Early this morning Nintendo released an official announcement, stating the black Wii we heard rumors of last week, is indeed real and that’s just where the fun starts.

Beginning May 9 in the United States and Canada, retailers everywhere will sell the black Wii, with a similarly black nun-chuck and remote, as well as a MotionPlus accessory and a copy of Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort for $200.

Behold. Savings.

What’s more, the bundle will extend to the existing white Wii  consoles, beginning May 9.

Man, I wish I had this black option when I bought my Wii years ago. Maybe I’ll play a marathon session of Super Mario Galaxy 2 and fry my system, just so I can buy another on in this black flavor.

File this one under the “all things predictable” folder as Nintendo recently revealed the next Wii Zelda title will require the MotionPlus accessory.

“After actually making it compatible,” explains producer Eiji Aonuma, ”it just feels so natural. Link’s sword and the controller that you’re holding become one.” Gamers will use MotionPlus to liberally swing Link’s sword, and it’s believed that the game’s many puzzles can only be solved with the proper fighting technique.

He also said that he hopes to have a playable version of the game ready for E3 2010 in June, where I hope to God to get my hands on it, though I can only imagine the line at Nintendo’s booth.

Is the world ready for a new Zelda title? I think so.

Source: Destructoid

Blast had its first go-round with Tiger Woods 10 on the Wii with the new MotionPlus accessory back at E3, and let us tell you that it’s a lot easier to play video game golf when your character is Tiger Woods — maxed out on specs and equipment — then when you’re amateur wannabe John Guilfoil with his lack of power and stock equipment.

There’s something else to consider. The MotionPlus accessory, bundled with this year’s game, makes the title a lot more realistic. Every arm and wrist movement can drastically alter the course of the ball. A swing that would have cut it in Tiger Woods 09 is in the trees in 10. Then you realize it…

Golf is a lot harder than we’re been led to believe all these years.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10, Grand Slam Tennis and Red Steel 2 are the first major third party tests of the MotionPlus for us, and it gets a thumbs up so far. Tiger Woods 10 is a far reach harder than Tiger Woods 09, which is good considering nearly everything else about the two games are exactly the same — endlessly upgrading your clubs, picking corny celebratory animations, regretting setting your majors to four agonizing rounds, etc. etc. etc.

One thing we don’t like in Woods 10 right off the bat (or the club…) is the sheer lack of Scottish play-by-play announcers. It’s one of the few things that makes televised golf enjoyable. And, I’m sorry ESPN, but Scott Van Pelt saying “useful shot that” just doesn’t do it for me.

There are, ethnicity aside, some very nice new features in 10 besides MotionPlus, including actual live weather conditions and a mini game called Disc Golf played with a Frisbee that is exclusive to the Wii version. But the best new feature is the online live tournaments. You can challenge friends, play in EA tournaments, and match up with the pros with online tournaments during actual PGA events.

There are plenty of real courses in the game and plenty of tournaments but this series is missing things like The Masters and the US Open and some of the other “real majors” in golf. Because of that, career mode is that much less invigorating. You’ll spend a few weeks as an amateur, playing boring tournaments against idiotic computer characters just to get to the PGA TOUR where there’s really no reward — no green jackets or “Superbowls” of golf. You just play, get money, buy stuff, and play more. It’s a real problem with sports games.

You will get addicted though, and we highly recommend getting a golfing buddy, either at your home or online, because it’s kinda depressing to make an eagle and just stand there with the cat licking himself.

Just keep your wrists straight and follow through with your swing. This isn’t Wii Sports. You don’t just flick your wrist and five it 300 yards. Once you get used to it, you’ll be fading and punch shooting your way through the Fedex Cup. One thing about a harder game is that you really feel like you’ve accomplished something when you finally get good at it.

There are 28 courses and Wii’s “All Play” mode just in case you really, really can’t get used to the new controls. If you’re in a bad mood, turn on All Play and select Pebble Beach. In our tests, I shot two double eagles, two aces, and five eagles. But the announcing still sucks. I made a double eagle on 18 from about 200 yards, and all Van Pelt had to say was that my putting had been fantastic today.

Blast Factor: It’s Nerf or nothing. Tiger Woods is the only sim golf game out there, much like EA’s Madden franchise. It’s not the old days of six brands of computer golf that you play with your mouse. You actually have to get off the couch this time and swing the club like you mean it. The good thing is that Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 is simply great. The verbose online options give you plenty to do, even for the most finicky video game golfer.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 is available on the Nintendo Wii bundled with MotionPlus for $59.99, or without for $49.99

LOS ANGELES — Red Steel was a game that was kind of easy to trash. It didn’t have great control, and it suffered a massive identity crisis by not knowing if it was a first person shooter or a sword fighting game.

But lots of hardcore gamers and some reviewers saw the title’s potential at the time, and Red Steel 2 looks like an excellent choice for Wii gamers when it comes out… “soon.”

Playing through an E3 demo of the game, which is designed specifically for and will come bundled with a Wii MotionPlus, it’s easy to see why people held out some hope.

The first thing I noticed about Red Steel is that you really have to give it a mighty swing. You have to really hack and wave your arm around to do what you want to do. The MotionPlus control is amazingly accurate. I’ve been very pleasantly surprised with how much more responsive the MotionPlus is than just the remote.

I got to tackle some obstacles, like slicing through a mighty thicket of bamboo or using my katana to whack open a metal door. Then I got to tackle some punk bad guys.

I guess “punk” is the most accurate way to describe them.

This is a weirdly stylized game. It seems to be set in the wild west, and your player has a pistol and a katana. So do the bad guys, and some of them are armored. You’ll have to slice through that too.

It was fun using the sword, and the pistol is a nice backdrop in this game instead of the main focus. The MotionPlus lets you effectively block attacks and then make quick counter moves.

The best part about this game is that you’re not just going through the Wii motions. This isn’t Wario where you can sit on your ass and fake it. You really have to get up and move to be effective in this game.

The comic book styling of the game and the lack of gore “" no blood or severed limbs “" also makes it suitable for most ages.

Even with just this brief glance into the game, I feel like Ubisoft has a winner. Red Steel 2 gives some much-needed tender lovin’ action to the Wii. Check out the E3 trailer below for a glimpse of what Red Steel 2 looks and plays like.

LOS ANGELES — Nintendo introduced a new Wii accessory aimed at accurate reflection of user motions in 3D space.

The Wii MotionPlus will attach to the back of WiiMotes. Combined with the accelerometer and the sensor bar, Nintendo says it will allow for “more comprehensive tracking of a player’s arm position and orientation, providing players with an unmatched level of precision and immersion.”

“Every slight movement players make with their wrist or arm is rendered identically in real time on the screen, providing a true 1:1 response in their game play,” Nintendo said in a statement on their website Monday.

Details will be announced at Nintendo’s media briefing Tuesday morning.