Nintendo Wii Fanboy

It's hardly news that the Wii uses up less power than Sony and Microsoft's graphically intensive, monolithic consoles, but Aussie consumer website Choice has now delivered the most detailed results yet on how much juice each machine consumes -- even taking into account factors such as whether or not WiiConnect24 is active, or whether the console in question is idle.

And there's no doubt about it -- despite what Greenpeace might say, the Wii is an efficient little bugger when it comes to energy consumption. Ninty's console uses under one-tenth of the power required to play games on a PS3, and an eighth of the energy needed to run games on an Xbox 360. Regrettably, the survey neglects to mention that the Wii is three times as fun as both. YES, WE TOTALLY WENT THERE.

[Via Go Nintendo]

We attempted to think of something witty and clever to start the post off with a bang, but in the end, it would just be inappropriate. For at least one of us here on staff, Nintendo Power delivered the very first experience to the concept of gaming journalism.

Recent reports, however, have indicated that massive layoffs have been implemented at the publication. This is by no means an official announcement, but certainly either a massive downsizing or outright cancellation. NP has been putting out their pages for nineteen whole years, and it would be a great loss to the gaming community to see such a mainstay eliminated.

That said, our brilliant coverage of all things Wii and DS have probably helped in some small way to facilitate this grim news. Oops. Also, will this affect the tentative plans to bring legacy NP content to the Virtual Console? If they have to die, let their memory at least by memorialized in style.

It's the proverbial elephant in the room, the issue that isn't really discussed by Nintendo fans: the appearance of Wii games. Let's be frank -- the level of graphics in a lot (not all) of Wii games can best be described as unimpressive. We know graphics aren't what makes a game ... but they can certainly be part of it, just as they can be part of what ruins a game. Sometimes, the game is so good that any number of flaws can be ignored. We can even offer up a decent example from the other guys: Dead Rising wasn't exactly the best-looking game last year (and it even had some serious problems), but there is nothing like running through the mall on the shoulders of zombies with a lightsaber laser sword in your hand. You want an example of one of our fabulous games with subpar graphics? Two words: Eternal Darkness.

So, alright. Graphics aren't a deal-breaker, but just one aspect of a game. Then why are we talking about this? It's simple -- Wii games are sometimes even falling short of the standards we grew to expect from the GameCube. We shouldn't be gazing fondly upon Resident Evil 4 redux as one of the best-looking games to hit the Wii; we should be looking forward to it because it's a great game.

Even if you want to grant that the Wii is nothing but two GameCubes duct-taped together, then fine, great -- shouldn't the games look that much better than the games we played on one 'Cube? We're patient. We understand it takes a system time to grow, and we're willing to wait for things like Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Metroid Prime 3. But some of the games third party developers are showing off don't look that great. Even the coming titles that are overflowing with cuteness can be a little simplistic. So to these companies, get with it, before Nintendo muscles you out of the market by virtue of actually caring.

Must ... resist ... urge to use "Thwii" pun ...

Now that we've sufficiently girded, here's the news: the PS2 Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI is getting an enhanced port on the Wii, to be released in Japan on March 21st with the enhanced title Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI with Power-Up Kit. Along with the obvious Wiimote functionality, the game will be getting some new gameplay modes and scenarios.

After trying to figure out the first NES Romance, we swore the series off forever. Kudos to those of you who managed to play these things.

[Via GAME Watch]

If you're like us, you've essentially forestalled any and all social responsibilities as of November 19th, 2006. That also means that, if you're like us, you've spent an additional bazillion dollars on those accursed double-A alkaline batteries. Where, Nintendo, are our rechargeables?

Well, it seems as if Nintendo won't man up and get the job done, another company is gonna step up to the plate. Joytech, perpetual manufacturer of all things accessory, will release a recharging/docking station for two Wiimotes sometime early next year. Just insert the included rechargeable pack into the Wiimote, and place them into the vertical dock ... we prefer to think of them as thrones of power ... and you'll be ready for another 25ish hours of gaming.

