Nintendo Wii Fanboy

After seeing Taiko No Tatsujin Wii yesterday, we definitely think the drum looks pretty sweet ... but we also noticed something mildly annoying: it plugs into the Wii remote, like so many other things. Now, look, we're not saying this feature is in any way a gamebreaker -- it's just one of those features that begs the question of whether or not there would have been a better way. Of course, we are completely picky bastards, so perhaps this is something you don't even think about. Or is it?

Taiko no Tatsujin (Taiko Drum Master) is currently delighting Tokyo Game Show attendees on the showfloor, allowing us a first glimpse of the drum controller that comes with the game. It looks sturdy and very ... hittable! We look forward to seeing how it comes packaged, though are slightly saddened that this version won't have its own Taiko-themed stand.

Also worth noting: judging by these photos, the drum is wireless, and connects directly to the Wiimote, à la the Classic Controller. Beat a path past the break for more pictures.

Those of you looking for a rechargeable solution to your Wiimote's power needs, manufacturer MeWe has just come up with a new device: the Quad Charger. As you can see above, it includes LEDs to let you know the power status of your recharging Wiimotes, as well as the capacity to charge four simultaneously. And, of course, it comes with four rechargeable packs (Ni-MH).

The MeWe Quad Charger is currently available and costs $49.95.

Game controllers have come a long way since we were holding a box with a protruding stick and tapping a single button. Now they're so packed full of cutting edge (yet inexpensive) tech, I'd half expect to see a Wii Remote and Nunchuk in the cockpit of the space shuttle* as a cost-cutting measure. As advanced as the Wiimote is, a lot of us have found a thing or two that could be revised about its design. I've gone to the most extreme reaches of my imagination, and come up with a design concept that I believe is about as radical a step beyond our current Wiimote, as that controller is beyond every console controller that came before it. And just like Nintendo's own design, my perfect controller would be based around technology that is already being used today in different applications.

*Warning: The Wii Remote and Nunchuk's accelerometers will not work in space. NASA engineers, be advised to wait for the MotionPlus.

You'll have to travel a helluva distance to find somebody who likes the Wiimote and Nunchuk as much as we do, but there's no getting away from one fact: Nintendo's unique peripherals weren't made with intricate, combo-heavy fighting games in mind.

Fortunately, when it comes to Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Cross Generation of Heroes, Capcom has two solutions. Solución uno: a simplified control scheme whereby a chain combo can be pulled off with a single button press, and special moves don't require input commands. Solución dos: Tatsunoko vs. Capcom will be compatible with the sleek, delicious slab of plastic that is the Classic Controller for the hardcore set. Not that we'd expect fighting enthusiasts to play this with anything other than a Hori Fighting Stick but, you know.

In other news: screens!


[Via Siliconera]

Update: High Voltage just dished out a press release that talks about 16-player online gaming and WiiSpeak. It's been tucked past the break.

High Voltage has announced that they're holding a contest having to do with their upcoming game, The Conduit. They're asking fans to come up with their own control schemes for the game and submit them, with the winners getting their scheme put into the game. Sound exciting? We think so!

Head past the break for the full details on the contest.

We've spent a little of our time in this space lately discussing essential accessories, and plans to buy accessories, but what all do you own now? Even if it's totally useless (or just plain weird), we want to know ... even down to remote gloves from the pre-jacket era. Go forth and compare notes! We want to count how many Wii Wheels are out there.

How many times in your history as a gamer have you felt that your console's controller couldn't be any better? Every time I've gotten my hands on a new game controller, there's been something I wished could be different. The NES controller could have been rounder. The SNES controller could have used some more face buttons for Street Fighter. The N64 controller needed speedier room service.

The Wii controller is built with expansion, flexibility, and upgrades in mind, and with the addition of a third party accessory, I've been able to mate the Wiimote with the Classic Controller to form a Voltronic gestalt of a controller that should be capable of great things. But is it perfect?

Wii Sports Resort might not be the only title to showcase the Wii MotionPlus when the dinky add-on launches next spring. GameSpot went hands-on with The Conduit at PAX 2008, and revealed that the shooter will feature MotionPlus support. The Conduit is currently set for a March launch, so has this new information also inadvertently dated Wii Sports Resort and the MotionPlus?

