The Games of Summer: WiiWare

Like Christian, I too am ready to play some sweet offerings on Nintendo's download service. With the release of Cave Story, Max and the Magic Marker and World of Goo, WiiWare has already proved itself to be the home of well-regarded PC indie developers. With that in mind, my first pick is…

1. Noitu Love 2

What is it?

Noitu Love 2 is a sidescrolling shoot-em-up that pretty faithfully emulates the awesomeness of 16-bit era shoot-em-ups. The difference being that on PC, Noitu Love 2 has a crazy keyboard and mouse configuration, which makes me assume that that was the reasoning behind the WiiWare release. The graphics and music rule and it looks like tons of fun.

Release date?

Well, Nintendo's pretty notorious for just dropping WiiWare titles on the masses whenever the hell they feel like it, so let's just say "summer" for now.

2. Bit.Trip Runner

What is it?

The Bit.Trip series is one of my favourite things from this generation so far. They're retro throwbacks to Atari 2600 days, but also have innovative new control methods and absolutely fantastic chiptune music. There's been three games in the series so far (Beat, Core, and Void), and the best way to describe them would be… action gaming meets Guitar Hero meets retro throwback?

Anyways, Bit.Trip Runner has me most excited of all, as it appears to be a "rhythm platformer" not unlike Canabalt. And once again, Anamanaguchi is providing the soundtrack.

Release date?

It's done and ready to go, so if I was a betting man, I'd say in the next week or two.

3. And Yet it Moves

What is it?

This is a sidescrolling platformer where, to conquer the stages, you have to rotate the entire game world. I don't mean to be pushing so many 2D platformers on you, but it's a genre I love and WiiWare is basically the official home of them. I'm also a big fan of the paper cut-out aesthetic. It gives the game this home-y vibe that you just don't get from non-indie developers.

Release date?

Next month or two, I'd say.

4. Lost in Shadow

What is it?

Surprise! Another 2D platformer. In this one, you play a disembodied boy who can only interact with the world as a shadow. So that's how you see your avatar. It's a cool concept and one I can't wait to see in action. There's still talk about whether to release this as WiiWare or as an actual retail release. Either way, I'm getting it.

Release date?

Late August, early September-ish

5. Descent

What is it?

Well, Christian got his classic PC gaming on with the release of Serious Sam HD, so this is what I've got. Descent. Fuck yeah. One of the greatest PC action games ever is coming to WiiWare later this year with MotionPlus support. It's going to rule.

Release date?

2010. They're not too specific.

I'd also recommend checking out Super Meat Boy. I'm equally pumped for that one as Christian is, as it looks to be a terrifically terrifying platformer (psst, get it on Wii. The d-pad is so much nicer!). And if you still haven't gotten Cave Story… what the hell is wrong with you?!?!?!?!?!