Dogfighting comes to WiiWare

Today, the day after the United States blew itself up and Canada wondered what all that racket was about and some people have jobs in the morning, sheesh, the Nintendo Download brings a peace offering of eight titles across WiiWare and DSiWare. Some anticipated, some not so much, and the Virtual Console is stuck in the infirmary after not letting go of that bottle rocket.

WiiWare

Pearl Harbor Trilogy - 1941: Red Sun Rising (Legendo Entertainment, 700 Points) — The first entry in this dogfighting trilogy comes in for landing today. We'll let you know how it fared in the transition from PC to WiiWare, but in the meantime we've got plenty of coverage to hold you over, like an interview with Legendo, a hands-on impressions and, uh, paper airplanes.

Cruise Party (Enjoy Gaming, 800 Points) — A collection of Slot Machines, Roulette, Black Jack and "Video" Poker on a boat. T-Pain sold separately.

DSiWare

QuickPick Farmer (Dancing Dots, 200 Points) — Sort your sheep as fast as you can into bins in order to then catapult wool into barns across a field where a big bad wolf is lurking. Sounds perfectly reasonable! A review is forthcoming, but be sure to check out our interview with Dancing Dots in the meantime.

Soul of Darkness (Gameloft, 500 Points) — Another cell phone port from Gameloft. Explore caves, castles and cathedrals as you hope to rescue your beloved from the clutches of a mean ol' vampire. Can it out-vamp Castlevania? Well, probably not, but we'll let you know.

SteamWorld Tower Defense (Image & Form, 500 Points) — It's robots versus humans in this tower defense title with a steampunk theme set in the West. Certainly a sparsely populated combination! We'll let you know how it stacks up against the rest of DSiWare's tower defense offerings.

101 Shark Pets (Teyon, 500 Points) — A pet simulator with the cuddliest of all sea creatures. Teach your shark tricks, rub its belly and enter it in pet contests, which surely won't scare the bejeebus out of the other contestants.

Hello Flowerz (Enjoy Gaming, 500 Points) — A gardening game that asks you to tune in daily to keep your beds in order. We found it pretty decent, if a bit dull, in our Hello Flowerz review.

Flips: The Folk of the Faraway Tree (EA, 500 Points) — The Flips series of interactive books marches on with the help of Enid Blyton and her Faraway Tree. Be sure to read up on our Flips: The Folk of the Faraway Tree review before taking the plunge.

NINTENDO DOWNLOAD: DECLARE INDEPENDENCE FROM THE SUMMER DOLDRUMS WITH NEW GAME DOWNLOADS

July 5, 2010

Are the sights and sounds of Independence Day fireworks still dancing in your head? With a lineup of new game downloads for Wii™ and Nintendo DSi™ systems, Nintendo is pleased to deliver even more eye-popping spectacles for you to enjoy this week and beyond. Fans of high-flying air combat games will cheer for the arrival of Pearl Harbor Trilogy - Red Sun Rising on the WiiWare™ service. For the Nintendo DSiWare™ service, new additions include the wild and wooly fun of QuickPick Farmer, the shadowy adventure of Soul of Darkness and the strategic kicks of SteamWorld™ Tower Defense.

We've also got new arrivals in the "Big Name Games" section of the WarioWare™: D.I.Y. series, which features downloadable microgames from some of the industry's most talented figures. This week we have some new additions from the Treehouse, Nintendo's game localization team. New "Big Name Games" will be added every Monday through July 26, all available to download for zero Nintendo DSi Points™ to anyone with broadband Internet access and a copy of either WarioWare: D.I.Y. for the Nintendo DS™ family of systems or WarioWare: D.I.Y. Showcase software for the WiiWare service. Visit the Nintendo Channel on your Wii system today to learn more about these games.

WiiWare

Pearl Harbor Trilogy - 1941: Red Sun Rising
Publisher: Legendo Entertainment
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: T (Teen) - Violence
Price: 700 Wii Points™
Description: Pearl Harbor Trilogy - 1941: Red Sun Rising is the first title in a trilogy of air-combat action games for the WiiWare service. Take off from aircraft carrier decks and historic military bases as you conduct covert strikes, engage in furious dogfights and fly search-and-destroy missions. Pilot the most prolific fighter, bomber and torpedo-bearing aircraft of the World War II Pacific Theatre. Featuring two campaigns spanning the early years of the Pacific War, you can play as the United States Naval Air Force or the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force. You can also choose to practice your combat skills in the Avenging Ace or Survival dogfight modes.

