As promised last week, here's a roundup of the latest game assets for Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip. First up, info from the factsheet.

• Hit the Slopes with the Wii Balance Board
  Get yourself into the game like never before by using the Balance Board to control your rider. Control your jumps and tricks with the intuitiveness and fun of having a snowboard in your own living room.
• Exclusive World Tour
  Everybody loves a road trip! You and your crew travel the world to participate in a variety of the fun and exciting events to become a world-renowned athlete. Hit the half-pipe competitions, race down the mountains, or just do some freeriding – there’s plenty of boarding action to satisfy all your needs.
• Round the Globe with Shaun White
  Ubisoft worked in close contact with Shaun White in order to infuse the experience with the most authentic elements of his riding style, personality and sense of humor. Shaun will act as a good-natured friend and mentor to the player, hooking him up with the right friends to conquer challenges together, introduce him to new locales, or simply be around to share in a laugh.
• Play Together
  Engage in a seamlessly integrated multiplayer experience for two to four players in both cooperative and competitive gameplay.
• Get Your Own Crew
  In the world of snowboarding, it pays to have friends on your side. Your crew of friends will always be there to help you by offering you unique abilities to improve both your riding and keeping you grounded with friendly pranks; filming all the antics along the way.
• Dare to Be the Best
  Undertaking Dares from your friends will lead you to snowboard in a variety of events such as Slopestyles, Big Airs, Half Pipes, Rail Jams, Slaloms, Bordercross and Downhill events. You can even chill in the backcountry with your friends and enjoy riding at your own pace.

Next up, some of the latest screenshots which are looking great.

This year's winner at GC 2008 in the category Best Wii Game was none other that EA's Skate It. no real surprise really - it was always going to be a two horse race in my opinion between Skate It and Shaun White Snowboarding and I would have been happy with either one taking first spot. Here's what GC had to say:

"The Wii Fit Balance Board can do much more than just aerobics and yoga: by shifting weight and skilful use of the Nunchuk, the player carries out the most amazing tricks in (four) virtual roles. A genuine skater feel is created on the run through half-pipes and over ramps. 'Skate it' gives an authentic and original recreation of the trend sport and benefits from the special features of the Nintendo console."

Ubisoft really seem to be pushing their Imagine range of games for girls. I notice that they released a factsheet for Imagine Fashion Party so I thought I'd take a peek (it's Friday afternoon and I was bored ok).

The aim of the game is to star in a TV show and compete in a series of challenges to "show the world that you are the best young fashion designer". Using the Wiimote and Nunchuck as scissors, hair brushes or makeup applicator you will be able to express your creativity in numerous workshops including Hair, Makeup, Clothing and Accessories. Oh and by the way, "Also compatible with the Wii Balance Board™ accessory!". What?

There's no explanation of how the balance board is used or any kind of hint at possible mini-games that could logically use it so I'm at a bit of a loss as to how it features but there you go, another "Wii Balance Board Compatible" game for the list. Is every game going to be compatible from now on?

There hasn't been any substantial balance board games news for a little while now but that's all changed as GC 2008 kicks into high gear and the press releases flow. Here's a quick update on balance board news that matters.

Kororinpa 2

First up on the new games front is Kororinpa 2, Konami's ball-rolling maze game. If you like the Wii Fit marbles game then you are going to love this one. 100 levels of ball-rolling mayhem although, rather disappointingly, only 10 levels are said to be balance board compatible. The game will also include multiplayer support and an editor so that you can create your own levels and balls. Kororinpa 2 is scheduled for release in Europe Q1 2009.

Babysitting Party

Ubisoft released some more details on Babysitting Party (previously Babies Party).

More than 30 mini-games - Enjoy exciting and various games inspired by babies daily life:

• Take care of them
• Help them progress with memory games, puzzles, coloring and cutting up activities
• Entertain them through hilarious mini-games

Solo or multiplayer modes for every desire - Choose which character you want to embody:

• As a babysitter, you'll have to take care alone of these adorable little monsters!
• As a baby, you can play up to 4 players with your friends, and do what was always forbidden.

Easy gameplay for immediate fun:

• Thanks to intuitive motions the game is easy to pick-up and play and the use of the Wii Balance Board makes the Party Games experience brand new.

A great story to live:

• Choose the families you want to baby sit for. As a member of a babysitting academy, you will have to do your best to graduate and become the best Babysitter.

Many unlockables:

• Unlock a huge range of more than 50 cute and funny outfits and customize all the babies you take care of.

