Pokemon Heart Gold and Soul Silver Officially Announced for North America

Pokemon is arguably the biggest franchise that Nintendo has outside of the mustachioed plumber. The games have been staples of every handheld system since the Game Boy. It was officially announced at the 2009 Pokemon World Championships that the games would be coming to America. It's not surprise, really, but good to finally get the announcement.

"Announcing these much-anticipated game launches at The Pokémon World Championships allows us to give the news directly to the legions of fans who represent the true heart and soul of Pokémon," said J.C. Smith, The Pokémon Company International's director of marketing, who made the announcement on stage to kick off the 2009 Pokémon World Championships. "We want to thank these loyal fans by revealing the details to them first."

These DS releases are remakes of the original Gold and Silver games for the Game Boy Color. They will feature enhanced graphics and sound, touch screen controls and a host of other "surprises". You can look for these games to be released during the Spring of 2010.

Source: Kotaku

La-Mulana Site Opens

Nicalis has lauched the official site for their upcoming WiiWare title La-Mulana. A tease given through their Twitter account this morning was announcing a tease to come soon. Shortly after the official site was opened.

If you visit the site, which you can find here, you'll see concept art, screenshots, information concerning the game and more. La-Mulana is a remake of a 2005 PC platformer and has been compared by many to be inspired by Metroid and Castlevania styles of gameplay. The graphics have been updated to resemble 16-bit SNES style visuals.

This is one of three titles that Nicalis has announced will be coming to WiiWare. The other two are Cave Story and Night Game.

Ubisoft Announces Jenny McCarthy in Your Shape

Fitness games are the next big thing when you talk about Wii. Wii Fit started the craze, EA joined in the EA Sports Active, and SEGA is giving us Daisy Fuentes' Pilates. Back at E3 this year Ubisoft announced they were jumping on the fitness bandwagon with the release of Your Shape. Back then they didn't have a celebrity endorser, but they did announce another peripheral. Your Shape featuring Jenny McCarthy comes with a camera peripheral that features Ubisoft’s proprietary motion tracking technology, which provides a completely personalized and interactive work-out by scanning players’ bodies, assessing their current fitness level and then projecting their images onto the TV. Ubisoft is also advertising the first controller free excercise experience.

“Partnering with Jenny McCarthy was a no-brainer for us,” said Tony Key, vice president of sales and marketing, North America. “Her commitment to fitness, and exceptionally wide fan-base, make her an ideal fit for the Your Shape brand. Best of all, she will make the workout fun for players, which is an element that has been missing in the fitness game market.”

Source: Ubisoft Press Release

EA Staffers Thought About Quitting Due to Wii

“The dynamics changed with the launch of the Wii–play and fun was coming back in, the demographic was changing enormously, and the amount of time to play was being compressed. [They (the staff)] couldn’t take the change of pace. It was hard. A lot of people at that time thought they would move on from our studios–they wanted to chase the core consumer.” - EA’s Peter Moore

Source: Tomsguide.com

This is a quote that really gets to me, and a sentiment that's been heard WAY too often in the last three years. Not only are people who play games bashing the Wii, the developers are as well. I can get behind a man like Peter Moore who has shown how much he really likes the Wii and the ideas that Wii brings to the table. I can't get behind people who say the Wii isn't for gamers. Too many times people say how much graphics are the most important thing they look at in a game. Shouldn't games be about the gameplay? Eye candy is a bonus, not a necessity for a good game and I think Wii has proven that over and over again. Games like Boom Blox, or Shaun White Snowboarding, or Nintendo's own Wii Sports show you that if a game is fun, you'll come back to it again and again.

I've said I'm tired of defending Wii because I shouldn't have to. The experienced gamers say they'll stick to the system that has good games on it, i.e. the 360. Well that's true, it does have good games on it. I can look at my library of Nintendo games that has grown to over 40 titles and point to 40 games that I own that are fun to play. There has only been one game I regretted owning this generation and that was a downloadable NES title that I had never played.

I will fully throw my support behind developers who understand that games are about fun, more than anything. Developers like Peter Moore, the guys at High Voltage Software, Nintendo, Ubisoft and the Rabbids. Too many gamers today are interested in the hyper realistic, gore fests that Gears of War, or Killzone 2, or Prototype offer. While those are all good games in their own right, you can't discount the sheer fun of games like Wii Sports Resort or New Super Mario Bros. Wii will offer. Good art style trumps hyper realism any day. That's why games like the Shaun White series or Ghostbusters: The Video Game got more attention on Wii than they did their counterparts. They were simply more fun to play.

You Scratch My Back, I'll Scratch Yours

I'm not one to shy away from giving props to people who deserve it. I'm just really getting started into the world of covering video games, but I've joined up with Phillip from SuperPhillip Central and he's posted a nice entry about this site and I only think it fair to return the favor.

Once you're done checking things out here head on over to SuperPhillip Central and check him out. Let him know you found him from here. You'll find everything from news, reviews and editorials and he's Super! You can't beat that. In addition to that, as of this very moment, I'm the top story!!!

The Munchables Review

Bright colors and crazy landscapes are in full force during The Munchables. The game evokes a visual style very similar to the Monkey Ball series of games. The various vegetables you encounter all are given a very funny facelift and the main characters display a lot of emotion for being a ball with a face. Everything looks as if it’s pulled straight out a children’s storybook. The environments are made using items found everywhere. Platforms are made out of cardboard, where you can see the corrugated edges, colored craft papers are taped down giving color to everything. It’s a look that is being used more often, but is effective and gets you noticing the environment trying to find out what things are made of.

On the other hand, the audio is a bit of a mismatch. For some reason there is voice acting, done well, on the last two missions of the game, but for only half the time in those two missions. It’s good when it’s being used, but seems out of place. There should have been more voice work or none at all. As it is, it’s a bit distracting. The music is cleverly done, though. The tunes are bright, cheerful and somewhat catchy. They very much what would be expected out of a Saturday morning cartoon and fit well with everything else. Sirens go off when Chomper has been attacked, and the constant munching sounds remind you exactly what the point of the game is.

Players will take control of a character that can only be described as a modern day Pac-man. You begin on the planet Star Ving, where the insanely cute, and ever hungry race of beings known as the Munchables live. You have the choice of controlling either the male type character Chomper, or the female type character Munchy; both are armless, legless moving mouths. Starting up the game you find out that the Munchables’ homeland has been taken over by a race of evil vegetables known as the Tabemon. They are stealing objects known as Power Orbs, which are revered by the Munchables. A being known as the Great Elder implores you to take back the island by eating all of the invading Tabemon pirates.

