I could buy this on my Japanese Wii, but I know I'd be missing information on the inventory management screen. Besides I like to support Western releases of games like this.

I know people are keen, but I think timing this for release on the new Wii-U shop is probably a good idea at this point (hopefully we'll see a shop revamp for the Wii as well).

I have MS1, 2 and 3 on Virtual Console on my Japanese Wii. I've played 4, 5 and 6 and honestly they were just too derivative for me to bother with. Three is definitely my favourite for the epicness and messed-uppedness of it. It really does take everything from the previous games and turn it all the way up.

Normally I'd disregard a developer-run kickstarter campaign, but Farsight is an independent studio dedicated to this project and it's really in response to the fans clamoring for tables based upon licensed properties that they're making this effort so it's worthy of support.

The IP costs are staggering for something this simple; if that is what it takes to have quality digital versions of Twilight Zone or The Addams Family or Star Trek: The Next Generation machines then I'm all for it. Not like you aren't getting anything for your contribution!

@scottie: I dumped the Metal Slug Anthology due to a lack of motion-free control option. There's some nice extras, but I'd rather be able to play the game "properly" so the VC Neo Geo versions are for me. If we get Metal Slug X that'll be my Metal Slug collection complete.

The games industry really should work more like Hollywood and have more targeted release dates to maximise sales. More than one major title in a month seems like a mistake unless the target markets don't overlap.

The one exception is a new console launch, but otherwise, absolutely major releases should be better spaced out.

This feels like a game that I would potentially be playing in an impaired fashion if I got it for my Japanese Wii, so I would like to see a Western release.

If not on WiiWare, why not Wii-U?

Will Nintendo be doing the region-code thing with Wii-U as well? I wouldn't mind being able to play my Japanese games on the same system as my UK ones...

@motang: That would be a collection of downloadable Marvel-themed video pinballs that appeared in - PSN I think? Anyway, that and curiosity about what Nintendo is going to do with this new interface are what's selling me this console. Marvel video pins and Pikmin 3 are my games off this list.

@Dreadjaws: It's a fair point and why I'd like to see the whole concept of region-coding consigned to the dustbin, but the fact is that you'd need a global clearinghouse for copyright and worldwide game ratings systems and I just cannot see that happening in the near future.

Until then, it will suck to be from a country that isn't one of the core game marketplaces. At least there will still be retail titles offered to import!

I bought the first Black Ops title on Wii and it was entertaining enough, but hampered by a crap single-player campaign (what an awful story - where, exactly, were the "black ops" I was expecting from the title?) and online which was probably fine for people in the States where both players and servers seemed to be located, but horribly laggy for those of us across the Atlantic.

I'll get the zombie game if they offer it as a separate downloadable title, but I'm not interested in this sequel. If I was interested in this kind of game, then I'd probably own one of the other consoles. I'm all about third party releases on the Wii-U, just not the ones that are presently massive sellers on the Playstation and X-Box.

I wouldn't certainly hope you'd be able to. I buy DVD .iso's off Rifftrax all the time and they take about 1-2hrs. - not bad for a 4.5GB file when the servers are located across the Atlantic.

I'm not sure why people are concerned about USB 2.0 speeds - I mean as skywake said, it's faster than the DVD drive you're currently loading games off of!

I got some good titles off WiiWare, but the offering as a whole was weak: terribly slow to use and clearly something tacked on which the system wasn't really designed to support properly from the beginning.

Nintendo got burned; they have no excuse for not getting it right this time. I'd argue that if their online shop isn't right this time it will doom them as a hardware company.

As long as that Marvel pinball collection is near launch I'll be happy. I'll also get a Pikmin game as I enjoyed the first one with the Wii controls.

I prefer downloads for everything as long as I have the right to re-download in the event of a disk failure or whatever other reason. With optical disc "rot" I'm stuck trying to track down another copy of the game and for some of my games that would be nearly impossible.

Having the same price at launch doesn't mean much to me; I expect the price would go down in time just as it does with retail games post-release. Hell, iTunes has sales on films and music, so why wouldn't Nintendo for games?

The biggest plus is that we could have a more comprehensive Virtual Console here; even better if they had cross-region stuff. I'm thinking Namco's genius Mr. Driller Drill-Land which was exclusively for the Japanese Gamecube and is the rarest game I own.

If Nintendo is serious about offering retail titles for download across the board this could be a real boon for small print-run or overlooked titles. We should embrace it; not criticise it.

If DS games were playable that would be brilliant, though I doubt things like Space Invaders Extreme would be terribly playable given the physical disconnect between the screens. RPGs should work just fine, though.

