While other companies are cutting down on their expenses, Nintendo is doing the opposite when it plans to spend around $141 million on a research and development building to be built near its Kyoto headquarters. It is said that the building would be for both software and hardware research but there are still no date as to when the construction will start.

In contrast to that, Sega has announced that it would lay off people and cutting on expenses. Sega used to be on top of the console wars during the Nintendo Gamecube era. Nintendo has got over it and today it has the number one console with the Wii.

With the new R&D facility being planned, it looks like Nintendo is set to develop the next generation Wii. Will we be seeing a new console in 2010? What do you think will Nintendo come up next?

There were lots of cosplayers at last week’s Ohayocon but one stood out among the crowd. A guy came as a life-sized Gameboy console. Although his cardboard Gameboy costume is not that polished, what separated him from the rest is he has a fully playable Tetris game with him. Here’s a video of the guy in action.

I just got one comment about the guy playing Tetris in the video. Learn to rotate!

EA disclosed their third quarter earnings and announced that they will be focusing on the Wii this year. Half of the companies releases would be or the Wii console while the other half would be shared by the Xbox 360 and the PS3.

One of the games that would be released later this year would be Dead Space. I’m having mixed feelings about this. I’ve played this action game on the PC and I think that its video requirements could not be met by the Wii. Plus the game’s controls are too complex for the Wiimote and Nunchuks.

By the looks of things, Dead Space for the Wii will be just that, lots of dead spaces. I do think that the dynamic lighting and other visual effects found in the Xbox 360, PC and PS3 games would not be ported to the Wii.

Dead Space could draw the hardcore gamers to the Wii but they might be disappointed with the watered down version. I hope that this would not be the case. I also hope that EA would try their hardest in bringing a good Wii version of the game.

I was looking for a 3D action game to play over the weekend and I found Rygar: The Battle of Argus at the bottom of my Wii games pile. I popped it in the console and gave it a try. After a few minutes I’ve already arrived at a conclusion that it felt like an old game. I should have known that this is just an actual copy of the PS2 game. No modifications were made to modernize it in any way.

Rygar: The Battle of Argus is a bit outdated. To start with, it relies on button mashing for its combat with no need for strategy or defense. For a weapon, Rygar has a Diskarmor, which feels like Kratos’ Blades of Chaos in God of War. As long as you push the buttons, you’ll survive. And talk about a story not making any sense at all. The plot has too many holes. If it is a movie, the viewers would have walked out of the cinema and asked for a refund.

What’s new for the Wii version is the Gladiator mode, which lets the player use the Wiimote more than in the normal mode. In this mode, enemies would stream nonstop. I don’t like this mode. It’s boring and monotonous. Rygar’s attacks is limited and you’ll use up most of the skills quickly.

Rygar: The Battle of Argus is an enjoyable game 6 years ago and it didn’t warrant a resurrection to the Wii. I don’t know what Tecmo was thinking. They could have made a new Rygar game but instead brought back a mediocre one.

Racing game, retro games, still dominating, restocking, and yetis in this week’s Nintendo News Roundup.

Need for Speed Nitro Announced for Wii and DS
The NFS franchise would be going to the Nintendo consoles with the Nitro title that’s unique for the DS and Wii. As a racing game fan, I like this one.

Virtual Console on DSi?
IGN discusses how the DSi would be perfect for virtual console but the current DSi release doesn’t support it yet. I hope in the future Nintendo does update its firmware to include it.

Your 2008 Japan Software/Hardware Sales Report
This comes as no surprise when the 2008 Japanese sales report shows that Nintendo dominates the market in the software department.

Amazon restocks Wii; discounts MySims Kingdom
Amazon finally got more Wii. This is good news for online buyers who are lazy to go to an actual store. In its Deal of the Day, it discounted MySims Kingdom to $19.98.

Hands On: Roogoo on Wii, Now With More Yetis
Roogoo will be going to the Wii by the end of March. It will feature more yetis and a mode where DS users can link with the Wii game.

Lawl Mart must not have heard of infringement laws when it released a carbon copy of Duck Hunt, a classic NES game on the iPhone App Store. And they can’t deny it. Every detail of the game was duplicated, from the ducks being shot at, to the sound, and even the taunting dog. They didn’t even change the game’s name.

This might bring nostalgia to gamers but Nintendo didn’t think that it was funny in any way and requested for its removal from the shop. The company takes copyright infringement seriously and stated that it would do all the necessary actions to stop it.

But that doesn’t stop other developers in making their own version of the classic hunting game. There are still two Duck Hunt-like games in the iPhone App Store. Deek’s Duck Hunt and Duck Hunting are available for 99cents each. The games made some tweaks in the game to avoid the legal aspects.

Next Monday will see the debut of WayForward Technologies’ Lit on the Wii Shop Channel. This Wiiware would be available for 800 Wii Points. The game is about an emo boy named Jake as he searched through the school grounds for his kidnapped girlfriend.

Lit has 30 classrooms in which Jake must solve a puzzle in order to move to the next one. He must use light sources to fend off the attacks of his enemies. As you could imagine, the game itself would be dark. Puzzles would be complex and could mean lots of gaming time before you could rescue the girlfriend.

WayForward Technologies is the company responsible for the Contra 4 title on the DS. I’m expecting that this game would be challenging as well.

Like what I said in my previous post, Don King Boxing will be released this coming March but what I’m waiting for is the new Punch Out! Nintendo has scheduled the launch for the game in July. Nintendo disclosed their game release schedule with other financial documents.

Notable titles for the Wii in the list include Sin & Punishment and Wii Sports Resort. These are scheduled for released within the first half of 2009. As for the DS, DSi is said to be out in April while the Mario & Luigi RPG 3 that will be out before the year’s end.

Good news is that Kirby Wii that was supposed to be launched in 2008 will be released in Japan this year. Nintendo is mum about the game’s details yet. I expect this to be a big hit for 2009. Watch out for it.

2K Sports is said to be making a Don King Boxing game for the Wii and DS. It will feature a story mode, precise controls and a multiplayer mode. It would also incorporate the Wii Balance Board into its gameplay.

Don King said this about the game:
We’ve created our best set of real-life boxing exercises ever for Don King Boxing. It wouldn’t surprise me if a future world champion was introduced to the sport through this game. This is where you can get the skills that make for thrills.

I know the reason why Don King wants to make a boxing game for the Wii and DS. It’s all about the money folks. I do think that he is irrelevant to the sport at the present. Maybe it would be nice to see how the balance board will be used for the game. But aside from that, if I could choose the boxing game to get this year, it would be Punch Out!