Raving Raving Rabbids TV Party

More info on those wacky rabbids from the Ubisoft factsheet.

Unique use of the Wii Balance Board:

• Play loads (Ubi are still not saying how many) of exciting new games with the new Wii Balance Board and experience the first game in the world that you can play with your rear end!

New wacky games:

• 65+ brand-new games that spoof popular culture, from TV series to TV classics, not to mention insane ads!

All-new party mode:

• Play co-op or battle your friends simultaneously with up to four players, or go crazy with up to eight players in party mode! You can even sabotage your friends while they are playing!

Unique use of the Wii Remote:

• Discover new and innovative ways to play with eight types of gameplay, including shaking, precision, dexterity and balance.

Shake that Rabbid:

• Use the Wii Remote and Wii Balance Board to dance and wiggle your booty.

Customize your bunny:

• Pimp your bunny out, take his photo and send it to your friends online.

Other than that, we're also seeing a lot of new trailers and screen shots for Shaun White Snowboarding Road Trip but I think I'll save those for a best of post once GC wraps up at the end of the week.

Things have been a bit quite on the new balance board games front since E3 but now it's good news as previous rumours are confirmed - Hudson Soft is bringing Tetris to the Wii in the the form of Tetris Party, and this Wiiware title will include balance board support.

I've always liked Tetris and I would most probably buy Tetris Party even if it didn't support the Wiiboard, so having balance board support is a real bonus. By the looks of things Hudson has really done a good job of updating this old classic and introduced 18 game modes including:

• Versus Battle Mode for 4 local players
• Wi-Fi Battle Mode for up to 6 players
• Duel Mode
• Marathon Mode
• Balance Marathon Mode

Tetris Party is scheduled for release this Fall and there is an official site with screenshots at www.tetrisparty.com.

ars technica's Frank Caron was lucky enough to get some game time on both Shaun White Snowboarding and Skate It at E3 last week. As you would expect, both games use the Wii Balance Board in the same way to steer but there is a marked difference in one crucial aspect - performing tricks.

While EA has chosen to use both the balance board and Wiimote to control body motion and tricks in Skate It, Ubisoft uses only the balance board to control body motion (no flicks of the Wiimote) and according to Frank, it just feels more natural. Read Frank's hands-on comparison of SWSB and Skate It, the lucky devil.

Here's a great interview and some live gameplay of EA Skate It using the balance board. The clip really does give a feel for how intuitive the game is when using the balance board and also shows how you'll use the Wiimote together with the Wiiboard to perform different tricks using the various zones on the board.

PS - the sound is a bit dodgy to begin with but does come right and you will need the movenetworks media player.

THQ has just released the US box art for the Wii version of All Star Cheer Squad together with a factsheet. Here's what you need to know.

Overview
All Star Cheer Squad allows players to participate in the competitive sport of Cheer, combining traditional cheerleading, dance, gymnastics and squad based teamwork. Players create their own avatar, learn cheer and dance moves, compete against individual team members and ultimately compete against other squads. The player's goal is to become captain of his or her squad and eventually lead the squad to win all of the competitions in the single player campaign.

• Use the Wii Remote, Nunchuck and Wii Balance Board to perform dozens of real-world cheer/dance moves.
• Latest cheer action and top routines designed by Tony G, world renowned cheer choreographer best known for his work on the "Bring it On" movies.
• Learn new moves and choreograph your own cheer routines to music.
• High-energy Gameplay: Take part in squad competitions and one-on-one cheer-offs.
• Customizable cheer squads: Choose the look of your team including facial features, hair and outfits.
• Follow a year in the life of a cheerleader: Start with try-outs and grow your all-star squad to be the best as you lead them to the championship as Cheer Captain.

All Star Cheer Squad will be available in the US Fall 2008.

