OK, so this doen't make a whole lot of sense. The Wii and DS already have wireless built-in, so why would this device be needed? The only thing I can think of would be to make accessing a wireless network with your Nintendo product easier--not that it's incredibly difficult currently.

Currently this is being planned for release in Japan only.

No voice chat support, so no trash talking to your mates across the world. You will still have the option of text chat before and after races, so be ready for many OMGWTFBBQs from players all over the globe.

Oh, come on now, Nintendo! I think it's time for Nintendo to enter 2008 (maybe even 1998) and get some real gamer-to-gamer communication in their games.

Won't someone think of the children? Apparently, Nintendo has, but I think they've taken it to the extreme.

Thanks, JoyStiq!

Wii FIt has been priced At £69.99 in the UK and EUR 89.99 across Europe.

The game and balance board will be first sold in Europe on April 25th.

Thanks, IGN!

5) Super Paper Mario. A bit of a deviation from the last Paper Mario in the series, it removed some of the RPG aspects of the game and replaced it with more conventional hop-n-bop 2-D platforming action. The engaging (but at time lengthy) dialog remains as goofy as ever, and Mario still never pops up any text boxes of his own. This time around, you will have several other Mario characters added to your party as you continue on your journey. In addition to these other "standard" Mario characters, you will also be able to utilize some other characters, creatively named Pixils. These little sprites will help you along your journey by helping you perform various non-human (non-paper?) feats, such as shrinking to a minuscule size, or grabbing your enemies and tossing them at other enemies. In addition, Mario now has the ability to flip the normal 2 dimensions into 3 dimensions, allowing Mario to walk into the background, or see hidden items. All of these capabilities, as well as the other party character's capabilities, allow you to solve puzzles and eventually save the world.


4) Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros' Treasure. The sleeper hit of the year! This game is different than most any console-based game I've played in the last several years. It is a descendant of the old text-based adventure games of yore (anyone remember Adventureland on the Vic-20?), and Sierra's point and click games, such as King's Quest or Leisure Suit Larry. This time around, you will be using the Wii Remote as your mouse pointer to find buried treasure and to utilize objects in a variety of ways. The Wii Remote allows you to rotate objects, and use them in other realistic ways, such as pounding a hammer or using a magnifying glass (which you create) to focus light. This game features a young pirate named Zack, and his flying monkey companion, Wiki (who happens to be able to turn into a ringing bell in order to scare away evil spirits). Sound strange? It is at times, but the game play more than makes up for the utter surrealism that abounds at every turn. Don't be fooled by the cartoonish graphics, this game will consume your puzzle solving brain cells.


3) The Legend of Zelda - Twilight Princess. A beautiful game and one of the launch titles for the Wii. I consider this game to be a direct descendant of Ocarina of Time, arguably the best Legend of Zelda game, and also arguably the best game for the (much less successful than the Wii) Nintendo 64. You will find many of the same characters you ran into during Ocarina of Time, but the game takes other cues from other Zelda games as well. The graphics have been changed from the Cel-shaded masterpiece that was Wind-Waker, into something a bit more realistic looking. You'ff find the same-as-always excellent mind-bending puzzles, as well as a fantastic amount of swordplay. Epona makes a comeback as your method of quick-traveling, and a strange new companion named Midna will accompany you on your Journey to save Hyrule. My first play through was somewhere in the range of 40-50 hours, and I've been thinking of making another go at it from the beginning (damn you Super Mario Galaxy). My wife considers this her favorite game, and I definitely recommend it.


2) Metroid Prime Corruption. The supposed third and final installment of the Prime series brings Samus Aran to not just one planet, this time she will face baddies in several environments on different planets. The great thing about this newfound planet hopping capability is that you now get limited control of Samus' ship (affectionately called the Gunship), not only to fly from one place to another, but to also to perform specific tasks for you. By using Samus' communication device built into her suit, you can control your ship from afar, allowing you to order it to terminate your enemies, as well as destroying barriers, or, in one part of the game, assemble a nuclear weapon. The game is a little bit different than the the first two Metroid Primes this time around and has more of a first-person shooter feel to it, thanks to the most impressive utilization of the Wii Remote to date. Not to worry though, as exploration and expanding your suit capabilities still make up the meat of the game. As always, the graphics and music are superbly atmospheric and you never feel like you are too far out of Samus' helmet.


1) Super Mario Galaxy. This one is a no-brainer. It is hands-down the best game on the Wii so far. If you've played any of the previous 3-D Mario adventures you are definitely going to love this game. Many have argued that it is just as fun and exciting as Super Mario 64, which was widely regarded as one of the most popular games of all time, and currently it comes in at #9 of the best games of all time on gamerankings.com (Super Mario Galaxy is at #2). This is the first Mario game to feature full orchestrated sound, instead of a MIDI based soundtrack. Quite simply, the music is amazing. The graphics are simply amazing as well, the shininess and detail of the worlds you will encounter never ceases to amaze. But most of all, the game play is what will keep you coming back for more. There are many boss battles, lots of new friends to encounter, and some of the wildest environments Mario has explored to date. Buy this game. If you already have, buy it for someone else. They will thank you.