Let me begin. The internets are rife with rumors that Nintendo plans to sweeten the Wii pot by reverting to a time-honored console tradition: the pack-in. Those of you old enough to remember the 8-bit era (or frankly, even the 16-bit era) surely recall weighing the virtues of the Action Set vs. the Sports Set vs. the Deluxe Set when planning your video game purchase. (Of course, we all know the Action Set was where the true value was–you got Super Mario Bros. and Duck hunt and didn’t have to spend any time trying to figure out just what the fuck R.O.B. was supposed to do.)

Depending on what site’s rumor mill you believe, Nintendo has designs to include the nunchuck controller, extra Wii remotes, and/or one of the panoply of not-particularly-fleshed-out “games” on display at E3 last month. The chief candidate that is almost always mentioned is Wii Sports. Seems a sound strategy to me, and a certain way to ensure that their declaration of “not more than $250″ means “$249.99.” But, as we ponder which of the glorious tech demos Nintendo will eventually bestow upon us for free, we can all be glad that some of their early pack-in game concepts have since fallen out of favor. Here then, presented for your consideration, are a few of those titles along with an early screenshot and some of the marketing hyperbole from the back of the box…

(many Bothans died to bring us this information)

This ain’t your daddy’s cucumber…

• Put the Wii remote through its paces with bread n’ butter combos and sweet counters.
• Wiggle, jiggle, and wriggle your pickle to the rhythm–or end up sliced.
• A dilly of a multiplayer mode: battle up to three friends in intense pickle-on-pickle action.
• Choose from over 40 licensed pickles from manufacturers like Vlasic, Heinz, Del Monte, Sam’s Choice, and more!

It’s a test of strength and endurance in this game based on the movie based on the radio show based on the droning of Garrison Keillor…

• The deadpan delivery of America’s favorite storyteller depends on you.
• Use the Wii remote to control the angle and distance of Keillor’s microphone. Keep it in the “Prairie Home Zone” or you risk losing the crowd.
• Screeching audio feedback from the Wii remote speaker lets you know when you’re nodding off.
• Over 760 hours of actual Keillor audio–that’s nearly two complete radio shows!

Circle up with three of your friends for the wildest party game ever–someone’s gonna catch it all!

• Test different grapples, twists, and tugs–be the first one to the finish line.
• Audio feedback from the Wii controller speaker lets you know when your grip and pace are on the money.
• Over 20 licensed tracks of “bow-chicka” music and dozens of exotic wood-paneled basements.
• Hundreds of creatures to collect and decorate!

(Not pictured: Sock Drawer Frenzy, IHOP Presents: Minimum Wage Fry Cook, and Andiron Extreme: The Red Hot Poker Chronicles)

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 21st, 2006 at 12:16 am and is filed under General Gaming. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.