Game's Influence

WII-KLY UPDATE: TWO NEW CLASSIC GAMES ADDED TO WII SHOP CHANNEL

March 10, 2008

Got enough challenge in your daily routine? Chances are that basic everyday tasks – getting to work or school on time, walking the dog, taking out the trash – aren’t enough to keep you firing on all cylinders. Luckily, Virtual Console™ is close at hand to help you test your mettle in fresh and unusual ways. Whether you’re rescuing a kidnapped pal or mastering a set of mind-bending grid puzzles, this week’s new arrivals, imported from Japan, offer a refreshing break from the late-winter blahs.

Nintendo adds new games to the Wii™ Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points™ to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week’s new games are:

DoReMi Fantasy: Milon’s DokiDoki Adventure (Super NES®, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone – Alcohol Reference and Comic Mischief, 900 Wii Points): This is an action game where an energetic boy named Milon sets off on a great adventure in a cute fairy-tale world. Piccolo is a village in the country of Fantasia. One day, they hear from the fairy Alis that songs and music have disappeared from the forest. Suddenly, the wizard Amon appears, grabs Alis and vanishes with her. The brave Milon must now go on a journey to rescue his kidnapped friend, with his bubble shooter as his only weapon. Along the way, he’ll need to retrieve five legendary instruments and stars by defeating Amon’s minions. Get ready to enjoy the fun and comical action of this charming game.

Puyo Puyo 2: Tsuu (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone, 900 Wii Points): The object of this head-to-head puzzle game is to clear your grid of falling patterns called puyos by forming chains of four or more same-colored puyos in a straight line or one of several geometric patterns. What makes this a challenging two-player contest is the fact that when you clear a chain of puyos from your grid, it drops a random piece of filler onto your opponent’s grid. The more puyos you clear, the more you fill your opponent’s grid, and if you can clutter up his grid enough to fill it to the top, you’ve won the game. An intriguing backstory makes this an amusing experience for one or two players.

For more information about Wii, please visit wii.com.

Press Release

WII-KLY UPDATE: ONE NEW CLASSIC GAME ADDED TO WII SHOP CHANNEL

March 3, 2008

March is roaring in like a lion on the Virtual Console™. This might be a good time to look back at the massive catalog of classic games and ask yourself if you’ve played them all. Well, have you? You know there are some unplayed gems in there that your friends keep raving about, like this week’s release, Super Turrican. Not to mention the games you haven’t played since you were 10. Go ahead and fire them up – you’ll feel like a kid again. Just think of the Virtual Console as your own personal fountain of youth.

Nintendo adds new games to the Wii™ Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points™ to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week’s new game is:

Super Turrican: (Super NES®, 1 player, Rated E 10+ for Everyone 10 and Older – Fantasy Violence, 800 Wii Points): You are Bren McGuire, on a United Planets Freedom Forces mission to save the peaceful planet Katakis from the Machine, source of all that is cruel and evil in the universe. The only weapon on your side is the state-of-the-art Turrican Assault Suit. Equipped with multiple weapons, including the incredible Freeze-Beam that temporarily immobilizes almost any enemy, the Turrican Assault Suit gives one man the power of an entire army. Use the myriad weapons and powers at your disposal to fight through 12 increasingly insane levels, free the innocent residents of the planet Katakis and crush the oppressive Machine.

For more information about Wii, please visit wii.com.

Press Release

WII-KLY UPDATE: TWO NEW CLASSIC GAMES ADDED TO WII SHOP CHANNEL
Feb. 25, 2008

This week’s additions take players on a psychedelic trip down memory lane. Kirby® is back and armed with a bunch of new talents, including the option to combine abilities. Curious to find out what mixing the Burn and Cutter powers gives Kirby? We won’t spoil that for you here. If the colorful landscapes in the pink sphere’s world are too much for you and you’re looking for straight firepower instead, then try plunging your soul into the mind of a twisted demon. We’ll just see how you fare against wave after wave of bizarre enemy creatures in that kind of environment.

Nintendo adds new games to the Wii™ Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points™ to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week’s new games are:

Kirby 64™: The Crystal Shards: (Nintendo 64®, 1-4 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Kirby’s first 3-D adventure is also his Nintendo 64 debut, and it finds the always-versatile hero battling a new enemy called Dark Matter. Dark Matter is after a distant land’s powerful crystal, but a young fairy named Ribbon attempts to save it by escaping with the gem to Dream Land. Now the crystal has been broken, and it’s scattered around the world. Take control of Kirby and help him journey across six worlds, battling a wide variety of enemies and challenging bosses, as he tries to collect all 100 pieces of the shattered crystal. Along the way, you’ll use Kirby’s trademark copying ability to use enemies’ strengths against them. Not only that, but try combining any two abilities to create a brand-new one that is usually stronger than the original. Throw in three exciting multiplayer minigames, and you’ve got a package of which even King Dedede would be proud. Fans of Kirby and action games with bright, colorful graphics should vacuum this one up.

