Ever look at various hand straps included with various systems, see that looping bit of string nowhere NEAR as strong as the part that goes around your wrist, and think "wait, didn't they realize a chain is only as strong as it's weakest link?".
Well, they may not have, but some other people sure have been made aware of this.
At first I was just chocking this up to a fluke or two, but the reports just keep on coming in, complete with photo graphical and video evidence.
Interesting. I myself have noticed one can get a little caught up in the game, though that's nothing keeping a good grip can't solve. Still, I know exactly how clumsy I am and it's inevitable it'll slip from my grip one of these days. I'd like to think the strap would actually be able to hold if I'm in mid-ultraspeed mode (seriously, how fast were these guys swinging their arms to go through a frickin' window or TV?). I think the suggestion to make the strap either thicker or made of metal is a good one.
At least as of yet the people have taken these accidents in stride. Though, eventually a lawsuit will emerge from this... The thing is, I have a hard time really seeing Nintendo come out of any such lawsuit in one piece. They do specifically claim that with the hand strap in place, the remote will NOT fly all over the room. Something like that could be damning if the hand strap doesn't actually do much to prevent such a thing.
Of course if Nintendo loses and does end up making a stronger hand strap, offering to replace anyone's strap if they mail it in or some such thing, someone will probably imbibe in Underdog's energy pills and struggle to somehow break THAT so they can sue Nintendo again.
I didn't do one last year, because last year, I was extremely busy (working towards something ultimately futile). I wanted to, but I could never find the time to actually do it.
This year, I have no such endeavors to occupy me, so I made a new Christmas theme for 2006. You guys all know where to find it.
Posted by: EdenMaster - 25th November 2006, 10:49 AM - Forum: Wii Reviews
- No Replies
Many players will get their first taste of the Wii from this simple yet addictive sports sim package, mostly because (at least at launch) is waspacked in with all Wii systems. It's been called a great segue between controller gaming and using the Wii-mote for games people will play on the Wii. It's also the first game people will probably use their Mii avatars.
The game is meant to be played in short bursts, and while skill can be a factor, most anyone can pick up and play any of the games offered easily. Among them, Wii Sports offers Tennis, Baseball, Bowling, Golf, and Boxing. Each game has the player using the Wii remote in differing ways to affect gameplay.
Tennis is played as doubles, with one player controlling one or both players on on side of the course, and another player (or a CPU) on the other side. Four people can even fill all four positions, making for a grantic experience.
Baseball is somewhat similar to Tennis when batting. Two teams are made up of players and/or CPU's and take turns batting and pitching. When batting, players must watch the oncoming ball and hit it effectively to score a home run, or at least make it a base or two. When pitching, you can press many of the buttons on the remote to throw curveballs, grounders, fastballs, and any number of throws to perplex your opponent.
Bowling is straighforward and simple in it's presentation, but ridiculously fun. Players hold down the B Button as they aim and rear back their swing, then release the button to throw the ball. Bowling consists of a normal 10 frames of ten-pin bowling, just as it would be played normally.
In Golf, you hold the remote pointing downward (as though gripping the end of a golf club), and swing with varying force to either whack the ball across the course to the green, gently putt the ball into the hole, or any amount of strength needed in between.
Boxing is the only game requiring the Nunchuck attachment. Holding both pieces of the controller, players block and punch as though actually boxing.
Outside of the normal metods, each game offers three training courses to help you hone your skill in batting, putting, bowling strikes, or whatever malady your game may have. There is also a "daily training" option which throws a few random training methods at you and then grades your performance.
There isn't much to say about the game, admittedly, it's a fun game that can be picked up and played by anyone just about anytime, as each game only takes a few minutes to play. As stated earlier, it's also a great way to acclimate oneself to the unfamiliar control method of the Wii.
Anyone know why I can't change my avatar? I want to put a new Wii-specific one, but it won't let me change it in my CP. It let me delete the old one, but there is no option for adding a new one. Could this be a bug caused by the recent forum problems?
So has anyone else tried out the Virtual Console? If not, it's pretty slick. I bought a 2000 point card a few days ago and I picked out Sonic the Hedgehog and Super Mario 64 (the only worthwile downloads among the disappointing launch. Really, who is going to download Soccer or Pinball?).
The process couldn't be more smooth. I entered the code on my card and 2000 Wii Points added to my total immediately. I chose Sonic first, and I had it in about a minute and a half, Mario 64 didn't take too much longer. The games are picture-perfect ports, changed only to accept the functionality of new controls (I use the Wii-Mote in Sonic, and WaveBird for M64). I have yet to get a classic controller, though most games will accept a GC controller. There was a warning before M64 that the controls may have been "optimized" for the Classic Controller, but the GC controller handles it perfectly. It controls much like Sunshine.
It's a really cool system, and will definitely give the console a big edge during the summer droughts. No games being released, yank a game off the Virtual Console for 5-10 bucks while you're waiting for something bigger. Or, if you don't have the money for a new Wii game (as was my scenario), spend the chicken scratch on a classic you may have missed, or an old favorite.
All in all, this may be the best idea Nintendo ever came up with.
Quote:Gears of War Hits 1 Million Units Sold and Shoots to #1 on Xbox Live
More than 85 Percent of Players Connect to Xbox Live, Driving New Gold Memberships by 50 Percent
As “Gears of War” continues to emerge throughout the world ahead of the holiday sales rush, the Xbox 360 juggernaut has sold an impressive 1 million copies world-wide in just its first two weeks of release—elevating the game to the fastest-selling title of 2006 and fastest-selling original Xbox game of all time.
The battle continues to rage on Xbox Live as well, as more than 850,000 unique gamers have engaged in 10 million gameplay sessions while unlocking an impressive 7 million Achievements. On top of being the #1 title on Xbox Live, “Gears of War” has also driven new members to the network, as paid registrations per day have skyrocketed more than 50 percent since the game’s launch.
Propelling its rise to popularity, Gears of War has been crowned the best next generation game of the year by over 45 publications, earning a 95 percent average review score as tracked by www.gamerankings.com. Critics everywhere overwhelmingly agree and have united to make “Gears of War” one of the best-reviewed games of all time.
“From the very beginning, we knew ‘Gears of War’ would be an industry-defining hit,” said Shane Kim, corporate vice president at Microsoft Game Studios. “As we watched both the game and its hype grow, it became obvious that ‘Gears of War’ was the rare title that could live up to such incredible anticipation, and judging from the reaction of critics and fans, it’s done just that.”
Quote:Microsoft Corp., the world's leading maker of software, is earning money selling the Xbox 360 hardware, according to updated teardown analysis from research firm iSuppli. The information means that the software giant has managed to lower the price of its latest game console by nearly 40% in one year.
According to iSuppli's most recent analysis, the premium version of the Xbox 360 game machine equipped with hard disk drive has a manufacturing and materials total of $323.30, based on an updated estimate using costs in the fourth quarter of 2006. This total is $75.70 less than the $399 suggested retail price of the Xbox 360. Even though it is obvious that Microsoft still has to subtract freight, toll, retail partner's profit and other possible charges, it is highly likely that Microsoft has either managed to reduce its loss to minimal, or is making a tiny profit selling the $399 flavour of the Xbox 360.
A year ago the total bill of materials (BOM) cost for the Xbox 360 Premium, including hard disk, the DVD drive, enclosures, the Radio Frequency (RF) receiver board, power supply, wireless controller, cables, literature, and packaging, reached $525, well above the retail price of $399, according to iSuppli. Considering the up to date BOM, Microsoft has managed to reduce the pricing of its console by over 38.5%.
