Nintendo shifted its eye to third party game at its Media Summit in San Francisco today and revealed that purchasers of the new Wii Prince of Persia title “Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands,” will score the SNES Prince of Persia as well.

You’ll find the 1992 SNES game on the disc of the Wii “Forgotten Sands”, which is completely different that the PS3/Xbox 360 versions.

Kickin' it old school.

“Forgotten Sands,” the Wii game, will support 2 player co-op, but really, to revel in the nostalgia of old Prince of Persia is a gift in itself.

If you’re looking to buy the Wii version, this has got to be great news.

“The Forgotten Sands” comes to Wii May 18.

Source: Destructoid

For a few years, LucasArts has been receiving numerous requests for the SNES and Mega Drive game Zombies Ate My Neighbors to be added to the Virtual Console. The game focuses on a pair of teenagers attempting to rescue their neighbors from zombies, mummies, aliens, vampires, and numerous other movie monsters. The game has over 55 levels, a great soundtrack and is HIGHLY addictive. The weapons you can use range from squirt guns to flamethrowers (not to mention some crazy items like Pandora’s Box)! So be on the look out for the release on the Virtual Console. Nintendo updates the Virtual Console every Monday, so we’ll be sure to let you know the day it’s released in our Nintendo Download segment. Since LucasArts recently released their Super Star Wars series on the Virtual Console, Zombies Ate My Neighbors will most likely be the SNES version.

Comment below with your thoughts!

Nintendo continues to add to its already robust collection of both new and classic downloadable titles this week with the release of SNES title: Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen on the virtual console, as well as Family and Friends Party, an interactive board game for up to 8 players available via WiiWare.

Last week saw the debut of three Commodore 64 titles as well as the long-awaited co-op FPS Onslaught, and while this week lacks the excitement of the former, Nintendo has done an incredible job releasing titles from all sectors so that every gamer will have something to spend their precious Wii Points on.

Ogre Battle, which saw its stateside release in 1995, is a strategy game where you play as the leader of a band of rebels commanding a full-blown army with total control of hundreds of characters, magic items, weapons and mystical Tarot cards.‚  Oh and if you didn’t know, the fate of the entire population rests on your shoulders, no pressure or anything.

Family and Friends Party is a horse of an entirely different color.‚  Developed by Gammick Entertainment, this brand new party game allows for up to 8 players to compete either cooperatively or in a versus fashion on the interactive virtual game board.‚  Details on the core game-play of the title were brief, only that each turn will offer a different challenge that need be tackled by members of the same team for “single” challenges, or head to head with the opposing faction for “versus” challenges.‚  I might just stick with my Mario Party, but who knows; even a crystal is born in harshest of circumstances.

Ogre Battle: The March of the Black Queen, the one player E rated strategy game will cost you 800 Wii Points on the Virtual Console.

Family and Friends Party, perfect if you just birthed a set of octuplets, also rated E, will run you 1,000 Wii Points and is also available today on WiiWare.

Maybe, just maybe we’ll see Super Smash Bros next week to coincide with Brawl’s birthday, doesn’t hurt to hope.

About Nintendo:

WII-KLY UPDATE: ONE WIIWARE GAME AND ONE VIRTUAL CONSOLE GAME ADDED TO WII SHOP CHANNEL

March 2, 2009

In like a lamb and out like a lion, or vice-versa? Whether March finds you digging out from a late-winter blizzard or reeling in the spring thaw, the fun is both mild and wild at the Wii^TM Shop Channel. Even the littlest lambs in your household can take part in a cool new family-friendly WiiWare^TM game, while strategy-loving gamers will be roaring like lions as they battle evil foes in a classic Virtual Console^TM title.

Nintendo adds new and classic games to the Wii Shop Channel at 9 a.m. Pacific time every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points^TM to download the games. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets. This week’s new games are:

WiiWare^TM

Family & Friends Party (Gammick Entertainment, 1-8 players, Rated E for Everyone, 1,000 Wii Points): Have fun with all your friends and family as you take on some very exciting challenges. This is an interactive board game for as many as eight players of all ages. The goal is to be the first to complete a series of challenges. During each turn, a challenge will be played by one or two players per team depending on the type of challenge you’ve been given. (Other players on your team can still help and support you). There are six different “Single” challenges that must be played cooperatively by members of the same team. Family & Friends Party can also suggest “Versus” challenges, which must be played competitively by all teams at the same time.

