the best. Golf suffers from a similar problem. Although with some practice you learn to overcome it. Golf seems to be both, too sensitive to your swings that you can’t follow through with your shots and not sensitive enough that your’ll find your self putting way to hard. But you quickly learn to over come these limits and have a nice relaxing game.

Gameplay:
As a single player game, Wii Sports delivers an impressive amount if activities. Using your personal Mii, the game keeps track of your skill level and stats as you progress though each sport and you’ll find yourself coming back for more just to rise your skill level more. On games like Tennis or Boxing, you’ll continually be put up against harder and harder opponents as your skill level rises. Then there’s the Wii Sports Training and Fitness mini-games. You can only play Fitness once a day and it will keep track of just how fit you are. Think of it as Brain Age for physical fitness. Training is a set of mini games designed to teach you the all the ins and outs of Wii Sports and how to get that perfect control over every game.

However, Wii Sports really shines as a multiplayer party game. Get together with friends and family and you’ll just have a blast. Best of all, it’s a geat way to (re)introduce non-gaming friends and family members to Wii and to gaming in general. My parents never really liked video games in the first place but couldn’t get enough of Wii Sports after they saw us make them a Mii and took part in a few rounds of Tennis and Bowling.

Just be warned, most of the games only require the most minimum of movements. Quick wrist movements usually suffice but make for a boring game. You’ll more than likely find yourself making large, more realistic movements as you really get into the game. Make sure you have your wrist strap firmly secured and you keep you hand relatively dry, have plenty of room to move, and for the sake of your TV, windows, wall, and human life… keep a good grip on that ‘mote. Many reports have come in of people really getting into the game and a Wii-mote suddenly flying across the room and into the TV, causing property damage, and bodily harm.

The Verdict:
I still wouldn’t pay a full $50 price tag for the game… but $20 or $30, heck yeah. The beauty of the thing is that it already comes pre-packed with your Wii. You’ll have a blast playing, your friends and family will have a blast playing… non-gamers will have a blast playing. Wii Sports is a classic example of not judging a book by its cover; or in this case, a game by its graphics. It’s a great way to show others just how the Wii works and it will most likely convince the non-believers and reluctant to go out and pick up a Wii for themselves. You just have to give it a try. Believe me, once you try just once, you wont be able to put it down.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess - Review
Did Twilight Princess live up to all the hype or was the two year delay not worth it?

Flash back to E3 2004… Nintendo announces that a new Zelda game with new, more mature, photo-realistic graphics is in development and will be released spring of 2005. Then word comes it has been delays for Winter of ‘05. E3 2005, Twilight Princess makes it playable debut to great acclaim millions of fans patiently count the days for it release. Then word comes of another delay. Come on! What can be keeping this game back for so long. Finally, E3 2006, Nintendo reveals that Twilight Princess will be ported Wii and will support full functionality of the Wiimote. Awesome… so thats what the delay was all about. We get our first taste of what Zelda will be at the show floor and it once again received with much acclaim and ravining fans once again wait patiently for it’s Wii launch date.

With just a little under two weeks since it’s launch, we’re all done and ready to give you our verdict of the game. Does it live up to all the hype? Is this truly the best Zelda game since Ocarina of Time on the N64? Was the two year delay truly worth the time?

Graphics:
First off, Nintendo mentioned that this game would be a Masterpiece and it truly is. EAD went into a lot trouble to make sure this is truly one of the most beautiful games you have ever seen. If your playing this game in a Standard Definition TV or using the Wii’s standard AV Composite Cable you doing a great disservice to it. There is so much little painstaking detail in Twilight that you just have to get an HDTV and Component Cables to truly enjoy it in it’s full 16:9 aspect ratio (only available in the Wii version). The entire world is so beautifully presented that you almost forget that it’s essentially a Gamecube game running on a Wii. And the size! Hyrule is massive! So massive that traveling on horse back is essential until later in the game when you finally get the ability to freely warp from one place to the other.

And the detail in the game just doesn’t stop there either. Each character has just as much detail as the world they inhabit. Costumes are top notch and highly detailed all the way down to the jewelry and and even laces of shoes and dresses. They all show an extraordinary amount of emotion not seen since Wind Waker. Nintendo put so much detail into them that even their eyes slightly move around when looking straight ahead or when in conversation with others. The movement is so subtle and natural looking that you might not even notice it at first unless you specifically look for it.

Sound:
Just like its predecessors, Twilight Princess has an excellent sound track. So many old favorites are remixed into the game that memories of past adventures instantly pop back into your head. But, one of the most enjoyable aspects of the sound isn’t what comes out of the TV speakers but from the Wiimote. The slashes and clangs of your sword are emitted from the ‘mote and, while obviously of very low quality, lend itself to further immerse yourself int the game. Even the sound of Rupees, opening chest, Arrows, the Hook Shot, and the classic Zelda item and puzzle solved (Ta-Da-Da-DAAAAH!) are played from the ‘mote. But what was the most surprising was hearing Midna’s laugh emitting from the tiny speaker. Every time she want you attention you’ll hear her little laugh come from the Wiimote and it was a total shock the first time we heard it.

