Somebody's obviously excited! No less than Charles Martinet, the famed voice behind Mario the plumber, has taken to his Twitter to tweet about "a new Mario game". And no, he's apparently not referring to the New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
Said his highly intriguing tweets:
Mamma Mia!!! I'm going to Seattle this week to record a new Mario game! Woo Hooo!!!!!! I can hardly wait!!!!
A couple of days later, he follows it up with:
Big day tomorrow! Seattle for a new Mario game! Yippeee!!! And just as a joke, it's going to rain...in San Francisco tomorrow!
And then, some 11 hours ago:
Awesome new Mario Game! And it's not NSMB Wii, and it's not Galaxy 2, but it's going to be crazy fun!
Another Mario game in the works, huh? What could it be? Do you have any guesses? Somebody from Neogaf forums has also mentioned something about Shigeru Miyamoto also dropping hints on his own Twitter account. An RPG Mario, maybe?
We'll keep you posted on this. In the meantime, we'll keep following Martinet in case he tweets another exciting development in his new Mario voiceover job.
I hope it is an RPG.It's great they are making more Mario games while there's 2 on the way.
Lakeland, Flordia should be ashamed. While raiding the residence for drugs, the police themselves thought it would be fun to play the Nintendo Wii that was hooked up on a big screen TV. Little did they know that a hidden camera was filming the area and they were caught playing the game while they were supposed to be working, for a whole 9 hours. The policemen were having sop much fun with the bowling minigame on WiiSports that they actually got the hang of it and got real good. It was reported that 16 officers were on the scene. An investigation into the matter was initiated.
Wii Sports Resort has sold over 1.25 million units in North America, according to Nintendo.
And the new peripheral for the Wii, the MotionPlus accessory, has sold 2.9 million copies in the region – including units sold with Wii Sports Resort, 1.36 million standalone sales and 257,000 units bundled with EA's Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10.
Nintendo of America has also confirmed that it will now be bundling two MotionPlus units with Wii Sports Resort for USD 59.99.
In the UK, Wii Sports Resort and the MotionPlus add-on have been bundled in a new hardware package alongside the Wii console for around GBP 189.99.
This new Wiimote being offered in Europe looks really cool, with many features that the current set lacks; wireless nunchuck, rechargeable batteries built-in, and of course the kicker, MotionPlus+ support without the extra dongle. No word on whether this Wii Remote will be offered in the USA. It certainly packs a punch compared to the Mad Catz Wiimote and the Nyko Wand.
More info after the jump.
The Remote XL+ comes with integrated Wii Motion Plus, as well as an external sync button to make synchronising remotes that bit easier, and a built in battery which can be charged via usb cable.
To go with this is the Wireless Motion XL, which is basically a wireless Nunchuck. Being wireless it is obviously battery operated, but with the same charging capabilities as the Remote XL + and an off/on switch, the Nunchuck should have no problems pleasing everyone.
'We are pleased to offer innovative accessories that go Electronic Theatre Imagebeyond the usual offerings to our customers. The XL+ series was just the logical consequence of the market developments in recent months and the buyer will receive innovative and practical accessories from one source, without buying several gadgets.' Mike Steup, managing director of Sunflex Europe told us about the range of controls.
The premium controllers should be available around November 15, the prices for the controls are as follows:
• Remote XL+ - Around $94 AUD • Wireless Motion XL - Around $56 AUD
Power Tennis incorporates multiple characters, themes, and locations from the Mario series. The game includes standard tennis matches, but contains variants that feature different scoring formats and objectives. Other variants include "Gimmick" courts, thematic areas with components and properties that directly affect gameplay. The game consists of 18 playable characters, each categorised by their style of play and each with a pair of unique moves known as "Power Shots". Power Tennis was developed simultaneously with Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour, and the pair shared similar technology and concepts with each other during production. Such similarities include an emphasis on the Mario theme in characters and settings as well as alternative game modes such as "Ring Shot".
The game was positively received in general, attaining an aggregate score of 81 percent from Game Rankings and 80 percent from Metacritic. Critics praised the game's depth and variety, but criticised the Power Shot animations, which could not be skipped. Description via Wikipedia.com
Metroid co-creator Yoshio Sakamoto has said he'd 'encourage' Retro Studios - developer of the Metroid Prime games - to come up with another idea for the series.
'With regards to the Prime series, if the team at Retro comes up with an idea that does bring a sequel to the series to fruition, I by all means encourage them to do that,' he said.
