Nintendo Wii Fanboy

We love Sundays, as there are always new game sales to look forward to. Luckily, this week there are some sweet deals on a few Wii titles. Scouring through the ad listings at Cheap Ass Gamer, the ones we found of interest include:

• Okami for $29.99 at Best Buy
• Boom Blox with a free $10 gift card at Circuit City and Target
• Speed Racer for $29.99 at Target

Keep in mind that while Circuit City offers its deals online, Best Buy and Target's are brick and mortar only. Also, Target deals vary by region, so the ones above may or may not apply to stores near you.

[Via CAG]

Read: Best Buy ad with Okami for $29.99
Read: Boom Blox with free $10 gift card at Circuit City

In order to share the new replacement Okami boxarts with people outside the U.S. (to whom they can't ship the printed copies), Capcom has made the boxarts available as PDF downloads, in a big, take-it-to-Kinko's resolution. Capcom's one-time blunder is becoming more of a boon to fans every day.

We checked the new version of the original design for IGN watermarks, and didn't see one. That means that you can place the IGN watermark wherever you'd like! You now have the power to choose the size, location, and opacity of the IGN logo on your Okami boxart. For that matter, you could use any watermark you like!

Apparently IGN is the place to go for high-resolution Okami artwork. BradyGames' Okami strategy guide is also marred by IGN branding -- but a different logo, and in a different place. At first, we thought this was a windup from a tricky Kotaku commenter -- then we looked at the cover on the Brady Games website. Not only does the little D-pad-esque IGN logo appear next to Amaterasu's mouth, this watermark also features "IGN," and you can just see the ".COM" at the end there.

Okay, so the Kotaku commenter is absolved -- now we kind of think this must be a joke on the part of the person who made the preview image for Brady's website. If not, we can look forward to some decorative slipcovers.

[Via Kotaku]

Capcom did a very admirable job of making up for an error that nobody but snarky bloggers actually cared about. A lot more people cared once we found out that beautiful replacement artwork was available!

We wonder, however, how many people actually cared -- how many people were offended who either bought Okami twice or dutifully held on to their Nintendo fandom, firm in the belief that Okami wouldn't be any good without waggle? For us, it was just a few seconds of lulz. We didn't hold anything against Capcom or anything, except that, of course, we would have preferred Wii Fanboy watermarks to IGN's.

Already having Okami for the PS2 is the most valid excuse for not buying the game on the Wii. If you fall into this group, you're probably still tempted to make the purchase because of the added motion controls. Should that not be enough to get your wallets in action, though, you might want to check out this side-by-side comparison video. We already knew that the Wii version looked better, but seeing the two compared with each other shows just how much.

The colors are much more vibrant on the Wii, and for a game that's main draw is its beautiful artistic style, that's kind of big deal. The 16:9 support doesn't hurt matters, either. Have any of you played both Okamis and noticed the difference for yourselves?

The beautiful, imaginative Okami was perhaps one of the most-requested ports among Wii fans, and at last we're going to get a chance to get our hands on it. From the early reviews, it looks like it has been worth the wait ... though, surprisingly, the title's lowest score (by far) to date has come from Nintendo Power. As far as everyone else is concerned, Okami seems to be a smashing success.

Electronic Gaming Monthly: 94% -- EGM found the Okami port flawed, but worth every moment of the imperfect journey. "Okami's paintbrush-on-canvas mechanics that drive combat and interaction with the world seem perfectly suited to the Wii Remote but simply aren't reliably precise ... Still, it's one of the few games that can overcome shaky fundamentals in light of an astonishingly engaging adventure. Easily my (Nick Suttner) favorite Wii game."

Nintendo Power: 75% -- When Nintendo Power recommends the PS2 version of your port, there may be a problem. "Quite simply, the controls just didn't make the jump to Wii as well as they shold have ... Okami is a work of genius, but you should play the original game instead of the Wii version if you can."

IGN: 90% -- Matt Casamassina enjoyed the controls, and the port itself, even more* than the original -- which was 2006's Game of the Year at IGN. "Now, you can play the game in 480p and 16:9 widescreen, and you can do so using the Wii remote, which controls Amaterasu's celestial brush with a level of speed and accuracy never before possible. It's implemented so triumphantly that it actually changes the pace of the game, effectively speeding everything up ... Okami's strengths on Wii far outweigh any of its weaknesses. Wii owners can pick the game up for only $39.99 and those who do will be walking away with an outstanding title full of great adventure of a caliber typically reserved for titles starring Link and Zelda. I still think Twilight Princess is Wii's best adventure, but Okami is more than a worthy alternative. Support this game -- it deserves nothing less than your full attention."

