New channels forecast for Wii

Mike Bantick
Thursday, 21 December 2006 07:18

Opinion and Analysis

Along with the activation of Opera browser for the Nintendo game console, comes the first of the promised internet channels.  Does the inclusion of Wii channels help this box weather the storm from Xbox 360 and PS3?

This week saw the activation of the Weather Wii Channel to internet connected gamers.  Using a “Google Earth” style interface to drag and rotate the earth, zoom in to check out the current weather details.

Yep that is right, if your house has no windows, simply plug in the Wii, turn on your TV, zoom to your geographic location and see whether it is safe to venture outside or not.  Of course, if you do this, you most likely will begin playing Wii sports and won’t go outside at all.

An apparant reported bonus from the Weather channel for owners of the popular Electronic Arts Madden NFL 07 American football game; integration between the game and current weather patterns in your location. Boring if you live in a desert I guess.

With Wii channels providing cable television style information and given the focus of Wii games on social ability and interactivity between players, does this fit the criteria for an “entertainment hub” more than the technically superior PS3 or Xbox 360?  Obviously there is the problem of playing other formats of entertainment, movies for example.  But coupled with a good dual HD DVD Blu-ray player, Hard Drive Recorder and HD TV, cashed up technophiles can get the best of all worlds currently available.