News: Lots of puzzle games for the DSiWare service and the Wii Shp Channel this week.
Nintendo's first 2010 batch of downloadable content for the Wii Shop Channel and DSiWare service is filled to the brim with puzzle games. There's Heron: Steam Machine for the Wii and Trajectile and Animal Puzzle Adventure for the DS.
Also available this week for the Wii is Fast Draw Showdown, a light gun shooter, and Pub Darts, a dart throwing simulator. And Capcom continues their excellent Virtual Console run with the release of Final Fight 3.
Finally, the "arcade-style kitchen challenge" Hell's Kitchen Vs. has also been added to the DSiWare service.
For more information on all of yesterday's additions to the Wii Shop Channel and DSiWare service, see below.
WiiWare
Heron: Steam Machine
Publisher: Triangle Studios
Players: 1-4
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 500 Wii Points
Heron: Steam Machine is a game about a factory where rubber duckies are being produced by a large steam engine. On this steam engine, there are four different gauges which you will have to watch carefully. By connecting the pipes, you will earn points and relieve some of the pressure, keeping the machine running just a little bit longer. If one of the gauges reaches its maximum, the machine will eventually blow up, and the game is over. If you were lucky enough to achieve a high score, make sure you enter your name in the list so other players can compete with you. In Multiplayer, you are able to cooperate with friends in maintaining the steam machine. When you play with two, three or four players, the screen is divided into sections with different background colors. Each player is able to solve his or her own part of the puzzle. Players are restricted to their own section of the screen, so you will have to work together to make the pipes fit properly.
Pub Darts
Publisher: Big Blue Bubble Inc.
Players: 1-4
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone) - Alcohol Reference
Price: 500 Wii Points
Pub Darts is a simple darts simulation which uses the Wii Remote controller's unique controls to mimic dart-throwing motion. The game is set in a local pub where the players will settle in to play some of their favorite dart games, including 501, Cricket, Around the Clock, Killers and Baseball. Controls function just like throwing a real dart. Players are able to create their own personal profiles, including selecting their avatar image from a collection of creative characters and the design they would like displayed on the dart flights.
Fast Draw Showdown
Publisher: Digital Leisure Inc.
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: T (Teen) - Alcohol Reference, Violence
Price: 500 Wii Points
When it comes to fast draw there're only two types of people: the quick... and the dead! Now you have the chance to find out where you stand, or lie, as the case may be. You'll go up against the best quick draws in the business, including one of the world's fastest, Wes Flowers. Unholster your Wii Remote controller and show 'em who the fastest draw really is, in this live-action shooter. You can even take on a friend in multiplayer modes, and see which of you has the quickest draw. You'll need some serious speed and awesome accuracy to take on these gunslingers... so get ready for some real fast draw action.
Virtual Console
Final Fight 3
Original Platform: Super NES
Publisher: Capcom USA
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: T (Teen) - Animated Violence
Price: 800 Wii Points
Following the defeat and subsequent disappearance of the Mad Gear Gang, a small group known only as "Skull Cross" is responsible for a new uprising of vandalism, terrorism and death. The government of Metro City is at a complete loss. Metro City's mayor, Mike Haggar, and Guy are prepared to take on the new gang, but before they can act, the door bursts open, revealing Lucia, Cody's old friend. "Metro City is under attack!" she shouts, "Skull Cross is loose, and they've got something up their sleeves." But before any of them can move, a mysterious man appears in the doorway. "My name is Dean," he says. "I know Skull Cross inside-and-out, and I hate them more than anything. I can help you, and you can help me. We must go!" All four fighters vow to bring Skull Cross down. It will be a tough assignment, and may even be their final fight!
Nintendo DSiWare
Trajectile
Publisher: Nintendo
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Trajectile is a puzzle game that's as much about firepower as it is about brainpower, requiring you to line up your shot and launch a flurry of missiles at enemy targets. Three types of missiles are at your disposal, each one with its own characteristics - but all of them can bounce off walls on their path to smash, blast or drill through enemies and blocks. Along the way, you'll find item blocks just waiting to be destroyed so that you can obtain special power-ups ... and cause even more destruction. Be careful though, as missile type and position are predetermined and you get only a limited number of launches per stage. Complete multiple classes containing numerous individual stages, earning medals when you clear stages in fewer than the given number of turns. Are you ready to take aim at becoming a Trajectile master?
Animal Puzzle Adventure
Publisher: Aksys Games
Players: 1
ESRB Rating: E10+ (Everyone 10 and Older) - Mild Suggestive Themes
Price: 500 Nintendo DSi Points
Animal Puzzle Adventure is a simple puzzle game where you have to lead various animals to their respective barns placed on the map, while avoiding pitfalls and cliffs and using the objects on the field to your advantage. There are 10 stages per level with a total of five levels, creating 50 stages in all. After clearing a stage, you unlock a piece of a photo. Once you clear all 10 stages in a level, the wallpaper for that level becomes unlocked and you can then view it in the gallery. With so many puzzles to unravel, you'll find yourself immersed in the puzzle-riffic world of Animal Puzzle Adventure.
Hell's Kitchen Vs.
Publisher: Ludia
Players: 1-2
ESRB Rating: E (Everyone)
Price: 800 Nintendo DSi Points
Hell's Kitchen Vs. is based on the U.S. TV phenomenon where world-renowned chef Gordon Ramsay puts aspiring chefs through rigorous culinary tests. The game recreates the show's pressure-cooker atmosphere as two players battle head-to-head in an arcade-style kitchen challenge. Try to conquer your opponent in each time-management test, while taking the heat of Gordon Ramsay judging and rating your performance at every stage of the game.