Wii

The Wii is Nintendo's newest console which was released on November 19, 2006 in America. The console uses a revolutionary remote control and an online service that will be on all day and every day. The codename for the console was Revolution, when Nintendo changed it to Wii in April of 2006.

Building off the basis of the Nintendo DS, Nintendo is using what they refer to as the "blue ocean" strategy. It is a move to target not only the general gaming public, but also those who have never played games, or those who play very rarely. It has been designed with simplicity and familiarity in mind, which explains the Wii Remote and the Wii Channels.

The system is actually incredibly compact, lending itself to extreme portability. It is approximately the size of three DVD cases stacked on top of one another. It comes with a stand as well, so it can sit upright when in the vertical position. To insert a game, there is a large slot on the front of the system surrounded by a glowing blue neon light. The slot can accept the 8cm discs used by the Nintendo GameCube, or Wii games on standard 12cm discs. The system will also come with a sensor bar that is used to detect the motions of the Wii Remote.

The specs have been said to be comparable to an AthlonXP 2400+ or an AthlonXP 3000+ with a possible clock speed between 2.0 Ghz to 2.2 Ghz. The GPU is comparable to an ATi Radeon X1400 and X1600 and the RAM Speed is said to be at 640Mhz.

The Wii is the first console by Nintendo that has the ability to update its Operating System automatically, due to WiiConnect 24. It is also the first console since the SNES (Super Mario World) to be bundled with a game at launch, which is Wii Sports.

The Name
As stated above, the name of Wii was actually titled the Nintendo Revolution pre-April 2006. Nintendo states that the name is simply Wii, and not Nintendo Wii. This is the first console not to have the Nintendo name at the beginning (or anywhere, for a matter of fact.). The name emphasizes that the console is for everyone, both gamers and non-gamers alike. The two "i's" in the name represent two things - Both two player gathering together, and the two remote controls used to play the games. Many thought that the name would actually hurt the sales of the Wii, though once the name was revealed, the press, gaming press and non gaming press (such as CNN, Fox, and ABC) all jumped in and announced the name, revealing the console to millions. The name might have even helped the sales of the Wii.

Controller
The controller is truly what makes the system shine. Using integrated apparatuses (such as accelerometers and gyroscopes), the Wii Remote is able to sense movement in 3-D space. Using this, the Wii can simulate things such as having a sword fight, playing almost any sports game, solving puzzles, and much more. It closely resembles a television remote, designed this way on purpose in order to make it easy to relate to the familiarity of the TV remote. Its emphasis on motion sensing capabilities also help to make games less difficult and more natural, as to appeal to all groups of people. It also has various attachments which are plugged into the expansion port at the bottom of the controller. One such attachment, referred to as the nunchuk, adds two more buttons, a joystick, and has its own built in accelerometers. The expansion port can also allow other attachments, which will be revealed as time progresses.

The controller was formerly referred to as the Revmote by the gaming community. As the real name of the console was revealed, nowadays the controller is known as the "Wiimote", though the correct name according to Nintendo is simply "Wii Remote".

Backward Compatibility
Wii is fully backwards compatible with the GameCube, which launched in 2001. It is able to play every Gamecube game in the collection, avoiding the current backwards-compatibility issues of the Xbox 360. The Gamecube discs go into the same slot as the main Wii discs go into, even though it is smaller in size. In addition, the Wii is also able to use some of the GCN peripherals such as the Microphone and DK Bongos. The Wii also has four GCN controller ports and two memory slots, so game saves and control issues shouldn't be a problem. This is the first Nintendo console that is backward compatible with a previous Nintendo console.

Channels
See also: Wii Channel Menu

This is a list of all the channels that have been confirmed for the Wii. You will be able to choose which channel you want to go to on the main menu for the Wii.

Virtual Console


A built in feature of the Wii is the Wii Virtual Console. Games are available to be downloaded (for a price) from previous systems including the TurboGrafx-16, Sega Genesis, NES, SNES, N64 and Neo-Geo. The Wii remote is also designed so, when turned on it's side, closely resembles an NES controller, most likely designed with the NES in mind. Virtual Console games cost between $5 to $10 USD. This includes new titles and classics. It has also been rumoured that separate add-on controllers can be purchased resembling those specific systems, and used to play the games on those systems. The Classic Controller has been shown as well, designed to cover all the Virtual Console systems.

Launch Lineup

 * Call of Duty 3
 * Excite Truck
 * Far Cry Vengeance
 * GT Pro
 * Madden NFL 2007
 * Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
 * Metal Slug Anthology
 * Monster 4x4 World Circuit
 * Need for Speed: Carbon
 * Open Season
 * Rayman Raving Rabbids
 * Red Steel
 * SpongeBob SquarePants: Creature from the Krusty Krab
 * Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz
 * The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
 * Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam
 * Trauma Center: Second Opinion- US Only
 * Wii Sports - Bundled with the system for free.
 * World Series of Poker
 * Wii Play - EU only.