The Wii (pronounced as 'we') is Nintendo's latest games console and the machine set to start a revolution in gaming when it is released worldwide this winter with it's motion based control. No longer will gamers typically be sat still twiddling buttons like a zombie, instead they will be actively involved in what they are playing, mimicking actions and moving with the characters they control. Wii has also been created with a focus on fun and immersive experiences over visual grandeur with intuitive but highly enjoyable games that are accessible to all, regardless of age and prior gaming experience.

This guide outlines the key features of the Wii and the games to be available by 2007, as well as some tips for buyers looking to get a Wii on eBay for Christmas!

What's with the silly name eh?

In Nintendo's own words: "Wii sounds like 'we', which emphasizes that the console is for everyone. Wii can easily be remembered by people around the world, no matter what language they speak. No confusion. No need to abbreviate. Just Wii." Not convinced? Just remember that 'ipod' sounded like a stupid name for a music player for a lot of people back in 2001 and most of the world thought you were bananas if you mentioned you were goign to 'Google' something up until the last few years! Besides, it's just a name - if you're more bothered about the name of it rather than what it does then you should really be getting a certain Sony console instead! :P

Motion Control

The defining difference between the Wii and other consoles is it's innovative control method via the Wii Remote (often referred to as a 'Wii-mote') - named so because of it's similarity in design to a typical TV remote. With it's built-in 3D sensors the Wii Remote wirelessly records and transfers the physical motions applied to it to the games being played, so for example the swing of a racket within a tennis game, or the pointer direction if controlling a gun. The Wii Remote, which is the first truly ambidextrous games controller, also has various expansions for further functionality including the 'Nunchuk' unit that adds an analogue stick to be controlled with the player's free hand.

If more conventional 'normal' control is required or desired this can be achieved with a Classic Controller pad.

Wireless technology

The Wii is designed with seamless Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functionality in mind, the biggest benefits of which include:

• Wireless controllers and peripherals - No more wires infront of the TV!
• Wi-Fi and Wireless LAN Gaming - Play compatible games with friends from afar!
• Connectivity with Nintendo DS - Link-up and enhance games between both systems.
• WiiConnect24 Service - Automatically updates software and games with new content while the Wii is not in use as well as receive and send emails and SMS messages.
• Internet Channel - Quick and easy internet browsing on your TV without the need for a keyboard or mouse!
  

Gamecube Support

Just as Sony's PS2 can also play PSone titles, the Wii is backwards compatible with the Nintendo Gamecube making it able to play hundreds of widely available (and increasingly cheap!) Gamecube games as well as allow the use of use of Gamecube controllers (including DK Bongos and Wavebirds) and memory cards.

Virtual Console

Play the best games of the last 20 years without having to own all the consoles and original games! Enjoy the cream of the crop of titles available for Nintendo's own NES, SuperNES, and N64 systems as well as Sega's Mega Drive, NEC's TurboGrafx, and the Commodore 64, with yet more platforms to be supported in future. Games are purchased with 'Wii Points' and are downloaded to your Wii or an SD-card for unlimited play thereafter. In the U.K. 2000 Wii Points will retail at £14. The cost of games breaks down as thus:

• NES - 500 points / £3.50 each
• SNES - 800 points / £5.60 each
• N64 - 1000 points / £7 each
• Mega Drive - 800 points / £5.60 each
• TurboGrafx - 600 points / £4.20 each
  

Wii Channels

Think of Wii Channels as being like different stations on your TV, the concept is to provide a broad range of features and functions that are easily accesible and as quick to find as changing the channel on your TV! Wii Channels that will be available (but certainly won't be limited to):

• Mii Channel - Allows you to create a character that will represent you in compatible games such as Wii Sports.
• News Channel - You guessed it, an interactive news service!
• Forecast Channel - Check on live weather reports, be they where you are or around the world.
• Photo Channel - Browse, showcase, edit, and share your digital photos stored on any SD-card!
• Wii Shop Channel - Purchase Virtual Console games.
• Internet Channel - Browse the internet quickly and simply using your TV!
  

Parental Controls

The Wii allows parents to restrict access to certain age ratings (no more 15/18 rated games for your non-teenagers!) as well as monitor playing history - including stats on what was played, when, and for how long. But I was doing my chores WHILE playing Wii Sports for 2 hours! ;)

December 8th 2006 - European Release Day!

Since the Wii is fast becoming *the* must-have product for Christmas 2006 it is a dead cert to sell-out upon release. Every major retailer has been taking pre-orders in their shops and online but these are not legally binding guarentees regardless of whether any deposit or payment has been made - fundamentally these are merely part of conditional waiting lists for a number of Wii units that the shops still do not know for sure they are to receive. This is not to say putting your name down for a pre-order is a bad idea, just don't expect 100% to get one before Christmas regardless of where you are in that individual shop's waiting list!

