Wii Rally

Those pesky red shells always seem to chase me down when I’m in first place. It’s incredibly frustrating. There are some techniques that you can deploy to avoid the red shells.

Bananas aren’t just a great snack but an effective way to diffuse those red shells. Drag a banana behind your kart to give a target for that approaching red shell.

Red or green shells work OK to combat an incoming red shell but don’t seem to work as well when dragged behind the kart like the bananas. You have to throw them and timing is crucial. In the excitement of the red shell, my timing is usually way off, and I get smacked anyway.

Objects on the tracks like those cute mushroom guys can be hit with red shells and take the hit for your. Of course, you have to be near one when the red shell is about to hit.

Sharp turns can help in avoiding the red shells. But again, it depends on the track.

Being airborne is also a good tactic for avoiding red shells. So, when one is in-coming, look for a ramp, over-sized mushroom, or something else that will get you in the air.

That’s a few maneuvers that have worked for me. What’s your best tip for avoiding the red shells in Mario Kart?

Payday is a long way away, and I’m really wanting to buy a new Wii game. I’m limiting the amount I can spend to $20 for a new game. There are a few Wii games for under $20. Here is what I’ve found during my quest to spend money I really don’t need to spend right now.

Link’s Crossbow Training retails for less than $20 at Wal-Mart. It would be silly for me to buy this since I already own it but include it on the list for the sake of completeness.

Game Party features a mix of party games like darts, table hockey, and hoop shoot. Sounds like a nice title to make use of the Wiimote and an early frontrunner for my $20.

Cars is based on the Disney Pixar movie. It’s not the first game I found based on a movie for the Wii for under $20.
Surf’s Up is another movie-themed game as well as Happy Feet, Barnyard, Open Season, Spider-man 3, Shrek the Third, TMNT, Chicken Little: Ace in Action, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, and Ant Bully. The only one that remotely appeals to me is TMNT.

Rampage: Total Destruction also piques my interest. What’s not to like about playing a huge ape destroying a city?

Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Double Agent might be intriguing but really not my favorite type of game.

The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy is a fighting game based on the popular Cartoon Network show.

Far Cry Vengeance is from the popular shooter series.

AMF Bowling Pinbusters is a bowling game that has more to it than the Wii Sports version.

Spy Games: Elevator Mission is another FPS that while may be a fine game just isn’t my style.

Mercury Meltdown Revolution is a cute puzzle game that will have you using the Wiimote to guide your ball of mercury around the playing area.

Ultimate Board Game Collection features plenty of board game fun.

Tamagotchi: Party On! is a 3D party game based on the Tamagotchi franchise.

BIONICLE Heroes is a game that is

While there are plenty of games for under $20 for the Wii, there are only a few of those that really appeal to me. At least it makes my choice easier.

It’s safe to assume that both video game icons Mario and Sonic will find their way under several Christmas trees this holiday season. But with a strong holiday lineup of games, they won’t be the only familiar characters that will be a hit this Christmas. Some games that have come out this past year are also sure to make a hit this holiday even if they are a few months old.

Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock is a fun game that features more great music and new features.

Boogie is a party game that is like Karaoke Revolution in that players can sing their way through songs. It also has the added game play mode of dance where players must move the Wii remote to complete dance moves. Boogie comes with a microphone.

Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 is the sequel to the popular mini-game packed title Rayman Raving Rabbids. The standard of a lot of mini-games and fun game play continues in this latest title.

Carnival Games contains many mini-games based on activities found at a local carnival. Test your strength, pop balloons, or take part in any of the numerous mini-games.

Link’s Crossbow Training may not be a full-fledged game, but it comes with a Wii Zapper, a new Wii accessory that many will want to play other Zapper-enabled games like Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles. It also features scenes and creatures that Zelda fans will recognize from past games.

Mario and Sonic: Olympic Games features the beloved characters form the Mario and Sonic games coming together to battle it out in several summer Olympic games.

Super Mario Galaxy is touted to be possibly the best game of the year for the Wii. It only makes sense that this will be a hot title this Christmas. Of course, with a Mario title it is hard to go wrong this Christmas.

NiGHTS: Journey of Dreams is slated for release December 18th and will actually make use of the Wii weather channel. Remeber the special NiGHTS Christmas edition that featured snow if played on the date of December 25th? I’m guessing that the flying conditions will pivot on the weather depending on the location of the player. Players fly through levels in the fantastic dream world Nightopia.