Virtual Console^TM

Ogre Battle^TM: The March of the Black Queen^TM (Super NES^TM, 1 player, Rated E for Everyone, 800 Wii Points): It’s up to you to defeat the Empire. It’s been nearly a quarter of a century since the Zetegenian Empire first conquered the Kingdoms of Zenobia with a wrath of fear and bloodshed. You are the leader of a band of rebels who’ve fought to preserve the last shred of honor in this desperate time of treachery. Manage the ranks of a full-blown rebel army, complete with hundreds of characters, magic items, weapons and mystical Tarot cards. You must succeed in ousting the evil usurpers-your fate, and that of the entire population, depends on it.

For more information about Wii, please visit wii.com.

Without a doubt, Square Enix knows how to make videogames. Even when looking at some of their worst, the mind-bending storylines and intricate characters are better than what is provided in most video games out there. Fortunately, Final Fantasy IV remake for the Nintendo DS is one of their best.

You follow the storyline of Cecil, commander of the Red Wings, a military sect of the kingdom of Baron. The story picks up after Cecil and his Red Wings have ransacked the town of Mysidia in order to bring their powerful crystal to the king of Baron. Cecil regrets having destroyed the town and is confused at the orders of his king. When he returns to Baron, the king is told of his indecision, and Cecil is stripped of his rank as leader of the Red Wings.

Cecil is then ordered to go to the town of Mist and get their crystal as well. Along with the help of his friendly rival Kain, they go to Mist and end up destroying it as well. They discover that their king has turned completely mad and is, for some unknown reason, trying to collect as many crystals as he can. A young summoner named Rydia is the only survivor of the attack on Mist, and she decides to join the party as well. Kain turns on Cecil and steals Mist’s crystal from him for the king, and Cecil discovers that whatever spell the king of Baron is under, his friend Kain is under it as well.

The story continues on in a tumult of twists and turns until, 30 plus hours later, the game is completed. Like any Final Fantasy game, IV is complete with a party member named Cid, plenty of airships, Chocobos, and summons.

IV is hands down one of the best Final Fantasy games of the bunch. The game plays like a very straightforward RPG, but the rich storyline feels more like you’re reading a Terry Goodkind book, which is definitely a positive aspect. Since IV came out before the renowned Final Fantasy VII, it feels like Square Enix had been more focused on creating the most involving game they could versus trying to be innovative and new and recreate the VII success.

The game looks amazing, showing off just how beautiful the DS graphics can get. Just wait until you’re 20 hours into the game and suddenly you stumble upon the Sylph Cave. Its jungle-like interior is mind-blowing with its constant animation and vibrant color scheme. It is unparalleled to anything this reviewer has ever seen.

Square Enix has recreated the cut sequences in the game so that they are similar in style to the Playstation 2 and other remade GameBoy Advance and DS titles. Take a look at the comparison from the original SNES version of IV to the new DS version below:

The game play is simple and easy; it is just your typical RPG. There are some added features to the gaming experience, however. There is a rabbit that follows you throughout the game who allows you to change the name of your characters (Namingway) or, whenever you complete the map of an area, you get some sort of gift (Mappingway).

The game can be played with or without the stylus; you can either guide your characters around the screen with the DS stylus, or just use the D-pad and A, B, X, and Y buttons to move your characters around the screen.

A new summon has been added to IV by the name of Whyt. Whyt is an interesting new addition because, through a series of mini-games, his attributes can be increased from zero to 99. Scattered throughout the game are nests and, when a gyashi green is used, a giant Chocobo will appear. The Chocobo will allow you to access all the neat features bumping into the rabbit has given you as well as being able to edit Whyt’s face and play the mini-games. The mini-games are the only part of the game that requires the stylus to be used, and they are ruthlessly addicting.

There is nothing bad about the Nintendo DS version of Final Fantasy IV. If anything, it’s perfect. Completely, beautifully perfect. Now, after having rereleased almost every original Final Fantasy game for a handheld Nintendo system, we anxiously await seeing if Square Enix can come out with just as perfect a portable adaption of Final Fantasy VII. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

One of the greatest features on the Nintendo Wii is the Virtual Console, giving players a chance to relive some of the greatest games ever made, including the original Mario Brothers and Zelda games.

