GameStop.com selling Zelda only with Wii bundle

Earlier this week, GameStop and its subsidiary EB Games announced their online Wii preorder program. The console would only be available beginning Thursday night as part of an expensive bundle--around $699--the details of which were not made public. Given the fact the Wii costs only $249.99 on its own, many potential buyers balked at forking out close to $449 for an unknown assortment of "games and accessories."

Now, GameStop.com has revealed the contents of its Wii preorder bundle, which has a final price tag of $694.88 before tax and shipping. Besides the $250 console package--the Wiimote, Nunchuk controller, power and AV cords, sensor bar, stands, and the game Wii Sports--the bundle will contain six games: Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Trauma Center: Second Opinion, Red Steel, Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, Super Monkey Ball Banana Blitz, and Madden NFL 2007.

Normally, each Wii game costs $49.99--meaning that the value of the console and six games is roughly $549.93. However, the bundle's inclusion of Twilight Princess could be an irresistible draw for those who have not yet preordered the game. According to a GameStop.com rep, the online store has "sold out of their allocation of Twilight Princess," and is no longer selling it a la carte. The rep could only speak for GameStop.com and EBgames.com, and said that gamers should contact their local retail GameStop and EB outlets to see if they had any preorder allocations of Twilight Princess remaining.

Besides the sextet of games, the GameStop Wii bundle will also include an extra Wiimote controller ($39.99) and 1.0GB Wii Memory SD Card ($59.99). The addition of the duo brings the bundle's value to $649.91--$44.97 less than its pre-tax-and-shipping price tag.

What do purchasers get for that extra cost? Two items--a 12-month product replacement plan and a 12-month "gift" subscription to Game Informer magazine. GameStop.com sells the latter for $19.98, leaving the cost of the 12-month product replacement plan--which is normally optional--at $24.99.

While the Wii bundles can be preordered on Thursday, November 9, they will not ship until Sunday, November 19.