Read our extensive coverage of today's news in our Wii feature article!


Tokyo Press Conference Live Blog Coverage

3:30PM: Press conference is drawing to a close as final information trickles in. US launch details for the Wii are still a bit of a mystery, with the NY Times giving very conflicting information to that of Nintendo of Japan. Official US launch details will be unveiled tomorrow at the US press event. Stay tuned for our live coverage once again. We leave you now with the official Wii preview trailer from Nintendo.

3:27PM: According to several reports, Wii Sports will NOT be included with the console. It will cost 4,800 Yen and includes the five different sports games we've all seen and heard about.

3:25PM: 16 games will be available on launch day from 10 different publishers. Cost of the games will be as reported earlier, 4,800 to 6,800 Yen. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be a full price game at 6,800 Yen.

3:19PM: A note on price of console:

To get a better idea of what 25,000 yen is in USD, one needs to take purchasing power parity into account. While the direct translation is around $215, the latest PPP data (found here: http://www.oecd.org/std/ppp) shows 81 units in Japan to equate 100 units in the USA.

That is: (25,000*(100-81)) = 29,750 yen. Converted, that's -> $252.89 USD.

This means the NY Times article may yet turn out to be true and the Wii could cost US$250 in North America.

3:15PM: Cost of the accessories is as follows if purchased seperately. Wii remote: 3,800 Yen (US$32), Classic controller: 1,800 Yen (US$15), Nunchuck attachment: 1,800 Yen (US$15).

3:09PM: Press release lists Wii contents: Console, Wii remote with strap, Nunchuck attachment, AC adaptor, A/V cable, console stand, sensor bar, sensor bar stand, and two AA batteries.

3:08PM: The press release is now available here!

3:05PM: Wii.com will go live in approximately one hour. A Japanese press release will soon be available from Nintendo with the full text of Iwata's speech.

2:56PM: Official release date in Japan is December 2nd. Price is 25000 Yen (approximately US$212)

2:50PM: We just received word that the New York Times article has been pulled from the web. Perhaps our suspicions were right and they were simply guessing the approximate price point.

2:45PM: Virtual Console will accept purchases via credit card, or via prepaid cards purchased in-stores.

2:42PM: Iwata announces that 30 Nintendo games, and 30 PC Engine/Megadrive/Genesis/Turbo-Grafx games will be out before the end of the year. 10 new Virtual Console games will be released every month from then on.

2:34PM: Virtual Console game pricing has now been officially confirmed. Iwata says the price of each game will start at 500 Yen, with SNES games going for 800 Yen, and N64 games costing 1000 Yen.



2:25PM: The master of ceremonies takes the stage. Apparently, she is a Japanese TV personality by the name of Miho Nakai.



2:22PM: Another photo, higher res this time.



2:19PM: Yet another photo from the event as Iwata takes the stage.



2:16PM: Another pic floats in from what looks like somebody's cell phone:



2:14PM: Famitsu have posted what is believed to be the first photo from the press conference:



2:07PM: Still no sign of the press conference starting. Many sites are reporting that the New York Times article is fact, but we are hesitant to go that far at this early stage. After all, didn't Nintendo say the Wii would launch before the PS3, not after?

2:03PM: More sites are reporting the Seattle PI story as fact. The New York Times reports that Wii Sports will be included with the console. Wii games will retail at US$50 each and 30 classic games for the Virtual Console will be out by the end of the year at $5 - $10 each. We'll have official confirmation from Nintendo as soon as we know.

1:50PM: Just ten minutes now until the conference is scheduled to start according to the majority of Internet reports. Will the New York Times writer turn out to be right? Stay tuned! Only a few minutes left.










Old News:

Update: We were given the incorrect streaming feed - this page will be updated as soon as we can confirm further details.

It appears the majority of the Internet got the time wrong for this press conference. Some are now reporting it will start at 1AM EST, which is 2PM local time in Japan. We'll have live blog coverage here the minute it starts. This is how the start times now look based on the most recent information.

Conference should start at 2PM local time in Japan. If you live elsewhere, here is how that time converts for you:

• 1AM EST
• 10PM PST
• 5AM UTC
• 5AM GMT
• 3PM in Australia (QLD)
  

Update #2: A live video stream will allegedly begin at this link as soon as the press conference gets underway. Whether this is real or not, we can't confirm at this point but we'll all find out soon enough.

Update #3: A New York Times writer has stated that the Wii will launch November 19, for US$250. Whether he's telling the truth or not we cannot confirm but we will know soon enough.


Read our extensive coverage of today's news in our Wii feature article!