Filed under: News
Is it the motion-sensing Wiimote? Is it the lack of HD visuals its competitors are banking on? Is it the Wii Channels interface and always-on WiiConnect24 online service? Nope, none of the above describe why Fortune has declared the Wii one of its "scary techs of 2006." It's the name. It's the name alone.

Sorry guys, you are months late for that ship, which has literally sailed off, come back and sailed off again.

[Via Joystiq]Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

We just reported a few hours ago about the ongoing Nintendo World Tour 2006, which will be showcasing the Nintendo Wii. In connection with this, we picked up footage of one of the trailers they hosted at the tour: A new Super Smash Bros. Brawl trailer.

This new trailer features the maps that we'll be seeing when the game officially launches, as well as the current character lineup - Mario, Kirby, Pikachu, Link, Samus, Pit, Meta Knight, Wario, and Snake ( whew , was that all?) - doing what they do best - smashing each other into next Wii-k. The trailer features in-game videos of their moves, and we have to say Snake's making the transition pretty well (Nice axe kick) despite the absence of his trademark FAMAS, M4, or Mk. 23 SOCOM.

When the vid's mostly done, you guys may want to keep their eye on the screen, as a "new" old-timer is revealed: Fox McCloud's joining this game. And while it's no surprise that he's been a regular in the previous Super Smash Bros. games, and...

   

Rapala Tournament Fishing is probably one of the few underestimated titles for Wii. Being the first true Wii fishing simulation game, not to mention it being a launch title, Rapala is not quite getting the recognition it deserves. This is not to say developer Magic Wand did a poor job and publisher Activision is focusing on "bigger" titles. A possible reason for this is fans dismissing it easily, thinking it's just an ordinary fishing game.

Actually, given enough attention, there's more to it than meets the eye. PC gamers well know this as they've been treated to the Rapala experience two years ago with Rapala Pro Fishing and several Cabala games as well. The Wii version, most obviously, will be using the revolutionary combination of Wiimote and Nunchuk. The first one serves as the fishing rod while the latter will be used as the reel. Aside from basic line casting, players will be doing other techniques such as wiggling the bait, setting the hook a...

Filed under: News, Controller

While our first report of a kiosk going up did not actually show the station on, a south Florida resident found an erected kiosk, fully hooked up, at his local GameStop store. Also, he was the first one to try the station out. What's interesting is that he had to turn in his keys in order to obtain the Wiimote to play as it was not tethered to the kiosk, leading us to believe that it could be quite easy for someone to run off with a Wiimote. Also, the only available demo on-hand was Excite Truck.

Spotted a kiosk at your local GameStop or EB Games? Take a picture and send it in!

[Thanks friedgreenmushrooms!]Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

The last time we looked, this wasn't part of the scanned Wii buyer's guide available at Wal-mart. While we know you already clicked on the thumb picture above, we'll say it anyway: Wii launches at Wal-mart, 12:01 A.M., November 19. The announcement also specifically mentions there would be a minimum number of 20 units per store. Given the Wal-marts we have all over the country, we're telling you that's quite a lot - but still not enough for sure.

We also heard that the midnight launch applies to the stores which close at 10 P.M. Also, since the number of units available are quite limited, the stores would only be selling one Wii per person. Should you want two or more for yourself, well, we suggest you bring along some friends or family with you.

And so the Nintendo World Tour finally kicks off! The first of the many legs actually began this morning and is still on-going as of this writing. The International Exhibition Hall of Nagoya was filled immediately by waiting fans even before the festivities started. People, who were largely composed of teens and kids with parents, excitedly waited in line while playing their favorite handheld, the Nintendo DS.

    
When the gates were finally opened, fans flocked as if by command on the Wii section. Accordingly, this was the first time the general public was treated to a hands-on of Nintendo's next-gen console. Among the different sections of the event, the Legend of Zelda booth seemed most popular. Would you believe fans actually waited for two to four hours just to have a few minutes
with the Twilight Princess? That really was amusing.

    
After today, the next stop for Nintendo World Tour will be on Novembe...

Wii just picked this up for you Gundam fans out there waiting for any further news on this title that's gonna be hitting the Wii: Bandai released a new trailer for SD Gundam: Scad Hammer featuring a sneak-peek of what we can expect when it goes stateside.

With an SD Admiral Revil and SD Team Ray introducing the Gundam in the first few screens (The original RX-78 Gundam developers), the trailer then throws us into the middle of several mecha-battles, showing off the assortment of MS you'll be facing: Doms, Goufs, and Zaku-II's to name a few.

Forget beam rifles and sabres -  the trailer features the RX-78 going medieval on the said MS with a freakishly-sized Hyper-hammer, leaving trails of mecha body parts and explosions in its wake...all in cute SD fashion (sounds like Dead Rising)!

The trailer also features some of the hammers you can use, such as a triple hammer, a drill hammer, or a cartoony-looking stun hammer. And while there was only a glimpse ...

Filed under: News, Fan stuff


Check around all the usual haunts for Wiiosks this weekend. A few are already up across the country, like this one reader Scott Johnson caught as it was being put together. Thank all that is holy for cell phones and fast action!

Several readers have tipped us that they've heard this is the big weekend for the debut of the kiosks, but this is the only photo we've seen. If you catch a kiosk in the wild this weekend, break out that camera phone and send us a picture!

So, uh ... the question has to be asked. When seeing the setting-up process in action, anyone have the urge to snatch one and run like mad?

[Thanks to everyone who's keeping us posted on this!]Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments

Electronic Arts opened the treasure chest for their upcoming releases, in line with their fiscal announcements made just recently. Now let's put them in a timeline so we'd get a better view:

For the second quarter of 2007, we might spot titles such as Crysis for the PC and Army of Two for the PS3 and the Xbox 360 (we know this already). However, we're not sure if EA plans to delay the release of these titles as they have made adjustments on their SKU plan.

For the fourth quarter of 2007, The Sims II holiday edition on PS3 is likely to grace the shelves. Note that since it's a holiday release, it's also possible for this limited edition title to be available this year.

The Sims 3 will be released in both the Wii and the PS3 platforms, but we  might see this launch title by 2009 - which is waaaay far in the future. EA says that another SimCity game is under development.

And for those who needed to get a dose of really awesome news, EA said that...

Well, this Halloween season, one brave soul went out into the streets completely dressed up as a Nintendo Wii. I suppose it IS a valid theme, considering that it was Halloween and the Wii is coming out in only a couple of weeks or so anyway, and heck, even Cartman can't wait for a Wii...

In any case, the body of the costume is composed of 3 Wiis that are show side-by-side, while the wearer's legs and arms are the console's matching Wiimotes. The ensemble even comes with a Classic Controller mask, and we THINK that his feet may be nunchuck attachments. We think.

We're just hoping that he got all the candy he wanted.