According to a press release from Ubisoft today, it seems that the Wii version of the game is now going to be titled Shaun White Snowboarding: Road Trip. In part I guess this better reflects the game in that you will be able to travel the world and participate in different events to build up your cred as a seasoned snowboarder. But I also think this is their way of differentiating the Wii version of SWSB from it's PS3/Xbox/PC counterparts. Here are some key features:

• Hit the Slopes with the Wii Balance Board
  Get yourself into the game like never before by using the Balance Board to control your rider. Control your jumps and tricks with the intuitiveness and fun of having a snowboard in your own living room.
• Exclusive World Tour
  Everybody loves a road trip! You and your crew travel the world to participate in a variety of the fun and exciting events to become a world-renowned athlete. Hit the half-pipe competitions, race down the mountains, or just do some freeriding – there's plenty of boarding action to satisfy all your needs.
• Round the Globe with Shaun White
  Ubisoft worked in close contact with Shaun White in order to infuse the experience with the most authentic elements of his riding style, personality and sense of humor. Shaun will act as a good-natured friend and mentor to the player, hooking him up with the right friends to conquer challenges together, introduce him to new locales, or simply be around to share in a laugh.
• Play Together
  Engage in a seamlessly integrated multiplayer experience for two to four players in both cooperative and competitive gameplay.
• Get Your Own Crew
  In the world of snowboarding, it pays to have friends on your side. Your crew of friends will always be there to help you by offering you unique abilities to improve both your riding and keeping you grounded with friendly pranks; filming all the antics along the way.
• Dare to Be the Best
  Undertaking Dares from your friends will lead you to snowboard in a variety of events such as Slopestyles, Big Airs, Half Pipes, Rail Jams, Slaloms, Bordercross and Downhill events. You can even chill in the backcountry with your friends and enjoy riding at your own pace.

Update: Ubisoft has now released a new trailer for SWSB: Road Trip and it shows the Wii Balance Board in use - it's looking great.

Here's the latest info on Wii Music from the Nintendo fact sheet.

Wii Music makes it easy for people to jam to tunes, even if they don't know anything about music. Wii Music transforms the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers into more than 60 different instruments, including a violin, steel drums, electric guitar – even a cowbell. Players strum, shake, tap and drum along to the music in a pressure-free musical playground where there are no mistakes. They can improvise on their arrangements by skipping a note – or adding 10. The music always sounds great, but it's up to players to come up with creative arrangements that they can then send to friends and family who have Wii Music. Those Wii Friends can then put their own spin on the arrangement and send it back and forth over WiiConnect24.

Create a musical masterpiece with up to four players. Anyone can play the huge selection of instruments in Wii Music with simple motions—like strumming and drumming.

• It's easy to play improv jams. Musicians in your band jam by simply playing their instruments to the beat of a song or by improvising to their heart's content. Play faster. Play slower. Skip a beat, or throw in 10 more. No matter what you do, Wii Music automatically transforms your improv stylings into great music. There are no mistakes—just playing for the pure joy of playing.
• Wii controls immerse you in the music. You can play most of the 60-plus instruments in Wii Music using simple motions with the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers. Strum to play guitar, banjo and sitar. Drum to play jazz drums, congas and marching drums. Hammer away to play piano, vibraphone and marimba. Unlike most music games, Wii Music doesn’t make you use complex buttons. You only need to imitate playing the instrument.
• Wii Music offers virtually endless ways to make music. You choose the song and instruments and decide whether to blaze through a rock take on classical songs, put a jazzy spin on folk tunes or transform Nintendo classics like the Super Mario Bros.® theme into Latin-flavored numbers. The song list is only a takeoff point—it's how you improvise with the songs that matters.
• Send your band-jam recordings to Wii Friends who have Wii Music. They'll see your Mii band members, your players' improv styles and your instrument selections. They can watch your recordings, or play over parts of your song, then send their modified recording back to you. Improv jams can be sent back and forth over WiiConnect24 and changed again and again.

Wii Music includes many other modes besides the main band jams, including several musical games and an enhanced video playback mode for recorded jams.

• Play it again: Use the playback mode to see your jam recordings brought to life with dramatic camera angles.
• Pick up the baton: Command an orchestra in the conducting game where you'll wave the Wii Remote controller like a conductor's baton to lead a Mii orchestra through orchestrated music. Make them play quickly, slowly, strongly or gently.
• Ring a bell? Play a handbells game where you'll swing your Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers to play your two handbells as part of a larger ensemble. Everyone on the team has a job to do: Play one of your notes only when the tune demands it.
• An ear for music: Take a tone quiz that tests your musical ear by giving you challenges, like putting note-playing Miis in order from lowest to highest pitch.
• Bang the drum: Play a virtual drum set in the drumming mode, the one mode in Wii Music that also uses the Wii Balance Board accessory (sold with Wii Fit). You'll use the Wii Remote and Nunchuk controllers as drumsticks, and place both feet on the Wii Balance Board—which work as virtual pedals for the bass drum and hi-hat cymbal.

Wii Music will be available in the United States for the holidays.