Japan saw its slowest video game sales last week
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 2 Comments
Japan saw its slowest week in 2014 thus far in terms of game sales. According to Media Create, total software sales dipped below 380,000 units. Previously, the third week of May was Japan’s slowest.
There weren’t many games that sold particular well last week. Pro Evolution Soccer 2014: Challenge of the Blue Samurai experienced a slight uptick – likely due to the FIFA World Cup – but that’s about it.
More: Japan, Media Create, sales
Yacht Club on what’s next for Shovel Knight, possibility of sequels, interest in original titles
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS eShop, General Nintendo, News, Wii U eShop | 3 Comments
Shovel Knight designer/director Sean Velasco and pixel artist Nick Wozniak recently spoke with Hardcore Gamer and gave some lengthy insight into what the studio has planned next for the game. Additionally, Yacht Club discussed the possibility of sequels – again touching on ideas like a 16 bit version or N64-styled game with 3D visuals – as well as interest in pursuing original titles as well.
You can find Velasco and Wozniak’s comments below and the full interview here.
More: indie, interview, Nick Wozniak, Sean Velasco, top, Yacht Club Games
Pokemon: Symphonic Evolutions live orchestral concert tour kicks off on August 15
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments
Program will feature all-new arrangements and timed visuals from the world-renowned series of video games
BELLEVUE, WA—June 30, 2014—The Pokémon Company International and Princeton Entertainment announced today that the official Pokémon live orchestral concert series, Pokémon: Symphonic Evolutions, will premiere at the famed Warner Theater in Washington, DC on Friday, August 15, 2014. The 2014 Pokémon World Championships will also be held in the nation’s capital that weekend, August 16–17, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center.
The premiere performance in Washington, DC will be followed by a performance at Philadelphia’s Mann Center for the Performing Arts on Friday, September 19th. More dates, locations, and ticket information for the concert series will be announced soon and further details, including how to purchase tickets now to the Washington, DC and Philadelphia performances, can be found at PokemonSymphony.com.
Latest listing of Nintendo subsidiaries
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 6 Comments
Nintendo shared an updated listing of Nintendo subsidiaries in a newly-published security report.
Here’s the full listing as of June 30:
Miyamoto no longer attending the Japan Expo for personal reasons
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 3 Comments
Last week, we heard that Shigeru Miyamoto would be attending the Japan Expo in France. Those plans have sadly since been scrapped.
Nintendo of France announced on Twitter that Miyamoto won’t be at the expo for person reasons. Specifically, his absence is due to the health of his father.
We regret to announce that Mr Miyamoto will not present at Japan Expo for personal reasons related to the health of his father.
More: Japan Expo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Aonuma believes that finding treasure is one of Zelda’s most enjoyable elements
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 12 Comments
Earlier this month, Nintendo launched something called “Nintendo News” on its Japanese website. Think of it as a weekly online magazine in a way.
The latest issue, posted a few days ago, features some comments from Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma who reflected on the series. Aonuma spoke in one part about how discovering treasure is one of Zelda’s most enjoyable aspects.
On the topic of finding things when you go on an adventure, Aonuma said:
My son is in elementary school, and he asked, “What is so fun about Zelda anyway?” I tell him, “Finding treasure is the most fun!” Even if it is only one rupee inside the treasure chest, I think (laughs). Whenever you find a treasure chest, there is always a “Yes! I found it!”-sense of accomplishment, and when you open it, it is just so fun to hear. To discover a new item, I think I find pleasure in both the surprise and the opening.
More: Eiji Aonuma, interview, The Legend of Zelda
Looking into the release date origins of Vs. Super Mario Bros.
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 0 comments
For those unaware, Nintendo released an arcade version of Super Mario Bros. back in the day titled “Vs. Super Mario Bros.” When exactly the game came out is unclear. Some have even said that the arcade version of Super Mario Bros. came first, with the NES/Famicom version following later.
German website Nintendo-Online recently looked into the release date origins of Vs. Super Mario Bros. Here’s a summary of their findings:
? It is widely believed that Super Mario Bros. first launched in Japan on September 13th., 1985, on the Famicom. In 1985 or 1986 it was released in North America and 1987 in Europe on the NES.
? Later it was ported to arcade. This version is known as Vs. Super Mario Bros. and was launched in North America in 1986.
? But Nintendo-Online found four trustful sources claiming that Super Mario Bros. was originally released as an arcade game.
? The first source is a review SMB in a 1987 issue of the German video game magazine Happy Computer. Here, Heinrich Lenhardt – a famous German video game journalist – wrote what translates to “Arcade visitors might already know this game, that is now available in a nearly identical implementation for the Nintendo Videogame [sic]“
? In 1994 the famous video game historian Leonard Herman wrote in Phoenix: The Fall & Rise of Videogames: “[T]he home version of Super Mario Bros. looked and played exactly like its arcade counterpart.”
? The most detailed reference to an arcade machine that preceded the home console version of SMB comes from video game historian Steve L. Kent. In his 2001 book The Ultimate History of Video Games, he wrote “Super Mario Bros. did very well in Japanese arcades and attracted some attention to the failing U.S. arcade industry. By the end of the year, Nintendo engineers succeeded in creating a home version of Super Mario Bros. for the Famicom. […] Although the home version of Super Mario Bros. was not identical to the arcade game, it was an extremely close approximation.”.
? In 2009, Kent repeated the basic information in a blog entry (http://sadsamspalace.blogspot.de/2009/08/okay-now-that-i-haveofficially-looked.html) where he stresses that this mysterious arcade game is not identical to Vs. Super Mario Bros. and was released a year before the Famicom version: “[A]n arcade version of the game predates the NES version and the well-known VS version. The original arcade version shipped in 1984.”
? In 2011, Tony Mott, editor-in-chief of Edge magazine, notes in his book 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die that Super Mario Bros. has been “originally an arcade game”.
? So there are four video game journalists and historians that mention such an arcade game. But it seems that until now no major website has taken note of this evidence. Nintendo-Online tried to further investigate on this matter, but unfortunately did not really succeed. Also, they tried contacting some of these authors, which was also not successful.
? Concludingly the site has to say that it is not sure what to think of these references. There is no obvious evidence for the existence of an arcade port preceded the home console version of SMB. After all, if that would be the case, we would have real proof for that. But on the other hand, it is quite unlikely that all of the four sources are based on misconceptions. So Nintendo-Online could not clarify this mystery. But at least we could point it out and could conclude that the existence of such an early arcade port is very unlikely.
More: Vs. Super Mario Bros.
Video: Scott Moffitt talks talks game lineup, Amiibo, eSports
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, General Nintendo, Videos, Wii U | 0 comments
More: interview, Scott Moffitt, top
Miyamoto: “I really think there needs to be a Nintendo genre”
Posted on 10 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 14 Comments
“I really think there needs to be a Nintendo genre,” legendary video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto has said.
Speaking with the LA Times, Miyamoto stated:
“Nintendo isn’t one simple element of an overall gaming industry. I really think there needs to be a Nintendo genre, that’s almost its own entity.
Miyamoto later spoke of designing games as making performance art. As opposed to making “games seem really cool”, the folks at Nintendo enjoy laughing at themselves and he believes the company is almost like a group of “performers.”
It’s not that I don’t like serious stories or that I couldn’t make one, but currently in the video game industry you see a lot of game designers who are working really hard to make their games seem really cool. For a lot of us at Nintendo, it’s difficult to decide what cool is. In fact, it’s a lot easier for us to laugh at ourselves. It’s almost as if we’re performers. Our way of performing is by creating these fun, odd and goofy things.”
