So, there’s no confirmation from Nintendo that the Wii is going down in price. In fact, everything we’d heard until now is that the Wii is not going to go down in price no matter what the other Big Boys are doing with their next gen consoles. But in business, like in life, there are no never-nevers and no absolutes. So, while Nintendo may have believed that their Wii was the perfect price, they may have changed their minds.

Bottomline: Both Walmart and Toys R Us are reporting a $50 price drop for the Wii console, bringing it down to a sexy $199.99. Doesn’t that look kinder on the wallet? Both Sony’s weight-watching PS3 Slim and Microsoft’s Xbox 360 Elite are both down to $299. So it would make sense for Nintendo to suck it up and slash some prices just to even out the playing field.

Whether or not the rumor is true will be confirmed soon enough. So keep your eye out, if you’ve been waiting for a cheaper Wii.

Via | The Video Game Blog

Image: Nintendo

Post from: Play Girlz

If you’re itching to get your hands on some new titles and aren’t quite sure what might be coming out in the next few days, here’s a list of video games slated for release this week. It’s not a bad list, particularly if you’re into super heroes, ninjas, shooting things down, or rocking out. Look for most of these titles to be on shelves by Tuesday, September 2:

PC

• Champions Online
• Mini Ninjas
• Section 8

PS2

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Guitar Hero 5
• Guitar Hero 5 Guitar Bundle

PS3

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Guitar Hero 5
• Guitar Hero 5 Guitar Bundle
• Mini Ninjas

Xbox 360

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Guitar Hero 5
• Guitar Hero 5 Bundle
• Mini Ninjas
• Section 8

Wii

• Cabela’s Outdoor Adventure
• Cruise Ship Vacation Games
• Guitar Hero 5
• Guitar Hero 5 Bundle
• Mini Ninjas
• Muramasa: The Demon Blade (Release date unclear: Either Thursday, or early next week)

Nintendo DS

• Mini Ninjas

PSP

• Soul Calibur: Broken Destiny

Via | Shack News

Image: Mini Ninjas//Eidos

Post from: Play Girlz

Microsoft and Sony have been slashing prices left and right lately in an effort to draw more people to their consoles and protect their pocketbooks from the nasty side effects of a bad economy. Nintendo, on the other hand, doesn’t seem all that concerned about such things. Nintendo’s content to sit back in its gold-trimmed throne of uberness and watch as its competitors slap each other around and make a beeline for the reduced prices counter.

When asked if Nintendo had any plans to drop the price tag on its products, Denise Kaigler, a rep for Nintendo of America, essentially said, “Nope.” But more specifically stated that:

“Our focus has always been creating fun and engaging game-play experiences. Because of that focus, Wii has been the best-selling video game system in the United States for two years and counting.”

In other words, they’ve already won the war and have no need to resort to silly things like price cuts. Let the big boys with their next gen machines snip away at their profits.

But, of course, never say never. While Nintendo doesn’t seem to have any current plans to reduce prices, it’s entirely possible that they’ll change their minds in the near or distant future. But if you’ve been on the fence as to whether or not to get a Wii now or wait a bit for a potential cheaper version, might as well go for it now.

Via | QJ

Image: Nintendo

Post from: Play Girlz

Grab your guitars, you guitar heroes out there. There’s some new DLC available for Guitar Hero World Tour and you can go ahead and grab it now for your Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, or your Wii. Hell, you can get it for all three and really rock out. Playing the guitar with your feet is a valuable skill. The latest DLC is called “Dueling Banjos” as recorded by Steve Ouimette. At the Xbox Live Marketplace it will set you back 160 MS points. At the PS Store it will cost you $1.99 and for the Wii, prepare to shell out 200 Wii points.

This new single will hopefully tide you over until the release of Guitar Hero 5 which hits stores on September 1. A couple of days later (September 3) you’ll be able to start downloading The Rolling Stones Live Track Pack, which will include songs from the 1969 concert. This one will set you back: 720 MS Points, $8.99 at the PS store, and/or 900 Wii points. Or you can just grab them all individually.

Via | Gametactics

Image: Activision

Post from: Play Girlz

There’s some good news on the horizon for Wii owners and also fans of games like MadWorld as Sega has gone on the record as promising more mature titles for the Nintendo console. The main complaint many players have against the Wii is the lack of adult games and the over-emphasis on family-friendly titles. While those are the games that catapulted the Wii into the number one spot from the start, it would still be nice to find a balance.

Hopefully Sega will remain true to its word. Though it’s doubtful we’ll see a huge influx of mature audience titles heading for the Wii, it’s at least a nice, hopeful thought to know that developers like Sega aren’t giving up on the idea altogether. For the moment, it looks like they’re seriously looking at the numbers and trying to figure out what future ideas might address the needs of all players.

