3...2...1...GO!

Well, I got Mario Kart Wii today thanks to my grandpa. My debit card hasn't came yet since I setup my bank account, so my grandpa bought the game for me. I got to play it for about an hour before he decided to take over watching the TV.

I used the motion controls with the Wii Wheel shell and I really suck at it. Also, I was playing in 50cc so it seemed super slow. I guess I should've played in 150cc. I haven't played on WiFi yet but I think I will tonight. I can say the new levels are interesting enough. I just have to get used to the drifting. I honestly don't want to use the old way of playing Mario Kart because I want more Wii games that use motion controls, and since this game has them, I am using them for sure.

Mario Kart Wii is a great game for me to play on a Sunday after a 10 hour shift at work. I definitely love the Mario Kart games, they are always so fun to play, even many years after each iteration comes out. I still play Mario Kart DS even though it's been almost 3 years since it has came out. The Mario Kart games to me have always been fun, even Double Dash (the game most people dislike).

So for now if you can get Mario Kart Wii, I would definitely recommend it. I can see it being played more than Brawl due to Mario Kart Wii having a better online system. Brawl's online is very disappointing, and I don't know why Nintendo won't do anything about it.

I also forgot to mention that if you install the Mario Kart Channel on your Wii, you can receive invitations from people who are already on your Wii Friend List, with the option of adding them as a friend. You don't have to enter their friend code, the message will do it for you once you push start. Why didn't Nintendo do this for their other games!?

Anyway, go out and get Mario Kart Wii now!!!

Zoo Slaughtering with "Animales de la Muerte" (WiiWare)

Well, High Voltage has revealed yet another one of their WiiWare titles, a game in which you have to kill Zombie Animals at a zoo. The game seems to be Spanish accent themed (hence the title). The animation isn't scary, just cartoonish with lots of blood. You can check it out at IGN here.

It seems pretty interesting, however I wonder if anyone will try to call it racist? Nothing like a good videogame controversy on the Wii!!! I am way more interested in US WiiWare at this point, Japan's WiiWare is so lackluster.

Gyrostarr (WiiWare)

Well, another WiiWare game has been revealed and it is a techno racer (in the vain of Wipeout games) but it seems like it may also be kind of like an old arcade shooter. You can find a video of the game here.

The game will support both Wii Remote motion controls as well as Wii Remote & Nunchuk combinations. Gyrostarr allows up to four players to compete or work cooperatively attacking the tracks, depending on how they decide to play. Weapons and power-ups are all over the stages, and each ship comes equipped with a grapple gun to grab those bonuses before other players can snatch them up. Expect Gyrostarr to debut for only 700 Wii Points when the WiiWare service launches.

Some News & What I've Been Playing

The Everyone's Nintendo Channel is going to be released alongside the WiiWare service in the US on May 12th (or sometime around there) and dropping the name Everyone's from the title. About time Nintendo, we never thought it would be released.

Also, Super Smash Bros. Brawl will be released in Europe on June 27th, and Nintendo Channel will be coming at the end of May to Europe. 3 months after the US is certainly shorter than other games like Super Paper Mario.

Sorry I haven't updated in a while. I just started the full time position at work and have been busy with that. Mario Kart Wii will be out in a few days, so I'm excited for that. On Minicopter, I have played a few more missions. I can definitely say it makes what seems like boring tasks pretty fun and sometimes challenging. I have crashed into stuff a few times, but the motion control style in the game is great.

I also played a bit of Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time as Munchlax and I can say it seems a lot better than the first game. I mean it's the same style of gameplay, but with the added feature of Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for having people rescue you when you get stuck so you don't lose your items and money. I can say the story is much more improved, I haven't yet had to walk anyplace. The game is set up in chapters and kind of places me in the mission already. The graphics seem a bit prettier too. I would say this game is pretty good.

Taiko no Tatsujin DS 2 came out in Japan recently. I played a little bit of it today, and I can say I am less than impressed with this game. The music choices seem kind of generic and boring, just not as good as the first games music. I guess it was like that with Ouendan 2 as well. Maybe I just need to play some more? I mean the game won't let me continue any further, and since I lack Japanese skills I don't know what the game is telling me to do. ^_^;

Take off with Minicopter: Adventure Flight

Well today, I just couldn't wait anymore for another Wii game, and so I went out to get Minicopter: Adventure Flight. First, I went to Walmart to see if they had it, they didn't even have a listing for it. Then I called the GameStop I usually go to and they didn't have it. I remembered there was another GameStop in the mall nearby so I went there only to find that the store had closed up. So I finally went to Best Buy and got it.

For anyone wandering what the game is, it was developed by Japanese companies Sonic Powered and Arc System Works, and published by Aksys Games. Basically, you play as an RC helicopter that goes on missions. If anything, I would say the game is kind of in the same genre as Chibi-Robo games. There are 42 missions in 7 different areas. The game is a budget title and will only cost $30. I haven't played it yet but will definitely be playing it later tonight.

Wii Fit Craze

Well, even though a few months ago I was bashing Wii Fit for how useless it looked, I have actually taken a huge interest in the title. One thing was my mom finally decided that she was interested in it because of the yoga poses and the new way to play the game. The other reason is because it could help you tighten up your body so you are more healthy. Those same things interest me.

Despite the game being $90 in the US ($20 more than in Japan), I went and preordered it at GameStop today for $10. Here is another video of the English version from Chechoslovakia:
The game is going to be released in the US last on May 19th, which is surprising for Nintendo. I guess it is because we get Mario Kart on April 27th. Be sure to preorder soon, because you never know how popular the game may become in the month leading up to its release. In Europe, they have pretty much stopped taking preorders for the game because the stores are aware of the allocation they have received. I don't know if it is a small number or if it's a big number, but it sounds like the game is very popular in Europe already.

I still think Nintendo is ripping off the whole rest of the world. A game this cheap to develop is going to cost $90 in the US, and about $140 in Europe. I think that is kind of ridiculous, but with the economy being the way it is, I guess it is okay. But come on, what is with that Euro price being so high. (twice the price of the game in Japan = ouch.) Each region the game is being brought to seems to have produced it's own version with their own voices. The US version will feature a typical American voice while the English in the European version will feature a British voice. The game actually sounds like it encourages you, have you ever seen that in a game before, I really haven't?

I have yet to see Nintendo start their massive marketing campaign. I wouldn't be surprised if it is going to start in the next few days. You would think the best way they could do this is to release the Everyone's Nintendo Channel to the rest of the world with tons of videos and commercials for Wii Fit. Then they could air commercials on TV, and the game will be spread by word of mouth, kind of like how the Wii was when it first launched. All I know is that Wii Fit will be a phenomenon almost as big as the Wii itself. Can't wait!

New Main Pokémon Game this Year says CoroCoro

The latest CoroCoro Magazine is due out in Japan and it simply hints at a new game that is most likely the 3rd game to Diamond and Pearl. I know that people want Gold & Silver remakes, but they are highly unlikely. Next month's CoroCoro will likely reveal the first tidbits on the new game. Here is the scan below that lists all of the main Pokémon RPG's with their year listed next to them, with a spot for 2008 left blank: