Two third-party 3DS apps landed on Japanese 3DS systems last year: the Rekochoku music service and Dokodemo Honya-san book service. Interestingly, Nintendo now seems to be pushing both downloads to users. Through SpotPass, Dokodemo and Honya-san have been added to at least some 3DS owners. We sort of knew that this was possible, but it’s still neat to see in action.
We’ve already seen one instance in which a company created an improved version of an older game for Wii U, only to re-release it later on its original platforms (see Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge). Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director’s Cut is somewhat similar in that numerous changes and additions have made their way to the Wii U game.
But when it comes to the new Deus Ex version, it doesn’t sound like the Director’s Cut content will be coming to other platforms. Game designer Emile Pedneault told Penny Arcade Report recently that the title’s enhanced visuals, reworked bosses, and other elements aren’t planned for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC – for now, anyway.
The pages of this week’s Famitsu contain an update about Sayonara Umihara Kawase. The publication shared information regarding a couple of new characters this time around. Read on below for a summary of Famitsu’s report.
– Yokoyama: undercover time police officer from the future
– Also a descendant from the Kawase family
– Can slow the stream of time
– Emiko-chan: nine year-old girl who is friends with young Umihara Kawase
– Emiko-chan is sort of like an “easy mode” character
– She allows players to restart a level from a checkpoint if they touch it
The original Luigi’s Mansion made use of dual analog controls. Its sequel, Dark Moon, does not.
While the development team did experiment with Circle Pad Pro implementation for Dark Moon, according to director Bryce Holliday, “it didn’t add anything.”
In an interview with IGN, he said:
“We always wanted it to work with a single circle pad. When we moved to a second analog stick, because we’d actually changed that gameplay mechanic paradigm to the tug-of-war, it just wouldn’t work. There was nothing to do with the second stick. By changing, at the beginning of the project, the high-level strategy around the ghost fishing, we found that when we did experiment with the Circle Pad Pro, it didn’t add anything.”
Later in the interview, gameplay engineer Brian Davis spoke about how Toad’s involvement in Dark Moon is somewhat comparable to Link to the Past’s first mission in which players escort Zelda out of the castle:
This week’s Famitsu review scores are as follows:
Cardfight!! Vanguard: Ride to Victory (3DS) – 8/8/8/7
Sangoku Hime 2: Tenka Hatou – Shishi no Keishousha (PSP) – 5/6/4/5
Only two reviews this week, folks!
Last month, Level-5 trademarked Fantasy Life in Europe. It has now done the same in the US. This is a very encouraging sign that the 3DS title will be heading west, though no official announcements have been made at this time.
Nintendo just celebrated the 3DS’ second anniversary a few days ago. The company is giving gamers a history lesson and overview of the system with a newly-released infographic. Take a look below:
See how Nintendo #3DS has evolved over the last two years! twitter.com/NintendoAmeric…
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) April 2, 2013
The 3DS has yet to see a new game in the Advance Wars series. In fact, there hasn’t been an entry since Days of Ruin’s release in 2008.
Although there haven’t been any new Advance Wars developments in a few years, there still is quite a bit of interest in the franchise.
In the Fire Emblem: Awakening 8-4 interview published today, Nintendo director Genki Yokota said:
“Well, whether it’s Fire Emblem or the Advance Wars, we never want to put an end to any series we’re involved with. We always want to make games that provide a lot of fun to gamers, so if we have the chance, we’d certainly like to make another [Advance Wars] title.”
Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director’s Cut is far from a straight port. The team has touched up the visuals, added in some neat Wii U-specific features, and more.
Also worth mentioning are the reworked boss fights in Director’s Cut. Game designer Emile Pedneault told Siliconera that “80% of everything that is new in the Wii U version is based upon what players had to say”, including those pesky boss fights, which are now much improved.
“We listen to feedback, 80% of everything that is new in the Wii U version is based upon what players had to say, and we know that the boss fights got the biggest criticism.”
