Sorry for the repeated replies, LOL, but I've seen a few unanswered questions.
To begin with, bookmark the following link :
North American Virtual Console Releases - Wikipedia. They are keeping up a detailed list of what came out when, and what is expected to be coming out on what dates. If you are in other regions, you should see links from the main
Wikipedia Virtual Console Wii article for your region. It's important to note that each region has different releases at this point, and it seems this will continue into the future.
New games are released to VC in the North American Region at 9AM PST on Mondays. So far, they have been averaging four new titles per week.
If you look at the Wikipedia articles there are some charts regarding controller compatability with VC titles. So far, the Gamecube controller is compatable with every game released. Nintendo has stated that the Gamecube controller will work with all first-party (NES, SNES, N64) games, and MOST Genesis/TG16 games (though none that are incompatable have been released thus far).
To be honest, I think we'll see very few titles that aren't compatable with the GC controller. The GC controller has enough buttons to remap that it can easily replace both the Genesis and TG16 controllers. I guess statistically they could prove that if a game used every single button and every single option there might be some arcane combination that won't work, but I think it's just a marketing thing. They don't want to tell people "no, you don't really need a classic controller."
That said,
I LOVE THE CLASSIC CONTROLLER. Somehow, playing with a big ugly wire hanging out of my Wii felt so...confining. Once I got a classic controller, I played many more VC games. What I like best about it is that it just plugs into the Wii Remotie for power, but you can just set the Wii Remote off to the side or in your lap or wherever. Since it only uses the bluetooth to send data from the classic controller, it doesn't even need to see the Sensor Bar. It's really nice to be seated, pick up the Wii Remote, turn on my Wii from across the room, and start playing without having to change carts or what have you.
So no, if you can't get one by Christmas you won't notice it. Right now, and likely for the forseeable future, every VC game will be GameCube controller compatable, and many (mainly the NES and TG16 games) will be playable with just the Wii Remote. However, at $20 the Classic Controller is a great thing to pick up when you can - it's just the nicest, most comfortable controller I've used.
If you check out the Wikipedia link, you'll see that there are already release dates for the coming Genesis and TG16 games. Basically, the fan community has a good idea of what is coming in general as all of these games are from the period before there was an ESRB ratings system, so before they go on VC they are getting rated by the board. The ESRB website lists all the games it has approved/reviewed recently, so it was easy to get list of what we can expect in the coming months based on what they have run before the ESRB. Nintendo is being closed lipped about when it's first party titles are coming, but Sega and other companies have announced many of their dates (if you look, for example, Toe Jam and Earl is coming on Christmas Day).
Finally, here are some dates to note -
December 20th : Launch of the Weather/Forcast Channel
December 23rd : Expected "surprise" launch of the Internet Channel
Jan 27th : Launch of the News Channel
NED
only seven hours of freezing. The kids will open a great gift on Christmas morning.
