Sometimes you just need to shake things up to keep them interesting. That’s especially true with the recent launch of the Nintendo eShop, a new virtual store that gives Nintendo 3DS™ users access to a wide variety of downloadable games and select content that can be viewed in 3D without the need for special glasses. To mark the debut of the Nintendo eShop – and provide consumers with a valuable one-stop showcase of all the latest downloadable content across Nintendo systems – the weekly Nintendo Download is about to get a makeover.
Starting June 16, the Nintendo Download will include information about the newest additions to the Nintendo eShop, including new 3D games, 3D Classics (select classic video games re-mastered in 3D), Virtual Console™ versions of games from the Game Boy™ and Game Boy Color systems, and hundreds of games originally offered via the Nintendo DSiWare™ service. What’s more, this modified weekly update will be posted Thursdays instead of Mondays, giving fans a heads-up on the latest offerings just in time for the weekend.
REDMOND, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Families can now expand their Nintendo video game library and their collection of Wii™ accessories at the same time, at a suggested retail price that’ll keep them smiling. Launching today exclusively for the Wii system, the Wii Play™: Motion game invites people to join together for a variety of new motion-controlled activities that will have everyone in the household enjoying themselves throughout the summer and beyond. Building on the immersive, family-friendly action of the original Wii Play™ – one of the top-selling video games of all time – Wii Play: Motion comes packaged with a black Wii Remote™ Plus controller, which features the built-in precise motion control of the Wii MotionPlus™ accessory. Wii Play: Motion is offered at a suggested retail price of $49.99.
The 12 included games in Wii Play: Motion ask players to wield the Wii Remote Plus (or Wii Remote with Wii MotionPlus accessory, sold separately) in a multitude of interesting ways. In Wind Runner, players tilt the controller to change the angle of an umbrella as they ride gusts of wind along a gem-filled race course. In Veggie Guardin’, they swing the controller like a mallet to ward off pests that threaten to steal vegetables from their garden. Spooky Search brings the action off the screen and into the living room by challenging players to track invisible spirits by pointing the controller around the room and listening for clues. In Teeter Targets, players carefully flip a ball into targets by tilting the controller like a seesaw.
This year’s E3 was an event filled with fantastic visual and technical spectacles. From the Wii U’s unveiling to the graphically stunning Uncharted 3 getting a gameplay demo, to a Zelda HD trailer and Resident Evil Revelations blowing all other 3DS titles out of the water (visually, anyway), it almost seemed taboo that the highlight of the show for me would be getting to sit down and play a game that featured neither giant explosions nor high definition graphics. I was on my way back to our hotel on the last day of the convention, prepared to stay up until 4AM yet again and write about everything I had seen before flying home the next day. As far as I was concerned, E3 was over.
As far as the E3 gods were concerned, however, I still had work to do. It is for this reason (I assume; the reasoning of the E3 gods can be tricky to decipher) that they lead me to run into none other than Renegade Kid’s co-founder and director, Jools Watsham who, after a brief conversation, pulled out his 3DS and let me try my hand at the newly transformed Maximillion and the Rise of the Mutant Mudds.
I was about 60% certain he wouldn’t be getting it back from me. Ever.
The Wii always had an uphill battle going for it since gamers and publishers alike considered the console to be more “kiddy” compared to the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Fortunately, the situation is much different this time around. Third-parties are preparing high-quality, mature, blockbuster releases in its first year on the market.
One such company providing support is THQ, who is looking to ship Darksiders II for launch. Danny Bilson explained why the company is confident that they can have success with a mature title on the system day one:
“If you look historically, there were a couple of games that were there at launch that did really well on the Wii… Red Steel for instance. But I don’t look at it as a kiddie platform. I look at it as a platform for everybody, and it has the power for everybody. So there’s going to be a lot of core games from other companies as well as us on there, and I think the gamer’s going to go for the best experience, wherever it is. Ultimately, the hardware is a small investment compared to what [gamers] spend on software. If you buy 10 games, that’s $600, and a platform? I don’t know what their price point is, but it’s a smaller investment [than the software]. I have no concern at all that core people are going to say [derisively], “Oh, it’s Nintendo.” Core gamers love Zelda. They love Mario. It’s all part of whatever a great game is.”
For whatever reason, when we switched servers right before E3, forum integration with the main site almost destroyed everything entirely. To say the least, that wasn’t fun! We had to disable the integration to ensure that NE could be accessed during E3, but I now have restored everything… almost. There are just a few more things that I have to work on, but some issues are causing a tremendous amount of trouble.
Specifically, on your end, you may find that you keep getting logged out after you visit a few pages on the main site. For now it looks like you will stay logged in if you only visit forum pages. That isn’t exactly an ideal situation, though. I’ll keep working until I (hopefully) get everything back in working order.
It’s finally done. After months of speculation, Nintendo has unveiled their brand new home console. A good amount of the rumors were surprisingly spot on. The controller does indeed have a 6.2 inch screen, which is a touch sensitive, and it includes a camera as well.
Since a few days have passed since Nintendo’s E3 2011 conference, perhaps it’d be a good time to reflect on the Wii U’s showing. I’ll share my thoughts below and hopefully you guys will as well in the comments area!
This information comes from Yoshikazu Matsuhana (Google translated)…
“We would also like to see Metal Gear Solid 2 on 3DS. If the return fan is quite important, we believe. It is also the case for other franchises from Konami headlights. Maybe Castlevania.”
Hmm… Castlevania 3DS certainly interests me! I was really hoping Konami would announce something at this year’s E3. We saw three Castlevania DS games, so I’m hoping the 3DS will get some love as well.
Reggie Fils-Aime on the reaction to Wii U…
“Reaction has been very positive, not only to the journalist side. We have spent time with the analysts, the publishers. I make it a point whenever I have a break just to walk the floor and the reaction is extremely strong [among the show attendees]. People are excited, people are waiting to get their hands on it, people are getting into line twice and that’s true whether it’s for Wii U or for Nintendo 3DS as we have had lines back up. So the reaction has been very strong.”
Reggie on how the design thinking evolved/what Nintendo wanted to do with the next console…