I for one don't think there's been enough Wii-U hype on the site, so keep it up guys!

I was also a big fan of The Super Spy back before the Neo Geo seemed to become exclusively about sports and fighting games. I'll happily pick up this and Shock Troopers for my Japanese VC machine.

Whilst I'm sure Nintendo could sell software profitably on other platforms, the fact is that it would mean the erosion of their own hardware platforms as others have said because they'd be taking resource away from development on their own platforms. I'm sure someone will respond that they could license the IP to a 3rd party, but why would they license a 3rd party to produce software for a platform they don't make themselves rather than one that they do?

I'm sure it's more of a reflection of analysts who feel that Nintendo should simply stop making hardware. If they ever stop making money on hardware or, more importantly, the software that runs on it, then they might have a point. If the Wii-U tanks I think there's a greater chance this could happen, though I doubt they would abandon 3DS regardless

Well I guess that sorts the issue of whether or not I'll want a hard drive for it as given the choice I say away from all packaged media now. I have some DVDs and CDs, but that's purely as a back-up which I never hope to use or for little extras I don't regard as worth ripping.

I seriously hope we'll be able to somehow transfer Wii games to HDD as well; I just don't have confidence in the durability of optical media after finding a number of my old DVDs were unrippable/unplayable due most likely to manufacturing issues. It would suck to have a low-print run Wii game just stop working and not be able to find a replacement copy.

I had to re-centre the reticule (press down on d-pad) a lot towards the end of the game; not so much early on. My main problem was being too impatient with my swings and doing my arm in on the early boss fights.

Detection of thrust seemed to be the main control problem; especially against the scorpion bosses where you had a limited window for the attack. I ended up doing a lot of mad flailing and finding myself agreeing with people who bemoan motion controls.

In this respect I preferred the controls in Twilight Princess which relied upon a combination of buttons and motions and made you feel like Link was actually growing more powerful over the course of the game. In this one the sword gets stronger, but you're doing the same things.

Nevertheless I enjoyed the game because that degree of precision wasn't required too often and I found the story and tone preferable to that in Twilight Princess, so I've decided to hang onto it. Besides my daughter might want to have a go someday!

Personally I think Nintendo overreached with WiiWare. We have seen some great games for it and I own quite a few, but I think that they probably should have stuck with the Virtual Console for the download service If they didn't have the infrastructure to deliver a comparable service to that offered on other platforms.

I still think little of BeamDog's moans - they signed the contract and WiiWare had been around long enough that they should have known the risks. I think their opinion is fair, but honestly if you cannot accept the downside then don't sign the contract and go elsewhere with your product. If Nintendo sold them a bill of goods they'd have a case for legal damages, so it's pretty clear this is mostly sour grapes.

I do hope that Wii-U will have a better online shop, but if small developers decide to stay away that's not going to keep me from buying the system.

Very cool; I would have happily gotten it anyway, but this is a nice bonus.

@madgear: I expect that's stated up-front in the Ts and Cs so although I agree it's crap, nobody forces developers to sign on - Nintendo isn't a monopoly and you can always develop for another platform.

I do hope that the Wii - U will have a more robust online solution, however the fact is that there's not many WiiWare titles that get a lot of replay from me.

My daughter enjoys the Five Spots Party and Whiterock Castle titles; I like the retro stuff like Bit.Trip (now on disc so I won't bother with the download versions) and escapeVektor, but mostly I buy Virtual Console stuff for my Japanese Wii.

Lifting the 40MB limit might up the quality, but I have my doubts.

Hopefully he'll get a Wii U project. Although I made the mistake of not buying No More Heroes upon release I did correct that oversight and pre-ordered the sequel.

I'd take an endless series of Travis Touchdown sequels over space marines any day of the week, but I'd like to see something new (and irreverent) from Suda 51 on the Wii U

That looks like it could be fun. I think the main problem with developers of these kinds of games is that they give them a set number of levels (and not many at that). They look more like old-school arcade games and should play that way: just ramp up the difficulty until it becomes nigh impossible and slap on a worldwide leaderboard.

I don't expect them to match price with online, but I do expect them to stock titles which are on the radar of the fans. Even before this meltdown there were problems. Not carrying Muramasa and eventually refusing to stock any Rising Star titles at all? What the hell was that? Other 3rd party titles deliberately available only for purchase online, without even the option to pick-up in-store for convenience?

If it's a game shop it should bloody well stock a broader selection of new releases and not just a massive selection of used titles. At a minimum I'd expect local publishers like Rising Star to be supported and promoted, otherwise the value of a local chain of specialty shops is lost on me.