Whether it has or not, MotionPlus for The Conduit is Pretty Big News -- so much so, that we're afraid it may overshadow some of the other eye-catching details in GameSpot's report. These include:

• In the final game, High Voltage hopes to have a completely customizable head-up display, in which any HUD element can be dragged and dropped to different parts of the screen.
• There will be nine missions in total, with the singleplayer campaign lasting "about ten hours."
• Cut scenes won't be used; rather, the story will be developed through news or radio broadcasts, much like the Half Life series.
• Some projectiles can be guided using the cursor, which sounds a lot like the Nikita launcher in Metal Gear Solid, automatically making it ZOMGAWESOME.
  

[Via Go Nintendo]

In the year 1997, with Sylvester Stallone's Demolition Man still fairly fresh on our minds, developer Shiny took the opportunity to name one of their games after an abbreviated phrase that was mentioned several times in that film. Under the assumption that MDK stood for "Murder, Death, Kill" and the fact that you run around as a guy whose head is a sniper rifle, the Playstation generation couldn't wait to get their hands on it. As it turned out, the game was not the gruesome murder simulator many people expected, but a humorously quirky action title like most of the prior games Shiny was known for. In the sequel, the main character from the first game, Kurt Hectic, would share the duty of saving the earth with Doctor Fluke Hawkins and the four-armed, gun-toting, cigar-chomping robotic dog, Max, the other members of the game's titular trio. It's the crazy sort of stuff that keeps gaming fresh, and with its recently-announced comeback in the making, I can think of no better place for the franchise to make a killing than on the Wii.

Wii Remotes eat batteries. It's a fact we've long granted as simple, stark truth -- but what to do about it? Wii owners have a lot of solutions at hand, from simply sucking it up to elaborate rituals with charge stations, rechargeables, and even voodoo rituals (or so we heard). Got a Balance Board? There's a whole new battery dilemma for you ... and with Wii MotionPlus on the horizon, and its battery-destroying potential, if you don't already have a plan in place for handling the coming battery power crisis, it might be time to consider some options.

Don't worry -- we're here to help. We've explored several solutions in the past, and now we're back with a look at an all new charging apparatus: Penguin United's 4X Quad Charge Station. PU is so proud of being able to charge four remotes at once that they boasted of the ability twice in its name!

Jokes aside, it's a solid option that comes at a price some might consider hefty. But hey! It charges four remotes at once.

After taking a second, head-shaking look at the Wii Sqweeze prototype, and also thinking about Wii MotionPlus, we had to take a moment to stop and ask a serious question: just how much motion do we want? Lately, we've been down in the mouth about all the games that aren't going to include Nintendo's new motion-plus peripheral, but how much 1:1 control do we need? Swordfighting will be awesome, yeah, and sports games have amazing potential, but at what point do we just put down the controller and go participate in the actual activity? Or is a move closer to a virtual reality game better, no matter what?

While we're still waiting for that leopard skin Wiimote wrist strap of our dreams, Nintendo will shortly release green, blue, pink, and white straps in Japan. Other than helping to distinguish Wiimotes between multiplayer sessions, we can't really think of a compelling need for these non-threatening, pastel accessories, but perhaps they're a sign that matching controllers are on the way? That's probably a long shot, but it would be nice.

For those of you with an interest in importing, these are scheduled to appear next month for ¥300 ($2.80) each, or you can snag the four-pack above for ¥1,000 ($9.25). For those of you who are too cheap for even that, you can make your own for nada.

What do you get when you cross a device designed to track IR light and a computer-controlled missile-launching toy? A Wiimote covered in impossible-to-remove tacky duct tape residue! And also a fairly cool auto-aiming missile launcher.

It looks like a simple enough project (now that someone else has written all the code): just tape a Wiimote to the sort of USB missile launcher found at ThinkGeek (for example), connect the Wiimote to your computer using Bluetooth, and use the GlovePIE code found in the tutorial. Your turret will then aim at any IR light source! It's at your discretion whether or not to pelt that light source with foam darts.

[Via Engadget]