The Great Virtual Console Switcheroo

As pointed out by Wired, over the past week or so, a number of publishers made announcements regarding today's Virtual Console lineup. Capcom said we'd get Mega Man 1, SNK said we'd get Samurai Shodown II and Hudson said we'd be getting Ys Book I & II. Instead, we got the shitty Master System version of Sonic and Splatterhouse. Not the worst update, sure, but nowhere near as awesome as the one we were promised. So what gives? Nintendo say:

A number of variables can affect a game’s release date. Therefore, the Wii-kly Update is the only authority for confirmed release dates of Virtual Console games.

Thanks for the surprise! Here's a hint: when the publishers themselves announce a release date, and you go and yank it, it's not a surprise. It's a disappointment.

Nintendo releases statement concerning Virtual Console release dates [Go Nintendo]

Iwata: Wii Motion Plus Will Be Cheap

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Nintendo head Satoru Iwata says that while there will indeed be games that hit the Wii in the future that require the upcoming Wii Motion Plus accessory, Nintendo hopes to make the add-on as inexpensive as possible.

There will be games that will be enhanced by the Wii Motion Plus as well as games that can only be played with it. Users will need four if they have four controllers, but we're going to try to offer it for as little as possible. We haven't announced the price yet, but the cost of making the Wii Motion Plus is not that much, so I think we can make it very affordable.

Iwata also says that, despite my theory on accessories and the Wii, Nintendo doesn't plan to release a whole lot more for their console.

Iwata also goes on to talk about their next console.

There it is (full size after the jump), according to VGChartz.com. (Thanks to eagle-eyed reader LoadedStatement). One of the site's members did a SKU inquiry on the 360 and got that screen, which shows the $199 price taking effect Sept. 7.

This apparently shows the SKU for the no-hard drive Arcade model. Other cuts are said to be coming for the Pro (60GB, $299) and Elite (120GB, $399), a development first reported by Ars Technica.

VGChartz follows the pic with a detailed analysis of what the new price points could mean for Microsoft, and the timing behind the price change. An excerpt:

The scheduling of the drop is telling as well. It takes place 1 week after Square Enix's 'Infinite Undiscovery' and 2 weeks before Harmonix/EA's 'Rock Band 2' - both exclusive to the Xbox 360 platform at the time of release and pricedrop (obviously, Rock Band 2 will ship in November for the other platforms).

The writer also peers into a crystal ball of sorts to guess at the production costs of the 360. Conclusion, down from $525 at launch to $140.15 to $182.19 today.

VGC Exclusive: Xbox 360 to Cut Arcade Prices to $199.99 on Sept. 7th [VGChartz.com, thanks Loaded Statement]

Wii Downloadables - Catching Up To Beer Pong

With all of the E3 madness over the last two weeks, we've been sadly neglecting the Wii Virtual Console and WiiWare updates, and without us telling you what was added, how were you to know? Turning on your system? Screw that. You read Kotaku so you don't have to turn on your system. Let's catch up on what we've missed, shall we?

On the WiiWare side of things, not too much to report. July 14th saw the addition of Mastiff's Major League Eating: The Game (1,000 points), the update on the 21st added nautical shoot-em-up Pirates: The Key of Dreams (1,000 points), and today we're treated to Pong Toss — Frat Party Games (800 points), the newly renamed Beer Pong. Joy. Seeing as this is the last Monday in July, where is Strong Bad? Inquiring minds want to know.

Meanwhile, on the virtual console, Nintendo has added Donkey Kong 3 (NES 500 points), Ninja Commando (NEOGEO 900 points), Sega Genesis games Gley Lancer and Super Fantasy Zone (900 points), and today gets Art of Fighting 2 (NEOGEO 900) and Chase H.Q. (TGFX16 600 points). There, all caught up! Now to go bug the hell out of Telltale until I get me some Strong Bad.

Ngamer has rolled out Scatfest 2008 — "a celebration of all things shonky and cheap" — with reviews of eight titles that Nintendo gamers here can all smugly and securely say, no goddamn way did we ever play, much less buy, these turds. They're all bargain-binners, and come on, who the hell shops there (/stashes copy of Driv3r).

Leading the list, unsurprisingly, is Jumper, whose own trailer made it look like a pile of self-regarding dung. So a game adaptation, that'd be like dining on the turd of a turd. Others include Cruis'n, Orbs of Doom, Kawasaki Jet Ski, Monster Trux Arenas, Action Girlz Racing, Myth Makers Super Kart GP and Kidz Sports Ice Hockey. They're all designed to fool clueless aunts and relatives into thinking that's the cool game all the kids want, and giving it to you for your birthday, a development strategy pioneered strategy by Hollywood.