From there you begin your quest. It is the job of Chomper, or Munchy to roam the islands various locales eating everything in sight. The Great Elder will tell Chomper what the goal for that area is and assign him a starting level. This level is used to determine what enemies can be eaten at any given time and Chomper’s level will be displayed above his head. As you eat the smaller pirates you encounter, by pressing the A button, Chomper’s level raises. If an enemy is too big to be eaten you will see above them what level is required before they can be eaten. Eating smaller Tabemon vegetables will fill up a stomach meter, and as it fills Chomper’s level will rise. Luckily, if Chomper has not yet reached the level that is needed you can attack enemies by pressing the B button on the Wii Remote to perform a charge attack. This will break that Tabemon into smaller version of itself, that may then be eaten. Occasionally an enemy will still be too big, but they can be broken up as many times as required. If too much time is taken before they’re eaten, though, they may join back together and the process will need to be repeated. The Pirate Leaders, as they are known, are the boss encounters found every few levels. The only difference between these fights and the other encounters in the game is that they have a weak spot that must be found in order to properly reduce their size.

There are many different types of areas to explore that range from the standard plains areas, to ruined temples, giant windmills and the ocean floor. There are eight different areas with 3 levels each. Chomper is controlled using the analog stick. You can access higher areas by flicking the Wii Remote to jump. You can lock onto enemies using the Z button. This comes in handy during underwater levels where it’s not always easy to tell where you are in relation to the Tabemon underwater. If there are a large number of enemies in one area you can hold the A button to charge up Chomper and he will dash towards them and swallow them all at one time. The Classic Controller is also supported for people who prefer that controller.


Once you have performed the task required for that area Chomper becomes stuffed and cannot eat any more. At that point the level ends and the Great Elder tallies up the number of Tabemon that have been eaten. These are converted into orbs that Chomper poops out. The more orbs gained, the better the score achieved; this also awards you a ranking from C to S.

As you go through the adventure there are acorns hidden around each level. These become important for players that enjoy unlockables. If all of the acorns in a level are found the Great Elder gives you a present in the form of some article of clothing that can be used to customize Chomper or Munchy. These can be anything like a pair of glasses, a mohawk, a Native American headdress or even a flower that sprouts from your head. Only one of these may be equipped at anyone time so the amount of customization allowed is limited somewhat.

There is not much variation in the game play other than the different types of vegetables that must be eaten. Every level consists, basically, of Chomper going around eating everything in sight until there is nothing left to eat. It should take around five to six hours to complete, with each level taking around 15 minutes. Not everything will be found during the first play through so some players will enjoy going back through the game a second time to find everything that was missed during the first run to save Star Ving. While the actions performed were very similar it never got old and was never boring. There is just something quite comical in seeing Chomper roam around eating everything he comes in contact with.

Once the main quest has been finished you’ll unlock a mirror mode, which is not exactly what it sounds like it should be. Mirror mode is more of a time attack where you will go through the game again trying to finish everything as quickly as possible.

There is a two player mode in The Munchables. It is very similar to the two player mode found in Super Mario Galaxy. The second player controls a cursor that can be used to shoot at the Tabemon onscreen. This will cause them to be broken apart, much like the dash attack that Chomper can perform. This gives younger players who aren’t quite ready to control the bulk of the action to help their older family members and give them the sense they helping to complete the game. It was actually quite a lot of fun to have someone along and it made some of the levels a little easier to finish since that player can concentrate on making the Tabemon small enough for the first player to concentrate on eating.

There is a lot of humor to be found while playing this game and the game play, while basically the same throughout the game, never really gets old. The dialogue, outside the end of the levels, is witty and will cause a few chuckles to be had.

The Munchables is very much like what Pac-Man would be today. The ability to have a friend help was a welcome addition as well. For $30.00 there’s not much reason to pass this title by. It’s a unique experience not yet to be had on Wii and will provide for many hours of gluttonous eating fun.


Final Score: 3/5

Review copy of the game provided by Namco Bandai.

Rabbids Go Home: Episode 2: Meet the Human

I am seriously looking forward to this game. These characters have captured me like few have in recent memory. They're just outrageous, uncooth, hilarious, rude, ridiculous, and somehow awesome all at the same time. I'll be posting a lot of these videos as they show up because I think everyone should see them.

SEGA Says Glory Days For Sonic a Hope to Return

Sonic the Hedgehog has been a franchise in the past I've never really been interested in. I fell into the camp of the Super Nintendo during the glory days of the Sega vs Nintendo feud. Since then, I have played a lot of Sonic games, but never enjoyed them as much as real fans of the series. The newest games Sonic and the Secret Rings, Sonic Unleashed, and Sonic and the Black Knight were by far my least favorite of the series.

If you're going to do a Sonic game right, I agree with most people in that you have to get back to the 2-D sidescrolling games of the past and capture that magic again. Sonic is definitely at his best when he's moving fast and never stops. The newer games that have been released really do appeal to audiences who have not played the old school side scrolling Sonic games. They also know Sonic from his recent alliance with Mario to visit the Olympics. Those games haven't captured the old school fan like Sega wants, and I think the best way to do that would be to do a downloadable Sonic game.

“If you read everything, we need to be all things to all gamers with Sonic, and that’s a difficult thing to do. Trying to put everything into one game and making everybody happy is impossible. And I think that’s something clear going forward. I think we’ve had challenges with [the 2006] Sonic the Hedgehog and Unleashed. [The 2006 game] Sonic the Hedgehog sells extremely well at a budget price. So clearly it’s very popular with a young audience. But first and foremost is: We’ve got to make a quality game for that audience. Does quality mean it’s got to be a Metacritic 90 percent? Well not necessarily. It’s just got to be quality that’s appropriate for them. Then we’ve got our core fans, and what we need to do is now and then produce a Sonic that will appeal to those fans specifically. Often it can be looking at another take on the nostalgic take on Sonic. Or re-issues. They’re very popular. Fans do like that.” - Mike Hayes, the head of Sega Europe/Sega America

This quote really does capture what Sega should and hopefully will do. I might even get on board and play a new game that uses the same mechanics as the Genesis versions of the game. Sonic is a mascot that shouldn't die, but I think he's been on a bit of life support lately and it's time to re-invigorate him.
You can't capture the magic of Sonic in the 3-D games we've seen of late and a retro revival may be just what the doctor (Mario) ordered.

Vitality Sensor WILL Come Bundled With Software

Nintendo has confirmed that the Vitality Sensor will come bundled with some form of software that will showcase what the peripheral can do.