In the meantime, we must keep our fingers crossed. Are you excited by the prospect of more mature titles for the Wii?

Via | Destructoid

Image: Sega

Post from: Play Girlz

Some scary/unfortunate news for those of you that have purchased The Psyclone Essentials and/or the React Wii 4-Dock Battery Recharge stations, as both have been deemed dangerous by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission and distributor Griffin International. As of now, 220,000 of these products are being recalled, as it has been found by those in charge of finding these things out, that the chargers have the potential to overheat.

If you’ve purchased one or more of these chargers in the past year and a half, you should unplug it, and then do some research to see if your product falls under those being recalled. The US Consumer Product Saftey Commission is taking the issue pretty seriously, so you should probably make sure your product is safe before continuing its use. The last thing any one needs is a fire.

Via | Computer and Video Games

Image: Nintendo

Post from: Play Girlz

There’s some potential good news on the horizon for fans of the Wizardry franchise who also happen to be Nintendo DS owners. Thanks to game developer Genterprise, players will soon have access to Wizardry: The Wedge of Life RPG game for the Nintendo portable gaming console. The title will be loosely based in the three prior Wizardry titles with added real-time features included.

But there’s some bad news: a US publisher has yet to step up to bring this title to American stores, which means that unless you’re in Japan, you’ll have to wait a while later to get your hands on this one. For those of you with access to Japan’s Amazon site, though, you’ll be able to purchase the game on November 19.

Via | QJ DS

Image: Nintendo

Post from: Play Girlz

Q1 has not been kind to Nintendo, as evidenced by the release of their financials for the quarter. The numbers are – particularly by Nintendo standards – quite bleak and depressing. Is it the economy? Or has the Wii simply overstayed its welcome as the King of Consoles? It might well be both, but the end result is the same either way: Nintendo’s profits have plummeted. In terms of sales, the company saw a 40.1% drop across the board, teamed up with a 60.6% profit drop in the three months prior to June 30.

In terms of its income, the company went from 107 billion yen to a lowly 42 billion and sales fell from 423 billion yen all the way to 253 billion. That’s pretty staggering considering how long Nintendo spent making steady profits thanks to the little Wii that could.

Sadly, the Wii’s popularity seems to be in steady decline. Sales for the console dropped from 5.17 million units to 2.23 million. The DS, also, has seen a drop: 5.97 million units, down from 6.94 million.

That said, Nintendo is a company that likely knows how to brush itself off and keep on trucking. So we’ll hopefully see some better numbers in the next report, or at least signs that the company is ready to bring us something new. With Microsoft’s Project Natal in the works, it will be interesting to see how Nintendo works to meet the competition.

Or, perhaps the time for Nintendo’s reign has passed? What do you think?

Via | vg247

Image: Nintendo

Post from: Play Girlz

It seems like 505 Games has teamed up with Paramount Pictures to bring Grease to our Nintendo gaming platform of choice: Wii and Nintendo DS. As a big Grease fan, I have to say that I find the news intriguing, but I’m not quite sure what such a game might entail. Dancing? Singing?

According to a Paramount spokesperson, the game will take “full advantage of the Nintendo Wii’s motion-sensing controls and microphone and the DS touch screen.” And John Kavanah, the Senior Vice President of Video Games for Paramount Digital Entertainment added, “Grease is the ideal opportunity to reach a broad gaming audience who love to sing, dance and have fun with a party-style game.” So it seems like singing and dancing might be in the cards.

It will be really interesting to see what 505 Games/Paramount come up with in regards to this game. In the meantime, I’m off to play the soundtrack on repeat. Grease Lightning!

Via | GameGirl

Image: Nintendo

Post from: Play Girlz

If you’ve managed to play through all of your games over the weekend and are searching for some fresh titles to add to your collection, look no further. This week sees quite a few decent games added to the shelves, and if you managed not to blow all your cash on last week’s releases, then you’re probably in luck.

June 30 -

• Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood – Xbox 360, PS3
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – Xbox 360, PS3, PSP, Wii, DS, PC
• Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs – Xbox 360, PS3, Wii, DS, PC
• Mega Man Star Force 3: Red Joker – Nintendo DS
• Steambot Chronicles: Battle Tournament – PSP

July 1 -

Marvel vs. Capcom 2 – Xbox 360

July 2 -

• Infernal: Hell’s Vengeance – Xbox 360

Via | QJ

Image: Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood // Ubisoft

Post from: Play Girlz