http://www.ps3news.com PS3 NEWS - PlayStation 3 News - PS3News - PS3News.com - PS3 Games - PS3 Hacks - PS3 Homebrew - PS3 Linux Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:58:42 CDT en http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/msn-its-time-for-mario-to-retire-and-bow-out-on-a-high/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/msn-its-time-for-mario-to-retire-and-bow-out-on-a-high/ Tue, 26 Aug 2008 19:58:42 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/msn-its-time-for-mario-to-retire-and-bow-out-on-a-high/
If Mario retires, then Nintendo will focus on more creativity and innovation and not resort to plugging Mario everywhere. So what you do think, time for the plumber to hang up his plunger?

To quote: Take a company like Disney. Even though Mickey Mouse is still the company’s mascot and a worldwide megabrand, he no longer stars in their headline films.

And perhaps without Mario to fall back on Nintendo will continue on their brilliant track of creativity and innovation - and not resort to forcing the old workhorse into cameos in games not worthy of his presence.

So, for me, Mario should be allowed to bow out on a high, leaving a legacy that I don’t think any gaming character will ever follow.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/madworld-preview-for-nintendo-wii/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/madworld-preview-for-nintendo-wii/ Fri, 22 Aug 2008 17:27:40 CDT hunter316 Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/madworld-preview-for-nintendo-wii/
What's the game about? MadWorld features over-the-top comedic violence in black-and-white with weapons that include chain saws and spiked walls into which you can throw enemies. It's one of the most stylish and creative games coming to Wii, and it's one of the first from Capcom-offshoot developer Platinum Games.

What's new for Games Convention? After MadWorld's first two press showings, I was growing concerned that the game might end up feeling repetitive. Encouragingly, the Games Convention demonstration seemed to have been built for people like me, with plenty of new material on display: a new minigame, new weapons, a vehicle section, and a boss fight.

The minigame, Death Press, gives players one minute to kill as many enemies as possible. A spiked trash compactor of sorts sits in the middle of an arena, so you have to throw as many enemies as you can into it in order to take them out and build up your score. Much like the Man Darts minigame shown at E3, Death Press will be available as an extra and is not built into the story.

Filling the next bullet point, Sega revealed a new weapon in the form of a pair of daggers -- these replace your standard chain saw and present more of a traditional beat-em-up feel. Blood shows all over the blades when you put them on your back after finishing a particularly brutal combo.

Next was a short but very impressive sequence in which the main character takes control of a motorcycle. After jumping off the roof of a building -- with a cinematic, zoomed-out view of the city below -- players drive down the side of a building and end up on a linear freeway. As Sega describes it, this sequence is not a level in itself but rather a way to get from place to place in the game. This probably won't help stave off the No More Heroes comparisons MadWorld has been getting, but it certainly looks cool.

The demo ended with our first glimpse of a MadWorld boss fight. You start at the end of a blocked-off street and have to make your way to the other end, avoiding tornadoes (which pick up cars and cows as they approach you) to reach the boss. Once you reach him, you can press a few buttons to initiate an attack. This throws you into a playable cut-scene where you use motion controls to fight. A few seconds into this scene, the boss grabs the player by the foot and leaps into the air with the hero dangling, forcing you to shake the Wii Remote and Nunchuk in order to chisel your way free.

What's our take? At one point in the demo, I saw a clash between the main character and a miniboss who carries dual chain saws. Picture the chain saw battles in Gears of War 2 and you'll know pretty much what to expect, with lots of sparks and fun -- but in MadWorld, you'll employ the Wii Remote and Nunchuk's motion controls to survive the face-off.

It was a great meat-and-potatoes counterpoint to the variety shown in the rest of the demonstration, easily standing as the most exciting portion of the demo. If the developers can maintain this level of variety throughout the game, it's hard to imagine MadWorld not being one of the Wii's best action titles.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/firm-sues-nintendo-for-patent-infringement-1/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/firm-sues-nintendo-for-patent-infringement-1/ Wed, 20 Aug 2008 21:09:37 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/firm-sues-nintendo-for-patent-infringement-1/
Hillcrest Labs alleges that Nintendo violated patents relating to a handheld three-dimensonal pointing device.

The company said that it holds 29 patents relating to that technology.

"While Hillcrest Labs has a great deal of respect for Nintendo and the Wii, Hillcrest Labs believes that Nintendo is in clear violation of its patents and has taken this action to protect its intellectual property rights," the company said in a statement.

Nintendo had no comment on the litigation.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/new-house-of-the-dead-revealed-for-wii-1/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/new-house-of-the-dead-revealed-for-wii-1/ Tue, 19 Aug 2008 16:59:09 CDT hunter316 Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/new-house-of-the-dead-revealed-for-wii-1/
And instead of it being a new Jet Grind Radio as previously rumored, it's a brand new House of the Dead light gun shooter installment for the Wii called House of the Dead: Overkill. Here's the Grindhouse-inspired trailer:

YKUD2sLE5rM

If you're unfamiliar with Headstrong, don't worry -- it's the new name for Kuju Entertainment, the UK development house previously responsible for such games as Battalion Wars.

Here's hoping we'll get more details on the game once the Games Convention officially starts.

Sega has also released some first screenshots of the game. Here's one of them below...]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-updated/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-updated/ Thu, 14 Aug 2008 21:22:24 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-updated/
No more dead links, no more extracting files, no more finding out that the homebrew application doesn't include an icon.png and meta.xml in the zip file!

