Update: Giveaway has come to a close. Keep an eye on your inbox!

It's that time again, folks, as we're set to gift one lucky reader with an Excitebots bundle (ARV $50)! This bundle comes with the game, and a Wii Wheel, so you won't be forced to play holding your Wiimote only like some kind of chump. Show your friends how lucky you are how awesome the site you frequent on a regular basis is by winning this Wii game starring robotic frogs, turtles, and ladybugs. But, before you enter, make sure you check out the rules below.

• Leave a comment telling us what animal would make the perfect robotic racer
  
• You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec)
  
• Limit 1 entry per person per calendar day
  
• This entry period ends at 11:59 am ET on Monday, May 25
  
• At that time, we'll randomly select one winner to receive Excitebots Trick Racing (with Wii Wheel) for Wii ($50)
• For a list of complete rules, click here

While it prepares to wheel out Club Nintendo in North America later this year, Nintendo has decided to torture us one last time with stuff we can't have.

Every year in Japan, Platinum and Gold members in the Japanese program get a free gift. This year, Platinum members have three to choose from, including the snazzy golden Wii Wheel you see above. This takes us back to GoldenEye's multiplayer, and us petulantly refusing to play unless we could steer Oddjob with the only gold-colored N64 controller in the house. Also up for grabs is a Super Mario Cap, which Nintendo reports is too big for girls and schoolkids (but not adult male bloggers), and a Club Nintendo Calendar 2009, which will be the only option for Gold members. That's better than our only option, which is to own nothing.

All very lovely then, and all very out of our reach ... but for how long? Go past the break for a look at the cap and calendar.

A Go Nintendo reader spotted this on the shelves of his local Target: a "Multi-Player Controller Set" containing a Wii Remote, a Nunchuk, and a Wii Wheel. This kind of thing obviously makes sense to Nintendo as Christmas approaches (the season where Wii excels, some would say), and we could really get behind the idea of a good value bundle of second/third/fourth peripherals (still need a fourth Wiimote and Nunchuk at Casa de Greenhough!).

It's just a shame that the price is such a sham: $74.99?! All three of these peripherals are available separately at Amazon for a total of $63.91 (which qualifies for free shipping), but here's the real laugh: you can buy an individual Wiimote, Nunchuk, and Wii Wheel for $74.97 at Target itself. D'oh! Knock at least fifteen bones off this and you've got our attention.


[Thanks, Sonic_13!]

Wii peripherals have proven a profitable business for Nintendo, and a new member, the WiiSpeak microphone, will join this rapidly growing family later this month. In our experience, these accessories mostly enhance the games they support, and that's great and all, but it has been a while since we actually perched on our Balance Boards, or waved our Wii Wheel about to Mario Kart Wii, or Zappered zombies. When was the last time you played a Wii title with something other than a naked Wiimote and Nunchuk, and what was the game?

A fresh tournament is about to spring on Mario Kart Wii fans. Starting September 1st and concluding on September 10th, this latest tourney is only for those that rock the Wii Wheel and will take place on the N64 Skyscraper Battle Stage. It's a straight up race, so you've got to bring your best time to the course, all the while dodging the explosive Bob-omb cars that are racing towards you. Sounds like a tense race!


[Via WiiFolder]

Japan Trust Technology has become the latest third-party company to offer an alternative to the perfectly-fine-as-it-is Wii Wheel. Unlike Nintendo's own effort, the JTT wheel comes with a steering column that attaches to surfaces through a combination of a suction cup and your disgusting saliva. We've seen third-party wheels add a steering column before, though this one also allows you to vertically swivel the wheel through 120°, like so.

We've not a clue if this will ever see the light of day in the west, but if it does then JTT might want to reconsider the price: right now, this is retailing for ¥2,980, a.k.a. $28, a.k.a. three first-party Wii Wheels. That's hella pricey -- especially for something you can get for free!

Nintendo Wii Fanboy's code monkey extraordinaire, Mike Sylvester, stuns us again. His latest Revolutionary column is a step-by-step process of turning the Wii balance board and Wii wheel into a racing simulator, with the aid of GlovePIE and a PC version of Need for Speed ProStreet. Feel free to try this at home.

The training wheel project got me thinking about what more it would take to create a Wii racing rig that's as comprehensive as a traditional wheel and pedal gaming setup. The Wii Wheel provides analog control for steering, but not throttle and braking. The Wheel shell also blocks off the expansion port, so you can't use a Nunchuk's analog stick. It seemed like there was just no way to build a full set of racing controls around the Wii Wheel, but then I got my Balance Board and the wheels started turning in my head. How about a Wii Racing Xperiment?

Not to be confused with rally-bred Subarus, WRX is a new project kicking off in next week's edition of Revolutionary. Tune in on June 18^th to get the full scoop, but for now get a taste with this teaser video.