"There are plenty of more worthwhile things to push your finger against. Rusty thumb tacks, for example," Ngamer writes. Quite.

Scatfest 2008 [NGamer]

David Reeves - We All Have Very Sharp Swords

Man, Sony Computer Entertainment Europe boss David Reeves is an analogy machine! In a recent interview with Eurogamer, he put his powers to task in summing up the current state of the console war.

"I prefer to talk about the fact that, yeah, we're competitors, but the competition really has made people so much sharper, and if I can use this analogy, if you're fighting in a war that's, say, Boeing versus Airbus, it's almost like battleship against battleship and you're fighting from 15 miles away; if you're fighting in the car war, it might be that you're fighting in tanks and you're one kilometre away; in the videogame industry, if there's a war, if there's competition, it's almost like hand-to-hand fighting, but it makes you sharper. You want to have a sharper sword, you want to have a sword that feels just about right, and everyone is very sharp, and what they're doing is they're looking for high ground, low ground where they can get an advantage."

So the console industry is like melee combat with swords...or is it like shoes?

Monday Wii Update: Magnetica And Fatal Fury 2

Today's weekly Wii update brings us one from column A, one from column B, and a side of downloadable content for Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life As A King. What downloadable content? Well the press release doesn't say, and my Wii is erroring out connecting to the network, so find out for yourselves! It'll be a grand adventure!

On the WiiWare side we have Magnetica (1,000 points), the DS marbles-in-a-track puzzler redone for the console crowd. It includes 4-player multiplayer and the ability to have your very own Mii launching the marbles. Joy!

This week the Virtual Console library gets padding with Fatal Fury 2 for the NEOGEO (900 points), which introduced five new fighters to the series (including Chesty Mai) and featured the ability to smack your opponent back to another line.

A nice pair, but I got my fill of Magnetica on the DS and Mark of the Wolves ruined me for older Fatal Fury titles forever, so my limited Wii storage space is safe for another week.

PSP, WiiWare, XB Originals Masking The Cracks In Online Offerings?

Why Aren't There More Console MMOs?

Lord of the Rings Online and Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach developers Turbine recently received a $40 million cash infusion from Time Warner that they announced would go in part towards expanding the platforms they support. MMORPG.com has posted an interview with Turbine CEO Jim Crowley in which he further details the company's multi-platform plans, hinting that one or both of their existing titles will be heading to game consoles in the future.

"First, he told me that Turbine is investigating the world of cross-platform games, meaning consoles. “These worlds are so rich and robust, we do want them to be shared across platforms, both for existing and future worlds,” Crowley said. We should expect more details on the how and when “later on in the year”. He did make a point of clarifying that Turbine will remain dedicated to the PC, but want to make sure that people who want to enjoy the games (present and future) on the console will be able to do that."

So console MMOs are definitely in the cards for the company, and judging from a job listing posted over at Joystiq this morning, both the Xbox 360 and PS3 are in the running, but which games are making the move?

ESRB Watch: SNK Gets Fightin' Mad With Wii Virtual Console Releases

The Entertainment Software Ratings Board has issued new rulings on a slew of still unconfirmed titles, giving us a look at what's next for the Wii's Virtual Console. The list is very SNK heavy, as Art of Fighting 2, Fatal Fury 2, Samurai Shodown and Burning Fight all are planned as Wii releases. That's a lot of 2D fighting.

Dig Dug, presumably the NES version, is also coming to the Wii.

In addition, PlayStation 3 ratings for The Last Guy and WipEout HD have appeared, hopefully a good indication that both will be hitting the PlayStation Network soon. Finally, Freddi Fish: Kelp Seed Mystery is apparently a video game about a fish who's also a detective. Who knew fish were so smart?! I think we've all learned a lot today.

Still toying with what exactly to call the newly evolved weekly Virtual Console update now that it is becoming more and more WiiWare-centric, which involves finding some common ground between the two formats. Since I've run out of memory space on my Wii, I think the title I've chosen this week is rather apropos.

On the WiiWare front we've got the puzzle platforming goodness of Two Tribes' Toki Tori (1,000 points), which features more than 70 levels of gameplay involving gadgets and chickens. For those of you who'd rather solve your problems with guns, this week also sees the release of Ubisoft's scrolling shooter Protöthea (1,000 points), with 10 missions spanning four unique worlds.

For those of us who like our games older (like our women), the Virtual Console receives the NEOGEO classic Ninja Combat (900 points), which stars ninjas Joe and Hayabusa along with a group of unlocked ninja pals to help you fight your way through the evil forces of the Kage Ichizoku.

Ninja, spaceships, and chickens. It doesn't get any better than this.

Analyst: Wii To Lead Hardware, PS3 To Lead Software By 2012

The Wii is set to break console sales records in 2008, says analyst group DFC Intelligence - but the PlayStation 3 will beat the Wii's software sales by 2012.

