Wii Report Nana (7): 7 Jan

No, this post is not about Bungie's inexplicable obsession with the number 7. Nor is Bungie bringing the Halo franchise to the Nintendo Wii. This is about the big news release that has been rumoured in local Wii forums everywhere. Apparently, Maxsoft is supposedly releasing details of the local Wii launch today, the 7th of January 2007. At 2am this morning, GameAxis posted the following on its front page:

We were told that (and some local retailers heard as well) barred a serious case of bad luck, Singaporeans will be getting their Wii consoles way before the Lunar New Year next month. In fact, it might even be launched as early as 15th January. Yup, this month! Once we get the full confirmation and details, you'll get to hear it from us here.

Yup. So that's all the news we have on this momentous day. At least, for now.

Hopefully more info would be released thru the day. Stay tuned!

Edit (7/1/07, 9.12pm) : GameAxis has since changed "Once we get the full confirmation and details, you'll get to hear it from us here." to "We'll find out more details from Maxsoft next week, so you'll get to hear it from us here."

Wii Report 6: For Gamescorers

Here's a quick recap of what you should expect for the local Wii launch.

1. From what I've heard, Gamescore seems to be the only ones taking preorders for the local Wii. However, things should change once a local release date is set by Maxsoft.
2. Some games and accessories are already available for purchase at Gamescore.
   
3. We will be receiving the US version of the Wii, with the power adapter changed to suit our country's voltage. However, it is uncertain whether we would be getting Wii sports as part of the package.
4. Current rumours state that the Wii would cost sub S$500 (probably S$499) with one or two games (read Wii Report 4: Local Info part 2) which may or may not include Wii sports. The other game is said to be "not bad"(it won't be Happy Feet) and would probably be from Activision, Atari or Atlus.
5. Rumour says we would have more information released to us by Maxsoft on 7th Jan and most probable release date for the Wii would be from late Jan to Feb (15 Jan to 28 Feb).

That's probably all you need to know about the local Wii launch. Feel free to ask me questions thru the tagboard or, even better, join the Wii community at Gamescore's forum!

Wii Report 5: Link is the hero of Zelda games

This isn't really a proper report, just a bunch of interesting links (that might be outdated by now).

"Revolution" video

All-Star Wii Tennis game!

Unbiased, but confusing, Wii-mote review

Wii Console Hands-On

SquareEnix hearts Nintendo

The last link is particularly interesting. If it turns out to be true, I think we would see a change in direction for Final Fantasy- from realistic graphics to flashy art style- in order to fit into the Nintendo family. My prediction? A FF13 spin-off on Wii in 2008 and a full traditional Final Fantasy game (hopefully FF14?) in 2010 or 2011. This rosy prediction comes from the low cost and quick production of Wii games once they have gotten used to programming for the Wii with DQ swords and a FF13 spin-off. HOWEVER, SquareEnix might choose to keep Final Fantasy fans on PS3 and DQ on Wii. They still have one more trump card though- Kingdom Hearts. Squenix, Kingdom Hearts WILL fit perfectly on the Wii! Bring it over here quick!

Wii Report 4: Local Info part 2

From GameAxis.com forums:

Just want to share the good news with the local community that Wii console has already been approved by IDA for its Wireless LAN 2.4GHz and Bluetooth. Please note that supplier would be Maxsoft Pte Ltd. Do await for the official announcement from them.

PS: The final registration of Consumer Protection (Safety Requirements) Registration Scheme is needed to complete the process.

Sounds authentic, but still just a rumour. I won't be surprised if it turns out to be true though. We don't have the means to prove it anyway.

After returning from Japan, fresh from my Wii pilgrimage, I spotted many interesting posts on the forums. One of which went like this:

Well spoke to local shop - "confirmed pricing" is S$499 - console, Wii Sports and 1 game.

THAT WOULD BE A DREAM COME TRUE! Especially if that "1 game" was something good (like Zelda or Trauma Centre). It's a little hard to believe though. The only possibility I can think of for that to happen would be bundling Happy Feet or Cars. I would still buy it though. As long as it's below S$500.

