NYC

Turns out our snooping was spot on -- Nintendo has just made official its intention to drop the suggested retail price of the Wii down to $149.99, and will additionally include a copy of  Mario Kart  and the Wii Wheel peripheral with all purchases of the console. They'll replace the current bundle of  Wii Sports  and Wii Sports Resort  games. The steering wheel, along with the Wii Remote Plus and Nunchuk controllers, will match the color of the console you buy, whether it be black or white, and will also be available to buy separately for a scant $9.99. See Nintendo's full press release after the break. 

Nintendo's miniature white monolith has sold like gangbusters for long enough that we're wary it'll ever get cheap, but a trusted source tells us a price cut is indeed headed our way -- and that the Nintendo Wiiwill cost just $150 starting May 15th. The timing would make some sense, given how Nintendo's profits have tanked for a while due to flagging hardware sales, and just last month Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime hinted that the Wii's price might be a potential variable to change that in an interview with  Gamasutra . Still, we're not fully convinced that Nintendo would announce a price cut then, rather than, say, at the Electronics Entertainment Expo in June, and it's not like the company to let this sort of announcement leak out. Still, if you find a shiny new copy of  Mario Kart Wii  in a $150 console bundle this time next month, don't say we didn't warn you.