Today it has been updated and now includes several new applications. The changelog is as follows:

14 August 2008:

- DragonMedia Player v0.15 Alpha
- Freecell v0.1
- Guitar Fun v3.0
- ScummVM Rev 33789
- txt-read v1.0]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/open-source-wii-dvd-access-library-released/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/open-source-wii-dvd-access-library-released/ Tue, 12 Aug 2008 23:27:52 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/open-source-wii-dvd-access-library-released/
Download: libdi (DVDX) / MPlayer

If you have a mod-chip, you also need patchmii_core, in addition to the DVDX stub installer.

To quote: As you all know, I’ve been working on libdi (or the DVD Access library) for a while now. We had some problems getting it out to release because of the difficulties we encountered while writing the second part of this topic. The DVDX installer instead will install a small, hidden, channel on your Wii that allows you to read DVDs on an unmodified system. It is not an installer for a patched IOS. You may however need one, depending on your system.

Usage of this package is fairly simple. Run the installer.dol found in the package, follow the onscreen instructions, and you’re done.

Once you’ve done that, you can enjoy the splendor of mplayer. That what started out as a simple proof of concept has rapidly turned into a full-featured media player, under the nourishing hands of dhewg. The main aim of the mplayer project was to get DVDVideo going, but it also supports reading video files off the SD card. (Experimental).

A patch for Wii64, the N64 emulator for the Wii, will also be available shortly. This patch will allow you to read games off a DVD.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/parents-horrified-at-violent-game-launch-on-family-friendly-wii/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/parents-horrified-at-violent-game-launch-on-family-friendly-wii/ Tue, 12 Aug 2008 22:08:19 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/parents-horrified-at-violent-game-launch-on-family-friendly-wii/
Nintendo will dramatically transform Wii's image with the release of ultra violent video game MadWorld which "revolves around the themes of brutality and exhilaration", according to its creators.

Players in the 'hack and slash' game, which is due for a UK release in early 2009, can impale enemies on road signs, rip out hearts and execute them with weapons including chainsaws and daggers.

The decision to release a violent game on a console which has based its reputation on family fun has shocked anti-violence pressure groups.

The game has not yet been given an age rating. Mediawatch-UK, Britains longest running pressure group campaigning for decency in TV, films and games, said MadWorld will 'spoil' the Wii.

John Beyer, director of Mediawatch-uk, said: This game sounds very unsavoury. I hope the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) will view this with concern and decide it should not be granted a classification.

Without that it cannot be marketed in Britain. What the rest of world does is up to them. We need to ensure that modern and civilized values take priority rather than killing and maiming people.

It seems a shame that the game's manufacturer have decided to exclusively release this game on the Wii. I believe it will spoil the family fun image of the Wii.

Nintendo's Wii has enjoyed phenomenal success as an innocent alternative to complex - and often violent - role play video games.

With a repatoire of mostly sports games the basic graphics and easy-to-use motion sensor remotes have become hugely popular with young children and families.

MadWorld is significant departure designed to appeal to 'hardcore' gamers who they claim have been clammering for a more adult theme action game.

MadWorld is a third person game where players control a character called Jack in a virtual world called Varrigan City which is under siege by a group of terrorists known as The Organizers.

The alternative world has been turned into a twisted game show called Death Watch where citizens must kill one another to survive - and win.

The action in MadWorld - developed by PlatinumGames and published by Sega exclusively for Nintendo - is entirely in black and white. The only other colour is red for all the blood.

Players use the Wii remote to control the violent on-screen actions as central character Jack executes his way through the game.

A press release on the Sega website says: You play as Jack, whos caught up in the terror of Death Watch, the murderous game created by the terrorists who call themselves The Organizers.

To remain alive, and solve the mystery behind Death Watch, you must master the use of weapons and items found within the environment and compete in ultra violent mini-games designed to push you over the edge.

With its irreverent humour and over-the-top violence MadWorld delivers a visceral gaming experience that will be an instant classic on the Wii.

Sean Ratcliffe, Vice President of Marketing, SEGA of America, Inc, said: MadWorld pushes the envelope with its extreme content but takes a step away from the dark and serious nature of most mature games.

Released in 2006 the Wii has become a market leader with its original games appealing to a far broader age range than competitors like Sony's PlayStation and Microsoft Xbox 360.

Costing around £180 the consoles - which use wireless remotes to control the on-screen actions - have been hailed as the next generation of computer consoles.

While other consoles have focussed on better graphics the Wii has focussed on game play and the physical nature of their games. It has since become hugely popular with very young children, families and even the elderly.

A spokesman from Nintendo, said: Wii appeals to a wide range of audiences from children and teenagers to adult and senior citizens, anyone from 5 - 95, as such there is a wide range of content for all ages and tastes available.

Mad World will be suitably age rated through the appropriate legal channels and thus only available to an audience above the age rating it is given. The game is not made by Nintendo but by Sega.

MadWorld is in black and white, and uses red to show blood.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/cursed-mountain-graphical-features-revealed/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/cursed-mountain-graphical-features-revealed/ Mon, 11 Aug 2008 20:30:57 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/cursed-mountain-graphical-features-revealed/
The team best sums up the features:

The engine highlights of "Athena" include amongst others, HDR-Rendering, shader simulations developed especially for Wii in order to display ice, heat and water (realistic reflections and refractions), an ultra-fast particle system for amazing snow storms, soft particles for realistic fog and smoke, depth of field, motion blur, dynamic soft shadows, spherical harmonics lighting, as well as a high performance level-of-detail and streaming system in order to provide long viewing distance of the entire surrounding.

