With football season underway, it only seemed fitting that Nintendo would add an old school football title to the VC lineup this week in the form of NES Play Action Football. They also rounded out this week’s update with Sonic the Hedgehog 3 for the Genesis and Neutopia II for the TG16.

Hit the jump for the full details on the new VC titles for this week.

NES Play Action Football (NES(R), 1-4 players, rated E for Everyone, 500 Wii Points): “Ready! Hut hut hut … ” Nintendo takes to the gridiron with the classic football powerhouse NES Play Action Football. Featuring a distinct overhead viewpoint that creates an almost 3-D field, the action is more simulation-based than many of the more arcade-based games of the time. Play through four 15-minute quarters (in accelerated time) and even substitute players when your first-stringers get tired. Want more options? Each of the eight available teams has multiple running/passing plays to choose from while on offense, as well as a wide selection of defensive schemes that can be run when you’re on the other side of the ball. And in addition to viewing two full teams on the screen at once without any slowdown, you’ll hear voice snippets at key points of the game. Line up, and see if you have what it takes to win the Power Bowl.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, rated E for Everyone – Comic Mischief, 800 Wii Points): Sonic and Tails are back for another adventure as they again battle the evil Dr. Eggman (aka Dr. Robotnik), who is desperately trying to collect all the Chaos Emeralds to rebuild his Death Egg. Our heroes must again find the Chaos Emeralds before Dr. Eggman does, but winning the race won’t be easy this time – a new adversary, Knuckles the Echidna, has arrived on the scene and will do whatever he can to keep Sonic and Tails from reaching their goal. Grab all the golden rings, find various bonus zones and overcome Knuckles and Dr. Eggman as you rocket through the third chapter in Sonic’s adventures.

Neutopia II (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, rated E for Everyone – Mild Fantasy Violence, 600 Wii Points): Experience improved graphics and controls in this exciting sequel to the action role-playing game Neutopia. Take on the role of the main hero’s son and watch as the story begins with the apparent revival of Dirth, the evil demon. Once again you’ll need to rely on your magic compass and the information you’ve gathered to find entrances to labyrinths and defeat the bosses in them. Make your way through the field, which can be tricky at times, to search for and find hidden information and items, or move blocks and destroy walls to uncover secret rooms. Like the original, this game has a save function, a finely tuned difficulty level and a fast-paced story, making it truly an RPG that everyone can enjoy.

According to comments made by LucasArts’ Mark Montuya during a demo of the Wii controls of the upcoming LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga at Activision’s Activate Asia Pacific conference, we may just be in for a real treat.

Montoya mentioned that the motion-sensitive lightsaber action in LSW:TCS is “just a taster” for a future game involving motion-sensitive lightsaber combat. As a Star Wars fan, I’m excited, but still a bit apprehensive. Star Wars games were once a total joke. Those days are over, but that doesn’t mean anything built on the Star Wars license will end up being gold.

LucasArts’ execution of this as yet unannounced title will be watched with very close eyes. I, for one, am now having dreams of a lightsaber attachement for my Wii Remote. I’ll take one in red please.

Source: Gameplayer

I’ve got a 3yr old son at home that loves video games. He’s been playing them for quite some time now and he’s got amazing hand eye coordination. The kid can play Lego Star Wars by himself and complete most of the puzzles alone. That aside, I can’t help but wonder if he was prematurely exposed to them. If I wasn’t an avid gamer, he wouldn’t know what a video game was.

Is this a bad thing?

I’ve often wondered what other people think is the right age to expose children to video games. So I’m asking. What age do you think is the sweet spot for letting kids get into gaming. I’m not talking about the difference between E and M rated games. I don’t want to go there. I am talking mainstream games in general. I guess it could even encompass games put out by VTech and Leapfrog if you want to get technical about it.

Microsoft does a good job of updating their official BC list online when a new update is issued. Sony is following in their footsteps with a new site that sports a search interface instead of a flat list of games.

Sony’s list also details issues related to the game and lets you search PS1, PS2, or Both in addition to letting you specify if you have a 60GB or 80GB PS3. Of course, I did search between the 60GB and 80GB models to see what kind of issues were present in the newer console with the software solution and I am not all that happy. Many games that ran fine on the 60GB version have major issues on the 80GB version. These are first party games put out by Sony owned studios.

For a good example, hit the site and compare your results for “ratchet” which brings up all the Ratchet and Clank games. 60GB version, no issues, 80GB version, tons of slow down issues. I just don’t get it and now I am tempted to run out and buy a 60GB PS3 just so I don’t have to screw around with software emulation on the new models.

Earth to Sony, are you aware that this generation has not been kind to you and you are continuing to do everything you can to piss off your loyal customer base?