Wii stuff

[Yoru]

I am assuming data-collection is an inevitability, but I don't really have a problem with Nintendo getting the data.  I have not formed an opinion on the almost-certain advertising.  Hopefully it won't be obtrusive, more like the Nintendo email newsletter than unskippable commercials.

I don't like phone-home systems, at all. Unless it's optional and there's an opt-out, I'll probably run my Wii in networkless mode. I don't run things like Xfire for the same reason.

[Yegolev]

I'd almost guarantee that WiiConnect24 will be optional.  Considering the target consumer (non-gamers, non-techies), Nintendo can't realistically expect a large percentage of their hopeful install base to have an always-on internet connection, nevermind wireless access to it.  There are a lot of filthy dialup users around the globe, and many that don't even have that; these people are who Nintendo wants as customers.

I also think, if you do have your Wii connected to the net, they would be foolish to send or receive unsolicited data, but you might have to do a Steam-type agreement in order to download VC games.

I love wild speculation.  Especially if it's mine.

[HaemishM]

I am assuming data-collection is an inevitability, but I don't really have a problem with Nintendo getting the data.  I have not formed an opinion on the almost-certain advertising.  Hopefully it won't be obtrusive, more like the Nintendo email newsletter than unskippable commercials.

I don't like phone-home systems, at all. Unless it's optional and there's an opt-out, I'll probably run my Wii in networkless mode. I don't run things like Xfire for the same reason.

Don't ever get a Tivo then.

I'm not bothered by this kind of phone-home stuff, so long as I get to see something out of the exchange. With Tivo, it's accurate TV listings and the ability to watch shit when I want without having to set up eveyr single episode. So what if they sell my viewing habits to marketers? If it tells marketers to stop making shitty commercials/products, or that I buzz through 99% of commercials, all the better. And if it tells Nintendo that I like games like Red Steel and don't play puzzle games, maybe that means more games I want.

However, if it's Windows Media Player sending Microsoft my list of pr0n videos, I get very irate.

[Yegolev]

In regards to TiVo, I get a real pleasure out of using that red "thumbs-down" button on bullshit shows.  There are three stacked red marks on Malcom in the Middle.

[Yoru]

Don't ever get a Tivo then.

I'm not bothered by this kind of phone-home stuff, so long as I get to see something out of the exchange. With Tivo, it's accurate TV listings and the ability to watch shit when I want without having to set up eveyr single episode. So what if they sell my viewing habits to marketers? If it tells marketers to stop making shitty commercials/products, or that I buzz through 99% of commercials, all the better. And if it tells Nintendo that I like games like Red Steel and don't play puzzle games, maybe that means more games I want.

However, if it's Windows Media Player sending Microsoft my list of pr0n videos, I get very irate.

No problems there; I don't own a TV, much less a TiVo.

If I do get a TV, it's going to be entirely for the Wii, although the current plan is to upgrade to a nicer (read: not 7 years old) monitor and find some way to pipe the Wii's video signal to that.

[Yegolev]

If I do get a TV, it's going to be entirely for the Wii, although the current plan is to upgrade to a nicer (read: not 7 years old) monitor and find some way to pipe the Wii's video signal to that.

Might as well just spend on a nice digital TV from Wal*Mart, doesn't have to be anything fancy if you aren't getting a sweat-bead console.  And it has the connectors already.

[schild]

Gateway or Dell 21" Monitor. Top should be big enough to rest the IR-bar on and not have to worry about it falling off every two minutes. Could be wrong through. The Gateway has component-in also, which is nice. or else you're gonna have to get an AV Switch or some sort if you get more than 1 console.

[Yegolev]

For the cord-paranoid, you can see a shot of the Wii transformer in a pictorial on Cubed³ here (photos apparently stolen from GameFront).  Also of note are the shots of the GC memory card slots and an open SD flap.

GameDaily interviews Sega of America's VP of Marketing and gets a lot of PS3 information (such as how much Sega loves it), but as for Wii, they estimate the Wii-exclusive Sonic game (Sonic Wild Fire, I think) will arrive in March 2007 while Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz will be a launch title.

Kiziko interviews DOA- and Ninja Gaiden-creator Tomonobu Itagaki hyoh.  As for important details, he mentions that he likes to work on DOAX while drunk... well, he really likes drinking, that much is certain.  He is excited about Wii since he enjoys "those kinds" of games, but he isn't working on a game for it; fellow producer Kikuchi, however, is working on a golf game for Wii.