In order to create an exciting atmosphere when battling the ghosts, the game employs a number of custom-created special effects such as the shader simulations as well as a newly developed post-processing framework.

According to the Technical Director of Sproing, Gerhard Seiler, the engine "really takes the Wii hardware to its limits and Wii gamers can really look forward to a heart-stopping, and breath-taking world that comes alive with this title."

Considering some of the trailers coming from High-Voltage's Conduit, it would not surprise me if Sproing is also able to set a higher than usual bar in the Wii visuals department.

Cursed Mountain will be released worldwide for Wii in 2009. More information is available at: http://cursedmountain.deepsilver.com]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-menuloader-v0-5-update-released/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-menuloader-v0-5-update-released/ Sun, 10 Aug 2008 20:56:14 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-menuloader-v0-5-update-released/
To quote: Version 0.5 is up, which fixes some region free issues and includes a patch to disable updates.

Download: MenuLoader v0.5 for Wii

v0.5 notes: I added another patch to fix an extra region check. This is now part of the "disc region" option. I also added a patch to disable updates.

Enjoy! Stay tuned for more information on my current ideas about future hacks, how were going to manage System Menu and IOS patches, and BootMii.

Oh, yeah, and the DVD lib. No, we haven’t forgotten about it.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/menuloader-v0-4-for-nintendo-wii-released/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/menuloader-v0-4-for-nintendo-wii-released/ Thu, 07 Aug 2008 21:33:14 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/menuloader-v0-4-for-nintendo-wii-released/
Download: MenuLoader v0.4 for Nintendo Wii

Changelog:

* Debug by USBGecko
* RegionFree for Channels
* RegionFree for discs
* Remove the screen heatlhsafety (which appears at the launch of the Wii)
* No music on screen
* Installation on any version of System Menu]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/video-new-nintendo-wii-system-menu-hacks-in-the-works/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/video-new-nintendo-wii-system-menu-hacks-in-the-works/ Tue, 05 Aug 2008 18:35:47 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/video-new-nintendo-wii-system-menu-hacks-in-the-works/
* No healthwarning (the blackscreen is the time it needs to load the channels)
* region free Wii games
* region free GC games
* region free channels
* start the build-in rescue menu when Y is pressed on the first GC controller
* rescue menu patch to boot everything not just diag-discs
* No mainmenu BGM
* more to come

HZY2XSWc2F0]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-homebrew-launcher-v0-7-released/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-homebrew-launcher-v0-7-released/ Tue, 05 Aug 2008 18:26:24 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-homebrew-launcher-v0-7-released/
Download: Wii Homebrew Launcher v0.7

Changelog:

* Adding sound a channel (a thank you Zenome and TGames)
* Using libfat
* Support for long file names
* Cleaning the source code and rewrite in C++
* The bug display mode 60Hz with RGB cable is fixed
* In the file "system.ini", the parameter VideoMode no longer supported

k7uCnaB7RiMPV0IN2q

* Adding a theme selector
* Changing the light effect when access the SD card
* The icons of the channels appear as a measure of loading
* Support SDgecko (beta)
* Check if the files fraud and elf are valid before launch
* If a chain has no icon, the name will appear in the icon
* The default language is English
* The reset button menu brings the Wii (since the interface only)
* Various small corrections
* Adding a 'ROM loader' (beta): Passage of a command line with the path of the Homebrew Roma via function 'main (int argc, char ** argv)' for homebrew created with DevkitPro> = 1.4 .7]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-v0-2-1b-released/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-v0-2-1b-released/ Mon, 04 Aug 2008 19:01:34 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-v0-2-1b-released/
No more dead links, no more extracting files, no more finding out that the homebrew application doesn't include an icon.png and meta.xml in the zip file!

Download: Wii Homebrew Browser v0.2.1b

Changelog v0.2.1b:

* Added the ability to cancel downloads at any time by pressing B
* Added a slight rumble when moving over any button
* Moved help and controls icon to left of banner]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/original-mega-man-hits-wii-virtual-console-this-week/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/original-mega-man-hits-wii-virtual-console-this-week/ Mon, 04 Aug 2008 04:00:21 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/original-mega-man-hits-wii-virtual-console-this-week/
Yes, the 1987 original that started it all.

Additionally, Crislip confirmed that the retro-styled Mega Man 9 will debut in September, along with a re-release of NES classic Mega Man 2, which is often heralded by many as the finest installment in the series.

To quote: To prepare all you Mega Man fans for the release of Mega Man 9 in September, we're going to offer you the opportunity to play the game that started it all. The orginal Mega Man game returns on the Virtual Console this Monday, August 4, 2008. Yes, that's right. Brush up on your old school skills and prepare for some cool contests we have in store. We also plan to re-release Mega Man 2 in early September as well.

David Crislip, one of our talented Assitant Producers and the person in charge of Virtual Console content, prepared this blog for all you Mega Man fans and will be making regular appearances here on Unity to give you updates on titles coming to the Virtual Console.

Without further ado, heeeeeeeere's David.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/hackers-taking-over-latest-mario-kart-wii-tournament/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/hackers-taking-over-latest-mario-kart-wii-tournament/ Sun, 03 Aug 2008 04:46:13 CDT takavach Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/hackers-taking-over-latest-mario-kart-wii-tournament/
Immediately upon looking at these results, one would quickly surmise that the results would not have been able to have been achieved through ethical means. Also, one of the hackers has gone so far as to dawn the name "ihack@you."