'But I'm not directly involved with the Prime games. In terms of the Metroid series stories that I've told, the games that I've been involved in, I started with the NES Metroid and took it through Fusion.
'I'm hoping to tie the Super Metroid and Fusion stories together, and until I do that I can't think about what happens after Fusion, but if the concept does come to me I'd like to continue the story and see how far it can go,' he told Wired.
Sakamoto also spoke of his aims with the upcoming (and sweet-looking) Metroid Other M. 'Within the greater Metroid series, the Other M story will tie together the stories that took place in Super Metroid and Metroid Fusion,' he said.
'One of my goals is to present Samus as an appealing human character, and that involves explaining a little bit about what happened in her past as well as the characters that influenced her. The story will play a big part.'
Comments are welcome! What do you think of this title?
A new exploit for the Nintendo Wii was discovered today and it seems this one is quite difficult for Nintendo to patch. The exploit found by comex explores a vulnerability in Super Smash Bros. Brawl's stage builder code to run arbitrary homebrew code. So what's the difference between this and the others released before?
This is different from other exploit because this one does not go through the System Menu, and as of this time, Nintendo has no method on the Wii for patching games. Currently it will load an elf file from /boot.elf on the SD card.
To use use the exploit, all you have to do is delete all the custom stages of SSBB on your Wii, then copy over the file. When you enter the stage builder menu, it will automatically run /boot.elf on SD. The coder says that the exploit will be released soon, in the meantime, watch the video below to see the exploit in action.
U.S. fighting fans and non-Japanese speakers, rejoice, as the Japan-exclusive Capcom fighter Tatsunoko vs. Capcom may grace your non-modded console yet!
A scan from the latest issue of Nintendo Power via Kotaku via a NeoGAF poster reveals that the game is indeed breaking out of the motherland.
Presumably the game will keep it's name, as the article uses it, despite Tatsunoko's characters having been in bed with over a dozen companies in America. An official-official announcement is expected for E3, which leads us to believe this was indeed one the two secret games Capcom is set to unveil.
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Source: kotaku.com, ."
Word on the street is, another Wii firmware update has emerged. This would be a post 3.4 firmware update. I haven’t had the chance to check my Wii just yet, but I wanted to spread the word to you guys. Just what on earth could Nintendo need to update? We just had an update not too long ago! I’m sure we’ll find out in a few hours’ time. Thanks to all the late-night Wii-lovers that sent this my way!
Maybe they want to block the new TP (Twilight Princess) Hack?
SANYO is close to releasing the Nintendo Wii's first officially licensed charger dock. Just like all the other hundreds of Wii Remote Chargers out there, it basically just re-charges the controller. But! What makes this one special is the feature not needing the battery pack to be plugged in, rather using some amazing technology, the Wii Controller only has to sit in the cradle to be charged through magnetic induction processes. This meaning nothing to plug in or pull out, we no longer have go through the time consuming hassle to take off the controller grips or sleeves to charge. Not only this, but you may connect four of these babies' up together to share off one single charger port.
The SANYO Wii Remote Charger is due for release in Japan on the 25th of August for approximately $54 Australian Dollars (converted). But We're sure to see this dock hitting our shores in the not so far future.
Source: http://www.mywii.com.au
Wasn't 'Dragon Quest Swords' bumped up to the US release date of February 19, 2008? A few weeks ago Square Enix reported it was. I went on a quest of my own to purchase the title from a retailer and here is what happened:
Target's electronics employees looked through their 'Nintendo Wii Promo Binder' and acted like they knew nothing, which they didn't. They had no way to look up when they would receive the title.
Sears electronics department stated that they are a small retailer and likely would not receive DQ Swords at all. They also had no way too look up if and when they would receive the game.
GameCrazy reserved out their only copy. They had no way too find out if and when they would get more copies.
Wal-Mart checked their back room and told me "out of stock."
EBGames checked their computer and said they would have 2 copies available for purchase tomorrow. Best Buy had copies of the game in the back room, but stated that it was not set for release until February 21,2008.
So, alas, I was struck down like a slime. No Dragon Quest Swords early availability after all.
Written by Joshua Shear
Nintendo's popular Wii game console will displace Microsoft's Xbox 360 as the new-generation game machine, iSuppli said Thursday.
The market researcher forecasted that the global installed base of Wii game consoles will rise to 30.2 million units in 2008, up from 18 million in 2007, putting it ahead of the Xbox 360's projected 25.7 million units.
