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Whrrl first app to get iFund cash infusion
Kleiner Perkins Claufield & Byers' so-called iFund, the $100 million jackpot being doled out to help support development on the iPhone that was launched in cooperation with Apple back in March, officially has its first pair of recipients. The lucky two are Whrrl -- a social mapping service that allows its users to mark and rate restaurants, entertainment, and events -- and iControl, a home automation app for doing the usual range of light, sound, and appliance control tasks that one might want to do from a handheld device. It really is like winning the lottery, too -- Kleiner claims to have received proposals from over 1,700 companies hoping to get a piece of the iFund pie, but besides these two, the fund has only made an offer to one other project so far. Stingy![Via MacRumors]
Earthworm Jim, Clayfighter coming to Virtual Console
Four classic Interplay Sega Genesis games are en route to the Wii's Virtual Console. Dave Perry's classic platformers Earthworm Jim and Earthworm Jim 2 will both be gracing the download service, along with the campy claymation action of Clayfighter, and the gross-out humor of Boogerman.According to the press release, all four titles will be the Sega Genesis versions of the games, despite having appeared on both Genesis and SNES. No word yet on when these titles we be released (but we're guessing it'll be on a Monday).
Wonder Boy, Fantasy Zone coming to North American VC
The wait will soon be over for us norms to find out what all the eight-tenths kids who owned Sega Master Systems were up to in the late 80s. Sega announced today that two games for the system are on their way to the Virtual Console: Wonder Boy and Fantasy Zone. They'll be arriving "soon" for 400 points a piece.After those drop, we'll still be on the lookout for other SMS favorite like Alex Kidd and ... hmm. Wait, we'll think of something. Well, there's ... no, no, that was terrible. OK, we give. Are there any you guys and gals want?
Spelunker and Super R-Type added to Virtual Console
We've got another pair on the Virtual Console (will we never return to the three-game glory days of yore?) and they don't seem to have too much in common. Let's just skip to the talking about them, what do you say? Spelunker (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii Points): In Spelunker, you play an adventurer who travels to the world's most junk-littered caves to do a little clean up to try to impress a girl he likes who's also a Greenpeace member. Meanwhile, bats (which love cave junk, because of how much easier it makes echolocation) try to kill you. ... Or something like that. Super R-Type (Super NES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): If you don't want to put your fist through a wall, you'd probably best avoiding Super R-Type, known for its high difficulty and lack of check points. But maybe you want to put your fist through a wall. Maybe you have a dilapidated wall that needs removing, or are considering adding some new fist-shaped windows. If so, Super R-Type is there for you.
Milon's DokiDoki Adventure, Puyo Puyo 2 hit Virtual Console
Provided you aren't too occupied with all the sibling smashing going on in 2008, you may wish to note the arrival of two sequels in Retroville. Joining the Virtual Console lineup today is previously Japan-only platformer, DoReMi Fantasy: Milon's DokiDoki Adventure, and blob-dropping puzzler, Puyo Puyo 2: Tsuu. DoReMi Fantasy: Milon 's DokiDoki Adventure (SNES, 1 player, 900 Wii Points): DoReMi has been awaited fa so long (OOF!) since Milon's Secret Castle first arrived on the NES in 1988. The English debut may cost 100 Wii points above the norm, but it likely provides a slightly improved explanation as to why we're collecting notes and trapping innocent animals within bubbles. Puyo Puyo 2: Tsuu (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 900 Wii Points): Another escapee from Japan, this color-matching puzzle game sees all the blocks being replaced by adorable blob things. As satisfying as the competitive modes are, Nintendo's press release insists that the "intriguing backstory" will keep you amused as well.
iFund: $100M for iPhone/iPod touch devs
One of the most surprising announcements from today's Apple shindig (at least to me) was the iFund from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. This $100 million fund will invest in companies, large or small, that want to develop innovative apps for both the iPhone and the iPod touch.The iFund will invest anywhere from $100,000 to $15 million in funds for iPhone development. Check out the FAQ for more details.
Virtual Console Monday: Super Turrican stands alone
Keeping expectations in check is the key to having a wholly satisfying life, so we probably shouldn't have grown accustomed to the three-game cornucopia that once characterized Nintendo's weekly Virtual Console release schedule. Now that the standard has dropped to two-per-week and, occasionally (as today), one solitary game, we can't help but pine for the old days a bit. But it's our fault, really, for getting our nostalgia-fueled hopes up in the first place. This week's sole release is barely worth a bulleted list, but we'll use one anyway to describe: Super Turrican (Super NES, 1 player 800 Wii Shop Points) - Developed by Factor 5 (of Rogue Squadron fame), the 1993 side-scrolling, run-and-gun sequel to 1990's Turrican has a decidedly old-school, Contra vibe to it. Those who want to get a feel for the gameplay without shelling out the Wii Shop Points should check out Hurrican, a more-than-satisfactory freeware clone.