“The Wii Vitality Sensor is planned for 2010 and will come with software that shows off its unique abilities,” said Amber McCollum, director of entertainment and trend marketing for Nintendo of America. “We believe the Wii Vitality Sensor will enable Nintendo to take another important step in expanding the appeal of video games,”

Source: Infendo

It should come as no surprise that I'm a big skeptic of the vitality sensor. I don't honestly know what it will be able to do to enhance the gaming experience. If you have the peripheral connected, as of right now, there is no way to combine the Nunchuk with it so that limits the amount of controls you can have when using it. I am really hoping that Nintendo can wow us with this device. They've proven in the past with things like the balance board that a wacky control scheme can work and be successful. There's no reason to think otherwise.

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said earlier this week. “What we are trying to propose first (however) is a video game with a theme of relaxation, which is completely opposite from traditional ones.”

I'm going to take a cautious, but optimistic approach to the Vitality Sensor. I really hope Nintendo can pull off another surprise.

Interview: Ole Teglbjærg (Max & The Magic Marker)

Press Play is a developer based in Copenhagen, Denmark. They are working on a WiiWare title expected to be released later this year entitled Max and the Magic Marker. Ole Teglbjærg, a member of their development team, sat down with us to discuss this title, the plans they have for the future, and what other titles inspired the development of Max.

Can you tell us a bit about Press Play and how you became involved with WiiWare?

Press Play is a small indie studio based in central Copenhagen Denmark. We are 8 people working on different projects, with Max and the Magic Marker being the main focus at the moment.

WiiWare is in our opinion a perfect fit for Max and the Magic Marker. Partly because the main mechanic relies on a pointer device, but also because we believe that there is a market for this exact kind of game on the Wii. We've seen games like Lost Winds do quite well on WiiWare, not to mention World of Goo, and I guess that also led us on.

There is a set of children's books entitled Harold and the Purple Crayon where the main character can draw and interact with anything he can imagine. Was this any inspiration behind this game at all? Where did the idea come from?

None of us had ever heard of Harold, but last summer (2008), one of the guys stumbled upon an old Harold book in an antiquarian here in Copenhagen and bought it. Then we Googled it, and it turns out it is famous. We had no idea!

The idea for Max was conceived in the winter of 2007/2008. At the time there were two major trends in gaming - physics and drawing. The first videos of Little Big Planet had been released and it was getting a lot of hype. And drawing games like Crayon Physics and Line Rider were pretty successful.

When the idea to combine the two – and making a “free” drawing mechanic was there, a Flash prototype was made, and we had a lot of fun just playing around with it. That proved to us that the combination of platforming and drawing would work out. During the development of the prototype, Mike (Mikhail Akopyan / game designer), worked on the concept and made a bunch of sketches exploring the possibilities of the puzzles and mechanics. This made it even clearer to us that the possibilities within this concept were enormous.
To be honest, I have to say that right from the start we’ve have felt that this concept was too good and too obvious an idea that we thought our biggest problem was going to be being the first to bring it to the market.

Other than that, we all remember what it was like to draw as a child. What was a cool robot shooting giant gorillas with dumdum-laser to you, looked like random lines to other people. That ability for Max to enter his drawing/fantasy, has been a key element in the overall design and concept.

What types of environments and enemies will we be seeing in this game? How interactive will the environments in the game be?

I'm not sure how much I can say just yet, but there will be three worlds, friends and enemies, lots of stuff to play around with, secrets to discover, and challenges to beat.


Can you describe the controls for us? Will we be using any of the motion elements of the Wii Remote aside from the pointer functionality?

The player controls Max's movement with the Nunchuk and the pen with the Wii remote. There will not be motion control stuff. The controls are challenging enough as they are.

You recently had a group of 2nd graders in the office for inspiration. How much if any of their work will make it into the game?

The drawings will be used in different ways. Some of the elements will make it to the game, of course in a version that will match the overall look and feel. But mainly the drawings are used for inspiration as to how children's drawings actually look, and how they think - just look at the house with eyes on the blog - children are weird.

Do you see this being the beginning of a series? Can we hope to see more titles like this in the future?

If everything goes as we hope for, we will make a sequel where we can make use of the ideas that didn't make into this one. We have a strong belief in this game and the overall concept, but it is impossible to say at the moment.

May we possibly see some online elements in the game such as level creation or level sharing among friends?

Sadly no, but it is definitely on the list for the sequel. What we have found, though, is that especially children have a lot of fun sharing controllers - one guy with the Nunchuk and the other controlling the pen. This makes it possible to play co-op with your kids, helping each other through the challenges.

Do you have any other ideas brewing that we could see down the line in future titles?

Yes! We were lucky enough to receive initial funding for prototyping a concept we call "Hard Plastic", which looks nothing like Max. The basic concept is to take what is fun about shooters and make it appealing to people who normally avoids them. It's a big challenge, but if it works out, it is going to be a lot of fun.

Along with Hard Plastic we are working on a racing game for octopuses (octopi?) called Octoracer. It's a strange concept and we are still in doubt as to what platform it would suit best, but the initial steps has been taken.

Is there any idea on a release date and pricing for the game?

Nope. we really can't say anything yet.

Lastly, is it really confirmed that Tupac will be reborn in 2014?

Yes, I got it from a reliable source, and rumor has it, that he'll bring Elvis along.

Note: This last question came from an FAQ they have on their site and we were just following up for confirmation.

We would like to thank Ole once again for joining us to discuss Max and the Magic Marker. The game just entered the Alpha stage, but you can follow all the information about the game here on Nintendo Okie or at the developer’s blog.

Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 Available on PSN Today

The wait is over for PlayStation 3 owners as Marvel vs. Capcom 2 is available today through PSN or through a limited retail release exclusively at GameStop in North America for $14.99.

The GameStop retail box includes a redemption code to download the game over PSN and a code for a month's subscription of digital comics at Marvel.com.

Only 15,000 copies of the retail box are available, so get moving.

Source:Press e-mail

I am posting this today, not because it relates directly to Nintendo, but because I really like the premise behind what they're doing. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 will be available as a digital download through the PSN store as well as through a limited release at Gamestop. If you buy the game at Gamestop you do not get a physical copy of the game but you get a download code for the game, a month's subscription to Marvel Digital Comics and an eight page manual. This gives people who like to collect the cases for the art and the manuals a physical thing and gives you a physical manual for the game that you can pull out if you need it.

