Just two of the characters you'll have to deal with in The Siege of Spinner Cay

There's a fairly diverse offer of new games this week - An adventure game, a party game, an RPG and a puzzler. All of them are also catch-up games - Europe has already had 3 of them on VC/WiiWare/DSiWare for a few weeks, while the final game was already released on PC two weeks ago. At least they're finally available on the Wii/DSi in North America!

WiiWare gives you two new choices today - Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 2 - The Siege of Spinner Cay is, as the name might give away, the sequel to last month's Launch of the Screaming Narwhal. As stated before, unlike Strong Bad, Tales of Monkey Island contains one big storyline across five chapters, so we won't mention any plot here - But if you want to know the general plot of this chapter, just go to the game page. We've already played the PC version, so we can speed through the WiiWare one and tell you if it once again suffers from any unfortunate issues or if it's completely fine this time. Expect the review tomorrow.

3-2-1, Rattle Battle! is Tecmo's attempt at a WiiWare party game, but it's a let-down in pretty much every aspect - There's only 12 minigames, they're too short and shallow, almost all you do is rapidly shake the Wii remote, and the Wi-Fi leaderboards the game touts as a feature are only available for 2 of the minigames! We thought that if you're looking for a party game, this one is far from the right choice!

The Virtual Console, as usual, only offers one new game today - Phantasy Star is the long-awaited first game in the classic RPG series. If you've been waiting for its release before playing the whole series and not missing out on any storyline, then rejoice, because now you can! Easily one of the Master System's best games, we think that it's still well worth your time and money.

DSiWare's single new offer this week is another "part" of a retail game Puzzle League Express contains bits and pieces of Planet Puzzle League, but without any multiplayer - So no versus mode (Other than against the AI) and no online. It's still fairly good though, and for 500 points it offers a nice, portable single-player Puzzle League experience - read our review to find out more.

If you're still waiting on a particular Nintendo-published Virtual Console game, be prepared for disappointment next week as well - It's very likely that LucasArts's Super Return of the Jedi will be released instead.

More from today's press release:

Nintendo Download

Pirates, Puzzles, Rattlers and Role-Playing

“All for one and one for all” is an apt way to describe the latest lineup of downloadable games from the Wii™ Shop Channel and Nintendo DSi™ Shop. Each of this week’s new titles is a single-player affair, but they’re all quite different in genre and style, offering something special for a variety of gaming tastes.

WiiWare™

Tales of Monkey Island: Chapter 2
Publisher: Telltale Games
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10 and Older) – Alcohol Reference, Cartoon Violence, Mild Language, Suggestive Themes
Price: 1,000 Wii Points™
Description: Guybrush’s adventures continue on the high seas as pox-plagued pirates lay siege to the innocent Mer-People. Between defending the Mer-People and dodging the persistent pirate hunter hot on his trail, Guybrush manages to catch up to his beloved wife and despised arch-nemesis, but the reunion is short-lived. Now Guybrush must focus on eradicating the Pox of LeChuck before more harm can be done. And as the Mighty Pirate draws closer to a cure, the waters will only grow murkier in this thrilling chapter of the epic saga.

3-2-1, Rattle Battle!
Publisher: Tecmo
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) – Comic Mischief
Price: 500 Wii Points
Description: 3-2-1, Rattle Battle! is a party game packed with exciting mini-games. Intuitive controls mean that anyone can enjoy playing – just grab the Wii Remote™ and shake it to “rattle.” Great fun for single players, but the party really gets started when you register high scores on Nintendo® Wi-Fi Connection to see how you measure up against players from around the globe.

Virtual Console™

Phantasy Star™
Original platform: SEGA Master System
Publisher: SEGA
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone 10 and Older) – Animated Blood, Mild Fantasy Violence
Price: 500 Wii Points
Description: Originally released on the SEGA Master System, Phantasy Star is a pioneer in the role-playing game genre. Alis is the fearless female protagonist out to avenge her brother’s death at the hands of cruel dictator King Lassic. Players must guide Alis and her troops through the sprawling environments of the Agol solar system in an attempt to defeat King Lassic and liberate the people of Agol. Engage in dynamic turn-based combat with dragons, ghouls, giants and magicians by using unique weapons such as glowing daggers, crossbows and magic spells.

Nintendo DSiWare™

Puzzle League™ Express
Publisher: Nintendo
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points™
Description: The ever-popular Puzzle League comes to Nintendo DSiWare. As it is with all good puzzlers, the concept is simple: Connect blocks of the same color to clear them from the screen and prevent your stack from becoming too high. There are four single-player modes to choose from: Endless (survive to earn a top score), Clear (eliminate all blocks above the line), Score Attack (score as high as possible in two minutes) and Vs. COM (use items and combos to attack a computer opponent). You can choose from a variety of background music to help get you in the zone, and even play in horizontal or vertical mode by holding the Nintendo DSi system normally or like a book. Whichever way you play, you’re guaranteed maximum fun.