But try as you might, many people just don’t feel the Wiimote — or even the Gamecube controller — feels right. That’s because we played these games for countless hours with the familiar two buttons of the rectangular NES controller and the breakthrough six buttons of the SNES. Or, if we really got fancy, we might have had a NES Advantage arcade-style control platform.

The Wii RetroPorts from RetroZone are simple small wire adapters. You can buy an NES or SNES version. Just plug it into the Wii with your original controller and you’re allset. The adapters don’t come with a controller, but you can use any controller with either a NES or SNES plug. The adapters just plug in as GameCube controllers, and you can use them for any Virtual Console games that are configured for the corresponding amount of buttons. (Genesis?)

I tried a few NES and SNES games in the Virtual Console. They played just the same as the original system. I felt like I was playing my original console games without having to blow on the cartridges.

The Original NES controller feels sooo much better in my hands than the Wii-Mote for Super Mario Brothers.

At $19, this is a perfect product.

Quick hits:

Developer/Distributor: RetroZone
Platform: Wii, Gamecube (Uses NES or SNES-compatible controllers, depending on which one you buy)
Genre: Gaming accessory

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars

Next-generation video game consoles are teetering on the edge of photorealism, and pushing the limits of modern technology to draw more customers within a competitive industry.

But are the jaw-dropping graphics and high definition hardware what gamers really want?

The cell processor-toting Playstation 3 was received with much anticipation, but was also criticized for its issues with backward compatibility. Only three percent of games for Playstation and PS2 had issues with playback on the PS3. The newest Playstation also caught heat from consumers for not supporting legacy peripherals from the older platforms.

The Xbox 360, which also boasts an impressive hardware portfolio, is only Microsoft’s second console release. However, the company struggles to obtain full backwards compatibility with both generations. Emulation software, which can actually enhance the graphics on older games, gives the Xbox some backwards compatiblity. Still, the software cannot emulate all games properly, though Microsoft is regularly releasing updates to increase the library of first generation Xbox games that can be played on the 360.

Next up: the Nintendo Wii. While the Wii is not a technological powerhouse, its popularity has grown for other reasons. Most notably, its backward compatibility has thrown late underdog Nintendo back into the spotlight. The console directly accepts previous generation Gamecube controllers, and it also offers an online store where you can purchase ready-to-play games for the Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis and Nintendo 64, all for reasonable prices.

In an age that offers real-time physics processing, 1080p video and internet connectivity, why are gamers still stuck in an 8-bit, side-scrolling state of mind? Is it nostalgia, or do games today just suck? Whatever it is, gamers are doing everything they can to get their fix of retro gaming. From emulation to third party adapters that allow gamers to use original NES controllers on their PCs, the Web is buzzing with retro gaming marketplaces and resources.

Great Games

Back in the day, when retro gaming was state-of-the-art gaming, developers did not have the technology or resources to wow their customers with three dimensional rendering or digital surround sound. The focus was left to the game itself.

Now, clearly not all NES titles were gold. In fact, some were plain terrible, but the platform produced more timeless classics than any other console. Games like Super Mario Brothers and The Legend of Zelda paved the way for many games since, and they basically wrote the book on video game story lines. These are the games that showed people how video games should be developed and what game play should feel like.

Today, the focus is on technical specifications and maximizing the console’s performance. But is this really all that gamers want? Are developers trying too hard to use all the technology available, without looking at the quality of their game and its story? Games can look good and be great, but many of the shiny new 1080p games are lost in mediocrity.

Memories

There is nothing better than pressing start and taking in the sweet midi-driven melodies of your favorite 8-bit games of yesterday. Even if you aren’t playing the cartridge, the side scrollers you probably unwrapped for the first time on your 8th birthday are just fun to sit back and watch.

Who still has the instruction booklets that came with their first game? No one, and you probably tossed it out the first day you got it, because you didn’t need it. The games were so simple. No ridiculous cinematic sequences, no internet connection errors, and no loading screens-just gaming. Everything was self explanatory because it had to be, and the great games made this work. At any time you could pick up the pad and have a blast, regardless of what level you were on or how good you were at playing the game.

Ten years from now, will the kids of today regard the PS3 and Wii as the holy grail of gaming? Perhaps, but that’s only because they will never be able to fully appreciate the true trail blazing retro systems that some of us were lucky enough to grow up playing.