Nothing to do with Wii directly, but I found this article interesting.  I would expect MS to deny any rumor that it would eventually put a HD-DVD inside the 360 since that would only hurt sales in the short-term as the space-conscious and frugal gamers decide to wait out the shitacular external unit in favor of something that doesn't reek.

[Yegolev]

CNN Money reports that analyst P.J. McNealy of American Technology Research thinks Wii will launch in October.  For some reason, I already thought it would be on shelves on or before October 31.  Maybe because Nintendo usually releases things before November.

Yeah, this is a shitty excuse for Wii news.  I'm doing the pee-pee dance in anticipation of the September announcement just like everyone else.

[Sairon]

Also of note are the shots of the GC memory card slots and an open SD flap.

I guess that's pic 5 and 6, looks more like a built in toaster.

[Yegolev]

I guess that's pic 5 and 6, looks more like a built in toaster.

Yes.  #4 is the SD slot while #5+6 show the GC memory card slots, just anterior of the GC controller ports.  Tiny, tiny pieces of bread can also be put in there.

[Yegolev]

This is rather stale, but some videos from Nintendo's E³ presentations are on Tech-On!

I love Tech-On!

[Yegolev]

Old stuff from April, but I found an interview on IGN that is mostly about Madden on Wii but does confirm some details of the Wii.  The most interesting bit is probably that the Wii's ATi graphics unit will support 480p at 4x3 and 16x9, which I think we knew but I like having all this shit in one place.  If you are actually interested in Madden on Wii, I'm sure you could find a lot of wank material in that article.

Also, Nintendo lets some Brits use Wii, and they may or may not be impressed.  Who can tell, they are so smug and quiet about everything.  Always smirking and mumbing "Yes...... Quite."  Even better, a so-called gaming expert says that Wii is best for kids age eight to ten.  Not only is that a ridiculous comment (Red Steel?), what sort of age range comprises three years at most?  I'm glad the BBC is here to hold the shining lamp of journalism and light our way in these uncertain game-riddled times.

[schild]

8 to ten is a mindset. 8 to 10 is elementary school. That said, Red Steel is a bad example. They're reworking the controls because they were shit.

I'm getting one if not two Wiis for myself, but really, you're making it out to be much more than it is.

[Yegolev]

I'm getting one if not two Wiis for myself, but really, you're making it out to be much more than it is.

If I don't have any real information, I have to fall back on sensationalism.

[dusematic]

Actually, the consensus from England is that Wii is bodacious. 

[Yegolev]

EA has named names.  Stolen from N-Sider:

Electronic Arts revealed today that it is working on six titles for Nintendo's upcoming Wii home console, all coming out of their "dedicated Wii development team"—presumably the one in Burnaby.

The titles under development include entries in EA franchises Madden NFL, Need for Speed, Harry Potter, Tiger Woods PGA Tour, SSX, and The Godfather. In addition, EA says it is working on additional titles to be revealed in the coming months.

"Once we started to experiment with Madden on Wii, there was an explosion of innovation. Everyone in the studio is energized by the creative opportunity afforded by both the hardware and controller. By reaching into our catalogue, we are able to bring a fresh and distinctive experience to some of EA's most popular franchises. Creatively, the game play possibilities are staggering and endless," said John Schappert, Senior Vice President and General Manager, EA.

Wii is reminding me of that Star Trek episode where everyone was being infected by water molecules.

[Yegolev]

Anecdotal evidence of the inevitability of Wii's success, relying on Guitar Hero as a model.  Substituing "PS2" and "Guitar Hero" with "Wii" and "lightsaber" means world domination.  Believe, bitches.

Another nice hook is the fact that there are over five million DS units sold, and if Nintendo is able to convince these people that it will be huge fun to connect their handhelds to a Wii, that would be at least a few extra sales.

Cubed³ interviews Matt Bozon, Creative Director and Producer of Sigma Star Saga:

C3: On a slightly different subject, whatever happened to the highly promising Shantae on the GBA? Is it still conceivable it will be released or would a DS upgrade be more likely? Was the game ever fully completed and have you considered approaching the newly formed European distributor Rising Star Games (or anyone else, for that matter) about a publishing deal?

Matt: The GBA game hasn’t been forgotten. Believe it or not, there are still negotiations going on for that game, and the DS sequel. Because GBA is slipping away, I’ve put my attention on DS. But that’s not to say the GBA game couldn’t come back on Virtual Console as a SNES game.

Emphasis mine.  The Virtual Console could be a good place for games which might not otherwise be released.

