Konami has been around for a very long time. Long before 3D and complex gameplay, the publisher busied itself as a prominent MSX developer. Before the Solid, Metal Gear made its home on the format, right alongside classics such as Contra and Parodius. For another round of retro, Konami's adding 13 MSX games into Virtual Console.

Don't look now, but it's another space shooter. This time, you can enjoy all the intergalactic, infinite-ammo spaceship action on your Wii, thanks to PaceMaker's Space Shooter. It's now on v0.3, and there's a lot of changes here from the last release. Check them out in the full article.


Download: Space Shooter v0.3
Download: Space Shooter v0.3 (source)

A recent press release from Nintendo UK revealed that the Hanabi Festival is being celebrated on the Europe Wii Virtual Console service.  Much like the last Hanabi Festival, gamers from Europe will be given the chance to pick up retro games that never made it to their shores (barring imports, that is). To find out what games will be offered during the festival, head on over to the full article.

 

For those of us fortunate enough to be in the land of the rising sun, Nintendo has recently updated its Virtual Console page to reflect a huge bounty of retro games headed to the Wii Shop Channel in the region of Japan. So big, in fact, that it could probably called the motherlode of retro as we know it - and it's worth shaking our fists at Nintendo for giving it to Japan first, even if their company headquarters is situated in that territory and they have this thing about pleasing their most faithful customers. Yes, I know, it's a totally weird reason.

So, what's the choice bits of the retro smorgasbord that only Wii owners in Japan are only invited to? I'm not really glad you asked, but suffice to say they're getting their Wii Points' worth. One of the titles is Knight's King, one of Square's first games that's almost like a cross between a shoot-em-up and Final Fantasy. You control four different characters - Knight, Wizard, Thief and Godzilla Monster - across a world to save the proverbial princess-in-distress, and if you manage to do it with all four, they link up into one at the final stage. Talk about replayability!

What else is Japan getting early? Another one is Eternal Champions, the ultra-violent fighting game that gave us a taste of stage-based fatalities and other mechanics that was ahead of its time. There's also Ecco Jr., Gradius II and Panel de Pon - all quality retro titles that's sure to while away those hours in pure old school joy.

Well, they may be getting the titles early, but we know that they'll also be making their way to NA and EU shores soon enough. In the meantime, here's the complete lineup for the Virtual Shop Consoles in Japan.

Follow the full article for the list of game additions!

The Hanabi Festival on the Virtual Console is drawing to a close, but the good stuff are still pouring in for the European VC. Case in point: Nintendo is adding two titles never before released in Europe to the VC.

First up is the 3D third-person shooter Sin and Punishment. This Nintendo 64 original puts players in the role of a resistance fighter facing a horde of bio-genetic monstrosities. Some in-game text in Sin and Punishment have been translated into English just for this Hanabi Festival release. It's available for 1200 Wii Points.

Next, we have Konami's Gradius III. Players will have to shoot their way through ten levels, mixing and matching lasers, missiles and shields to take out the armadas of the Bacterion Empire. This SNES title comes to Europe for the first time for 900 Wii Points.

The non-Hanabi Festival offering for this week is Legend of Hero Tonma. In this platform shooter, players assume the role of Tonma, a trainee magician who must rescue a princess from prison. Players will work their way through seven levels, gathering treasure chests and power-ups and using magic spells to battle giant bosses. Legend of Hero Tonma is available now for 600 Wii Points.

Finally, those who haven't gotten their hands on Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels yet, you better act fast. It will only be available on the VC until September 30.

Japan's Virtual Console line-up for the Wii this coming August is looking really great and hopefully, it reflects some of what we'll be getting here in the U.S. as well.

Some of the the big games include Super Mario USA or Super Mario Brothers 2 for the NES (Famicom), Street Fighter II Turbo for the SNES (Super Famicom), Sonic the Hedgehog 3 for the Mega Drive, and even Gradius for the TurboGrafx-16 (PC Engine).

Here's a complete list of the games to be released next month with their corresponding prices:

Famicom (500 Wii Points each)

• Kekkyoku Nankyoku Daibouken (Antarctic Adventure)
• Super Mario USA
• Volleyball
• Spelunker

Super Famicom (800 Wii Points each)

• Street Fighter II Turbo
• Otogirisou

Mega Drive (600 Wii Points each)

• Crack Down
• Sonic the Hedgehog 3
• ESWAT: City Under Siege

PC-Engine (600 Wii points each)

• Gradius
• Image Fight
• Adventure Island
• Ordyne
• Drop Off

Before you get all excited about this, remember that the month isn't over yet. On July 31, Nintendo still plans on releasing three titles, namely Ghouls and Ghosts (Mega Drive) for 600 Points, Wave Race 64 (Nintendo 64) for 1,000 points, and Power League IV (PC-Engine) for 600 points. Treat it as closure for this great month of gaming.

What's new on Virtual Console this week? Well, there's the SNES shoot 'em up Gradius III, the Genesis adventure game Wonder Boy in Monster World, and then there's Battle Lode Runner.

We've reported on the possibility of these games showing up, but a few days ago they were just, well, possibilities. Now they're confirmed. For those of you folks unfamiliar with each title and are a bit too lazy to Wikipedia them up or click on our link to the previous report, below is a short description of each.

Gradius III costs 800 Wii points and should allow you to relive the adventures of Vic Viper starfighter and his never ending battle against the Bacterion Empire. Wonder Boy in Monster World costs around 800 Wii points and allows you to play a young man named Shion. As Shion you attempt to defeat the invading army of BioMeka monsters and make your land peaceful again.

Battle Lode Runner, only 600 Wii points, includes an updated 5 player versus mode. Each player plays a "Runner" whose goal it is to recapture the stolen funds from the Time Machine Research Center, the problem is that the group responsible has used a time machine to escape and hide the gold throughout time.

Yep, each title sounds like a campy sci-fi show you'd watch during late-night, but hey, to a lot of folks said titles come with a lot of memories attached. You can't beat nostalgic camp.