Two virtual console games have been released this weekend for European Wii gamers. The titles of the games are Kirby’s Dream Course and Bloody Wolf.

The first game, Kirby’s Dream Course is about Nintendo’s original pink fluffy sphere-shaped character named Kirby. This was a game that came out for Super Nintendo in 1995, over 10 years ago. The description says that there are 64 courses in the game for players to enjoy. There are traps, various obstacles, and enemies that players have to face in order to beat the game.

The next one, Bloody Wolf, is a game where players control a commando. His mission is to rescue a kidnapped president. This game had an arcade version and the Wii version has one level that was not included in the arcade version. Overall, there are eight levels that gamers can play and finish to complete the mission.

Both games are not very popular and there are probably only a small percentage of Wii gamers that have played any of those two games. Therefore, the games may have a good amount of downloads at the Wii shopping channel. They are available for 800 and 600 Wii Points respectively. The Kirby game will probably sell more downloads because it’s more appealing to a younger audience.

Mercury News has posted an article on their website that the Nintendo Wii is still hard to find available in stock at retail stores. It’s been over seven months since the Wii was released to the consumers at North America.

The system is available on some online stores such as Amazon. Some individuals are selling their used system at Amazon for more than the brand new price of the system.

One person said that she had to get permission from her work in order to get in line on buying the system. She was looking for the Wii for two weeks.

“The PlayStation 1 was certainly a big introduction, but I don’t recall any game system more than six months after its launch still having this kind of demand,” said an independent analyst.

“You see it and you want it. Kind of like the iPhone,” said by a man who is interested on buying the system.

“We finally got enough money for it. The last two stores were sold out.” said a twelve-year-old boy.

Some analysts thinks that the supply for the demand of the Wii will not catch up until next year.

Gamasutra has released the sales charts for the past week about the number of videogame sales for various videogames systems including the Nintendo Wii and DS.

In North America, Mario Party 8 is the top selling game for the Nintendo Wii. It is followed by the recently released Resident 4: Wii edition which provides fans the ability to play a Resident Evil game using the motion-sending controls of the Wii controllers. Wii Play is still going strong and it’s the third game on the list. The fourth game is Pokemon Battle Revolution which is the first Pokemon game for the Wii. It’s also the first online-enabled game. Last but not the least is The Legnend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.

For DS, two of the top three games are Nintendo games that were released just a few months ago. Pokemon Diamond is at #1 while Pokemon Pearl is at #3. The game between those two games is the New Super Mario Bros. The fourth and fifth games are published by Nintendo just as the first three games. They games are Brain Age at #4 and Mario Kart DS at #5.

The data is based on the public sales information on Amazon.com

A new Sonic game has been  announced by Bioware and SEGA. The title has yet to be revealed by the companies.

“BioWare is one of the hottest names in RPG development in the world. Everyone at SEGA has huge confidence that Sonic is in the safest of hands, and that BioWare can create the ultimate handheld RPG experience for gamers of all ages,” said Simon Jeffery of SEGA of America Inc. He is the president and CEO of the company.

“We’re thrilled to be working with SEGA on Sonic, one of the industry’s most enduring and compelling icons,” said Greg Zeschuk from Bioware. He is currently the president for the developing company of the game.

The chief executive officer of Bioware also made a comment and said, “As huge fans of Sonic ourselves, we’re committed to delivering a truly amazing story-driven experience within the Sonic universe, focusing on capturing the character’s broad appeal and placing him in a completely original adventure.”

Unlike most announcements, both the developer and publisher has not mentioned any details regarding this upcoming Sonic game.

Monsterandcritics.com has reported that a new game is heading for the Wii about firefighting. Currently, the title is called Real Heroes: Firefighter  but the title may change since it’s a working title according to Monsterandcritics.com’s article. The developer of the game is Epicenter Studios.

“Combining our unique fire tech with the specific strengths of the Wii was a natural choice for us as we designed Real Heroes. The Wii-mote makes spraying down fires with your hose, hacking down doors with your axe and prying victims loose from wrecked cars with the Jaws of Life an absolutely visceral game experience,” says Bryan Jury who is the Epicenter CCO.

The CEO of Epicenter, Nathaniel McClure, also made a statement and said, “The Wii is a family-friendly console and we’ve designed Real Heroes with that in mind. Because firefighting requires a lot more than dousing flames, Real Heroes emphasizes non-violent, game-integral puzzles that mirror the challenges and on-the-fly choices firefighters actually face. We are making every effort to create a game that is intense and engaging, but always respectful to firefighters who, we believe, are real heroes.”

A new game called Dream Skincare will be released for the Nintendo DS.

