Nintendo Wii Fanboy

As if further proof was needed that Nintendo regards Australia as the red-headed stepchild of the global games market, word reached our ears today that our friends down under will be missing out on a host of first-party and second-party Wii titles in 2007.

Battalion Wars 2, Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast, Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, and Endless Ocean are the fallen, with all four now rudely shunted back to 2008. Not only that, but Aussies can join Europeans in waving goodbye to Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure this year, after Capcom announced it was pushing back the game's December 13 release to "early 2008."

One frustrated fan in New Zealand has had enough of the delays that come with major Nintendo releases in Nintendo Australia's domain, and he is doing his best to take some action. Aaron Rex Davies put together a report comparing release dates of Nintendo's first and third party Wii titles in that region, and the difference is clear -- first party titles suffer from a considerably longer delay in release. In his introductory page, he also mentions the upcoming Halo 3, which is slated for a release in all major markets at the same time.

We've heard a lot of complaints over time from annoyed gamers in non-US regions, and looking at the facts on the page, we certainly can't blame them. Of course, there are slang and translation-related issues to face when taking a game from one region to another, and we know Nintendo sets out to make quality their benchmark, but does it really take that long? Let's hope Nintendo takes notice of this outcry and we see some favorable action for gamers outside the US and Japan.

Nintendo's "early 2008" prediction for the launch of WiiWare might seem like a lifetime away, but we're still not convinced that the company has given itself enough time to turn the Shopping Channel into a vehicle for new downloadable game content. Nintendo isn't exactly known for its punctuality -- one need only look to the DS's delayed WiFi Connection implementation or the GameCube's nearly-nonexistent online service for examples of stalled promises.

What're your thoughts on the possibilities of WiiWare arriving on schedule? Does early 2008 really sound feasible? Or does it sound like a bunch of duck tales (a-woo-woo!)?

When do you expect WiiWare to launch?
	Early -- 2007 holiday season!
	Early 2008, as promised.
	Slight delay to summer 2008.
	Delayed to 2008 holiday season.
	A 2009 launch, with little fanfare.
	When monkeys fly out of my butt.