The new Nintendo Wii U
The Nintendo Wii was not as powerful as the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 and it even had a brand new control scheme using motion sensitive innards rather than physical buttons and sticks to enable interaction, but it still sold by the bucket load because it offered non-gamers a chance to get in on the act without being put off by the relatively exclusory nature of the industry. Of course the Nintendo Wii did this by slightly alienating those already entrenched in the gaming lifestyle and so to counter this and remedy criticism of the original the manufacturer has come up with the brand new Wii U, recently revealed in public for the first time at the E3 event.
The Wii U gets its quirky name from the fact that Nintendo wants to win back the support of long time gamers while still appealing to its broad Wii-owning user base. Of course the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 have fairly odd names in themselves, but many will be glad that the Project Cafe codename attributed to the second Wii during development did not stick it out for the full release.
The hardware inside the original Nintendo Wii was not up to the task of pumping out true high definition visuals, unlike the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, which allowed Nintendo to keep the cost of the console down. However, the Wii U will bring HD visuals to the table with Nintendo promising that they will be easily as good as if not better than its two console rivals. At the moment only a few technical demos showing off the power of the Wii U have surfaced, so the graphical fidelity of in-game action on the finished article remains to be seen. However, Nintendo seems confident that it will be enough to satisfy those who are crying out for more visual clout.
Throwing the traditional design of a controller out the window and emphasising motion controls made the first Nintendo Wii and its remote a success, so the news that another brave control method is accompanying the Wii U may not be a surprise. The Wii U's controller looks like a handheld console in its own right, largely thanks to its 6.2 inch screen which supports touch interactions, just like the portable Nintendo 3DS. The plan is to put gameplay elements such as menus, inventories and other items onto the smaller screen so that the boundaries of what gamers will expect can be expanded. While the Wii U will make the most out of HDTVs in living rooms worldwide, the controller will double up as a substitute for the large display, with users able to switch from one to the other seamlessly so that others can watch TV without interrupting a session of play.
Nintendo has yet to finalise the details about what kind of hardware will be giving the Wii U its graphical grunt. However, reports suggest that IBM and AMD will be handling the main processing and graphics chip respectively. Both the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 are seen as solid graphical performers even after so many years on the market so Nintendo should have a shot at matching these when it comes to number crunching, provided it can get the pricing right and not oversell its new machine.
The launch line up and future releases for the Nintendo Wii U are not yet known, but it would be safe to assume that the firm's most popular franchises such as Mario and Zelda will feature at some point, if only because demos at E3 showed prerendered scenes from both worlds. An HD remix of a sequence from Zelda: Twilight Princess showed real promise and was enough eye candy for fans of the series. Nintendo is also striking deals with third party game firms so that big name releases will appear on Wii U, Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 with consistent graphics and gaming experience across each. The big fish for Nintendo to net will be the Call of Duty series of first person shooters, although this has yet to be confirmed.
There are a few quibbles being levelled at the rumoured Wii U specifications ahead of its launch and they may remain until it is revealed in greater detail. For example, initially it was thought that only one of the new screen-based controllers could be used in conjunction with the console at a time, but Nintendo has since said that two will work simultaneously. Secondly the lack of DVD playback has annoyed some, although as Nintendo has pointed out most people already have a device for achieving this.
Ahead of its 2012 release window the Nintendo Wii U will be attempting to convince current console owners that they need this latest HD system. If it succeeds then the games industry will be looking very different from its current state, with the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 no longer the only platforms aiming to satisfy the hardcore audience. Of course rumours of a new Xbox arriving at the next E3 might put a spanner in the works.
For some great deals on Wii accessories or to find out more about gaming on smartphones like the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play check out Expansys.com.
The top 5 Nintendo DS Lite Games This Christmas
The Nintendo DS Lite is the popular handheld electronic game console produced by Nintendo, offering an exceptional gaming experience through its original dual-screen projection, outstanding 3-D graphic display and audio system, and touch screen technology. Equipped with wireless technology, you can even invite your family and friends to join in the fun. So what games should you play on it?
Well, here are my top five Nintendo DS Lite games.
Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen If you love adventures and battles, Dragon Quest is your game. Set in a traditional role-playing game (RPG) format, you control the Hero of the story in his quest to defeat the evil ruling the land. You have to solve different tough quests and puzzles until you reach the final stage and fight a boss. Both the graphics and sounds have been improved for the DS Lite release since the PS1 port, and the bottom screen is mostly used to the world map which expands as you continue your journey. You can explore more towns via Chance Encounter mode, available through local wireless connection.
Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia Starting out as a Student Ranger, capture wild Pokemon and solve puzzles and mysteries to earn rank. Capture a Pokemon by using an item called Capture Styler, which is simply drawing a circle around it with the stylus. You'll have to fight battles by partnering up variety of different Pokemon and finish many different missions in the world of Almia in order to reach the highest rank, the Top Ranger.
Mario Kart DS Ready, Get Set, Go! Gear up your Kart and race through 30 race tracks and battlefields from the other Mario Kart series. Get to play as Mario, Luigi and the rest of the gang as they race through courses, collect coins and avoid spiked Koopa shells along the way. Choose to play in five different modes: Grand Prix, Time Trial, VS, Battle and Mission Modes. Mario Kart is also available in three various form of wireless games: two trough local connection and through the Nintendo wifi Connection online game.
Brain Age: Test Your Brain in Minutes a Day Don't let your brain rot. Exercise your brain through this challenging puzzle video game. There's no flashy graphics here or even a catchy tune, but through simple memory quiz or a game of Sudoku you'll find yourself enjoying as well, as these puzzles are very challenging. Players will be able to choose among four modes: Brain Age Check, Training, Quick Play, and Sudoku. Brain Age also supports multi-player mode, and can host up to 15 players with one cartridge. This is one game you won't hear parents complaining their kids were addicted to.
Club Penguin: Elite Penguin Force Welcome to the snow-covered virtual world of penguins. Play as your favorite penguin avatar and join a secret service. You'll be searching out clues and solving cases of the strange events that occur in the island, using various tools, vehicles and accessories to assist you out. This game supports the Nintendo DS Lite wifi connection, and gives you the option to communicate to other players in a secured online community.
There are many other game titles available as well, so be sure to check them out too.
Looking For PSP Downloads? Here’s How To Download PSP Games!
If you're the lucky owner of a PSP there's a good chance you have heard about the ability to download games, movies and music and use them on your system. It's a great way to keep your PSP stocked with all the newest games and make sure you never get bored! One of the most common questions we get from PSP users is "How Do I Download PSP Games?"
There are a few options available for downloading PSP games. Some free, some risky for your computer, some neither of these. Let's examine these options.
You will probably run across a few website that offer "free" PSP game downloads. However, the old saying "you get what you pay for" comes to mind here! Since you aren't paying a dime, these websites have all sorts of problems associated with them. In fact, several have been shut down in recent months for distributing viruses, spyware and other infections.
Since these websites don't pull in any profit, the files are usually just provided by random people on the internet. They aren't "official" game downloads and often end up being corrupt (meaning they don't work at all). The download speeds are incredibly slow and you will often find that what you download ends up being a completely different file than you searched for.
Obviously, I am no friend of these "free" PSP download websites. They are at best a waste of your time, and at worst can do serious damage to your computer.
Membership sites are really your best bet for downloading PSP games. They are not free, but are typically not very expensive. These fees are more than offset by even a few downloads. These sites are run like a business, because they are businesses. They put some care into ensuring that the files hosted on their site are free of viruses and other threats, and are tested to make sure that they work.
It is amazing that not more PSP users are aware of these websites. The fees are generally less than the cost of a single new PSP game, and allow members to download any file provided by the site, any time the user wants. Some sites even give members the software they need to transfer their downloads to a PSP
The best values are the sites which just charge a one time fee for a lifetime membership. Somewhere between $30 and $50 will get you one of these memberships. Other sites have monthly fees, or even per-downloads, but these pale in comparison to being able to download any PSP game, movie or music file you want any time of day or night.
Being able to download games for your PSP is one of its coolest features. You need never go to a store to find new games, movies, even music for your PSP. This saves you a lot of time and money both while keeping your PSP fully stocked.
Discover The Incredibly Easy Way To Download Full XBOX 360 Games
Today we wanted to show gamers how they can download XBOX 360 games right on their computer. We get a few emails each week about this so I hope it helps out some xbox fans out there!
One thing that we have to give credit for is just how popular the XBOX 360 is even though there have been a couple of new systems released since the xbox was introduced. It's definately a system that combines a lot of power with some amazing features!
