I promised a fellow named Clever Sleazoid that I would post a wallpaper he made for the site. Since I haven’t made a wallpaper section yet I’m going to exploit him and use his work as a sort of gift to everyone. I’m nice like that!

Oh fine, I’ll throw one in too. I made a really simple wallpaper using the Triforce image I spontaneously drew for my Zelda review. Simple but it works, notice how the background color is the same as what I use for the site. Not slacking at all!

Click images to download

Thanks for the wallpaper, Clever Sleazoid!

Update:
It’s also a Monday, and you know what that means. That’s right, more titles to download on the Virtual Console. This weeks update is probably the best one yet. Observe!

• Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (Super NES�, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): This game revolutionized the fighting-game genre with characters that had unique fighting skills, speed, special moves and unique endings.
• Super Mario Bros. (NES, 1-2 Players, 500 Wii Points): I’m pretty sure I don’t have to give you much information on this one. He’s Mario, he jumps on things.
• Super Castlevania IV (Super NES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Simon Belmont uses his trusty whip to fight the powers of evil on his way to Dracula’s Castle.
• Toe Jam & Earl (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): Two fun-loving aliens crash on Earth and must find 10 pieces of their spaceship so they can get back home to Planet Funkotron.
• R-TYPE (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): This is a completely faithful port - right down to the character details - of the famous shooting-game masterpiece.

Games available on Jan. 1 include:

• Baseball (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Play nine innings of fierce sandlot competition with classic NES graphics.
• Urban Champion (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Don’t let the big, bad bully of the neighborhood push you around! Players fight for the right to walk the street.

Whew, hopefully that’s the last of the updates for today. Have fun!

Comments(1)

I know, the last three news items have been about the Wii Opera browser beta, but this is something I think you’ll be interested in.

Clicky

AimOnPSP.Com was built to allow PSP users to send instant messages using its browser. Do you see where this going yet? … no? Well, basically it works on the Opera browser as well. Not shocking I know, but being able to IM on AIM is something I bet a lot of people are looking to do.

There you go. That’s it. What to IM on Wii? That’s probably the best way to do it.

i am on aim on wii
lol1!
thats kool
k bye

Comments(3)

Just for kicks and because I just finished shutting down my computer for the night I have typed this entire update using the Opera Beta that just launched. So respect every word you read here because it’s a bit slower than a keyboard. It turns out that Bomb-Omb works and runs incredibly well on it…

But on to important matters, can you play Flash games? The answer is ‘probably’. Some games are built using what I assume is a higher version number of Flash than what the Opera Beta has. So most games I’ve tried so far do work but not all.

The version Flash that the current browser uses is “7.0.70.0″.
Click here to test your version number

Websites for Flash games:
AlbinoBlackSheep.Com
WiiCade.Com
Newgrounds.Com

Suprisingly even video sites like YouTube and Google Videos work, even with the fullscreen buttons.

This isn’t going to replace the PC by any means, but it’s got enough features to act as a back-up option for browsing. It works surprisingly well, especially for a beta but there’s room for improvements.

Oh by the way if you’re looking at this on a Wii right now, why not add your Friend Code to our list?

If you find something interesting that I’ve missed feel free to contact us about it.

Comments(4)

I work with Macromedia Flash a lot, and I use it for everything. But I’ve always wanted to create a Flash game of some kind, even just a simple “don’t touch the walls” sort of thing.

What launches on Friday is the Beta for the Opera browser for Wii. It’s going to be a free download until June 2007. If you haven’t downloaded it by then it’ll cost you 500 points ($5). I think the idea of that is that it’s like a reward for taking part in the beta.

The question for me has always been, will the Opera browser support it? Judging from this very long sentence in the press release the answer is ‘yes’.

“The Adobe Flash-enabled beta version of the Opera browser puts the Internet right onto owners’ television screens and lets them browse with ease, enabling them to check sports scores, plot maps or visit their favorite Web sites.”

Good! Perhaps you’ll be hearing me announcing a Flash game designed for Wii sometime soon. In the mean time, check out these games from one of my favorite sites, AlbinoBlackSheep.Com

Comments(2)

Today the Wii Forecast channel launched in Europe. This is one of those extra features like the Photo channel which are just sort of fun to mess around with, although this one has a more practical purpose.

If you haven’t figured it out, the Forecast channel shows you the weather mapped to a 3D globe. That way us gamers don’t even have to look out the window to know what’s going on outside our little world. Fantastic, the less exposure to the sun the better. Thankfully it’s winter so there’s a minimal amount of that nasty stuff flying through the air.

The Forecast channel launches in the US on the 20th.
So I checked my Wii today and the Forecast Channel seems to be live in the US as well. Which is weird because Wii.Com said it launched tomorrow. I guess they finished early or something.

Comments(0)

Ah yes, Monday. Well, here they are, this weeks new games for Virtual Console. I’ll just slap this here press release down there and pat myself on the back now.

Tennis (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Players slam a serve, fire a blazing backhand and smash a forehand volley on their way to winning the victory cup. Players can choose between five different levels of difficulty, ranging from Beginner all the way up to Advanced. If players want to become true champs, they should be ready to show off their most brilliant lobs and most powerful smashes. Play a singles match or grab a partner for doubles, and then choose an opponent. Players control the moves in tennis action so intense, they’ll almost believe they’re at center court.

