And the Nintendo of Europe site leaks another morsel of info! Not long ago, news of Nintendo selling music appeared in our RSS feed weeks early, only to lead to a dead link after it was hastily pulled by Nintendo. And now another slippage has occurred, with Nintendo accidentally revealing (what we suspect are the contents of) tomorrow's PAL Virtual Console update: Earthworm Jim and Shining Force II.
Once again, the news appears in our RSS feed (as seen here) while the story itself has been yanked from Ninty's site. All being well then, tomorrow's VC update for Europe and Australia should read something like this:
We barely need to write anything here this week, do we?
Mega Man 9 -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points
Helix -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points
Strong Bad Episode 2: Strong Badia the Free -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points
Helix is a dance-cum-exercise game from Ghostfire which was deemed above-average by critics, if not exactly essential. Strong Bad Episode 2: Strong Badia the Free falls into the same trap as Super Dodge Ball did in North America, in that it's a great, worthwhile title that was regrettably released the same week as Mega Man 9. And Mega Man 9, well, you know all about that. It's totally awesome and rad. Buy it.
Well, Australian readers, if you've been waiting on something pertaining to the first Rock Bandgame, then today brings good news. You all are finally getting Rock Band ... on November 7th (rumors originally stated the game would release in October). Ridiculous, right? Hey, we're right there with you, pal.
The game will release separately from the peripherals, just as it did in the UK. Unlike the UK, however, Aussies won't have to pay as much. The whole bundle, all said and done, will only set you back $250 AUD ($208). That's a lot of money for a year-old game, if we may say so. Especially one that already has its sequel sitting on store shelves.
A triple whammy of 500 Wii Point games this week, starting with the Master System version of Sonic the Hedgehog, from the days when the world loved and respected Sonic the Hedgehog. With the Mega Drive/Genesis version already available on the Virtual Console for 300 Points more, we suspect the Master System edition is for either Sonic completists or cheapskates. We fit both categories.
Then there are a couple of ye olde classics from the Commodore 64: Boulder Dash and Jumpman. The name "Jumpman" is coincidental, by the way, though the game is probably similar enough to Donkey Kong to warrant suspicion.
Sonic the Hedgehog -- Master System -- 500 Wii Points
The good news is that Animal Crossing: City Folk has been rated by the Australian OFLC board, meaning that it may actually come out in that region less than one year after the US release this time. Maybe.
The bad news is that Nintendo seems to have decided to release the game there under a different, less mellifluous title than the US version: Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City. For those of you in Australia, we don't wish to spoil the game for you, but the "city" is where folk reside.
Is there some regional difference we aren't aware of? Does the word "folk" have a negative connotation in Australian English?
Sorry, Plättchen Twist 'n' Paint, but if you're going to turn up at this party with absolutely no footage to show us and a price tag of 1,500 Wii Points, then you'll be spending the rest of the night alone -- we prefer our thrills cheap. And although we wouldn't usually be so dismissive, Midnight Pool, is it okay with you if we spend the evening just whispering sweet nothings in the ear of Bomberman Blast? It is? Great, punch bowl's over there, go nuts with Plättchen.
[Update: Plättchen footage has just entered the building -- hit the break!]
People, say hello to the 250th title on the combined PAL Virtual Consoles: it's ... one of the below. Woohoo! Let's say Ys Book I and II, as that's the one this blogger is most looking forward to trying out. On a sadder note, this is the last week of the current Hanabi Festival; we shall remember it fondly! Mainly because of, you know.
Australian gamers are, by now, either used to getting treated terribly by game companies, or really depressed. At this point, when a game comes out only a little late or somewhat overpriced compared to other regions, it must be a great relief.
Activision has disclosed the pricing scheme for the Australian release of Guitar Hero: World Tour. The prices differ by platform, with the Wii version consistently just a bit higher than the PS2 version and lower than the other next-gen versions. $79.95 ($66.61 US) pays for just the game, $159.95 ($133.27 US) gets a "Guitar Bundle," and the Super Bundle, containing the game, guitar, drums, and microphone, will cost $319.95. Compared to Rock Band, that seems like -- oh, right.
Up until now, Virtual Console and WiiWare games in PAL regions have played nicely, each politely waiting their turn to appear on alternate Fridays. This week, they've both appeared on the same day, scrapping it out for your love. This is what we wanted to happen from the start, but since WiiWare appeared, Nintendo has had an excuse to offer less on the VC.
