Hardware first! The Wii has now sold 20 million units in Europe, with 9.6 million of those owning one of the two versions of Wii Fit. That's a little under 7 million consoles sold a year, impressive by anyone's standards.

The DS, meanwhile, has passed 40 million sold in Europe. What's more, both consoles reached those milestones faster than any other machine could manage. For the record, Sony had sold 44 million PS2s in Europe by 2007, so the Wii should overtake it in a year or two.

On the software side of things, Wii Sports Resort has sold 5 million copies since launching last year, while New Super Mario Bros. Wii has moved 2.5 million copies in Europe in just a single month on sale.

It's Ai-chan from Yatterman, otherwise known as Yatterman 2, who joins her partner Yatterman in the game to fight some crime and, where no crime is being committed, kick some ass.

For anyone under the age of 35, Yatterman is an old animation series from Japan that ran in the late 70's, though some of you may also be familiar with the more recent remake.

Watch the clip below (get to around 8:30) and you'll see she enjoys throwing things. Lots of things.

On The Spot [GameSpot]

High on the Japanese exec's list was increasing the number of DS WiFi spots across the country. In Japan, the company has a deal with McDonalds to provide a "Mac de DS" service. Customers who bring their DS units to McDonalds can download items and original content as well as play others via WiFi. Besides Pokémon mini-games and character downloads, there are also McDonalds quizzes and even a McDonalds manga service.

(Nintendo of America teamed up with McDonalds in 2005 for a similar WiFi service.)

Nintendo, it seems, is looking beyond the current partnership with McDonalds. "To proactively increase the number of hotspots, we are talking with a number of businesses," Iwata told the paper.

When asked if Nintendo is planning on giving DS an iPhone-like cellular functions with the ability to connect to the internet, Iwata dismissed the idea of a monthly service plan for playing games and noted that the company is not thinking of adding such functions in future models of the Nintendo DS.

A Nintendo DS successor? Up to now, Nintendo has released several variations of the Nintendo DS — however, it has not released a completely new handheld. Regarding a DS successor, Iwata offered this: "[It will have] highly detailed graphics, and it will be necessary to have a sensor with the ability to read the movements of people playing." In the past, motion peripherals have been released for the Nintendo DS.

But with the Nintendo DS posting record sales in America during 2009, the exec said this was not the time to discuss when this successor will hit the market.

Iwata also touched on Nintendo's home console, the Nintendo Wii, admitting that sales stalled in Japan last fall, but pointing out that the console has been the biggest seller in both Japan and America during the past three years. He stressed the importance of software.

According to the Asashi Shimbun, there will be a press conference this July for the new pulse Vitality Sensor controller with the intention of putting it on sale as soon as possible. The paper also noted that the newest Legend of Zelda sequel will go on sale before the end of 2010 with no note whether this refers only to Japan. The game was first announced at the E3 game expo in Los Angeles back in 2009.

asahi.com（朝日新聞社）：ＤＳ接続サービス拡大へ　任天堂社長「Ｗｉｉは再加速」 - ＰＣ・ゲーム - デジタル [Asahi Shimbun]

In an interview with Reuters following a rebound in the company's share prices, Iwata said "I think it's now safe to say the Wii has recovered from slowdown".

"But I'm not sure if it's prudent to use words like revival and recovery lightly before making absolutely certain we can maintain this momentum. So, I steer clear of such words today."

Too late! You already said recovery!

Nintendo Wii posts record U.S. sales in Dec [Reuters]

"The customer of [the Wii] has turned into something [of a] much broader audience. It is a disappointment," says Seux (pictured) in an interview translated from French via Google Translate. Seux, speaking to the blog Gamekult, also calls developing for the Wii "difficult" and goes on to say "for us, Capcom, the future is the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360."

It's likely we're hearing Seux's offhand opinion of the future, not official Capcom messaging here. Still, the words, coming from such a stalwart brand on Nintendo's platforms, are eyebrow raising.

It's clear Seux is frustrated. He points out sales of just 16,000 for Darkside Chronicles in the first three weeks of its release, compared to 140,000 for Resident Evil 4 on the Wii at release in in 2007. Seux's explanation for the disparity: the market has moved on.

One feels that there is a problem very clear on this style of game on the Wii, where gamers have obviously moved on. Resident Evil 4 on Wii worked well, but [it was released] when the market had nothing!

