OK, we admit it; Nintendo’s WiiSpeak was a bust. While the company promised a futuristic living room-style chat service for their console (which Microsoft seems to be doing with the Kinect), a lack of compatible games and mediocre quality led to a quick and merciful death for this promising, but underutilized accessory. But that doesn’t mean loyal Nintendo users don’t deserve voice-chat with their online-enabled games, and while actual said games may be few in number, its quality over quantity that counts, and few games require the precision and immediacy of true voice communication as Activision's Call of Duty franchise. While previous editions for the Wii have been somewhat sparse in the 'quality' department, fans will be happy to learn that Treyarch's latest, Black Ops, has received the royal treatment and is the best version ever released for the console. That includes an impressive campaign, Zombie modes, and (which concerns this review) online voice-chat thanks to PDP's officially-endorsed Headbanger Chat Headset.

The first thing you’re likely to think after holding the Headbanger in your hands, or placing it over your ear-of-choice, is just how good the build is. The design is pleasantly old-school, meaning it’s a relatively small device that’s built to wrap around your ear with its soft-rubber grip and speak into its boom while playing or doing other things (see below for a nice surprise). All sound controls are included right on the base of the device itself, with speaker volume handled by twisting the large dial and muting out all those embarrassing sounds by clicking the side of the base. The single speaker is covered with a comfy sponge that fits snuggly right next to your ear, and feels really nice. A blazing blue light (practically a Wii signature) lets you know its working, while a red light means you're muted. Again, this is all standard and designed for quick access during the most intense online battles, and major props to PDP for mixing practicality with such a sleek design.

The USB dongle itself is roughly the size of a generic USB thumb drive and easily fits into any available USB slot on the back of your console; plug ‘n play, baby! Keeping things need and tidy is another major feature here, as a tiny clip makes managing the USB cable while playing – literally – a snap. Whether your play style is retina-burning close-ups or sitting halfway across the room, the Headbanger gives you a full 10 feet between you and the Wii console, and its super skinny cable (similar to the Wii’s sensor bar cable) is easily wrapped and maintained thanks to its attached Velcro strap.

As Call of Duty: Black Ops is the only compatible game (more on this below) it was the only one available to test the Headbanger with. Thankfully, it does its job really well, as the Call of Duty series has always played really well with others online, and here PDP’s little device works like a charm. It’s interesting to see much of Nintendo’s dreaded Friends Code system has been conveniently worked around to let users find matches and communicate with others online. Players can be muted with the click of a (Nunchuk’s) button, and it’s incredibly easy to see who else is sporting the Headbanger headset online because there will be a little symbol next to their names. I won’t waste much time on the quality of audio, because it’s pretty much perfect, with the same level of incoming/outgoing audio you’d expect from those ‘bigger’ console games on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

Now Call of Duty: Blacks Ops on the Wii is pretty phenomenal (no, it really is) and using the Headbanger is certainly the best way to get every last ounce of Treyarch’s latest, but is it worth picking one up just for one game. I guess that really depends on just how much time you plan to spend online with Friends and stranger blasting zombie hordes and racking up experience points, but you'll probably want more after awhile. PDP is promising to update the compatible games on their website, but right now the only ones listed are Black Ops (naturally) and Sega's yet-to-be released Conduit 2. Given the history of the platform and Nintendo’s seeming indifference to giving players the full online experience, I’m not sure that we’re going to be seeing that many new titles take advantage of this sorely needed accessory, and it’s a shame that older titles (i.e. Animal Crossing) aren’t compatible with it. GolenEye 007 would be killer. Perhaps we’ll be lucky to see patches issued to fix this issue in the future, but again, let’s consider the platform…

Thankfully, those looking to pick one up should know that those wily rascals at PDP included a special bonus – it’s fully compatible with Windows-based computers. Simply plug the dongle into a free USB 2.0 slot and you’ve got a functional chat headset for your VOIP, recording, and other such activities on your computer. We tested it with some of today’s most popular online voice-chatting services (including Skype, Google Voice, and Yahoo Messenger) and it performed flawlessly. As with our playtime on the Wii, and perhaps more so, the quality of the single speaker was phenomenal and those listening were really surprised at just how clear our voice sounded on the other end. Another bonus is just how comfortable it was to use in longer sessions, and when you consider the cost a typical PC-compatible USB headset, having one of superior quality already handy gives the Headbanger some unintentional (but appreciated) extra value.

Whether its late to the party or right on time, there's no question that PDP's Headbanger Chat Headset is the best online voice-chat solution for the Nintendo Wii, even if its not compatible with older WiiSpeak games. This is how Call of Duty: Black Ops was meant to be played online, with fully supported and great-sounding voice communication, which finally lets Wii users experience what lucky Xbox 360 and PS3 users have for years; the full online game experience. Here's hoping that PDP or their respective developers will issue backwards-compatibility patches for older titles, as they'd benefit from the superior performance and comfort of this device. Another bonus is that it's fully compatible with Windows-based PCs, which makes this a great USB chat headset for anyone looking for quality online chatting. A great value all-around.