Wii's online manuals are not easily accessible as you have to get out of the game and log onto the Wii Shop Channel to view the game's manual. I would love to be able to go into a store, buy the game and get a physical thing in my hand, but still have the game on my hard drive. I am a huge proponent of digital downloads and would love to get rid of physical media that can be lost or broken. I find it really convenient to pull up my SD card menu on the Wii and see a nice list of cover art and games that I can just click on to load.

I am looking forward to the day of no physical media, but I am also in the position where I like to have physical manuals for all my games. Right now the only option is to find it online, copy it all down by hand from the Wii Shop Channel or just live with the fact that they're not easy to access.

This is going to be an interesting test title and I, for one, hope that it works out and we see more games doing something like this

WiiWare: Tales of Monkey Island - Chapter One Review

In the mid '90s, LucasArts was a big name in the adventure game genre. Today, that title belongs to Telltale Games. Telltale has worked on other franchises, like Wallace & Gromit, Strongbad and Sam & Max, and now it has teamed up with original Monkey Island series publisher LucasArts to work on an all-new sequel in the franchise, which originally launched in 1990. What makes the sequel unique is something not unusual for Telltale: it will be released episodically. Tales of Monkey Island: The Launch of the Screaming Narwhal is the first of five episodes that will constitute the newest adventure in the world of Monkey Island.

Tales of Monkey Island opens up with series hero, Guybrush Threepwood, out on the high seas in search of a fizzy rootbeer that will complete a voodoo recipe. This recipe is vital in that it will not only destroy series villain, the cursed, undead pirate LeChuck, but it will also rescue Guybrush's wife Elaine. After a bit of clumsiness, Guybrush completes the recipe, defeating the evil pirate but also creating such an explosion that Guybrush is launced into the air. After this incident, and a bit more story, Guybrush finds himself stranded on Flotsam Island with an infected and near useless hand. The gamer thus spend the remainder of the episode looking for a way off the island, where the winds constantly blow inward, in order to reunite with Elaine.

Through his quest, Guybrush meets a colorful cast of characters, such as a reporter interested in all kinds of pirate news, a voodoo queen, a frilly French doctor, and a pirate selling glass knick-knacks. All of these characters will have tasks they request of Guybrush before helping him, sending the hero all over Flotsam Island to find pieces to complete the requests' puzzles. Many of these island residents mispronounce Guybrush’s name, most intentionally, and some of these mistakes are hilarious.

Guybrush's walking is controlled by the Nunchuck and he interacts with objects in the environment with points and clicks of the Wii Remote. Gamers will be forced to decipher clues and come up with some clever item combinations in order to complete all the tasks necessary to leave the island. Items are combined by placing them in one of two boxes on the inventory screen and pressing a button. If the items can be combined, they will glow yellow and a new item will be added to the inventory. Thus, gamers will find themselves attempting many random item combinations whenever they're stuck in an area, all in the hopes that an unlikely combination is the solution to a tricky puzzle. The puzzles themselves are not terribly difficult, but you have to think a bit outside of the box in order to solve some of the trickier ones.

One staple of the adventure genre has always been witty dialogue, and there is no lack of that in this game. Pop culture references and laugh-out-loud moments are littered throughout the adventure. The voice cast from the previous Monkey Island games has also returned, and overall the voice work is brilliant. Jokes are delivered quite well, and each character has a very distinct personality. One of the biggest elements of the gameplay-- the treasure map-- also harnesses audio. Directions are given not with traditional map directions, but rather audio clues to help you follow the proper trail.

Adventure games had fallen out of popularity for a while, but Telltale Games is doing everything it can to bring the genre back into the fore. Tales of Monkey Island is a beautiful sequel to a classic adventure, and the face lift the series has been given is a great addition to Telltale's already robust lineup. While there is no clear ending to The Screaming Narwhal, it is a fun tale that shouldn’t be missed by any fans of old point and click style games.

Final Score: 4/5

Review copy of the game provided by TellTale Games.

Metroid Prime Trilogy Will Not Use Saves From Metroid Prime 3

It was officially announced today that the new Metroid Prime Trilogy will not use save files from Metroid Prime 3.

"Due to the way the game data is allocated for production and the changes that we made in the source code, we were unfortunately unable to carry over the save file compatibility from MP3 to Trilogy." - Mike Wikan, lead game designer at Retro Studios

That just means that if you've played those games before you'll have to play through all of them again, which isn't a bad thing. Most Nintendo fans have played them and will play them again to try out the Wii specific controls that you didn't have the first time around.
This won't be an issue for me as I've never played the first two games in the series and I never finished Metroid Prime 3. I'll be picking this game up and playing through it as I've always been interested in the franchise, but didn't like the Gamecube controls for the first two games.

Retro Redux: Chip 'N' Dale's Rescue Rangers

Welcome, once again, to Retro Redux, our look back at games past. This week we'll be looking at Chip 'n' Dale's Rescue Rangers for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Originally released in 1990 by Capcom, it was a side scrolling platformer based on the popular cartoon characters, and specifically the cartoon series by the same name. It starred the chipmunk duo of Chip, the level headed "brain" of the two, and Dale, the red-nosed, goofball. If you never saw the cartoon, the show was based around the two and their team of investigators, Gadget, Monterey Jack and Zipper, solving a new crime each week, as well as foiling the schemes of the villanous feline, Fat Cat. It's a slightly different take on the traditional damsel in distress scenario. You play as a small character in a big world and the environments are scaled accordingly.

Fat Cat has captured the team's technology wiz, Gadget, and it's up to Chip and Dale to rescue her. The adventure would take you through a series of levels and ultimately a fight against the mob boss himself. The different levels were laid out on a map, similar to Super Mario Bros. 3 and you had the option of choosing the path you took through the game. This was mainly deciding from one level or another since the branches ultimately brought you back to the main path. Rescue Rangers, as previously mentioned is a side scrolling platformer, and is a very easy one at that. From the title screen you could choose which of the titular duo you preferred to play as, though this choice was merely cosmetic as the two characters played identically to each other. From there you would enter the first level of the game and proceed to uncover the plot hatched by Fat Cat. As chipmunks are fairly non aggressive in reality, the two characters had no ability to attack outside of picking up objects in the game and throwing them at the various enemies trying to stop you from reaching your goal. You could pick up apples, crates, or bricks and throw them. Also littered throughout the levels are flower cards that you could collect, but I never really understood if they did anything.. You were given three hearts that constituted your life bar and each time you got hit you would lose one heart. Lose them and and you lost a life. You could replinish lost health by picking up acorns found in the world, and this was the only way to regain your health.

