Revolution Portal: Because it won’t be televised.

Monday has arrived and Nintendo has once again filled with the Wii Shop channel chock full o’ budget titles.

The sole Virtual Console entry this week is Samurai Shodown, which originally appeared on NEOGEO back in 1993.

SAMURAI SHODOWN (NEOGEO, 1-2 players, Rated T for Teen-Animated Blood, Crude Humor, Violence, 900 Wii Points): This first entry in the extremely popular and revolutionary fighting-game series was released in 1993. Choose from 12 swordsmen with highly individualistic characteristics and fight furiously, ultimately confronting the evil Amakusa Shiro Tokisada. Each character wields his or her own specific weapon, but you must be careful not to lose it during the heat of battle. Some of the fighters also bring an animal companion into the fray, offering a unique aspect to the quick-paced action. Another significant feature of the game is the anger gauge, which indicates the level of anger felt by each of the combatants as they suffer repeated injuries. If the anger reaches its maximum level, the attacking ability of the character increases, leading to even more intense confrontations. Through it all, the refined camera system smoothly zooms in and out of the playing field, presenting the frenzy of the battle while showcasing the lively background (watch as the referee scores hits). Awaken the samurai spirit within and get ready for a new kind of fight.

Next up are the two WiiWare titles:

Block Breaker Deluxe™ (Gameloft, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone-Mild Suggestive Themes, 800 Wii Points): Prepare for the frenzy of the coolest block-breaker game ever. Block Breaker Deluxe is a reinvention of the classic arcade brick-breaker game with a trendy graphical style, fun atmosphere and an exclusive multiplayer mode. Lively characters and amazing graphics provide distinctive settings of the jet-set nightlife, including a cool bar, dance club, casino and more. Special bricks, multiple bonuses, secret weapons, paddle size options and ball-speed variations make this fascinating game even more challenging. The Block Breaker Deluxe rage has arrived.

Cocoto Fishing Master (Neko Entertainment, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 700 Wii Points): Welcome to the adventures of Cocoto, Fishing Master. Get ready for a completely new experience on Wii. Play the role of Cocoto and travel the world to find five millennial fish. Only they can stop the magic cauldron from overflowing with lava and prevent the world from being destroyed. Thanks to Cocoto Fishing Master for Wii, fishing has never been such fun. Use the Wii Remote™ and Nunchuk™ controllers like a real fishing rod to catch more than 30 different fish. Discover five enchanted lakes in five different worlds from Cocoto’s universe. Confront gigantic bosses to collect each fragment of the statuette that will allow you to wake the great god Geo from his slumber. Meet Cocoto’s friends, sell your fish to Baggy and buy new fishing equipment from Neuro’s shop.

All three games seem interesting, and none cost more than nine bucks.  A good Monday, indeed.

There are certain classic titles that seem to pop up on every single platform known to mankind.

Dig Dug certainly fits that bill.  And while it’s been a year and a half since Wii first exploded on the market, the classic 1982 title that lets you inflate and explode Pookas and Fygars has finally arrived on the Wii Virtual Console.

The two VC games and one WiiWare title are as follows:

DIG DUG (NES, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 600 Wii Points): Become Dig Dug, the champion of love and justice, as you drill up, down, left and right, defeating any enemies in your path. Avoid the persistent Pooka and the deep-dwelling but whimsical Fygar as you defeat all the enemies in order to clear each stage. Defeat enemies by hitting them with the harpoon and pumping air into them, or by dropping rocks on them from above. Receive bonus points by getting the vegetables that appear in the middle of the stage. Receive high points for defeating deep-dwelling enemies or by defeating Fygars from the side with the harpoon. Pass through inflated enemies or defeat enemies in an adjacent passage for an even higher score. Lure multiple enemies and defeat them with a single rock from above in this thrilling action game.

BIO MIRACLE BOKUTTE UPA (NES, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone—Comic Mischief, 600 Wii Points): BIO MIRACLE BOKUTTE UPA is an action game released in 1988, but it was never available outside of Japan. Players take on the role of baby Upa, a prince of the Akuyo kingdom. Prince Upa must take on an adventure spanning seven different worlds in order to rescue the kingdom from the dangerous demon Zai. Upa must defeat the enemies he meets along the way by inflating them. Upa can then use these floating enemies to his advantage by bouncing off of or riding on top of them. The prince must also avoid deadly thorns and pits while keeping an eye out for helpful items such as milk (to restore health) and bells (for temporary invincibility) if he hopes to succeed. If you’re looking for a cute and solid platformer with a hero unlike those in most other games, then look no further than BIO MIRACLE BOKUTTE UPA. 

