TWiG 2008-12-22: A Very Quiet Happy Holidays

Know what I’ve been doing this weekend? Well, while I really wanted to be playing all the latest games and delivering some top-notch journalism action to you, the readers, I was actually shoveling and snowblowing all damn weekend. As with any major snow event, the coverage on CNN starts with Buffalo, so go ahead, follow the link, and feel sorry for me.

How is this relevant? Well, as it turns out, shoveling your driveway would be more productive than paying much attention to this week’s release list. The Wii’s putting out a couple of games on WiiWare, but I’ll be honest, they’re both dwarfed by the release of Phantasy Star IV on the virtual console, one of the better Sega Genesis RPGs out there, but still dwarfed by Phantasy Star II. Those who picked up Phantasy Star II back when it got “Virtual Consoled” are probably still working on it anyway, so it’s hard to recommend another huge classic RPG download.

I suppose if you’re a new-release junkie and you just have to pick up something new, Mystery P.I. is a decent way to kill some time. It’s an expansion of an online release which is basically a big Where’s Waldo experience, and the take-home versions for the DS and PC look to be more of the same. Want to give it a go? There’s a one-hour demo download of the New York edition of the game, which may well be all of it you need to play. I had fun for my hour, and I’ll also be OK if I never see it again.

Moving Pixels is going to be quiet for a while after this, so enjoy your holidays, all. The full release list is…well, it’s right here:

Nintendo DS:

Dreamer: Horse Trainer (23 December)

Dreamer: Puppy Trainer (23 December)

Mystery P.I. – Portrait of a Thief (23 December)

PC:

Mystery P.I. – Portrait of a Thief (23 December)

Wii:

Fun! Fun! Minigolf (22 December, WiiWare)

Phantasy Star IV (22 December, Virtual Console)

Tiki Towers (22 December, WiiWare)