While Seux says the Wii is "still an important part of sales," he calls it "very much a family [console] with low attachment rates."

"This is the year of the emergence of so-called 'new console generation'," Seux concludes. "So for us, Capcom, the future is the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360."

Capcom: Less Wii After Darkside Chronicles Sells Only 16k [Spong]

Those who follow our monthly tally of Wii playing time (the so-called "measure of pleasure," as I've dubbed it) know that the average amount of time that Wii gamers spend playing 2008 Call of Duty: World At War is sky-high. At last count, gamers were averaging more than 51 hours with the game, which has sold more than a million copies, according to reporting I've done in the past. Only three games boast more hours per player: The similarly multiplayer-centric Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Guitar Hero III along with Animal Crossing: City Folk, a game designed to be played daily.

I was interested in seeing how this past November's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Reflex Edition, a remake of 2007's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare would fare. I'll get to sales figures a little lower, but let's look at something impressive first: its average playing time per player. As of December 1, the game had an average playing time of 17 hours, 22 minutes. As of January 1, that average is up to 24 hours, 55 minutes. People who play this game are keeping at it, likely due to its online play.

There's a caveat to the rising numbers for Call of Duty on the Wii. Because I'm only tracking average playing times, a game that is owned by five people who each play the game for 50 hours, will have an average playing time that exceeds a game that a million people have bought and played for 10 hours each. There's also the issue that these average playing times are tallied by the Nintendo Channel, a Nintendo service that only pulls the data of Wii gamers who download the channel, opt-in for data-sharing and re-visit the channel.

There's a way to account for those caveats, to at least have some context. As of January 1, the Reflex Edition was listed as having a cumulative 237,615 hours of play time among people sharing their data with Nintendo. World At War, as of December 1, had more than 7 million hours logged by users sharing their data. Compare those totals to The Legend of Zelda: The Twilight Princess, which has 45 million hours tallied as of Jan. 1, and it's obvious that not that many Reflex Edition players are out there and/or sharing their data... yet.

A better comparison for the Reflex Edition might be New Super Mario Bros. Wii, which was also released in November. That game has an average playing time of 15 hours, far fewer hours than that of the Reflex Edition but more than 1.5 million hours of that Mario game have been played and logged by the Nintendo Channel, dwarfing those 237,615 hours for the Reflex Edition. On the other hand, we've got September 2009's WWE Smackdown Vs. Raw 2010 which has a wonderful average playing time of 27 hours and 28 minutes, but across just a cumulative 90,066 hours played.

There's no starker contrast than with sales, of course. Nintendo announced today that New Super Mario Bros. sold three million copies in the U.S. through December. The NPD sales-tracking group, which has not released sales for December yet, told me today that, in its first month of release, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Reflex Edition sold 81,000 copies.

These Nintendo stats that we track measure the passion players have for the games they have, if not the popularity. Sales aren't the only stats that are interesting to look at.

Call of Duty games may not be the immediate blockbuster launches that they are on other platforms, but the playing time patterns here suggest that those who do have the game are as into the series as the most fervent fans on other platforms. World At War proved that on Wii. Reflex Edition seems set to do the same.

While the numbers aren't official until the NPD Group sings, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata proudly presented some impressive speculative numbers in Japan today. According to Iwata, North American Wii sales in December were in excess of 3 million units, which is a huge amount, especially when compared to the 200k or so that sold in Japan last month. A large percentage of those new Wii consoles were likely purchased along with the New Super Mario Bros. Wii, with U.S. lifetime sales of the title estimated at nearly 4 million.

Nintendo also estimates that the Nintendo DS had a better year than any console or handheld has in the history of video gaming, though they do include the DSi in those figures, which might be fudging things a little.

"The millions of people who bought Nintendo hardware during the holidays can look forward to enjoying great games on those systems now and in the future," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. "The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks for Nintendo DS, and Wii Fit Plus and New Super Mario Bros. Wii are all currently providing Nintendo fans with amazing experiences and fun adventures for the whole family."

Any of you folks count yourselves among those three million new Wii owners?

