Telltale Games (Sam & Max, Strong Bad) CEO Dan Connors mentioned in a recent interview that WiiWare "requires the most planning" of the online console marketplaces. In fairness, though, he explains that all the current console makers' online storefronts attempt to make content relatable to the audience. Connors notes that Strong Bad was "perfect" for Nintendo, which we're sure has a little bit to do with the enhanced sales after Nintendo's "storage solution" was introduced.

Connors doesn't make any further announcements for Telltale's brand of episodic gaming for the Wii, but he does say that the company will continue to evolve the adventure genre and feels the developer will continue growing the adventure genre for "years to come." A positive sign for more potential Telltale titles on the Wii front, perhaps?

It appears that some of the kids who "boycotted" the Wii Shop Channel until Nintendo offered some kind of fix for the storage issue have, true to their word, started buying stuff. Telltale Games sent out a press release claiming that sales of the Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People series have "more than doubled" since the GDC unveiling of Nintendo's "storage solution." Telltale didn't specify any numbers -- just that whatever the rate of sales was since GDC is better than whatever the rate was before.

"Nintendo's new solution really opens the door for players to add to their collection of downloadable games, which is critical for a series with multiple installments," Telltale CEO Dan Connors said in the press release. "This is a major step forward for episodic gaming. We're looking forward to even greater success on WiiWare with Strong Bad, as well as other projects."

Other projects!

With our shelves and Wii fridges creaking under the weight of new games from the holidays, Nintendo has generously given PAL gamers a week to catch their breath -- at least, we think that's the idea. Both WiiWare titles this week probably only appeal to a handful of people. The fifth and final episode of Strong Bad Episode 5 is great, obviously, but only if you're in the teensy minority who grabbed the first four instalments.

Meanwhile, Fun! Fun! Minigolf is allegedly so fun that maker Shin'en felt the need to tell us of its fun-ness twice over. But is a zany-looking chibi minigolf game really the title to stop us from getting our fingers gooey? Hint: no.

• Strong Bad Episode 5: 8-Bit is Enough -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points
• Fun! Fun! Minigolf -- WiiWare -- 900 Wii Points

We're quite happy Eurogamer suggested that Telltale's latest episodic adventure game, Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures, could be headed to Wii, because we wouldn't have been able to post about it otherwise, and we're totally excited about it! They seem very confident, even putting a Wii icon in the image on the front page that links to the article.

Eurogamer's logic is fairly sound: the game is to be released on PC and some console, so why not the one that Telltale put their last two games, Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People and Sam & Max, on? Especially since Strong Bad has done so well as a WiiWare game.

The new game sounds brilliant, combining Telltale's signature humorous puzzle-solving with elements of the classic Aardman series like Wallace's baroque inventions, and bringing more personality and interactivity to NPCs. We suggest you read Eurogamer's preview and set yourself up for potential future disappointment should this end up on N-Gage or something.

We've reached the end of our journey, as SBCG4AP comes to a close with its final episode, 8-Bit is Enough. It's a great way to conclude the series and easily the best episode of the bunch. If you're a gamer, then you're going to love the blatant fan service and all of the gaming references within this final episode.

Shed a tear, children, for the last and final episode of SBCG4AP has finally dropped on WiiWare. We found the best way to send the series off was, well, the same way we concluded each previous episode: review it. If you'd like to start at the beginning, we've included a link to the first episode's review below. Also know that we've touched up the older reviews and added buttons for easy navigation from one episode's review to the next. So, feel free to dive right in from the beginning below, or jump to the final episode's review.

Before we get to the actual information, we have to take a moment to give Curtis his promised momentary fame for coming up with the name for this weekly feature. So without further ado:

Aside from the last episode of Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, we've also got Rock Band 2 releasing on Wii this week. On top of that, we've got one new Virtual Console game, as well as some other retail releases and another WiiWare game. Head past the break for the list of this week's new gaming content.

Next Monday, the Strong Bad series gets wrapped up on North America's WiiWare service, with the release of the fifth and final chapter. If you bought the previous four and plan to buy 8-bit is Enough, you'll have spent 5,000 Wii points. That's more or less the price of a full game, but the reviews suggest that it's worth the outlay.

