But first the premise of Sonic Unleashed is pretty simple. Sonic and Eggman are battling it out when Eggman sets off an explosion that knocks Sonic to a world that has been torn apart. It’s all Eggman’s fault that Sonic has these two ‘personalities’ and the world is literally ripped apart. Sonic sets out in search of answers and for help. He visits town folk and to gather the lost chaos emeralds to set everything right again.

First Sonic Unleashed is really two games in one. During the day you have regular fast Sonic but at night you have Sonic the werewolf. At night you fight creatures and are much slower. It must be all the extra fur slowing Sonic down. During the day it’s the Sonic I know and love as he rushes through streets collecting rings and knocking down obstacles in his way. At night Sonic is slower and the game definitely seems more platform as you roam around searching for the chaos emeralds that will advance you in the game.

The scenery in Sonic Unleashed is much more rich and vibrant that I remember in previous Sonic worlds. The added storytelling and limited role playing elements add to the fun of the game. Learning to control Sonic will take a few minutes since you will have to play through basically two tutorials - one for day time and one for night time. It’s a little tedious but necessary and could be a turnoff for true Sonic fans who just like to run and jump(like me).

Overall, Sonic Unleashed was entertaining and if you can rent it then do so. It’s definitely one to rent and then decide if it’s worth buying.

Here is a list of the songs -

Jane’s Addiction - “Up the Beach”
Jane’s Addiction - “Ocean Size”
Jane’s Addiction - “Had a Dad”
Jane’s Addiction - “Ted, Just Admit It…”
Jane’s Addiction - “Standing in the Shower…Thinking”
Jane’s Addiction - “Summertime Rolls”
Jane’s Addiction - “Idiots Rule”
Jane’s Addiction - “Jane Says”
Jane’s Addiction - “Thank You Boys”
Jane’s Addiction - “Pig’s in Zen”
Megadeth - “Wake Up Dead”
Megadeth - “The Conjuring”
Megadeth - “Devil’s Island”
Megadeth - “Good Mourning/Black Friday”
Megadeth - “Bad Omen”
Megadeth - “I Ain’t Superstitious”
Megadeth - “My Last Words”
Megadeth - “Sleepwalker”
The Police - “Truth Hits Everybody”
Oasis - “Don’t Look Back in Anger”

Players will get to experience Rock Band from a different perspective. This game brings the fun and customization of the LEGO franchise to Rock Band. Venues, characters, stages, and everything else will have the LEGO touch. This game will be family friendly. Here’s a few of the songs:

Blur: “Song 2”
Carl Douglas: “Kung Fu Fighting”
Europe: “The Final Countdown”
Good Charlotte: “Boys and Girls”
Pink: “So What”

WiiWare

CRYSTAL DEFENDERS R1 - E for Everyone - 800 Wii Points - 1 player - It is your job to protect your party’s crystals from the encroaching monsters. To do this, you can several different units you can deploy like soldiers and black mages to carry out the mission. When all of your crystals are gone, it’s game over.

Virtual Console

Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair - E for Everyone - 900 Wii Points - 1-2 players - As Leo, you are racing against the clock to save the town of Xenobia that is under attack. Use your sword and jump attach to thwart the enemy and save the day. There are also powers ups to increase your health and your time.

DeMatteo says that Nintendo may want to consider lowering the price of the Wii since component parts are cheaper and Nintendo makes more money off each console.

For the month of March, only the Xbox 360 saw an increase in sales from the previous March sales.

DeMatteo’s comments were from CNBC. He also mentioned that Nintendo has told him to clear a lot of shelf space this Christmas season as Nintendo is planning to release a “key property.”

Maybe we will learn more about this key property at the E3 Expo. It does sound intriguing, though.

June 8th, 2009 is the date when the Wii MotionPlus will be available. The Wii MotionPlus will retail for $19.99 and is suppose to improve motion detection for the Wiimote. Of course a game will have to be designed to use the Wii MotionPlus so current games will not support it.

The much anticipated Wii Sports Resort is due to be released July 26, 2009. The game will cost $49.99 and comes with a Wii MotionPlus. Wii Sports Resort is designed to use the Wii MotionPlus. It’s the follow-up to Wii Sports and is set on a tropical island where players can take part in games like disc dog, Sword Play, and Power Cruising.

WiiWare

Party Fun Pirate - E for Everyone - 500 Wii Points - 1-4 players - Based on the Pop-up Pirate toy, players take turns thrusting their swords into a barrel that holds their captain. Be careful that you don’t knife your captain. If you do, then he will shoot out of the barrel. The player to stick their sword into the barrel the most times wins the game.

Virtual Console

Pitfall: The Mayan Adventure - T for Teen - 800 Wii Points - 1 player -
In this side scrolling adventure, you play Pitfall Harry, Jr. who in search of his father Pitfall Harry who has been taken captive by the warrior spirit Zakelua: Lord of Evil. Harry can only rely on his slingshot and his father’s journal as he trenches through 13 levels on his journey.

The next Boom Blox game is a party game that will be released soon. Although I love Boom Blox, with the word ‘party’ in its title makes me leery of it.

My hope is that the new Wii MotionPlus will bring some sensitive control to party games. That’s my biggest complaint is that the same flicker of the Wiimote can toss a coin, ball, shoot hoops, and more. I can do basically the same movement for most games. So instead of having 40 party games, I really have five. Or at least five different moves I have to perform to play the games.

If the Wii MotionPlus doesn’t help with this problem with party games, then I may never buy another one again for the Wii.

WiiWare

EQUILIBRIO™ -Rated E -500 Wii Points - 1-4 players- Finish a level by rolling the ball to the exit using the Wiimote or the Wii balance board.

Virtual Console

Uncharted Waters: New Horizons - Rated E- 800 Wii Points - RPG -
Choose from six characters then set sail across the ocean in this simulation game that is all about making new discoveries and visiting exotic ports.

I did do some shopping Sunday and noticed the new DSi’s on sale. It looked like they had plenty in stock. They also had plenty of DS Lites. I have a feeling that hardcore gamers will be buying the DSis or at least until the DS Lite is no longer for sale.

Today six DSiware games are now available for download -

Nintendo DSi Browser (Nintendo, 1 player, 0 Nintendo DSi Points):Powered by Opera, this web browser lets DSi owners get the most from their system.

Bird & Beans™ (Nintendo, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 200 Nintendo DSi Points): Play Pyoro, a small bird with a huge appetite for beans. Catch falling beans and see how many points you can score.

Master of Illusion™ Express: Funny Face (Nintendo, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 200 Nintendo DSi Points): These are magic tricks that are pulled from the DS game.

Art Style™: AQUIA™ (Nintendo, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 500 Nintendo DSi Points): Dive into Art Style: AQUIA, a fast-paced underwater puzzle game .

WarioWare™: Snapped! (Nintendo, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone – Comic Mischief, 500 Nintendo DSi Points): Wario™ returns with more mini-games. Warioware uses the DSi built-in camera in some of its very manic games.

Brain Age™ Express: Math (Nintendo, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 800 Nintendo DSi Points): Give your brain a workout with a focus on math in this latest Brain Age title.