Edmund McMillen has posted the first side-by-side comparison of Super Meat Boy's new WiiWare incarnation (left) and its original Flash version. He explains that the background in the WiiWare slide is a mock-up and that the final product will be "crap your pants awesome," with more depth and lighting.

The plan is to have a playable demo ready by June 1 for E3. That's a good sign that the game will be ready for a release "by the end of the year." Although we have all the faith in the world in Meat Boy's success on Wii, we've learned that Q4 is not kind to downloadable titles. Hopefully, the adorable Meat Boy will release in late summer.

Bite-sized games developer Ninja Bee and Real Networks have announced Boingz! The WiiWare title was just presented at Nintendo's press conference, so all we've got at the moment is initial impressions, which give us a smaller LittleBigPlanet meets LocoRoco feel.

The 2D-3D puzzle platformer has players controlling elastic creatures -- we believe are called The Boingz, which have similar powers to Gloop and Gleep from The Herculoids -- that can be grabbed, stretched and flicked across the 30 levels in the game. We've contacted Ninja Bee's PR team for more details and images. Update: Boingz has been submitted to Nintendo for approval and will be out this month. Either Oct. 20 or 27.

The creators of the original de Blob (i.e. the flash game, not the THQ ports) have revealed they are working on an original real-time strategy game for Nintendo's WiiWare service. Romino Games' Swords & Soldiers is a side-scrolling RTS with three opposing factions and split-screen multiplayer. The term "side-scrolling RTS," together with the screenshots, remind us a bit of Dragon Force (although equally cool, we mean the Sega Saturn title, not the band).

No price has been revealed for the game, currently placed in a Q4 2008 launch window. Consider our interests officially piqued.

[Via NWF]

Yeah, yeah, we know we posted just the other day that the Live Arcade would be actually seeing a release of Mega Man 9. Arstechnica seemed to have gotten their hands on a Capcom E3 roster and it had MM9 listed as being for all three of the console digital download services, which looked to be a confirmation of earlier rumblings out of the OFLC that also said that the game would be multiplatform.

Apparently, that story made the rounds so much that Capcom got wind of it and contacted arstechnica to tell 'em that, well, there was a bit of a mistake on the release roster and that Mega Man 9 is currently slated "for WiiWare only." While the caveat of "currently" means that things could change in the future (this is Capcom, after all; the guys who ported DMC4 and Lost Planet to PC, and who swore that Resident Evil 4 was exclusive to Gamecube), we doubt whether any sort of XBLA release would end up happening for quite some time.

Today's launch of WiiWare reminds us that next month we'll be pointing, clicking, and harassing the residents of Strongbadia in Telltale's Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, an upcoming episodic adventure title developed for the Wii's new digital delivery service as well as the PC. However, while the title's launch remains dedicated to these two platforms, we couldn't help but bug TellTale marketing guru Emily Morganti in a recent interview about the possibility of Strong Bad checking his email over Xbox Live or PSN as well.

"Maybe down the line," she told us, "but for now we're focusing on WiiWare and the PC." Morganti added that the team feels WiiWare is a "natural fit" for the Homestar Runner license, which she notes has "deep roots in old-school Nintendo nostalgia." We're inclined to agree, given that the first Homestar cartoon was put together using Mario Paint. However, TellTale is keeping other console digital delivery services on its radar, as Morganti donned her diplomatic marketing hat and told us that "we'd like to be on all of these at some point. They're all great platforms for episodic content. WiiWare just happens to be the one we're venturing onto first."

Look for our complete interview later this week for more from Telltale on Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People, including how the project came to be and how much kicking The Cheat will drain our wallets.

Telltale Games has revealed that the "new WiiWare episode series" hinted at during GDC08 will be Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive people, based on the character from Homestar Runner. The series will be a five-episode season with installments promised monthly on Nintendo's download service as well as the PC. The first episode is due out in June; further release date and pricing details are promised later, according to the press release.

If you need a refresher on Strong Bad, we'd appriciate (yes, you read that right) it if you checked out the "sbemail" archives. More details, assets and an official trailer are expected later today.

Update: Check out this April 1 video from Homestar Runner that might've hinted at this announcement.

Update: Website and trailers launch.

In companies' rush to capitalize on the industry's fascination with waggle, the Wii has become no stranger to games we'd sooner use to prop up the short leg of our coffee table than play. Much as it seems counterintuitive, novelty has not been par the course for the console so much as it has been quick cash-ins, though we continue to look to the Wii's digital download service WiiWare as the platform's saving grace.

It seems, however, that even WiiWare will not be immune to its share of shovelware, with mobile game developer-publisher Gameloft planning to use the service as a receptacle for cell phone games. We wouldn't mind so much if the company had originality on the brain, but its first effort, a Breakout clone going by the name of Block Breaker Deluxe, doesn't give us much hope. The download will be released in Japan in April before launching in other regions at a later date, giving us one to watch out for, if only to know what to avoid once WiiWare launches in North America on May 12.

[Via Wii Fanboy]

While most of us were sleeping -- like a bunch of chumps -- Nintendo launched its WiiWare service in Japan early this morning. As expected, the WiiWare servers are taking a beating from thousands of gamers hoping to try out the new downloadable releases, but Siliconera's Spencer Yip and Wired's Chris Kohler were still able to grab a few games and write up their impressions, all of which you can peruse below.

