Wii - Timeline
Tuesday6th Jun 2017
News Snap Up Nintendo Shares Because Switch Could Outsell Wii, Says Analyst Firm Jefferies
"Switch has turned out to be a stealth hit"
Jefferies analyst Atul Goyal has instructed his company's clients to buy Nintendo stock because the Switch could end up being even more popular than the Wii. In a letter to clients, Goyal said: Switch has turned out to be a stealth hit and is positioned to drive Wii-type [the company's last successful...
Monday22nd May 2017
News Nintendo's Response To Blind Rhythm Heaven Fan Will Warm Even The Coldest Of Hearts
"I will always support you, Nintendo"
Japanese boy Hibiki Sakai was diagnosed with retinoblastoma in both eyes at the age of one and a half, and following the surgical procedures necessary to save his life has been completely blind since the age of two. That hasn't stopped him indulging in many passions; he's a talented drummer and, like many...
Tuesday2nd May 2017
News Nintendo is Still Targeting Switch Sales to Match the Wii
Seeking momentum in the coming year
One of the bolder claims made by Nintendo in recent months is that it hopes the Switch can approach Wii-level sales. The little system shifted over 100 million units, as a reminder, but in the past generation Nintendo's most notable success has been passing 66 million sales with the 3DS; the portable has, it...
Friday17th Mar 2017
News Dolphin Emulator Now Allows Wii Shop Access and Purchases
About as legit as emulation can get
The Dolphin emulator is well known in its particular scene, especially for its ability to run Wii and GameCube titles in HD - that was an especially big deal when Nintendo was still all about 480p. It's still under continual development, and its team has come up with a rather surprising and neat update. In...
Thursday2nd Feb 2017
News Tatsumi Kimishima Expects Nintendo Switch To Sell "About As Well" As The Wii
A target of around 100 million units, then?
It's been a busy day for comments from Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima. Earlier on we reported that he'd spoken about the potential of a true successor to the 3DS, but the Nintendo boss has also been talking about his expectations for the Switch, which arrives next month. In a recent interview,...
Wednesday28th Dec 2016
Video Check Out These Canned Game Prototypes for Wii From Red Fly Studio
Ever want to see Arkham Asylum running on a Wii?
Red Fly Studio is a name that may be familiar to some of you; a few years back, it came out that the studio was working on an ambitious open world game for Wii starring Darth Maul of Star Wars lore. Though that game never made it into production, the studio had notably done work porting the two...
Saturday24th Dec 2016
Video Check Out the Open World Flash Game That Never Was
Gone in a flash
Superhero games have had a bit of a rough track record due to the abundance of lazy licensed games, but highlights of the past few years could be found in the likes of the Batman Arkham or inFamous series. One popular superhero that seems to have never gotten his chance to shine in a game is the Flash, but recent reports indicate...
Monday31st Oct 2016
News Just Dance 2017's Best-Selling Version is on Wii
Don't stop 'til you get enough
The UK chart results are in, and from a Nintendo perspective they're rather grim. Aside from the harsh current realities of Wii U and 3DS game sales in the UK, however, this week's results have a quirky side-note that we just had to share. First of all, a quick rundown of what's happening at the top of the charts...
Monday17th Oct 2016
Video Learn About the Factor 5 Dungeons & Dragons Game That Was Pitched For Wii
Console power and license costs got in the way
Factor 5 was a big player in the Nintendo 64 and GameCube eras, in particular, well-known for its Star Wars games. Yet after the relationship with LucasArts fell away the developer was looking for new licenses that could drive its projects. Factor 5 eventually came to the idea of a Dungeons &...
Thursday6th Oct 2016
News The Wii Is Getting A New Retail Game This November
But don't get too excited...
Nintendo officially put the Wii out to pasture when it launched the Wii U back in 2012, but the system - which has sold over 100 million units globally - isn't entirely dead yet. Publisher Bigben Interactive is preparing to launch The Voice on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and - you guessed it - Wii this November. Based on...