C64 games coming to Wii's Virtual Console
Just when you think all of your nostalgic fantasies have all been fulfilled, along comes Nintendo with a little extra joy for your retro heart. That "little extra" in this case happens to be Commodore 64 games for your Wii. You read that correctly, people -- C64 games are headed to the system's Virtual Console, starting with International Karate and Uridium, which will run you 500 Wii points apiece. Right now, the rollout appears to be taking place in Europe only, though we suspect it'll head over to our shores sooner rather than later. While you're waiting for that to happen, maybe now is a good time to exercise your digits and polish up on your IK trash talk.[Thanks, Nico]Read - Virtual Console: C64 is back! [Finnish site]Read - C64 on Wii Virtual Console
Operation Wolf, Columns III land on Virtual Console
Representing a massive 100% increase over the number of Virtual Console games released last week, Operation Wolf and Columns III arrive on the Wii's retro download service today to give you your block-dropping, terrorist-killing fix. Operation Wolf (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii Points): Operation initiated! Rescue the prisoners! Mercilessly mow down terrorists as they run back and forth, stricken with panic! Marvel as the primitive sound effects form a hypnotic, pre-REZ beat! Columns III: Revenge of Columns (Genesis, 1-5 players, 800 Wii Points): We're not sure what you could have done to evoke the wrath of the columns, but the mean-spirited jewels are apparently out for revenge. Thankfully, years of Tetris exposure have refined you into a quick-thinking block murderer.
1080 degrees now boarding Virtual Console
Those expecting an avalanche of new arrivals on the Wii's Virtual Console need not be entirely disappointed, as this week's solitary title was buried in praise when it released in 1998. Snow surprise then to welcome the Nintendo 64's 1080° Snowboarding to the download service. Yes, we did just write "snow surprise." 1080° Snowboarding (N64, 1-2 Players, 1000 Wii Points): Though the game's title once tricked us into thinking we'd be racing down the lava-covered slopes of an active volcano, we thaw the errors of our ways once we picked up on the persistent presence of ice and a constant need to perform tricks. It's been one of our favorites ever since, even though things went downhill since 2003's Gamecube sequel.
Sega Master System games coming to Virtual Console
The Sega Master System never really got the appreciation it deserved here in the U.S. In fact, research shows that only .8 kids in America owned one, and who ever wanted to hang out with eight-tenths of a kid? Gross, we had reps to protect. Now though, it seems the system will finally get the respect it deserves with releases from the system headed to the Wii's Virtual Console.The beauty part is that, since it used the same hardware as the Master System, Game Gear games will also have a shot at VC fame. The first entries will be Fist of the North Star for 600 points and Fantasy Zone for 500 points. They'll only be rolling out to Japan at first in February, but look for other territories to follow close behind.
Star Tropics, King of Fighters '94 arrive on Virtual Console
Those are the only two titles you'll get this week, though we can't imagine anybody being displeased by the one-two punch of an intriguing island adventure and a 14-year old battle royal. Well, perhaps we could imagine someone turning his or her nose up to that, but only because said person doesn't enjoy being punched, a sensation that all too frequently accompanies the Wii's Virtual Console additions. Star Tropics (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii Points): Recoil in horror as you learn... that your... dear uncle... Dr. Jones... has been kidnapped! Obey flabby, shirtless men, embark on an epic island quest and question whether being constantly labeled as an "ace pitcher" is some sort of sexual advance! Also, murder a large snake by shoving a yo-yo down its throat! The King of Fighters '94 (NEOGEO, 1-2 players, 900 Wii Points): KOF up the money and SNK's Super Bogard Bros. is yours. The first edition in a long line of three-on-three team pummeling games, this may be worth some fisticuffs if you've not been swayed by the 89 sequels since.
Best of the Rest: Ross' Picks of 2007
Team Fortress 2 (Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation 3)While Portal is being given its much deserved credit for the year, and Half-Life 2 has enjoyed years of acclaim, let's not forget about the other pillar of Valve's The Orange Box. It's been eight years since the release of Team Fortress Classic, and the game has undergone so many revisions and delays we half expected it to be released alongside Duke Nukem Forever sometime in 2012. As it turned out, the game not only saw the light of day but ended up being an addictive online experience. As a console gamer enjoying this with a gamepad, I don't care much much for the sniper, soldier, demoman, or anything except medic and occasionally the engineer. There's something brutally satisfying about charging into battle behind a heavy weapons guy, dodging the occasional bullet (people still haven't learned) and injecting him with a team-killing jolt of invincibility. Hours of enjoyment and not a single bullet shot. Pure. Enjoyment.
Rumor: New consoles on the way to VC?