The Wii is already riding a wave of popularity that saw it win the greatest growth among new game consoles last year, according to iSuppli figures. There were only 3.2 million units in people's homes at the end of 2006, jumping to 18 million at the end of last year. The Xbox 360 retained its lead as the console in most homes last year by edging out the Wii with 18.2 million units, while the PlayStation 3 lagged rivals with 10.3 million, up from 1.8 million per year earlier.
iSuppli did not include older game consoles or handhelds in their report.
The market researcher chalks up Nintendo's success to a strategy of offering a lower-cost game console targeted at everyday people, rather than an expensive console with the latest graphics aimed at video game lovers. The main difference between the Wii and its rivals is the wireless controller and sensors that detect hand motion and speed. The innovation puts motion into gaming, because users swing the Wii controller to hit virtual baseballs and golf balls on their TV screens, go bowling and fight in boxing.
The Wii currently sells for $249.99 in the U.S., according to electronic retailer Best Buy's Web site, while the Xbox 360 costs $349.99 and the PlayStation 3 $399.99.
Cubed3 gives Hori's Fighting Stick Wii a Final Score of 9 out of 10. Since I have not tried the Fighting Stick yet myself, this article gives much needed insight into this controller's usability. At about $59 US, How many of these will you pick up?
An excellent Hori product that is understandably licensed by Nintendo. £29.99 is a great price to pay for such high quality, this joystick was built to last and is practically flawless. Be sure to give it a try
Website MP3tunes is sending out word that they have expanded their services to accommodate people who own video game consoles and Windows-based mobile devices.
It was also said that more internet radios have been added into the list. The website, for those who aren't aware, is a music service provider that lets users store and protect their MP3 collection online.
One of its features include the Locker that comes in Free Edition and the much flexible Premium version. According to the press release sent to us, streaming from Lockers can now be done using the Nintendo Wii and the PlayStation 3, not to mention the several other mobile devices. MP3tunes wrote:
Consumers shouldn't be limited in where or how they enjoy their personal music collections, and we will continue to announce new ways MP3tunes is fulfilling its vision of giving people access to all of their music, anywhere they go.
The Premium edition of the Locker allows users to manage larger music files, full access to album cover art, and full customer support access. The Free version, on the other hand, is ad-supported.
The Via link below leads to MP3tunes' specific page for the downloads necessary to activate the service on your preferred device.
Nintendo's financial results for the previous quarter, released earlier today, were nothing less than impressive. What's even potentially more impressive was how quickly it appears the Wii will overtake lifetime-to-date sales of its predecessor, the Nintendo GameCube. According to Nintendo's own numbers, the GameCube had sold 21.72 million units over the course of its six year-plus lifespan, as of December 31, 2007. The Wii, just 14 months on the market, has sold 20.13 million, putting the waggle-box a mere 1.59 million units behind the 'Cube.
In Wii terms, that ain't nothin'.
With Nintendo now manufacturing 1.8 million Wiis a month and seemingly selling every one of those consoles, it won't be long until the Wii overtakes the GameCube... if it hasn't already.
With Pricing details revealed, Nintendo also touched upon a lot of the console's features and have uploaded the Wii presentation shown to the Japanese press. The company discussed the Wii interface, virtual console, channels and a lot more. Inside we have a summary of what was said.
Earlier today Nintendo held the much anticipated conference in Japan, unveiling the Wii, its launch specifics and various tidbits about what the console can do, aside from playing games. The company revealed how a user would operate the Wii, some various details on how the Virtual Console would work, and many more neat interactivities for your home entertainment setup.
Initially Nintendo discussed their decisions, thoughts and inspirations that lead up to the Wii, the company � as they've continually said � "Expand the game population" as their key and core strategy. To do this, the DS was born. At this point Nintendo touched upon the DS's expansion, how it's performed beyond expectations, etc. The success of Brain Training and other "non-games" were discussed, and how they've expanded the industry to include all sorts of people. "As for the video games, a lot of female users entered the market that was the man dominated up until now, and to accept people of a wider age range.
Iwata discussed an interesting point whereby he noted that the DS has dramatically expanded the number of people that can play together on a portable platform. In the past this was typically limited to two, and the hardware developers wanted to "escape" this. The DS offers a simple and effective way to recreate the multiplayer success of the home console (examples stated were Smash Bros, Mario Kart and Mario Party), on the move. According to Nintendo's investigation, the typical number of players in a family has increased - "The number of users a family had increased. There are a lot of numbers of users a family" to prove that they've met some of their aims.
