Ubisoft lands Protothea on WiiWare

Nintendo's venture into original downloadable games is expected to launch May 12. Thus far support for WiiWare has by and large come from smaller development outfits, save for the publisher's own offerings, and those from Square Enix, Namco Bandai, and Hudson. Today, however, one of the majors not based in Japan said it would be lending a title to the service, as Ubisoft announced Protothea would hit WiiWare around the service's launch in May.

A top-down 3D vertical shooter, Protothea drops players in the role of a pilot who must save Earth by destroying a civilization-leveling asteroid known as Maqno 01, and in the process undermine a devious political faction called The Core. Players will guide their ship using the motion-sensing Wii Remote and Nunchuk.

Looking to put a new face on the shoot-'em-up genre, Ubisoft promises dynamic AI that alters its method of attack depending on the player's actions. Protothea also features a variety of weapons, including eight air-to-air weapons and two air-to-surface explosives. The game will also apparently take some cues from Ubisoft's Prince of Persia series, as a power-up will allow players to manipulate space-time.

Rated E for Everyone, Protothea was developed by Sabarasa and Digital Builders and was named an Independent Games Festival finalist when it first appeared as a PC title in 2005. Ubisoft has not yet revealed pricing information for the downloadable title.