Just look at that. Isn't it glorious? What you're seeing above, folks, is a Wii-compatible SNES pad. Let's say that again, shall we? A Wii-compatible SNES pad. Don't get too worked up though, because unless you're a member of Club Nintendo in Japan, these are off-limits (not that using a SNES pad for your VC games is impossible, but still, this is the real deal).
Here at Wii Fanboy, we like to think we offer ... balanced, objective coverage of Nintendo's world-beating home console. So, just as we'll happily scoff at Super Mario Galaxy bagging a ludicrous 11/10 in one publication, we'll also take time out to archly snigger at the non-specialist press who just don't "get it."
Like Variety, for instance. The entertainment industry newspaper has just posted its review of Galaxy, and it's not a favorable one. Naturally, we respect anybody's right to make negative comments about the title -- and plenty of reviewers have done just that already -- but some of Variety's observations do somewhat miss the point.
Complaints about poor storytelling are weak enough, given that Mario games have never been designed with compelling narratives in mind. Elsewhere, the game is criticized for graphics that "simply aren't up to par with [those] on the Playstation 3 or Xbox 360," and is also described as "evidence of how bad the Wii is for third-person action games." Which sounds more like a broader statement about the Wii hardware, rather than the game itself.
Still, before you begin punching out that rage-filled, vitriolic piece of hate mail Variety's way, your bottom lip trembling and the tears barely dry on your cheeks, judge for yourself and give the review a proper read.
Being entirely unable to understand Japanese, we haven't much of a clue about what's going on in this kooky Super Mario Galaxy Science trailer, but we're guessing it's something to do with gravity, and how our hero manages to stick to the underside of all those weird spherical levels.
Makes us wish we'd spent more time at school actually concentrating during double physics, rather than drawing on the back of Kevin Lomax's blazer.
This latest Super Mario Galaxy video doesn't introduce any new outfits like the last developer walkthrough, but it does demonstrate star-hopping, gravity tricks, and other essential skills for traveling in this 3D platformer. The latter half of this two-minute movie even features that curious portion of the E3 trailer in which the level builds itself as Mario moves around.
How will we make it to November 12th without our heads exploding from all this exciting media? Collect five star shards and fly past the post break for the embedded video.
Of all the scenes we spotted in yesterday's Super Mario Galaxy trailer, the ones that excited us most were the moments we saw our mustachioed protagonist bedecked in his bee and Boo outfits. Tears of joy came to our eyes, salty with the nostalgia of Super Mario Bros. 3's frog suit, raccoon leaf, and other fondly-remembered power-ups.
GameTrailers has a six-minute developer walkthrough of Honey Bee Galaxy, explaining the game's two-player mechanics and Mario's bee apparel along the way. Buzz past the post break for the video honeypot and an awkward clip in which Mario gropes a distressed queen bee.
Even with a diminished E3, there's no controlling the wave of rumors that hit the Internet every year before the show. Why fight it? From now until E3 hits, we'll be posting one piece of wild speculation every day. Some may be patently ridiculous, and others just might turn out to be true. Even some of the ridiculous ones might turn out to be true! Rest assured, everything will be totally made-up and unfounded. Except, of course, when we speak about all the ass Reggie is going to kick. That part? Totally true.
Rumor:Super Mario Galaxy has been cancelled so the team could be put to work on a higher-priority project: a DS birdwatching non-game.
We would put our journalistic integrity at risk by making a full-fledged post out of this stuff. Seriously, check the link: "confirmed reports" of Brawl and Galaxy release dates, new Mario Kart and Zelda for the Wii, a new original IP similar to Final Fantasy VII ... it's a Nintendo fan's wet dream. While we can't completely discount the fact that it's real, being constantly exposed to this drivel has to make one just a bit jaded.
Rumors are fun, there's no doubt ... even if we know it's fake, it's nice to imagine. But who writes this stuff? What kind of odd psychological thrill do they receive, and why are Nintendo fans so willing to ignore the obvious and go along with it? Some of it is impressive (see the Nintendo On video), but it seems that Nintendo is eighteen times more susceptible to ridiculous rumor-mongering than the nearest competitor. Ah well ... it's kinda fun ... we guess. Your thoughts?
Everyone is expecting a massive flood of Nintendo megatons from the Nintendo Media Summit today (can you have a flood of megatons? Just go with it.) And, while we have a lot of great coverage of upcoming games to show you, there's nothing that could be called a "megaton." No exclusive new Mario Galaxyscreens, no surprise game announcements, and no information about whatever the Wii download service is going to be.