Yes, we like lolcats. No, we won't stop. Yes, we will consider whatever you say, so long as you check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
Joystiq Poll: Worst of the XBLA chopping block
Let's talk about those Hummingbird ads ...
Meet the Team: Alexander Sliwinski
Metareview -- Lego Indiana Jones
PSN Thursday: Novastrike, Civ Rev demo, Commando 3, much more
Readers pick best webcomic: The Unhorse
Tomonobu Itagaki: A Blood Splattered History
X3F Week in Review -- May 30, 2008 - June 5, 2008

News
Ninjabee bringing 'city-building' Kingdom for Keflings to XBLA
GameTap Thursday: Cradle of Rome's Astro Fury
It's too hard to find stuff on XBLA, says Microsoft
God of War track hits PS3 Guitar Hero III today
Crysis Warhead dropping exclusively on PC this Fall
Ubisoft to develop games for iPhone, iPod Touch
Florida requests 10 years disbarment for Jack Thompson
EA discontinues work on Red Alert 3 for PS3
Gamestop's Metal Gear Solid 4 midnight launches revealed
Sony bundling Warhawk expansions as single DLC
Five new Guitar Hero III track packs in June, Motörhead up first
Nielsen: Wii usage is second to Xbox 360
SOE reactivates dead Everquest accounts with Living Legacy initiative
Activision, System 3 take the Ferrari Challenge
Survey reveals Rock Band 2 concept box art
The Sims 2 Apartment games coming to PC, DS in August
Grand Theft Auto IV DLC delayed until Fiscal Q1 2009
BioShock ships over 2.2 million
Reminder: COD4 map pack now available free for PC
GTA IV ships over 11 million copies
You can actually watch Duke Nukem Forever on Jace Hall Show
Take-Two quarterly revenues up 163% on GTA IV sales
Itagaki's departure causes Tecmo stock plummet
BioShock movie may be out in time for BioShock 3
The top-selling games in the US over the last 15 years
Take-Two: 'Portfolio balancing' drove GTA IV DLC delay, partnerships possible
Disney's games and internet divisions merging
Third Star Wars character joins Soul Calibur IV cast
Sci-Fi Channel creating an MMO/TV show hybrid

Rumors & Speculation

Culture & Community
MGS4 PS3 bundle on Amazon.com tomorrow

Are you still struggling with the Wii Wheel in Mario Kart, despite everyone online who's kicking your derrière while using it? Nintendo Wii Fanboy's Revolutionary columnist Mike Sylvester has a rather, erm, revolutionary idea: a do-it-yourself training wheel to help add subtlety to your turning. Check out the article for more information; a video demonstration is embedded after the break.

The Wii Wheel was supposed to make racing easy enough for anyone to jump right into a session of Mario Kart Wii with no prior experience with either traditional game controllers or the Wii Remote. When used properly, it works as expected. The trouble is that it's not always used properly. Watching your parents try to get through Wario's Gold Mine, you'll notice that they're sometimes holding the Wheel the wrong way, and it's making them drive off the track into chasms of eternity. This observation led me to examine how Mario Kart Wii's steering works and come up with a solution for keeping n00bs on track.

Here's something: despite our initial skepticism, we actually really like the Wii Wheel -- in fact, it's all we use now for Mario Kart Wii. The only downside? At $10 per wheel (or £7 in the UK), buying enough for four-player matches can get kind of pricey.

So the way we see it, you have two choices:

1. Go with one of our totally awesome (and totally free) homemade Wii Wheels (the option we'd recommend) or:
   
2. Pick up the latest issue of NGamer, which comes with the above "free" wheel packed in. It's not technically free, obviously, because you'll have to pony up the £4.99 for the magazine, which optimistically suggests that the free gift is worth £7, meaning somebody in NGamer's accounting department may well be clearing their desk later this month.
   

Incidentally, while NGamer is a UK publication, some of my U.S-based colleagues think they may have spotted copies in Barnes & Noble, so keep your eyes peeled and you too might save hundreds of cents.

Update: Corrected U.S. price.



[Via Go Nintendo]

Looking for some new wheels? How about two of 'em -- that's right, two Wii Wheels, and we'll even throw in a copy of Mario Kart Wii ($49.99 value) with each (and, if you're lucky, an "I Heart Kart" air freshener), as well as some miscellaneous swag from the NYC launch party (1 t-shirt, 1 sticker and one "driver's license," a $15 value). Just follow these five steps and a winner can be you!

• To enter this giveaway, leave a comment on any of the designated gallery pictures (one, two, three) with your favorite track from the Mario Kart series.
  
• You must be 18 years or older and a resident of the US or Canada (excluding Quebec -- désolée!).
• Limit 1 entry per gallery picture, per person
  
• This entry period ends at 8:00pm ET on Friday, May 2nd. We'll randomly select the winners at that time (please check your email!).
• For a list of complete rules, click here.

Many of us have been hating on the Wii Wheel since it was first announced, and yet, since yesterday, we've spoken to tons of Wii owners who actually tried it ... and liked it. It was a mixed bag around here; some players (even longtime gamers!) loved it, and some found it less useful than some of the other control options. All we want to know is: did you at least try it, if you picked up Mario Kart, or did you skip it without even bothering?

If it's a hit in your house, are you going to buy extra wheels (or possibly look for other solutions)?