Controls:
While Nintendo took great care to make the Wii version controls the best they can be, this is were it shows that Twilight Princess truly is a Gamecube game with tacked on Wii controls. Granted, the controls work great. You swing the ‘mote to slash with you sword, point to use various weapons like you Bow and Arrows or Hook Shot and even cast off you fishing rod and reel in a catch as if it were a real fishing rod. But the Nunchuk’s motion controls proved a little more difficult to master.

In order to perform a Spin Attack you simply shake the Nunchuk left to right (or vice-versa). This menuver is performed with no problem at all. The Shield Smash in the other hand was very hard to pull of. Essentially, in order to smash your shield into you opponent and momentarily knock them off balance you have to Z-lock and quickly move the Nunchuk straight forward. Easier said than done. Many times Link would perform the spin attack instead. There were even times Link would do the Shield Smash out of the blue just because you’d adjust your had a bit mid battle. It becomes frustrating enough at times that you’ll find yourself performing other maneuvers to defeat you foes to to avoid using it.

Other than that, Nintendo did a great job mapping over all of the original Gamecube controls so well that we doubt the Gamecube version controls will even come close to giving you the experience the Wii version gives you.

Gameplay:
Now for the true meet of te game… the gameplay. Here is were we have some reserves. The story line is excellent and really sucks you into the game. You’ll find yourself pulling Darth Vader moments (Noooooooooooooo!) at certain points in the game with some tear jerking, pull out the tissue plot twists. If only the dungeons were as engaging.

We don’t know what it was, but each dungeon felt very short, small, and simple. You could easily finish a dungeon in under 40 minutes and the bosses just felt way to easy to defeat. Could have been that we’ve played every Zelda game and have become accustomed to what to expect, but we remember going back to Ocarina of Time and spending hours upon hours just trying to complete the Water Temple and suddenly here we are an another Water Temple and we were done in about 30 minutes. What happened? The dungeons felt so straight forward at times it was almost as if Nintendo was holding you by the hand the whole way. Come on! Where’s the challenge!? Why was Hyrule Field so massive yet the dungeons were so small? Even Wind Waker had massive challenging dungeons. It almost felt that so much detail was put into the graphics that there wasn’t enough space left to build larger dungeons. Or were they expecting we’d be so awe-strucked by the beauty of the game we wouldn’t notice.

Thankfully, they make up for it with tons of side quest challenges that must be accomplished between dungeons in order to continue to the next but even this feels a bit tacked on just make it the game longer. Nintendo mentioned Twilight Princess was a 70+ hour game and, truthfully, it very well can be if you take your time to do all the small side quests, go out of your way to collect every heart piece and play all the mini-games. But in reality, no one really will do that. In our first run through the game we’ve only clocked in about 30-40 hours. Still not bad though considering other games are much much shorter but is still ver short of the 70+ hours promised by Nintendo.

The Verdict:
Alone, Twilight Princess can very well be the greatest game ever made… but compared to the rest of the series, especially Ocarina of Time, it falls a bit short. Were still wondering why there was no Magic Meter, and the ending was a bit of a head scratcher. But overall, it was an excellent game and truly makes a great addition to the series. First time comers to the Zelda universe, and those returning since the NES and SNES era, will truly love this game but if you’ve played through the whole series, or even just Ocarina of Time and Wind Waker, you’ll leave just a bit disappointed that it didn’t quite live up to the two year delay and hype. Either way, we’d still very much recommend picking this game up with a Wii (if you can find one) and get yourself some component cable cause it’s the only way to truly appreciate this game.

Final thoughts:

I have to say Twilight Princess is in par with Wind Waker. Just like Wind Waker, its an excellent game by itself but it does have its flaws when compared to the rest of the series. It's a masterpiece of a game with the most beautifully graphics I've seen for a "Gamecube" game. Even the characters showed an amazing amount of emotion not seen since Wind Waker. I had some issues with the controls though, namely using the Nunchuck to preform a shield smash and spin attack. Everytime I went for a shield smash it would do a spin instead. Swinging the Wiimote to slash with the sword was great but felt out of place to attack in wolf form. Other wise controls were great. Where Wind Waker had an empty boring overworld, Twilight Princess' was a hugely massive active Hyrule Field. But Wind Waker made up for it with complicated, somewhat challenging dungeons; Twilight Princess' dungeons were very small, very simple, straight forward designs. At times it felt the game was holding you by the hand and guiding you through. Still, it was very enjoyable and very fun and an must play... just don't be surprised if your a little disappointed at the end. Now if I can just make head or tails out of that ending!...