Psychosis: (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone – Mild Fantasy Violence, 600 Wii Points): This is a side-scrolling shooter played in a world created from the mind of a twisted demon. Your soul has suddenly wandered into that evil world that exists in every person’s heart. The only way out is to blast your way past the grotesque creatures that block your path in five “causes” (stages). You must face the dangers of this psychedelic world by making full use of three shot types and the satellite option. With power-ups, you can change your shots to a wide-coverage beam, a satellite-generated laser and more. Each shot type can be powered up to three levels. You can also block enemy fire by rotating the satellites to a desired position. How you use these features will be the key to successfully escaping this strange and surreal world.

For more information about Wii, please visit wii.com.

Press Release

WII-KLY UPDATE: TWO NEW CLASSIC GAMES ADDED TO WII SHOP CHANNEL

Feb. 18, 2008

Some gamers get skeptical when Roman numerals populate the title of a game. But make no mistake – this week’s offerings are no mere sequels. They are some of the most highly regarded classic games around. So stock up on some Wii Points™ to battle the Dark Force or complete an action-packed trilogy.

Nintendo adds new games to the Wii™ Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week’s new games are:

Ninja Gaiden™ III: The Ancient Ship of Doom: (NES®, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone – Mild Violence, 500 Wii Points): Join master ninja Ryu Hayabusa, last member of the famous Dragon Clan, in the third and final chapter of the legendary Ninja Gaiden saga. Ryu is framed for FBI agent Irene Lew’s murder, and it’s up to him to clear his name. Defeating superior life-forms created out of “life energy” called BIO-NOIDs and avoiding enemy ambushes are among the many obstacles which Ryu faces in this unpredictable adventure of mystery, deceit and destruction. Noticeable changes to the game-play mechanics include Ryu’s ability to grab on to horizontal surfaces, his reduced falling speed and altered jumping maneuvers, and visible power-ups. Help Ryu defeat the forces of evil once more and discover the real culprit behind Irene’s death as one of the most loved trilogies in video-game history comes to a close.

Phantasy Star™ II: (Sega Genesis, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone – Mild Animated Violence, 800 Wii Points): Hailed as one of the greatest games of all time by fans and media alike, Phantasy Star II is an RPG that features an epic story line and turn-based battles. Play as Rolf, Nei, Rudo or several other characters as you navigate through the Algol star system battling the evil Dark Force. Build your characters, select the right weapons and armor, and take on the forces of evil through various missions as you find the right combination of characters to complete each objective. Experience the magic once again in this great sequel.

For more information about Wii, please visit wii.com.

Press Release

WII-KLY UPDATE: TWO NEW CLASSIC GAMES ADDED TO WII SHOP CHANNEL

Feb. 11, 2008

The two games joining the lineup this week are considered cult classics, yet they deal with topics as varied as farm management and shooting enemies to the strains of heavy-metal tunes. Just don’t get the two mixed up, since most livestock don’t like heavy metal and it takes more than turnips to defeat fire-spewing sea serpents.

Nintendo adds new games to the Wii™ Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points™ to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week’s new games are:

Harvest Moon® (Super NES®, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): You bought the farm, so now it’s time to roll up your sleeves and try living off the fat of the land. Fresh air and the beauty of the outdoors will be fulfilling, but a successful farm needs a lot of working capital as well. There are buildings on your property, but they are in need of livestock. You have a modest house, but if things get lonely in the field, it’s going to take a remodel to woo a female farming companion. Your challenge is to dig in and build your life as a farmer from the ground up. How you manage will determine the outcome, but remember: You always reap what you sow.

Lords of Thunder (TurboGrafx-16 CD-ROM, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone – Fantasy Violence, 800 Wii Points): Lords of Thunder is a side-scrolling shooter that has you take on the role of a legendary warrior, blasting enemies to heavy-metal tunes. Your enemies are plotting to revive Zaggart, “The Dark One,” who was sealed beneath the six continents of Mistral. It’s up to Landis, descendant of the heroic Dyu, to stop them. Choose the order in which to attack the six stages. Before each stage, select one of four magic armors and use crystals you’ve collected during your battles to buy items. Selecting the right armor for each stage is the key to your ultimate victory. Then get ready to face awesome enemies like a fire-spewing sea serpent or a giant insect. Whether it’s the fast-paced shooting or breaking into the fortress of a stage boss, you’ll be blown away by the intensity of Lords of Thunder.

For more information about Wii, please visit wii.com.

Press Release