Is the Virtual Console family about to gain another two members? If the above graphic from the Japanese Virtual Console website is anything to go by, we'd have to say: HELL YES. And then possibly head outside to whoop loudly with excitement. After all, surely Nintendo wouldn't have added those tantalizing, enigmatic gray boxes to its site for no good reason? They must be there to accomodate some future goodness.Digging further around the aforementioned site basically confirms that the MSX will fill one of those slots, but the other? Given the space that would be required for games from disk-based systems and the Wii's 512mb of internal memory, our money is on the Master System.[Via Go Nintendo]
Nintendo teases two new Virtual Console consoles
With support for the NES, SNES, N64, Genesis, TurboGrafx, and NeoGeo already built into the Wii's Virtual Console platform, it's easy to forget that there are still classic consoles missing. On Nintendo.co.jp's newly redesigned Virtual Console page, there are two suspiciously empty slots in the grid of compatible consoles.We're pretty confidant one of those is still reserved for the MSX, but what about that eighth slot? Will Nintendo steer the VC into heretofore portable waters? Or perhaps they'll consider something from the pre-NES era? Or are they going to surprise us all and offer something disc-based, coupled with a hard drive peripheral? ... yeah, we're guessing Sega Master System too.%Poll-7410%[Via Go Nintendo]
Cybernator, Alien Storm, Monster Lair coming to Virtual Console today
For years, the human psyche has been plagued by three basic fears: Monsters, aliens and robots. If there were four of them, they would be the four food groups of fear. This week, they're all converging on the Virtual Console, so you may want to start your begging for mercy right now. Cybernator (SNES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): As near as we can tell, Cybernator is a 2D giant robot game, except the robot is dude-sized, which kind of defeats the purpose. Also: In Japan, this game is known as Assault Suits Valken, which is a much, much better title. Monster Lair (TurboGrafx16 CD-ROM, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): Monster Lair is the third game in the Wonder Boy series, even though you likely won't find that written anywhere when you go to buy it. You may remember that we got The Dynastic Hero a couple of weeks ago, which is the fifth game in that same series. (We knew all this off the top of our heads, by the way. Don't even act like we checked Wikipedia.) Alien Storm (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): There are some things you grow less afraid of as you grow older, and then there are things you can only truly fear when you're an adult. The monsters in Alien Storm are just such creatures. Click that link, see if we're kidding. Those creatures are awful. They're like big hulking piles of face meat and scream lumps. Also: This is a game.
Wii getting gifting feature today
While Nintendo was busy talking about the new releases on the Virtual Console, they also let it slip that the new gifting feature was coming to U.S. Wiis later today. Come to think of it though, isn't taking the time to enter your buddy's Friend Code the real gift? We'd probably just go buy a fruitcake or something before we'd spend three hours doing data entry.That said, if you've already made the friend code commitment, you can simply enter the Wii Shop Channel, select what game to buy and send it off to a pal, rather than keep it for your greedy self. It's the gift that says "I like you, but not enough to turn off my video game console, put on pants and go to a store."
Virtual Console graced by Pokemon Snap, Ghosts'n Goblins, Baseball Stars 2
You've realized that they're just picking them at random now, haven't you? Unless the theme this week is "Games With Vowels in the Title," we honestly don't know what the unifier could be. It's OK though, Nintendo, we're more concerned about the games than the themes.Pokémon Snap (Nintendo 64, 1 player, 1,000 Wii Points): We've long been morally opposed to the whole Pokemon craze. We just can't condone beating animals senseless, locking them in prisons that are 1/10 their size and then forcing them to repeat the cycle of violence. We guess we're OK with Pokemon Snap though, which asks only that you take pictures of the little critters. Also, remember that this version has new Wii features.Baseball Stars 2 (NEOGEO, 1-2 players, 900 Wii Points): We're not familiar with Baseball Stars 2, but everything we've read about the game appears to be pretty positive. We only wish the Wii functionality could have trickled down here for all the big-screen TV-smashing action that we crave.Ghosts'n Goblins (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Ghosts'n Goblins is the kind of difficult that other difficult games tell their children about to scare them into behaving. It's a classic, sure, but it's also enough to make you put your fist through a wall. We're sure it's fun if you're really good at it but let's be honest ... you aren't, are you?
Virtually give a Virtual Console gift with video
Sick of browsing the "Knitting supplies and Burt Lancaster movies" section of your local department store, trying to find a Christmas for your grandma? Allow us to suggest the perfect holiday gift: Ninja JaJaMaru-kun. Or Double Dribble. Or any of the dozens of other games on the Virtual Console, which you'll be able to gift to friends (and super-hip grandmas) beginning Dec. 11 ... as long as you live in Japan. The video above walks you through the process so you can see just how easy holiday shopping will soon be for our friends in the Land of the Rising Fun.Sadly, we don't know when we'll be able to use this feature, (it's supposed to be coming this month) so we'll have to make do with the third-hand joy of watching a virtual Japanese person give a virtual gift to his virtual Japanese friend. Hopefully we'll hear a U.S. date soon.
Nintendo estimates $33 million earned from Virtual Console
Fielding questions at a Tokyo press conference held by Nintendo and NTT regarding an internet service collaboration, Nintendo executive Shinji Hatano provided some rather vague commentary on the success of Wii's Virtual Console. According to IGN's Anoop Gantayat, the executive noted a previously mentioned figure of 7.8 million downloads across the service, with purchases generating 3.5 billion yen -- or approximately $32.33 million.Perhaps there was a hint of sarcasm then, when Hatano followed up with, "We're currently unsure if this is a lot or low. They're not bad figures." Really? Earning over thirty million dollars from games you approved years ago seems like it's a reasonable payoff for minimal effort, doubly so when said (overpriced) games include Double Dribble.
