It’s no secret that I’m a Nintendo fanboy. I grew up with playing video games on the nearly all of the company’s systems, from the original NES and Game Boy, straight through to the more recent GameCube and Game Boy Advance (No DS in my collection yet, though I wouldn’t be surprised if I picked one up eventually - Mario Kart DS and Metroid Prime: Hunters is a little too tempting). Well, for anyone that’s ever played the side scrolling Mario Brothers video games, you will find this movie clip quite entertaining:

http://gorillamask.net/mariolive.shtml

From what I can gather, a bunch of people got together at Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts and put together this five minute skit for a talent show. Although the timing is a little off at times, it’s actually quite well coordinated. They’ve included a number of signature elements from the original Mario Bros. game, which I won’t disclose in full here, because they’re quite a bit funnier and more enjoyable when you don’t expect them. Very creative, guys.

For something similar, here is a link to a video of some people who re-enacted Super Punch Out, also for the original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4Zj9BGraVU&search=punch%20out

Enjoy!

In what has to be one of the worst name changes in the history of technology, Nintendo announced today that their next-generation console will hereby no longer be known as the Revolution. It’s not going to be called the “Go” as previously reported either. Instead, they’re going with “Wii”, pronounced “wee”.

Their justification is that the it sounds like “we”, as in “we can play video games together”, as in anyone can enjoy this home console, because it’s for everyone, the all inclusive “we”…er, Wii.

Furthermore, it is a bit of a nonsense word that can be “understood” in any language, unlike the English-centric Sony PlayStation, for example, and the two I’s in the name represent two RevMotes (I guess that name is going to change too. Wii-motes?)… uh, two controllers coming together to enjoy the revolutionary titles. Or even two people (get it? The dots on top of the i’s are heads, etc.) getting together for a gaming session.

The bad puns are inevitable, so I might as well try to get a few out of my system, before wii explode from the thoughts floating around in our dirty little minds. Wii just can’t stand it.

• Hey, you want to come over to my house and play with my Wii?
• I’ve been on this wait list for longer than I can remember! When will I be able to grab a Wii?
• I just can’t put my Wii down, it’s so addicting.
• Let’s connect our Wii’s together and have a little fun.
• Wii are playing with our Wii’s, why don’t you join us and play with your Wii too?
• Damn it, my Wii is broken, can I use yours?

This is stupid. I’m just going to come out and say it. Based on how the average person thinks, come this November (if everything goes according to plan), it will start to sound like everyone is either playing with Nintendo-branded urine or a penis. Greeaaat…..

Why couldn’t they just keep it as the Nintendo Revolution….

It pains me just a bit to be writing about hockey and not being able to dedicate a substantial amount of the space to my hometown Vancouver Canucks, but I am surprised how into the NHL playoffs I am getting. I’m spreading my wings (not red ones. A Detroit fan I am not), so to speak, cheering on all of the Canadian teams in their respective series, because, well, they don’t have to face each other just yet.

The way things are going though, the four Canadian teams that did make the post-season (with the Toronto Maple Leafs and the aforementioned Vancouver Canucks looking in from the outside) are leading in their first round matchups (at least at time of press), and things look very promising for Canada to be represented in half of the teams for the second round. Of course, things are still quite early with most series playing their “Game Fours” today or tomorrow.

The Flames are doing very well, thanks largely to the fantastic netminding by Kipper, and the Senators are still holding their own despite the lack of the Dominator between the pipes. Despite being the eighth seed, the Edmonton Oilers are doing better than expected, surpassing the status of just “staying afloat”, and the Montreal Canadiens are well on their way to ousting the Carolina Hurricanes.

Unfortunately, if things go as planned, we’re going to have Calgary vs. Edmonton in the West and Ottawa vs. Montreal in the East, and then necessarily a Canadian team will have to be eliminated in the second round. We’ll see. I’d love to see a Calgary - Montreal final.

Ok, I can’t get away from mentioning the Canucks. As you’re already probably aware, Dave Nonis and crew gave the Crow the boot, firing Marc Crawford as head coach. They say it was time for a change, for some fresh blood or fresh vision. Although Crawford did win a significant number of games as the Canucks’ coach, they only made it past the first round of the playoffs once. Whether that is the fault of the players, injuries, or the Crow… well, that can be argued until the cows come home, and although I would have given Crawford a chance to re-prove himself for the early part of next season, I can’t completely disagree with the club’s decision.