Space Harrier II (Sega Genesis, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Fantasyland has been taken over by destructive forces, and a call for help comes from deep in the universe. Space Harrier is quick on the scene, armed with his laser, to defeat wave after wave of destructive forces through 12 thrilling stages, with a dangerous boss waiting at the end of each round.

Military Madness (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, 600 Wii Points): Military Madness is a futuristic simulation game that throws the player into the middle of a war on the moon’s surface. The rules are simple, making it easy for newcomers to enjoy the thrills of this war-strategy game. Players can see easy-to-understand, detailed instructions from the Title screen. Military Madness is also turn-based, allowing players to devise their strategy before they move. To top it off, the units players have for each stage are already decided, allowing them to concentrate on commanding. Use the terrain and surround enemies to claim victory. Fight through all 16 stages and thwart the enemy’s ambitions!

Anyone feel the urge to download the NES Tennis game? I mean, I’m not sure why someone would do that when they probably have Wii Sports tennis already. But whatever, it’s one of the early classics on NES so who cares.
Hey Nintendo, you should totally provide a Super Mario Bros download for Christmas. Back in the day, everyone who had an NES had a copy of Super Mario Bros. What better way to introduce people who are going to get a Wii for Christmas to the Virtual Console than to provide a game they know and love for free?

Comments(4)

Today is the last day us not so talented souls can place a bid on a very cool piece of art from the popular (and one of my favorites) web comics VG Cats. Check this thing out, it’s pretty cool.

Now, you may ask “Who in their right mind would pay over $860 for this?” Well, I’m sure a lot of people would actually, but this has another purpose. Scott (the guy who draws VG Cats) isn’t going to be making any money off this and neither am I.

All the proceeds goto the charity group Child’s Play, which is pretty cool. Of course, you don’t have to buy this artwork to donate. You can donate as much or as little as you want at the Child’s Play website.

Comments(0)

Finally, the wave of decapitations resulting from oiled up, steroid injected, gorillas throwing Wii Remotes will come to an end. If you have no idea what I’m talking about allow me to explain.

It turns out that if you throw something hard enough it can actually free itself from a gorilla grip and fly through the air, probably directly into a by-standers skull. What’s even more surprising is that the wrist strap can actually break if you put enough stress on it. As demonstrated in this video. The solution?

Click for larger verison

Behold! The anti-decapitation wrist strap! All new Wii Remotes have this new version and it’s supposed to be much stronger. Now instead of killing innocent by-standers the Wii Remote will twirl around the gorillas wrist and will probably either go straight for his heart or what exists of the brain’s frontal lobe.

But what if you don’t have the anti-decapitation wrist strap? No problem, check out the link below, it’s the whole point of this garbage.

Wrist Strap replacement program

ATTENTION GORILLAS, follow the bananas! If you follow that link/banana you’ll get to the form you need to fill out. Nintendo is going to be sending out replacement straps starting December 21st. So until then you’re going to have to stand behind a lead wall or something while the gorilla plays.

On a side note, Firefox decided the word “anti-decapitation” was awesome enough that it made it an official word. I’m totally saving the world now!

Comments(2)

The reason to look forward to Mondays, the Virtual Console list update.
The new additions are:

Ice Hockey (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Ice Hockey is hard-hitting, fast-action competition that re-creates all the excitement of the sport from faceoffs to penalty shots. Players pass the puck and shoot to score while using defensive tactics, including fake shots and ice brawls to crush adversaries. It’s up to the player to find the best strategy to win the game � finesse or power.

Gunstar Heroes (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): The Gunstar 9 planet was peaceful for many years until the vicious dictator, Colonel Red, kidnapped the Gunstar twins’ older brother and used mind control to make him his slave. Players face many different enemies and bosses while battling to stop the dictator from unleashing “Golden Silver the Destructor” with apocalyptic consequences.

Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points):
Dr. Robotnik is stamping out music and fun in Mobius with his giant robotizing Mean Bean Steaming Machine. Before he turns all the citizens of Beanville into robots, players must save the day by gathering up beans in matching colors and defeating Robotnik’s guards.

Alien Crush (TurboGrafx16, 1 player, 600 Wii Points): Alien Crush is a fan-favorite pinball game that features a sinister sci-fi theme. Play through a two-level playing field that comes to life with pulsating alien creatures. Rack up a high enough score, clear the board of these extraterrestrials and discover secret bonus stages. The game features realistic pinball action, complete with a tilt function and two selectable soundtracks. Do you have what it takes to fight back against this alien infestation?

Hooray for press releases that do all the work for you! Hooray for more titles added to VC list. Hooray for …. Ice Hockey!

Comments(2)

Well, I’ve finished my review of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I figured that there aren’t that many people out there thinking “Hey, I wonder if that Zelda game is any good.” Instead, I decide to describe why it’s so kick ass and help give an understanding on how the Wii version controls, as well as provide some new screen shots.

Click here to view the full review
(contains no spoilers)

Of course, I can’t rule out the possibility that someone out there sees this game differently than I do. So, if you’ve got a review you’d like us to post, for this game or any other, feel free to send it in via the Contribute Page.

Remember, always tell us why you like or dislike the game. Provide some insight and reasoning and people will believe you a whole lot more.

Be sure to look out for a review of Red Steel with a video in the near future.

Happy gaming

Comments(1)