Don’t worry, I haven’t already abandoned my shiny new website. I was just on vacation. I went to New York, and actually got a lot of awesome pictures which I will post later. Now, I figure better late than never for the weekly edition of VC vs. XBLA. Let’s see what we got this week.

Wii Virtual Console

• Gradius III (SNES) - $8
• Wonder Boy in Monster World (Genesis) - $8
• Battle Lode Runner (TG-16) - $6

Xbox Live Arcade

• Eets Chowdown - $10
• Pinball FX - $10

At first, I didn’t know what to think of the VC titles. I had heard of Gradius, but Wonder Boy and Battle Lode Runner? To be honest, this kind of thing happens somewhat frequently, since I didn’t have a TG-16 or a Genesis growing up, so I missed out on a lot of these games. After doing some Googling, I determined that both Wonder Boy and Battle Lode Runner were great games, just a little obscure. This is the double edged sword of the Virtual Console. Sure, I can go back and play these games that I never played, but how do I know I would like them? This is when Xbox Live Arcade’s demo system really shines. Similarly, I had never heard of Eets Chowdown either, but in contrast, I was able to try it out without spending a single virtual penny. Ultimately I decided both XBLA titles were definitely fun. Pinball FX doesn’t sound like much, but it is a pretty nice looking, and fun to play pinball game.

Overall, no must-buys this week, but kudos to XBLA for letting me figure that out myself. Also, yet another two-fer this week for the XBLA. Congrats Microsoft, this round goes to you.