Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip Wii

Forget about Wii Ski - that's lame and little better than the Ski game already part of Wii Fit.
Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip for the Wii however is another story

This is more of a real skiing game - tricks and all. But it does have a few shortcomings.

The single-player trip is a bit too short and there aren't many options to customize characters (board, clothing etc). So no not worth full price - but if you can get a deal on eBay (or fight this in the shovelware bin) it's good (basic) fun.

Guitar Hero III Wii Bundle for only $49.95 (including shipping!)

Don't worry if you missed a few Black Friday deals for Wii stuff - Amazon has an amazing deal on now still for the Guitar Hero III Legends of Rock Bundle on the Wii

Sure this game is now over a year old - and sure you can get Guitar Hero World Tour for about $89 - but still the Amazon deal is pretty solid and it seems to include free shipping (sometimes but check for yourself)

On eBay in comparison - it's VERY difficult to figure out which auctions have the full bundle and which are just the guitar and/or the game. Pricing on eBay does come in at a low of about $40 for the bundle (here's a link), but good luck with shipping...

Tomb Raider Underworld Glitch on the Wii renders game unplayable

We've all played a game and gotten stuck somewhere - usually we figure out why - or what we're supposed to do in order to get out.

Sometimes it's actually a bug in the game. That's what happening to the Wii version of the new Lara Croft game - Tomb Raider Underworld.

On the xbox360 and ps3 there is a level in Thailand where Lara is supposed to pull a lever to move on - only problem is there is no lever on the wii version.

Fan on the game publishers website (Eidos) are laying hard into this game and calling it the worst Tomb Raider title ever (esp for the wii).

If you want to see the non-lever on the Wii here's a vid showing the problem

Call of Duty World at War on the Wii - Multiplayer is lame

Just finished two weeks solid of playing Call of Duty World at War -
The campaign mode is pretty solid - with some great detail, missions that are achievable and decent graphics.

The Multiplayer mode is another story - after two weeks of play - only 8 player in an online gaming session which is far less than the 32 players you get in a the Medal of Honor Heroes 2 game. The game automatically matches you to the game room which is neat but it also limits choice.

The other problem is a lack of maps in multiplayer - for whatever reason i only ever saw five maps over two weeks and frankly that's not enough.

Cooking Mama World Kitchen Angers PETA

Cooking Mama is apparently taking some heat from animal rights group PETA for the new Cooking Mama World Kitchen game.

Is the new game cruel to animals?

Game publisher Majesco Entertainment  argues that it isn't.

"I would never put rat in my Ratatouille," said a feisty Mama while beating some eggs. "Like any accomplished cook, I create my recipes to appeal to a broad range of tastes and preferences. My only goal is to ensure you leave the table well fed."

Cooking Mama World Kitchen includes more than 25 vegetarian-friendly recipes including delicious breakfast, dinner, dessert and snack options. And, while Mama is not a vegetarian, she fully supports the humane treatment of animals, particularly for her canine protege Max who makes his doggie debut in World Kitchen.

Wii Music a Commercial Failure?

Nintendo did everything it could to hype up the Wii Music title - but it wasn't enough.

The first set of sales number are now out and Wii Music did about 66,000 in its first month. In comparison Wii Fi sold more than 687,000 copies in its first month of sale.

I'd say that means Wii Music is dead. First month is everything in video games - so if you haven't bought it yet - don't - i'd expect to see prices drop dramatically soon on this soon to be shovelware game.

EA Sports Active - Is it real competition for Wii Fit?

Alot of buzz today about the announcement from EA (makers of Madden 09 and other such massive titles) is coming out with a Wii Fit title in 2009.

Officially titled EA Sports Active the title will not be using the  same Wii Balance Board that comes with the fit. Instead it will use a "leg strap,” a strap that wraps around one’s upper thigh with a Wii nunchuck in its pouch, for tracking lower body movement.
How fracking lame is that? Why not just create a title that works with the board? A leg strap?? come on give me a break that will last like one a week for most users??

You can use the Wii Fit balance board with it if you want too according to EA:
Wii Balance Board Compatibility—Get more out of your EA SPORTS Active workout using a Wii Balance Board with added functionality and physical benefits for many of exercises.

