Kotaku: Nintendo Wii

Pop Guru Deepak Chopra's Leela Turns Your Xbox into a "Spiritual Accelerator"

Jen Schiller — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 10:40:00 EDT

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We reported almost a year ago that spiritual teacher Deepak Chopra teamed up with THQ to build a video game that reflects his teachings and practices. More »

New Zelda? "Easier To Play"

Brian Ashcraft — Tue, 18 May 2010 05:30:00 EDT

Nintendo is working on a new Legend of Zelda game. And according to Zelda creator Shigeru Miyamoto, the game will be easier to play. More »

Which Games, And Consoles, Had The Best Resale Value In 2009?

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 04:30:00 EST

Research data published this week has revealed the games, consoles, publishers and genres with the best resale values for 2009. More »

The Queen Of England's Gold-Plated Wii

Mike Fahey — Thu, 21 May 2009 11:40:00 EDT

THQ knows that if you're going to deliver a Wii to Buckingham Palace to promote your new game no ordinary console will do, so they had one gold plated. More »

Disney Sends Spectrobes Wii-ward

Mike Fahey — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 10:20:00 EST

Spectrobes makes the leap from two small screens to one large one, as Disney Interactive Studios takes their original science fiction adventure series to the Nintendo Wii with Spectrobes: Origins. More »

President Barack Obama's Video Game Buyer's Guide

Mike Fahey — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 14:30:00 EST

There's a Nintendo Wii in The White House, and while this indeed is a great day for the gaming industry, without proper guidance, President Barack Obama could easily find himself under a pile of shovelware. More »

Barack Obama Backs The Wii

Mike Fahey — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 13:40:00 EST

Sure, video games are raising our children and you can't vote with a Wii remote. Now that the voting is over, President-elect Obama finds time to kick back with a little Wii Sports bowling. More »

If Crusty Old Hippies Designed A Wii Remote...

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 04:00:00 EST

...it would look a lot like this. Well, crusty hippies or industrious 19th century sailors. They're the only types aside from DHREK who could have made a functioning Wii Remote out of hemp string. More »

Homebrew Wii Channel Enables DVD Playback

Stuart Houghton — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Nintendo has been far too busy printing money and dreaming up strange new controllers to actually finish that DVD-on-Wii thing it has been promising for the last couple of years. More »

Surgeons 50 Percent Better After Wiimote Sim

Owen Good — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 18:00:00 EDT

Back in January we pointed out that research was underway in Phoenix to create a surgery-practice application using the Wiimote. They've finished the project. That's the device at the left, and the researchers have found that for a fraction of the cost of a high-tech simulator, they've improved residents' skills in certain procedures by 50 percent. "One of the problems we've had over the years is we had no method to teach surgeons surgical skills without going into surgery," said Dr. Mark Smith, a co-developer and a gynecological surgeon at Banner Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix. "We now have simulators that help them develop those skills. The problem is they are incredibly expensive - like a flight simulator for a pilot. This gives us a much less costly way to train these fine motor skills that the surgeons employ during surgery." WABC-TV in New York did a story on the Wii simulator, which includes video. News8 Austin, a Time-Warner cable news channel, also features a Q&A with Dr. Smith on its site (where we got the pic). Nintendo Wii Improves Skills, Trains Surgeons [News8 Austin] Surgeons Use Wii to Hone Skills [WABC-TV} More »

Good News: Pachter Says We are Wealthy!

Owen Good — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 14:00:00 EDT

Alright, alright, forgive the distortion, but if you've bought a next-gen console — and worldwide, more than 60 million of us have — then you are "wealthy or hardcore gamers," according to everyone's favorite ~~video game~~ software analyst, Michael Pachter. I don't consider myself hardcore. And my aforementioned $1,500 rent apparently qualifies me as wealthy. More »

Nintendo: "We're Working On" A Wii Storage Solution

Luke Plunkett — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 08:20:00 EDT

The Wii just isn't big enough for all the stuff it offers. That's not conjecture, that's fact. So what are Nintendo doing about? Well, when Nintendo's Laurent Fischer isn't pissing you all off by calling you names, he's promising that - snide comments aside - Nintendo know there's something wrong, and are working on it. More »

Wii Update 3.3 Kills Freeloader Too? [Update]

Luke Plunkett — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 04:30:00 EDT

