Two new additions to Wii’s online Shop Channel marks the beginning of this week. The new games include one Virtual Console title and a single original WiiWare downloadable game.

The WiiWare game is Magnetica Twist, a puzzle game which has players shoot marbles using a Mii to match colors and wipe them out before they reach the end of the track. It is compatible with the Wii Remote controller and features motion-sensitive controls. Designed for play by up to four players, the game costs 1000 Wii points.

This week’s retro title is a big one: Fatal Fury 2 (Neo-Geo). Released back in 1992, the game is the second installment in the long running fighting-game series. It features eight characters, stage-specific hazards, and the ability to perform desperation attacks when a character’s strength is low. All this can be had for 900 Wii points.

Mega Man fans can look forward to Mega Man 9 on WiiWare soon, according to a confirmation from Capcom to Joystiq. The game was unveiled in scans posted by fan site The Mega Man Community, with the scanned article revealing the game to be styled in the classic 8-bit graphical style; music and cinematic cut-scenes will be similarly stylized.

The article then goes on to reveal that the game will feature various bosses including Magma Man, Plug Man and Galaxy Man. It will of course make use of the Wii Remote, employing motion-sensitive controls.

The game is in development at Inti Creates, a studio formed by ex-Capcom employees in 1996. No release date or price point were revealed, though WiiWare titles usually retail for around 1500 Wii points.

Yesterday saw the addition of three new titles to the Wii’s online Shop Channel, offering one original title and two downloadable Virtual Console classics.

The only original game is Gyrostarr, an action game developed by High Voltage Software. Retailing for 700 Wii points, the game lets up to four players command ships through a series of “twisting, turning technoplasma” tracks while battling aliens. Ships can be enhanced, and there are pickups, high-speed bonus levels and more.

The Virtual Console store sees the addition of Alex Kidd, a platformer from the 1980s for the Sega Master System. Available for 500 Wii points, the game has players looking for their lost brother Egle, fighting the evil boss’s henchmen along the way. It’s no regular fighting, though, as players will have to challenge the bad guys to the classic game of “rock, paper, scissors” to defeat them.

Burning Fight, a side-scrolling hand-to-hand combat game, is the last addition. For 900 Wii points, you can beat up bad guys using “devastating lethal techniques,” if that’s any consolation for you. Players can obviously team up to kick even more ass.

The Wii has fairly accurately simulated sports like golf and bowling, and one of the newest sports to be put on the Wii is beer pong. For any unfamiliar it involves teams, most often just pairs, tossing ping pong balls into the opposing team’s cups. Each cup that gets a ball thrown into it is then removed, and the first team with no cups left over loses. It originally found popularity in college dorm rooms and frat houses, but the game can now be seen in bars and tournaments in Las Vegas.

The WiiWare game received a somewhat surprising 13+ rating and has raised eyebrows and tempers. Gen. Arthur T. Dean, who heads the Washington, D.C.-based Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America voiced concerns over the dangers of beerpong and the fact that even most college students aren’t of legal drinking age. While I would strongly agree that something needs to be done to curb binge drinking amongst college and high school students, attacking the games they play isn’t really the answer.

Three new additions to the Wii Shop Channel marks the beginning of this week, offering one new title and two classics.

WiiWare sees the release of Nintendo’s My Pokemon Ranch, which features a “relaxing ranch life” that allows users to observe the interactions between Pokemon and Miis. It can be linked up with Pokemon Diamond and Pearl (DS) to populate the farm with up to 1,000 pocket monsters. The ranch can be bought for 1000 Wii points ($10).

The first Virtual Console title is the classic NES game Dig Dug which has players pop enemies like balloons. Quite contrarily, the other game, Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa, has players inflating enemies to ride and bounce from.

Both games will sell for 600 Wii points ($6).

Well readers, it’s Monday morning which means a whole slew of updates are in store for the upcoming week.

First up is Nintendo’s WiiWare service, getting two new titles Toki Tori and Protöthea. Both priced at 1,000 Wii Points you can read about the new titles in a snippet, courtesy of Joystiq, below:

Toki Tori (Two Tribes, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Well, it’s WiiWare’s fourth week, and we’re finally getting our first remake of a Game Boy Color game (confidence get!). In this puzzle/platformer, you’ll collect eggs using zany items across 70 levels. A second player can join in by “drawing hints while you are playing.” We hope this picture of an oversized penis helps you, partner, because that’s what you’re getting.