Animal Crossing City Folk - Wii Speak is here

I'm not so sure I get Animal Crossing itself - but I do like the idea of Wii Speak - would be great if it expands to other games too.

What does Nintendo have to say about this?

"Animal Crossing: City Folk is all about building communities, customizing your world and staying in touch with friends and other characters," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing in a statement. "There’s no ending, so people can keep playing for months and even years. It’s an experience that everyone in the household can share together."

Up to four people can create characters and move into the same town. And using the Wii Speak accessory, players can voice chat with friends and family members around the world. The microphone sits atop the TV set and captures the voice of everyone in the room, providing for a more communal experience. People can now get together to chat with their distant loved ones, which is especially meaningful when they can’t be together for the holidays. The microphone can also be used with the upcoming Wii Speak Channel, which launches in December.

I dunno - I think I'll just stick with Skype

Space Invaders Get Even on WiiWare

Space Invaders Get Even is now out for WiiWare - but only in the EU and not yet in the US -BUMMER.

This isn't your grandpappy's Space Invaders though - this is the opposite. It's the Space Invaders trying to take out he humans this time - and they/you aren't just going back and forth in a straight line to lay down fire either.

I'm not in EU currently so i don't have the full game but there is a great review on a British site that has got us real excited.

Dora the Explorer: Dora Saves the Snow Princess for Wii - another GREAT game?

We're big fans of 2K play games for the Wii. Diego Safari adventure was their first great game. That was followed by Diego the Great Dinosaur Adventure.

Now there is Dora Saves the Snow Princess.

Why are these games great? Easy they're designed for kids. They use the Wii controller intuitively and they get to do fun motions.

The games aren't tricky and are easy enough that a three year old (yes we've seen three years play these games) easily without help.

They're that good. The USA Today actually just gave the Dora game a remarkable 5 out of 5 stars.

Pricing for the Dora game on eBay is constant at around $39.

Playing Wii is Good for Your Heart

There has been a bunch of anecdotal evidence that suggest that playing the Wii is actually good for you.

Now Nintendo is sponsoring a British Researcher to prove it.

Dr Michael Duncan, a senior lecturer in exercise physiology at the university, has been awarded a £5,000 grant from the Tanita Health Weight Community Trust to carry out the study and the results will also be fed back to staff at Nintendo.

 "There is a lot of discussion that video games are bad for your health so we hope this research will determine if playing on this equipment could actually have physical benefits for children, " Duncan told the Derby Evening Telegraph."This study aims to see if young children can lose weight or improve their health by using the Nintendo Wii."

NEAT.

Quantum of Solace - Wii SUCKAGE alert

Movie tie-in games are always hit and miss (more often miss than not).

Early reviews of Quantum of Solace on the Wii are definitely in the miss camp. IGN has a scathing review of the game with harsh criticism for the Wii game engine.

"..every facet of the game suffers from the same sluggish IR, and it's one of the main plaguing issues in Quantum of Solace. The framerate itself (throughout the entire game) is unreliable at best, and broken entirely in some areas, but even when the game runs with a decent 30fps or so chug - which granted, is the majority of the time - the IR doesn't refresh that fast, and you get the same general control oddness that's sometimes found in Call of Duty: World at War, though more amplified here. Move the cursor too fast, and it'll become choppy and slow to catch up with your movements. Pull up iron sights, and small movements won't register, removing the simple fluidity that comes with Wii's "point-and-click" system. The only saving grace is the game's lock-on system, which will orient the camera on a specific baddie when players hold down Z. "

Early eBay pricing on this game is as low as $30 .

Diego Great Dinosaur Adventure for Wii - The best kids game ever?

2K Play is the ONLY game maker today making games geared for the under 6 crowd on the Nintendo Wii.




We've played the Diego Safari Adventure before - so we expected much of the same for the Great Dinosaur Adventure.

Instead we get ALOT more. The basic movements that are easy for small children (Ages 3-6) are all there with some new ones like digging and pushing things apart.

Watching small kids play this game is a joy - as for the most part the movements are all intuitive and it's really just PLAY time.

This is the kind of game that makes owning a Wii worthwhile.

The only drawback to this game is the Helper mode - which is supposed to be there to help an adult help along - but just like the case with Safari Adventure- the helper mode comes up so infrequently that it's a lost feature. Pricing on this game on eBay is currently at $39  or so.