I want two things from the Wii-U: backwards-compatibility with the Wii (software and hardware) and new software/gaming experiences. I have no doubt that Nintendo will deliver on both of my desires.

Wow, Metal Slug 3? I honestly didn't see that coming. If they do Metal Slug X, that would be extra nice. I can live without the subsequent ones as they just aren't as good.

I didn't pick up Prince of Persia because I like the Japanese Wii to be my VC console, so that'll be nice to have as well.

Well, that's good news for the employees, but too little to late for me. I could see walking in off the street to do the odd trade, but my pre-orders are going to stay with The Hut and Amazon, I'm afraid.

My daughter has recently discovered the Pokemons; I have no doubt she'd love this game. Seems like a decent idea for a birthday gift!

I thought the WiiWare game was decent, but it just didn't have legs. I'd welcome a game that was more faithful to the original. Hopefully Konami will ace this one.

Runner 2's different visuals aren't as concerning as its derivative nature, but this is more of a demo than an actual part of the game (note Pre-Alpha) so it's likely they're just using a pre-existing level segment to try out the art-style. I think it's kind of funky; reminds me of Robox quite a lot, actually.

I also don't regard this news as surprising; Gaijin is still in business due their success on the WiiWare platform and they do have a good working relationship with Nintendo. I could definitely see them being able to make something like BIT-Troid a reality; NoA would be fools not to go with it as a way to help showcase their new online service and approach to independent developers.

I have to side with Thomas here. Pachter is respected because he's nearly alone in his field. Until him few financial analysts paid attention to the games industry. He has contact with development studios and a decent understanding of how the industry works inside and out.

If he comes off as a "hater" it's because like all financial analysts he wants companies to make decisions that will mean more money for his clients, though again, like all financial analysts the decisions he thinks companies should make aren't necessarily in the best interest of those companies.

He's responding to a query from a viewer on his show, so he's trying to give an answer other than "I don't know" - not really fair to slag off his opinion when he's stated up-front he's just stabbing in the dark. Frankly given how Nintendo's rep suffered amongst many of the so-called "core gamers" over the past few years, it is arguably a big gamble for Nintendo to try to target them with a machine that is clearly also trying to compete with iOS devices or at least get some leftovers from them.

I'm going to break with past tradition and get this machine upon release, but I don't feel invested to the point of attacking anyone who criticises it.

Unbelievable. I only found this out today after checking my order status Monday and discovering the link to the title turned up nothing.

Needless to say I've cancelled my Pandora's Tower pre-order as I'm not interested in guessing whether or not I'll get the game! Heck, they didn't put Bit.Trip Complete into the catalogue until after I'd already pre-ordered with Amazon!

I could understand if this was a 3rd party game, but there is no way to justify not stocking a 1st-party published title. I've switched to Amazon/The Hut and I'm not looking back.

Someone just release the arcade version on the VC, that's really all we need.

Well, I would hope that whatever this new shop is will include content currently available in the Wii shop since there's supposedly backwards compatibility. I also hope for some kind of account for easier console replacement. Nintendo really missed a trick there as I suspect they could have had people buying new Wiis just for a colour swap if that was the case.

Despite the foibles of the Apple ID, it does mean I don't feel any hesitation about upgrading my hardware whether it's my Mac Mini, iPhone or eventual iPad - the device is merely a platform for running my software which is transferable (the only limitation being the ability of the code to actually run on a current platform).

I'm planning on buying a Wii-U irrespective of software transfer service, but I hope we'll have something beyond an app-based solution like the 3DS has if so.

£200-300 seems fine to me. Two things sold me on the Wii: Price and Pinball. I already know Wii-U is getting the latter, so we'll see how they do on the former. And yes, as someone said upstream, key features at launch please!

It's Dodge 'Em which I enjoy so this I enjoy. Shame Phil didn't enjoy it.

Why isn't this out in the UK yet? One of my daughter's faves on my Japanese DSi XL; I'm giving her a UK DSi for Hanukah and I can't gift it to her ;-(

To those asking, no you cannot change your region to Japan. There are four (possible five) regions of Wiis that I'm aware of and two of them can be switched between different countries for sure.

PAL Wiis cover PAL territories which happens to include Australia and New Zealand. I can take my PAL Wii and set it to UK, Spain, Germany, whatever, though if I do so I'll lose any points balace I have outstanding.

Wiis sold in North America can be set to countries including Canada, Mexico and Brazil (pretty sure other countries south of Mexico as well).

The Wii sold in Japan is like the DSi sold in Japan: Japan region. You cannot change the language or the country setting to anything else.

