motionplus posts(Subscribe to this feed)

Along with its many software announcements, Nintendo of America made one small hardware announcement this morning. The blue and pink Wii Remotes, first announced for Japan in October, are on the way to North America on February 14. Unlike the awesome black Wiimote, neither the included MotionPlus peripheral nor the Wiimote jacket will be in a matching color.

Still, as Nintendo reminds us, this is your first chance to have a different-color Wiimote for each of four players. Unless you've already solved that "problem" by sticking one of your friends with the (perhaps undeserved) stigma of being Nyko Wand Guy.

Call to mind Wii Sports' tennis, and you don't have to stretch your imagination too much further to arrive at Ubisoft's Racquet Sports. If you own a Wii, you already own this experience, to which Ubisoft has added some variety, including ping-pong, badminton, squash, and beach tennis, and a more fleshed-out art direction than Nintendo's pack-in or even its sequel, Wii Sports Resort. There's no Mii support, but Racquet Sports offers its own dollish avatars, customized with unlockable trinkets. There's a derivative multicultural vibe, too, as the characters and playing courts span the globe in classic and fantastic scenarios. Grandma vs. dashiki-clad boy in an aquarium squash court? Yes.

Of course, the experience you don't own is "tennis" played with a motion-tracking camera. No, not Natal -- not at all. Ubisoft's USB camera, first bundled with scarcely-reviewed Your Shape (featuring Jenny McCarthy), might be on the cutting edge of a revived and revamped gaming tech trend, but its implementation in Racquet Sports is painfully dull.

In the dilapidated, war-torn streets of the gaming industry, the Console Wars™ have taken their toll on not only the landscape, but also the inhabitants of this once peaceful land. With war mongerers Sony and Microsoft preparing their next wave of battle tech -- motion control devices like the "PlayStation Motion Controller" (rumored: 'Sphere') and Project Natal, respectively -- Nintendo's battle general, Reggie Fils-Aime, recently continued his criticism of rivals by commenting to wartime reporters at Gamasutra that Nintendo isn't really shaking on its Balance Board.

General Fils-Aime said that Nintendo will "applaud anything that will further expand the market of game players" and that the expansion of this kind of technology is really "in everyone's best interest," even though he admits Nintendo could lose some of its marketshare as a result. However, he does feel confident in Nintendo's "head-start of over 51 million controllers."

Nintendo's resident legend, Shigeru Miyamoto, has revealed that the next installment in the Legend of Zelda series on Wii will make use of Wii MotionPlus for more realistic sword combat and targeting. "In this (installment of the series), we're using MotionPlus to make you feel much more like you're actually fighting while holding a sword in your hand," Miyamoto disclosed during an October 30 Q&A session, as translated by GameLife.

"In the previous game, you aimed at things by pointing at the screen, but this time we'll use MotionPlus to create a much more convenient targeting system and a more pleasurable playing experience," Miyamoto added.

Despite these revelations, Nintendo has yet to officially state whether Wii MotionPlus will be an option or a requirement for playing the game. When this next Zelda was announced during E3 2009, Miyamoto could only say that MotionPlus-exclusivity was "possible." These gameplay elements -- especially the swordplay -- only make it seem more likely.

[Via GameLife]

It sounds like Nintendo's plans for the next console are going to continue largely in the direction they've always been going (you know, the one that has resulted in millions of dollars). Shigeru Miyamoto told Popular Mechanics that, despite not having a solid plan yet for upcoming hardware, motion controls are likely to stick around.

"With both the Wii remote itself and Wii MotionPlus, what we've been able to do is introduce an interface that is both I think appealing and at the right price for a broad audience," Miyamoto said. "And while we don't have any concrete plans for what we'll be doing with hardware in the future, what I can say is that, my guess is that because we found this interface to be so interesting, I think it would be likely that we would try to make that same functionality perhaps more compact and perhaps even more cost-efficient."

This could result in a single unit that combines the base Wiimote functionality with the extra accelerometer of the MotionPlus, which makes sense. Or, more excitingly, Miyamoto could be talking about the system being more "compact" and "cost-efficient." Either way, it's starting to look less and less likely that the Wii 2 will be just like its competitors, but with Mario games on it.

In much more important news, Miyamoto said that he'd never heard of The Wizard. Bill Trinen's got a night of translating horrible Fred Savage dialogue ahead of him!