Image

Mad Catz first displayed the Tatsunoko Vs. Capcom fight stick in San Diego, gauging fan reaction to the design. Apparently fans reacted well, as it's now up for sale on the GameShark store for $79.99. I'd say it was a preorder listing, but I don't see the words preorder anywhere in the item description, even when I went through the majority of the checkout process.

It's a lovely stick, and as it connects to the Wii remote, it's also wireless, which is nice. Considering the alternatives available for the Wii, I'd say it might be your best bet for a Wii arcade fighting controller for quite some time.

Tatsunoko VS. Capcom Arcade FightStick For Wii [GameShark Store - Thanks Raphael!]

It consists of Mario, Zelda, Mega Man, Kirby, Square Enix, Donkey Kong and Pac-Man. There's a chair, too.

Video Game Memorabilia Museum [Figure.fm via DannyChoo]

The announcement was made earlier today by Capcom, who say that while they'll still technically be acting as publisher, Nintendo will be "responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution" of the game in Europe and Australasia.

It'll be out in April. Expect to see a lot more marketing for the game than you otherwise would have. Oh, and maybe one or two of those black Wii/Monster Hunter Tri bundles (up top), too.

The data, just released today, was collected between December 29, 2008 and December 27, 2009.

5. Final Fantasy XIII
Launch: December 17, 2009
Estimated Sales Tally: 1,698,256 copies

4. Tomodachi Collection
Launch: June 18, 2009
Estimated Sales Tally: 2,311,948 copies

3. New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Launch: December 3, 2009
Estimated Sales Tally: 2,485,150 copies

2. Pocket Monsters HeartGold/SoulSilver
Launch: September 12, 2009
Estimated Sales Tally: 3,382,597 copies

1. Dragon Quest IX
Launch: July 11, 2009
Estimated Sales Tally: 4,100,968 copies

When you think of Japan, think Nintendo and Square Enix. Think of me as well.

Christopher Bayko allegedly stole the Wii last month then sold it to a local pawn shop. When his mother noticed her console was missing, Bayko told her it was "at a friend's house", a lie which didn't hold up too well once she found the receipt for the Wii's sale.

Worst part? He's so stupid he sold it for $56.

Man charged after selling mom's game system [TBO]

Citing "unnamed sources," ESPN.com says EA Sports got the rights from the NBA to deliver an updated version of the arcade classic for retail release. The report adds that the game's creator, Mark Turmell, has been hired on by EA Sports Canada to consult on the product.

NBA Jam was a wildly successful 2-on-2 basketball game first released by Midway to the arcades in 1993, and later ported by Acclaim to the Super Nintendo and Genesis. The success of EA Sports' arcade-style titles for the NHL and NFL in the past year makes it a good bet they'd want to spin up an NBA offering sometime soon. The demise of Midway (and Acclaim back in 2004), also means the NBA Jam name is likely held by someone unlikely to develop it anytime soon, and probably happy to make a quick buck off the IP.

An EA Sports spokesperson told Kotaku the publisher wouldn't comment on rumor or speculation - but did add the announcement is set for sometime next week.

I emailed contacts with EA Sports and the Vancouver studio to ask for comment. Anything they say will be updated here.

EA to Announce Return of 'NBA Jam' [ESPN.com]

The reward?

A copy of The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, a Spirit Tracks t-shirt, a $1,000 Nintendo World Store gift card, a Zelda's "biggest fan" trophy and a white Nintendo DSi system personally signed by longtime Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma.

We've looked over the entries and selected our 11 favorites as finalists. Now it's up to you to decide which will win the grand prize. The remaining ten will receive a copy of The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks game and a Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks t-shirt.

We'll leave the voting open until midnight Mountain time on Sunday. You can vote once a day. Please check over all of the entries, from videos to pamphlets to photos, before voting. Everyone put a lot of effort into their entries.

Thanks to everyone who entered.

Even Hell's Kitchen Vs. for DSiWare (800 DSi Points) is a stretch, as I can't imagine I am in the majority when it comes to crossover fans of downloadable DSi titles and Gordon Ramsay's reality cooking show. I also can't imagine the game being anything like the show, especially with that E for everyone rating. How will I know my risotto is shit?

Hell's Kitchen is joined by two puzzle games on DSiWare this week, Nintendo's missile-firing Trajectile (500 points) and Aksys's Animal Puzzle Adventure (500 points), which sees players leading animals to barns while avoiding cliffs and other pitfalls. Totilo informs me that Trajectile is actually developed by Q-Games of PixelJunk fame, and is "so far, very good."