From the beginning you begin to understand this game might have been created simply to get fans of the show to buy it. You are greeted with the familiar theme and even after all these years I still remember it and can sing along with it. The level design is amazingly simple, and they don't take very long to traverse. Enemies are placed very sparsely throughout the levels and the only thing to do other than move to the right was pick up crates and throw them. These crates are everywhere and you can find collectibles under a few of them. While the levels were sparsely populated there was a lot going on in each level. There were multiple paths that you could take through the levels as well as a lot of stuff going on. Jack in the boxes would pop up during the level in a toy factory, poker chips flew back and forth in the casino, and water faucets had to be turned off to progress through the kitchen area. None of the tasks you had to undertake were difficult by any means, but they added a bit of interactivity no found in many games previous to this one. You could also carry the crates in levels around and duck under them to give you a brief shield. If you got hit while under a crate you would lose the crate, but would not take any damage. Other interactive elements were live power lines that had electricity moving back and forth that would cause damage to you if not jumped over and switches that needed to be activated to shut off obstacles. There were some puzzle elements to the game such as the aforementioned water faucets, but also occasionally you would have to create a sort of bridge from one part of a level to another. The boss fights in the game were all very similar. When you entered the boss area they would be on a platform of some sort and there would be a random object on the ground. You would need to pick up the object and thrown it at the boss five times in order to defeat them. Sometimes the boss would be static, but there would be traps on the ground you had to avoid, and other times the boss would move and fire different themed objects at you. Ultimately, though, all the boss fights were very much the same and if you could defeat one boss, none of the others were very hard. After defeating the boss you would be taken back to the world map and into the Rescue Rangers blimp to choose your next path towards Fat Cat's Lair.

If you didn't want to play alone a second player could join in on the fun as the other chipmunk for some co-operative play. This could be a double edged sword because if you got hit by a crate thrown by the other player you would be briefly stunned and vulnerable to attack. Dasterdly players could also throw their partners into enemies or down pits causing them to die. It was very helpful for families who enjoyed playing together because you could pick up your partner and carry them along if they were having difficulty getting through an area. There were not many games that had true co-op modes back then, but this one added a bit of fun to the adventure that could otherwise have been dull for one person. The other two members of the Rescue Rangers were not playable, but did make appearances to aid in the adventure. Monterey Jack would occasionally be lured into the action by the smell of cheese and during his trance like walk he would smash through walls that would allow you to continue to the next area. Zipper could be found stuck inside crates and if he was found he would fly ahead of you smacking enemies giving you a brief moment of invincibility. It would have been nice to be able to play as these characters and could have greatly increased the fun of the game. Zipper could fly and that could have made it possible to reach levels otherwise inaccesible to the team and Monterey Jack could have been used as a bit of a tank or just brute muscle and created a bit of diversity in the team.

While the game was simple, it was fun to play, especially if you had a friend along for the ride. Licensed properties based on movies and TV shows were and still are generally very generic, but every once in a while there are a few that stand out above the crowd. This one along with the Duck Tales game were two of the NES era that really stood out in my mind. Looking back on this one, though, I wonder why I liked it so much. Going back today it's not as much fun as I remember it, but I still enjoy it. I don't know if it's because the game is just generic and I've seen it a hundred times before or if I've just moved on and appreciate a different style of game. My children all really enjoy it, especially if they get the chance to throw dad down a hole and maybe that's part of it. They don't really know these characters, other than Chip and Dale, as they've never watched the show, so it can't be nostalgia for them. It's a complete trip down memory lane for me and that's why it's still part of my gaming collection. It's good for an hour of play every once in a while and still gets pulled out and popped into my NES. The interactivity of the levels, the bright environments and two of the cutest playable characters ever combine to bring you an experience you should play at least once. If you can find this game in a vintage store or online for a decent price it should be part of anyone's NES collection.

What are your thoughts on Chip 'N' Dale's Rescue Rangers? Was it one of those games you remember fondly or did you hate it? If there are any games that you would really like to see talked about in this feature or games you just want me to know about e-mail me and let me know or head over to the forums and let me know there.

Nintendo Releases Free Animation App for DSiWare

Amateur animators can rejoice today as Nintendo officially released Flipnote Studios for DSiWare today. The application is free and allows users to create animated images on their DSi. Flipnote Studios was released for free.

Users draw an image on the touch screen of the Nintendo DSi system. When they are ready to draw the next image in the sequence, Flipnote Studio shows an outline of the previous image as a reference. Once all the images are in place, the software can animate them as a creation called a Flipnote. People can add sound to their Flipnotes using the built-in microphone or using sounds they previously recorded in the Nintendo DSi Sound application. Or they can import photos as black and white images from the Nintendo DSi Camera album.

Users can share their creations with other DSi owners through local wi-fi connections or upload them to a service called Flipnote Hatena, which can be found here. You can download other users creations and modify them as you see fit.

I think we're going to see a lot of interesting creations in the future, many possibly not appropriate for younger audiences. For those worried about it, remember that the DSi has parental controls that can be accessed on the main menu of the DSi.

Source: Nintendo Press Release

Konami Unveils New Logo and Screens for Silent Hill: Shattered Memories

Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. today unveiled a new logo and screenshots from the latest iteration in the popular Silent Hill franchise, scheduled to launch this fall on the Wii™, PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) system: Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.
In this terrifying survival horror experience with an all-new soundtrack by acclaimed series composer Akira Yamaoka, players follow Harry Mason, who is searching for his missing daughter Cheryl. While Harry desperately searches the snowy streets of Silent Hill looking for clues to her disappearance, he must face twisted creatures from the depths of his icy nightmares.






Source: Konami Press Release

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Review

Video game based upon an existing movie license are generally looked down upon in the gaming world as a simple cash in to get money from an unsuspecting consumer, and a lot of times that may be true. Going into Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs you could have assumed you would be getting the same thing yet again; you’d be wrong. While it is true that the game doesn’t break any new ground in any way, it is still a fun romp through the environments of the prehistoric era alongside the characters of the Ice Age franchise.