It's about time.

Ah, yes, the Power Glove. Many of us still remember the peripheral emerging onto the scene during our childhood, not to mention its prominent role in the spotlight of the movie The Wizard. Well, now that the Wii has released, a Japanese hacker has decided to incorporate the Wiimote and Power Glove together into a kind of Voltronesque mechanical monstrosity.

[Via Joystiq]

In getting all the news that's fit to print in the January issue of Nintendo Power, Codename Revolution has dropped several delicious morsels onto our plate. In an effort to save you the trouble of reading our paragraphs of text here, we'll just consolidate all of the important news into bullet points below.

• WarioWare: Smooth Moves is to utilize a 'pass-the-Wiimote' 12-player multiplayer mode and Mii support (which we already knew).
• The Wii Play bundle everyone else is getting has finally been confirmed for a January release in North America and will be bundled with the Wiimote.
• A new baseball game has been revealed in The BIGS, which is set to release in Q3 2007 and will support online gameplay. It is being handled by 2K Sports and Big Castle Games.
• The issue has an interview with Castlevania producer Koji Igarashi, where he claims that the Wiimote is too gimmicky for a Castlevania title.
  

IGN's Matt Cassamassina seems to think so. In a recent entry on his IGN blog, he said, "I believe Wii is $50 too expensive and three weeks too late." It's too expensive, he says, for the mainstream consumer to really pick it up and run with it, and gamers think it's too expensive because it's not enough for them.

So what do you think? Set aside the fanboy love for a moment and consider the grand scheme of things. Is it wrong for Nintendo to sell their console for a profit just because Sony and Microsoft choose to take a hit? And considering everything the Wii can do -- instead of focusing on what it cannot -- is it really priced too high? The mainstream media doesn't seem to think so; the console has been called the bargain choice for the holiday season already. And what is really important in gaming? Is it about power -- or is it about functionality? Look at the DS and the PSP. The PSP is incredibly powerful, and it's incredibly powerfully collecting dust for many gamers, while their DS enjoys a healthy workout.

And while we would love it if the Wii were to come out earlier, but is it really too late? Or will the Wii be there, bright and shining, when the PS3 sells out? Tell us what you think.

Some scans from what we're assuming is the latest issue of Nintendo Power have hit the net and there is a rather lengthy, screen-filled article centered around Rayman and these "raving rabbids" we keep hearing so much about. In the article, it's confirmed that the game plays more like a collection of minigames huddled around one central platforming theme, as opposed to a game that is nothing but platforming. Ancel feels that taking this approach allows him to maximize the different uses of the Wiimote.

The article also begins to mention what we are assuming is some ability to share trial times and records online, but the page continuing that paragraph seems to be missing from the spread.

[Via Go Nintendo]

It looks like Nintendo will be sticking with the power brick they provided with the GameCube, or something similarly sized. The grey color looks better than the black of the GameCube, I think, and regardless of it all, at least we need not worry that it will cause a hernia when trying to lift it. Thankfully, it looks like the cord is longer on the Wii's power supply, also.

Honestly, I'm wondering why this didn't come up during E3. Also, why didn't I think of taking a picture of the Wii's power supply? With the recent Wiimote shots from the Spanish event and naughty peek under the flap, the Wii has been enjoying the attention of the paparazzi lately.

In the upcoming June issue of Nintendo Power Magazine, Nintendo Power Managing Editor Scott Pelland, in his preview titled We Love 8-bit, said "other June highlights include Nintendo President Satoru Iwata's keynote speech at the Game Developers Conference, [and] the announcement that Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam is coming to Revolution and initial details about the game,"

In checking Nintendo Power's website, there's not much beyond the headline of "A Tony Hawk Revolution," the inclusion of a preview for Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, and in-depth coverage of New Super Mario Bros.

[Via Revolution Report]