how easy would it be for the vc to get tecmo super bowl(any from the snes would be nice) for the vc. Would they have to get new license for the game or anything or is it as simple as any other game? thanks

- dusttin500

Not so simple. As everyone should be aware, Electronic Arts has the exclusive NFL license until the end of 2009. (Madden 2010 will be the last exclusive game under the current agreement.) Even though Temco Super Bowl is more than 13 years old, if it's to be re-released it still needs the approval of the licensor, which in this case is the NFL. The only way Tecmo can put it on VC is if both EA and the NFL agree that it's okay for them to do so.

The original Tecmo Bowl won't have this problem. It was unlicensed, so Tecmo can put it up whenever they want to. Solomon's Key is already on the service, so we know Tecmo is willing and able to add new games.

Hi this is not a specific console question but more an overall gaming question. How do you feel about ports or remakes? Up to the DS generation we saw 2 remakes of Resident Evil on Gamecube&DS respectively. This is ok but I fear for this port/remake thing.

Say during the PS4 generation are we going to see MGS2 and MGS3 get remade? Hey maybe that generation will see Resident Evil 4 boosted as well much like Resident Evil on Gamecube did. Now in my view it is not all bad. I played the FF collections on Playstation and with the slowness I am having alot more fun with the GBA versions of FF4&FF6 since they do not have the slowness issue.

The Playstation collection also makes me want to try the much beloved Chrono Trigger so it is good in a since. I just do not want the industry to get port/remake happy when we already have the originals when they could be making awesome sequels.

- Brandy
Orange City,FL

Personally I don't have a problem with remakes. Old salts like me have played games since the 80s, but a lot of new people just coming in to gaming may have never heard of the older games before. Plus, old games getting a fresh coat of paint on new hardware can help do the original justice. I think the original Resident Evil is a terrific example of this.

Ports are another thing. Depending on the game and destination platform, I'm cool with them. All of the Super Mario Advance games were terrific, as were the FF Advance games. But Resident Evil on the DS? Although I rather liked it, there comes a point when the ports get out of hand. Then again, this is Capcom we're talking about, the same Capcom who put a version of Resident Evil on the Tiger Game.COM and tried to do one on the Game Boy Color.

Ports and remakes are a part of the game industry. There are plenty of remakes in the movie business, too. As long as the developer re-doing the game puts in a good, honest attempt, the end product will be welcomed. However, we still need a healthy supply of original games so the games industry has a strong foundation to work off of.

I was reading your reply to the question about the DS' mic and the lack of a headset. I was surprised when you didn't mention Turtle Beach's headset for the DS Lite which has been out for a few weeks.

- Gameplay4fun
New Jersey

I didn't mention it in last week's mailbag because we reported it on the site the week before that. For people looking for a better option to the DS's insensitive microphone, that's as good as any.

However, until Nintendo releases an official DS headset, there won't be any games designed to truly take advantage of one. An official accessory goes a long way in terms of how many games would support it. I mean, why should developers take the time to put something like voice recognition in a DS game if the only thing you can (officially) use to take advantage of it is a crappy on-board microphone?

This is not so much a question as an observation. I have read many reviews on your site, IGN , and Kotaku all pertaining to these new wireless sensor bars. One of the main ratings seems to be whether or not it has more or less jitter in it when you rotate the remote than the official Wii bar does. Which the Wii bar still has a pretty good amount of distortion/jitter when turning/twisting the remote. I then saw it suggested somewhere (possibly here) that the problem could actually be in the pointer logic algorithm instead of the sensor bar. I have recently stumbled across something which seems to support that theory, and not a faulty bar and would like to know if Im the only one who has experienced it. I downloaded the "Everyone Votes" channel, and the twist has NO jitter! NONE! It is rock solid and smooth even on a 360 twist! The news channel also seems to have less jitter than the main menu but more than the everyone votes channel. Since "Channels" are really just individual programs written for the Wii it is possible that each would have its own pointer recognition algorithm. Please let me know your own observations and thoughts via email even if you dont post this in the bag.

Thanks,

- tonythekitty
USA/Alabama

You hit the nail on the head. Although a sensor bar with strong infrared lights can make it easier for the Wii to keep track of a controller being pointed at it from a greater distance, the pointer display is handled through software interpretation of the information from the controller. The locations of the sensor bar points in the view of the remote are constantly being sent to the Wii, but the system takes the average of a chunk of points to help smooth cursor's movement. If the sensor bar's position was translated into 1:1 pointer movements, the cursor would be jittering all over the place.

This is easily demonstrated. Turn on your Wii and go into the Wii menu. Point the remote at the sensor bar and quickly twist it 180 degrees whilst keeping it pointed at the sensor bar, so the controller is upside-down. If you do it fast enough, the cursor will still be pointed upwards and your controller movements will be inverted. This happens because the Wii compares what the remote saw at one moment against what it saw at another moment, meaning the moments between were skipped, or averaged out.

Now for the kicker: Move the remote up and down a little and the cursor will reset back to normal. What does that tell us? The infrared pointer and the accelerometers act independently of each other. If that isn't true, why is it possible to control the cursor in an inverted position? The remote sees two points on a horizontal axis, but they'd look the same upside-down or rightside-up It doesn't know which way is up until the accelerometers kick in and help determine the controller's true orientation. This is interesting to know, because it may be one of the reasons why pointer movement can sometimes be erratic when the remote loses sight of the sensor bar. Perhaps developers are using the accelerometers to guesstimate the controller's relative position?