Your thoughts? I’d love to hear them.

MichaelKwan.com launched last month to limited fanfare, but with the introduction of Beyond the Rhetoric and a featured interview on The
Commentary, traffic has been steadily picking up steam, despite the fact that the website is still under major construction. I make no qualms about saying that the website is far from being complete in its current state, but it seems that things are starting to take a little twist of fate.

As luck would have it, I bumped into a graphic artist / web designer who has volunteered her time to help work with me and give the site a stronger, more professional feel to it. There’s no saying when (and if, even) the site will receive a major facelift, but based on early conversations, the new look is starting to grow on me. Here is an early mockup of a possible new logo, but of course, the final version could be something radically different (or maybe not).

Each time the video game industry is set to release a new generation of home consoles, there is an incredible buzz around the whole thing. Will the Genesis take out the SNES? Can the Dreamcast steal the market?

This time around it’s the (already released) Xbox 360, the Sony PlayStation 3, and the Nintendo Revolution. While the XB360 takes the old generation and just makes it better with HDTV and all that, and the PS3 probably doing the same, Nintendo is taking a different route altogether with the Revolution (as its name implies, although there are rumblings on the internet that the new system may be re-christened the Nintendo “Go” — meaning five in Japanese, as this is the fifth
Nintendo home system, following the NES, SNES, N64, and GameCube).

If you look at the technical specifications, Nintendo’s offering is far from being an impressive machine, putting up numbers that are only on par with the current generation Xbox. That said, they are revolutionizing the industry, so to speak, by trying to target casual players who may have been alienated by the trend toward overly complex and deep games (read: Splinter Cell, Metal Gear, etc.). Nintendo has always wanted to make games that are fun, easy to get into, but difficult to master and they hope to accomplish this with the “RevMote” controller.

The controller will feature gyroscopic technology, meaning it will respond to changes in three dimensional space. Think of the applications. A driving game where all you need to do is tilt the
controller to steer the car. A dueling title where the RevMote acts as a swiping sword. The possibilities are endless.

Personally, I’m stoked and can’t wait for the Revolution. It will likely be priced far cheaper than the PS3 and Xbox 360, but can offer some great gameplay and deeply engaging environments. Be a part of the game, rather than a passive observer.

For some more information, check out these great sites:

Revolution Fanboy

IGN Revolution

Joystiq

Expected titles include some version of Dragon Ball Z, Mario, Super Smash Brothers, Legend of Zelda, Tony Hawk, Metroid, and some new titles like Red Steel, Thorn, and Sadness

What system are you most excited about (if any)? What is influencing your decision? Leave a comment, let me (and world) hear your voice!

I’ll be the first person to tell you that I am no skateboarder. I don’t have the sense of balance or style to just keep myself on the deck (at least I know the terminology), let alone pull off any kind of tricks. That said, I do enjoy watching the competitions on television, and I attended the Slam City Jam North American Skateboard Championships for the last two years. That’s why it pained me to find out that they are abandoning the Vancouver venue and heading over to our neighbours to the East in Calgary, the same city with which Canuck fans typically have not so favorable a relationship… but that’s a different issue altogether.

You see, for the 2006 championships, the SCJ organizers are moving the show to Stampede Park in Calgary. I’m going to miss watching Bucky Lasek, Sandro Diaz, Jereme Rogers, and other giants in the industry “do their thing.”

I haven’t been over to Alberta in over a decade, so I can’t speak as to how Calgary, Edmonton and the other cities are looking these days, but what I can comment on is the proliferation of skateboard interest here in Vancouver. Heck, during last year’s competition, then-Mayor Larry
Campbell declared that the week of the competition would be “Skateboarding Week.” With the skate park set up on the PNE fairgrounds at Hastings Park and another set up near Science World, we know that the sport is huge here in Vancouver.

Maybe they’re just hoping to make the same kind of impact in Calgary as they have here in Vancouver.

If you’re going to be over that way, or don’t mind the short-ish road trip, the Slam City Jam Skateboard Championships will be in Calgary from Friday, August 25 to Sunday the 27th, complete with 150 competitors, and capacity for 7500 spectators for the street course set
up at The Corral.

Note: My reviews of the 2004 and 2005 events can be found through the archives of The Commentary.