Nintendo Wii Fanboy

High Voltage loves the readers of Wii Fanboy. Following up the package of screens they hooked us up with recently, they've just now sent over four new exclusive screens. That's right, folks, you can only get these screens here at Wii Fanboy. Even better, you're the first to see the new enemy variant above. How awesome is that?

So, head on into the gallery and check them out. The first image starts here!

In an interview with Ubisoft UK's Managing Director, Rob Cooper, GamesIndustry unveiled some insight regarding Ubisoft's policy on Wii-exclusive titles. Many gamers have complained about the piles of shovelware and lousy ports while Wii Play and other mini-game compilations continue to dominate sales charts worldwide.

His line of thinking makes sense. While it may be easy to port the latest rubbish from other consoles, Wii gamers are clearly buying original titles by the bucketload. Cooper explains that exclusive titles for the Wii will always get that extra bit of attention, and since gamers are already rocking out with casual party games, they will be looking for bigger games you can't find anywhere else. Okay, Ubisoft still likes to throw a few random games out there, but based on Cooper's interview, from a business perspective they know what will end up being the most popular.

Need some examples? The Raving Rabbids series, No More Heroes and yes, even Red Steel are some of the successful names in Ubisoft's portfolio. As gamers, we already know the Wii is something different entirely, and it's good to see some positive reinforcement from the powerful players in the industry. For further Ubisoft shenanigans, check out the full interview.

Can't get enough Square Enix news? We're insulted! But we'll get over it. In the meantime, head over to the about-to-launch Square Enix members site and get pre-registered. The North American version of the fan site (the Japanese version has been around for a while) is set to feature unique content for members, including developer interviews, giveaways, exclusive trailers, and if the Japanese site is any indication, Flash games. Also in the cards? A sprawling online community for Square Enix fans to interact with others who share their passion.

The site is open for pre-registration and launches officially March 24.

People seem to be pretty divided so far on NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams. The critics tended to score it in the safe seventies, while some of our own commenters had similarly mixed feelings about the title. One thing looks pretty certain, however: if Journey of Dreams director Takashi Iizuka has his way, any future follow-ups to the follow-up will be soaring gracefully to the Wii.

Speaking to German site G-Wie-Gorilla, Iizuka described the console as "a good choice" for the game, before promising that future games in the series would appear on Nintendo's platform. Naturally, that still doesn't quash our supreme disappointment over the PlayStation 2 getting the original NiGHTS into Dreams, but we could certainly cope with a sequel to Journey of Dreams that resolves some of the niggles.

[Via Go Nintendo]

First, it was to be the pinnacle of all Gamecube games. Then, it would be released on both the GC and the Wii simultaneously. Then Nintendo went ahead and added a new control scheme to the Wii version. Then they had the gall to release the Gamecube version almost a month after the Wii version. Finally, in this final heinous act of treason, Nintendo of Japan has announced that the Gamecube version of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be sold exclusively from their online store, for around $57 USD.

We're all for the Wii version, folks, but this is a little ridiculous. Gamecube owners are getting the short end the stick in an attempt to push the Wii hardware as far as humanly possible. We do not approve, Nintendo. It should be noted that no specific announcements have been made for the US release plans of Twilight Princess, but a similar treatment would hardly be surprising.

So much for Wii's Rayman exclusivity -- Ubisoft quickly shut down the spreading rumor that the new game, Rayman Raving Rabbids, would not debut on any other console until 2007. Supposedly, the game is set to hit "old and next-gen platforms" this year.

But our moment in the sun may not be over yet. There's been a lot of talk about games for other systems being ported to the Wii, but this brings up a new twist: how will a game designed for the Wiimote handle on other consoles? Since all the publicity is centered on the Wii version, guess we'll have to wait to find out ....

IGN's banner headline: "We bring you exclusive new details on the psychological-horror title." We're appreciative and all, but now we're just gonna take those exclusive details and steal them. You should certainly check out the original article if you're interested in hearing a bit of sample music from the game.

NIBRIS has, thankfully, acquired a publisher for their work. Rumored to be either Atlus or Majesco, this mystery group is quite unwillingly to allow the Sadness team to unveil any in-game screenshots. You'll remember that the game is in all black and white...a gutsy stylistic choice. We like it. Now, NIBRIS is confirming that the game will have no HUD (heads-up display) to mar the cinematic quality of the game. This worked quite well for the PS2 masterpiece Shadow of the Colossus, and we applaud the decision.

Also of note is that NIBRIS is essentially oursourcing the graphics engine and programming to well-known companies: Frontline Studios for the code, and Digital Amigos for the engine. These are experienced sources, and so hopefully some veteran shine will come through on what is otherwise a very "indie" game.

The team seems very committed to bringing a truly frightening and intuitive experience. Novelists and psychologists have been consulted for the game script, and the designers promise us the ability to interact with the environment in ways only made possible with the Wii controller. There is a downside, however...we're going to have to wait. Sadness isn't touching our consoles until Q4 2007...at the earliest.

We've known for quite some time that Capcom would be developing a Wii-exclusive Resident Evil title. Would it be the next game in the main franchise, a true RE5, or perhaps a more direct sequel of the Gamecube and PS2 mega-hit Resident Evil 4? Or would it be one of those Outbreak/Zero/Veronica spin-offs that no one really cares about?

According to the most recent issue of the Official Nintendo Magazine (UK), we won't have to wait much longer. Though the news was too fresh to make the August issue, they apparently have some exclusive info on REWii, as evidenced by a rather obvious silhouette of Leon Kennedy. The issue is due for release somewhere around August 6th.

[Update 1: Clarified August vs. September issue mix-up.]