Monday3rd Oct 2016
News Former Sony Boss Jack Tretton Lavishes Praise On Nintendo And The Wii
"I think everyone discounted the Wii initially"
Former Sony Computer Entertainment America president and CEO Jack Tretton has admitted in an interview with IGN that he - like so many in the games industry - underestimated the Wii when it was first announced. The console followed the underperforming GameCube and took risks by opting for weaker...
Thursday29th Sep 2016
News Sonic Developers Discuss How Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Came About
Two worlds colliding
The rivalry between Sega and Nintendo back in the day was the stuff of legends; there arguably has never been a more heated competition between two game companies since. After Nintendo's near monopoly on video games in the NES days, Sega's Genesis console represented a tectonic shift and proved that there was room for other...
Thursday22nd Sep 2016
News Donkey Kong Country Returns Swings to the North American Wii U VC This Week
*Cue bongo drums*
Rare's Donkey Kong Country trilogy is a collection of three absolutely classic games, so there was obviously plenty of trepidation when Donkey Kong Country Returns was announced back at E3 in 2010. However, if there were ever a capable studio, it would be Retro Studios, and the development team did an excellent job of revitalizing...
Thursday15th Sep 2016
News WarioWare Smooth Moves Arrives on the North American eShop This Week
Smooth like butter
The WarioWare series is easily one of the weirdest in Nintendo's stable, centered around a broad array of crazy minigames created by Wario and all his weird friends. After its initial debut on the GBA, it's had an entry on every console since – with the notable exclusion of the 3DS. It's certainly a series unlike anything else,...
Friday19th Aug 2016
News Concept Art Surfaces from the Cancelled 'Epic Donald'
Epic Mickey could've been a trilogy
Remember Epic Mickey? Junction Point's ambitious, decision-centric platformer drew a lot of attention with it's unique art direction and supposedly dark themes for Disney's most popular mouse, but the game was met with mixed reception upon release. The team tried once more with Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two, but...
Sunday31st Jul 2016
Video Digital Foundry Explores the Potential for GameCube and Wii Emulation on Nintendo NX
Putting the older Tegra X1 to the test
The past week's key revelations on the NX, established through multiple sources and reinforced by plenty of checks and off-the-record conversations, have many (including us here at Nintendo Life) confident that there's validity and value to the details. One key aspect is the use of Nvidia technology to power...
Tuesday31st May 2016
Video Weep with Us Over these Top Five Gaming Series that Ain't What They Used to Be
No prizes for guessing number one
Every series has its high points and its low points, but for some franchises we seem to be stuck at the bottom of a rut with no clear way out. It's sad that some of our favourite series have taken such a nosedive, but that's just what happens sometimes. In an effort to try and inform, entertain, and relieve some...
Sunday29th May 2016
Video Learn More About Super Mario Galaxy 1 & 2
And quietly judge the millions that apparently pirated it
Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 are among the most critically acclaimed and popular titles of the Wii era, even proving popular as Virtual Console downloads on Wii U. They're also games with interesting histories - from the origins of the sequel as Super Mario Galaxy 1.5, down to...
Monday23rd May 2016
News The Servers for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Reflex Are Down
No word on when, or if, they'll be back up.
UPDATE: (9:05 CST) It looks like the servers are back up. For now, online for Call of Duty on the Wii will live another day. Evidently, it was some sort of technical issue. As many of you likely remember, the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection was shut down for good almost exactly two years ago. Succeeded by the...
Thursday12th May 2016
News Nintendo Defeats Yet Another Patent Claim Against the Wii Remote
Motion Games loses its appeal
The Wii utilised common technology in clever ways and sold over 100 million units - that's the perfect combination to prompt a whole lot of patent-related court cases. Nintendo has successfully defeated the majority of patent claims against it in recent years, and has now confirmed the end of another case. This time...