This is not the first time the Mario Kart Wii online system has been hacked. Previously, people began to exploit the Time Trials system to earn impossible times.

Nintendo was able to root out and take care of cheaters, so it is expected that Nintendo will take similar action with this latest issue.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/ocarina-wii-cheat-app-wii-codes-enabled-zelda-tp-video/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/ocarina-wii-cheat-app-wii-codes-enabled-zelda-tp-video/ Tue, 29 Jul 2008 17:38:26 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/ocarina-wii-cheat-app-wii-codes-enabled-zelda-tp-video/
Download: Ocarina Wii Cheat App

From the ReadMe: Ocarina is a very simple Wii application for your homebrew channel. What it does? Start a game.. but there's a twist of course.

Ocarina checks the GAME ID.. like RZDP01 for Zelda Twilight Princess (PAL). Then it checks the inserted SD card whether it can find a cheat code file for that game: in this case it would have to be name [sd]:codesrzdp01.gct.

NWZTqL1IbKE

To create GCT files.. a PC application is bundled in the package. This application is coming with 2 example files. rsbe.txt and rsbp.txt (Smash Brothers NTSC-U and PAL respectively). Using the File menu you can open, them and select the cheats you want.

Note that unlike an Action Replay you can modify codes with XXXXXXXX inside them.. it will always ask you to store modifications to its application memory I added this question so that people do not cry if a code is messed up - the actual cheat code file will not be modified until you save it in the app.

Once you're done selecting codes: click on "Export to GCT"... and the rest should be pretty straight forward! Insert your SD card.

The package is seperated in a PC folder (PC client) and HBC (Homebrew channel)... put the stuff in its folders.. and they're happy!]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/dvd-access-library-with-no-mod-chip-required/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/dvd-access-library-with-no-mod-chip-required/ Mon, 28 Jul 2008 05:08:15 CDT takavach Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/dvd-access-library-with-no-mod-chip-required/
As many of you may already know or have deduced, the bug in our open letter referred to a way of reading DVD-Rs (and Video DVDs) without the use of a modchip. Several people have investigated the bug independently, and they’ve gotten pretty close. However, we did discover an easier way of enabling this mode from homebrew, which, among other things, does not require any changes to IOS at all. This method is also relatively difficult to transform into some sort of backup loader.

Erant has been developing a library that uses this trick to enable DVD access for homebrew. We hope to release it this coming week, after a few details have been polished. svpe and dhewg have been working on a native mplayer port that uses this library to play back DVDs, which we hope to release as a proof-of-concept together with the library. We also have DVD-loading versions of snes9x and Genplus.

Non-modchip users will not need a custom IOS. Ironically, this method doesn’t work for users of some modchips. Therefore, these users will require a patched IOS using the well-known UnencryptedRead patch (the library will automatically use it if needed). We’ll try to release a somewhat more user-friendly version of patchmii dedicated to this task together with the library.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/video-more-nintendo-wii-nand-modding/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/video-more-nintendo-wii-nand-modding/ Fri, 25 Jul 2008 19:32:58 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/video-more-nintendo-wii-nand-modding/
Beyond soldering a socket in place of the NAND flash chip, he programmed two spare flash chips with dumps from a PAL Wii and an NTSC/J Wii. He converted those two dumps to run on his Wii using an early version of some of my UnbrickMii project code ("betwiin").

No news yet on release plans; it still needs a lot of work, but it’s interesting to note that there are absolutely no hardware differences between Wiis from different regions.

1542991]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/bushing-releases-xyzzy-tool-to-grab-keys-from-wii-consoles/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/bushing-releases-xyzzy-tool-to-grab-keys-from-wii-consoles/ Wed, 23 Jul 2008 23:20:30 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/bushing-releases-xyzzy-tool-to-grab-keys-from-wii-consoles/
However, it’s been exceedingly useful to me, and hopefully some of you will find it useful, too. I’ll quote the README here:

Download: Xyzzy v1.0

This program will do the following, automatically:

- Download IOS11 from the Nintendo Update Server
- Patch it to remove the MEM2 protection (so the PPC can access all 64MB of it)
- Patch it to allow it to delete itself later using ES_DeleteTitle()
- Find an unused IOS slot (counting downward from IOS255)
- Install the hacked IOS11 there
- Reboot into the hacked IOS
- Copy the private key structure from the IOS address space into MEM1
- Reboot back into a sane IOS
- Delete the temporary, hacked IOS
- Display the keys on screen
- Try to write them to a file on the SD card - keys.txt
- Pause for 60 seconds to allow you to copy the keys down using pen and paper, if necessary

I wrote this a week or two after I killed a Wii trying to reproduce tmbinc’s original Tweezer Hack. May it rest in peace.

The first version of this code just used a patched version of IOS, which was an ugly hack. It’s still an ugly hack, but at least it no longer contains copyrighted code. You should only really need to run it once on any given Wii, but it should be safe to run as much as you want.