As Strong Bad is still the only example of episodic gaming on WiiWare, we're curious about how the game fared. Did you buy just the first chapter, only to decide against purchasing future episodes, or will you be picking up all five? And if you've still not acquired a single chunk of this delightful game, did you try the browser-based sampler we linked to recently? If not, you should -- it's fun ... and free.

In fact, let's make this feel official:

This Monday, the final chapter in the Strong Bad series will be available to download on WiiWare. Telltale just dished out a press release informing us that 8-Bit is Enough will be available next week. And, as usual, look for our review then.

Who else is pumped for the last episode?


[Via press release]

Telltale has sent us over a new trailer and screens for the final installment in the Strong Bad saga, 8-Bit is Enough. With it being the final episode and all, Telltale is upping the ante with plenty of awesome Trogdor action. Several screens feature the burly dragon man burninating the land, among other things. Hit up the video above, then be sure to check out the new screens in the gallery below.

TROGDORRRRRR!


[Via press release]

Pit Crew Panic!, a bizarre minigame compilation in which you repair busted cars, trucks, medieval castles, wedding cakes, giant toilets, and whatever this is, leads the new arrivals on the PAL Wii Shop this week. It's joined by remade Nintendo puzzler Art Style: Rotohex and, as we expected, Strong Bad: Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective. Then there's Bang!, a puzzler that looks a bit like Bejeweled with fruit -- the gameplay video after the break is possibly the most soulless thing we've watched in years.

Oh, and we can now say with some certainty that World of Goo will be out in Europe and Australia on December 19, the only "WiiWare Friday" left in 2008. Unless it's been delayed again, which doesn't bear thinking about.

• Strong Bad: Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective -- 1000 Points -- WiiWare
• Art Style: Rotohex -- 600 Points -- WiiWare
• Bang! -- 600 Points -- WiiWare
• Pit Crew Panic! -- 500 Points -- WiiWare

Footage of all four after the break! Cookies for those who make it through the whole Bang! video.

Europeans: it looks like you're going to have to jump ... over to the Wii Shop on Friday, in order to download Dangeresque 3: The Criminal Projective, the penultimate episode of Strong Bad's Etc. According to a press email, and this forum post by Telltale's Emily Morganti, Nintendo sent the company a notice that the adventure game would hit the PAL WiiWare service this week.

Obviously, this is good news because Dangeresque 3 is a game we loved, and we're happy that you'll get to share in the experience sooner or later. But more importantly, we're thrilled because this release announcement gives us an excuse to link to the browser-based Dangeresque Roomisode 1: Behind the Dangerdesque!, which is a breathtakingly pixel-perfect tribute to vintage adventure games.

Four new WiiWare titles came down the tubes in Europe and Australia today, and the selection couldn't be more diverse. Art Style: Cubello and Strong Bad Episode 3: Baddest of the Bands you'll already know about, but CueSports and Yummy Yummy Cooking Jam are more mysterious beasts. The former looks promising, the latter, er, not particularly great, according to the few reviews that are about.

Art Style: Cubello -- WiiWare -- 600 Wii Points
CueSports -- Snooker vs. Billiards -- WiiWare -- 800 Wii Points
Strong Bad Episode 3: Baddest of the Bands -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points
Yummy Yummy Cooking Jam -- WiiWare -- 1000 Wii Points

Footage of all these is past! The! Break!

This week's WiiWare titles serve as a great example of the best and worst that the service has to offer.

• Strong Bad Episode 4: Dangeresque 3 (Telltale Games, 1 player, 1,000 Wii Points): Don't be confused by the subtitle, you didn't miss Dangeresque 1 and 2. After three Strong Bad episodes, you know what to expect. This time, dying is not on the menu ... again. Dangeresque 3 was originally set to debut June 2004 in 3D but was delayed for unspecified reasons.
  
• Target Toss Pro: Bags (Incredible Technologies, 1-16 players, 700 Wii Points): It's no (Beer) Pong Toss, but paying $7 for a game simulating the tossing of a bean bag (known formerly as Cornhole in parts of the country) is a bit ridiculous, especially when the price of building your own Cornhole game is considerably less. Just because there's some real-life arm swinging involved doesn't mean you can tack on a Wii remote and charge for it.