A few surprises revealed themselves with the service's launch:

1. My Life as a King is rife with microtransactions, offering additional costumes, dungeons, and races (Yukes, Selkies, and Lilties) for 100-300 Wii Points.
2. Star Soldier R features three light modes -- a two-minute mode in which you play through a quick stage for a high score, a similar 5-minute mode with two levels and boss encounters, and a "Fast Shot" mode for testing your button-tapping skills.
3. Saku Saku Animal Panic, the only WiiWare launch title from a US developer and a game we haven't paid any attention to at all, is apparently "pretty fun!" Judging by Chris Kohler's impressions, it sounds a lot like Jezzball, minus the balls ... And the Jezz.

Now all we need are detailed Dr. Mario, Okiraku Ping Pong,and My Life as a King impressions!

Read - The WiiWare Shopping experience
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Lonpos
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Angel's Solitaire
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Saku Saku Animal Panic
Read - WiiWare Impressions: Star Soldier R
Read - Extra content in My Life as a King explained
Read - Lonpos has pay-to-play content too

Update: Wishful thinking be damned -- seems this thing it an early April Fools joke

Trivia time, kiddies. All right, what was the last Nintendo-published game to appear on the NES? Need a hint? It also might be one of the the first Wii Ware game to feature Mario characters. Still need another hint? Um ... look in the headline.

Our colleagues at Wii Fanboy got these purported photos of a Wii Ware Wario's Woods from an anonymous Japanese tipster who didn't give many details on their provenance. It's entirely possible they're an elaborate hoax, but if so they show an incredible attention to detail and a talent for capturing the aestethic shown in other Nintendo-published Wii Ware titles. We won't know for sure until an official announcement comes out of The Big N, but for the time being please indulge our wishful thinking in hoping that these screenshots do indeed represent an actual, in-development game. In the meantime ... to the Virtual Console we go!

We've been annoyed with the Wii's lack of downloadable Virtual Console demos for quite a while now, so we probably shouldn't be too surprised that Nintendo has declared games in their upcoming Wii Ware service will not be required to have downloadable demos. Surprised isn't really the world ... slightly miffed is more like it.

We're only slightly miffed because Nintendo hasn't quite banned demos from the service. In an interview with Newsweek's N'gai Croal, Nintendo of America director of project development Tom Prata said that "having demos [is] ... not a requirement from Nintendo." If we're reading that right, that means demos would be allowed on the service, but that they won't necessarily be available for every game.

The decision to forgo a demo mandate was made, according to Prata, because demos are a "very costly type of endeavor" for a developer. That might be true in the short term, but overall we wonder if developer can afford not to have demos on a service like this. After all, Xbox Live Arcade has managed just fine by requiring developers to create those "expensive" demos -- in fact, by, early stats showed about 20 percent of XBLA demo players bought the full game, leading directly to increased revenue for all involved. Still, we guess giving developers more choice in these matters is usually a good thing. We just hope many developers will choose to help their customers and themselves by letting us try before we buy.

Cartoonist Luc Bernard tells WiiDS.co.uk that his platformer Eternity's Child is now a WiiWare title coming Q2 2008 for $5. The quirky (we mean that positively) title has an equally quirky history, starting out as an Xbox Live Arcade title before switching to the Wii because of the 150 MB size restriction. Curiously, an IGN podcast reportedly pinned a 40 MB size limit for the service, a figure which Nintendo has disputed

We can surmise that Eternity's Child's art assets will be significantly lower now that the Wii's output peaks at 480p resolution -- but would that account for a 73% or more decrease in file size if said limit does exist? Still, $5 is a great deal for what looks like a very stylish title. We'll keep you updated on The Mystery of the Missing Megabytes.

Ex-Naughty Dog developers John Hughes and Andrew Gilmour have announced the first title from their new studio, Steel Penny Games. Bruiser and Scratch in the Case of the Puzzling Paw is said to "blend a challenging puzzle game with dramatic fantasy environments and appealing characters for an exceptionally satisfying experience." That's a similar description we'd give to critical darlings Zack & Wiki and Sam & Max. Here's hoping Bruiser enjoys the latter's commercial success (and not, unfortunately, the former's dearth in sales).

In addition to WiiWare, Steel Penny Games is also reportedly certified for Xbox Live Arcade titles. Bruiser and Scratch is reportedly scheduled for a mid-2008 release. Nintendo's WiiWare service is rumored to have a March launch.

[Via VideoGamer]

In addition to demos, "complete" DS games will be made available for download onto Wii, Reggie has told The New York Times. It's the first time Nintendo has confirmed plans to offer full, Wii-channeled DS games, but the revelation lacks details.

In late November, "Everybody's Nintendo" channel launched for Wii in Japan, highlighted by wirelessly transferable DS demos. While this technology has yet to be released in other regions, it's apparently on the agenda. DS will be more "tightly integrated" with Wii in the future, reports The NY Times – and that could include portable extensions of Virtual Console, WiiWare and Wii Shop Channel too. But how will Nintendo reconcile the obvious limitations? DS can only temporarily store and play downloaded content, which is fine for demos (or single cart multiplayer), but what about so-called "complete" games? Perhaps Nintendo is also developing a memory expansion cart in conjunction with the proposed service. That's one way to re-sell old Game Boy games...

We spent yesterday going through the big releases that've been announced for next year so far -- Smash Bros. Brawl and/or Wii Fit likely topping your personal "must get" list -- but what about the second-tier games that don't usually receive much press or attention?

Though we haven't forgotten about the low-key releases, we've collected a selection of games and media to ensure that these titles stay on your mind too! Read on for our top ten list of awesome 2008 games that you totally forgot about!

As anniversary week winds down, we can't help but wonder: what's next? One good year for a video game console means nothing if it's followed by some not-so-great years. Fortunately, there are many fun things in store for the Wii, so we've decided to create this little guide to show you what exactly there is to look forward to.