If nothing else, it demonstrates the kinds of ways you can use PatchMii_core to do something useful (as opposed to just running it and then packaging the result up as cIOS).]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/rumor-sonic-and-the-black-knight-coming-exclusively-to-wii/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/rumor-sonic-and-the-black-knight-coming-exclusively-to-wii/ Sun, 20 Jul 2008 23:55:12 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/rumor-sonic-and-the-black-knight-coming-exclusively-to-wii/
Nintendo Power recently set the rumor mill in motion with clues about the games they will be revealing in their 20th Anniversary Issue. Nintendo Power offered the following clues:

"We're kicking off the next 20 years of Nintendo Power with more big reveals, including a top-secret cover story fit for a king. Its got a lot of heart. Just kidding. Its Mother 3. Just kidding. Please look forward to it."]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-backups-on-unmodded-console-custom-wii-firmware-too/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-backups-on-unmodded-console-custom-wii-firmware-too/ Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:46:54 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-backups-on-unmodded-console-custom-wii-firmware-too/
I would like to speak to an engineer about this - please have one contact me at bushing (at) gmail.com.

P.S. Sorry for posting this publicly - I tried emailing you three times and never received a response. I am trying to follow the model set forth in http://www.wiretrip.net/rfp/policy.html, so your timely response would be appreciated.

In related news, according to an interview with Marcan posted on the Spanish site ElOtroLado, a Custom Firmware for the Wii is currently in the works.

Bushing also recently commented on IOS hacks as well as svpe on his blog. Cool news indeed for Wii console owners!]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/pre-e3-nintendo-unveils-wii-motionplus/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/pre-e3-nintendo-unveils-wii-motionplus/ Tue, 15 Jul 2008 04:41:38 CDT wicked insanity Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/pre-e3-nintendo-unveils-wii-motionplus/
"Nintendo's upcoming Wii MotionPlus accessory for the revolutionary Wii Remote controller again redefines game control, by more quickly and accurately reflecting motions in a 3-D space. The Wii MotionPlus accessory attaches to the end of the Wii Remote and, combined with the accelerometer and the sensor bar, allows for more comprehensive tracking of a player’s arm position and orientation, providing players with an unmatched level of precision and immersion.

Every slight movement players make with their wrist or arm is rendered identically in real time on the screen, providing a true 1:1 response in their game play. The Wii MotionPlus accessory reconfirms Nintendo’s commitment to making games intuitive and accessible for everyone.

Nintendo will reveal more details about the Wii MotionPlus accessory and other topics Tuesday morning at its E3 media briefing."]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/the-wii-keyboard-just-exactly-what-the-name-suggests-1/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/the-wii-keyboard-just-exactly-what-the-name-suggests-1/ Tue, 08 Jul 2008 22:41:47 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/the-wii-keyboard-just-exactly-what-the-name-suggests-1/
There's not much meat on these bones - it's simply an add-on for Nintendo's console that allows you to type on a QWERTY pad rather than light-sabering all over your apartment to name your new Mii "Death Bringer."

The keyboard is due out July 18th (in the UK at least), and will nab a tidy £14.99 (or about $30).]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-v0-1-2-available/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-v0-1-2-available/ Tue, 08 Jul 2008 18:54:48 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-homebrew-browser-v0-1-2-available/
No more dead links, no more extracting files, no more finding out that the homebrew application doesn't include an icon.png and meta.xml in the zip file!

Note: Not all applications/games are included yet. They will be added over time.

Download: Nintendo Wii Homebrew Browser v0.1.2

HlLctPk9NTc

Features:

* One click download and install for each homebrew application
* One click deletion of homebrew applications
* One click update for homebrew apps
* Auto updating when your Homebrew Browser version is out of date

Limitations:

Currently this application is limited to homebrew applications consists of boot.dol/elf, meta.xml and icon.png. Homebrew applications that load other files from the SD card won't be on the Homebrew Browser list.

Usage:

Run the included ELF with your favourite method to boot homebrew. Uses the Wiimote with IR.

Blue Tick - You have the latest version of that homebrew application installed.

Grey Tick - You don't have the latest version of that homebrew application installed.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/star-wars-the-force-unleashed-new-screenshots-for-wii-out/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/star-wars-the-force-unleashed-new-screenshots-for-wii-out/ Mon, 07 Jul 2008 23:12:04 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/star-wars-the-force-unleashed-new-screenshots-for-wii-out/
For those who missed it previously, in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed you'll pick up Wii Remote and nunchuk, taking the role of Darth Vader's secret apprentice.

With the fall of the Jedi Counsel and uprising of the empire, the galaxy is falling on hard times, as the dark side sweeps across the stars. We all know the core story of Star Wars, and how the once spunky (and to some people, loveable) Anakin Skywalker was turned to evil by Emperor Palpatine, with the timeless story of his son's rise to eventually topple galaxy-wide evil as part of the Rebel Alliance.

As long as you're that familiar with Star Wars lore - and there are few people out there that aren't - you'll be able to step right in to Star Wars: The Force Unleashed.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-homebrew-browser-v0-1-1-out-should-make-life-easier/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-homebrew-browser-v0-1-1-out-should-make-life-easier/ Tue, 01 Jul 2008 21:58:04 CDT IanJ Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-homebrew-browser-v0-1-1-out-should-make-life-easier/
Download: Wii Homebrew Browser v0.1.1

No more dead links, no more extracting files, no more finding out if there is an icon.png and meta.xml in the homebrew application/game!

Note: Not all applications/games are included yet. They will be added over time.

Here is a rather dodgy YouTube video of it in action. Now all we need is an app to install the homebrew browser app....