This game is currently in the development stages and the company which is developing the game is Konami.

The game offers something unique that most videogame companies would probably never have thought of which is beauty tips. Konami described this game as a beauty navigation software.

Some of the things that gamers can do is find out what their daily regimen for a health skin by answering questions in the game about their skin tone and smoothness.

“Many women want to maintain forever young and beautiful skin,” said Konami in a statement.

Keep in mind that this is the same developer who has developed popular action games such as the Metal Gear Solid series.

The other features that the game will have are brainteasers and some virtual pet games.

Based on the info from Konami, this game looks like a Brain Age game but instead of academic questions, the game poses health care questions. It’s definitely unique and it also offers something positive to gamers. Overall, most gamers will probably learn a lot especially the young ones.

There is a recent report that Majesco has achieved a major success on the sales of their DS and Wii games.

Cooking Mama: Cook Off and Bust-a-Move Bash sold more than half of the total game copies among all their games in the second quarter. They received an increase of $3.6 million. The actual amount in the first quarter is $11 million while their second quarter is $14.6 million.

“During the quarter, we launched our first two games for the Nintendo Wii as well as three DS titles, which drove net revenue growth of 30 percent compared to last year. We have met our goals for the quarter and delivered solid financial results by executing our strategy to further penetrate the mass market, strengthen our international distribution, leverage licensing and development relationships, improve gross margins, and continue to reduce costs,” said Jesse Sutton who is the Interim CEO of Majesco.

Their new game releases made a big impact since 84% of the sales came from them. 62% of that 84% are sales from their console titles.

A ninja game called N+ will be released for the Nintendo DS. The game is based on a flash game called “N”.

It will have platform and action types of gameplay. It will feature downloadable content, a built-in level editor, and multiplayer components.

“N+ takes all the great elements of the flash game, from the amazing acrobatics to the simple-but-fast gameplay, and adds an impressive set of new features. With full support for wireless multiplayer, cartridge sharing ability, downloadable content and community leader boards, gamers will be able to settle, once and for all, who is the greatest ninja,” said senior global product manager at Atari Inc, Stephen Baer.

In the build-in level editor, players can use the stylus if they want to design their own maps. The maps that they designed can also be shared with their friends by probably using the Wi-Fi connectivity of the DS.

The downloadable content will provide additional elements for the gamers who purchase the game.

It will also be released for the Playstation Portable and the release date for both handheld systems will be sometime in November.

Four new Virtual Console games has been released today. They are Zelda II, Milon’s Secret Castle, ToeJam and Earl in Panic on Funkotron, and Dead Moon.

Zelda II is the sequel of the first Zelda game on the NES. It is an adventure game for one player and Zelda fans should download it at the Wii Shopping Channel if they haven’t played this game yet. It is also the 100th game for the Virtual Console library.

The second game, Milon’s Secret Castle, is a platform game that was released for NES. It is worth 500 Wii Points which is the same cost of Zelda II.

ToeJam and Earl in Panic on Funkotron was released for the SEGA Genesis videogame system. The story in this game is that the two main characters, ToeJam and Earl, must find Earthlings and capture them in jars. Then they have to ship them to Earth where they belong. There are power-up moves such as Funk Move and Funk Scan to help players on capturing the Earthlings. This is a sequel of a previous ToeJam and Earl videogame. This costs 800 Wii Points.

The fourth game, Dead Moon, is a 2D horizontal shooting game. It costs 600 Wii Points and it was previously released on Turbografx.

TOMY and D3Publisher of America announced a new videogame about the Naruto anime show. The game will be released exclusively for the Nintendo DS.

It will have original content and scenarios which were not included in previous Naruto videogames.

The developer decided that the combat system will be a time-based one. The players must take advantage of each character’s strength to defeat the enemies in the game.

“The NARUTO RPG games have proven to be very popular in Japan. The upcoming RPG title for North America will bring a completely new style of gameplay to NARUTO games, and the fans will love it,” said Mark Shinohara who is the vice president of Tomy Corp.

Careen Yapp, the vice president of licensing and business development for D3PA said, “We are really looking forward to bringing NARUTO: Path of the Ninja to North America. Some of the best elements from all the Japanese NARUTO RPG releases will be utilized to create an exclusive and unique game that no one has ever seen!”

The locations ranges from forests to mountains, fields to rivers. Players can use special techniques to help them beat bosses and tough enemies in the game.

It is scheduled to be released this fall.

WRAL.com has published an article that Wendy’s fast food stores are giving away free Nintendo Wii systems to lucky people who enter a winning code on frostyfloat.com

A code can be obtained by purchasing a Vanilla Frosty Float dessert. It is located in the cup.

