In an interview with Nintendo Life, co-founder Jools Watsham made note of the fact that the studio is “eager to explore 3D games for the Wii U”. The team is “currently looking into the Unity engine for that.”

When asked about future Wii U support, Watsham said:

“Well, we now have a snazzy 2D platformer engine for the Wii U that we’ll certainly be taking advantage of in the future. We’re also eager to explore 3D games for the Wii U and are currently looking into the Unity engine for that.”

Source

Analyst: Wii U “struggling mightily”, E3 price cut possible

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

The Wii U is “struggling mightily,” Cowen & Company analyst Doug Creutz has said.

Creutz’s E3 investors note mentions that the Wii U could see a “badly needed” price cut at E3 to increase momentum and boost sales. New games could provide a spark as well.

Creutz’s comments in full:

“After seven months on the market, Nintendo’s Wii U is struggling mightily. We note that the company has essentially abandoned the field to Microsoft and Sony at this year’s E3 as Nintendo will not be holding a press conference.”
“However, we do think there is a decent chance that Nintendo could announce a price cut for the Wii U at E3 in an effort to bring attention to the console and boost sales. We note that the console will have a series of key new games coming out through the late summer and fall, beginning with Pikmin 3 in August. Nintendo’s window for igniting interest in its console is closing with Microsoft and Sony’s competing machines soon to come to market.”

Source

Mighty Switch Force! 2 price, new screenshots

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS eShop, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

Mighty Switch Force! 2 will cost $5.99. That’s according to an official listing on Nintendo’s website.

WayForward plans to release Mighty Switch Force! 2 next Thursday on the North American 3DS eShop. Europe will be receiving the game on June 27.

Game Informer’s top 25 DS games of all time

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in DS, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

In its latest issue, Game Informer ranked the top 25 DS games of all time.

New Super Mario Bros. took the top spot. Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Advance Wars: Dual Strike, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, and Pokemon Black/White rounded out the top five.

Here’s the full list:

1. New Super Mario Bros.
2. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
3. Advance Wars: Dual Strike
4. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars
5. Pokemon Black & White
6. Professor Layton and the Curious Village
7. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow
8. Contra 4
9. Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift
10. Animal Crossing: Wild World
11. Radiant Historia
12. Kirby Canvas Curse
13. The World Ends with You
14. Super Scribblenauts
15. Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story
16. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Trials & Tribulations
17. Metroid Prime Pinball
18. Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime
19. Tetris DS
20. Trauma Center: Under the Knife
21. Okamiden
22. Picross 3D
23. Mario Kart DS
24. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
25. Korg DS-10 Synthesizer

Source

Link to the Past 3DS sequel has “big surprise that will shock players”, returning characters

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

More snippets from EDGE’s Eiji Aonuma have emerged. The latest talk specifically covers Nintendo’s 3DS follow-up to The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.

Speaking with EDGE, Aonuma teased “a big surprise that will shock players” right at the beginning, and confirmed the return of characters from the original game:

“This new title will feature lots of things that are new to the series; right at the start of the game, there’s a big surprise that will shock players. We started out with the new play mechanics, such as Link being able to become a painting and walk along the walls, and then figured out from there how to build a story around them. Rather than forcing elements of the original story into this one, we’ve instead focused on bringing back the characters, so you can see what happened to them after the events of the first game.”

Aonuma also spoke briefly about the inclusion of the Dark World:

“Part of what made A Link To The Past interesting was the way you could move between the Light World and the Dark World and solve puzzles, and we’re planning to bring that back in A Link To The Past 2 for sure. Link’s ability to become a painting will be related to that.”

Source

Ubisoft still believes in Wii U, says a single game can turn things around

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments

While Wii U support from third-parties dwindle, there’s one publisher that continues to take an active approach. Ubisoft has supported the console since launch and continues to put out some of its most-important games.

Much has been made about poor Wii U sales in recent months. However, Ubisoft EMEA exec director Alain Corre told MCV that just one game could turn the system around.

Corre said:

“It takes time for a machine to establish itself. We’ve seen in the past that when more games come, the console picks up. That is what we believe will happen for Wii U. There is a place in the market for each console, and with the right games Wii U will find its public and sell in the long-term.”
“One single game can change a platform’s fortunes – it happened for the DS, it happened for the Super Nintendo. I believe it can be the same for Wii U.”

Source

Aonuma: Link to the Past sequel will play different to the original, more unexpected elements in Zelda Wii U

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

The new Zelda: A Link to the Past game on 3DS and Zelda Wii U title will both introduce brand new elements.

When it comes to the Link to the Past sequel, Aonuma said that it “will play very differently to the original.” The development team is adding in “new additions” that “will make players see the game in a different way.”

Aonuma also spoke very briefly about Nintendo’s original Zelda Wii U game, which will “introduce even more unexpected elements”.

Aonuma told EDGE this month:

“The new game (A Link To The Past 2) will play very differently to the original. I think the new additions will make players see the game in a different way. And, of course, we’ll introduce even more unexpected elements in the Zelda game that we’re making for Wii U.”

Source

Nintendo Download (6/6/13, North America)

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS eShop, News, Podcast Stories, Wii Shop Channel, Wii U eShop | 0 comments

This week’s North American Nintendo Downloads are as follows:

E3 on the eShop

Not going to E3 2013? Not a problem!
You can find the latest Nintendo news and announcements from E3 right in the Nintendo eShop. Watch the Nintendo Direct presentation, game trailers and interviews. It’s the latest info from Nintendo at E3, right from the palm of your hand.

Wii U VC

Yoshi – 30 cents (available June 12)
Spelunker – $4.99

3DS retail

Animal Crossing: New Leaf – $34.99

Wii U eShop sale

Trine 2: Director’s Cut – $9.99 until 9 a.m. PT on June 27

Wii U eShop price drop

Marvel Avengers: Battle for Earth – New price of $29.99

Wii VC

Sengoku 3

Source: Nintendo PR

Sakurai confirms Smash Bros. video for E3 2013 Nintendo Direct

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, News, Podcast Stories, Wii U | 0 comments

Masahiro Sakurai has confirmed that a Smash Bros. trailer will be shown during the E3 2013 Nintendo Direct next week… well, “video” more specifically.

Sakurai shared the news through Twitter.

Back in January, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata announced that “images” from the new Smash Bros. Wii U and 3DS game would be unveiled at E3.

Source

Aonuma on working on something other than Zelda, more

Posted on 11 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, General Nintendo, News, Podcast Stories | 0 comments

Eiji Aonuma has been working on Zelda for a very, very long time. He has almost exclusively been involved with the franchise since joining Nintendo. With retirement coming sooner rather than later, Aonuma is thinking about trying “all sorts of new things before it’s too late”.

Aonuma told EDGE this month:

“I’m 50 now, so I only have about ten more years to make games at Nintendo. I want to try all sorts of new things before it’s too late — I don’t want to get to the end of my career and only have worked on Zelda. But every time I come up with some good new ideas, they end up being used in a Zelda game! I need a six-month break to get away from the Zelda cycle and focus on something new [laughs]. But I’d probably end up making a game that is similar to Zelda; after all, A Link to the Past was my biggest influence.”