GomiMbDH63o]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/castlevania-judgment-officially-announced-for-nintendo-wii/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/castlevania-judgment-officially-announced-for-nintendo-wii/ Tue, 01 Jul 2008 19:53:28 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/castlevania-judgment-officially-announced-for-nintendo-wii/
"We wanted to take this addition to the signature Konami franchise in a direction that really sets it apart from the previous Castlevania titles in the series," said Anthony Crouts, Vice President of Marketing for Konami. "The Wii Remote and Nunchuk capabilities, along with the iconic characters, make this game the ideal entry point into the fighting game genre. This combination is certain to thrill old and new fans of the franchise. "

With 3D environments rendered on Wii, players can choose sides in an epic battle of good versus evil using iconic Castlevania characters designed by famed manga artist Takeshi Obata. Using the motion-sensing controls of the Nunchuk and Wii Remote, players can slash, stab and whip their way across a variety of stages and environmental elements with various surrounding objects as weapons.

Select characters can also set traps and make use of monsters on the field to achieve victory in a clash of epic proportions. As an added bonus, players are also able to compete head-to-head using the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection and connect with Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia on the Nintendo DS to unlock bonus gameplay content.

Castlevania Judgment will be released in North America Fall 2008 on Wii.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/latest-nintendo-wii-d2e-drive-unlocked-already/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/latest-nintendo-wii-d2e-drive-unlocked-already/ Tue, 01 Jul 2008 18:11:45 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/latest-nintendo-wii-d2e-drive-unlocked-already/
After dumping the firmware, they found the D2E firmware was created on 12th February 2008 while the Diagrams for Wasabi were released on 19th February - Wii and GC backups are also confirmed to be running.

To quote: Did you hear about the new D2E drive? We've only got a couple of reports of those drives seen in the wild so you don't need to worry about them yet, but they have been spotted at different places. They are the successors of D2C2 drives and the the curious may be wondering if this new drive is a reaction to Wasabi's 9-wire patching method.

There's one way to know for sure, that is dumping the firmware and look at the build date to see if it was created before or after Wasabi diagrams (below).

So D2E firmware was created on the 12th of February 2008. Wasabi diagrams were released on the 19th of February... Do we really need to say more? :)

Update: Wii and GC backups are now running :)]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-power-reveals-castlevania-judgement-for-wii/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-power-reveals-castlevania-judgement-for-wii/ Thu, 26 Jun 2008 20:24:51 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-power-reveals-castlevania-judgement-for-wii/
Also, I just wanted to make sure that you guys believed the news!

Characters confirmed thus far - Dracula, Simon, Alucard, Shanoa, and Maria Renard. Classic subweapons - holy water, magic spells, dagger, boomerang. Subweapon use still depends on hearts, and it offers remixed classic Castlevania tunes.

Finally, Set traps, destroyable environments, enemy monsters interfere with battle. Nunchuck controls character movement, Wiimote used for motion attacks.

Not exactly what we were thinking, is it?!]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-power-confirms-mega-man-9-for-wiiware/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-power-confirms-mega-man-9-for-wiiware/ Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:37:45 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-power-confirms-mega-man-9-for-wiiware/
Will MM9 be making its way to other download outlets, such as PSN and XBLA? It’s likely. Of course you can’t expect Nintendo Power to mention that, though. Either way, expect an official announcement soon, on or before E3.

Robot Masters:

Magma Man
Galaxy Man
Jewel Man
Concrete Man
Hornet Man
Plug Man
Tornado Man
Splash Woman (Um, not too sure on the last one.)]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wiihds-nintendo-wii-homebrew-guide-video-available/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wiihds-nintendo-wii-homebrew-guide-video-available/ Wed, 25 Jun 2008 17:27:40 CDT IanJ Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wiihds-nintendo-wii-homebrew-guide-video-available/ starter kit complete with the video below.

If you haven't already modded the Wii, then check out the link above.

To quote: Our glee from playing Quake on Wii has led us to document the experience of setup and installation of the Twilight Hack and Homebrew Channel. It isn't without it's risks, so before considering going Homebrew you should research the matter yourself.

If you decide to go for it, hit WiiHD's brand-spankin-new Homebrew Guide and dive in. It includes a video guide for installation and a pre-made install file so all you have to do is unzip to straight to your SD card's root directory and follow the video.

dmdjOWfgny8]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/twilight-v0-1-beta-out-compatible-with-wii-system-menu-3-3/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/twilight-v0-1-beta-out-compatible-with-wii-system-menu-3-3/ Sat, 21 Jun 2008 21:27:08 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/twilight-v0-1-beta-out-compatible-with-wii-system-menu-3-3/
Essentially, this means you can now update to latest Wii firmware, free of homebrew annihilating side-effects. A changelog is below, courtesy of developer Marcan.

Download: Twilight v0.1 BETA for Wii

Changelog:

* The Twilight Hack is now compatible with version 3.3 of the Wii System Menu.
* Improvements in video configuration. The entire console should now be visible in all video modes, and scrolling has been improved.
* For the USA version, the two variants of the hack have been packed into one save file. Just select the save slot that corresponds to your version of Twilight Pricess when you start the game.
* New savegame icons by drmr. The new icons now show which region that version of the hack is for.
* This version now tries to load boot.dol, and falls back to boot.elf if boot.dol is not found.
* ???????
* Many, many bug fixes.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-wheel-and-wii-fit-board-combo-racing-experiment-1/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-wheel-and-wii-fit-board-combo-racing-experiment-1/ Fri, 20 Jun 2008 23:43:48 CDT IanJ Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-wheel-and-wii-fit-board-combo-racing-experiment-1/
Click the link up top to read more and access the scripts or check out the videos below. Pretty cool stuff.

