Wii

Nintendo Wii

We still think the name is lame as all get out (sorry, Nintendo; we are not changing our minds about this) but since our “Countdown to the Wii” article earlier this year more info about Nintendo’s next major console release has still been hard to get from the company. Just to recap, the Wii (formerly the Revolution) is Nintendo’s effort to break away from what they are calling the norm in game development with hardware that might not be packing the same graphical weight as the PS3 or Xbox 360 but has a motion-sensing controller that looks like a remote for your TV. Nintendo says this controller set up is designed to appeal to the mass audience and bring in new gamers that would not be attracted to the Xbox 360 or the PS3 (the price of $250 or less is also a big plus factor). Add in support for their “Virtual Console” that will support downloadable classic games from Nintendo, Sega and Hudson among others and it all adds up to the Wii generating a lot of excitement among both the hardcore Nintendo fans and gamers in general. The exact release date has yet to be announced but the smart betting is on for a date sometime in October and even though Nintendo is promising millions of units for its worldwide launch you can bet that shortages will occur.

So will Nintendo’s efforts succeed where the Gamecube failed? We are a bit worried about the recent rumor that online multiplayer might not be a big deal for the Wii for its launch (according to rumors, third party developers are not being given access to the Wii’s online multiplayer SDK until sometime in 2007) but there is no doubt that Nintendo is pulling out the stops for its own launch titles. Here are our highlights:

Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess: After a long, long wait, Wii owners will get a launch title that’s worthy of the console (remember Luigi’s Mansion for the GameCube? We try not to) Not only is Link back to his classic art style after the weird cel-shaded look of The Wind Waker, but Nintendo’s Wii controller will allow you to do things like fish and fire arrows with your hand and arm movements. (a version of this game will also appear at the same time for Gamecube owners).


Metroid Prime 3: Corruption: Developer Retro Studios heads back to the sci-fi world of Samus for their third outing of this classic action-adventure franchise. At E3, we got to do things with the Wii controller in this game like move the ball form with our wrist movement as well as pull objects out of the way. But no online multiplayer support? Is that wise?

Wii Sports: Clearly designed for the fans of games like Mario Party, Wii Sports has baseball, tennis and other games that use the Wii controller to move the bat and racket, respectively. It was a lot of fun to play at E3 (even Steve Spielberg was seen enjoying it) but will all that activity get people too tired in the end?

Red Steel: UbiSoft brings this Wii exclusive first person action game for the hardcore gamer, set in a world of Yakuza crime with lots of gun and sword play. To be honest we were not terribly impressed with either the gameplay or the graphics in Red Steel when we played it at E3 but we’ve been told things have improved remarkably since that early demo. Will the game be worthy of our attention on launch day?


Rayman Raving Rabbids: While it is coming out on other platforms UbiSoft has certainly targeted the Wii as the premiere platform for their latest game in their platform action game series. It’s being described as a mini-game collection where you control the Rayman character through shooting, racing and even dancing games to get rid of lots and lots of rabbits. Again it sounds like it could be a fun party game.


Tony Hawk’s Downhill Jam: Activision’s Wii exclusive title brings the skateboarding franchise to a new and more kid-friendly arena of downhill racing. Again, the Wii controller allows for arm movements to handle the moving downhill along with the cool tricks that are the trademark of the Tony Hawk games.


In addition to the Nintendo exclusives, third parties are bringing a number of games to the Wii launch. THQ has a number of their kid themed games for the Wii and UbiSoft is porting a number of previously released and announced games for the console, including Far Cry. EA also has a Wii specific version of Madden 07 for the console slated for the launch and Sega will release a Wii version of their Sonic The Hedgehog game that will also take advantage of the Wii controller. And there’s that Virtual Console dealie as well; so far there is no word on what games will be available to download on launch day.