Worldwide console sales can pass the $180 million benchmark by 2011 even in an economic slowdown, said the analyst group, since high gas prices encourage people to entertain themselves at home. While the report sees Wii as the likely overall install base leader, it is critical of Microsoft, stating that "for the 80 percent-plus of game consumers that do not play FPS games, the Xbox 360 is not the system of choice."

The sales performance of the PlayStation 3 has been less than stellar, but Sony has survived. The Xbox 360 was unable to take advantage of Sony’s struggles to build the type of large lead needed to maintain a long-term advantage. The PS3 survived the onslaught of AAA Xbox 360 titles that hit the market from late 2006 through 2007.

Halo 3 had great sales, but it did very little to enhance the Xbox 360’s overall position in the marketplace.

Full report and more stats than you can shake a Wii remote at:

More Japan Only Games Coming To American Virtual Console

The ESRB spilled the beans on more than just ASH - Archaic Sealed Heat today, as a bunch of new Virtual Console candidates were given ratings for the Wii. A duo originally released only in Japan, Sega/NCS's side-scrolling, Mega Drive-era shooter Gley Lancer and Konami's Famicom platformer Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa have been cleared for North American release, nabbing E10+ and E ratings, respectively.

In addition to those Hanabi Festival-caliber releases, Sega's platformer Alex Kid in Miracle World for the Sega Master System and Jaleco's City Connection for the NES were also rated as Wii VC candidates. In other words, everything you've been asking for from day one!

Shane Kim Resets Console War Winner To 100 Million

Shane Kim is ready to call the console war. Just as soon as someone sells another 90 million consoles, that is. In a recent interview with Wired's Game|Life, the Corporate Vice President of Microsoft Game Studios says that it's too early to declare a winner, despite colleague Don Mattrick chirping up recently to point out console sales precedents that say otherwise.

We're thankful that Mr. Kim has moved the goal posts, as we had resolved ourselves to the fact that the whole conflict between multi-billion dollar corporations was already over. Thankfully, we have something to look forward to. Shane's lithe dodging of Game|Life's questions about motion sensing controllers for the Xbox 360 and future Rare titles are equally rewarding. Don't miss it.

Microsoft's Shane Kim: First to 100 Million Wins [Game|Life]

Consoles Are Dead, Long Live the PC?

Wild Tangent's CEO, Alex St. John, made some 'brazen' claims at the ION keynote — one of the boldest being that console gaming is dead and the PC is looking towards a renaissance. It should be noted that St. John has blabbered about this before, so he's just retreading previous ground:

Beginning one of several brazen claims in his keynote, St. John spoke of the death of video game consoles: “Nobody needs a console when a game's value and DRM is defined by community or an input device. Consoles just serve to keep you from playing a game you didn't pay for.”

He asked, “What's Sony and Microsoft's motivation to make another console? It's been so rocky, and it's not about the pretty graphics anymore.” According to St. John, spectacular graphics have become a commodity, and not the platform for games to differentiate themselves. “The Wii is the exception that proves the rule — it's not about the graphics, it's about the input device.

He went on to talk about advertising models and targeting the right audience — but his statements on the console vs. PC pack the most punch.

WildTangent's St. John Declares Consoles Dead, Claims PC Renaissance [Gamasutra]

Wii Dominates April, PS3 & Xbox 360 In Dead Heat On GTA IV Sales

Nintendo had an amazing April, pushing over 700,000 Wiis in the United States. That's a massive difference from its "current gen high definition console" competition, as the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 were neck and neck, only a thousand units difference between the two. If you were expecting a big boost from Grand Theft Auto IV's release, you're going to leave disappointed. Maybe next month. Nintendo's other platform, the DS continued to impress, more than doubling sales of the PSP.

• Wii - 714,200
• Nintendo DS - 414,800
• PSP - 192,000
• Xbox 360 - 188,000
• PlayStation 3 - 187,100
• PlayStation 2 - 124,400

Microsoft: Oops, We Forgot About The Wii In Worldwide Sales

Microsoft totally won the race to 10 million in the U.S. That's for damn sure. But worldwide? They're not exactly the leader in the "current-generation console" race, at least not if you include the Wii as a "current-generation console." They may have an impressive Xbox Live user base, but 19 million Xbox 360s sold does not a current gen leader make.

When contacted for clarification about the 360's numbers versus the Wii's—which stood at 24.5 million worldwide as of March 31, according to Nintendo financials—Microsoft reps told us that "Xbox 360 has the largest global install base of any current gen high definition gaming console." That emphasis? Mine. They also apologized for any confusion this may have caused.

Hey, it happens. Even I forget I have a Wii sometimes and it's right there, mere feet from my face.