To quote: This is a test of how the Wii Balance Board and Wii Wheel are working as game controllers through GlovePIE and PPJoy. This is the basis for the Wii Racing Xperiment.

In the second video, the Wii Balance Board and Wii Wheel are used to play the PC version of Need for Speed ProStreet. GlovePIE and PPJoy are used for controller emulation with full analog steering, braking, and throttle.

eEqEIocS-VE

povVio_THgU]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/twilight-hack-protection-thwarted-fix-expected-soon/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/twilight-hack-protection-thwarted-fix-expected-soon/ Thu, 19 Jun 2008 16:30:18 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/twilight-hack-protection-thwarted-fix-expected-soon/
According to Bushing, Nintendo wrote a set of functions that specifically checks savedata pertaining to Zelda, nothing else. Seems rather foolish, considering that other Wii titles could very well have a similar save exploit.

The code in question went under extensive testing for nearly three months judging from the provided timestamps. Further information can be found in the four updates detailed on the page linked above.

No word on when we can expect a fix as of yet, but Bushing is still recommending to not update your console at this time.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-firmware-3-3-released-renders-twilight-hack-useless/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-firmware-3-3-released-renders-twilight-hack-useless/ Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:24:43 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-firmware-3-3-released-renders-twilight-hack-useless/
Essentially, this means that the homebrew enabling Twilight Hack, which comes in the form of a modified save file for non-modified Wii consoles, will no longer function if system menu 3.3 is installed.

According to folks who have already updated, the custom made Homebrew Channel is still accessible if you have it installed prior to upgrading to the new firmware, which is somewhat of a relief.

Avid user of Wii homebrew? Save yourself and stay clear of this update, for the time being at least.]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-hardware-architecture-diagram-available/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-hardware-architecture-diagram-available/ Mon, 16 Jun 2008 16:57:41 CDT PS3 News Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/nintendo-wii-hardware-architecture-diagram-available/
To quote from his page linked above: Inspired by henke37’s idea of making a diagram that shows how the different processors on the Wii relate to each other, I took a stab at it. I got a little carried away I guess.

I can’t promise everything here is right - there are just too many things we don’t know, and even some of the things we do know, we don’t all agree on.

So, here’s my first attempt at summing it all up...]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-fit-causes-over-20-million-gbp-in-damage-to-homes/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-fit-causes-over-20-million-gbp-in-damage-to-homes/ Mon, 16 Jun 2008 01:07:21 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/wii-fit-causes-over-20-million-gbp-in-damage-to-homes/
Nearly one in five of the 1,000 women polled admitted to causing accidents while using Wii Fit, including bumping into furniture, smashing flowerpots, banging their heads and of course, pulling muscles.

A whopping 86 per cent of those surveyed said that they either already owned Wii Fit or planned on buying it. See? We told you Wii Fit was a risk to your health. :P]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/more-screenshots-gameplay-info-for-the-conduit/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/more-screenshots-gameplay-info-for-the-conduit/ Mon, 16 Jun 2008 01:05:03 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/more-screenshots-gameplay-info-for-the-conduit/
The Conduit Information Center site also has a nice little cache of screenshots, and IGN put up four new ones on Friday. Also, a Q&A with High Voltage's software development director gives a few more details on the game itself, including:

• Three modes for online play. Offline play is single-player. LAN multiplayer likely. They're trying to get voice chat online.
• Enemies use portals to bring in reinforcements; destroying them will be a key.
• Set in fictional Earth of the near future, the story takes on a dark conspiracy-theory tone that unravels pretty fast after you get sent to investigate an extra-terrestrial encounter. Think the X-Files with stranger weapons.
• Your adversaries are called The Drudge. I battle drudgery every day, lemme tell ya.

More screenshots can be seen at the link up top!]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/preview-alone-in-the-dark-for-nintendo-wii/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/preview-alone-in-the-dark-for-nintendo-wii/ Sun, 15 Jun 2008 01:25:10 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/preview-alone-in-the-dark-for-nintendo-wii/
Ironically, it is hell going on. We're not surprised it's so hard to see: the game's set at night, in a city losing electricity, with a hero donned in enough black fabric to keep a family of four emos fed for a month.

So what if Wii can't render the nightscape as anything more than blackness smeared with gloom?

At least Hydravision are trying their best to keep up with flashy next-gen counterparts. Expecting your typical step-down port to Wii? You'll be surprised. Hydravision isn't AITD's real dad - that would be Eden games - but Atari have pretty much pointed them towards the next-gen version and said "Make that on Wii."

And so they have. Sort of. Whereas on 360 and PS3 you can grab objects and direct them in 3D space, here you grab objects and have four remote swish attack options.

Whereas next-gen digital fire makes the real stuff look tame, here it's scripted for dramatic effect. And whereas next-gen Central Park is sandbox open, on Wii you're shepherded by conveniently placed fissures.

But at least they haven't turned it into a minigame compilation. Well actually, having said that, there are enough novel controller asides to suggest that you are, in fact, playing a rather gothic instalment of Rayman Raving Rabbids.

Tap the minus button and you stare down at your battered and beaten body to apply medical spray and bandages to your individual seeping wounds. Hop into abandoned cars and each button enables you to fiddle with sun visors, glove compartments and so on. Choosing to hotwire a car brings up a wire-swivelling puzzle - an aside to an aside.

Then you have basic hand controls, which are a game unto themselves. Switching into first-person view, you twist out the two controllers to replicate the opening of your coat, giving you access to your inventory.

