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Carnival Games 2 delayed due to first game's success

We like to bash the shovelware as much as anyone, but Take Two's Carnival Games must have been a real gem, because it has sold well consistently and "exceeded expectations" since its release. That's why Take Two has been taking their good old time in churning out a sequel to the game, which is now in the works.

"We saw the original title was a big success, and we had the developers [Cat Daddy] thinking down the line for the brand," said 2K Play marketing director Christina Recchio. "So there will be a 'Carnival Games 2,' but when that is, I can't say that right now. We just have to assess the market and see when the right time is to release the title." What does this mean? Well, that they won't need to rush development on the sequel so long as the first title keeps on selling.

Any of you play the original Carnival Games? Think it got a bad rap from the critics? Was it a bad game?

Nintendo jazzing up Wiimote wrist straps


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.

Wii's first force feedback wheel looks great, seems pointless

Yes, pointless.

As much as we love our Wii, it's not exactly creaking under the weight of great racing titles. There's Game Night favorite Mario Kart Wii, which is really fun, but that already comes with its own wheel, which works surprisingly well. And after that, we have (in order of GameRankings.com score) Excite Truck, MX vs. ATV Untamed, Speed Racer, and Cars, followed by fourteen other depressing drives.

None of which is intended as a slur on Logitech's new force feedback wheel for the Wii, which actually looks and sounds excellent. Releasing in November for $99.99 (!), the Logitech Speed Force Wireless features built-in gas and brake controls, a comfy-looking expandable lap rest, a wireless USB receiver and, naturally, full force feedback.

It is almost certainly the best possible way to play Cruis'n, GT Pro Series, and Wacky Races: Crash & Dash.

Gallery: Cruis'n


[Via press release]

GC 2008: Shaun White and company take a road trip


Straight out of Leipzig, a crazy mofo named Shaun White.


The latest trailer for Ubisoft's Balance Board-compatible sports title, Shaun White Snowboarding shows off a lot of what you'd expect from a snowboarding game: lots of spinning and big jumps. We're not poking fun, because, to be honest, we think the game looks pretty polished. SSX it may not be, but a fun time it could very well become.

Gallery: Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip

Amazon dates, prices maraca attachments for Samba de Amigo


It would seem the final maraca attachments for Samba de Amigo on the Wii have been leaked over at Amazon (you can catch an eyeful above, obviously). For those of you who've been following the title, you already caught a glimpse of the earlier version. We guess those were just prototypes. Personally, we dig the red.

Amazon has a date on these for September 23rd, along with a price of $14.99, should you need that extra pair for some multiplayer action. Obviously, the game will release in a bundled form for those of you that absolutely need these hunks of plastic with your game.

Gallery: Samba de Amigo


[Thanks, Redd Starrs!]

Hockey Allstar Shootout skating onto WiiWare

Big Blue Bubble, developer of Home Sweet Home, has announced a new WiiWare game that is a bit more stereotypically dude-oriented than the home-design game. Specifically, Canadian-dude-oriented. Hockey Allstar Shootout is a hockey game in which players use the Wiimote as a hockey stick in three game variants.

Rather than a full hockey game, Shootout, as the title implies, focuses on hitting pucks at targets or toward goalies. There's also a Power Shot Challenge, in which you are judged on the size of the hole in your TV how hard you hit the puck. Sounds like a good time -- we enjoy knocking stuff into other stuff now and then.

[Via press release]

Wii Fanboy presents: Game Night


Oh, it's Thursday, our most favorite day of the week (well, aside from Friday). It's the day we actually get to take a break from writing about games to actually play them. Won't you join us? It's pretty easy to get in on the action and 4 out of 5 dentists agree, once you take part in the festivities, you'll have a lot of fun and want to keep coming back. If it's your first time, head past the break for all of the details.

Continue reading Wii Fanboy presents: Game Night

Wii Fit helps drive record Q2 for GameStop

A lot of those Wii Fit bundles people have been snatching up (and never playing again) came from GameStop, apparently, as the company reports a net earnings increase of 162.1 percent to $57.2 million in the second quarter. For the period of three months ending August 2nd, sales increased by 34.8 percent to $1.80 billion.

It wasn't all thanks to Wii Fit, though. There were some other big titles that released during this time period, including Grand Theft Auto IV and Metal Gear Solid 4. GameStop's CEO R. Richard Fontaine is obviously happy about the increase in profits. "By prioritizing our investments and focusing our resources, GameStop continues to significantly outperform the specialty retail segment as a whole, when comparing top-line growth, comparable store sales, and net earnings growth." Yes, but while you're commenting, is there anything you'd like to pre-order today?

Hillcrest Laboratories files patent infringement suit against Nintendo

Another company has gone to court claiming that the Wii infringes on their patents. Last time, it was the input technology in Nintendo's traditional controllers; this time, the suit deals with elements specific to the Wii, and could result in the Wii becoming unavailable in the US. More so.

