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    More people browse the net on PS3 than Wii

    January 2, 2009 - 4:31pm


    According to a business statistics group, Market Share, the PS3 delivers more web traffic than the much more popular Wii. Stats put the PS3 at a 0.04 share of the overall internet market, with the Wii trailing behind at 0.01. With more Wii consoles out there than PS3s, and a superior method of browsing (controller vs. Wiimote, Wiimote wins), we're a tad bit shocked.Of course, one must take into account the fact that the Wii's web browser is no longer free. For a large part of the console's first year on the market it was, so that likely has a lot to do with how many folks are using their console to surf the web. The PS3's browser has always been absolutely free.How many of you use your Wii to cruise the seedy backstreets of this intertron we all know and love?

    Canadian receives spirit of N64 kid for Christmas

    January 2, 2009 - 3:37pm

    Remember the kid that was so happy to get himself an N64 for Christmas? Of course you do, who doesn't? Well, it would appear the torch has been passed on to a small Canadian child, who is a bottomless well of excitement upon receiving a certain gift this Christmas. We won't ruin the surprise (you probably already guessed, anyway), so just head past the break and watch the video. Oh, and if you need a refresher on the N64 kid, hit up the video above.

    Wii clinches bronze in console usage stakes

    January 2, 2009 - 2:41pm

    The white coats at Nielsen have been at it again, analysing our gaming lives and charting the consoles we use most. Unlike the Nielsen study we posted about previously, this one takes into account pre-Wii/PS3/Xbox 360 platforms. This means that the PS2 stormed to a predictable, convincing victory: 30.2% of "all measured console minutes" were dedicated to Sony's nine-year-old machine.

    Despite its smaller user base, the Xbox 360 was second with 18.3%, while the Wii came third with 13.5% -- high enough, we feel, to put any no-doubt-hilarious Wii/dust jokes to rest. Excellently, the GameCube is following the PS3 more closely than you'd think.

    A quick disclaimer before you scuttle past the break to see the data in full: these numbers cover January to October 2008, there's no word on whether non-U.S. gamers were surveyed, and handhelds aren't mentioned, though are presumably bracketed in the "Others" category. Multiple console owners who are richer than us: how closely do your own habits follow this pattern?

    • PlayStation 2 (30.2%)
    • Xbox 360 (18.3%)
    • Wii (13.5%)
    • Xbox (9.1%)
    • PlayStation 3 (7.7%)
    • GameCube (4.4%)
    • Other (16.9%)

    [Via Edge Online]

    Dead Rocking [update]

    January 2, 2009 - 1:45pm

    We just figured out what makes zombies so appealing to game developers. The Uncanny Valley effect created by motion-capturing real people (like Japanese punk band Gagaga SP) and transferring their movements to imperfect 3D models is a good thing when the result is supposed to be off-putting and creepy.This video (it's the one on the far left of Capcom's movie player widget, labeled "new", if you're browsing the site) features cameos from a bunch of Dead Rising characters, as a zombified Gagaga SP performs the new Dead Rising: Chop Till You Drop theme, called, uh, "Dead Rising." The very existence of this video has suddenly made the game more awesome! It's cool that Capcom has put so much effort into something this goofy and fun.If you happen to have a Japanese cell phone, you can download the song. If not, and the song has well and truly bored into your head as it has ours, you're just going to have to watch the video again, or you can stream a sample of just the audio here.[Update: added embedded video.]

    How ridiculously wealthy is Nintendo this year?

    January 2, 2009 - 12:50pm

    Despite reporting on it back in 2007 and reading the Wikipedia entry so many times, we're still foggy on what market capitalization is -- we think it's basically how many shares of stock are in the public, multiplied by the cost of one share. We have an impressionistic idea of what it means, though: the bigger the number, the more likely the company's executives are to have Segways (for example).So how did Nintendo fare? They finished 2008 with the fourth-highest market cap in Japan, according to the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The number, 4.7813 trillion yen ($52.7 billion), is way down from where it was in 2007, but what isn't? A halved market cap actually sounds bad, and it probably is, but they're still in the top 5 companies, and still selling tons of systems and games, so it's probably nothing to worry about. First-place Toyota dropped 54% themselves![Via Kotaku]

    Snowboard Riot: the goggles do something

    January 2, 2009 - 11:00am

    Hudson has launched the site for their WiiWare snowboard racing game, Snowboard Riot, along with a new gameplay trailer. We've never been overly interested in snowboarding games, but the smooth motion evident in this trailer is quite appealing, as is the combat aspect of the game. The fact that it's not a full-priced game certainly doesn't hurt our impression either.We thought we had found a negative in the Oakley sponsorship, which seemed a bit crass, but then "Goggles can amp up player abilities!" popped up and the partnership instantly jumped from "crass" to "unintentional self-parody", at which point our laughter allowed us to forgive Hudson for taking advantage of a lucrative opportunity.We hope that a) this turns out to be okay when it comes out (maybe this month, as it's due out this month in Japan) and b) we can find people to play with online. You guys like combat racing, right?

    Impending video service worries Japanese TV establishment

    January 2, 2009 - 10:00am

    There must really be something to this Nintendo/Dentsu "Wii no Ma Channel," the video service announced last week. Times Online calls it a "television channel" featuring "a family- oriented blizzard of cartoons, "brain-training" quizzes, cookery, educational and other lifestyle shows." In other words, not just occasional offerings.The prospect of a Wii-based television channel apparently has traditional television channels worried. According to the Times, a Fuji TV executive called the possibility of Nintendo media dominance "the stuff of television producers' nightmares", expressing fears that Wii-based programming could cut into prime-time viewership for Japanese television.Thanks, unnamed Fuji Television executive! We're much more excited about this Channel now.[Via GoNintendo]

    Capcom management wanted 3D Mega Man 9

    January 1, 2009 - 1:00pm


    1up's interview with Mega Man 9 producer Hironobu Takeshita offers a look back at the brilliant downloadable sequel and its development. The 8-bit style, which is one of the game's most distinctive and eye-catching features, almost didn't happen! While Capcom's management liked the digital distribution idea (it's cheap!), they didn't go for the retro look at first. "We heard lots of negative responses; they thought it would be better to make it 3D and that the 8-bit style would only appeal to the Mega Man fans, which would limit the sales potential." Presumably, they eventually figured out that 8-bit graphics were also cheap.Takeshita also describes the idea behind the item shop, which is wonderful and hilarious. "Even if MM9's 8-bit design interested them, the difficulty level would turn them off. With that in mind, we tried to create a system that encourages casual gamers who might not be so experienced with action games." That's right, the item shop is in there to offer assistance to casual players. We love the idea that someone at Capcom thought that all people needed to be able to finish Mega Man 9 was a few E-tanks and a new dress for Roll.