Nintendo Wii Fanboy

What is a Roogoo, exactly? Well, it's not quite a kangaroo, not quite a pile of goo, but ... we have no idea. While everyone stumbles around trying to figure out these mysterious things, SouthPeak Games had an idea of its own -- bring the colorful puzzler to Wii and DS!

Previously available on XBLA, the Wii version will naturally use motion controls for its core gameplay. You'll be tasked with guiding meteors through rotating platforms, which will apparently stop the evil Meemoos from draining the energy of the planet. Pffft. That doesn't sound very realistic, does it? What are games coming to?

Roogoo will feature multiplayer action for up to four players, in co-op, competitive and "party" modes. Additions to the Wii version are evident, but explained only as "gameplay twists." Well, if you say so. We're actually looking forward to it, because the recent round of puzzle games have been top-notch. Check out the XBLA trailer at DS Fanboy for Roogoo in motion.

[Via press release]

Now that Nintendo's WiiWare channel has been out for a decent amount of time, how do you feel Nintendo's game-offering services stack up against those of its competitors? Obviously, XBLA has the most games, but which service offers the best quality games? The fairest prices? The best interface? What do you see as a strength or weakness of Nintendo's services when comparing WiiWare and the Virtual Console to XBLA and PSN?

Under the cover of anonymity, Wii Ware developers are coming out in support of Nintendo's download service, to the detriment of Xbox Live Arcade. According to Develop Magazine, Nintendo has been marketing Wii Ware to developers as an alternative to Microsoft's popular store, citing advantages like flexible pricing and smaller budgets.

Their most attractive pitch: more money. Microsoft recently changed the royalty structure for XBLA games, which results in a lot less income for many developers. Also, Nintendo's division of VC and Wii Ware titles makes it easier for original games to be noticed and not lost in a pile of retro games -- a problem from which both XBLA and the PlayStation Network suffer, according to the interviewed developers. This problem led one developer to declare XBLA "full of shit."

Wii Ware's developer-friendliness isn't just good for them, it's good for us. Wii Ware is a lower-cost, higher-profit alternative to XBLA on a system with higher sales. Who's not going to want to make games for that?

Eternity's Child, Luc Bernard's stylish platformer, began life as an XBLA title, moved to the Nintendo systems as of last September, and is now apparently going to be released for Wii Ware later this year. Normally, this would be cause for standing ovations and general joy, but in this particular case? We're scratching our heads a little. Initially, the title was apparently shifted away from the Xbox download service due to the restrictions on the size of downloads. Wii Ware, however, boasts an even lower cap for downloads, so we can't help but wonder what happened to the game. It still looks good -- as you can see from our gallery -- so did the finished game end up being much smaller? Is it simplified? We can't help our curiosity.

Right now, Eternity's Child is slated for Q2, at the unbeatable price of $5.


[Via GoNintendo]

[Via NeoGAF]

Seeing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Arcade Game on the ESRB's list of upcoming Virtual Console titles should bring joy to our nostalgia-ruled hearts, but we're finding it hard to not be pessimistic about this particular release. We've put more hours into Konami's beat'em up than you can shake a bo staff at, so it's not the actual game that we have problems with.

No, it's just outright jealousy over the XBLA port of the arcade version. While we're stuck with 8-bit graphics and support for only two players, the 360's turtle fans have the original cut scenes, arcade graphics, and online co-op for up to four players! Inconceivable! To add insult to injury, we might have to shell out 600 Wii points for the NES game instead of the usual 500 because of licensing issues. If that'll be the case, we would actually be spending more than what 360 gamers are paying!

We can at least find solace in the NES version's extended levels, extra stages, and Pizza Hut advertising. Also, TMNT II wasn't the only new ninja release spotted on the ESRB's Virtual Console catalog. Ninja Gaiden, Tecmo's 1989 platformer, will also be stabbing its way onto the Wii. Let's see the Xbox try to top us with a game like that! Oh wait...