Protöthea (UbiSoft, 1 player, 1,000 Wii Points): Protöthea (as you can see here) is a top-down scrolling shooter from UbiSoft. In an effort to find more to say about it, the official Nintendo press release notes it “introduces new concepts to a beloved, classic game style while mixing genres and utilizing the full capabilities of the Wii console, from graphics to controls.” What does that mean, exactly? We have no idea.

Nintendo continues its weekly tradition of updating the Virtual Console service by adding two new retro games as well as two WiiWare titles.

The first WiiWare title this week is Dr. Mario Online Rx, a game where Mario takes on the role of a doctor to exterminate evil viruses and their ilk. There are two battle modes and an online multiplayer mode alongside four-player cooperative. Family Table Tennis is the second game, which, as the name suggests, offers tennis gameplay for the whole family. There are various stages and characters to choose from to play in Single or Versus mode, as well as three mini-games.

The abovementioned WiiWare games are going for 1000 and 500 Wii points, respectively.

City Connection, a classic NES title, is this week’s first retro game on the service. Selling for 500 Wii points, the game has players driving around cities while evading the police, cats and other such dangers. The second game is Metal Slug, the original NEOGEO game, for 900 Wii points. This side-scrolling action game surely needs no introduction, however, this version maintains the original’s content as well as an extra character.

Check back next week for more additions!

Having launches the WiiWare service last week, Nintendo today added two new original games and one retro release to the Wii’s Shop Channel.

First up is Konami’s Critter Round-up, which has up to four players trying to herd barnyard animals. The game will cost 1000 Wii points. The second game is Hudson’s Star Soldier R that tests players’ skills in 2 or 5 minute increments, or through the Quick Shot mode. It can be bought for 800 Wii points.

This week’s lone retro release is Skykid, Namco’s NES bomb-dropping shooter. It will let players experience the rivalry between Red Baron and Blue Max for 500 Wii points.

With the WiiWare in service, Oxygen Interactive has announced Pirates: The Key of Dreams, an upcoming WiiWare title that offers players the chance to sail their way across the Caribbean, looting booty, running blockades and ultimately battling Blackbeard himself.

The player is charged with control of a Navy captain sent deep undercover as a pirate to seek out and retrieve the Key of Dreams, a valuable artifact. The game will have various weapons and three forms of controls including the Wii Remote, Nunchuk and Classic Control.

There will be over 35 levels and multiplayer support. It will be released later this year.

While this isn’t exactly exciting news for those of us living outside of Nintendo’s homeland, it has recently been announced that Yakuman Wii: Ide Yosuke no Kenjou Mahjong will hit Nintendo’s WiiWare next Tuesday.

Not much more than your run of the mill Mahjong game, Yakuman Wii: Ide Yosuke no Kenjou Mahjong will feature an online mode, along with singleplayer, in which players will be able to utilize their Miis. Also featuring Mahjong mastermind, Yosuke Ide, who will give various tips as players progress through the single player mode.

Yakuman Wii: Ide Yosuke no Kenjou Mahjong will hit Japan’s WiiWare next Tuesday for 1000 Points. Unfortunately, it isn’t likely that the rest of the world will ever see this title.

Nintendo’s exciting WiiWare service has launched in Europe, following the service going live in Japan and North America. The WiiWare service is a lot like Xbox Live Arcade, allowing developers to create Wii games that are smaller in scope and much more accessible for gamers; they are cheaper, too.

As with full-fledged Wii games, titles on WiiWare can make use of the Wii Remote and Nunchuk as well as other system resources, allowing for the trademark motion-sensitive Wii gaming.

Laurent Fischer, Managing Director of Marketing & PR of Nintendo of Europe comments, “We are excited by the positive response we have received from third party developers to the announcement of WiiWare. We hope that this opportunity and the inspiration to produce original and exciting games will allow developers of all sizes to bring new concepts, genres and game play experiences to Wii. Opening this creative door will also provide Wii users access to a huge choice of games that they can easily download and enjoy.”

Europeans will be able to download most games from the Wii Shop Channel for 500 Wii points. Some of the launch titles are Dr. Mario & Germ Buster, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles, Pirates, Pop, Star Soldier R, Toki Tori and TV Show King.

That certainly didn’t take long, only released yesterday, word has already leaked about a LostWinds sequel in development. Although we will have to hold off judgement until sales numbers drop to see how the product actually did, the developers seem pretty confident.

How do we know a sequel is in the work, well Frontier Studios is being forthcoming about a “… forthcoming LostWinds sequel containing amazing new gameplay as Toku and Enril’s incredible adventure to save Mistralis continues.”

If you want to join the mailing list for further details, check out the developers site to sign on.

While all that care probably already know, but for the rest of you Nintendo’s new service WiiWare has officially gone live today. If you’re still clueless as to what this new service is, just think of it as the Wii’s version of the Xbox Live Arcade or PSN.

Unfortunately for you retro gamers out there, in lieu of WiiWare’s new launch, there will be no virtual console updates for this week. Anyways, thanks to Joystiq we have a list of all of WiiWare’s launch titles that you will find when you first log onto the service:

- Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King (Square Enix, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone Mild Fantasy Violence, Mild Suggestive Themes, 1,500 Wii Points): FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES: My Life as a King takes a legendary franchise and launches it into the realm of simulation gaming. Players are challenged to rebuild a kingdom, leading its young king on a path of discovery through an adventure bristling with mystery and intrigue.
- LostWinds (Frontier Development, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone – Mild Fantasy Violence, 1,000 Wii Points): A fresh, enchanting platform adventure that puts the power of the wind in the palm of your hand – from raging tornados to the gentlest breeze. You’ll wield your Wii Remote™ controller to power Toku’s jumps and glides, suspend and smash enemies, meet friends and solve puzzles using LostWinds’ novel, intuitive and playful control system.
- Defend your Castle (XGen Studios, 1-4 players, Rated E for Everyone – Cartoon Violence, 500 Wii Points): Defend your Castle takes place on a grassy plain surrounded by invaders. You are the commander of your castle, and it is your duty to fling the invading enemies sky-high, watching them plummet to their demise. As you progress, add powerful spells and upgrades to your arsenal for repelling the attacks. How long can you hold them off?
- Pop (Nnooo, 1-4 players, Rated E for Everyone, 700 Wii Points): Pop bubbles to score points and stop the timer from running out. Pop can be enjoyed by anyone – casual gamers can simply play to pop bubbles and keep the game moving, whereas advanced players will need to pick their shots rapidly and accurately and generate combos to maximize their score.
- V.I.P. Casino: Blackjack (High Voltage Software®, Inc., 1-4 players, Rated T for Teen – Simulated Gambling, 700 Wii Points): V.I.P. Casino: Blackjack re-creates the casino experience, with fully animated players and a realistic Las Vegas dealer. Single players can increase their bankrolls, while multiple players can engage in a head-to-head mini-blackjack tournament.
- TV Show King (Gameloft, 1-4 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): TV Show King transforms your living room into a real TV quiz show studio where you’ll face the challenge of answering more than 3,000 questions across six different categories. Compete against family and friends and use your Wii Remote controller in original ways to make it to the finals to see who can win the greatest amount of cash in one final, deciding duel.

Gamers of yesteryear are sure to remember the Mario branded puzzle game, Dr. Mario, which we first saw on the SNES and then again on its successor the N64. Well, Dr. Mario is back, this time as a 1000 Point WiiWare title that is expected to coincide with WiiWare’s North American launch on May 12th.

Previously thought to be titled either Dr. Mario’s Virus Buster or Dr. Mario & Bacteria Extermination, Dr. Mario Online Rx will give players the chance to revisit the almost forgotten series in the classic game play, color coordinating capsules to progress through different stages.

New to the series though, is multiplayer gameplay over Nintendo’s WFC which will allow players to go head-to-head online. Again, Dr Mario Online Rx is excepted to hit Nintendo’s WiiWare on May 12th for a slightly hefty 1000 Points.

Want to know what games will be available next week on WiiWare? Well a part from assembling select titles that 3rd party publishers have confirmed for release, the rest of the list remains a complete mystery.