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs is a fairly typical 3-D platformer. It is told as a series of bedtime stories by Cid and Diego to young Peaches. Each mission is introduced as one of these story elements before going into the game play. You will find missions such as going from one point in a level to another in order to cover sharp rocks with leaves to protect Manny and Ellie's newborn child. These areas are thankfully not very far apart and it doesn’t take very long to accomplish these tasks. In fact, most of the levels are not difficult and should pose no real challenge to veteran gamers. As well as the fetch quest style of game play there are numerous other types of game play mixed together so you are not playing the same type of level multiple times. Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs features side scrolling platform levels where Scrat is trying to retrieve his acorn from his female counterpart, Scratte. There are also side scrolling shooter levels reminiscent of Gradius where newcomer, Buck, is trying to rescue Cid from a Tyrannosaurus Rex. Cid has the most exposure in the game and the most numerous game play types, such as a mission where he is atop an egg rolling it to safety that will remind Nintendo veterans of the ball rolling mission from Super Mario Galaxy. He is featured in the aforementioned fetch quests as well as a series of missions where he is running towards the screen from the mother T-rex. These missions are the only downside to otherwise classic gaming moments. They also feature a lot of repetition as you learn the layout of the levels and avoid falling into pits and dying. Cid also has static third person style shooter levels where he is defending his friends from incoming Pterodactyls and huge prehistoric insects. Buck had some of the most memorable missions where he was sliding across vines and jumping across huge gaps that will remind you of the rail sliding levels from Rachet and Clank’s newest adventure.

You will play through the game as one of six characters that are all very similar in how they control. Movement is handled by the Nunchuk and attacks are pulled off with either a button press or a combination of a button press with a movement of the Wii Remote. You will also use the Wii Remote’s pointer to hurl projectiles at enemies. While each character has unique moves they can perform they all serve a very similar function and you will find that it would not really matter which character you were controlling in any given situation as they are all exactly alike. The only real exception to this is Diego, who will be played during a racing style game where he is chasing after a gazelle.

Most of the cut scenes are presented using the games engine, but noticeably there were a few that appeared to use footage directly from the movie and were much better quality than most. While this is a bit jarring at first the overall presentation of the cut scenes will leave you with the impression you are watching the newest movie unfold. This is going to be a great experience for fans of the movies.

While traversing the games many levels you will be collecting a large number of fruits like cherries, apples, and pears. These are used as currency that can unlock bigger weapons or more health, as well as art galleries and music players. The bigger the fruit, the more money they are worth. You will also be able to unlock eight mini games that can be played with up to four players. These mini-games are based on game play elements that you will experience during the single player campaign and there are a number of variations based on each of those elements. They are not overly engaging or deep, but will provide players a few more hours of fun, especially parents playing with their children. Each of the movies cut scenes as well as voice samples and concept art will be available by collecting crystals during the game, and you can purchase these in the games store if you do not want to play levels multiple times to find all the crystals available.

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs does not bring anything new to the game that you haven’t played a hundred times before, but the variety of game play types provide a break from the monotony of movie based games available. Fans of the series will love being able to play as their favorite characters and getting a chance to revisit the movie may be enough for some to want to purchase this game. You won’t find much in the way of difficulty and it won’t take you very long to finish the game, but the addition of the mini-games and their variants will give you something to enjoy with younger family members for hours afterward.

Final Score: 3.5/5

Atlus Launches Trauma Team Website

IRVINE, CALIFORNIA -- AUGUST 12, 2009 -- Atlus U.S.A., Inc., today opened the doors of the official Trauma Team™ website, the upcoming medical entertainment experience from the makers of Trauma Center® and exclusively for Wii™. This first major site update introduces fans to Dr. Gabriel Cunningham, a brilliant albeit cynical diagnostician whose personal challenges seem to have dulled his passion for the job. Expect new sections of the site to open over time, revealing more characters, details, and media from the game.

Encounter unprecedented depth across six distinct fields of medicine: play as a general surgeon, diagnostician, E.M.T., orthopedic surgeon, endoscopic technician, and forensic examiner. Follow the drama as never before with all-new dynamic story sequences inspired by Japanese animation and comics; each chapter comes vividly to life with a style seen nowhere else! Hand-drawn art, innovative animation, and quality voice acting perfectly capture the raw intensity, excitement, and danger of every heart-pounding moment!

Bigger, more exciting, and more balanced than ever before, Trauma Team is the ultimate medical drama! Trauma Team is scheduled for release in Spring 2010.

Visit the official website:
http://www.atlus.com/traumateam

High Voltage Signs a Deal For Ghostbusters Engine

High Voltage Software, developers of the recently released Conduit on Wii have signed a lifetime agreement with Terminal Reality to use the Infernal Engine. This is the same engine that was used to power the 360 and PS3 versions of Ghostbusters. The signing of the agreement means they will probably be doing development for the high definition platforms in the future.

Joe Kreiner, VP Sales and Marketing at Terminal Reality, had the following to say.

With more than 75 titles shipped, High Voltage Software has a proven track record of developing quality products on all of the current platforms. Through the use of the Infernal Engine technologies, they are now able to extend that remarkable track record into the next-generation platforms."

Spyborgs Screenshots

Capcom released new screenshots today of their upcoming Wii title Spyborgs. As well as the screenshots they have shown off the first webisode of a new series. The game will also be launching on week earlier than expected on September 22nd.

X-Play Previews Scribblenauts

More Details On Guitar Hero 5

As the details continue to come out about Guitar Hero 5 I'm becoming more and more impressed with the game. I actually enjoy the game aspect more than many people, but I also enjoy just being able to hook in and rock with friends. Here are some more details about the upcoming release that should make many fans happy.

- supports high capacity SD cards
- supports SD card streaming
- Guitar Hero Music Store has a news section to give updates on content just added
- Full albums, track packs, and single songs can be purchased all at once
- search albums by full collection or just one song
- preview songs, and then pick/choose the ones you want to purchase
- songs come with album art
- set more than one song to download at a time
- download songs at your on convenience, pausing downloads to finish later
- no need to have free Wii space due to streaming SD card functionality
- 32 gig HCSD card will give you room for 800+ songs
- fee for importing covers licensing fees
- free download updates World Tour song for play modes in Guitar Hero 5
- higher quality audio
- Rock Archive allows you to manage your SD card from in the game

I'll be keeping you up to date on this game in the future so keep your eyes peeled here.

Source: Go Nintendo

Punch-Out!! Review

Little Mac returns to the ring after 15 years away. Chances are if you are older than that you’ve played this game before. If you’re new to Punch-Out!! you’ll find a great introduction to the series in this game.

Punch-Out!! burst onto the scene more than 20 years ago, with a colorful roster of boxers, a celebrity endorser and hours of fun on the NES. Chances are, if you were born before 1985 you’ve played this game or it’s sequel on the Super Nintendo. If not, then you don’t know what you were missing and this game will make you understand why people love the franchise as much as they do.

