This Monday sees the launch of WiiWare in North America, Nintendo’s independent gaming download service for the Nintendo Wii. There’ll be - count ‘em - six titles available at launch, including Square Enix’s Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life As A King, Frontier’s LostWinds and XGen’s Defend Your Castle.

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life As A King (1 Player, 1500 Wii Points):

My Life as a King is a fantasy city-building simulator in which the player creates a kingdom from the ground up. Starting with a a barren town consisting of a lone castle and a large power crystal, by using the crystal’s power the player can magically place a variety of buildings to populate the settlement and draw in residents. To continue using the crystal to build up the settlement, the player must accumulate spirit power which must be obtained from smaller crystals found in the dungeons and caves that surround the town.

According to legend, a deserted town now serves as the lifeless reminder of a once powerful kingdom. The young son of an exiled king reaches this land after a long journey, finding only an abandoned castle – and a magic crystal. Though tarnished by years of neglect, the crystal has maintained its luminous glow and bestows upon the boy the power of architek, the ability to manifest memories into reality. With the help of loyal servants and audacious adventurers, the new king dutifully prepares to rebuild his people’s homeland in this new realm.

LostWinds (Frontier, 1 Player, 1000 Wii Points):

LostWinds is a platform/adventure video game in development for WiiWare. It stars a young boy named Toku tasked with saving his homeland from the vengeful elemental Balasar with guidance from fellow wind elemental Enril. The player controls Toku, but simultaneously uses the Wii Remote to draw directional paths on-screen that control the wind. Wind is used to enhance Toku’s jumps, defeat or immobilize enemies, and solve puzzles.

Built with Frontier’s in-house 3D game-engine technology LostWinds puts “the power of the wind in the palm of your hand” as you wield the awesome powers of Enril the wind spirit - from raging tornados to the gentlest breeze – to guide and protect Toku, a young boy who is the only one who can help you release the curse placed upon the world of Mistralis by evil Balasar. Mistralis is a stunningly presented, magical land full of wonder and intrigue that bursts to life with your every action and exploration. The game’s novel, playful control mechanism lets you use Enril’s elemental powers to help Toku in your quest to overcome Balasar – powering his jumps and glides through Mistralis’ different regions, buffeting and smashing enemies, and solving puzzles.

Defend Your Castle (XGen Studios, 1-4 Players, 500 Wii Points):

The basic gameplay of Defend Your Castle is to dispatch all enemy units before they reach your castle. There are various ways of accomplishing this task, such as picking up your enemies and throwing them up into the air and attacking them with a large array of weapons such as magic spells and arrows.

The Barbarian hordes have amassed their forces once again to challenge your domain. Will you and your court rise to the challenge, or stand aside as the invaders raze your Castle to the ground?

Pop (Nnooo, 1-4 Players, 700 Wii Points):

Pop involves the player popping bubbles to score points against a time limit. Players click on bubbles that float up the screen using the Wii Remote, gaining bonus points if popping successions of bubbles, and adding more time to the clock. The game also supports competitive multiplayer for up to 4 players, which involves each player trying to score as many points as possible in a set time limit. Power-ups can also be collected to hinder the other players. These include darkening the whole screen save for the area around the collecting player’s cursor, or shocking opponents with a lightning bolt to stop them from popping bubbles.

The single and multi-player game will give gamers the chance to burst their way through waves of bubbles - grabbing power-ups, multipliers, chains and aiming for worldwide high-scores. Pop™ is designed to be enjoyed by all ages, either in single player or with up to three friends and allows people to steal points from opponents and use the controller to pump up the bubbles for bigger explosions. It is based around a simple concept which anyone can pick and play with layers of skill involved. Core gamers and those new to the Wii™, or games in general, will all find it enjoyable.

V.I.P. Casino (High Voltage, 1-4 Players, 700 Wii Points):

V.I.P. Casino: Blackjack re-creates the casino experience, with fully animated players and a realistic Las Vegas dealer. Single players can increase their bankrolls, while multiple players can engage in a head-to-head mini-blackjack tournament.

TV Show King (Gameloft, 1-4 players, 1,000 Wii Points):

Up to four players, represented by Miis, compete against each other in a three round trivia contest. The 3000 trivia questions cover a wide range of subjects, ranging from geography and general knowledge to pop culture, with a number of region specific questions.

Players are given timed multiple choice answers, with players selecting the correct answer on their screen with the Wii Remote, with the fastest selections resulting in greater prize money. Players can also take their chances for greater rewards by spinning a wheel with both good and bad outcomes between rounds. At the end of the game, the two highest scoring players are pitted against each other to determine the winner.

TV Show King transforms your living room into a real TV quiz show studio where you’ll face the challenge of answering more than 3,000 questions across six different categories. Compete against family and friends and use your Wii Remote controller in original ways to make it to the finals to see who can win the greatest amount of cash in one final, deciding duel.

“WiiWare is to the video game industry what independent films are to Hollywood,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “WiiWare lets developers experiment with new ideas and experiences. Combined with our collection of classic Virtual Console games, Wii provides one-stop shopping for the greatest games of the past – and the future.”

Happy with the first WiiWare offerings? Let us know in the comments section below.