Oh dear. I'm getting reports starting to trickle out of Australia that the latest Wii update (3.3) has done more than block the Twilight Princess save-game exploit. I'm hearing it's killed Datel's Wii Freeloader as well, which if true, will not go down well in Europe and Australia at all. Especially with Smash Bros' imminent - and very late - release in PAL territories in two weeks serving as a poignant reminder of just why so many people own a Freeloader in the first place. I'll update once we get some confirmation either way. More »

Ex-Rockstar Devs Making WiiWare Balance Board Game

Owen Good — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EDT

First Balance Board Blog got hold of a rather bizarre YouTube clip that features — women in jogging leotards? dudes with horrid combovers in corsets and black socks? — running to a 60-Minutes style stopwatch. Nothing in the vid suggests it's a promo for a game, much less one using the Wii Balance Board, so methinks viral marketing straight away. More »

Librarian: I'm So NOT Wii Fit Girl

Owen Good — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 21:00:00 EDT

Those naughty librarian eyeglasses might say say yes-yes, but a New York City woman says, no-no, they're not hers. You see, there's Lauren Bernat, aka Wii Fit Girl, who hulaed her way to 2 million YouTube views about three weeks ago, and then vowed it was not a viral marketing scheme. And then there's Lauren Bernat, mild-mannered librarian, who's been deluged with Facebook requests from ~~cretinous pic collectors~~ admirers who'd like to better know Wii Fit Girl. Non-Wii Fit Lauren wants everyone to know she's trying to get a job, and the attention isn't good for that. More »

Battery Packs Cause Wii Wheel Alignment Issues?

Owen Good — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 15:00:00 EDT

Apparently, using anything other than disposable "crap-assed gas station batteries" turns a Wii Wheel driving experience into that of a 1978 Datsun heading down to the shore. And no, that's not a desirable mod. Not for Don at videolamer, anyway. He swears that using the battery packs from the React Recharge Dock for the Wiimote reduces the 'Mote's weight and makes it drive off center when placed in the Wii Wheel. More »

Ubi Forum Moderator: Wii Games "are not amazing new AAA games"

Owen Good — Sat, 31 May 2008 17:00:00 EDT

That's a little nugget couched in a defense against charges Ubisoft has a crappy lineup for Wii and doesn't care. Oh but they do care! The lineup is crappy for a reason! Read on. More »

The Conduit: About Damn Time

Owen Good — Sat, 17 May 2008 17:00:00 EDT

IGN got a trailer for "The Conduit," up yesterday. The Wii FPS is being developed by High Voltage Software and it still needs a publisher who wants to take a risk on a darker, edgier title for the family console."Deathmatch Authorized," ... "About damn time." Is that a message? Maybe someone's getting a little impatient?The Conduit: Videos [IGN, thanks reader Mark L.] More »

Disaster Strikes Disaster: Day of Crisis

Owen Good — Sat, 17 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT

Quickjump reports that, according to a Nintendo news release, Disaster: Day of Crisis, being developed by Monolith Soft for the Wii won't make its July 2008 release date in Japan and has been delayed indefinitely. More »

No Carmen Electra in Wii Stripper Pole Game?

ogood — Sun, 04 May 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Of course, that assumes there will even be a Wii stripper pole game. Peakaboo Pole Dancing says it's in talks with developers and publishers but, you know, "talks" doesn't exactly mean "deal." But Peakaboo, to MTV Multiplayer, confirmed that the sensuous Ms. Carmen Electra probably will not have any role on this pole, despite an announcement that implied she might.

Additionally, [Peakboo Rep Simon] Kay said the game probably won't involve Carmen Electra. When I asked if Electra was ever asked to be involved in the first place, the response was no. But is there a chance she could be involved in the future? "Unlikely... but not impossible," Kay said.