Anyhow, that's another rant for another post. Critter Round-Up and the totally obscure MaBoShi: The Three Shape Arcade are the latest WiiWare additions, while the Hanabi Festival continues with Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa(parts of which look like some of our dreams -- eating through miles of cake) and Dig Dug. Is Dig Dug really worthy of a Hanabi Festival release? Hasn't it already appeared on every format known to man?
Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa -- NES -- 600 Wii Points
Dig Dug -- NES -- 600 Wii Points
MaBoShi: The Three Shape Arcade -- WiiWare -- 800 Wii Points
Critter Round-Up -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points
Munch your way through the break, which isn't made of cake, for footage of all four.
History shows that Nintendo of Australia like to do things at their own pace. Timely launches just ain't their style, y'know? We're not just talking games, either. Back in April, there was much Aussie hollering when Nintendo announced Club Nintendo would be heading down under, bringing with it all the Nintendo mugs, free Bowser wallpapers, SNES pads, and Wii Points that had so far been enjoyed by Japanese and European gamers. Except, it's still not up and running. Though games are shipping with Club Nintendo codes, Australia's Club Nintendo site has yet to go live, four and a half months after it was announced.
None of which will comfort U.S.-based Nintendo fans, who are simply waiting for a local version of Club Nintendo to be announced. If the sloth-like actions of Nintendo Australia are any indication, they may be in for a wait.
It's only been three months since the previousHanabi Festival ended, but a third has already kicked off, bringing us PAL gamers a slew of (usually) fantastic U.S. and Japan-only games that never saw the light of day in Europe or Australia. In the coming weeks, we'll be buying Wii Points for Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa (NES), Dig Dug (NES), Spelunker (NES), and DoReMi Fantasy: Milon's DokiDoki Adventure (SNES).
This week is Mario week, meaning you're probably going to need to stock up on Wii Points. While Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels did appear for a limited period during the first Hanabi Festival, it's now here to stay forever. That's pretty exciting, but even more thrilling is the appearance of Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, a full twelve years after its original Japanese release.
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars -- SNES -- 900 Wii Points
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels -- NES -- 600 Wii Points
Jump in a green boot and hop past the break for footage of each game!
Well now, it looks like we might be hearing more on Disaster: Day of Crisis soon. That is, if an Australian certification that recently popped up has anything to say about it. So, what's the deal? Your guess is as good as ours.
The title received a Mature rating from the Australian classification board, on August 13th, so could the title be destined for a release this year? We can only hope. But, as it stands, that's all we have to go on right now.
Arguably more a relaxation tool than a game, Hudson's My Aquarium makes its western debut in the latest PAL update today. Its price, just 500 Wii Points, reflects its status as the Endless Ocean of WiiWare; it's definitely a good deal cheaper than the real thing. The in-jokey Strong Bad Episode 1: Homestar Ruiner completes the line-up, while the Virtual Console is put on the backburner for another week.
For some reason, according to a rumor posted by IGN, stores in Australia are expressing a lack of interest in carrying Rock Band. And by "for some reason" we mean "because EA set exorbitant prices and delayed the release for a year." As the rumor goes, retailers aren't too happy about the idea of stocking a game that will be both older and more expensive than Guitar Hero: World Tour (which will probably not already be old when it comes out). It also appears that the same malaise about Rock Band may carry over to the sequel as well.
While absolutely nothing regarding the Australian release of Rock Band is confirmed (and keep that fact in mind when determining the appropriate level of outrage), we're starting to wonder which would be a bigger ripoff: not selling Rock Band in Australia at all, or selling the Wii version.
PAL regions got the first official release of the amazing pinball game Alien Crush just last year via the Virtual Console. According to the OFLC, the new WiiWare version is Australia-bound as well. Not to be too presumptuous, but this suggests a worldwide release as well. We never doubted that Hudson would make Alien Crush Returns available around the world, but it's nice to have some evidence.
Also rated: Tetris Party and something called Pit Crew Panic, another Hudson Wii game. We have no idea what that is -- some kind of racing-related thing, sure, but ... could it really be a whole game about replacing tires and such?
And the Nintendo of Europe site leaks another morsel of info! Not long ago, news of Nintendo selling music appeared in our RSS feed weeks early, only to lead to a dead link after it was hastily pulled by Nintendo. And now another slippage has occurred, with Nintendo accidentally revealing (what we suspect are the contents of) tomorrow's PAL Virtual Console update: Earthworm Jim and Shining Force II.
A triple whammy of 500 Wii Point games this week, starting with the Master System version of Sonic the Hedgehog, from the days when the world loved and respected Sonic the Hedgehog. With the Mega Drive/Genesis version 
