February marks the start of something new ... and the end of something lovely, too.  Den of Wii as a blog is no more; the force is being shifted into www.DenOfGeek.com, where you can get the Dennis teams views, rants and raves about all the formats of gaming, from the point of view of real gamers.  So we'll still be on hand to tell you the latest Wii news and reviews, etc. You might even discover other stuff that interests you along the way ...

As well as gaming, Den of Geek handles everything that's brilliant in a geeky way.  Cult TV, movies and icons will cram their way through the net onto your screens at home.  Don't click away until you've taken a dekko for yourself!

Thank you to everyone who has ever read, commented on or used our web site here at Den of Wii.  We love you and we'll miss you in this intimate form we've known and loved.  For those of you who would like to trace the work of those involved, you can catch me (Kim Kaze) and the team who contribute over at the Den of Wii Facebook group, which we'll keep running for now so you can comment, throw rotten veg - anything, really.

Once again, thank you all very much for being with us, and we'll see you over at Den of Geek!

-=Kim Kaze=-
Editor, DenOfWii.com

Want a splash of colour in your life? Fed up with your Wiimote looking the same as all your friends?  There's lots you can do about this, but one German company reported last night that from 8th February across Europe, there will be a funky, new way to change the way your Wii controllers look.  Black and lipstick pink (especially for the girls they tell us!) are the colours initially availible and it's not just rubber grippers this time.

Riimotes as they're being dubbed, come complete with matching rubber skins that you can remove and swap around (much like the standard Nintendo rubber skins).  They're wireless and near enough exactly like the standard, Nintendo Wiimote.  Buttons are placed identically and the only obvious difference is the battery cover, which is a different shade of colour to the rest of the remote.  Nunchuks are also to become availible in these colours, along with wireless nunchuks (akin to the Nyco wireless offerings) and a retro controller.

We've got pics so far of the Riimote and nunchuk in three colours, but more are promised.  Black and pink are promised to launch on Feb 8th.  We'll test them fully as soon as they arrive and let you know how they work in real time, so watch this space.

The funny thing about journalism is that half the time, the things people tell you are great and must-haves for your pad at home turn out to be stuff that they personally wouldn't touch with a barge pole.  Why? Because reviews and articles have to be 'fair, balanced and eliminate personal biases where possible'.

The trouble with this method is, you're an ordinary human being and so am I.  Personal biases, if they're established for a good reason, are actually worthy of keeping to a certain extent.  I want to know that despite a game being the best thing in its genre right now for Xbox, the PC has titles which whoop it out of sight and you can actually update the PC graphics card.  I also want to know that a title may be very good, but that something better is coming next week or is even already out right now.  I want that bigger picture, the personal recommendation if you would.  If there's a good reason you don't own the game as a journalist, do I want to own it either?  It might be a great game, but if you're all playing something else and will never touch it ... why should I?

So far, only the hallowed few have been allowed to get their hands on Mario Kart Wii for the purposes of reporting how it plays and what we can expect. Here's what we know so far:

. Up to 12 players online. Big step forward, especially considering the need Wii gaming has to get better online and open the doors to the more mature gamer. We expect these things.

. Online gaming is improved version of Mario Kart DS - you're thrown straight into racing, no waiting to connect. At least that's what we've been informed, I can't wait to test this.

Well, not quite.  At least - not yet.  What has happened is that four schools in the UK have now decided to embark on a lottery funded project to use the Wii as part of their offerings to students doing PE classes.  The logic?  Simply that certain students who would otherwise completely skip the PE class, are now likely to remain and participate.  Team working skill increases have also been reported, as children play together in a fashion that is far more akin to the way they socialise today.

Heart rate monitors were purchased along with a Wii for each school using the scheme. The children invited to participate were those who had often missed PE lessons, aged 14-16.

As expected, there are already nay-sayers decrying the project as no replacement for real sports.  Of course this is true, but we feel that any step towards breaking a sweat on children who otherwise would not participate at all is a good one - especially if team skill improvements are also noticed.

We'll cut to the chase - today heralds good news for Virtual Console (VC) fans everywhere, especially Japan.  Why, you might ask?  Simple - the Sega Master System is being brought to the Virtual Console at last, joining the selection of decent hardware already ported through the VC system on the Wii.
 
This also means we're sure to see Game Gear titles released as well, since the Master System and Game Gear used the same technology.  Japan are reportedly getting Master System games for 500 Wii points with Fist of the North Star and Fantasy Zone starting off the action in February 2008.  This puts the Master System in a great position as a budget selection of retro games that many will remember growing up playing.
 
The more hardware that VC supports, the better.  We'd hope to see Dreamcast and Gameboy/Gameboy colour titles in the future, perhaps?

We all know the claims in the media and from Nintendo themselves that the Wii gets couch-dwellers off their rear ends and onto their feet, working out.  No surprises there; but does it pass the fitness test?  Could you for example, substitute a walk in the park or a game of tennis for a bout of Wii Boxing?  The Canadians were keen to find out.

"I was playing Wii boxing with a friend and noticed how exerting it was," said Justin White, a fourth-year kinesiology student.  "I thought to myself, 'I'm working up a sweat doing this Nintendo thing; I might run with that.' So I put together an outline and the class thought it would be a good project to take on," he said.

White and 27 students tested the impact of playing Wii boxing for 30 minutes against a 30-minute walk in a local park and an equal amount of time doing a boxercise video.  Every student did each activity and their heart rate was measured as well as how hard they thought they had worked out for all three activities. (cont...)

Here's a quick introduction to the game for those who didn't read our first article on the Wii edition (naughty!):

You fly around in 2D space as a small spaceship and other ships come at you.  Shoot them & collect the gems they drop.  That's the simple beauty of Geometry Wars as a concept, like arcade games of old.  Simple and addictive - all about the high score. The ships are all represented as small, geometric shapes such as diamonds, triangles and circles. The music is high energy and repetitive, not that we think you'll notice nor care.  It suits the mood of the game perfectly and should only annoy the most fussy gamer. (cont...)

Well ... are they?  Facts may be facts, but it's also about the context of these pieces of data and the way you choose to spin them, too.  The field of play is often a way that facts can sometimes be distorted, but whichever way you do choose to look at it, Ninty has had a fine 2007 and a strong start to 2008 so far.  What they have to say today follows, in bullet form:

· The DS was the best selling hardware of any kind (home console or handheld) in 2007 and now has a UK installed base of over 5 million units.

· The Wii was the best selling home console of 2007 in the UK and now has an installed base of over 2 million units, surpassing the installed base of Microsoft's Xbox 360 which launched one year earlier (cont...)

I'm not quite sure how they've done it, but the creators of Geometry Wars: Galaxies have crammed the adrenaline surge and buzz from a roller coaster into a game. You have to focus so hard, be aware constantly of your surroundings and react perfectly each and every time.  The game just sucks you in more and more ... and more.

It's a challenge for sure, but a rewarding one; one that tells you that if you try one more time ... get it just right ... one more time ... push yourself that little bit harder, that elusive gold can be yours. In fact it will be yours.  Just once more.

I feel like I'm 10 and back in the arcades of my youth. Just. One. More. Go!

At least it does if I'm using the Wii Classic Pad option.  With the Wiimote controlling the direction I shoot and the nunchuk where my ship goes, I'm not as sold. But perhaps I just need more time with it. Or I'm just old...