WiiWare

My Pokémon Ranch (Nintendo, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone—Comic Mischief, 1,000 Wii Points): The Pokémon phenomenon debuts on WiiWare with My Pokémon Ranch, a game that lets you watch as Pokémon and Miis interact with each other for the first time. Enjoy the relaxing ranch life by viewing your ranch and its Pokémon, taking pictures and sending those pictures to your friends via the Wii Message Board. The more Pokémon and Miis you bring to your ranch, the more fun it becomes. My Pokémon Ranch can be linked with the Nintendo DS Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon® Pearl Game Cards to deposit the Pokémon you’ve caught in these games in your ranch. You can deposit a maximum of 1,000 Pokémon from up to eight different game cards. Make your ranch livelier by playing with your friends and family.

Virtual Console

Nintendo has given us a pleasant surprise with this Monday’s slate of titles for WiiWare and the Wii Virtual Console — Toki Tori is making a triumphant comeback!

The game was originally one of the last titles to hit the Game Boy Color, and while critics adored the game, it didn’t do particularly well with the masses. 

Being released on September 12, 2001 probably didn’t help matters.  Hopefully gamers will give it a real chance to succeed on WiiWare.

Toki Tori (Two Tribes, 1-2 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Toki Tori is his name, and collecting eggs is his game. In this puzzle/platform game, players use a variety of items such as the Telewarp, InstantRock™ and Slug Sucker. Clever use and combination of these items are needed to solve all the game’s levels, of which there are more than 70. Levels range from easy to brain-teasingly hard, resulting in dozens of hours of puzzle play time. Toki Tori makes the most of what Wii has to offer. It uses the Wii Remote for a unique control scheme, which offers players a new and more relaxing play style. A second player can help you out by drawing hints while you are playing. The game even uses the Wii Message Board in a unique way.

The other WiiWare title released today was Protöthea:

Protöthea (UbiSoft, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone-Fantasy Violence, 1,000 Wii Points): Protöthea is a top-down scrolling shooter game with free movement that puts players in complete control of a last-generation spaceship. The mission is to destroy the asteroid called Maqno 01 and finish with the plans of The Core. UbiSoft’s Protöthea 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. Players of all ages and experience levels will enjoy taking command of their ship, blasting through four different worlds in 10 challenging missions. Use your weapons arsenal and the special bonus items to help you accomplish your mission, and don’t forget to slow down time and take an edge over the enemy.

And lastly, we’ve got one Virtual Console game:

Ninja Combat (NEOGEO, 1-2 players, Rated E 10+ for Everyone 10 and Older-Mild Suggestive Themes, Fantasy Violence, 900 Wii Points): Released in 1990, Ninja Combat is a side-scrolling combat-action game. Take control of the ninjas Joe (one player) and Hayabusa (two players), and enter into battle against a group of evil ninjas called the Kage Ichizoku. Make your way into their home fortress, Ninja Tower, which dominates a big city of the near future. Fight using normal attacks, jumps, special movements and ninja materials that deliver damaging blows to all enemies on the screen. In addition, you’ll find weapons and items to aid you along the way. Even better, as you progress in the game, reliable allies such as Musashi, Kagerow and Gembu will emerge to fight alongside you, allowing you to choose a new character in each stage. Ninja Combat also supports simultaneous play with two players, so you can grab a friend and defeat the Kage Ichizoku together.

Phil Harrison, former Sony Computer Entertainment America exec and currently president of Infogrames, recently discussed the future of gaming and he had a surprising prediction.

Single-player adventure games are going to go the way of the dinosaur.

“Alone in the Dark is a beautifully crafted single-player adventure game. I don’t think the industry is going to make many more of those,” he was quoted by http://www.gamesindustry.biz as saying.

“I just don’t think consumers want to be playing games that don’t have some kind of network connectivity to them, or community embedded in them, or extension available through downloadable content.”

“The industry is changing, and the role we play as creators and publishers has to reflect those changes. I don’t think I’m alone in having those views, either,” Harrison insisted.

While the multiplayer experience is invaluable, we’re going to disagree with Phil on this particular matter.  There’s always going to be a place for single player titles in gaming – mark our words. 

You just can’t keep a good Rabbid down.

Ubisoft revealed today that  Rayman Raving Rabbids TV Party will be coming to both Wii and DS.  And it not only will it take advantage of the Wii balance board, but it will be using it in a new fashion.

According to a new report by Eurogamer, there’s at least one minigame which uses one’s derriere to steer. Describing a snowboarding game which required a person to sit on the new peripheral, a commentator explained that “the Wii balance board is exceptionally sensitive towards his bottom.”

It’s not as easy as it may seem.

“The moves look fairly easy,” said the commentator, “But I challenge you to hit them all the first time.”

Seems like a superfun concept for most people, and a nightmare for germophobes.