Ubisoft playing Wii soccer with Pele, Mia Hamm

With the release of the Wii MotionPlus add-on three weeks away, yet another game has been announced that will support the devices. Hot on the heels of Red Steel 2--which will require the Wii MotionPlus to play at all--Ubisoft has announced Academy of Champions, a new arcade-style soccer game exclusive to Nintendo's console. The title marks a rare foray into sports games for the French publisher, which enjoyed massive success last year with Shaun White Snowboarding--and much less with Curling for the DS.

In development at Ubisoft's Vancouver studio, Academy of Champions will be an arcade-style soccer game that targets "kids and families." Unlike virtually every other soccer game, it will center on "a story-driven adventure" set in "fantastical environments" with "over-the-top gameplay."

Players portray a young athlete who joins a Hogwart's-like academy where the athletic obsession is soccer, not Quidditch. Brazilian soccer legend and former New York Cosmos star Pele runs the institution, while US Women's soccer champion and three-time Olympic medalist Mia Hamm is the player's coach and teammate. Together they must engage in an escalating tournament to determine the champion of the world.

Academy of Champions is set for release sometime later this year and has not yet been priced. Given its youth focus, an E for Everyone rating looks likely.