This week's WiiWare titles are all new to me. Triangle Studios' Heron: Steam Machine (500 Wii Points) is a game about managing steam pressure in a rubber ducky factory. Then we've got Big Blue Bubble's Pub Darts (500 points), which is about throwing darts at a pub, go figure. Finally, Digital Leisure whips out Fast Draw Showdown (500 points), a gun-slinging game that has you trying to out-draw the fastest guns in the West, or die trying. Fast Draw Showdown uses actual actors as targets, so you know it's got to be a quality product!

Finally (pun semi-intended) we've got Final Fight 3 for the Super Nintendo on the Virtual Console (800 points), which is of course the North American version of Final Fight 6, unless I am getting my Final games mixed up again.

And so begins the third year of the Nintendo Download. Are we off to a good start, or are things just warming up?

Nintendo DSiWare

Trajectile
Publisher: Nintendo
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points™
Description: Trajectile is a puzzle game that's as much about firepower as it is about brainpower, requiring you to line up your shot and launch a flurry of missiles at enemy targets. Three types of missiles are at your disposal, each one with its own characteristics - but all of them can bounce off walls on their path to smash, blast or drill through enemies and blocks. Along the way, you'll find item blocks just waiting to be destroyed so that you can obtain special power-ups ... and cause even more destruction. Be careful though, as missile type and position are predetermined and you get only a limited number of launches per stage. Complete multiple classes containing numerous individual stages, earning medals when you clear stages in fewer than the given number of turns. Are you ready to take aim at becoming a Trajectile master?

Animal Puzzle Adventure
Publisher: Aksys Games
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10 and Older) - Mild Suggestive Themes
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: Animal Puzzle Adventure is a simple puzzle game where you have to lead various animals to their respective barns placed on the map, while avoiding pitfalls and cliffs and using the objects on the field to your advantage. There are 10 stages per level with a total of five levels, creating 50 stages in all. After clearing a stage, you unlock a piece of a photo. Once you clear all 10 stages in a level, the wallpaper for that level becomes unlocked and you can then view it in the gallery. With so many puzzles to unravel, you'll find yourself immersed in the puzzle-riffic world of Animal Puzzle Adventure.

Hell's Kitchen Vs.
Publisher: Ludia
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 800 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: Hell's Kitchen Vs. is based on the U.S. TV phenomenon where world-renowned chef Gordon Ramsay puts aspiring chefs through rigorous culinary tests. The game recreates the show's pressure-cooker atmosphere as two players battle head-to-head in an arcade-style kitchen challenge. Try to conquer your opponent in each time-management test, while taking the heat of Gordon Ramsay judging and rating your performance at every stage of the game.

WiiWare

Heron: Steam Machine
Publisher: Triangle Studios
Players: 1-4
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 500 Wii Points™
Description: Heron: Steam Machine is a game about a factory where rubber duckies are being produced by a large steam engine. On this steam engine, there are four different gauges which you will have to watch carefully. By connecting the pipes, you will earn points and relieve some of the pressure, keeping the machine running just a little bit longer. If one of the gauges reaches its maximum, the machine will eventually blow up, and the game is over. If you were lucky enough to achieve a high score, make sure you enter your name in the list so other players can compete with you. In Multiplayer, you are able to cooperate with friends in maintaining the steam machine. When you play with two, three or four players, the screen is divided into sections with different background colors. Each player is able to solve his or her own part of the puzzle. Players are restricted to their own section of the screen, so you will have to work together to make the pipes fit properly. (Additional accessories are required for multiplayer play and are sold separately.)

Pub Darts
Publisher: Big Blue Bubble Inc.
Players: 1-4
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) - Alcohol Reference
Price: 500 Wii Points
Description: Pub Darts is a simple darts simulation which uses the Wii Remote™ controller's unique controls to mimic dart-throwing motion. The game is set in a local pub where the players will settle in to play some of their favorite dart games, including 501, Cricket, Around the Clock, Killers and Baseball. Controls function just like throwing a real dart. Players are able to create their own personal profiles, including selecting their avatar image from a collection of creative characters and the design they would like displayed on the dart flights.