From here you pluck out the item you want to use - penlight, gun, ammo, bandages, alcohol spray - and wonder to yourself exactly what's holding the right side of your jacket so taught if your right hand is rummaging in the pockets.

Mysterious third arm aside, there's also an odd movement cap on first-person aiming - you can't look too far down or up. With enemies getting up in your face you'll only need to blast forwards, but it's odd nonetheless.

Several scenes, such as an escape along a tumbling apartment block, lock you into a third-person view for an awkward mix of context-sensitive platforming and rope-climbing physics puzzles. For some unholy reason, context-sensitive actions are mapped onto the minus button, but we honestly think the synching button is easier to press.

Shimmying along crumbly ledges as the Manhattan skyline tumbles is cinematic bombast at its best, falling to our death for the 50th time (note: deadly serious look in NGamer's tear-filled eyes) left our preview copy Alone In The Bin.

But then minutes later we were legging it through a car park, gunning the stupid grins off zombies and hotwiring a car to escape for freedom. Then we were speeding down Central Park West as bits of skyscrapers rained down - making Cloverfield look like a trip to Grandma's house for a lovely Sunday roast.

Leaping into the park we were soon under siege in a public toilet with two hobos fighting over the medical supplies. A blink of the eyes and you're pushing a stalled car as a cloud of demonic bats claw at your back. Think you're safe once the car is in motion? The mother of all demon bats has something to say about that.

Beyond the extreme hand gymnastics required to command the game, Alone In The Dark Wii will surely be remembered for moviemaker's bravado. Here's hoping a few control glitches can be tidied up for the final cut.

More screenshots can be seen at the link up top!]]> http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/next-gen-visuals-coming-to-the-wii-in-the-conduit/ http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/next-gen-visuals-coming-to-the-wii-in-the-conduit/ Wed, 11 Jun 2008 22:45:45 CDT Starlight Nintendo Wii http://www.ps3news.com/NintendoWii/next-gen-visuals-coming-to-the-wii-in-the-conduit/
Built on the studio's custom Quantum 3 Game Engine, The Conduit will be able to reproduce all kinds of neat little tech tricks on Nintendo's weak white box, including dynamic environment mapping, interactive water with real-time reflection, and four-stage texture composition including gloss, diffuse, and bump mapping. Yeah, that's a mouthful.

As well, High Voltage says that they've created an extremely advanced A.I. system, which is necessary if their "terrifying alien creatures" are to pose any threat to you whilst you flail your arms around, wildly, using the game's uniquely tailored control scheme. Eric Nofsinger, Chief Creative Officer at High Voltage Software, said:

Too many Wii owners have been told that the Wii is a casual platform with no room for serious games or top-tier graphics. With The Conduit, we intend to prove that theory wrong by providing gamers with the kind of title they imagined back when the platform was first announced.
Full online, competitive multiplayer (please, no friend codes) and a "thrilling" single player campaign are in store for gamers that pick this title up. Let's hope that it can actually deliver on all these lofty promises.

Yeah, you know who you are, Red Steel. This could be a first: an [extremely] low-end 360/PS3-style FPS on the Wii, that doesn't look ridiculously awful, and that proves the hardware is a worth while development platform for serious, hardcore games. Provided they can find the right publisher, High Voltage aims for The Conduit to release in Q1 2009. And based on what we've seen, that seems too long to wait.

Press Release: High Voltage Software announces new first-person shooter for the Wii

Hoffman Estates, IL - June 10, 2008 - High Voltage Software, Inc., one of the world's largest independent developers, today officially announced The Conduit, a stunning first-person action shooter that promises to provide some of the best visuals seen to date on Nintendo's Wii gaming console, for Q1 2009 release.

Using their proprietary Quantum 3 Game Engine technology, the team at High Voltage Software is fusing fast and fluid gameplay with an advanced set of visuals intended to squarely establish the Wii as a true next-generation gaming platform. The first-person shooter boasts a competitive online multiplayer component and a thrilling single-player campaign. Advanced graphical features include dynamic environment mapping, interactive water with real-time reflection, and four-stage texture composition including gloss, diffuse, and bump mapping.

"Too many Wii owners have been told that the Wii is a casual platform with no room for serious games or top-tier graphics," said Eric Nofsinger, Chief Creative Officer at High Voltage Software. "With The Conduit, we intend to prove that theory wrong by providing gamers with the kind of title they imagined back when the platform was first announced."

Featuring terrifying alien creatures, an advanced Artificial Intelligence System, and a rich, conspiracy-laden story, The Conduit has more than a pretty face. "The Wii has tremendous potential," said Kerry J. Ganofsky, CEO and founder of High Voltage Software. "We've invested heavily in our technology to make certain that potential is realized with The Conduit."

The Conduit's control scheme was carefully designed from the ground up with the Wii in mind, as were each of the weapons in the extensive armory, providing gameplay not possible on other platforms. As Secret Service Agent Ford, you must learn to master each of these weapons as well as the special "All Seeing Eye" device to defeat enemies, solve puzzles, and unravel the game's mysteries.

"Conduit was especially designed for the Nintendo Wii" states Matt Corso, Creative Director at High Voltage Software. "From the weapons to armory and graphics, we tailored everything to the Wii which sets this game play apart from anything else on the market right now."

Publisher excitement and interest in The Conduit has been overwhelming. High Voltage Software will continue to search for the perfect partner to ensure The Conduit’s success.

The Conduit is tentatively scheduled for release in Q1 2009 exclusively for the Nintendo Wii.]]>