Well, I finished it a while back but need to gather my thoughts. I agree at the score maybe a 9. The graphics were ok, you can tell it was a converted gamecube game. The only additions were widescreen and progressive? (anyone used those on the cube?) The music was great as expected. The battle system was as expected plus the addition of the hidden skill were nice, but I prefer the battle system of Wind Waker (specially the countering). The story was~ expected. Ones you start playing you know whats going on, no real surprises. I like that it went a little more darker (still no blood though lol) The characters look great, like the whole emotion thing, makes them more believable. The side-questing I didn’t enjoy (well the bug one was for me). I get used to collecting a lot so I can do the 60 Poes but 5 pieces of heart to make one container? You don’t even find containers at all, only after beating a boss (could you before, I can’t remember but I feel like I could~)If anything it needed more to do (variety). And only two sword and shield? Where’s the third hidden one? For me I felt it was missing a lot of Zelda elements from previous ones. He doesn’t use magic at all, instead substitute it with items (to warp you use that bird thing). There’s no fire/ ice arrows (I understand ice)but fire makes sense, I expected to fire arrows through the torches or something but the won’t light up! (Why can the bad guys do it but not me?) I hope this Zelda title they working on for a year already has better improvements being 100% for the Wii. And the DS delay… I don’t want to talk about it…

Minimum Requirements to Own Twilight Princess

The long awaited Zelda: Twilight Princess is finally going to be released.  After playing Zelda: Ocarina of Time..... ONLY THE BEST GAME EVER!!!!  Nintendo Fans everywhere are jizzing their pants to play the amazing sequel.  OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!  But wait!  There exists a LAME fan out in the world.  His name is Jesse Esquivel.  I went by his pad the other day, hoping to beat the hell out of Gannondorf and shove a light or two up his ass.  But when I turned on the game, Jesse has only got as far as the very first spiritual stone!  Thats right ladys and gentlemen, he doesnt even know why Link has an adult form! My only response was WTF!!!!!  This game won game of the year and best game ever!  How can you be a Nintendo fan and not know why he is an adult.  Gamers cried when Link was forced to hand back the Ocarina of Time and return to his child form.  We all stood on our toes when Sheik revealed himself to be Princess Zelda.  We all shouted in victory when Gannon took the final blow to the face and was sealed away in the Realm of Light.  But my buddy Jesse doesnt know any of this occured.  I would like to call a vote to all my fellow gamers.

Do you think Jesse is worthy of a copy of the long anticipated Zelda: Twilight Princess on the Nintendo Wii?

Vote Gamers and decide the fate of this so called gamer. 

Black Pizza

Insane gamers already camping for PS3 (pics to prove it)
These guys are either really Hardcore or Insane... or both

Yup… you read correctly, people are already camping out for the PS3 10 days before launch. These pictures have been making the rounds around the inter-tubes presumably showing some hardcore PS3 fans already camping out at a Burbank, CA BestBuy. We expect them to go totally insane by the launch day. Consider these before pictures. And whats up with the Penguin?

Click on the images below for a larger version:

GameStop/EB Games Wii Online Pre-orders today (Update: Sold Out)
Bundles only at full retail price... Total rip!

Later this evening, GameStop and EB Games will be taking Online Wii Pre-orders. The catch, you have to purchase a $700 bundle ($694.88 plus tax and handling). The whole package includes:

Nintendo Wii Console (includes 1 remote controller, 1 nunchuck, cables, sensor bar, console stand, and Wii Sports game)
Wii Memory SD 1GB
Additional Wii Remote Controller
6 Games:
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Trauma Center: Second Opinion
Red Steel
Marvel Ultimate Alliance
Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz
Madden NFL 2007
12 Month Product Replacement Plan
Game Informer Gift Subscription

Even at this price, we’re sure they will sell out in minutes. They have to give an exact time and only reference an evening CST window. So make sure to click on over later this afternoon and often if you really want to place your pre-order and click often.

Update: Yup… they’ve sold out already. Not sure when exactly it happend. I checked at about 4:30pm PST and pre-orders weren’t open yet. Checked back at about 5:10pm PST and they were all sold out. So you last chance now to get your Wii-on is to camp out at your local Best-Buy, Circuit City, or Target and hope they have enough to go around (fat chance).

Wii and Zelda Lovin’: Video/Photos of Nintendo’s assembly line
Totally safe for work... LOL

Today we get footage of the Wii and Zelda getting boxed and prepped for shipping up at Nintendo’s North Bend, Washington manufacturing plant.  Here we can see “happy” people pushing Wii and Zelda boxes down the line as well as a peek at the spare Wii-mote packaging. I don’t know about you, but those people seem terribly bored out of their minds. The video could’ve used the Oompa-Loompa song to liven things up.

Click on an image below to see a larger version: