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Born for Wii: Punch-Out!!
by Wesley Fenlon 
{ Sep 16th 2008 at 11:45AM }
Sometimes you just have a bad day. It happens to the best of us; even video game bloggers are not infallible. And after a rage-inducing, hair-pulling bad day, you can go home, curl up in a ball and listen to The Wallflowers in surrender, or vent some of that anger. By punching people.But hold up there, tiger. You can't punch real people. That's, like, illegal. Enter the Wii: the best simulation for punching people outside of the real thing. Unfortunately, Wii Sports Boxing does not offer the realistic experience of mashing in someone's face Stallone style. Worse, no other boxing game since the Wii's release has really delivered a solid boxing experience. That could change in the near future with Facebreaker K.O. Party, forcing me to eat my words like a knuckle sandwich from Rocky Marciano. But if its Xbox/PS3 counterpart is any indication, there's not much chance of that. The same goes for Don King Prizefighter. This shaky reliability just won't do. We need Punch-Out!!
Gallery: Born for Wii: Punch-Out!!
Every week, Born for Wii digs into gaming's sordid past to unearth a new treasure fit for revival on the Nintendo Wii. Be sure to check out last week's entry in the series, Jet Set Radio, and for more great titles that deserve your attention, take a look at Virtually Overlooked.Wii Fanboy E308 Poll: What games series needs Wii MotionPlus?
by Eric Caoili { Jul 14th 2008 at 6:30PM }
You've had several years to complain about the missed potential for immersive applications with a Wii Remote supporting true 1:1 response; now that Nintendo has announced the Wii MotionPlus accessory, enabling games to track your movements faster and more accurately, we want to know which game series you feel would benefit the most from the new technology
Are you hoping for the most obvious pick -- compelling lightsaber duels in a Star Wars game? Or are you looking for Wii Sports 2 with support for more subtle movements? If you don't see your preferred series in our list of poll choices, make sure to leave a comment and let us know what game you think needs Wii MotionPlus!
Wii releases in Taiwan next month
by David Hinkle { Jun 26th 2008 at 7:00PM }
Do you think sales will be as poor as Korea?
Wii Fit the new go-to for rehab clinics?
by David Hinkle { Jun 19th 2008 at 6:00PM }
"We are looking to incorporate Wii Fit into the athletic training room as far as rehabilitation, for example, on post-operative knees and ankles," said Sue Stanley-Green, professor of athletic training at Florida Southern College. She noted that the success of the console in other rehab scenarios fueled their interest in Wii Fit, stating that "Fitness-oriented video games are also being used more and more in nursing homes for rehabilitation," also adding "Fitness video games have some really good potential to improve fitness in everyone."
[Via Engadget]
Experience Mario Super Sluggers' site
by David Hinkle { Jun 5th 2008 at 12:30PM }
But, if there's one thing these experience videos show us, it's a real-time representation of how the game will be played when it finally gets in our hands. And, that couldn't be soon enough. We can only take so many extremely short games of baseball in Wii Sports.
Gallery: Mario Super Sluggers
Japan's six top-selling Wii games are ...
by David Hinkle { May 20th 2008 at 2:00PM }
So, what Wii games do the Japanese public enjoy most? Well, it's not that surprising this list of the six top-selling Wii titles in Japan. But, we know how much you all love this kind of data, so without further delay, let's get to the numbers!
The Wii's six top-selling games in Japan are:
- Wii Sports - 2,979,275 units sold total
- Wii Play - 2,368,967 units sold total
- Wii Fit - 2,038,730 units sold total
- Smash Bros. Brawl - 1,620,119 units sold total
- Mario Party 8 - 1,254,542 units sold total
- Mario Kart Wii - 1,227,169 units sold total
Do you enjoy obsessing over sales data? Well, we've got you covered. Our monthly reports on the U.S. figures appear courtesy of NPD, and we also cover the weekly sales figures from Japan and several countries in Europe. Odds are, we're covering the beat where you live, so check out what folks are buying!EA sets focus on Wii-exclusive versions of sports games
by David Hinkle { May 8th 2008 at 3:00PM }
If you're in the gaming industry on the development end, odds are you've had plenty of meetings talking about the success of the Wii platform and how your company needs to get its own slice of the pie (well, unless you're Epic). EA has decided that they want a fairly decent slice of that pie, and are doing so with special Wii versions of their sports games. EA expects that sales of its sports games will account for $1.3 billion in its fiscal year (which just ended in March), coming to a third of their total revenue. The model for them (like others) has been Wii Sports. Peter Moore, head of EA Sports, commented that EA has "no intention whatsoever of dumbing down the experience that we all love and that drives this multibillion dollar business ... we need to make sports games more approachable." He then comments how Wii Sports became so popular "and we saw that and decided we needed to redefine what our sports games were about." These new accessible Wii versions of EA's popular sports games will have an "All-Play" label attached. Moore explains it as "like how swimming pools have a deep end and a shallow end. EA Sports has really only built a swimming pool with a deep end. It's intimidating for a lot of people to jump right in the deep end. With All-Play, we're building a shallow end."
Maybe with all this Wii support, Reggie will finally send Peter one.
Wii Fanboy hands-on: Nyko Kama wireless nunchuk
by David Hinkle { May 7th 2008 at 12:45PM }
Gallery: Nyko's Kama wireless nunchuks
Wii Warm Up: Playing is believing
by David Hinkle { May 7th 2008 at 9:00AM }
The biggest selling point of the Wii has to be the fact that it's incredibly fun to play. Thinking about that, we then pondered the people in our own life we've turned on to the console thanks to a play session of Wii Sports or WarioWare: Smooth Moves. Who have you turned on to the Wii in your life? And, what game was it that converted them from a casual onlooker into rabid Wii fan, combing over weekly sales in the newspaper and calling up various retail outlets to track down a console of their own? Who have you showed the wonder of the Wii off to and how quick did they want one of their own?
Get fit with Wii at Westin Hotels
by David Hinkle { May 2nd 2008 at 8:00PM }
And now, the business travelers and other folks that find themselves staying at a Westin Hotel can also enjoy Wii (complete with Wii Fit) inside the confines of the Westin's workout room. So whether you're down for some Wii Sports: Bowling or simply want to have a nice, peaceful stretch with Wii Fit, you won't have to be away from your beloved console when on the road.
Gallery: Wii Fit
[Via Joystiq]
Dealership uses Wii to sell cars
by David Hinkle { Apr 12th 2008 at 6:30PM }
Heck, we can't think of a smarter way to market your product. With the Wii being the hottest item on the planet, this is sure to bring some folks in, with the hopes that they'll hit some homers and knock the price of their car down.
Of course, to take advantage of this offer, you first need to desire to drive around in a Nissan or Hyundai, since that's what kind of dealerships these are. And we're sure nobody ever paused to reflect on how great their life would be behind the wheel of an Accent. Unless you're a cafeteria worker at an elementary school or something.
[Via Go Nintendo]
Come for the soft beds, stay for the Wii Sports
by David Hinkle { Apr 1st 2008 at 2:15PM }
What's a good way to get folks into your hotel? We have no clue, what with being a game blog and all, but it looks like some hotels might have found a good way to get folks in their doors: gaming. We imagine if you have something the people like and want, they'll flock to you. That must be the thinking behind some hotels in the U.S. incorporating some of the most popular games into their repertoire of activities available to patrons. Games such as Wii Sports and Guitar Hero III.
While we can't comment on whether this is a good decision from a business perspective, we can comment that this is a good decision from a customer service perspective. Now top Wii Sports bowlers and fast-fingered freaks in Guitar Hero III need not worry about getting rusty while they're attending that convention in Tuscaloosa.
[Via Joystiq]
Wii Fanboy Interview: Hudson's Mike Samachisa on Deca Sports
by David Hinkle { Apr 1st 2008 at 10:30AM }
Why wasn't Wi-Fi support added? What made them go with this collection of sports? What sports did they have to cut? Which is better: Wii Sports or Deca Sports?
Head on past the break to get a better idea for what the present and future holds for Hudson's Deca Sports game.
Gallery: Deca Sports
Deca Sporta TV spota
by David Hinkle { Mar 12th 2008 at 2:15PM }
Actually, it's two spots for Deca Sporta (Deca Sports for everyone else), fresh from Japan. As with most Japanese ads, there is quite the amount of shouting. But, that's okay, because we get to check out some gameplay. We can't be the only one impressed with the amount of different sports in this game?
What we're pondering really, though, is whether or not this game will have a sport that can topple Wii Sports: Bowling as the ultimate go-to game for anyone that enjoys Wii or has had yet to experience it? Perhaps others enjoy the Wii Sports: Tennis more, but our experience has been that everyone loves Bowling, while only some have liked the Tennis.
Hit up the break for the other TV spot.
Gallery: Deca Sports
Levine: Wii Bowling is the 'ultimate gateway drug'
by David Hinkle { Feb 28th 2008 at 12:45PM }
Ken Levine, that dude who made that Bioshock game all of the kiddies went crazy over last year, recently spoke with GamesIndustry.biz about his stature in the industry now that he's made what most consider to be one of the greatest games of this console generation. But, Levine did take some time to touch on what he thinks about the casual market and how Nintendo is introducing new gamers into the fold.You see, Levine is embracing the changes that Nintendo and their Wii console are looking to bring to the industry. "Wii Bowling is like the ultimate gateway drug and God bless them for figuring that out because there is no barrier of entry," he explains. "Hey, can you go like that?" [swings arm] That's what you do in bowling, that's what you do in Wii Sports."
Levine sees those that would otherwise ignore gaming as getting into it, commenting "I think there's a much better chance of people who wouldn't normally be interested in games going in and thinking "I'm interested in the history of Rome. I'll buy that strategy game," whereas before they would have been overwhelmed by the very concept of it." And, Levine, you're not the only one. We're excited about the future of gaming and how the Wii will help shape it, too!
[Via Go Nintendo]