Anyway, the point of all of this is that the sensor bar is no magic bullet for making the Wiimote work better in games. The magic happens inside the remote and in the software. Third party bars might be good for making the controller perform better over larger distances, or to give people a wireless sensor bar option. But they're not going to help to smooth out or improve the pointer function of the remote as much as people would like them to.

Planet trivia hasn't been held in a while, and I just noticed that your trivia page now only mentions radio trivia.

Is planet trivia gone forever?

- Cyan

No. We just put it aside for a moment because attendance started to slip enough to where it wasn't worth the time and effort for us to continue doing it in its current form. We're thinking about bringing it back eventually in a different format. Until then, you can still play Radio Trivia.

Speaking of Radio Trivia, have you tried our new podcast version? With any luck we're going to make trivia a weekly thing again, but alternating weeks with live trivia and the podcast. Make sure you give it a listen if you haven't yet done so. Even if you don't like podcasts, you probably like video game music!

Dear Mailbag,

Long time reader, first time writer. I was talking to my friend the other day and he was telling me that his Xbox360 broke not long after he got it so he sent it back and got a new one. I've heard that from more than one person, but I have not heard much about the Wii having any problems. I've had mine since launch and other than 1 or 2 disc reading errors with Wii Sports mine has not had any problems. Several of my friends also got launch Wiis and they've have not had any problems either. Has there been any consistent problem with Wiis that you have heard of?

Other than the straps breaking I have not heard of anyone having to return theirs due to it being defective. To me this is just another reason to stick with Nintendo over its competitors.

- Jstbcool
Indiana

I haven't heard of many significant problems with Wiis breaking. In the cases that I have heard, Nintendo was quick to replace them. I even read about someone who got a replacement Wii in less than a half an hour by taking the dud directly to Nintendo's Redmond offices. How's that for service?

The 360 is another matter, of course. With Microsoft systems breaking left and right, Microsoft was pressured into refunding anyone who had to previously pay for console service, as well as extend the warranty for everyone who bought the console within the first year (like me). I actually got a hardware failure message on my Xbox 360, but after unplugging it and turning it back on, it worked fine. Strange.

Hey guys, how's it going

I've seen Super Paper Mario listed for the cube as having a June 07 release date, do you think this will be like Z:TP and be released on both platforms with the gamecube version for sale online only? I don't recall Ninty ever officially canceling Super Paper Mario for cube...or did I just miss that press release?

- Sikboy1029
Illinois

No one issues a press release announcing the cancellation of a game. Furthermore, no one releases a game for a dead system. Super Paper Mario is a Wii game, and won't be coming to the GameCube.

I am an avid Podcast listener and occasional forum goer. I love my Wii and play it every day, but I have come questions about the future of my pet console (I, too waited in line on Nov. 19!)

I know we're able to bowl a strike, throw a hail mary and own bunnies in minigames, but when will the next generation of Wii games hit? I want to swing a light saber around, I want to reach up to catch a high throw from second base, I want to go through the legs and burn Kobe Bryant while going downcourt. My question is, when is this going to happen? When the kind of technology the Wii was going to have was released, those were the kind of things my friends and I wanted to do. We'll love anything that Nintendo comes out with (well, not everything...) but those kinds of real-time movement and action are what we're looking for; not just Twilight Princess-esque "do this and Link will slash just this way." Thanks for your time.

- Snakewater
Indiana

Who knows? It might be two or three sets of games away. It might be two or three years away. It might be two or three console generations away. The Wii may be capable of doing what it is you want, and it may not be. It's all going to be up to the developers to see what they can do with the new tech inside the Wii and its controller. If they can get "real-time" movements to work in actual gameplay situations, that's fantastic. If not, then we'll need to wait a while.

The biggest hurdle to overcome with these new types of games isn't a technological one. It's a human one. Developers have done some amazing things in the past. Let's see if they can do some amazing things in the future.

Mailbag,

I am concerned about the release of Mario Party 8 for the Wii. I reserved the game through EB Games and was told the release date was March 5th. Since then I checked the EB Games website and found a June 1st release date. After checking a few web sites, I determined that Best Buy and IGN are listing the game for the March release date, but Amazon, EB Games and GameCrazy are listing June release dates. Anyways, when is the game actually being released?

- anonymous
California

The March 5 date comes from Nintendo's Wii site, although Nintendo's press materials still list the game as a Q2 2007 release, I doubt they'd keep an incorrect date in public view for very long. Since the game is also coming out Europe next month, it seems as if the 3/5 North American date is legit.

People should be aware that release dates listed on retailers' sites for future games are placeholders, and out-of-date ones at that. EB/GameStop shows Mario Party 8 coming out on Friday, June 1. Amazon shows Saturday, June 30. Nintendo games don't ship on Friday or Saturday. It's not a coincidence these dates are at the beginning and end of the month, either. Retailers need to have a date in their system to put games on pre-order, which can be later changed to the correct date.

(By the way, did you know that Amazon is selling arcade games now? Too bad I don't have $16,000 for a new Time Crisis 4 machine. I could save $2400 if I order today!)

No more mail! Well, actually I did receive a lot more than what you see here. Always do. However, only stuff worth talking about gets posted, so make sure you throw some thought behind your questions or comments. It would also help if you spell things correctly. Just a thought.

See you next week!