The total number of Wii systems that will be given away are 800. However, there are also other prizes such as 800 cards which are cards that people can use to purchase classic games on the Wii shopping channel. The downside of this is that these cards are useless to people who don’t own a Wii because the only way to spend the card is by buying something on the Wii Shopping Channel.

The article did not say when this promotion started but it will lasts until June 30.

Wii systems are still rare these days and the odds of seeing one sitting in a store shelf are very low. Therefore, this promotion will probably be a huge success for Wendy’s as it gives people an extra chance of getting a Wii system.

Sankei Web, a japanese news website, reported that Nintendo DS systems are being used in English vocabulary classes in the city of Yawata. It just started this week.

In an experimental class, a result shows that a student’s vocabulary increased by 40% in a five-month period. In a group of 25 students, their avaerage vocabulary increased by 41.8% and they learned 423 more words during that period. Another group scored an increase of 35.2% and they learned 361 more words.

Ritsumeikan University professor, Hideo Kageyama, said “With speed, tempo and timing together, less strain on the mind leads to improvement in studying. Observing the students, they seem to be concentrating three times the usual and I thought that their degree of learning was much higher.”

Teachers in the school has to make sure that the students do not play a game instead of learning what they’re supposed to learn.

The students who will take part in this program are those who are in their second year.

This looks like a good publicity news for Nintendo. However, maybe some companies will take note of this news and create their own systems. It will be interesting how Sony reacts to this news.

A new video game which consists of various games that are seen in midways and boardwalks throughout the world will be released exclusively for the Nintendo Wii console.

The games include Milk Can, Nerves of Steel, Day at the Races, Clown Splash, and Dunk Tank. There’s even a fortune telling game where a character will reveal the player’s future.

“The moment you step into Carnival Games you can almost smell the funnel cakes as you are greeted by the barker and the sights and sounds of a classic carnival. The game was built from the ground up to take full advantage of the capabilities of the Wii Remote, so the flick of your wrist in ‘Alley Ball’ makes the difference between scoring an impressive 100 points and a lowly 10 points. The ability to pound the Wii Remote like a sledgehammer with the right mix of power and finesse in ‘Test of Strength’ determines whether you are a Contender or a Grandma,” said Steve Lux of Global Star Software.

Carnival Games is being developed by a Take-Two Interactive Studio, Cat Daddy Games. The studio has previously released a popular game for the PC titled “Deal or No Deal”.

It has 250 prizes which are upgradeable.

A sequel for the franchise Rayman Raving Rabbids is being developed according to Ubisoft. Unlike the first game, the sequel will only be released for the Nintendo Wii and DS.

60 new mini-games are planned to be included and Ubisoft said it will be wackier than those mini-games in the first Rayman Raving Rabbids game.

It will have 8 gameplay modes which includes dexterity, balance, and shaking.

The locations in the game includes USA, Europe, Asia, and two other regions.

110 items will be available for customizing your own Rayman character. This includes skins, hats, and accessories. Overall, 540,000 combinations are possible.

By playing single-player campaign, you can unlock more multi-player modes. The multi-player modes includes co-op and fighting against three other players.

“The first Rayman Raving Rabbids was a huge critical and commercial success worldwide. Rayman Raving Rabbids 2 is poised to continue that success, as gamers can’t seem to get enough of those crazy bunnies; they’re just so popular!” said Helene Juguet who is the marketing director at Ubisoft.

The story in this game is about the Rabbids’ plan on invading planet Earth. They made a home base at a shopping mall and Rayman disguised himself as one of them to stop their plan.

A new Brain Age-like game is now available for DS titled More Brain Training from Dr Kawashima.

Over 400,000 copies of Touch! Generation games were sold in Australia and this game is expected to increase that statistic by a substantial amount.

The game can support up to 16 players but the owner must download the multiplayer functions first.

Some of the exercises/activities in the game are Correct Change, a Rock, Paper, Scissors mini-game that supports voice recognition, Speedy Symbols, and the ever popular Sudoku.

The game is the sequel to Brain Training: How Old is Your Brain which was also from Dr Kawashima.

Rose Lappin of Nintendo said, “Whether you’re young or old, a long term gamer or have never picked up a video game in your life – ‘Touch! Generations’ is a perfect way to enjoy the world of video gaming. The nintendogs series has done wonders in reaching the younger female audience. The Brain Training series has certainly extended our appeal beyond the traditional gaming audience.”

Therefore, it looks like these type of games has made a permanent spot as a popular genre of games in the videogame industry.

Capcom has recently made an announcement about their first original exclusive game for the Nintendo Wii titled Zack & Wiki: Quest for Barbaros’ Treasure. Actually, the game had a previous title and it was called Project Treasure Island Z. Both names are good choices since it has a typical description of what this puzzle adventure game will be about.

