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Nintendo: No plans for Wii Sports Resort bundle
Having released a new (and popular) Wii Sports, it seems fairly obvious that Nintendo would start bundling that with Wii hardware, right? Well, Nintendo rarely does the obvious. In an interview with Toronto Thumbs, Nintendo of Canada's Matt Ryan dismissed the idea of a new bundle in the near future. "The long-term plan is difficult to say, but I can tell you that there are no plans to make Wii Sports Resort what is packed in with the Wii purchase," Ryan said, adding "What is in the Wii box will remain the same." In case you couldn't pick up the subtext, he reiterated "Wii Sports Resort will not replace Wii Sports."Why not? Ryan described Resort as "more full-on software that you're used to purchasing at retail at that price point," while the original Wii Sports is "designed to show off what the Wii Remote can do." Although Japanese consumers have had no issues with buying separate copies of Wii Sports.Normally, we'd just assume that there is a plan for a bundle, but Nintendo doesn't want to talk about it -- except that there haven't been official bundles for Wii Fit or Mario Kart Wii. Like we said, Nintendo avoids the obvious.%Gallery-27741%
Nintendo of Canada offers sealed NES, SNES, GameBoy titles for charity auction
Video game collectors have just been given a golden opportunity (and another thorn in their significant others' side). Nintendo of Canada is cleaning out their warehouse and is auctioning their collection of brand new, sealed retro games, with all proceeds going to United Way charity. The auctions, totaling 421 games in 24 different auctions, break down as follows: 70 NES games over 4 lots 169 SNES games over 13 lots 182 GameBoy games over 7 lots As of this writing, the highest bid in any auctions is US $1,013 for a collection of NES games that includes Mario's Time Machine, Dragon Warrior IV, The Great Waldo Search and – this is the big draw, folks – George Foreman's KO Boxing. There's some great games in the other lots, too, with Addams Family and Lost Vikings activating the most synapses in our nostalgic minds.Joystiq got in touch with Nintendo of Canada to confirm the auction is legit, so what are you waiting for? Bidding for all lots ends June 5.
Mario for Prime Minister of Canada
Nintendo of Canada commissioned a survey (for bragging rights, perhaps?) to find out whether Mario or Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was more recognizable. The winner? Yep, our favorite plumber.In the cities of Toronto, Calgary (where Harper was a Member of Parliament), and Halifax, more people could identify Mario's picture than Harper's picture. On the one hand, it's not surprising that everyone seems to know Nintendo's icon. On the other hand, however, it's embarassing for the human race in general that we can identify more with a fictional (albeit lovable) character more than our world leaders.So, what did Nintendo of Canada have to say on the issue? The company's general manager Ron Bertram responded, "Canadian politicians are lucky Mario doesn't have his Canadian citizenship and could campaign for office." Oh, snap! Hear that, Mr. Harper? You may want to fire your campaign team and hire Nintendo's PR sector instead.[Thanks, Ninja-bot!]
Nintendo of Canada lames up gaming with Get Up and Play site
Aside from the occasional oddity, it's not commonplace for video games to actually involve, well, getting up off the couch. With Wii Fit and Wii Sports in Nintendo's entourage, however, the company seems determined to develop games that involve physical activity.Nintendo of Canada decided to go a step farther with this approach by creating a website called "Get Up and Play." Not only is the site designed to inspire movement, but also a thing you may have heard of called family togetherness.The site boasts weekly challenges on the weekends, with printable "Victory Certificates" (um, yay?). Things at stake include taking out the garbage, or setting the table for the week. Oh, and don't forget to "eat healthy snacks like dried fruit and granola bars" while you play.We're completely in support of healthy lifestyles, but we don't need "Family Challenge Badges" and other crappy things for inspiration. That kind of stuff is just scary. In fact, we're very, very afraid. Please hold us.