From the same interview, when asked what Nintendo franchise he would like to work on:

Matt: We’re good at breathing new life into dead things. I’d put my sights on Kid Icarus. Putting a new coat of paint on a game like Zelda 2 would be really fun too…

There is also a lot of fun stuff at Go Nintendo, but it is all DS.  Linking because I love Nintendo.

[schild]

Bozon is the Raph Koster of console gaming. You have played Sigma Star Saga, right? All very high concept with tremendous potential, only to fall flat on it's face because no one is giving a GBA game a $10,000,000 budget.

[Yegolev]

You have played Sigma Star Saga, right?

It's on the docket, or rather was.  Wondering if it can be found now.  So... little... time.

[schild]

Not worth playing.

[Yegolev]

You've always been there for me.  Here's some actual Wii news.

The Wiimote uses two AA batteries.  Usage is estimated at 60 hours for normal use and 30 hours with pointer functionality.  The IGN think-tank tries to start a rumor that the Wiimote will have the capabilities of a megapixel camera... no.  I mean, really.  Read the IGN article if you want, but I linked the N-Sider summary on purpose.

From that same N-Sider article, some more-official description of the IR bar that we have discussed in this thread:

Digital photos taken of the E3 demos show the sensor bar has six beacons, invisible to the naked eye but not to a digital camera, suggesting the sensor bar may use infrared LEDs. The Remote's imaging sensor, behind a piece of dark plastic not unlike the infrared window in standard remote controls, would see this infrared light and use PixArt's imaging technology to extrapolate its orientation and position in relation to the sensor bar.

Finally, the Wiimote will have a tiny bit of NVRAM in it.

The Remote also features 6KB of onboard non-volatile memory which could concievably be used to store player-specific settings.

I figure what will be in the 6kB will be "I'm controller 1 and I belong to Harvey".

This has nothing to do with Wii.

[Yegolev]

A hands-on review of Madden for Wii, written by a UK resident.

Edit: Actually I an not 100% sure it is hands-on.  Sure reads that way.  Good info nonetheless.

[OcellotJenkins]

Any word yet on the launch line-up of games?

[Yegolev]

Any word yet on the launch line-up of games?

Nothing official from Nintendo, but IGN is well up to the task of handling this.  To save some time, here's the list from IGN:

• Zelda: Twilight Princess
• Metroid Prime 3
• Wii Sports
• Red Steel
• Tony Hawk: The Legend of Curly's Gold
• Madden '07
• Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors
• Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz
• Metal Slug Anthology
• Trauma Center: Second Opinion
• Elebits
• Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
• Blitz: The League
• Rayman Raving Rabbids
• Spongebob
• Cars

[HaemishM]

There are at least 6 titles on that list that I'm really interested in, which should be a record for a console launch.

[WindiaN]

Mark these words, true believers: the Wii is going to have a significant impact on the future of gaming. 

It will either be the greatest thing to happen to gaming since a mouse and keyboard and the Internet, or it will be the Virtual Boy 2 with arm aches instead of blurred vision and headaches.

This is pretty much how I feel about it, although I think there will be more mixed reviews if it fails instead of across the board awfulness a la virtual boy.

[OcellotJenkins]

Thinking about the new Zelda makes me tingle in my happy place.

Edit:  Thanks Yegolev for the list.

[Yegolev]

Let's not forget the undetermined VC titles.

IGN provided me with a picture of the IR bar.


Apparently Sports Illustrated Kids has stated a release date of Nov 9 for Wii.  I don's sub to SIK so I can't confirm this, and it may not be grounded in reality anyway.

I don't think Wii will see the sort of failure that Virtual Boy did.  There are degrees of failure, though.  I saw a cop on a Segway today.  If you could play Madden on a Segway, I think we'd see a lot more of them, but they share a common flaw with Wii: it's hard to use them without looking like a fruitcake.

[Yegolev]

Information-bearing shot of Sonic Wild Fire, stolen from The Wiire:

[dusematic]

It's official.  Friend codes are back for the Wii.

[HaemishM]

I see nothing wrong with that IR bar. That thing should sit on top of most TV's just fine.

[dusematic]

Seriously though, friend codes are back.  Thought this would be breaking news in this thread.

[Yegolev]

Seriously though, friend codes are back.  Thought this would be breaking news in this thread.

Got a link, Chief?  Not that I doubt you, it's just that you are being stingy with the infoz.

[dusematic]

http://gonintendo.com/?p=3797


This is breaking news.  SLEUTH.