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Nintendo to add 100th VC game next week

by: Chuck -
More On: Wii
Nintendo announced that they will be releasing their 100th virtual console game next week with the release of Zelda II - The Adventure of Link next week.  They also released a list of the top five downloaded games on the service:
  1. Super Mario Bros.
  2. Super Mario 64
  3. Mario Kart 64
  4. Super Mario World
  5. The Legend of Zelda
No real surprises there.
Wii Hits Yet Another Major Milestone: 100th Classic Game Added to Virtual
                                   Console
                                      
 Gamers Worldwide Already Have Downloaded More Than 4.7 Million Retro Games,
                          at a Rate of 1,000 an Hour

    REDMOND, Wash., June 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Nintendo is giving video game fans
a way to access their favorite classic games, all without leaving the comfort
of their homes. And gamers have responded en masse as the library of
downloadable game classics continues to grow. The upcoming addition of Zelda
II(TM) -- The Adventure of Link(R) on June 4 marks the 100th classic game
available on the Wii Shop Channel. And since going online Nov. 19, owners of
Nintendo's hot Wii(TM) video game system have downloaded more than 4.7 million
classic games from Wii's Virtual Console, a rate of more than 1,000 games
every hour since launch. The top five classic game downloads globally to date,
and their original system are:
    (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070601/LAF020 )

    1) Super Mario Bros.(R) (NES(R))
    2) Super Mario 64(R) (N64(R))
    3) Mario Kart 64(TM) (N64(R))
    4) Super Mario World(R) (SNES(R))
    5) The Legend of Zelda(R) (NES(R))


    Wii lets players visit the Wii Shop Channel to redeem Wii Points(TM) to
download classic video games from the original Nintendo Entertainment
System(R), the Super NES(R) and the Nintendo(R) 64, and the Sega Genesis and
TurboGrafx16 consoles. These games are nostalgic totems to veteran gamers, and
simultaneously, new, easy-to-play entries for younger players. These games
demonstrate Nintendo's staying power across generations by letting veteran
gamers relive their glory days while their children play them for the first
time. The addition of Zelda II -- The Adventure of Link brings a fourth Legend
of Zelda(R) game to the Wii Shop Channel from three classic Nintendo
platforms, providing exciting adventures that span the decades. Additional
classic games are added to the Wii Shop Channel every Monday.
    "With an Internet connection rate reaching 40 percent, Wii owners have
more options than ever to find the kinds of games they love to play," says
George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and
corporate communications. "Beyond the Wii Shop Channel, all types of people
are getting connected and checking out the information and entertainment
options available on the Wii Menu. Whether voting, creating a Mii or just
checking the weather, everyone has a favorite channel."
    The Wii Shop Channel is one of the many entertainment and informational
channels that are available via the Wii system. Others include the Forecast
Channel, the News Channel, the Mii Channel, the Everybody Votes Channel, the
Photo Channel and the Internet Channel. Each of these broadens the appeal of
Wii to new audiences and draws in consumers who might not otherwise be
interested in a video game system.

    The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment,
Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and
software for its Wii(TM), Nintendo DS(TM), Game Boy(R) Advance and Nintendo
GameCube(TM) systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.4 billion video
games and more than 409 million hardware units globally, and has created
industry icons like Mario(TM), Donkey Kong(R), Metroid(R), Zelda(TM) and
Pokemon(R). A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in
Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the
Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's
Web site at http://www.nintendo.com.