It now returns with an even more colorful cast of boxers and plenty of hours more of enjoyment. It’s a boxing game, a puzzle game and a party game all wrapped up together in one beautiful package that you’re sure to enjoy.

Many of the characters that fans of the game love have returned, all of them with a 3 - d facelift. Previous iterations of the game had already given the boxers a lot of personality. The upgrade to the Wii has increased that exponentially. Before each fight the characters are introduced to you in a 4 frame story that gives you some background on the character. While it would have been nice if these had been fully animated, they are still clever and sometimes chuckle inducing.

The backgrounds of the game are the still familiar crowd from every previous edition. Flashes from cameras happen constantly, but never distract from the action in the ring. Damage is now reflected to the characters in semi-real time. As you pummel an opponent bruises, bandages and bumps will appear if you concentrate your punches to certain areas.

Punch-Out!! has one of the most recognizable themes in gaming. It’s been hummed by gamers for over 20 years now. It’s been given an upgrade many times over now. Each boxer has their own version of the song that plays during matches, and it is themed towards that characters background. The differences in each version of the song make you realize how good the music really is. You’ll find yourself humming along, and the differences in the theme keep it from becoming too grating.

Foreign based boxers like Glass Joe, Von Kaiser, or Great Tiger all speak in their native languages. This gives Punch-Out!! a bit of depth the previous versions of the game couldn’t really do. The voices are all very well done. You may not be able to understand what they’re saying, but you get the feeling that it fits in quite well with each of the different personalities.

Doc Louis, your trainer, now has a voice, nonsensical advice between rounds, and an unhealthy love of chocolate.

It’s been 15 years since Little Mac entered the boxing ring and now he’s ready to make the charge to the top once again. Many of his previous opponents are still around and stand in his way. The story in Punch-Out has been that of the underdog trying to fight through bigger, tougher opponents to win the title in various boxing circuits. That’s pretty much all the premise you need for Mac to be fighting the colorful cast of characters.

Punch-Out!! is not a boxing game. It’s never really been a boxing game. It’s a puzzle game wrapped around the guise of a boxing game. If you approach it as a boxing game you will not last very long. Each of the different boxers has a pattern that you must learn in order to avoid being hit and countering this to do damage to your opponent. They each have a distinctive tell that you have to figure out before they begin their punches. Some of them are obvious, such as Disco Kid telling you, “Here it comes!” Some of them are less so like the gem on Great Tiger’s turban blinking a moment before throwing a punch. Each boxer also flashes red a split second before their punch giving you one more chance to avoid the rain of blows.

You have a couple of different options in controlling Mac on his road to the championship. Wii has been about it’s motion control since the beginning. You can use the Wii Remote and Nunchuk as your hands and punch your way to victory. The control stick is used to help Mac dodge, duck and dive away from opponents’ fists, which are as big as your head. Swinging the Wii Remote or Nunchuk will cause Mac to punch his opponents. Pushing up on the control stick will land an uppercut. Well timed blows will award Mac with a Star, which can be used for a Star Punch that will deal extra damage by pressing the A button during a punch. This method works well, and there never seemed to be an issue with timing using this control scheme.

If you’re not comfortable with the motion controls, or you just feel that Punch-Out!! should be played old school then you can turn the Wii Remote on its side and play with classic NES style controls. Pushing the 1 & 2 buttons will cause Mac to throw punches, and the d-pad is used to control your movements. You can also use the Wii Balance Board to dodge left and right in combination with either of the control schemes mentioned.

There are 3 different circuits, and 13 boxers that you must fight through in order to be the best boxer in the WVBA, or World Video Boxing Association. The Minor Circuit is your first stop, followed by the Major Circuit and finally the World Circuit. The boxers get progressively harder as you get into the higher circuits. The difficulty in Punch-Out!! starts pretty mildly and you shouldn’t have much trouble until later in the Major Circuit. Make it to the World Circuit and the game may get frustratingly hard to the point of controller tossing.

Each fight lasts 3 rounds that have a 3 minute time limit. You repeatedly punch your opponent to wear them down. If there health bar runs out they are knocked down. A boxer knocked down will have 10 seconds to stand up or they are knocked out and lose the fight. Also, if a boxer is knocked down 3 times in the same round they lose because of a TKO, or technical knock out. If you knock your opponent down you can quickly hit the 1 & 2 buttons, or shake the Wii Remote & Nunchuk to regain a portion of your health. One time, between rounds, you can hit the - button to regain a larger portion of your health. Early on, this won’t be too much of an issue. In later fights you will pray that your opponent stays down for 9 out of 10 seconds in order to get as much of your health back as you can.

If you finish all three circuits and will the titles in each you will then be able to play through Title Defense Mode. You will fight every character again, though this time it will be much harder to defeat them. Their patterns, and tells change, and they have compensated for whatever weakness they may have. For example, Glass Joe comes to the ring wearing headgear to protect his vulnerable jaw and King Hippo sports a manhole cover over his belly that you have to remove before it becomes his weakness again.

If you’re having trouble defeating a certain opponent, your trainer Doc Louis will set up an exhibition match where you face off against a holographic version of your opponent. They cannot hurt you during these training sessions so it gives you a chance to learn their various tells and weaknesses without fear of a loss on your record or permanent damage to your psyche. Also after you’ve defeated an opponent you can go back in exhibition mode where you are given three objectives to accomplish during the fight. These can be anything from knocking an opponent out in the first round, winning a match without blocking a punch or dodging, defeating an opponent with only 5 punches. These objectives add a lot of replay ability to the game and make you think hard about different ways of beating the different boxers.

For the first time you can play Punch-Out!! with a friend. You can go head-to-head in a one on one match via split-screen multiplayer. Each of you chooses a Mii that then becomes the name of your character. So rather than being Little Mac, you would be Little Tony for example. Taking too long to throw a punch, or missing a punch will cause your boxer to turn blue and become frozen momentarily. Hitting a frozen opponent will award you with a bit of Giga Mac juice. If you gain enough of this juice you will turn into a hulked up version of Little Mac. When this happens the game reverts to a traditional single screen game where you essentially become a Punch-Out!! character. You become more powerful, but if your opponent dodges your attacks they can counter with a flurry of blows to deal a large amount of damage. You’re your meter runs out of Giga Mac juice you become a normal sized boxer and the screen splits back in two.

This mode does not add a lot to the game, but it is a fun mode to have when you have friends over or if you’ve ever wanted to play Punch-Out!! with a human opponent.