"Touch Generations" was created to work with this strategy on the Wii and DS � include many more people in the gaming scene.
Virtual Console Nintendo commented on their Virtual Console plans in their presentation, highlighting that over 24 companies will be supplying games to the service.
The company highlighted their plans for the system: + Virtual Console sales are done online electronically. + There's no stock issues, games are always available, and at minimal cost to the company and users. There's no physical elements to consider in the cost, so prices are kept minimal. + It was previously announced that games will cost in the ($5-$10 US) range depending on the platform. + To pay for gamers players use "Wii point cards" that can be electronically topped up in stores. Paying for games directly using a credit card online directly is uncertain. + Once a game is purchased, the system charges the unit. + Nintendo have prepared over 30 titles in their starting line-up, around 60 with Sega and Hudson's line-up, before the end of the year, more being available each month. + Around 10 titles a month will be added to the system.
Wii Channels / Software + The Wii's interface, as previously revealed, will have a series of channels (applications/interactive services) that can be added to the system. + There is an already confirmed selection of channels that come as standard on the Wii. Currently the channel line-up is the weather channel, and a news channel, shopping channel, disk drive, a character channel, a photograph channel, and a virtual console that starts the game disk. + Users are able to point and select an option on screen using their Wiimote as a selection device. +Videos of the channels in action can be viewed here.
Photography The Wii was also announced to contain a "Photo channel" where players can use images stored on their SD cards to present images on screen. + The Wii-mote can be used to manipulate images, through colour settings, zooming and various other on-board settings. + Functions like cropping, combinding images, editing colours etc are all present in this mode. +Videos of this mode can be seen here.
Weather Reports Weather has become a key feature in society since time begun. Will you need to take out an umbrella? Can the family visit the beach today? Would it be fine to prance about naked?
+ The Wii has an onboard weather channel where weather forecasts are automatically updated (if the Wii is connected to the automatic update service � Wiiconnect 24). + The Wii-mote can be used to select options, display maps and navigate all through the system itself.
Browsing the Internet + Nintendo and Opera previously confirmed that the Internet will be viewable on the Wii, but with a unique interface. The browser retains the ease and simplicity of the Opera platform, offering a way for the family to enjoy surfing the Internet from the comfort of their living area. + The Wii connects, wirelessly, to an Internet point � much like the DS version � however is far more capable than it's handheld counterpart. + Nintendo have confirmed that the Wii Browser is much like the desktop version of Opera, virtually displaying pages as they would appear on a computer. + Opera Wii supports technologies like Adobe (Macromedia) Flash, and also AJAX � a system employed by Google Maps as an example. + The software is said to be available to download within a year (according to translations), and will be available Free � as with Opera's other platforms.
Wii Messaging Functions Need to leave a message for the family to see? The Wii features an interactive notice-board that allows users to leave messages on the system for others, Nintendo claiming it will replace "memos left on the fridge".
Character Designing the Wii provides an interesting interface that allows players to design a character using the Wii remote to select options.
These characters are said to be available in various software available for Wii � Wii Sports anyone? The characters can be stored on the Wii-mote, adding personality to the tiny plastic controller. These can be taken to friend's houses to take your character on the move.
Wii Sports + Wii sports will come with 9 sports to introduce players to the system, sold for around 4,800 Yen in Japan.
to get it!
Initially Nintendo discussed their decisions, thoughts and inspirations that lead up to the Wii, the company � as they've continually said � "Expand the game population" as their key and core strategy. To do this, the DS was born. At this point Nintendo touched upon the DS's expansion, how it's performed beyond expectations, etc. The success of Brain Training and other "non-games" were discussed, and how they've expanded the industry to include all sorts of people. "As for the video games, a lot of female users entered the market that was the man dominated up until now, and to accept people of a wider age range.
Nintendo commented on their Virtual Console plans in their presentation, highlighting that over 24 companies will be supplying games to the service.
+ The Wii's interface, as 
The Wii was also announced to contain a "Photo channel" where players can use images stored on their SD cards to present images on screen.
Weather has become a key feature in society since time begun. Will you need to take out an umbrella? Can the family visit the beach today? Would it be fine to prance about naked?
+ Nintendo and Opera previously confirmed that the Internet will be viewable on the Wii, but with a unique interface. The browser retains the ease and simplicity of the Opera platform, offering a way for the family to enjoy surfing the Internet from the comfort of their living area.
the Wii provides an interesting interface that allows players to design a character using the Wii remote to select options.
Joshua "joshed" Shear
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