Ones to Watch: Wii and DS for November 2009

By Joe Fourhman | November 2, 2009

Those of us who made the Club Nintendo Platinum Elite may already be enjoying the first Wii release of the month, Doc Louis’s Punch-Out. The rest of you, read on and see what Nintendo has on their little white plate.

November 3
Academy of Champions Soccer – Ubisoft’s arcade soccer + Hogwarts game is finally out. This one made an initial splash for including characters from Ubisoft’s stable like Jade and Mr. Splinter Cell.

LEGO Rock Band – The multiplatform family-focused Rock Band title arrives. I still think it’s odd that the setlist isn’t true kids music from established kids bands, because what you are getting really isn’t appreciably different from a regular Rock Band setlist. 2009 seems to be the year that Harmonix finally squanders all that goodwill they’ve built up since the initial RB release. And speaking of that, Band Hero is also out this week. Both are also on DS.

Rabbids Go Home – The evolution of the Rabbids into a genuine gaming brand is complete as they get their first non-garbage-minigames game. Actually sounds pretty funny, if you can stomach the oh-so-zany Rabbid marketing. (Also on DS)

November 9
Excitebike: World Rally – Nintendo stealth-announced this new WiiWare title on the October 26th Nintendo Week show. Looks like a fair redux of the NES original, with some very familiar track layouts just at a new 3D camera angle. And it still has a level editor!

November 10
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Reflex – Just in time for Modern Warfare 2’s release, an adaptation of the original hits the Wii. Apparently the game does not support the Wii Speak microphone, so we should have none of those problems. (Also on DS, sort of, as Modern Warfare Mobilized.)

November 15
New Super Mario Bros Wii – Nintendo’s big first-party release of the fall. I’ve been wavering on this one for quite some time, but I think I’m going to officially pass. It has the Koopa Kids in it, and I hate the Koopa Kids.

November 17
EA Sports Active – More Workouts – I think that subtitle probably explains it all.

LEGO Indiana Jones 2 – Another multiplat release. The ship has sailed on Indy Jones; did enough people really want this sequel? (Also on DS)

Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles – We didn’t seem to land a single decent horror game in time for Halloween, did we? They’ve all been pushed to invade other holidays.

Scene It? Bright Lights! Big Screen! – The Scene It brand escapes 360 exclusivity with two Wii releases; there’s this one and a Twilight-focused edition arriving Nov 24.

November is expected to see Part 5 of Tales of Monkey Island arrive on WiiWare, as well as the tower defender Robocalypse: Beaver Defense.

Now, on the DS:

November 3
C.O.P.: The Recruit – Watch out Chinatown Wars! C.O.P. is trying to out-GTA you with a true 3D world.

Style Savvy – A curious first-party release, Style Savvy has you running a clothing boutique eager to satisfy incoming clients. The human models in the game are extraordinarily creepy: normal-proportioned figures with oversized anime heads. Something about the look makes me think more blow-up doll and less anime design. Every time I see this game in action I think “Well, that’s somebody’s fetish.”

November 10
Phantasy Star 0 – Sega’s RPG hits the DS. This is the one with the in-game chat feature where you can draw your conversations to each other.

November 17
Assassin’s Creed II: Discovery – Nintendo Power mentioned that this one was sort of a surprise. Which kind of fits, don’t you think?