Nintendo Channel

Yes, that's right, the Nintendo Channel, one that has finally come out and has all the features you could ever want! (yeah right.) Although that may not be true, this channel offers some features that Wii owners have been waiting for quite some time now. If you don't have it yet, do a Wii system update and download it from the Shop Channel.

 

The Nintendo channel is a video-based collection of all Nintendo games created for the Wii, DS, Virtual console, and Wii ware. It's weekly updated video list includes anything from TV game ads, to informational videos, to exclusive interviews. You are greeted by a simple digest video that highlights some of the new and popular videos of the week's new selections. The "blue-circle" theme gives a very Wii-ish feel to that and the straight forward menus are clear and easy to navigate. 

The channel also includes a recommendation feature where people can search by categories such as solo or multiplayer, casual or hard-core, rating, system, and gender/age. The information these categories are based on comes from people who fill out a form in the review section. Any game in the Nintendo Channel data base that has been played for more than an hour on a Wii can be rated in the categories listed above. The system works pretty well, except for the fact that the Nintendo Channel database is somewhat limited. A game like Okami (review coming soon, LONG article, AMAZING game), a third-party game developed by Capcom is not included in the list. I find this disappointing because most people know somewhat of all the Nintendo games, but its the third-party ones that need to get more mention and publicity. 

Other sections include the ad section, where you can get ads for new games to your Wii message board. Yes, finally the Wii has joined today's newest technologies (email, IM, text messaging) in the fact that you can get spam! Another neat thing I noticed was the purchase feature. On a specific game's page (includes basic release date, ESRB rating, cover art, any videos about it, etc. info) there is a purchase link that launches the Wii Internet Channel to a site where you can actually buy the game from your Wii! 

Lastly, my favorite. Although you have to allow Nintendo to see what games you've been playing and for how long (basically, the "Today's Play Time" on your message board), you can get exclusive downloads of demos of recent DS games from your Wii, to your DS! This is similar to the DS Download Stations at any game retailer, but in the comfort and privacy of your own home. So far, the demos seem to be advertising the more casual games such as Brain Age and Nintendogs, so as to extend that category of gamer's knowledge of games they might like. 

The Nintendo Channel has a lot of promise for a weekly updated channel with info on all the latest and soon to be release games. In the future, I hope for demos of Wii games too, as well as an extended game list. 

Info from: me through experience

Pics from: Nintendo.com