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)

Time yet again for Wii gamers out there to get their weekly dose of retro gaming. New this week are Spelunker from the original NES platform, and Super R-Type, from the Super Nintendo system. Details in the full article.

Japanese gamers are set to start the New Year with a bang, now that they'll have a bunch of good classic gaming coming their way via the Wii's Virtual Console. From Yie Ar Kung Fu to Super R-TYPE, classic gaming couldn't be even sweeter.

Some of you may still remember the days when 16-bit consoles were the height of video gaming history. Before the PlayStation and even the SNES came into being, Hudson Entertainment had already developed the Turbo CD system which proudly bore the title of being the first video game console in North America to have a CD-ROM peripheral.

In an interview with Hudson Entertainment VP of Sales and Marketing John Lee announced that Hudson will be porting the Turbo CD system onto the Wii's Virtual Console service. Now gamers can relive the good old days with a bit of nostalgia thrown in as they play games from this fun, if somewhat underrated, console.

The Turbo CD system will definitely be getting the better end of the deal as the port will improve most of the old problems the system had, such as slow loading times and a bigger capacity for storing games. The company also employed an improved compression for its games' sounds so players will be able to squeeze in a few extra megabytes of fun-filled, old school platformers.
 
When asked what games Hudson will be including in the Virtual Console shift of the Turbo CD system, Lee had this to say:

We take a look at consumer demand, licensing issues, as well as market fit. Thus far, we have only announced a few games, which include Super Air Zonk, a sequel to the all out crazy Air Zonk game featuring enhanced CD quality music and all new levels.

In addition we also announced Gate of Thunder, the award-winning shooter that has been on the top of our fans' most requested list for some time. Hudson was known for making some truly intense shooters back in the day, and these games are the pinnacle of that era.

Hudson will also be looking into including Japanese-exclusive games such as Dracula X: Rondo of Blood and Ys IV: Dawn of Ys. Lee said they will be taking a look at whether the market for both games will enough for them to get them translated for the port, although he recognizes the fact that these games have already caught the attention of gamers in the States.

Other games of note such as old TurboGrafx favorites Splatterhouse and R-Type will also be finding themselves on the Wii's Virtual Console soon. Although Hudson is looking into porting their other games from the short-lived SuperGrafx console and the SNES, Lee said they will be concentrating on the Turbo CD system for the time being.

Australia-based gamers rejoice! The first batch of TurboGrafx titles (to be released on the Virtual Console) have passed through the ratings system of the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC).

So what can we expect to be getting on the VC? The first batch slated for release include the following:

• Double Dungeons
• Chew Man Fu
• New Adventure Island
• Soldier Blade
• Vigilante
• Dungeon Explorer
• Victory Run
• Super Star Soldier
• R-Type
• Military Madness
• Alien Crush
• Moto Roader

Not a bad lineup for any retrogamer's discerning taste. Take note that these games have already been released on VC in other countries. So what are you waiting for, go check out your Wii units and see if an y of these are already available.

Here's a friendly tip, R-Type is one of the best games ever (according to most people I know), so you might want to look that up first.

 

Aussie and European players would be happy to know that there are three new additions to their Virtual Console choices. R-Type III: The Third Lightning, Excitebike and Kirby's Adventure joins their VC line-up.

R-Type III: The Third Lightning from Irem first came out in 1993 and was originally for the SNES. It's a side-scrolling space shooter and as the name suggests, the third installment of the R-Type franchise. The Third Lightning introduced a third force plus new weapons. It is now available for 800 Wii points.

Excitebike is a motorbike racing game by Nintendo which first appeared in 1984 for the NES. It is the inspiration for Excite Truck and one of the first to feature a track build. Excitebike is now available for 500 Wii points. HAL Laboratory's Kirby's Adventure made a debut on the NES in 1994. Join Kirby in his adventure to save Dream Land and defeat the Nightmare. It is now available for 600 Wii points.

Europe gets an extra title in the form of New Adventure Island. It was originally released for the Turbografx and can be downloaded for 800 Wii Points.

We'd really like to begin this with the up-up down-down routine... but then again maybe we shouldn't. After hearing about this one, we suddenly feel like kids again.

Rumors about the SNES game Contra III: The Alien Wars just stopped.It's been reported that this game is finally coming to the Virtual Console this week (Japan lineup, of course), along with other much loved Famicom/NES titles and games that appeared on PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16. Contra III: The Alien Wars will be sold for 800 points, while Ikki and Ice Climbers (Famicon/NES) will cost 500 points each, and Moto Roader for 600 points.

Other games that have been added to the Virtual Console lineup include Xevious (a NES title, selling for 500 points) and R-Type III: The Third Lightning (SNES game costing 800 points).

Aeropause has a neat article up on virtual console games they recommend people spend their points on. Their five recommendations aren't exactly variety picks, but they definitely are spot on with the recommendation for Bomberman '93 and Solomon's Key.

For Aeropause's recommendations, they also cite Toejam and Earl (for using the controller as an impromptu beat box), Ristar (literally the predecessor to the Sonic the Hedgehog series), and Bonk's Adventure (headbutt everything in your way!). You gotta love the Bonk choice though, because there is a hidden invincibility trick in mid-air.

We definitely agree with three of the recommendations, though we'd suggest some replacements. For one thing, we'd switch Toejam and Earl with R-Type because shooters still play darned will after a decade or two. For another, we'd trade Ristar for Street Fighter II. The game's not exactly a perfect port, according to some reports, but you can't say "No" to the fighting duo with matching outfits and flaming uppercuts, right?

Would it really be so hard to release the same Virtual Console titles simultaneously in all territories rather than leave some of us with an anemic lineup? Whatever the case, looks like us Westerners will be eyeing the Wii's Japanese Virtual Console lineup with a tinge of jealousy for a while longer. Here's a list of Nintendo's Virtual Console lineup for the fine month of January... more than enough reason to stick indoors and play with your Wii eh? Now if they'd just fix the damn pricing...

FAMICOM TITLES
Ikki (500 points)
Ice Climber (500 points)
Zelda II: Adventures of Link (500 points)
Kid Icarus (500 points)

SUPER FAMICOM TITLES
Fire Emblem Seisen no Keifu (900 points)

NINTENDO 64
Mario Kart 64 (1000 points) W00t!

MEGA DRIVE
Bonanza Bros. (500 points)
Gain Ground (500 points)

PC ENGINE
Alien Crush (500 points)
R-Type II (500 points)
Soldier Blade (500 points)
Moto Roader (500 points)

And just when we thought that Nintendo would be leaving us empty-handed this Christmas, we were suddenly proven wrong, all thanks to a nice little press release which announces that Christmas morning would be better than we thought. And a clue? Well, we can still expect the big belly and the red cap, as usual, except that the said belly and cap would be belonging to an Italian plumber this time around.

That's right; by December 25, Wii players will be able to download the original Super Mario Bros. game via the Wii shop for 500 Wii Points. Alongside Mario and Luigi, some other familiar characters will also be making appearances in the Virtual Console for 800 Wii Points each:

• Street Fighter II: The World Warrior
• Super Castlevania IV
• Toe Jam & Earl
• R-TYPE

It doesn't end there, though, as by January 1, the classic titles Baseball and Urban Champion will also be making their comebacks in living rooms everywhere.

Sure, it's not exactly the secret Wii channels and the free gift that we were sort of hoping for (though we're still keeping our fingers crossed for that), but we're not complaining.