All Articles: Wii

See the final box art for Madden NFL 12

Posted on May 31, 2011 by John Scalzo

Cleveland Browns running back Peyton Hillis vaulted over some stiff competition to earn the right to grace the Madden NFL 12 cover. Today, Hillis has officially been targeted by the Madden Cover Curse as the final box art for the game was revealed. Feel free to click on the image to view a slightly larger version.

Madden NFL 12 will be released for the PS2, PS3, PSP, Wii and Xbox 360 on August 30.

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Disney Universe suit ups this Fall

Posted on May 26, 2011 by John Scalzo

The Disney/Square Enix partnership has produced six Kingdom Hearts games with a seventh in development. The House of Mouse must have taken that franchise’s mashup mentality to heart as they’ve announced Disney Universe will be available on the PC, PS3, Wii and Xbox 360 this Fall.

Disney Universe will mix together characters from Disney’s animated and live-action films in a “fast-paced” and “frenetic” adventure. Players will be able to “suit up” as more than 40 Disney characters including Alice (Alice in Wonderland), Mike (Monsters, Inc.), Tron (Tron: Legacy) and Stitch (Lilo & Stitch). Once in costume, players will gain powers and tools related to their character of choice as they explore six worlds based on legendary Disney and Pixar films. And like any good family game, Disney Universe will also include a multiplayer mode for up to four players.

Disney Interactive plans to expand Disney Universe on the PS3 and Xbox 360 post-launch through an expanding universe of downloadloadable content and items including additional worlds, costumes and more available for purchase.

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EA unveils E3 2011 lineup; includes multiple unannounced projects

Posted on May 24, 2011 by John Scalzo

Electronic Arts has caught the E3 fever and the only cure is an hour-long show on Spike TV!

Geoff Keighley of GameTrailers TV will host “Gamechangers: EA 2011 Preview,” a live broadcast of EA’s 2011 E3 press conference. The photogenic game journalist will be joined by EA CEO John Riccitiello and several of the publisher’s development teams to unveil their E3 lineup:

  • Experience an explosive, never-before-seen demo of Battlefield 3
  • Travel across the galaxy for a look at Commander Shepard’s final voyage in Mass Effect 3
  • Hit the pitch for a first look at FIFA Soccer 12
  • Discover what’s new in Madden NFL 12
  • Shred the mountains in the world premiere look at SSX
  • Experience the high-speed thrills of Need For Speed: The Run
  • Star Wars: The Old Republic and multiple “unannounced projects” will also be revealed during the broadcast

Gamechangers will air live on Spike TV on Monday, June 6 at 3:30 PM (Eastern Time).

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Chrono Trigger added to Virtual Console

Posted on May 16, 2011 by John Scalzo

Square Enix has added their time-travelling epic, Chrono Trigger, to the Wii’s Virtual Console today. The Super NES classic can be downloaded later today for 800 Wii Points ($8). Also available this week in the WiiWare section is Gabrielle’s Ghostly Groove: Monster Mix, a dancing game… with monsters!

A trio of new DSiWare games have been added to Nintendo’s portable download store: Big Bass Arcade, a fishing game; Word Searcher 3, a word search game; and Hellokids Volume 1: Coloring and Painting, a “coloring book for your DSi.”

More information on all of these titles can be found after the break. (more…)

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Mortal Kombat decapitates the competition in April NPD report

Posted on May 13, 2011 by John Scalzo

It’s no secret that the video game community has responded to NetherRealm Studios’ Mortal Kombat reboot with a resounding “I love it.” But like Shao Kahn taunting a clearly inferior kombatant, the game also emerged on top of The NPD Group’s April 2011 sales report. And according to a tweet from Kombat creator Ed Boon, the game sold over 1,000,000 copies during the month. Flawless victory indeed.

April 19’s other big release, Portal 2, teleported its way to the top of the list with a strong #2 showing. Of course, it’s important to point out that a good portion of Portal 2’s sales were digital downloads through Steam, which isn’t counted by the NPD.

But the biggest surprise from last month’s top ten might be the absence of Sony’s SOCOM 4: U.S. Navy SEALs. The online shooter was also released on April 19th, one day before hackers took down the PSN. The service has yet to return and its offline status definitely contributed to SOCOM 4’s lackluster sales.

Hit the jump for the complete top ten of April’s bestselling games. (more…)

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Dragon Quest Collection bringing DQ I, II, & III to Wii in Japan (both NES & SNES versions)

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Mike Gutierrez

To celebrate 25 years of series that would become the architect of console RPGs, Square Enix has announced Dragon Quest Collection for the Nintendo Wii. Only confirmed for Japan so far, this very special bundle will include the original NES versions of Dragon Quest I, Dragon Quest II, and Dragon Quest III. For players needing a little more graphical fidelity, the collection will also boast the SNES remakes Dragon Quest I & II and Dragon Quest III. All games will be compatible with the Wiimote, Classic controller, and GameCube controller.

The first three games comprise what fans have dubbed “The Erdrick Trilogy” (or “Loto Trilogy” for the GBC remakes) of the franchise.

As of December 2010, Dragon Quest has sold over 57 million copies, defining a genre and becoming truly embedded in Japanese culture. Forget Xenoblade and The Last Story. For me, this is the one Wii RPG I desperately want to be translated for the US. Since publishing and localizing Dragon Quest IX and Dragon Quest VI, I can only hope Nintendo will take an even firmer affinity with the series and bring this over. Let’s at least hope a translation of Dragon Quest X is in the cards when more details emerge later this year.

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MDK 2 blasts onto Wii Shop today

Posted on May 9, 2011 by John Scalzo

One of the greatest action games of all-time, MDK 2, will be blasting its way onto the Wii Shop Channel today. More than a simple Virtual Console re-release, the game has been rebuilt for the Wii and Interplay has released the game as a full WiiWare title.

The DSiWare Shop will receive a trio of new games today, but none as cool as MDK 2. They include Mighty Milky Way, a puzzler from WayForward; GO Series: Tower of Deus, a dark and atmospheric 2D platformer; and Whack-A-Friend, a whack-a-mole game that uses the faces of your friends.

More information on all of these games can be found after the break. (more…)

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Wii drops to $150; budget Nintendo Selects lineup revealed

Posted on May 4, 2011 by John Scalzo

As expected, Nintendo officially dropped the price of the Wii to $149.99 today. With the new price comes a new bundle. The $149.99 package will include the console (available in black or white), a matching Wii Remote Plus/Nunchuk, a copy of Mario Kart Wii and a Wii Wheel. The bundle will go on sale in two weeks, on May 15th.

With Wii Sports pulled out of the Wii system box for the first time since the console’s launch, the groundbreaking game will lead the new Nintendo Selects line. Retailing for $19.99, the first wave of Nintendo Selects will also include Animal Crossing: City Folk, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and Mario Super Sluggers.

“From the day it launched, Wii has let players of all ages and experience levels have fun with one another,” said Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “The new suggested retail pricing for both the hardware and select games will help create more of these magical moments for even greater numbers of people.”

In other words, the Wii still prints money.

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