Twilight Hack [WiiBrew via Maxconsole]

The currently ongoing AOU show in Japan has me excited for some upcoming arcade action. I might have to revisit some Gradius on the PSP then pick up those Parodius and Twin Bee import collections.

That reminds me. Any CPAs out there? I need to know if I can write off these shmup purchases as work expenses.

Enough about me. What's on deck in your console or PC for gaming this weekend? Michael McWhertor

The entire list of playable games on the DICE "show floor" were: Crysis, Supreme Commander, Company of Heroes, Viva Pinata, Gears of War, Motorstorm (the PlayStation Store demo), Hellgate London, Sam & Max, and Robotron. The Age of Conan MMO was present, but would error out every time I tried to fire up the executable. Such a tease!

I did take one more spin through the Crysis demo, previously playable at CES. Unfortunately, the machines were a little less beefy and led to some noticeable slowdown.

Alright, so maybe there were a handful of unreleased titles on the show floor. What can I say? I'm spoiled and love to bitch! Michael McWhertor

Wii drought, what Wii drought, we've got secret dammit! Mmmmmm, secrety. Brian Crecente

Industry rag Gamasutra has published its Quantum Leap awards for 2006, citing five video games from the past year that excelled in "innovation and advancing the state of the art of the industry." You already know number one. It's Wii Sports.

Gama editor Frank Cifaldi sums up nicely why the tech demo pack-in nabbed the top spot.

My mother, who hung up her gaming gloves for good after beating Super Mario Bros. 3 within a month of its release (love you, Mom), swearing to never play a video game again, practically snagged the Wii remote from me last Thanksgiving, after watching me bowl in Wii Sports. If that's not revolutionary, I don't know what is.

While the rest of the top five may not contain many surprises—save possibly Elite Beat Agents—it's the honorable mentions with which you should familiarize yourself. More obscure titles like Nintendo's Bit Generations series and Ray Hound are definitely worth the small investment. I know I fully plan on putting Dotstream on my personal "best of" this year. Michael McWhertor

Gamasutra's Quantum Leap Awards: Most Important Games, 2006 [Gamasutra]

Go on! Get! Michael McWhertor

New Zelda: Twilight Princess Screenshots [British Gaming Blog]

Latin America's mistake-prone Club Nintendo is reporting that Reggie Fils-Aime has confirmed to them that the Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will indeed still be landing on the GameCube in April.

I ran the rumor by my Nintendo contacts and was told that it is highly unlikely that Fils-Aime would have dropped a date on the magazine since there still isn't one set. He was able to reiterate that Iwata and Co. have said that they still want to keep their promise to tendo fans that the game would hit the cube.

Personally, I can see this game releasing on the cube and the Revolution. They just need to add some more content and pump up the graphics and they could have a grand slam.

A Little Bit of Twilight Princess Info [Hyrule]

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess won't make Christmas, according to Nintendo. The company announced this morning that the game has been pushed back to 2006, some say as far back as March 2006.

Our development team has decided to take extra time to add some incredible new elements to The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. As a result, the game will now launch in 2006 globally. We recognize there may be some disappointed fans; however we firmly believe this additional time will result in a more enjoyable gaming experience.

The gut punch came with a silver lining, more screenshots of the game we will now be waiting another few months for. View em' and weep:

It s that time of year again, when a video game publisher pays attention to lonely, land-locked Denver. The Nintendo Fusion tour will be visitin the Mile High City as part of their 40-city tour.

The collection of video games and live music kicks off in Detroit on Sept. 28 and wraps up on Nov. 23. This time around the tour will feature the sounds of Fall Out Boy, The Starting Line, Motion City Soundtrack, Boys Night Out and Panic! At the Disco. Gaming goodness will include The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, some yet to be announced Nintendo DS titles and the Game Boy Micro.

During the tour, Nintendo will be running a sweepstakes to give away a limited-edition Nintendo Fusion Tour Game Boy Micro.

Hop on over to the official site for tour dates and ticket availability.

Nintendo Fusion Tour [Official Site]