*Note that despite liking the Wii version more, Casamassina scored this Okami lower due to the time that has lapsed since the original, and due to unchanged and unfixed issues.

Complaining about ports has become increasingly common amongst Wii owners, but few would have anything bad to say about Okami, which will complete its transition from PlayStation 2 to Wii next week when it launches in the U.S.

If anything, Okami is the perfect example of how porting games can be a force for good. One of the most notable critical darlings of the last few years, sales of the title were sluggish on Sony's platform, yet its appearance on Nintendo's console will give it another opportunity to attain commercial success. We can't think of many other games that are so deserving of a second chance.

Recently, Wii Fanboy got a chance to chat with Didier Malenfant, President and co-founder of developer Ready at Dawn, who filled us in on why those who played the PS2 version should return to the Wii edition, on how his company ended up working on the project, and on the future of lengthy adventure games.

If there's one thing to be said about Okami, it's that the game is stunningly beautiful. The cel-shaded characters and environments evoke a lovely, traditional feel that would be soothing if it wasn't quite so incredibly kick ass. If Capcom's new Okami art site is any indication, it's also incredibly inspirational, because there's a section dedicated to fan art, as well as a number of official pieces. And if you're interested in brushing up your desktop, there are several gorgeous wallpapers, available in sizes to suit even the biggest desktops. We've got previews tucked away in our gallery below.

If the web site isn't enough to fulfill all your visual Okami needs, you can order the official art book for $39.99. That only seems like a lot until you get a peek at the package.

Capcom has made another set of lush, gorgeous Okami concept art available, and again we're awestruck by the beauty of the game's design. Stuff like this is how we always imagine "next generation" games to look, rather than the shinier, browner look new games are going for now. Even though we had plenty of time to gawk at Okami back on the PS2, we're still amazed by it now.

The latest set of art displays Okami's beautiful environments, which put the backdrops in games that are not Okami to shame. If these don't make you want to play the game, then you have probably just completed Okami within the last day or so.

Or from Capcom's servers -- we get them confused. We've been blessed with the gift of a ton of gorgeous watercolor-style Okami character art, most of which features the wolf/goddess Amaterasu in various forms or with divine weapons. It is almost guaranteed that you'll find something in the set that you'll want to use as a desktop wallpaper.

Looking at all this amazing art -- to which the game's visuals hold up pretty well -- just reminds us of what a shame it was that Okami didn't sell, and what a shame it will be if it doesn't sell again. Maybe it'll do better now that it doesn't have to compete with Zelda.



[Via press release]

Capcom's press site just yielded 64 dazzling screens of Okami, showing off the PS2-to-Wii port in its full, 480p glory. Admittedly, it's not looking wildly different from the PlayStation 2 version -- this is, after all, a Capcom port -- but the Clover Studio original was such a striking game that we care not a jot. You owe it to yourselves to browse the gallery below, and for heaven's sake, if you haven't already, check out the game in motion and prepare to gasp.


[Via press release]

Unless you have a PlayStation 2, you're going to have to be patient. Ready at Dawn's highly-anticipated Wii port of Okami has been delayed from its original March 25th release date to April 15th. Gamespot, who received confirmation of the delay from Capcom, conjectures that some of Ready at Dawn's resources were shifted to expedite the release of the PSP God of War game.

It could also be the case that Wii game publishers are quickly backing out of their March release dates, waiting out the coming Wii megaton instead of sending their games out to die. It's probably good strategy, although people who don't like fighting games are going to feel pretty unloved.

These thumbnail-size screens are the first we've seen of the actual Wii version of Okami. It looks, for better or worse, just like Okami! There are no obvious graphical improvements, and in fact nothing seems to have changed at all except for the button icons. Oh, and the aspect ratio.

These screens don't show the widescreen display option available in Wii Okami. In fact, not only are they 4:3, they're 4:3 with vertical bars. In terms of actual stuff, then, these particular screens come out to like 1.2:1. Capcom confirmed to Kotaku that the game would have 16:9 widescreen capabilities, so these screens may not represent the final product. Enjoy your eyestrain! We did.

In news that caused us to throw our heads back and howl loudly at the moon, an "inside source" close to Eurogamer has informed the site that Europeans will have to wait until summer for Okami. According to the latest schedule, the game is still set to appear in the U.S. on March 25th.

It's not the first time this has happened with one of Capcom's Wii releases -- Europe may have had only ten days to wait for Resident Evil 4, but Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure took its sweet time getting here, and only launched last week. Then again, the Wii hardly sells in Europe, does it?

Aussies, it's not confirmed, but recent history suggests you might be in the same boat. Can you feel the love? Can you?