It wasn't as spanuuuund as we hoped it would be. We don't have an E3-level news day to give you. What we can offer you is a load of gameplay impressions of some highly anticipated new games. And delicious pie. And what's more, we can deliver on one of those offers!
On the one hand, we're pleased with everything we have to look at, watch, and talk about. But on the other, no Metroid. No non-StrikingMario. No Smashing.How do you feel about a media event that ignores the biggest games in Nintendo's lineup?
Posted May 7th 2007 11:55AM by James Konik Filed under: News
With only a few months to go before the release of Super Mario Galaxy, expectations couldn't be higher for Nintendo's flagship hero. The title was recently confirmed for release this year, leaving our Nunchuk thumbs quivering in anticipation.
Mario is carrying a lot of weight on his shoulders, however. The groundbreaking titles, from the original Super Mario Brothers through to Super Mario 64 (sorry, Mario Sunshine), were more than great games; they also defined their platforms, setting new standards both technically and in terms of design.
It's no surprise then, that bloggers are starting to make demands for what they want to see in the new release. Check the link to see what people want this time around, and let us know what you want included.
In an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Nintendo confirmed that they do in fact plan to release Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3 Corruption, and Super Smash Bros. Brawlby the end of this year, as well as pretty much every Nintendo game announced for the Wii. This corroborates an IGN report to the same effect, and is also totally, totally rad. Here's the full list of Nintendo's planned 2007 releases. Donkey Kong Taru Jet Race is slated for June 28, and the rest are all "2007":
Keep checking with us for news of the inevitable delays of about half of these. Seriously, that's a lot of first-party Nintendo games for just half a year or so. Aw, we just made ourselves sad with our own skepticism. Still, if half of this stuff does get released in Japan this year, it'll be great news and do a pretty good job of ending any drought that may or may not be happening.
Three huge titles are set to rock this year (unless they get delayed: Super Mario Galaxy, Super Smash Brothers Brawl, and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption. If you had to pick, in the stranded on a desert island with only one game sort of way, which would you choose? No ties and no also-rans -- pick one and declare it the winner!
According to IGN, "According to German magazine Gamefront, "According to a Japanese retail conference" (translated from German)"", Nintendo has released a list of first-party games tentatively scheduled for release in 2007. The full list can be found after the break, but it's quite notable to see that the big three of Super Mario Galaxy, Metroid Prime 3, and Super Smash Bros. Brawl are still scheduled to be released in 2007.
Keep in mind, we still expect one of these games to be delayed into 2008, but the longer we go without hearing that news, the better. Also noted as that Disaster: Day of Crisis (recently screenshot-icized) is also slated for the Year of the Boar. Can it be true?
[Update 1: Holy crap. Melee came out six years ago, Jason, get a grip.]
Le sigh. There was a point, if we here at the Fanboy offices can remember correctly, that both Super Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption were both possible launch titles. Now, according to some whispers over at CVG, neither title will be released (along with the eternally delayedZelda: Phantom Hourglass) until the holiday season of 2007.
Patience is a good thing, and we're more than willing to wait until both of these quadruple-A titles are as shiny as can be. Still, unless Super Smash Bros: Brawl can make it out either in summer or even earlier (something we highly doubt), Nintendo is going to be going quite some time without a big first-party title. Memories of the typical Gamecube release schedule are coming to mind, but alas ... at least we've got the Virtual Console to keep us busy...
One of our wonderful readers sent us in a tip (note: sending in news tips may or may not increase your chances of becoming a billionaire) regarding Super Mario Galaxy. Turns out, Nintendo's listing of Wii titles has Super Mario Galaxy as only being a temporary name. More importantly, however, is the listing that showsBig Brain Academy (also a temporary name) is headed to the Wii.
Could this mean that a Brain Age sequel will not be releasing on the Wii, with Big Brain Academy being the only brain-training game to hit the platform?
We've seen tons of Mario and the more we see, the more we salivate for his new game Super Mario Galaxy. As an astronautical platformer (we made that up), the game was an absolute blast when we played it at E3. It ended up being our absolute favorite Wii title on-hand at the show.
This latest trailer, in spectacular high definition, shows a lot of gameplay that those keen on Mushroom Kingdom's greatest hero might have seen before, but being in beautiful HD this time around, it's worth the possible revisit. Obviously, due to the video's resolution you'll have to head over to Game Trailers to check it out as we cannot embed it into the post as usual.
Everyone is expecting a massive flood of Nintendo megatons from the 
