The launch of the new Nintendo Wii is now imminent, and will take place in the U.S. just two days after the launch of the PS3. One of the deciding factors in choosing which console to buy will be the game titles available either at launch or shortly afterwards.

Nintendo has ensured that its full line-up of game classics are right there ready to lead the charge. In the forefront is The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The Wii version, unlike the GameCube one, will run in 16:9 widescreen, which should make it more immersive, and Zelda takes full advantage of the new Wiimote's functionality to make sword-fighting a completely different experience. The game hasn't been made gimicky to accommodate the Wii controller, it just naturally does.

Mario has also been upgraded for the new console with Super Mario Galaxy, a game which takes our favorite plumber into space. It uses the Wiimote and the nunchuck attachment, though it's still at base a platform game. Mario travels from planet to planet collecting star shards, moving using the nunchuck's joystick, while shaking the Wiimote will produce a spinning attack.

Rounding the front line out is the new Sonic game, Sonic and the Secret Rings, which has apparently been in development for two years, and through about three name changes. It won't be released until March 2007, which should make it available for the South-East Asian Wii launch. The tenuous plot features Sonic and friends retrieving missing pages from The Arabian Nights. Demos have shown two levels, a sand oasis and a dinosaur jungle. The game uses the Wii remote held sideways, in the 'classic controller' position. It's rumoured to contain seventy different missions and thirty levels for multi-player play.

Ubisoft's Wii launch title Red Steel should also be a big hit, combining first-person shooter dynamics with viciously elegant katana work. This game does seem to have been designed specifically to highlight the qualities of the Wii controller. Demo versions have occasionally had problems with directional control, but hopefully these will be ironed out by launch.

It wouldn't be a gaming console without a kicker racing game, and the Wii will have Need for Speed: Carbon. Based on the West Coast of the U.S., Carbon will include the ability to build teams and win territories, new additions to the NFS franchise. Autosculpt will allow you to completely customise your vehicle, and then upload your pimped-up ride to WiiConnect24. So far all released screenshots and video have featured night racing. The game will also star actress/model Emmanuelle Vaugier, no doubt for essential plot purposes.

And it wouldn't be an Asian gaming console without a Manga-based fighting game. Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2 returns gamers to the DBZ universe, with a roster of more than a hundred classic DBZ characters. While the game can use the Wii classic controller or a GameCube gamepad, it also uses the Wii controller and nunchuck combination to dish-out ki-powered violence.

The Wii will also be right there with the big multi-platform franchises, notably Call of Duty 3 and Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Double Agent. The attractions of shooting games on the new Wii are fairly obvious. Double Agent also offers up a bit more plot than your average FPS, as Sam battles conscience issues while an undercover agent. (Hilariously, the beginning of the game features a classic Red Mercury terrorism plot.)

By Spring of 2007, there should be at least a solid fifty titles available for the Wii, from kid-safe family games through party games to dark RPG and action titles that should suck dozens of hours out of a gamer's life.