Cruise Party
Publisher: Enjoy Gaming
Players: 1-4
ESRB Rating: T (Teen) - Simulated Gambling
Price: 800 Wii Points
Description: Welcome aboard! Here you'll find four fabulous games to satisfy your appetite for gambling: Slot Machines, Roulette, Black Jack and "Video" Poker. Once on deck, you will be able to choose between Competition mode and Quick Play mode. If you beat a record, you'll have to enter your name in order to appear in the high scores table. Beware of bankruptcy!

Nintendo DSiWare

QuickPick Farmer
Publisher: Dancing Dots
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) - Comic Mischief
Price: 200 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: It's time to shear your sheep, but a wolf named George is prowling around your farm, and he's hungry. Hurry up and put the wool in the barns for safekeeping. Use the stylus to round up identical sheep, shear them, collect the balls of wool and catapult them into the barns. If George is getting too close to your flock, fire a ball right at his muzzle to chase him away and gain some time. Experience 30 crazy levels, a nonstop mode, striped sheep, spotted sheep and a goofy wolf. Test your powers of observation, your reflexes and your tactics in the wacky world of QuickPick Farmer.

Soul of Darkness
Publisher: Gameloft
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: T (Teen) - Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: Enter a fascinating gothic world as the mysterious and powerful Kale. Try to save your beloved's life and soul by freeing her from an evil vampire's clutches. Explore dark woods, caves, huge castles and impressive cathedrals under the full moon's light. Master and upgrade your sword and spear, and learn how to control your powers. Use the Fire and the Ice or transform into your enemies to overcome the numerous obstacles in your way. Face and defeat foes such as werewolves, succubae, gargoyles and zombies. Exclusive camera features let you use your environment to gain power-ups and upgrades. Good or evil - be the sole master of your destiny!

SteamWorld Tower Defense
Publisher: Image & Form
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10 and Older) - Mild Cartoon Violence
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: Welcome to Cowbot County, home of the robotic master race of SteamWorld! As the sheriff, you must stop the human invaders in their mad hunt for gold. Build attack robots next to the roads they roam, then watch the invaders go down. Use your robots' special skills to your advantage in this original tower defense variation where strategy and execution are equally important. There's an Easy mode for rookies, but everyone will find a unique challenge in the great Western reaches.

101 Shark Pets
Publisher: Teyon
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: Choose from more than 101 baby sharks or simply adopt them all. Discover their personalities as you feed, clean and care for your new pets. Bring out each pet's talents by training sharks in a variety of fun and wacky activities. Enter your shark into pet shows and earn money to buy exciting upgrades, including toys, food, clothes and accessories. The more tricks you teach and the more games you play, the more fun you'll have!

Hello Flowerz
Publisher: Enjoy Gaming
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: Welcome to Hello Flowerz, the gardening game where you have fun with flowers. Sow your favorite flowers and look after them every day, helping them grow into healthy, beautiful flowers. Use your flowers to create wonderful bouquets and enter them in regular competitions. Landscape your own gardens, transplant flowers and arrange various items. Put on your gloves, grab your tools and start showing off your flowers!

Flips: The Folk of the Faraway Tree
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Players: 1
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Description: Jo, Bessie and Fanny have a visit from their snooty friend Connie. Connie won't believe in the Faraway Tree and the magical people who live there: Moon-face, Silky the fairy and Saucepan Man. There's only one way to prove her wrong. Together the children climb the tree and visit some of the lands at the top of it, such as the Land of Secrets and the Land of Treats. And after a few adventures, Connie learns to be a nicer person altogether!

Nintendo adds new titles to the Nintendo DSi Shop and the Wii Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time on Mondays. Users with broadband Internet access can redeem Wii Points or Nintendo DSi Points to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel. Nintendo DSi Points can be purchased in the Nintendo DSi Shop. A Nintendo Points Card™ can be purchased at retail locations. All points from one Nintendo Points Card must be redeemed in either the Nintendo DSi Shop or the Wii Shop Channel. They are not transferable and cannot be divided between the two systems.

Remember that both Wii and Nintendo DSi feature parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other features, visit http://wii.com or http://www.nintendodsi.com.