Barbaros is the name of a legendary character in the game who once stole the world’s treasure according to Namco’s description. He hid it somewhere on a mysterious island but no one knows about the exact location of the treasure.

The main character is named Zack and he is one of the treasure seekers who wished to recover the treasure. The story is that Zack found Barbaros skull and Barbaros wants his help to lift a curse that he have. If he helped him, Barbaros would reveal the key to the island where he buried the treasure.

Some activities that the game will have include transforming items, move and open objects, and unlock new paths. A jungle, volcanic caves, and an ice temple are some of the locations in the game.

Lifesigns, a game about medical emergencies is heading to the Nintendo DS this summer. The game was developed by Spike and it is rated T. The retail price will be $30.

You control a young and motivated doctor in the game but there is no information about his (or her name) or whether you can decide the name of the doctor.

Some of the activities that you will do are communicating with your staff (including other doctors and nurses) and patients, review the patients’ medical records, ask questions about their problems, and resolve conflicts.

You will also operate on the patients using the unique stylus and touch-screen. to perform actual medical procedures. Taking incisions, sutures, auscultation, and pulse rates are some of the things that you will do when operating the patients.

Mini-games are also available throughout the game. Juggling between your life and a demanding lifestyle of an intern is one of the challenges in the game that you will experience.

Your goal is to become the top-notch intern at the hospital that you are working at.

The game seems to follow the Trauma Center series since it has a similar gameplay and it also has an anime style graphics.

SEGA has announced that their arcade game titled Ghost Squad will be made for the Nintendo Wii. The developer for the Wii version is SEGA AM2.

“Ghost Squad was a great success at the arcades because it provided players with instantly exciting gameplay, coupled alongside well thought out pace. The Wii version has mirrored this entirely and is a brilliant way to bring all the arcade excitement into gamers homes. Ghost Squad utilises the Wii Remote perfectly as a light gun, resulting in the game being a total blast,” said the European Marketing Director of SEGA Europe.

There will be three different mission locations with multiple levels. The game promises more than 25 weapons. The weapons include crossbows, machine guns, rifles, and shotguns.

Each of the level in the game has alternate routes which is what most action/war games have these days.

SEGA’s announcement includes details on how the Wii Remote will be used. It said that some of the functions of the Wiimote will be targeting enemies, and defusing bombs. This is similar to what Call of Duty 3 has.

Ghost Squad refers to the Special Tactics Squad that the U.N. has created along with the Global Humanitarian-Operation according to the game’s storyline.

It is scheduled to be release in the first quarter of 2008.

A new record for this week has been set on the weekly software sales record in Japan according to Media Create who gathers information on the sales figures of software sales in Japan.

Usually, a lot of DS games occupies the top twenty list but sometimes it includes games from other systems such as its competitor, the Sony PSP.

This week, the top twenty-one games are either a Nintendo Wii or DS game. Leading the list is Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings for the DS. The next two games, Super Paper Mario and Wii Sports are Wii games.

Four of the top seven games on the list are Wii games. Wii Play came in fifth place while Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree came in seventh place.

The twenty-second game which is neither a DS or a Wii game is called Monster Hunter Freedom 2. It’s a game for Sony’s PSP.

A lot of games in the list have non-english names and all of them are DS games. They are Momotarou Dentetsu DS, Kahashima Ryuuta Kyouju Kanshuu: Motto Nou o Kitaeru Otona DS Training, Gyakuten Saiban 4, Eigo ga Nigate na Otona no DS Training: Motto Eigo, Layton Kyouju no Fushigi na Machi, Otona no Joushikiryoku Training DS, Kotoba no Puzzle: Mojipittan DS.

During the Square Enix Party 2007, Yuji Hori who is the creator of the Dragon Quest games has said a few things about the future games of the company.

He said that Dragon Quest IX for DS will be released in Japan between now and December and it will be released in North America sometime in the first few months of 2008. For this game, he said that some action controls will still be in game but turn-based action will be implemented due to the requests that they have received from their consumers.

A connectivity to the Wii has also been confirmed but there’s no information on what kind of things that players can do with this feature.

The game wil feature 10,000 character attributes which lets players create their own protagonist. Players may meet new friends by using DS’ Wif-Fi feature at the Luida’s Bar location in the game.

Hori also stated that 2008 will be the year of Dragon Quest. He didn’t add anything what he meant by that. Others have speculated that maybe remaking the old Dragon Quest games to full 3D versions are underway.

It will be a good idea to remake the old games since this strategy has worked for Final Fantasy games.