As it was reported a few days ago, Prince of Persia is headed to the Wii. It has been rumored that the game will be a remake/port of The Two Thrones; that has now been confirmed. The whole game, minus the controls, will be exactly the same as the game that came out last year. I feel like a parrot saying this but: congratulations being creative Ubisoft…
December 2006
Nintendo just sent word that the beta of the Opera browser for the Wii would be available on Dec. 22nd. To get the beta you just need to be connected to the internet and have activated the Wii Shop Channel.
The final release of the Opera browser will be available in March 2007 and will be free until June 2007. After June, it will cost you 500 Wii Points to get it. I think it goes without saying that you should aim to get it when it’s released.
[quote]The Internet Channel provides an optimal Web browsing experience on people’s home television. The Adobe Flash-enabled beta version of the Opera browser puts the Internet right onto owners’ television screens and lets them browse with ease, enabling them to check sports scores, plot maps or visit their favorite Web sites. Multiple family members can gather around the television to plan a vacation or make online purchases. The pointing abilities of the Wii Remote(TM) allow users to click on links they want to see or to zoom into any part of the screen through the motion of the controller. In addition, the Wii Remote can be used with an on-screen keyboard to make text entry as easy as point and click.[/quote]
In a move that doesn’t shock me to say the least, Green Welling LLP has filed a Class Action Suit against Nintendo over “the defective nature of the Nintendo Wii”.
[quote]Green Welling LLP filed a nationwide class action lawsuit on behalf of the owners of the Nintendo Wii against Nintendo of America, Inc., in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington. The class action lawsuit arose as result of the defective nature of the Nintendo Wii. In particular, the Nintendo Wii game console includes a remote and a wrist strap for the remote. Owners of the Nintendo Wii reported that when they used the Nintendo remote and wrist strap, as instructed by the material that accompanied the Wii console, the wrist strap broke and caused the remote to leave the user’s hand. Nintendo’s failure to include a remote that is free from defects is in breach of Nintendo’s own product warranty.
The class action lawsuit seeks to enjoin Nintendo from continuing its unfair or deceptive business practices as it relates to the Nintendo Wii.The lawsuit also seeks an injunction that requires Nintendo to correct the defect in the Wii remote and to provide a refund to the purchaser or to replace the defective Wii remote with a Wii remote that functions as it is warranted and intended. If you would like additional information regarding the Nintendo WII Replacement Strap [url=http://www.classcounsel.com/news/wii.html]click here[/url].[/quote]
Seriously? Have we seen any legitimate cases where people were using the Wiimote correctly and broke the strap? I have a feeling that the Wii strap testing done last week will come into play as evidence as Nintendo pushes to get this thing dismissed.
Typically Class Action Suits are settled with the lawyers getting rich and the consumers getting a trivial settlement… like a replacement Wii strap. Oh wait, Nintendo is already doing that. So who does this suit benefit? In the above quote I didn’t see “This Class Action Suit was filed by Consumer Joe with Scummy Lawyer X in the state of La La Land”, but instead “Green Welling LLP filed a nationwide class action lawsuit on behalf of the owners of the Nintendo Wii against Nintendo of America, Inc., in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington”. So it sounds to me like the law firm saw a chance to a) make a ton of cash and b) get their name out and tied to [i]protecting the consumers[/i] from [b]evil[/b] corporations like Nintendo. This is complete [insert your own explitive].
When considering Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, perspective is very important. Since it is a multiplatform title, there will be some people who approach the Wii version of the game as their only option. There will be others, however, who have a choice between the version for Nintendo’s new system or the higher-octane editions available on the Xbox 360 and PS3. This kind of choice is not a new challenge for gamers, of courseA
Product tie-ins, and brand spin-offs are nothing new in the world of games. Everybody from the Seven-Up Spot to the creepy Burger King has had their due in some form. The tastefulness they display while communicating their brand message usually goes a long way towards delivering a satisfying gameplay experience. If the player feels like he’s being beaten over the head with an extra value meal, chances are he’s going to view the game for the advertisement that it is and discard it. On the other hand, if the branding exists merely as the base from which the rest of the game is designed, there’s a potential for success there. Lego games have traditionally enjoyed the good fortune of falling into that second category; utilizing the unique heritage those little blocks have had in rearing generations of young boys. Bionicle Heroes is careful to tow this line, and it gives the game an edge over other, similar offerings. For those unfamiliar, Bionicles are a series of gun-toting humanoid robots that have helped underscore Lego’s effort to woo the hearts and wallets of young boys (and men, let’s be honest here). Bionicle Heroes puts the player on an island where he is tasked with blasting his way through six levels of block-busting madness to recover six elemental masks from the evil Paraka, and get back the Mask of Light. The narrative itself leaves quite a bit to be desired, especially considering none of the game’s characters are capable of speech, but it sets the stage reasonably well for the action that’s to follow.
The game is basically composed of six separate zones, aligned with a specific element and accessible via a system of portals very reminiscent of Crash Bandicoot. Within each zone there are four sub-levels, each of which follows a familiar pattern leading to a fight against that zone’s evil Paraka. To get through each level, you have to collect a certain number of Lego pieces to put you into a A