If you do own an xbox 360, you may have heard about how you can download games on your computer and then use them on your system. This is one of our favorite features as it lets you find new games online instead of having to go and spend money at the electronics store each time.
How do you do this?
When you want to download xbox 360 games, you typically have two options that you can choose from.
The first option is one that a lot of people will try but it doesn't actually deliver the results you want. What is it? People will head over to Google, type in "free xbox 360 downloads", and then hope to find a website that offers them free game downloads. A few might come up, but don't get excited quite yet.
First off, websites that claim to offer free xbox downloads are a great place to pick up a virus or some type of spyware. There have even a few websites shut down for this reason. The problem lies in the fact that no one is monitoring them so you never know exactly what it is that you are downloading.
These websites will also have very slow download speeds and many of the games are mislabeled or don't even work when you finish downloading them. It's easy to waste a lot of time on these sites.
Your best to just skip that option altogether and head straight to the next one. There are specialty xbox 360 download websites that are run by professional companies. Here you can find all sorts of xbox downloads just by signing up as a member.
A nice feature of these sites is that they also offer movies, TV shows and other media files for download. Since these sites are designed specifically to offer xbox downloads, the companies make sure that the downloads are fast, all the games work and the downloads are 100% safe.
To become a member at these websites there is a fee that you need to pay. It's not expensive though (about $50) and it's a one-time fee. Once you join, you never will be billed again and can download as many games as you want for as long as you have your xbox 360.
When you join you also get access to all the software you need to make the games work on your xbox. It's a painless process - you can expect it to take about 5-10 minutes to setup.
The one thing to watch for is websites that charge a monthly fee or "per-download" fees. There are some that do this so that they can make a few extra bucks. However, you will want to choose a site that only bills you a one-time fee for unlimited downloads.
By downloading xbox 360 games you can save a lot of money and build up a huge library of games for your system. If you're someone who likes to try out new games then it's a great option to have. Just be careful though - it's easy to get addicted!
Is the Nintendo Wii Changing Our Lives?
The Nintendo Wii has a very sleek and compact look. The Nintendo Wii, which was officially launched into most markets in 2006 is distinctly different from other gaming systems. While many people point to its wireless controller as its major feature of difference, this is really only the beginning. The Nintendo Wii is also very flexible, and does not simply limit you to playing games. For example, you can view and edit photos taken with a digital camera by inserting the SD card into it and it can also be used the surf the Internet.
The 2 main external components of the Nintendo Wii are the Wiimote and Nunchuck. These devices are used to interact with the games using motion, gestures, and angles. This concept is not totally new as other manufactures have attempted the same thing using cameras, but never succeed. With the initial 512mb internal memory you are sure to have enough space to save you games. But just in case that is not enough, you can always purchase an SD memory card to expand as much as you like.
Compared to the 2 other main game consoles, Nintendo Wii offers a greater variety of games. Nintendo Wii accomplishes this by giving players a much more physical experience. The motion control enhancement feature allows user to play while reflecting actual movements, thus giving them a more tactical hands on experience. You will see both player one and player two on the screen giving you a feeling of controlling the whole team and not just an individual. Using the Wiimote and Nunchuck, players receive a much more in depth playing experience.
The Nintendo Wii scored some major gains and is now breathing down the Xbox 360's neck. New data shows that in a frame of one week, 310,000 Wii's got new owners - Xbox 360 sold 110,000 units, while PS3 sold only 50,000 units.
When you setup your Nintendo Wii, you create a Mii character. Each new user will create a Mii character as well. You can then play against other Mii's for a more personalized experience. The more you play your Mii, the more your skill level will increase, showing you how much you have improved. With a simple connection to the internet you can play web based games such as Solitaire from the Wii console.
The Nintendo Wii has also found its way into physical therapy. According to USA Today, the Wii uses movements much like traditional physical therapy for things such as strokes, surgery recovery, broken bones and more. Patients seem to get mentally involved which helps them forget about the physical rigor involved. Dance Dance Revolution is one of the many games that have proven to be a good weight loss and exercise regimen. The Wiimote adds to this exercise phenomenon. The one downfall at this point to the Wiimote is the ability to use it in more serious games.
Other video games do have some health benefits. The main one being the eye-hand coordination, but that is about it.
At the end of the day, the Nintendo Wii's design has enough charisma to please everyone.
