Wii Fit Sells 1 Million

One month, one million. That is a pretty impressive feat for any game, let alone one that dives headfirst into such untested grounds as videogame fitness as Wii Fit does. Wii Fit has become a very major hit in Japan, reports Japan’s business news source Nikkei, selling over one million WiiFit packages (the game and balance board together) as of Jan. 6. Unlike many of my more cynical gaming friends, I can’t wait to get my hands on this and see if it can actaully whip me back into some sort of decent shape. Reports from Japan make it seem pretty fun and show it as working well but we won’t know till later this year when the Wii Fit comes to US shores. Even if excersing does turn out to be a lame duck we can always keep our fingers crossed that companies will actaully use the board for some really innovative games like, say, a Back to the Future hover board game. Am I the only one who would be excited for that? Guys? Come on!

[Via GameIndustry.biz]

Project Bang

Engine Software, developer based in the Netherlands, today announced that it has started its first development project for the Nintendo WiiWare service. The debut title, for now dubbed “Project Bang!”, will be a casual game type with very addictive gameplay using the unique Wii Remote controller functionality, and will support a two-player battle mode. (Sound like it could perhaps be a Tetris or Bejeweled style of game.)

Nintendo’s WiiWare service is a new downloadable game content service that is scheduled to be launched in March 2008. Players will be able to purchase and download WiiWare games directly from the Wii Shop Channel in exchange for Wii Points. “WiiWare brings new levels of creativity and value to the ever-growing population of Wii owners.”, as stated by Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime. You can currently download the Wii Opera Browser via Wiiware, along with the “Check Mii Out” Channel, an update to the photo channel, MP3 streaming from MP3tunes, and a few other odds and ends.

Ruud van de Moosdyk, VP of Development at Engine Software: “We are very excited about our first game for the WiiWare service. When we acquired our official Wii license last year we already had several concepts written up that would be ideal for WiiWare, and Project Bang! is the first to actually go into production. We wanted to get rolling on this exciting new platform early on, and I am quite happy we are now on schedule to do just that. “

In the near future Engine Software will be releasing more information (including the final name), and screenshots of Project Bang!, as well as more news regarding future plans for the platform. Project Bang! is scheduled to be completed early on in the service’s operational status, but no exact date can be given at this time.

I am all for being able to download original games via WiiWare. I love casual games (time-wasters) such as bejewled. What could possibly be the most exciting part of this is that Nintendo has opened their doors to Indie game developers. And if you play any online games, you realize that several Indie games are spectacular (and free.)

Nintendo Wins Emmy for Wii and DS

We can now all start adding ‘award winning’ to the word Wii as Nintendo brought home an Emmy Award yesterday at the Technological & Engineering Emmy Awards in Las Vegas for excellence in engineering creativity. Both the Wii’s motion controls and the DS’s touch screen were recognized in the award.”The pioneering interfaces for Wii and Nintendo DS reflect our long tradition of seeking new ways to enhance the gaming experience for users at every level,” said Don James, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of operations. “We’re grateful for this award and thank the academy for honoring us a second time.”

The first time that Mr. James is alluding to is the Emmy Award that Nintendo received last year for the creation of a little thing called the D-pad. If the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is going to giving Emmy’s to Nintendo for all of it’s control innovations it looks like the Big N will have to buy a bigger display case considering they also debuted the rumble feature, the thumb joystick and a plethora of other influential control devices. Not to mention the fact that 2008 will bring Wii Fit onto U.S. shores, delivering yet another control innovation for Nintendo.

Cynergy Labs Using WiiMotes for Minority Report-esque Interface

With the advent of the new year, I can’t help but think about all of the technical gizmos that I’ve dreamed about that still aren’t commercially available. Aside from more flying contraptions (such as hoverbikes and flying cars), the 21st century is in dire need of some sort of crazy, hand directed computer system. I know it’s only been a few years since Minority Report, but I have to admit I’ve been a little disappointed with the lack of needless technical advancements to make computers much larger and ridiculous. Microsoft’s Surface has come close, but it’s just not quite what I’m looking for.

Enter the Wii. Late last year, Johnny Chung Lee showed off his hard work that allowed for the Wii to track fingers with just a bit of reflective tape, the Wiimote and a sprinkling of electrical know-how and computer programming. Taking this tech demo to heart, Cynergy Labs is taking things to the next level through their newest commercial interface called “Project Maestro” which will allow for you to control various applications with your hands.

A pretty neat way to really put your hands into a game. What Cynergy Labs plans to do with their new Wiimote invention isn’t immediately clear, but it sure is neat to look at. Now if they can just integrate the Power Glove into their product they’re sure to have a winner on their hands!