Reggie has already gone on record that they want to spread things out a bit more then the flood and sudden drought that was the Japanese release. But in speaking with Nintendo, Game|Life confirmed WiiWare would be handled in the exact same manner as the virtual console, absolutely secrecy.

With Ubisoft pulling back the curtain on a title releasing just next week, there is no saying how many titles wait hidden in the wings, but we certainly can’t expect any help from Nintendo on that topic.

Ubisoft has promised to avoid crappy ports, but they aren’t avoiding ports altogether with their first WiiWare effort just announced that will actually join the service when it launches next week.

For a price of 1000 WiiWare points, or 10 dollars, you can get your hands on a copy of Protothea, which is a remake of the 2005 PC game designed with the with in mind.

The team behind the project has rounded it out with 3 additional missions of the original project, a new fully 3D look and naturally sporting Wii controls. You’ll actually be using both the Wii remote with IR and nunchuk to control the game.

Ubisoft has proven in the past to be a master of capitalizing on the Wii’s launch and with Protothea it appears WiiWare launch will certainly be no exception. Although hopefully it falls on the Raving Rabbids end of the scale, rather than Red Steel.

People are proud of eating, and it shows. Mastiff proudly notes that “ingestion history” has been made on April 11, when professional eater, Tim ‘Eater X’ Janus, set the world sushi eating record with 141 pieces of sushi eaten in six minutes at a San Fransisco press event to preview the upcoming WiIWare game Major League Eating: The Game.

Yes, disgusting as it may sound, there is indeed a competitive eating circuit, and yes, there’s a game coming out, too. It will make its debut on the downloadable game service for the Wii which launches May 12 in North America. The game will have gamers play as any one of 10 MLE “athletes” and duke it out against the CPU or another friend. As expected, it will have multiplayer support and over 12 different foods.

I cannot write more about the game, though, if you are interested, check out its official website.

P.S. I feel sorry for those who had to witness such an atrocity at the press event.

Food addicts listen up! Publisher Mastiff has awarded 16 lucky gamers each a $15 certificate for pizza during the first two weeks of its Major League Eating: The Game “Food of the Week” contest. Additionally, this week the company will be handing out eight more $15 gift certificates for burgers to gamers who have registered for it on the game’s official website. They point out that a “damn good burger” can be had for the amount. Below are the winners, who will be adding much fat to their bodies thanks to Mastiff.

Week One
Lily P. - San Jose, Calif.
Marcos S. - Dix Hills, N.Y.
Caesar M. - Sylmar, Calif.
Michael B. - Cheektowaga, N.Y.
Jeremy M. - Pensacola, Fla.
Max H. - San Diego, Calif.
Brandy S. - Muncie, Ind.
Cody B. - Dorr, Mich.

Week Two
Cristian B. - Winter Haven, Fla.
Jason V. - Newport, Ore.
Hallie L. - Woodland Park, Colo.
Alexander M. - San Diego, Calif.
Gesnele P. - Roxbury, Mass.
Paul D. - Long Beach, Calif.
Rob M. - Marysville, Wash.
Hillary M. - Northbrook, Ill.

The MLE game is being built for WiiWare, having gamers fight to eat more… and disgust the opponent by burping, biting and belching, among other things.

WiiWare won’t be the only addition to the Nintendo Wii on May 12th, as Nintendo of America has announced that the Nintendo Channel will also be available on the same day. The service has been available since last year in Japan. The channel will allow players to read reviews of software titles, as well as review titles themselves. Trailers and developer interviews will also be included. Players can also download Nintendo DS demos directly from their Wii.

Read (Wired)

With the WiiWare just a few weeks away, Konami has announced plans to bring the first of several titles for the service to North America. First up is Critter Round-Up, also known as Saku Saku Animal Panic in Japan, that will hit the service as a launch title.

In development at Los Angeles, CA-based Epicenter Studios, Critter Round-Up is a puzzle game for up to four players. Players are tasked with building fences to separate different critter species into their own area, all the while avoiding predators and other mischievous animals attempting to stop the player. There will be five environments encompassing 50 levels, with gameplay modes including co-op Adventure Mode as well as special co-op challenges for up to four players.

Konami also announced future WiiWare titles including Crescendo and Fresco Beach, both of which are arcade titles.