If you've been holding off on inviting friends over because you've been waiting to pick up some cool black controllers, good news! You'll be able to remove yourself from multiplayer exile and play some Wii Sports Resort next month.

On November 16, Nintendo will release the black Wiimote and MotionPlus bundle for $50, and the matching black Nunchuk for $20. From then on, it will be a race to be the first person to reference Wesley Snipes' signature line from Passenger 57 in multiplayer games. Of course, you'll then also have to win or you'll sound stupid.

Most of the doubt surrounding Red Steel 2 has to do with the swordplay -- and it's for good reason. The bandana'd thug-slashing permeating the entirety of its predecessor just flat out didn't work, most of us can surely agree. But this latest video diary shows how the addition of Wii MotionPlus has really changed the experience in the sequel, at least from a slashing and stabbing perspective. See for yourself in the footage above.

Just like we saw earlier this year with the PlayStation 3 Slim, the rumor mill is churning at breakneck pace -- though this time around a possible Nintendo Wii price cut rather than a slimmer console. Aside from multiple retailer listings and today's alleged internal Best Buy memo, MCV reports that a "retail source" told it the UK won't be receiving the same price cut that North America and Japan are expected to receive. Instead, the current model will be given the bundle treatment.

GamesIndustry.biz spotted the new bundle on ShopTo.net -- it has since been removed, though an image and a shell of the page still exist -- which includes both Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort as well as a MotionPlus attachment, for the same £199.99 ($326.76) the system is priced at now. If it is true, at least UK Wii buyers will be getting a bit more for their pounds. It's not quite the Duck Hunt/Super Mario Bros. with a Zapper combo of yore, but it'll have to do.

Source -- No Wii price cut for UK [GamesIndustry.biz]
Source -- New UK Wii bundle leaked [MCV]

Nintendo has already, to the surprise of many, partnered with EA to bundle MotionPlus peripherals with sports games. Now, according to a Canadian retail listing, the company is collaborating with another third party on a bundle. Futureshop lists an NHL 2K10 package featuring 2K Sports' hockey game (and its utterly terrifying box art) and a MotionPlus, for $69.99 (about $63 USD). Amazon.ca also shows the same bundle at a $10 discount.

These seemingly Canada-exclusive bundles will ship concurrently with the standalone release on September 15.

[Via GoNintendo]

We knew that Wii Sports Resort was selling well in Europe. Today, Nintendo told GamesIndustry.biz just how well: over 600,000 copies in its two weeks of release, even more than have sold in North America. That's not only good news for the game, but also for the prospects for future MotionPlus use -- the more the game sells, the more of the Wii audience has the device, and the more likely developers are to support it.

Who knew that a sequel to a ridiculously popular game could also be popular? Somebody should tell all the struggling publishers like EA and Activision about this.

Even Miss Cleo could've predicted this one. Nintendo's follow-up to console pack-in Wii Sports has done exceedingly well, as Nintendo has revealed Wii Sports Resort has managed to sell over 500,000 copies in the US since its July 26 release. Combined with the game's strong sales in the UK, it's safe to say Nintendo has a bona fide hit on its hands.

Waitaminute, did we just type that? A Nintendo game managed to make money? We must be stuck in the Twilight Zone again.

Update: Thanks for playing, folks! The giveaway has come to a close and we'll be selecting our winner via email, so keep an eye on your inbox!

That's right, folks! Joyswag coming your way again, this time with some Wuhu Island action. One lucky winner will walk away with Wii Sports Resort (including MotionPlus) ($50 ARV) and one additional MotionPlus controller ($30ARV). So, let's get down to it!

• Leave a comment telling us where your best vacation was and why
  
• You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec)
  
• Limit 1 entry per person per calendar day
  
• This entry period ends at 11:59 am ET on Wednesday, August 5
  
• At that time, we'll randomly select one grand-prize winner to receive Wii Sports Resort (including MotionPlus) ($50 ARV) and one additional MotionPlus controller ($30ARV)
• For a list of complete rules, click here

Good luck!

Now that Nintendo has finally started chartering some flights to lovely Wuhu Island, folks have been eager to snap up Wii Sports Resort for their very own ticket. In the UK, Chart Track data shows the follow-up to 2006's console pack-in is quite the popular little piece of software, as the sequel earned the top spot on last week's All Formats chart. Strong start, but will it have the staying power of Wii Fit?

Last week's winner, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, has thus been bumped down to the second spot, with EA's other darling, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, snagging bronze.