Wii Mii
Someone needs to tell the Nintendo creative team that changing one letter does not constitute a new idea. It’s all fine and good when they come up with Mii, but when they start releasing the Pii, that’s where I draw the line. The Mii is Nintendo’s answer to Microsoft’s gamer card. Each player can customize their profile with a custom 3D character that can even be stored in the Wiimote and taken to friend’s houses. While I’m sure some of you instantly thought that this is a pointless feature, the kid in me was intrigued. That is, of course, until I saw a demonstration of this feature in action. If I wanted to make a character that looks like a Playskool toy, I would have gone to Kids R’ Us. On the other hand, when you combine this feature with Wii Sports, as demonstrated at E3 with the Wii Tennis player that looked like Miyamoto, it does seem slightly more interesting.

Zelda Delay
I just had to say something about the delay of the Gamecube version of Zelda. Come on Nintendo, you’re not fooling anyone. If you think that it’s a coincidence that they delayed Gamecube Zelda, a game that has obviously been in development longer than Wii Zelda and has fewer complications, then you’re probably too slow to even play Wii Golf. While this doesn’t affect me at all, since I was going to buy the Wii version anyway, I’m sure there are many diehard Zelda fans that have been waiting for over 2 years clutching their Gamecube controllers. Unfortunately for them, they’re going to have to buy a Wii, or wait, get this, two weeks! For those non-gamers out there, two weeks to a gamer is like 10 years to a normal human being. Personally, I would rather pay for the game twice or even three times than wait two weeks. While this move is sure to increase Wii sales, I think it’s slightly underhanded. On the other hand, I guess I shouldn’t expect more from the company whose mascot’s arch nemesis’ greatest weapon is his farts.

Final Thoughts
While some of the announcements came as a shock, overall I think Nintendo is still on the right track. They have a release date which will let them capitalize on the holiday season, a console that’s hundreds cheaper than their competitors, a solid launch line up and the ability to actually meet demand. All in all, I finally feel like I can sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride, knowing Nintendo is at the helm. Stay tuned for more Wii news and launch day impressions in the issues to come.