Lastly, but most importantly...... go see this link.

Wii Report 4: Local Info part 1

GameAxis.com has been my source for local Wii news, so head on down there to get all the details. Be sure to check out the forums too. For those lazy to look through the site and forums, here is a quick run down of most of the info we have right now.


First, the facts:

1. Singapore's official Nintendo Wii will be based on the NTSC/UC coding
2. Singaporean gamers will get their official Nintendo Wii consoles at the earliest this December, and the latest in January.
3. A Nintendo Wii has already been submitted to the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA) for certification and approval.
4. Maxsoft, the local distributor for Nintendo, has confirmed that an Official Wii Support group has been set up here.
5. Price of the Singapore Wii console should be pegged closely to the US Wii's pricetag, plus S$30-S$50 to it.
6. Virtual Console to work flawlessly.

So it is confirmed that Singapore will be getting the Wii sometime late this year or early next year, and it would be a US console (with a different voltage). The most probable reason for this delay would be seeking approval from IDA for the Wii's WiFi.


Next, the "rumours":

1. The local Nintendo Wii console will see a price-tag of about S$499, pegging it at a cheaper price than the Xbox 360 (not surprisingly), and is likely to come bundled with at least one game.
2. The local Wii might even come bundled with 2 games. Although it's quite unlikely. Another surprising rumor is that the bundled game mentioned in Rumor #1 is unlikely to be Wii Sports - the game bundled with US Wii sets.
3. It's an open secret that the Wii is currently still undergoing local authorities certifications, which partly explains the lengthy launch. But hey, even the Japanese aren't getting their sets until 2nd Dec. So when will wii see the launch of the console on our shore? It make sense to calculate that we will only get the Wii after the Japs does, so that makes it very likely gamers will be able to buy Wii consoles here in late Dec at the earliest. The latest? End-Jan if not early-Feb too.

The S$499 price tag isn't too surprising, considering Australian gamers will be paying AUD399 for theirs. It's even less surprising since it might be come with 2 games. Maxsoft bundled lousy games with the local DS Lite, so for the Wii, don't expect Zelda and Trauma Centre to be packaged in. If they are, I would definitely buy it without hesitation. Two great games for S$100 and S$400 (roughly US$250) for the console! One rumour in the forums claim that Maxsoft is no longer the local distributor for Nintendo products. I find it hard to believe though. At the bottom of the "rumours" post at GameAxis.com, the author stated that "these stuffs are still very much what they are: rumors. So take it with a very slight pinch of salt. We hope you get that hint." It's quite obvious that this information is probably from an employee within the local distributor. If Maxsoft wasn't distributing anymore, that post would have probably talked about that rumour. I think these rumours are probably unfinalized product launch information. I'm hoping rumour 1 and 2 holds true, and that we will be getting launch information really soon. If there isn't any more info within the next few days, I'm gonna have to rely on Ivan for a US Wii console.

Wii Report 3: Games

I'm feeling lazy today, so I'll just start off with a list of launch window games (games that would be released between 19 Nov to 31 Dec).

Nintendo
Excite Truck
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Wii Sports (bundled with the Wii console)

Activision
Call of Duty 3
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Rapala Tournament Fishing
Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam
World Series of Poker

Atari
Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2

Atlus
Trauma Center: Second Opinion

EA
Madden NFL 07
Need for Speed Carbon

Konami
Elebits

Midway
The Ant Bully
The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy
Happy Feet
Rampage: Total Destruction

Sega
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz

SNK
Metal Slug Anthology

Tecmo
Super Swing Golf

THQ
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Barnyard
Cars
SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature From the Krusty Krab

Ubisoft
Far Cry: Vengeance
GT Pro Series
Monster 4x4: World Circuit
Open Season
Rayman Raving Rabbids
Red Steel
Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent

Vivendi Games
Ice Age 2: The Meltdown


And the Virtual Console games:

NES
Mario Bros.
The Legend of Zelda
Donkey Kong
Donkey Kong Jr.
Ice Hockey
Pinball
Soccer
Tennis
Urban Champion
Wario's Woods
Baseball
Solomon's Key

SNES
F-Zero
SimCity

Nintendo 64
Super Mario 64

Sega Genesis
Sonic the Hedgehog
Altered Beast
Golden Axe
Columns
Ecco the Dolphin
Gunstar Heroes
Space Harrier II
Toe Jam & Earl
Ristar
Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine

TurboGrafx-16
Bonk's Adventure
Super Star Soldier
Victory Run
Bomberman '93
Dungeon Explorer


The list of games is HUGE and covers a whole array of game genres (except maybe traditional RPG).