Donkey Kong: Barrel Blast features the iconic Donkey Kong, so you know it will be a good game choice. It’s a racing game that should be loads of fun for fans of all ages.

Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn is a turn-based strategy game that is built on the Fire Emblem franchise of games. This tale picks up three years after the death of Mad King Ashnard, and his country is ruled by the victors of war. It’s up to a small band of freedom fighters to restore order.

Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles is a brand new tale in the long-running franchise Resident Evil. This one chronicles the fall of the Umbrella Corporation and revisits several familiar locations from past Resident Evil games.

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is the final installment of the Metroid Prime series that follows bounty hunter Samus Aran. It’s a first person shooter that any Metroid fan will surely appreciate seeing under the Christmas tree.

Mario Strikers Charged is at its core a soccer game but don’t dismiss it as just another sports title. It features the Mario characters who do battle on the field that feels more like combat than a soccer match, which translates into a lot of fun for gamers.

If only I could bowl as well as my Mii, I might just join a league. It’s nothing for me to have a 150 plus game but in real life I’m lucky to break 60.

With Wii bowling, once your rating reaches 1000, you are elevated to pro status. To reach 1000 is not necessarily to have scored a total of 1000 points in the games you have played. A really good game might increase your rating by 100 or more points. Follow that with a less than stellar performance and you are likely to see points subtracted from your rating.

After being less than 100 points away for a few days, I finally was able to reach pro status. One of the perks of my new status is a new bowling ball with diamonds on it.

Apparently pro level can be reached with the other Wii Sports as well. I’m best at bowling, so it will probably be a while before I reach pro on any other sport.

Donkey Kong and the crew have stumbled upon some high-powered barrel rockets. Now it’s a full-blown race for the jungle.

Player race using the Wii remote and Nunchuk. Shake both controls to accelerate and one or both to steer. Target enemies with a pineapple canon or blast out of a Style barrel using the Wii remote. There are several different ways to advance in the game. The Grand Prix is where a player races solo in 12 different cups across a variety of courses and difficulty levels. In Time Trial, you pick the course and try to set a new record. Players can even save their best times in the form of ghost data.
There’s also Candy’s Challenges where you help out Candy Kong™ by taking on 32 unique challenges. Donkey Kong does support up to four players at a time.

Donkey Kong Barrel Blast is rated E. For screens, click on the full story.
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Greetings everyone, I must again begin by apologizing for the lack of recent updates. I have been going through a difficult situation with my home life for the past couple of weeks. Said situation has finally come to a head and I have had to move out of my house on very short notice which has afforded me little time to update. Things should be back on track soon so bare with me. However I digress, on to the virtual console titles.

Super Metroid (Super NES, rated E, 800 Wii Points)
Neutopia (TG-16, rated E for Everyone, 600 Wii points)
Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master (Genesis, rated E10+, 800 Wii Points)

I don’t have time for comedic anecdotes regarding today’s games but I do recommend giving Super Metroid a download, I don’t think I need to explain why. It’s Metorid and it’s super, ’nuff said.

When online play was first brought to the Wii in the form of Pokémon: Battle Revolution, players didn’t respond. Yes the kids go ape poop over those little Pokémon but the “stadium” games have never been the bread and butter of the series. Just recently we were shown again how online play can be done on the Wii with Mario Strikers: Charged. This week we get to see how a third party handles the online option.

EA’s Madden ‘08 should be at your local game store as you read this. Sure it’s the only licensed football fair on the market but more importantly it’s the first third party Wii game to feature online multiplayer. So if you love football, the Wii, and playing online? You should definitely check this baby out. Don’t forget to laugh at those PS3 and 360 guys as they compare pixel by pixel trying to see who’s version runs better. Laugh heartily, for if you cared about graphics you wouldn’t have bought a Wii.

Hahahahah “I can see the interlacing” HAHAHAHA!

Title: Madden NFL ‘08
Developer: EA Tiburon
Publisher EA Sports
Platforms: All of them including Wii.
Rating: E for Everyone

Madden, Wii, New Releases, Games, EA, NFL

I hear the train a commin’
It’s rollin’ round the bend
and I ain’t played some Metroid
since I don’t know when.
I’m stuck in Folsom prison
and time keeps draggin’ on.

This week the Metroid train keeps on thundering down the tracks. Nintendo has declared this the “Month of Metroid” and is celebrating the late Gumpei Yokoi’s masterpiece on all fronts. First Metroid Prime 3: Corruption gets its own preview channel on the Wii menu. So far Wii owners have been treated to some gameplay videos a trailer and some back-story on Corruption. Also there is more content coming on the 16th of August. Monday also marked the release of the classic NES version of Metroid on the Virtual Console.

Metroid (NES, E for Everyone, 500 Wii Points)
Originally released for the Famicom (NES) Disk System (a Famicom add-on which used 3/4″ floppy disks instead of cartridges) in 1987. This game did two things, it attracted an older demographic of gamer to the NES with its challenge and a more complex, more mature story than most other games available at the time. It also had a strong female character in the lead role, a welcome change from your standard save the damsel in distress which had become somewhat of a staple at the time.

Shining in the Darkness (Sega Genesis, E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points)
If a guy has “Dark” in his name does that make him evil? Well in the world of game design the answer is most certainly yes especially if he has vowed to reign over the enchanted kingdom of Thornwood. I tell you all this game needs is a protagonist to adventure through dungeons solving puzzles and defeating monsters. What’s that? Oh! It has one of those? I see, well enjoy!

Cratermaze (TG-16, E for Everyone, 600 Wii Points)
How many times has this happened to you? You and some friends are casually travelling through time when some Mongolian zombie cohort traps you and your buddies in a never ending maze of traps, ninjas and adventurer eating dinosaurs. Man, it’s like last Thursday all over again.

This weeks update features a classic SNES adventure, a sport no one likes and more of the same.

Volleyball (NES, 500 Wii Points)
Does anyone actually like to play this game. Every time I do I somehow manage to walk away with throbbing red forearms and a ball to the face. But enough about the inadequicies of my athletic ability. Now you can experience all the fun of volleyball without the aforementioned draw backs from the safety of your Wii.

Breath of Fire II (SNES, 800 Wii Points)
I must say that there is a lack of expansive adventure games on the Virtual Console. So releasing something like Breath of Fire II is a step in the right direction. I mean do we really need another space shooter? Oh wait…

Galaga ‘90 (PC Engine, 600 Wii Points)
Rounding out this week’s update is of course the obligatory space shooter. I must say that there are more space shooters on the virtual console than there are Nintendo products with clocks in them. Thank you, thank you, I’ll be here all week don’t forget to tip your waitress.

Greetings everyone, sorry for the late post today but we’ve been having server issues which appear to be somewhat resolved so one with the show.

Today I am featuring videos from the latest addition to Activision’s Tony Hawk series. Tony Hawk’s Proving Ground will be the deepest most feature ridden title bear the Tony Hawk name. Features like a full blown video editing system, 3 separate classes of skateboarders and the all new “Skate Lounge” where you can build whatever park you like play full motion video and much more.

First up is the Debut trailer.

Next up we have the “Big Picture” trailer which goes a little more in-depth with the various feature which will be found in the game.

Impressed yet? I am, this game will be coming out for every platform under the sun including the Wii of course. However at this point it is not exactly clear which features will be exclusive to their respective platforms. I’m also pretty sure that all the gameplay footage is either pre-rendered or from the Xbox 360 version of the game. Never the less I have one word for this game “Insane” and you can quote me on that.

Hit the jump for the bonus round.

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Featuring Euro and North American Virtual Console Updates.

My European friends forgive me for not posting your Virtual Console update on Friday.

4 new games hit the European Virtual Console last Friday featuring a Ninja, a toy, a troupe of brave warriors and dream warrior named Takashi.

Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master (Mega Drive, 800 Wii Points)
The 3rd installment of the Shinobi series has ninja master Joe Musashi battling the evil Neo Zeed crime syndicate once again. Throwing stars go!

Dynamite Headdy (Mega Drive, 800 Wii Points)
A game based on a Metallica album? Well maybe not but as Headdy you must defeat the evil “Master of Puppets” (Get it?) to save your friends in North Town from a life a servitude and no one wants that.

Shining Force (Mega Drive, 800 Wii Points)
Why is that every time a Lord amasses a significant amount of dark power some sort of hero or party of heroes needs to be dispatched to stop him? Live and let live that’s what I say.