Thursday28th Apr 2016
Video Feast Your Eyes on these Five Cancelled Super Mario Games
Obligatory CD-i appearance included
Mario's been around for donkey's years and has starred in so many games it's almost worrying. It's no surprise then that there were a few games surrounding the portly plumber that never made it to retail shelves, and thanks to the internet we can now display them for you for your amusement. Check out the video...
Monday25th Apr 2016
News 10 Years On, Hideki Kamiya Still Doesn't Think He Could Better Okami
Not even "a pixel of confidence" that he could "surpass the original"
The gorgeous Okami is 10 years old, which is an almost unbelievable fact in itself - it seems like only yesterday that we were stalking its stunning ink-rendered world as Amaterasu, marvelling at the motion controls and tight, appealing gameplay. Despite getting a sequel on the...
Sunday17th Apr 2016
Video See If This Tale of the Cancelled Dirty Harry Game Makes Your Day
The developers weren't feeling lucky
Dirty Harry, to many younger readers (heck, including this writer), may seem like a rather old movie series in which a youthful Clint Eastwood mutters iconic lines. It's not too long ago, however, that Warner Bros. (and Eastwood's own company) had grand plans to revive the franchise with licensed games. The...
Friday15th Apr 2016
Video Learn About Hero World, the MMO That Could Have Changed Guitar and DJ Hero Forever
Struck the wrong chord as the series collapsed
In the last generation of systems there was a frenzied period when Guitar Hero and Rock Band went head to head and dominated the gaming industry. With pricey yet desirable accessories and gameplay that struck a nerve with the public, the concept of plastic instruments and music games was a huge...
Wednesday30th Mar 2016
Video More Footage And Details Emerge For The Cancelled Bonk: Brink Of Extinction
Cave story
Bonk is one of video gaming's most unlikely mascots. Originally named PC Kid and seen as the PC Engine's lead character in Japan, he was renamed Bonk when that console was released in North America as the TurboGrafx-16. Bonk would enjoy three mainline adventures on NEC's hardware - all of which were very well recieved - as well as...
Sunday20th Mar 2016
Video Learn More About Superman: Blue Steel, Factor 5's Final Project
Kryptonite to an excellent studio
Factor 5 was a studio that had plenty of fans, with its Rogue Squadron titles in particular being standouts for Nintendo fans. Unfortunately its later years were punctuated by aborted projects and difficult generational transitions, an example being an attempt to produce a Kid Icarus game for Wii. Now occasional...
Saturday19th Mar 2016
Video Learn About the Quirky History of Wii Sports and Its Role in Bringing Us Mii Characters
Wuhu Island could have been more important, too
Wii Sports is the biggest-selling retail game of all time. Sure, the fact it was bundled with many Wii systems outside of Japan made that a reality, but it's still an extraordinary statistic. It's a title with an interesting history, too, especially in its integral role in helping the concept of Mii...
Thursday17th Mar 2016
Weirdness Jackie Chan Backed A Motion-Controlled Fitness Console That Pre-Dated The Wii
Say hello to the XaviX Port!
The Wii was revolutionary in that it introduced the mainstream gaming market to motion controls and the concept of "keeping fit" through gameplay. However, it was by no means the first gaming platform to achieve this - in 2004, Japanese firm SSD Company Limited released the XaviX Port alongside a range of sports-focused...
Wednesday2nd Mar 2016
News Nintendo Finalises Wii Patent Win Over UltimatePointer
"Nintendo will vigorously defend itself" and so on...
We think it's fair to say that a decent percentage of patent claims filed in the US could best be described as being in 'bad faith'. Though Nintendo has lost a small number of notable cases, being forced into payments or shared royalties, it wins the majority of patent cases launched against its...
Monday29th Feb 2016
News Nintendo of America Confirms New Wii U, 3DS and Wii Nintendo Selects Titles for 11th March
Just $19.99 each
In mid-February a retailer listing from Canadian store VGP Video Games Plus pointed to a new batch of Nintendo Selects titles being on the way to North America. The good news is that the listing was accurate, with Nintendo of America confirming that the range of Wii U, 3DS and Wii games will be available for $19.99 - that's the US...