Punch-Out!! is more than just a remake of the original game. Next Level Games has taken the best elements of the previous two installments, mixed it all up and thrown it together to create a wonderful nostalgic game for fans of the series, but have also created a game that stands up well with today’s generation of gamers. The only things that could have made this a better experience than it already is would be the inclusion of online play and some additional characters. Given the fact that the developer did a solid job with online play for Mario Strikers Charged, it is a bit of a curious omission.

There is also only one new character, Disco Kid. All the others return from Punch-Out!! or Super Punch-Out!! It would have been nice to see the inclusion of a few more new characters to add to the plethora of stereotypes already in the game.

Depth was never the big selling point of the game. You were not going to understand the boxing world more after playing the game. If anything, you would probably understand it less and wonder why real boxers don’t display over the top antics and have obvious signs before throwing a punch. You will, however, find a wonderful puzzle to solve, characters you will fall in love with, and music that will stick with you for years.

Put on your boxing gloves, because Punch-Out!! is going to be easily regarded as one of the stand out titles of this year on any system and is a must own game for Wii owners.

Final Score: 5/5

Capcom's Lineup for Games Com 2009

Capcom has released the lineup of games they will have during the European Games Convention in Cologne, Germany. The event takes place August 19th - August 23rd and will feature many of the most anticipated titles of the year. Their entire list of games will be playable, many for the first time. If you're in the Cologne area during the show head on over and check them out.

Capcom's lineup will include the following games: (Nintendo titles are in bold)

Dark Void (PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
Monster Hunter Tri (Wii)
Moto GP 09/10
Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars (Wii)
Lost Planet 2 (PS3, Xbox 360, PC)
Spyborgs (Wii)
Resident Evil 5 (PC)

Some other things planned during the show are rather interesting. If you're there, you'll be able to leave the show in one of 200 Dark Void branded taxis after, of course, you've played the game and received one of the gifts available to you. Monster Hunter Tri will be available in English for the first time, as well. You'll be able to experience the same demo that players to the Tokyo Game Show experienced last year. You just better hope the lines aren't as long this time around. In addition to the single player experience, they will also be demoing the four player co-op play.

Capcom’s Booth is situated in Hall 6.1, corridor A, No 31. For more information on any of the playable titles head to www.capcom-europe.com.

Source: Press Release

This Week in Nintendo History: August 9th to August 15th

Hey everybody! Welcome to another fun-filled, fact-fattened episode of This Week in Nintendo History. At the request of a reader we're going to try something a little different this time and do things in complete chronological order. We've been doing things according to the day of the week, but we'll try this and see what we think. If you like it, let me know. If you hate it, let me know. I'm here to bring the history to you.

Rain Shower was a multi-screened Game & Watch game released on August 10th, 1983. In the game you played as a character who has their laundry hanging on the clothesline to dry, but it begins raining. The rain came and you were tasked with moving the clothesline left and right in order to keep your clothes from getting wet. Wouldn't it have been smarter to just take your clothes down and bring them inside? Rain Shower was re-released for the Game Boy Advance in Game & Watch Gallery 4.

Nintendo's second generation home console was unleashed to North America on August 13th, 1991. The Super Nintendo Entertainment System featured a new rounded controller that tripled the number of buttons on the NES from two to six. It also is the best selling console of the 16-bit era having sold over 49 million units worldwide. It was home to many gamers favorite games including things like The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Final Fantasy IV (2 in America), and Super Mario World.

Tetris is one of the best selling games of all-time, and the franchise continued with the release of Tetrisphere for the Nintendo 64 on August 11th, 1997 in North America. This was the first game in the franchise not played on a two dimensional field. In Tetrisphere you played on a 3-D globe and you were trying to reach the center by destroying the edges with tetriminoes. It was originally developed for the Atari Jaguar, under the name Phear, but legend says that Nintendo approached the game's developer with an offer to make it a Nintendo exclusive.

Japan saw one of the best selling RPG's of the Nintendo 64 released on August 11th, 2000. Paper Mario released on that day for the Nintendo 64 and would go on to be one of the best games developed for that system. It would also be the start of a new franchise that has crossed three platforms and differing play styles and win the hearts of gamers everywhere. Upon learning that Princess Peach has been kidnapped, one character exclaims "Princess Peach as been kidnapped...AGAIN!?" Who'da thunk it?

On August 9th, 2002 Japanese gamers were given Disney's Magical Mirror Starring Mickey Mouse for the Gamecube. This was a point and click adventure developed by Capcom starring the world's most famous mouse. It featured a mode called Kid's Mode geared towards players who were six years old or younger and took out many of the challenging elements. It would be released four days later in North America on August 13th, 2002. The game was based on the 1936 animated short Thru the Mirror, which was itself based on the Lewis Carroll classic Through the Looking Glass.

That same day Pichu Bros. Mini was released for the Pokemon Mini in Japan. When it was first announced there was speculation that it may have been a title that would be released on the Gamecube as the word Mini did not appear in the title. It was a mini-game collection that featured six different games. The main character was Pichu, but other Pokemon such as Pikachu and Cubone made appearances.

August 13th, 2007 was a good day for Virtual Console fans in America. That day brought on the release of the NES classic Metroid, as well as Shining in the Darkness for the Sega Genesis, and Cratermaze for the Turbo-Grafix 16. By far the star of the day was Metroid and if you've played it you know why.

Fans of poisonous liquid were overjoyed on August 14th, 2007 when Mercury Meltdown Revolution was released for Wii in America. It was a well received puzzle game that featured a blob of mercury they player would control similarly to the classic Marble Madness. Levels featured areas where you had to split the mercury and change to color to complete puzzles that would unlock access the next area of the level. You could play this game without the real danger of mercury poisoning.

Farming got a bit of an upgrade that same day when Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon was released for DS. This game featured the same farming/dating simulation found in the regular Harvest Moon series, but added elements found in traditional RPG's such as dungeon crawling for a bit of a twist. You could capture monsters during your dungeon crawl that would then help out on the farm making that part of your day a bit easier.

Our last releases of the week occured on August 11th, 2008 and are for the Virtual Console in Japan. Gamers were given the Turbo-Grafix 16 titles Break In, and Star Parodier.

That's it for this week in history. And if you have anything you know of coming up that would feature in this article let me hear that as well. Check back next week for more interesting, and hopefully fun facts about Nintendo.

Taking Epona To the Next Level

I don't normally like to talk about patents as most of them never really go anywhere; they're just simply ideas that a company is toying with and don't want to get away. This patent though had to be shown to the world. Who in their right mind would ever buy something like that? If you ever wanted to be embarassed playing a game, have your spouse walk in on you at 2:30 in the morning riding your pretend horse.