Here we are, middle of the week.  And, if you are like most loyal and devoted Nintendo fans, you are gearing up to play some MadWorld today/tonight.  I myself will be attempting to secure my copy all the while counting down the hours on the clock until I can rip that bad boy open and pop it in.  All of this of course got me thinking:  What are some of the most “can’t wait to try out/play” moments you’ve had since owning your Wii?  Once again, in no particular order, here are 5 “can’t wait” moments in Wii history.

Fly away, Mario. Fly away...

1)     Super Mario Galaxy:  November 12, 2007 couldn’t come soon enough.  Before the game even released, screen shots flooded the interwebs and had us thinking that a game on the Will could actually look better than a game on the “true” next generation systems.  The weeks after release, game critics agreed and for the most part universally praised the game as being one of (if not the) best games to ever grace a Nintendo system.  Gamestop gave out a promotional Mario token with the game, but I remember not caring too much about that.  Booting it up on my Wii and getting to jump from planet to planet with the full force of gravity slinging you around…in one word: magical.

You cut me deep, Red. You cut me deep.

2)     Red Steel: About a year earlier, it didn’t matter who you were, you were salivating over this game as the be-all-end-all of first person shooters.  Launching with the Nintendo Wii, Ubisoft had been teasing us with the promise of this game months earlier.  The screens we saw, along with the promises made by Ubisoft of true one to one sword play was enough to get people dizzy with dreams of real time action in their living rooms.  Remember the guy in the promo video getting all into the game? Yeah, that was me weeks before I even had a Wii.  Of course, we all know how this story ends.  When we all picked up our system and booted up Red Steel—well, let’s just say we were just a little underwhelmed. 

What? No Celda II?

3)     Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess:  Four years had passed since we set sail in Wind Waker.  If there was one thing I knew for sure, it was that I would pick up Twilight Princess.  I understand that this really wasn’t a “proper” “made from the ground up Wii game”, but I don’t think anyone getting a Wii that November really cared.  In fact, watching those videos leading up to its release, I know that I was more than a little excited to get the chance to swing my wiimote as a sword as I ran through Hyrule field.  Nintendo promised an epic title, and it delivered.  Gone were the cartoony and bright colored worlds from Wind Waker. We were finally given the Zelda we had been hoping for since Spaceworld 2000.  And well, for me at least, after I got over the initial disappointment of Red Steel—this game lived up to my hopes and made me thankful for owning a Wii.

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Sweating to the old-wiis?

4)     Wii Fit:  Ok, so maybe some of you never really got that whole, “gotta get this” feeling for this title.  But, you can’t deny the fact that for a lot of people out there, Wii Fit was the reason to own a Wii.  A game with a balance board? Even people who weren’t interested in getting fit were a bit curious how this game (and more particularly the board hardware) would work.  In the end, love it or hate it, the board works great and the game continues to sell like hot cakes.

The first rule of Brawl is, you do not talk about online.

5)     Super Smash Brother Brawl: While Japan may have got the jump on the release of this game (January 2008 v. March 2008), I know I made a special stop on a trip home from Chicago just to get my hands on a copy.  Anyone who has ever played any iteration of this game knows what it means to be a fan of smash brothers.  And boy, was this game played up with the use of the DoJo to release tidbits here and there weeks before the release.  We were kept on our toes on a weekly basis on what to expect from this game and it made the wait that much more anticipated.  However, one of the more exciting implementations to this game, the online component, while HIGHLY sought after, continues to fail in no small part to Nintendo’s reluctance  to  better prepare for its use.  Be that as it may, this game was on everyone’s lips prior to its release and with a great group of friends, still finds itself being played on a frequent occasion.

There are no doubt other games to mention that made you glad you are a Nintendo loyalist—Mario Kart and Metroid come to mind—but I think when it comes “most wanted/anticipated game” it really comes down to the individual gamer.  I mean, who knows, maybe you actually got really excited when you found out they released Grey’s Anatomy for the Wii.

First day purchase, am  I right?

Mature Titles Ahead?

Just when we were all getting accustomed to everyone’s taunts about the Wii being a “casual gamer’s system” or worse yet, a “kid’s toy”—developers (and by developers, I mean SEGA) have gone and put out some solid “mature” content. I’m looking at you House of the Dead: Overkill and you too, MadWorld. But, is this right road for Nintendo?
Now, let’s be clear. Dropping an F-bomb here and there does not a mature title make. And no matter how many times (many, many times) HoTD: Overkill assaulted us with said bomb, that isn’t why we loved the game. Not that I am complaining, but the game was mature because it was aimed to please those of us who don’t spend our time playing pick-up sticks with little Bobby from around the block. Hell, even those who are parents of little Bobby got a break from the kid because we actually got a chance to let our inner zombie killer loose while the kids slept. It was, in two words: simple relief.

I’ll be honest with you. I own a 360 not because of the UBER AW3ZoME GRAfiXX!!11 (Isn’t that the cool way to speak?).

No.

It’s a nice plus that my screen displays the sweetness of HD splatter. But the real reason I bought the 360 was so that I could come home at night, after a particularly hard day at the office, and just lay waste to a horde of locusts in GoW2. And, for those of you out there who have done the same know that taking a Lancer to an unsuspecting Grub is a great way to just let it all out. And that’s the beauty of these mature titles.

You see, innovation is all good and well. And I applaud Nintendo for attempting to change things up with the Wii. And I love the emphasis on unique puzzle games (World of Goo, Boom Blox) and simulated “living” (Animal Crossing My Aquarium). And despite its somewhat pail-o-fail debut, I even appreciate Nintendo’s attempt at Wii Music.Because, well, let’s be honest, that’s what Nintendo does. It attempts to set itself apart from your every day FPS machines.It tries to go another way. It attempts to reach those areas and those people that otherwise have been left out of the fun that is video gaming. And yes, that is great achievement.

But, here’s the thing. I know we have all heard it. And my goodness did we EVER hear it after E3. But, Nintendo hasn’t forgotten the “core gamer.” It’s just that the core gamer used to mean the gamer who appreciated hours on end of Mario 3. That’s always been Nintendo’s core gamer. The core gamer to Nintendo is the gamer who loves Zelda (and yes, even Celda). The core gamer (to Nintendo) is not Marcus Fenix. And it never has been. So what is it that we are asking Nintendo not to forget? If anything, we are asking Nintendo to better recognize. Better recognize that even Moms and Dads need a break from building blocks and shaking wiimotes.

And so now, we are getting there. Developers take note. Look at our hedgehog developing friends over at SEGA. They understand that at the end of the day, sometimes all you want to do is swing a chainsaw into the bad guys jugular. And, the best part is, on the Wii, it just feels SO MUCH BETTER. It is satisfying. And, when done right, it is better than any button mashing on any other system could hope to achieve. If you haven’t played through Godfather: Blackhand Edition, you are missing out. Nothing says “frustration solved” than physically picking up a mobster and actually swinging him into an electrical output box.

Nintendo, this is the right road. While you, yourself, might not find yourself traveling down it, at least recognize that it exists and support it. Let the developers work around the friend codes (thank you Conduit). Open up the storage space. Let’s get some real voice chat. And come on, let’s work out those bugs with online multiplayer. I understand not abandoning the core of what Nintendo stands for—but let’s pave the road for the other crowd. Help get that word out to your audience (Good job with the MadWorld ad on the Nintendo Channel). Because, in the end, we as gamers need an excuse to toss a guy onto a train track, send the kids to bed to shoot some mother*** zombies in the head, and just really, let loose with our little white box.