I think Peakaboo is going about this all wrong. Instead of developing a stripper pole ostensibly for women to exercise, what it needs to do is create Wii Lapdance Seat for male gamers. That would sell. While your dancer avatar gyrates on the screen, you have to keep your hands on the armrests at all times, and the Wiimote, affixed to your head, assures that you stare ashamedly at her naked body while never making eye contact. More »

Ubi Considering Wii-Specific Prince of Persia Version?

ogood — Sun, 04 May 2008 15:00:00 EDT

It will not be a port, according to Ubisoft. Nintendic, citing the latest edition of Edge magazine (I couldn't find the story online) quotes Ubi thusly: "It's connected to the game in a very interesting way, but it's not a port. A complementary experience, shall we say?" More »

G4: Video of Force Unleashed for Wii, Duel Mode

ogood — Sun, 04 May 2008 11:00:00 EDT

Click to view More »

Iwata: Wiimote Clone Not a Threat

ogood — Sat, 03 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT

Nintendo honcho Satoru Iwata, in an interview meant for an investment audience, says that if a rumored Xbox 360 Wiimote clone in fact becomes a reality, by itself it's not much of a threat to the company's top position in console sales. More »

Mario Kart Wii is Live, Who's Playing?

ogood — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 09:30:00 EDT

Mario Kart Wii, the other half of our nonstop new release blitz for the past month, releases today, too. So all is not GTA IV. If any of you backsliding heathens skipped church to snag your copy, assuming ya don't have blue laws forbidding the sale of video games 'afore 1 pee em in your county, let us know what you think in the comments. More »

IGN Watermark in Okami Cover Art

ogood — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 11:00:00 EDT

For a game that rides on artistic chops as much as Okami, this is a pretty bad F-up. Several of you mentioned that there is an IGN watermark on the box art picture. More or less, the background under the wolf was formed by a hi-res shot lifted from IGN's site. More »

Epic's Mike Capps Reiterates Hate on Wii

ogood — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 10:00:00 EDT

In an interview with IGN Saturday at the New York Comic-Con, the Epic Games president Mike Capps lays down the law: No Wii game is ever forthcoming from his company. The reason? "We go forward, not back." Apparently the Wii is not next-gen to him. More »

A Wee Screen for the Wii Machine

ogood — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 17:00:00 EDT

Before you get all excited, this is a mod, not a Wii laptop. I saw this and racked my brain for an actual real world use, ending up with a vision of a Wii on a beach hooked to 1.4 miles of extension cord, and some Charles Atlas musclehead shadow-fighting with Wii Boxing. More »

Last Improvised Wii Wheel Post, Honest

ogood — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 10:00:00 EDT

OK, at risk of starting a deluge of copycat messages into tips, here's another kit-bashed Wii wheel. The reason this is worthy is a) the engineers are remarkably honest about how bad it performs, and b) they sound like three middle school-age at-risk kids and I want to encourage them to stay off the mean streets by building Wii wheels. More »

Super Smashing Proposal

ogood — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 16:00:00 EDT

When it came time to pop the question, reader Brian Klima did it right. No scoreboard message at a baseball game, no skywriting, no jewelry buried in the dessert. He proposed marriage to his one true love with all the charm and romance that is Super Smash Bros. Brawl Grab your hankies and hit the jump.
More »

Amazon Doling Out Wii Deals Again

Mike Fahey — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 15:00:00 EDT

Amazon is in the middle of another Gold Box Wii game day, where a different Wii game is available for a discounted price every couple of hours. This one sort of snuck up on us, so as of right now the deal of the day, Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Games, is still available for the low price of $29.99. As for the timed special, so far all we've missed is Cabela's Big Game Hunter for $19.99, which is really no big loss. As this post goes live we're smack dab in the middle of Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock for $64.99, with new games coming at 2pm and 6pm Pacific time. Who knows what wondrous values await us? More »

The Force Unleashed Experience

ogood — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 15:00:00 EDT

I don't mean to make anyone uncomfortable, but good Lord, this gets me hard: More »

THQ Bring Cheerleading To The Wii Balance Board

Luke Plunkett — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 22:20:00 EST

If ~~losing weight~~ balance training isn't your thing, and you find the idea of skiing fundamentally abhorrent, THQ might have a Wii Balance Boarding alternative for you: All-Star Cheerleading, a game they've got in development for the Wii. THQ boss Brian Farrell, speaking today at the Morgan Stanley Tech Conference, says it's "going right after girls", but I think he's underestimating the number of 20-something guys who own a copy of Bring It On. More »

Finally, Guitar Hero Wii Gets It Right

Luke Plunkett — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 05:30:00 EST

