One of the best-looking Mega Drive/Genesis games

Nintendo of America sure loves WiiWare all of a sudden. This week sees yet another three new WiiWare releases, along with two VC imports recently released in Europe. DSiWare only gets a single new game.

As previously announced, today is the North American release date for Bit Boy!!, Bplus's latest WiiWare effort. Nobody can deny the concept is quite innovative - You start the game in "4-bit" mode, but as you go along, the entire game will "upgrade" to 8-bit, 16-bit, etc. until eventually reaching 128 bits. Sadly, the execution leaves a lot to be desired - We thought it just wasn't exciting enough to stick with. For 600 points those who are curious could possibly take a gamble, but if you're hard pressed for money, this is far from a top priority!

Incoming! was only announced a few days ago, but it's already available today! In this cutesy strategy game you control a bunch of tanks as they, you guessed it, fight other tanks. You'll have to use the Wii remote's cursor to shoot down enemy missiles and other attacks before they hit your tanks, while trying to destroy the opponent's. For 500 points this could very well offer some decent frantic fun, but then again, the developers also made Frat Party Games: Pong Toss! We'll find out if it's any good in our review soon enough!

We haven't previously heard much about Ant Nation from Konami. It seems like a sort of Pikmin-esque game - Increase the size of your army of ants and try to take down larger creatures like spiders and ladybugs while collecting items and fulfilling various missions. Konami still hasn't released a truly great WiiWare game, perhaps this will be their breakthrough? At 700 Wii Points it seems fairly priced. We'll have a review up soon.

It's that time again on Virtual Console - Two more imports will be available in North America later today. By far the more exciting one is Pulseman on the Mega Drive/Genesis, one of Game Freak's very first games, before they became known for almost nothing but Pokémon! It's a fast-paced, challenging platformer with great graphics, music and even voice acting. You also play as a half-man, half-robot who can generate electricity, what else could you want? We think it's one of the best imports yet, so do yourself a favour and put it on your to buy list!

Today's other import isn't really 100% an "import" - Secret Command was originally released in North America as Rambo: First Blood Part II, but obviously, getting the Rambo license back just to put that version of the game on VC would probably cost Sega a bit too much. The only difference between the two titles is that you'll be paying 600 points instead of 500, because this counts as an import! The game itself is similar to the likes of Commando/Wolf of the Battlefield and Ninja Commando - You continuously move upwards mowing down any enemy in your way with either guns or grenades. Of the three, we think it's probably the least interesting, but if you like the others and simply want more, then you can't go wrong with this.

DSiWare only sees a single new release this week, and it's the game everyone's been waiting for - Brain Challenge! If you own both a Wii and DSi there is absolutely no point in getting this game on DSi - The WiiWare version is a much more complete experience. If you only own a DSi though, it could be worth checking out, but really, haven't there been enough brain training games already?

Still no Super Smash Bros., but at least there's two new imports. Will you be getting either? More from Nintendo's press release:

DOWNLOAD: BIT BOY'S INCOMING SECRET PULSE COMMANDS POSE A BRAIN CHALLENGE FOR THE ANT NATION

July 13, 2009

This week Nintendo offers three new WiiWare™ games, including a trip through video game history, a strategic tank battle and a virtual twist on an ant farm. Download fans will also find two Virtual Console™ SEGA classics and a Nintendo DSiWare™ game designed to keep the brain sharp.

WiiWare

Bit Boy!!
Publisher: Bplus
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 600 Wii Points
Description: Get ready for the most spectacular journey through time in the history of video games!! Accompany Bit Boy Kubi through a crazy pixellated adventure and battle hordes of nasty monsters in 4-bit dungeons, 8-bit caves, 16-bit strongholds, 32-bit labyrinths, 64-bit arenas and 128-bit worlds!! Rescue Kubi's friends!! Set off in the ultimate pursuit of fruits and high scores!! Grab a friend for even more fun in Cooperative mode!! The Wii Remote is your joystick – let the arcade adventure begin!!

Incoming!
Publisher: JV Games Inc.
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) – Mild Cartoon Violence
Price: 500 Wii Points
Description: The goal of Incoming! is to defeat your opponents by destroying their tanks using the arsenal you have at your disposal. Advanced arsenals become available at different levels of the game. Incoming! is great fun for two people to play competitively. Can you defeat your opponent's tanks before they conquer yours? Collect power-ups to give your arsenal that tactical advantage. Your firing must be quick and your aim true to claim victory.

Ant Nation
Publisher: Konami Digital Entertainment
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E 10 + (Everyone 10 and Older) – Mild Violence
Price: 700 Wii Points™
Description: The beloved childhood pastime of lazy Sundays spent with a magnifying glass and an ant farm finally arrives in its most mischievous form via the WiiWare service. You must train your colony of Super Ants using a devilishly fun toolset. Zap, torch and manipulate your ants to make them numerous enough and tough enough to survive a variety of increasingly difficult challenges.

  • Zap your ants with lasers, fry them with your trusty magnifying glass, send down lightning and much more to build them to be the strongest Ants on the block.
  • Send your ants into war against local bullies like spiders and ladybugs. Is your colony ready for the fight?
  • 100 missions keep you busy facing a smorgasbord of fun and wacky tasks.
  • Bonus mode features 20 additional challenges that allow you to get crazy with all your favorite weapons of ant destruction.
  • Use your Wii Remote™ controller to drop a virtual hammer on your ants, use your Wii Remote like a metal detector to find in-game gold and much more.

Virtual Console

Secret Command™
Original platform: SEGA Master System
Publisher: SEGA
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: E 10+ (Everyone 10 and Older) – Mild Violence
Price: 600 Wii Points
Description: Play as a lone warrior, armed to the teeth, sent on a top-secret commando mission behind enemy lines to liberate your comrades at arms. Released on the SEGA Master System in Europe as Secret Command, players will battle frenzied attacks from enemy soldiers, rocket troops, tanks and other enemies doing everything they can to stop you from saving the hostages. Use your trusty machine gun and a compound bow, equipped with explosive-tipped arrows, to pave the way to victory. Let nothing stand in your path. Play it with a friend in two-player mode for double the fire power.

Pulseman™
Original platform: SEGA Genesis
Publisher: GAME FREAK
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) – Animated Violence
Price: 900 Wii Points
Description: When noted 21st-century scientist Doc Yoshimaya fell in love with one of his C-Life artificial-intelligence creations, he uploaded himself into his computer, where her program core merged with his DNA, and half-human/half-C-Life Pulseman was born. Doc Yoshimaya's mind twisted as he emerged back into real life, and he became evil Doc Waruyama. Use Pulseman's ability to harness electricity as a weapon with his Volteccer attack as a means of rapid transport to fight Waruyama's Galaxy Gang across seven crazy stages. Find out why this SEGA Channel classic was widely regarded as one of the best-looking games for SEGA's MEGA DRIVE (Genesis) on release.

Nintendo DSiWare

Brain Challenge®
Publisher: Gameloft
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) – Mild Cartoon Violence
Price: 800 Nintendo DSi Points™
Description: Just like your body, your brain needs exercise to stay in shape. Brain Challenge is a simple, entertaining solution for stimulating your neurons that goes way beyond logic tests. Thanks to a complete range of 48 mini-games, Brain Challenge provides an exceptional variety of exercises. Not only can you train your brain for Math but also for four other categories: Logic, Focus, Memory and Visual. Plus an original Stress Mode, featuring multitasking and authority challenges, Plus, you can now personalize your profile and some exercises with your own photos.

[source press.nintendo.com]