Hillcrest Laboratories filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission, as well as a patent infringement lawsuit, over the motion-control technology in the Wiimote and the Wii's graphical user interface. "While Hillcrest Labs has a great deal of respect for Nintendo and the Wii," the company stated, "Hillcrest Labs believes that Nintendo is in clear violation of its patents and has taken this action to protect its intellectual property rights.'' Hillcrest currently sells the Freespace technology in their own Loop controller (pictured), and licenses it out to companies including Logitech.

If the International Trade Commission rules in Hillcrest's favor, imports of the Wii and Wii controllers could be blocked. If the lawsuit is successful, Nintendo would most likely just owe Hillcrest a bunch of money.

Kororinpa 2 uses balance board, boasts bad GC demo


As you probably noticed (from the title), there's good news and bad news concerning the sequel to the early Wii title Kororinpa. Luckily, the good outweighs the bad. The good, in fact, is great: Kororinpa 2 will feature ten stages that utilize the balance board. While it's not Wii MotionPlus, that'll still add a neat (and challenging, if Wii Fit's marble mini-game is any indication) element to the sequel. The bad? According to the folks at IGN, the game looks terrible on the floor in Leipzig. Don't start huffing and stamping your feet over quality control just yet, though; Kororinpa 2 isn't due until next year. There's still time to give it a fix.

Gallery: Kororinpa 2

Guitar Hero's Mii Freestyle mode explained

Vicarious Visions has confirmed that Guitar Hero: World Tour on the Wii will have not only all of the content found in the other versions, including DLC, but it will also have an exclusive "Mii Freestyle" mode, which we first heard about yesterday. But it goes beyond just having Miis in the normal Guitar Hero game.

Mii Freestyle mode is actually an exclusive game mode in which players can create music on the fly using Guitar Hero guitars and drums -- or the Wiimote and Nunchuk as air drums, Wii Music-style, if they want to for some reason. The instruments lay down predetermined notes or sequences onto the familiar Guitar Hero note chart according to the style of music chosen. It's sort of a jamming version of the Music Studio found in the game. Vicarious Visions' David Nathanielsz calls the mode "a helpful bridge between the core game and the Music Studio in Guitar Hero: World Tour for Wii owners."

The Wii World Tour, then, has all of the features of the other versions, plus a new exclusive mode. The only thing the other systems have on it now is graphics, which matter very little in a music game. Barring accidental monaural sound output or something, the Wii version will now be the superior version. Take that, Rock Band!


I want to read about Guitar Hero all ni-i-ight, and eat Guitar Hero cake!

Wii Warm Up: Samba de Ulala


Certain Sega-friendly elements of the Wii Fanboy blogging staff were super-excited to see Ulala appearing in Samba de Amigo. Of course, we're still beyond freaked out that there is a new Samba de Amigo. For us, the Space Channel 5 star adds a lot of interest to the game. But most people aren't us. Most people have no idea what Space Channel 5 is (judging by the precipitous drop in price of the excellent Space Channel 5 Special Edition on PS2), and may have a passing interest in Samba. You guys, being avid game nerd types, probably average somewhere in the middle: whether or not you care about these games, you're at least familiar.

Does the appearance of a classic Dreamcast-era character like Ulala increase your interest in the remake/sequel to a classic Dreamcast rhythm game? Or is Sega all about Sonic for you?

Gallery: Samba de Amigo

Wii Sqweeze is like a ThighMaster for your hands


Introducing InterAction Laboratories' Wii Sqweeze. Recently demonstrated by CEO Greg Merril, the device has two rubber grips that "allow for shoulder abduction and adduction." Supposedly, the thing was demonstrated with some kind of bow hunting PC game. As of right now, it's only in the prototype stage, but InterAction Laboratories promises native Wii compatibility sometime in 2009, which is the launch window for the peripheral.

[Via Engadget]

Harvest Moon: Magical Melody port may take root in US soil

Harvest Moon: Magical Melody was released on the GameCube in 2006 in the US. Rising Star Games, Marvelous's European branch, then ported it to the Wii with new motion controls, releasing that version in March of this year. This makes sense for Europe, since the Wii was out by the time the GameCube version would have been released.

According to a Siliconera interview with Natsume president Yasuhiro Maekawa, the company is considering an American release of that ported Magical Melody. "If we were to release the Wii version of Magical Melody", Maekawa said, "we would most likely be looking at a limited release aimed at our hardcore and loyal fans. We have had quite a few requests to release this game and are looking into it." Limited-edition releases have the power both to tempt fence-sitters and to save money for publishers, so this approach is a smart one.

The rest of the interview discusses the history of the series and of Natsume's involvement, and is an excellent read for anyone with an interest in fake farming.

GC 2008: Left! Right! Chu! Chu! Ulala in Samba

Click for more Ulala goodness.

A Sonic cameo in Samba de Amigo has long been old news, grandpa, but we've also been promised appearances from other Sega characters and venues. Here are the fruits of those promises: a cameo from the galaxy's funkiest news reporter, Ulala, and a special Space Channel 5 stage. Ulala's presence makes perfect sense really; as the protagonist of Sega's other awesome rhythm extravaganza, her inclusion was surely inevitable. Now all she needs is her own game. You listening, Sega?

Gallery: Samba de Amigo


[Via press release]

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