There's a Wii sold in Korea; as far as I know it's a separate region. There may be one specifically for China as well, but I honestly don't know about that; maybe the Korean one can be switched to China?

So the only legit way to enjoy Japanese download content for Wii is to get yourself a Japanese Wii. Speaking of which I need to get Strider for Mega Drive and Sengoku for Neo Geo...

I really enjoy a good 3rd-person action title, so yeah, that Ninja Gaiden game looks like it could be worth a look. The more I think about the possibilities of the controller, the more I think it was a good move by Nintendo. Anything else would pretty much mean what Token Girl says could come to pass, but assuming that technology is exploited properly it means the Wii U will offer a different gaming experience from the Xbox and Playstation that won't easily be replicated.

By taking their gaming experience in a different direction they can avoid competing head-on with Microsoft and Sony, which has to be an advantage in the long run.

Wow, missed this update last week. Must get Sengoku! Strider will also be nice as I seem to recall the MD version was pretty good, though it would suck if Capcom decided to do more arcade games afterwards.

Still waiting for Snow Brothers for MegaDrive, which is one of my favourite arcade games. This was supposed to have a release in Japan in the first year, but never happened. Please please please!

As long as the basic infrastructure is ready I'll be happy. I think if I had been an early Wii adopter having to wait for things like the shop would have been a bit annoying.

Offer an incentive for existing Wii owners to trade-up (£50 off?) and I think you'll have a pretty decent launch.

Excellent news, very much looking forward to pre-ordering this! Shame I bought the first few albums in iTunes, but at least I'll have the CD for the rest.

Well, I've come full circle on this, mostly due to the Marvel Pinball because I'm just such a sucker for that. If I can get a modest trade-in credit for my existing Wii then I'm on-board. I honestly don't care if I get to keep my WiiWare as I'm happy to repurchase the handful of titles still on my machine. The more I look at the iPad the less convinced I am of it being a gaming experience to replace the Wii and it's really a frivolous purchase by comparison.

Besides I've not had a console at launch before so that could be fun, even if I get hit with first-release hardware and software issues.

These are really nice. Great to see both Defender upright and pinball in the list. The prices aren't bad either; special for the arcade cabs is 10 for £99!

I'm really looking forward to both this and Pandora's Tower, but what about Earth Seeker?

I've been too busy putting my movie collection on my computer to play Xenogears recently, but I'm enjoying that one as well.

@MasterGraveheart: can you blame them? Unlike Nintendo software is all they have and if they spend the time to develop they want to get it quickly to market and hopefully have a storefront that adequately displays their wares. The Wii shop does seem to be "fair," but Nintendo could easily do little things to make their online shop more appealing; without doing it for free.

Take a page from Amazon Marketplace and allow developers to have a virtual shop presence beyond the rather bland "Publisher" grouping for browsing. Or as has been suggested many times, have featured titles for sale like they do in iTunes. And clearly allowing developers to create demos and keep them available is also important.

Indie devs may not have big money for marketing, but there's no reason Nintendo cannot provide options for them to feel like they're getting the most from the Wii shop (I don't have experience of the eShop, so I won't comment on that, but I hope it's better than the DS Shop, which is pretty dire). Nintendo can then simply focus on the basic presentation.

I hope Wii U will have more of a Steam or iTunes like desktop interface where the first thing you have when you boot is the latest online offerings. I don't think internet connectivity should be mandatory, but it should be a default set-up option when a new system is unboxed. This would show Nintendo is serious about downloads.

I do enjoy a nice downloadable title, but the quality needs to be there. I expect part of the reason Nintendo is having problems now is a lot of devs have moved on to HD platforms which is pretty much everything but the Nintendo platforms. Hopefully the Wii U will turn that around.

If, like me, you were looking for a new quality download for the Wii may I humbly suggest escapeVektor Chapter 1? As long as Nintendo can still get stuff like that they have a decent foundation to build upon.

I bought this last night and got to World 4 today. Phil's words match mine exactly: brilliant. It's really such a nicely designed game and the fantastic soundtrack is the icing on the cake. As with the Bit.Trip games I'd happily spend real money to get the soundtrack on iTunes or wherever so Nnooo make it so!

Wow, first WiiWare game I'll have purchased since Lilt Line.

I'm also annoyed about games not turning up on our shores for download. I had assumed Kappa's Trail got a European release, but I find that's not the case. A shame as I'm getting a DSi for my daughter for Hanukah and that's one of two DSiWare games she plays on my Japanese LL (the other is Spotto! aka Birds and Bombs). What gives NoE?