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Gley Lancer, Super Fantasy Zone shoot up Virtual Console
As the haze begins to lift from last week's media circus, we hope you're in the mood to play games from your favorite genre. As long as that includes obscure 16-bit shooters, as this week's Virtual Console additions include a pair of Genesis-era side-scrolling shmups designed to keep you flying horizontally and mashing the fire button all night long. Super Fantasy Zone (Genesis, 1 player, 900 Wii Points): The lesser-known follow up to Sega's Master System original, this shooter will have you scrolling sideways as you shoot down bad guys and collect cold coins in ultra-colorful fashion. Gley Lancer (Genesis, 1 player, 900 Wii Points): It's the year 2025, the Earth is at odds with an alien race, and the hope for humanity rests on the shoulders of a 16-year old girl named Lucia. Just be home before midnight, young lady.
Space race: Nintendo working on Wii storage 'solution'
Nintendo Europe senior marketing director Laurent Fischer has pulled an about-face. His comments last week hurt the feelings of "geeky" Wii owners seeking more space for their WiiWare and Virtual Console downloads. Fischer now tells GamesIndustry.biz that the console maker is "perfectly aware of the issue" and is "working on a solution" that won't involve any add-on hardware (i.e. a hard disk or USB device).Not being privvy to every last internal working of the Wii, we can only speculate that Nintendo is concocting a method – perhaps via a firmware update – for allowing downloaded games to be played directly from an SD card (much like we'd hoped for when the console first went on sale). There may be a chance this "solution" gets revealed at E3, depending on just how long Nintendo's tech heads (dare we say geeks?) have been working on it.
Virtual Console gets cut in a Samurai Shodown
The latest update to the Wii's Virtual Console gives those of you with Wii arcade sticks on your shelf a sense of purpose, as well as an excuse to dust them off for a bit of classic arcade fighting, Neo Geo-style. Samurai Shodown (Neo Geo, 1-2 players, 900 Wii Points): Once all the rage in arcade parlors when first released in 1993, this first in the still-ongoing fighting game series lets players duke it out using 12 different weapon (and sometimes animal)-wielding fighters. While a bit archaic by today's standards, the game still beats the pants off many contemporary fighters. Plus where else can you see a kabuki performer throw down against a green hunchback doing his best Freddy Krueger impression?
Double Dragon punches its way onto Virtual Console
We can't even pretend that we're really excited about this week's Virtual Console release, Double Dragon, or that we didn't play it a year ago in a sexy high-res remake on XBLA for the exact same price (500 points/$5). We love us some side-scrolling and punching, but even we have limits.But maybe you've never heard of the legend of Billy Lee and his decision to risk his kidnapped girlfriend's safety in order to keep his karate secrets to himself. If so, feel free to buy away, if only to more fully appreciate the roots of the beat-em-up genre.
Revolutionary: Wii can has hard drive?
Every other week, Mike Sylvester brings you REVOLUTIONARY, a look at the wide world of Wii possibilities. var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/nintendo/Revolutionary_Wii_can_has_hard_drive'; If you're smitten with the Virtual Console, one thing we're sure you aren't in love with is having to swap games between an SD card and your Wii's internal memory, or even worse -- deleting games to be re-downloaded later. WiiWare is on its way and it's hard to imagine My Life as a King demeaning itself to share its estate with less noble games. And certainly not with it bringing microtransactions to the royal ball. And wouldn't it be dandy if some of our multiplatform ports had somewhere to store that downloadable content that everyone is raving about on other consoles? We want need more storage, and some of you have gathered to plead with Nintendo to sell a Wii Hard Drive. It appears that your cries just fall on deaf ears because they seem hardly driven to provide one. In this edition of Revolutionary, we'll examine why Wii can't have a hard drive.
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).
Phantasy Star III pays a River City Ransom on Virtual Console
That landfill of crappy Virtual Console titles has just been given a swift kick-punch of revitalization. Not only that, but we've got a second helping of Phantasy Star for you to digest. River City Ransom (NES,1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Save your girlfriend from such heinous foes as "The Generic Dudes" and "The Frat Guys." This beat-em-up was obviously ahead of its time in poignant social commentary and butt-kicking awesomeness. Phantasy Star III Generations of Doom (Sega Genesis, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Having already given us Phantasy Star II, Sega decided to move forward and continue the series, while still forgetting to back up and bring the original Phantasy Star to Virtual Console. It's pretty much exactly like River City Ransom in that way that it's nothing like RCR. Videos of the titles after the break.
Homebrew SNES emulator released for the Wii
Finally, Engadget editor Paul Miller's prayers have been answered -- in the form of a homebrew SNES emulator for the Wii. It's no secret that Paul is eerily obsessed with the SNES, and now he can get access to all his favorites (import or otherwise) with another Wii tweak. The well known emulator SNES9X has been ported to Nintendo's money maker, and it even includes support for the Wiimote (there are plans for future implementation of the Classic controller and two-player game modes). We're assuming this is all part of the much-loved Twilight Princess exploit, though they're a bit short on detail. Hit the read link and start breaking Nintendo's heart ASAP!