Drop Off (TG-16, 600 Wii Points)
Don’t let those apples and watermelons push you around. Show them who’s boss by dropping a ball on them. Take that you lousy fruit.

Check out the North American Virtual Console update after the jump.
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Everyone likes to dance! Young, old, casual, hardcore once in a while they all need to just get down and bust-a-move. No I don’t mean by matching coloured balls. I mean actually get down with one’s bad self and just let loose.

Next week EA will unleash Boogie on the unsuspecting public at which time living rooms the world over will erupt in a disco inferno of sorts with Wii Remotes and nunchucks flying about. But don’t take my word for it see for yourself.

And that’s not all! Boogie will come packaged with a microphone peripheral which will allow you to sing along to your favorite boogie-licious tune.

Did I spy some co-op gameplay with one player singing and the other gettin’ down with the Wii Remote? Find out August 9th when Boogie hits store shelves nationwide.

Only one new release this week but it is strong nontheless and it is surly significant in ones Wii world view. This week Wii Rally honours the release of the first non-Pokémon Wii title to feature online play, Mario Strikers: Charged.

Mario Strikers: Charged is the sequel to the GameCube title featuring 9 new arenas and a butt-load of new characters each with their own special moves. More importantly Strikers: Charged will allow you to take the battle for the Cup online as you and other soccer enthusiasts wage war on the pitch of battle to get that coveted number 1 spot in the rankings. Now any victory will be short lived if you do not defend the title. Nintendo plans on resetting the rankings once a week to keep the competition new and fresh.

I have a soft spot in my heart for Mario sports games; I’ve spent many hours with Mario Golf: Toadstool Tour and Mario Power Tennis both for the GameCube. Although I am still waiting for a Wii version of Mario Tennis. I’d recommend picking this one up if not for the Soccer than to see what Nintendo has done with the Wi-Fi Connection. If things go well with Strikers: Charged hopefully we will see a slew of other Wii titles featuring online play.

Monday morning once again as I struggle to write this post. I struggle because I mangled my right index finger. I know it sounds silly but you try and type with a big fat band-aid on your finger. Anyway your guys don’t care about that you care about the new virtual console titles.

I know that in the past I’ve made jokes about the abundance of scrolling space based shooters available for the Virtual Console. Well since there have been so many I must say that I am effectively out of material. So I’ll just give it to ya straight. Star Soldier is a vertical scrolling where you fly inside a giant space station with your space ship named Caesar. No matter how you word it it still sounds like something you’ve done a billion times before.

The other game I’m going to talk about today offers something a little more unique in regards to gameplay. In Dynamite Headdy you play as Headdy a toy with a detachable head. You with me so far, Headdy must save all his toy companions in North Town from the evil Dark Demon before he turn all the puppets in North Town into his evil minions. To be honest they had me detachable head. With games like this appearing on the Genesis back in the early 90s it’s no wonder the Genesis started to pull ahead of the SNES which seemed to be over producing the same crap at the time. Anyway Headdy seems like it could be more fun than lighting a Teddy Ruxpin on fire and watching the evil bear wriggle in pain. Muahahaha! Take that you mechanical demon who plagued my nightmares as a child!

Star Soldier (NES, Rated E, 500 Wii Points)
Dynamite Headdy (Genesis, Rated E, 800 Wii Points)
Drop Off (TG-16, Rated E, 600 Wii Points)

Man I can’t wait to get out of July I’m sick of typing all these 7s. Good afternoon Europe how are you fairing today? Not too good I supposed seeing as how you guys only get two new Virtual Console titles today.

Europe does some catch-up to the NA VC with Devil’s Crush being released now if we can just catch up to them and get some Mega Man action going I’ll be happy, sorry happier. A totally different Kirby game has been bestowed on our European brethren. Kirby’s Ghost Trap known as Kirby’s Avalanche here in North America is a puzzle game featuring 16 stages of blob dropping goodness. I’ve never personally played it but to me it sounds like it could have been a precursor to Bejeweled, a popular cell phone game developed by EA mobile (formerly Jamdat Mobile).

Devil’s Crush (PC Engine, 600 Wii points)
Kirby’s Ghost Trap (SNES, 800 Wii Points)

Have a good weekend all, see you on Monday.