These fakes, or clones as they’re usually called, have surely fooled many untrained eyes. They do, however, have their own following among gamers as they are relatively cheaper, although often of questionably quality. You’re not always sure they’ll work as advertised, either, so unless you know what you’re getting into, better stick to the original.

Have you ever bought any of these? How was your experience with the product?

Leading the charge is a Harry Potter title from Warner Bros. Interactive, Walk It Out from Konami, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attormey from Capcom, and a whole lot more.

“I found your blog and some pics of really fun cakes, and thought I’d share my own epic Mario wedding cake. I had found pics of a very similar cake online, and it inspired me to create my own Mario cake and surprise my groom on our wedding day (November 5th). My groom is a professional video gamer, and his favorite game is Mario cart. We were married in Vegas, so I had the bottom tier a desert theme, and I went with the old school Peach Castle rather than a modern one. I’m brunette, and my groom a blonde, so I had them customize Peach and Mario accordingly. The only hint I gave my groom about the cake was I had a pair of Mario boxers delivered to him to wear during the ceremony the morning of the big day, and then I had our rings brought forth by the ring bearer on a 1-Up key-chain which later snuck itself into my bouquet for the rest of the day. The entire cake was edible, the desert tier was berries and creme, the galaxy was bouncy chocolate with chantilly cream, and the castle (which has been preserved in my freezer for the 1 year anniversay) is peanut butter chocolate. I hope you post the pics on your site, so your readers can find more inspiration for their own wedding creations!

~Bride of a true Geek~ “

What a lucky groom, indeed. I love the details like little Mario standing on a block, the princess leaning in for the kiss, the mushroom heads, the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign, and all the other references to the game. Must have been a bit hard to have to slice it up. I would’ve been content to stare at it all day.

Click the image below for a much larger version of the montage:

Punch Out! fans will find the Wii version to be loyal to the original. The developer stuck with the old formula but incorporated motion controls to it. You’ll recognize each and every boxer in the game except for one. New to the Wii version is the Disco Kid.

Expect the same comic-like characters to come alive in your TV sets. Each boxer will have its own fighting pattern. Once you discover the pattern, beating the boxer will be easy. But as you progress through the career mode, the boxers will be more defensive or offensive. They will also beef up their weaknesses so you can’t beat them that easy. King Hippo will guard his soft spot with a manhole cover taped to his belly.

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The game takes the player to the year 1939. The Nazis are in the hunt for a new treasure and it’s up to Indiana Jones to make sure that they don’t get it first. While the missions are the same for all the consoles, the gamplay is optimized for the Wii.

We all know how Indy handles the whip very well and players can experience using the whip via the Wii remote. That reason alone should encourage gamers to get the Wii version of this game. Stay tune for a full review once the game is released next month.

Well Nintendo must have realized that the DSiWare needs something that will make gamers splurge their DSi points on. That must be the reason why they’re releasing Real Soccer 2009 for 800 DSi points. The game let’s gamers use the DSi’s camera and use their photos to customize the player faces and ball’s skins. I would definitely be downloading this game.

For the WiiWare there’s the Family Pirate Party. You can get it for 500 Wii Points. This is a board game where players roll a virtual dice to collect treasures on different islands. Then there’s the Galaxy Force II for the Virtual Console. This shooter game is originally from the Sega Genesis console.

I love Astro Boy. For those who are born much later than I did, Astro is a robot boy who fights evil robots. I used to want to be like him. The anime series is said to be one of the most influential series during its time.

This isn’t the first time Astro Boy has been made into a game. Sega made one for the PS2 in 2003, just in time for the re-release of the Astro Boy series. There’s also a Game Boy Advance version of the game. This time around the game will coincide with the screening of the new CG movie. Watch out for this one.

Look Ahead: May 2009 Games
Here’s a list of what to expect this month. There’s EA Sports Active: Personal Trainer, Pokemon Platinum, Virtua Tennis 2009, and a lot more.

Review: Echoes of Time Links Wii, DS for Unique Final Fantasy
The reviewer states that Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time is the weirdest game concept of this year because it can be played on both the Wii and DS. Aside from that, he doesn’t like the game because of its thin and repetitive single game mode.

THQ Reports Fiscal 2009 Fourth Quarter and Full Year Results
THQ enjoyed another fruitful year. Their annual report states that they have net sales of $830 million. But this is down from the $1,030 million they had a year ago. They felt the crunch of the global recession but still manage to pull off a decent sales number.

Sony Will Publish Ghostbusters Game in Europe
Sony will be publishing the PAL version of the new Ghostbusters game. That means there will be a delay in the release of the Wii and DS versions of the game. I’m hearing a resounding boo coming from European GB fans.

Casper to Haunt the DS and Wii Once More
Casper will be seeing action in the Wii and DS soon. It’s a sports theme game and Casper must beat Thatch in a series of events. In the DS version, players will use the mic in one minigame to scare people.

And there’s a new one brewing. Rumors has it that an announcement will be made on May 10 with regards to Pokemon franchise. Sources say that hosts of the Japanese Pokemon show, Sunday, made this statement while silver and gold balls were seen above them.

The silver and gold balls might mean that Nintendo will be releasing Pokemon Silver and Pokemon Gold to the DS. The two classic Gameboy games were released in 2000 and are considered as two of the best selling games of the franchise.

Nintendo has announced that Pokemon will remain in 2D to be faithful with the animated series. They also said that they are not planning to bring it to the Wii and will continue the series on the DS. Maybe it’s a new Pokemon game for the DSi. We’ll know ater May 10. Stay tune for more info on this one.

Also coming out this week for Nintendo’s New Play Control Line is the GameCube classic Donkey Kong Jungle Beat. This was first release in 2005 and used the GameCube’s Bongo Controller. Players will tap on the drums to control Donkey Kong through the adventure game. For the Wii version, players will use the Wii remote and nunchuk, thus making it a more traditional adventure game.

Other remake available this week is Jagged Alliance. This PC turn based game will be ported to the Nintendo DS. This is good news for strategy game fans. Ready for the full game? Donkey Kong, online!