I apologize for the delay in updating the Wii/Jenga Confluence News of the Week (WJCNotW) feature, but I'd been waiting until I had more to report (one article does not a round-up make). But for now, this is all I got:

Physics nerfed for Jenga.

Consider that one more giant flashing red warning light over the Wii-Jenga enterprise. Of course, it could be that the physics aren't so nerfed as the blocks are hella heavy. Like steel girders. Maybe in the fantasy land of the Wii, the limits of our puny human muscles are no longer relevant, and Jegna Tower can rise high and strong, unfettered by our twitchy human nervous system. Truly Wii Jenga will be the 21st century Tower of Babel, a true testament to the majesty of mankind. Silly Nimrod, you can't reach heaven without a wiimote!

But all that said, I should make my standard disclaimer: I withhold judgement until I hold the shiny disc in my grubby little hands.

Updates to some recent posts:

I went ahead and converted some Lord Buckley clips to MP3, to update my Lord Buckley playlist on Imeem, attached to this post. The conversion process didn't seem to harm the sound quality noticably. I just couldn't sleep at night knowing Marc Antony's funeral oration wasn't included in my Lord Buckley playlist. So what happens when I upload the files? Most stream fine, but "Marc Antony's Funeral Oration" is only available as a 30 second sample. Can't find any logic as to which files are or are not streamable, with parts of an album streaming fine while other selections from the same album don't stream at all. Fortunately, "Willie the Shake" has the same speech, though it's not my preferred version. I do enjoy his discussion with the interviewer afterwards; I intend to work the phrase "every fox has got his box" into my conversation as much as possible.

I just posted an installment of my patent-pending WJCNotW feature, so it's probably too early for another one, especially one that lacks Wii convergence. But I do feel the need to share this with you all: Omegathon, video game uber-challenge associated with the geekfest Penny Arcade Expo, will be kicking off not with the pre-announced Pac-Man, but with Jenga. Like, the physical blocks on a table. I just have to wonder how many spoiled online gamers will petulantly knock the table over in disgust at some point.

Welcome to the latest installment of Wii/Jenga Confluence News of the Week (WJCNotW):

Ars Technica asks: Is Jenga on the Wii as bad an idea as it sounds?

Excuse me? Did you say bad idea? I think you meant to say frickin' awesome idea! Jenga FTW! The bird mentioned in the article, however? Sounds pretty weak. And I agree with Ars that price will make or break this game. $20 is a bit too optimistic though. My prognostication skills tell me $30 will be the release price. But given their financial situation, they might go as low as $20, just to generate cash quickly, like a crack addict.

Oh, and Steven Spielberg? If you mention Jenga again in conjunction with your lame-ass new Wii game, I will seriously bitch-slap you. I think a first-person shooter based on On the Lot would have a better chance of success.

Welcome to another installment of Wii/Jenga Confluence News of the Week (WJCNotW):

Kotaku's hands-on preview of Jenga is not flattering.

IGN takes a more wait-and-see approach. Apparently, you can toggle a visual mode on and off, which highlights the weak blocks that can be easily moved. This sucks; if force-feedback to discover weak bricks isn't practical, they at least need to make you click on the bricks one at a time, to remain faithful to the physical game's characteristics.

For now, I will remain a believer. Assuming Atari doesn't do something stupid like retail this at $50, this could be a good game.

In what will no doubt be a semi-regular feature of this blog, I bring you the Wii/Jenga Confluence News of the Week (WJCNotW):

Yes, the rumors are true, Jenga is coming to the Wii (and the DS).

Also, the first details of Stephen Spielberg's video game projects are emerging, and apparently his Wii game will be a cross between Saturday morning cartoons and, um, Jenga. Sounds like a bad mix to me; once I've watched Pee-Wee's Playhouse and consumed six bowls of Cookie Crisp cereal, my hands are far too jittery for Jenga.

So, yeah, Jenga as a video game concept? I'm not so sure. Unless they can really master the subtleties of the tactile experience via force feedback, so you can tell by touch which pieces can safely be moved, I don't think the experience will be the same. That said, I would buy two Playstation 3s (one to serve as emergency Jenga backup) if it allowed me to play virtual Jenga. The whole concept is just so wrong, and yet so right.

As for Spielberg's invocation of Jenga, I think he is just trying to take the wind out of the sails of Atari's announced Jenga game, no doubt as an act of revenge against the company for the E.T. debacle.