Mega Turrican enters Fantasy Zone on Virtual Console
This week, Nintendo reckons we're all in the mood to engage in some "perilous, heart-pumping adventures" on Virtual Console. That suits us just fine, as moments when we're not in that sort of mood are few and far between. Why bother getting out of bed if you don't intend to blast some robots to smithereens? Mega Turrican (Genesis, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Leap into an assault suit with one Bren McGuire, a man tasked with foiling the nefarious "Machine." Kick-ass side-scrolling shooter, or layered commentary on industrial action? Either way, it has a terrific soundtrack. Fantasy Zone (Master System, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Pilot the Opa-Opa spaceship and lay siege to a remarkably gaudy environment, taking care to upgrade your ship and destroy any sinister blocks of wood.
Wii's Virtual Console hacked on video
We'll be straight with you -- it's a bit of a mystery what exactly is going on here, but famed Wii hacker Waninkoko has apparently figured out a way to take Virtual Console titles and play them on another Wii. The good news? There's a video -- which many aren't hesitating to blast with "fake!" -- of the trick posted after the jump. The bad? There's no how-to in sight.[Thanks, Craig]
Bases Loaded with Yoshi's Cookie on Virtual Console
Do you remember when the Wii's Virtual Console service was more classic library and less classless landfill? This week's dump sees players scrounging for a sports title and shelling out dough for a cookie-themed puzzler. Yoshi's Cookie (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Help Mario align matching types of baked goods in this puzzle game with a cruel reward -- successful maneuvers make the cookies disappear! Bases Loaded (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Swing away with "one of the most popular baseball games on the NES." So, yeah. It's baseball. Do you really need an elucidating paragraph on that? (Oh, alright.)
Wonder Boy, Cruis'n USA speed onto Virtual Console
Okay, we've figured it out! The tenuous link between today's Virtual Console releases is none other than the ability to travel through exotic locales at high speed, be it on a skateboard rolling through lush jungles or an offensively colored car hurtling through, er, Iowa. Cruis'n USA (Nintendo 64, 1-2 players, 1000 Wii Points): Hop into your virtually indestructible vehicle and commence your cruise through the N64's best approximation of the USA. We're not sure how you manage to survive the nightmarish elevator music nor the sudden, neck-snapping stop at the finish line, but at least you can look forward to a digitized woman waggling a trophy in your face. Wonder Boy (Master System, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): You, Tom-Tom. Girlfriend, Tanya. Must save Tanya. Fling hammers. Murder snails. Ride skateboard. Wonder why girlfriend has such modern name.
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?
King's Knight and Powerball roll onto Virtual Console
Make no mistake, today's pair of Virtual Console titles has nothing to do with either chess or the lottery. We can, however, celebrate the second Square Enix title to come to the North American Virtual Console, and it's a lot closer to an RPG than the last one. King's Knight (NES, 1 player, 500 Wii points): A crazed hybrid between vertical-scrolling shooter and RPG, this game was one of the first examples of destructible environments -- you can pretty much destroy everything in your path. You know the drill: choose your character, level up, kill a dragon, save the princess. Powerball (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii points): This bastard child of rugby and football born eons into the future, Powerball has you smack the snot out of the opposing team as you vie for the chance to run the powerball into your neon-lit goal for points.
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.
Master System games arrive on Japanese Virtual Console
The day Japanese Wii owners have been waiting for for, er, roughly a month is finally here. Today's marks the release of the Sega Master System's Fist of the North Star on the Japanese Virtual Console.The event marks the potential expansion of the Virtual Console library to a brave new world of Master System hits such as ... um ... hmmm. Well, the Alex Kidd games were pretty cool, we guess. And hey, Mortal Kombat made it to the system ... although the Genesis version would probably be preferable. Well ... it's still cool anyway. Trust us.
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
Nintendo sells 10M Virtual Console games, still emphasizes retail channel
Sales figures for Nintendo's Virtual Console service on the Wii have been hard to come by, but a recent interview with president Satoru Iwata has revealed that the Virtual Console has surpassed 10 million games sold as of December. Even assuming that the majority of sales were at $5 USD (the lowest price point), Nintendo would have still earned over $50 million USD on old, re-released titles alone.Though Iwata states this as proof of the value of digital distribution, he also reiterates the importance of the retail channel, claiming that boxed games will still be a strong part of the market for the next three-to-five years. Iwata also admits that the retail chain is not nearly as profitable for Nintendo, with low profit margins on boxed titles, and short shelf life as two of the main contributing problems. In spite of these difficulties, Iwata remains confident on the value of brick-and-mortar retail. With WiiWare due out sometime this year, however, it'll be interesting to see if he begins to change his tune.[Via GamesIndustry.biz]
Calculating the Virtual Console's savings rate
Obviously, owning games on the Wii Virtual Console is a lot more convenient than having dozens of cartridges for a variety of classic systems laying around the house. But does it make fiscal sense as well as organizational sense? To find out, the folks at Vintage Computing & Gaming compared the price of current Virtual Console selections to the going rate for the same classic carts on eBay.The results, unsurprisingly, showed an average savings of about 50 percent over the eBay price across the VC library. Sure, you're paying a few extra dollars for ultra-common clunkers like Double Dribble, but you're saving nearly $200 on ultra-rare games like Bonk 3: Bonk's Big Adventure. In fact, Turbo-Grafx fans can save roughly 75% buying their library on the Wii rather than eBay.Of course, as VC&G points out, games bought for the Virtual Console have functionally zero resale value, so those interested in collectability should shell out the extra money. Those interested in actually playing the games, however ...
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.