Wii pre-order and pre-launch sales on eBay

Naturally as Christmas draws closer sales of Wii pre-orders on eBay have increased and auction prices are already exceeding the console launch price of £179.99. While it is seemingly not outside eBay's rules to be selling pre-orders (as eBay unfortunately don't appear to be clamping down on people doing it) it would be unwise to bid on such items when you are effectively winning either a pre-order receipt (with NO guarentee of receiving a Wii!) or more ludicously, an email receit from an online pre-order, or simply someone's word that they will have one ready to send to you upon release! Suffice to say while there are many honest eBay sellers simply trying to make a tidy profit ahead of the Christmas rush there are also many scam artists and unscrupulous sellers that eyeing up duping big money from desperate buyers. Telltale signs of rogue dealers:

• Promises of refunds if you do not receive a Wii - Even *if* they are true to their word and don't simply disappear from eBay this is likely to be a hassle ridden affair that will end up costing you money for nothing if you are required to pay for the receipt to be returned and/or spend hours haggling with the customer service lines of whichever retailer it is from.
• High cost non-refundable postage fees - It does not cost more than £5 to send a letter by Special Delivery! Scam artists charging excessive non-refundable postage may not have any pre-orders at all but if they're making £10 from every fool who is enticed by their listings it's not a bad little earner.
• Wanting payment by methods that do not allow tracking or buyer protection i.e. postal orders, cheques, CASH - a.k.a. How to wave goodbye to your money!
  

BEST ADVICE IS: If you want to buy a Wii off eBay the sensible decision would be to wait until after the launch day until proper visual proof can be given that the seller does indeed have a Wii in their possession.

Buying Pre-order receipts - A WARNING!

If the pre-order receipt is from a major retailer such as Gamestation or GAME these are simply proof of a pre-order - and in the event that you do not get a Wii they are only legally required to refund whatever deposit was made (if any). Otherwise you will simply continue to wait in line for *that* store's stock (you can't jump into the queue of your local/another store!) to replenish when new units are brought in after Christmas, and more likely still, well into January. If a deposit has been made you may require valid PROOF OF IDENTITY to obtain the refund which matches the original buyer on their records! You may also only be able to obtain a refund from the branch store from which the pre-order was made! Both of these possibilities will put you in a bit of a pickle if you've purchased a pre-order on eBay for a store tens of miles away and the person you bought it off has either disappeared or is in no hurry to help you out!

Importing from U.S.A. or Japan

As ever Europe will be the last major territory after U.S.A. and Japan for the Wii to be released meaning excessively over-priced Wii units are likely to be pitched towards European buyers from overseas sellers both before and after the European release. The requirement of a step-down convertor for the power supply aside please bare in mind that Wii consoles and games are region locked and at this early stage of it's lifecycle there is no way to circumnavigate this protection meaning if you buy a Japanese unit you will only be able to play Japanese region games.

Wii Games

Wii titles available at U.K. launch (December 8th)

Some 24* Wii games will be out on launch day! The full list:

• The Legend of Zelda : Twilight Princess [pictured above left]
• Wii Play** (including Wii Remote)
• Call of Duty 3 (Activision)
• Marvel: Ultimate Alliance (Activision)
• Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam (Activision)
• Madden NFL 07 (EA)
• Need For Speed: Carbon (EA)
• Happy Feet (Midway Games)
• Rampage: Total Destruction (Midway Games)
• Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz (Sega) [pictured above right]
• Gottlieb Pinball Classics (System 3)
• Super Fruit Fall (System 3)
• Cars (THQ)
• Barnyard (THQ)
• Spongebob Squarepants: Creature from the Krusty Krab (THQ)
• Blazing Angels Squadrons of WWII (Ubisoft)
• Far Cry Vengeance (Ubisoft)
• GT Pro Series (Ubisoft)
• Monster 4x4 World Circuit (Ubisoft)
• Open Season (Ubisoft)
• Rayman Raving Rabbids (Ubisoft)
• Red Steel (Ubisoft)
• Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Double Agent (Ubisoft)

Virtual Console titles available at U.K. launch

In addition to the proper Wii games 31 retro titles will also be available via the Virtual Console service:

• NES: Baseball, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr., Ice Hockey, Mario Bros., Pinball, Soccer, Solomon's Key, Tennis, The Legend of Zelda, Urban Champion, Wario's Woods
• SNES: Donkey Kong Country, F-Zero, SimCity
• N64: Super Mario 64
• Mega Drive: Altered Beast, Columns, Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine, Ecco the Dolphin, Golden Axe, Gunstar Heroes, Ristar, Sonic The Hedgehog, Space Harrier II, ToeJam & Earl
• TurboGrafx-16: Bonk’s Adventure, Super Star Soldier, Victory Run, Bomberman ’93, Dungeon Explorer
  

Pricing for Virtual Console titles can be found earlier in this guide.

Wii titles to be released by Spring 2007

New games are being announced regularly but the big games to look out for in the first quater of 2007 include:

• WarioWare: Smooth Moves (pictured above left), Mario Strikers Charged, Super Mario Galaxy (pictured above middle), Metroid Prime 3 Corruption (pictured above right), Excite Truck, Sonic and the Secret Rings, Trauma Center: Second Opinion.
• Plus, yet more Virtual Console titles!

More information?

• Want to find out more about the Wii? Check out Nintendo's official sites at wii dot com as well as nintendo dot co dot uk (obviously without spaces and replacing dot with a full-stop! - blame eBay for not allowing outside links)