Fast Draw Showdown
Publisher: Digital Leisure Inc.
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: T (Teen) - Alcohol Reference, Violence
Price: 500 Wii Points
Description: When it comes to fast draw there're only two types of people: the quick ... and the dead! Now you have the chance to find out where you stand, or lie, as the case may be. You'll go up against the best quick draws in the business, including one of the world's fastest, Wes Flowers. Unholster your Wii Remote controller and show 'em who the fastest draw really is, in this live-action shooter. You can even take on a friend in multiplayer modes, and see which of you has the quickest draw. You'll need some serious speed and awesome accuracy to take on these gunslingers ... so get ready for some real fast draw action.

Virtual Console

Final Fight 3
Original platform: Super NES™
Publisher: Capcom USA
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: T (Teen) - Animated Violence
Price: 800 Wii Points
Description: Following the defeat and subsequent disappearance of the Mad Gear Gang, a small group known only as "Skull Cross" is responsible for a new uprising of vandalism, terrorism and death. The government of Metro City is at a complete loss. Metro City's mayor, Mike Haggar, and Guy are prepared to take on the new gang, but before they can act, the door bursts open, revealing Lucia, Cody's old friend. "Metro City is under attack!" she shouts, "Skull Cross is loose, and they've got something up their sleeves." But before any of them can move, a mysterious man appears in the doorway. "My name is Dean," he says. "I know Skull Cross inside-and-out, and I hate them more than anything. I can help you, and you can help me. We must go!" All four fighters vow to bring Skull Cross down. It will be a tough assignment, and may even be their final fight!

The high security institution, which is not a prison, treats the likes of rapist and murderer Robert Napper and the Yorkshire Ripper Peter Stucliffe — both of which are indefinitely confined to the hospital. A source told UK tabloid The Sun that Stucliffe played bowling on the Wii, while Napper looked on.

The Sun, then of course, had to give its article a typically trashy pun title. ("Resident Wii-vil?" Really?)

"When you think of their crimes and the misery they have caused, you have to ask if it's right for society to pay to entertain them," the source stated. "This cash could have been spent improving care in the wider NHS. In the meantime all we hear is laughter as patients play with their new toys."

The hospital has been outfitted with 22 Nintendo Wii consoles, fitted to plasma TVs. They are so popular that the Broadmoor apparently is ordering extra remotes. The hospital is already home to PlayStation and Xbox gaming consoles.

According to a Broadmoor spokesperson, the Wii consoles (and Wii Fit) were part of the patients' treatment and a strategy to increase exercise — even though health experts largely agree that exercise results from the Wii are negligible. But even in such a high security hospital, patients aren't able to take walks? While some of the mentally ill may not be to constructively join the society at large, surely they can take walks on hospital's high security walled grounds.

Killers given Wii games at Broadmoor [The Sun]

The Hero of Time (that's one of its trailers above) had been shown at film festivals, and on Dec. 22, had been hosted at DailyMotion. But earlier in the month, the film's creators came to an agreement with Nintendo to stop distributing the movie by the end of the year. "In the spirit of the holiday season they were good enough to let us keep the movie up for you to watch and enjoy through the end of 2009," the team wrote on their blog. "We understand Nintendo's right to protect its characters and trademarks and understand how in order to keep their property unspoiled by fan's interpretation of the franchise, Nintendo needs to protect itself - even from fan-works with good intentions."

The creators say they have "a real sense of peace bringing the project to a close." They indicated a new project is forthcoming, and "no, it's not Majora's Mask."

Nintendo Pulls Zelda Fan Movie [Cubed3]

Made by a friend of internet person named Virtute, who tried to get a video fo him shredding the Mario theme, but "no cigar". Sadness!

My friend made an electric guitar that looks like a Koopa Troopa. [Reddit via Hawty McBloggy]

It may be a little Nintendo-centric, but you have to admire the guy's passion. Just about every major and many minor consoles are represented, presented much as one would imagine a really nice retro gaming museum would look if one existed outside of donkey*kong's house. This is a room I would enter and my eyes would try to move in 200 directions at once, possibly exploding in the process. I could spend hours poring over these pictures. Hell, maybe I will.

See anything or everything you like?

My Otacool Room [Figure.FM via Dannychoo.com - thanks togovero!]