Poor Guitar Hero III on the Wii. It's had some problems. If it wasn't mono-only sound, it was lawsuits over mono-only sound, and if it wasn't lawsuits, it was botched sign-ups for replacement discs to fix mono-only sound. So it's only right Activision try and make amends. A good place to start is this new Guitar Hero III bundle for the Australian market, which features not only the correct, Dolby Pro Logic II sound output, but also a second guitar controller. No price given just yet, but since the existing one-guitar pack goes for AUD$140, this should come in at just under AUD$200. More »

Zack & Wiki "Demo" Released

Luke Plunkett — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 01:30:00 EST

We told you to go buy Zack & Wiki. Some of you listened. You have our thanks. Everyone else, though, you're a great disappointment. Not just to your fellow Wii owners, but to Capcom as well, who have had to go to the trouble of throwing together a free, Wii-friendly flash demo of the game, just so you can see what all the fuss is about. More »

Wii TV Guide Channel Launches In Japan

Luke Plunkett — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 04:30:00 EST

Nintendo released their latest Wii channel today: the TV Friend Channel. What is it? A TV Guide. With benefits. Yes, on the surface, it's just a TV guide with the ability to highlight shows you'd like to watch. BORING. Some of the things Nintendo have added to spice things up a little, however, aren't quite boring. For one, while the Channel's running, it'll let you use your Wii Remote as a TV Remote. Pointless, yes, but interesting nonetheless. The Channel will also have limited community features: you'll be able to see what shows your friends have highlighted, and Nintendo will centrally track these records (as well as star-ratings for each program). Still pointless, but a little more interesting. Finally, it'll also let you register your mobile number and e-mail address: mark a show on the guide that you wanna see, and 30 minutes before it starts you'll get a text message and/or an email about it. That's not pointless. It's downright useful! More »

Okami On Wii Delayed

Luke Plunkett — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 00:30:00 EST

And here you all were thinking you'd be getting the Wii version of Okami on March 25. You're not. The game's been delayed a smidge, and instead of being ready in March now has an American release date of April 15. No reason was given for the delay, so feel free to come up with your own hair-brained plots involving aspect ratios and brushwork calibration below. More »

Datel Say Freeloader Can Beat Firmware Upgrades

Luke Plunkett — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:30:00 EST

Datel's Wii Freeloader is awesome news. PAL gamers can get games on time, American gamers can play Japanese games, everybody wins. There's a few niggling doubts surrounding the deal, however. Well, one: won't a future firmware update stop the Freeloader from working, as it's already done once to Datel's previous GameCube-only disc? Datel say no, replying to reader Willis in an email:

...we can confirm that on every occasion that the product is used when the disc is inserted in the console that it allows the usage of any imported Wii game discs and disables the console from been able to update its firmware, if the disc is removed after been inserted and reinserted this will again enable the console to update its firmware but still allow the usage of the any imported Wii game discs.

Which unless my eye for English-as-a-second-language fails me is their way of saying "don't worry, firmware won't break this one". Course, they'd have to say that, otherwise nobody would buy the damn thing, so if you're wracked with uncertainty over picking one up I'd say wait until the next firmware update hits and we can get some independent verification. More »

Wait, Final Fantasy WiiWare Costs $15?

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 23:20:00 EST

Square Enix have apparently gone and announced a release date and price for their Final Fantasy WiiWare title, Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King. According to The Wiire, it'll be out on May 12 (the same day as the service's debut), and will cost...1500 Wii Points. Or, in human money, USD$15. Game had better be a meaty one to justify that kind of price-tag. More »

Okami's 16:9 On Wii Looks Just Lovely

Luke Plunkett — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 22:20:00 EST

In case you missed it previously, Ready At Dawn confirmed to us a little while ago that yes, contrary to earlier reports, Okami on Wii would be running in full 16:9, a move that'll have a lot of people who already own it on PS2 considering a re-purchase. Here's footage of what must be the final build of the game running and, well, there's not much more to say. It's one of the most beautiful games ever created, only now it's looking more beautiful. More »

Get Your Miis In The Hot Tub

Luke Plunkett — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 08:30:00 EST

Enough of the PG-rated Mii activities already. Ringing bells, running around plazas, standing on escalators, enough. Miis are people too, and like people, Miis have needs. So it's great seeing Namco's Family Ski for the Wii recognising this, and allowing your cold, tired avatars a little Hot Tub time. With their daughter. And monkeys...hey, shut up, who are you to judge. More »