In this morning's press conference, Nintendo announced there will be two versions of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess shipping. One will be for the GameCube, the other a specifically-tuned game designed to make use of Wii's newfangled remote control. The current-gen, GameCube version will be the same game, but without the new controller enhancements.

Nintendo spent some time showing off the new interface, which will have gamers pointing the wand to aim arrows, boomerangs and any other long-distance weapon. Also, while in combat, you can juke the controller forward to make Link shove his shield at the enemy, temporarily stunning the creature. And once the enemy's on the ground, flipping downward delivers a powerful finishing blow. An onscreen fairy indicates where you're actually pointing, so your aiming can be precise - this also lets you manage items and other such obvious tasks. As for your other hand, the nunchaku attachment is used to move Link around and target enemies. Shaking the attachment will also make Link throw any items he's carrying overhead (like, oh, big, boxy crates).

Twilight Princess also makes use of the Wii remote's just-announced depth-of-sound feature.

May 9, 2006