As gamers on Halloween, many of us don’t have plans and shan’t do anything this evening other than do what we do every night: Play games. I’m joking of course, but what about those of us that really don’t have plans tonight? Or maybe we plan on playing games with some of our friends? Do we game the same way we always do, or should we play certain games to enhance the “halloween” feel? I’m not sure what all of you are doing to get yourself in the mood, but I know what 2 games I’ll be playing.
Course: Dry Dry Ruins
Objective: Obtain the best time
Tournament date: 11/1 – 11/10
Nintendo President Satoru Iwata recently admitted that the “Wii has stalled” and that this is due to a lack of “strong software.” However, Iwata also delivered a keynote at a semi-annual financial results briefing in Japan and made a similar claim, but this time it was about the gaming industry in general. In his keynote, Iwata stated that there were no big hits in the first half of 2009, which caused “worldwide market contraction.”
“So far I have been talking about the market based on the number of units. Now I would like to look at the market in terms of monetary sales volume…We attribute the main reason of worldwide market contraction to the lack of hit titles across the industry in the first half of the year.”
Thanks to Ross M for the news tip!
This information comes from Denise Kaigler, NOA’s vice president of corporate affairs…
“When Wii launched back in 2006, the household saturation of HDTVs was much lower than it is now. Nintendo didn’t include HD capability back then because that would have been a cost that everyone had to pay, whether or not they had an HDTV. There’s something not very fair about that. As Mr. Iwata has said a number of times, we have no current plans to launch an HD version of Wii, but HD is one of the things we’re keeping in mind for the future.
I think questions and concerns like these might be unique to the medium of video games. No one rates books by the design on their covers. And no one would suggest the most engrossing movie is the one with the most special effects. Certainly these elements can draw your eye, but in the end we judge a book or a movie on the way it makes us feel, whether we’re laughing, shedding a tear or shouting with excitement when the bad guy gets what’s coming to him.
No matter what new technologies are developed or how video games look, in the end gamers will decide if it’s a good title based on the experience. Ultimately, pretty pictures don’t matter. It’s all about the game play. Just think of the pixels of the original Legend of Zelda or Super Mario Bros. Those games hold up years later, and no one would say they’re on the cutting edge of graphics. Even modern games like Super Mario Galaxy and Punch-Out!! play so well that you’re not thinking about TV specs or cables – you’re just having fun playing a game. And that’s the way it should be. That’s one of the reasons Wii Sports and Wii Fit are among the most influential games of this console generation: They deliver fun experiences that go well beyond the way the games look. For the most part when gamers look back and recall their game play-experiences, they remember the new interfaces and the fun they had playing with other people, not the graphics or the type of TV they played on. It’s always about play, not pixels and polygons.”
NAMCO BANDAI Games America Inc. today revealed that Panda, from the Tekken® series, will make a cameo in We Cheer™2 for Wii™. Panda will appear in the game’s Workout Mode, a training option that gets players moving to the beat as they land cheer moves to earn in-game Calorie Points. More points are earned as players successfully hit the right moves while an on-screen graphic indicates what part of the body is being worked. A new set of assets is now available which includes screenshots and a gameplay video of Panda working hard to get into top fighting form so she’s ready for her next battle in the newly released TEKKEN 6.
We Cheer 2 brings the upbeat fun of cheerleading into the home with its entertaining adaptation of the challenge and spirit of the competitive sport. Utilizing the Wii Remotes™ as virtual pom-poms, players follow on-screen prompts for choreographed routines that utilize a full range of arm and body movements. We Cheer 2 is the only cheerleading video game to offer a hit soundtrack of licensed music and features a brand new lineup of 30 rockin’ songs that will get players energized and ready to cheer. Players will also have access to limitless customization for both their character and their entire squad with an increased range of options for creating characters from head to toe.