For a list of game reviews, click here.

That's all for now. Check back tomorrow for information on obtaining a Wii.

Wii Report 2

At 157mm x 215.4mm x 44mm, the Wii is tiny.

Here are the technical specs for the Wii (courtesy of IGN.com) :
729 MHz IBM PowerPC "Broadway" CPU
243 MHz ATI "Hollywood" GPU
24MBs "main" 1T-SRAM
64MBs other 1T-SRAM
512MBs internal flash memory
3MBs texture memory on GPU
Built-in 802.11b/g Wi-Fi capability
One SD memory card bay
AV multi-port: S-video, composite, component
Analog (left/right) audio / DPLII
Four GameCube controller ports
Two GameCube Memory Pak slots
Two USB 2.0 ports
Compatible with up to four wireless Wii-motes
Self-loading media drive
Accepts 12cm Wii and 8cm GCN discs; no DVD movies

Rumours have been flying around that Nintendo will release a DVD playback capable console sometime next year. I don't see the need for that though. Most of us already have DVD players at home. Moreover, people are more interested in the High definition format wars.

As you can see, Nintendo is providing great support for Gamecube owners. Though its backward compatibility has not been thoroughly tested, there isn't much doubt that it should play all Gamecube titles.

The Wii's small amount of flash memory is only good for saving games. I guess most of us would have to purchase a SD card in order to store most of the virtual console games. Hopefully Nintendo would, through a firmware update, allow us to connect any USB portable harddisk to the Wii (only 2% chance of happening though)!

Don't belittle this console's seemingly lousy specs. Some launch titles have already proven that this little one is more capable than the original Xbox (though it can never ever hope to compare to current-gen HD gaming consoles). As Nintendo said, it's not about the graphics, it's all about the games. Look out for my next post tomorrow for a in-depth analysis of the launch window titles and games in development.

Wii Report 1

So the Nintendo Wii has launched in America. Now what?

For the next few days or so, I will compile a report on all that is known about Nintendo's new console and also some information for those in Singapore who wish to buy it. All of these posts would be labeled "Wii Report", so just click on the link at the end of this entry to view all related posts.

In this first report, I will only cover some basic questions about the Wii.


Firstly, what the hell is a Wii??? It's Nintendo's latest console in this current-gen console war. It's small, cheap (US$250) and filled with fun. Created with non-gamers in mind, Nintendo set out to create a product that would be family-orientated and easy to pick up and play. They did this by creating a compact, quiet console that does not consume a lot of power and presenting the controls on a remote that fans affectionately call, the Wii-mote.

This motion-sensing controller paved the way for more intuitive games that doesn't require complex button presses. Who can't forget the overly-excited kid that tilts the controller whenever he has to make a sharp turn in a racing game. Now, this action of tilting actually turns the vehicle. Nintendo has successfully made a controller that is so simple to use, even little kids can pull off a nice sharp turn in Excite Truck. Together with the Nunchuk extension, the control scheme of the Wii is made to appeal to a large range of audience.

Of course, not all games would require you sweat it out as you swing and thrust you Wii-mote to victory. The developers for the Wii version of Super Smash Brother said that it might not make use of the Wii controller's motion-sensing technology at all within the game. Metal Slug for the Wii has 7 different control schemes, ranging from ones that make use of the Nunchuk or Wii-mote exclusively, to ones that requires only button presses. Virtual Console games (NES, SNES, SEGA Genesis etc) require the use of the classic control scheme too. Gamecube users can plug in their Gamecube controllers for such games.

OK. That's it for the basics. Check back later tonight for technical specs and games!