Boardgame revival for the Wii

Scott Tortorice

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Found this interesting blurb about some boardgame titles coming to the Wii:

Following on from the news about The Game of Life earlier this week, two more boardgame adaptations have been announced at the GDC in Leipzig. Raiding the cupboards for those tattered boxes of dice and cards has certainly become a popular activity.

First up, Ubisoft unveiled a title called Cranium Kabookii, based on the Cranium boardgame, where an unlimited number of people can play the game using only a single Wiimote. A goggles peripheral also comes bundled with the game, which allows those wearing it to see the special clues hidden on the screen. Fingers crossed the French developers test the goggles properly and avoid any vision-impairing scandal like the Virtual Boy.

Secondly, Nintendo have quietly let slip that they’re developing a chess game, called - funnily enough - Wii Chess. Details are scarce, apart from the title and a release date for 2007. Interestingly, this is going to be one game sold by itself, as opposed to being released as part of a compilation like the other Wii titles so far. What’s so special about this one, we wonder?
Nintendo is being very clever with the Wii. IMHO, they are taking it in the right direction of family fun.
 

Aries

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Interesting.

I am still waiting for the PS3 to stop being about "oh it's a great machine, it can do so many other things" and start being a machine with a lot of cool new games.

Must really suck owning a PS3 if you only got it for the games.
 

Scott Tortorice

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Interesting.

I am still waiting for the PS3 to stop being about "oh it's a great machine, it can do so many other things" and start being a machine with a lot of cool new games.

Must really suck owning a PS3 if you only got it for the games.
Painfully on the mark! :D In fact, I just read an gaming industry editorial that basically said the same thing.

Highlights:

We've discussed Sony's next-gen strategy at some length in this column before, but with each press conference, it seems that the firm's attitude to the market becomes more confusing.

In the wake of yesterday's conference in Leipzig, for instance, it's as obvious as ever that Sony's main focus at present remains firmly on the PS2 and the PSP - profitable platforms with healthy installed bases and thriving software sales.

This isn't surprising - indeed, we've previously attributed many of Sony's more unusual decisions with the PS3 (such as the ludicrous dance it played around the "value proposition" at E3) to a desperate need to avoid rolling over and crushing the PS2 by pushing consumers to next-gen too quickly....

The big deal for the PSP in Leipzig, however, wasn't new games - or even the new PSP Slim And Lite hardware, which launches here in a few weeks' time. Instead, the likes of God of War, WipEout Pulse and Pursuit Force were given short shrift in favour of new "services" for the system - non-games software which Sony hopes will push the console out into new markets.

So now you'll be able to use instant messenger and voice chat over wireless networks using Go! Messenger, work out travel plans and find local services on the GPS-enabled Go! Explore, and view television content from Sky on the move using yet another Go! branded service....

The concern is that the PlayStation brand is becoming very diluted by Sony's determination to focus on things that aren't, well, Play....

On one side, you have the traditional early adopters of PlayStation hardware - the millions of gamers who formed the core audience for the PS2, and whose influence and advocacy should not be underestimated when considering the reasons for the success of that console. If not actually neglected, those people certainly feel unloved right now, and worse, they feel that they're being asked to pay above the odds for non-gaming functions when they just want a games console....

The software and services are, arguably, on the way - but the message needs to be fixed. It's time for Sony to get back to basics, and sell us again on what the PlayStation does best - Play.
 
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Aries

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The PS3 is a gaming console, makes me wonder if Sony simply forgot that.

It's like my PC is an applications tool not a console.

It's nice that a PS3 CAN do other things, but, if you bought it as a console, chances are you don't care if it plays Blueray, you want friggin games.

I know I bought my PC so I could go online, or write, or a dozen other applications. I didn't buy it to play Steel Panthers.

I think Nintendo is laughing their ass off all the way to the bank. There simply isn't enough PS3 titles to call "competition" and the X-Box 360 appears to be a machine you can assume will malfunction unless you normally win lotteries too.

The fact that the Wii can do other things, was never really important I am sure, it just happened. I am sure a lot of Wii owners like the fact they can actually play Wii games on it.

I'm also sure a lot of Wii owners are happy they could buy a Wii for a fraction of the cost of a PS3. Because it means more money for Wii games eh.

If the PS3 finally achieves some sort of selection of titles by the end of 2008, I am sure that will be nice. But, I guess if you have owned a PS3 since it was released, well, I hope you like buying Blueray movies, so you can at least use the thing that cost you 800 bucks.
 
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