This holiday season Nintendo will release a new Black version of the Wii Remote bundled with a Black version of the Wii MotionPlus accessory, which brings precise motion control to games that have been designed for it. A Black version of the Nunchuk controller also will be available for the holidays. The Black bundle is the first new color for the Wii Remote and Wii MotionPlus. The Black Nunchuk will be available as a standalone purchase

Starting Sept. 13, Nintendo DSi will be available in White and Pink, joining the Blue and Black versions already on the market. The two new colors give consumers even more options to personalize their experiences. All models of the Nintendo DSi hardware come with two cameras and interactive options to let users create and manipulate pictures or sound in fun and creative ways. All versions of Nintendo DSi are available at a suggested retail price of $169.99.

Nintendo today announced that the new Wii Fit(TM) Plus game will launch in North America on Oct. 4. Wii Fit Plus will replace the current Wii Fit(TM) configuration at retail, and will be bundled with the Wii Balance Board(TM) accessory at a suggested retail price of $99.99. For people who currently own Wii Fit and want to add the expanded options to their fitness regimen, the Wii Fit Plus disc will be available on its own at a suggested retail price of $19.99.

Announcements Give Consumers New Options

LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Nintendo today announced that the new Wii Fit™ Plus game will launch in North America on Oct. 4, and also revealed new colors for its popular Nintendo DSi™ system and for the revolutionary Wii Remote™ and Nunchuk™ controllers and Wii MotionPlus™ accessory. Starting Sept. 13, Nintendo DSi will be available in White and Pink, joining the Blue and Black versions already on the market. Additionally, this holiday season, Nintendo will release a new Black version of the Wii Remote bundled with a Black version of the Wii MotionPlus accessory, which brings precise motion control to games that have been designed for it. A Black version of the Nunchuk controller also will be available for the holidays.

Nintendo of America President & COO Reggie Fils-Aime made these announcements in his keynote address at the 2009 GameStop Manager Conference.

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Update: Also revealed at the conference, a black version of the Wiimote/nunchuck/Wii jacket will release this holiday. According to Nintendo, they will be in short supply.

On Saturday, we posted about the North American DSi launch for the pink and white handhelds, which was discovered over on Amazon. However, now the September 13th release date is practically a guarantee. News from the GameStop Manager’s conference in Las Vegas has apparently confirmed that the new colors will arrive in less two weeks. No press release has been sent out as of yet, but look for Nintendo to make an announcement very soon.

Keep in mind that Square Enix may update their TGS site over the next few days/weeks with additional titles.

Playable titles

– Final Fantasy Gaiden: Four Warriors of Light
– Final Fantasy XIII
– Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers
– Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep
– Front Mission Evolved
– Seiken Densetsu 2
– Dragon Quest Fushigi no Dungeon

Video only

– Dissidia Universal Tuning
– Final Fantasy XIV
– Dragon Quest Monsters Battle Road II
– Lord of Vermillion II
– Final Fantasy XI Vana’diel Collection 2
– Kingdom Hearts Coded
– Final Fantasy IV The After Years
– Dragon Quest IX

Not present

– Final Fantasy Versus XIII
– Final Fantasy Agito XIII
– The 3rd Birthday

Source 1 (TGS site here), Source 2

Metroid Prime 3: Corruption featured the first heavy dialogue voice overs in a Metroid game. Actually, the first few minutes of the game sported more exchanges than what can be seen in all of the other Metroid titles put together.

In one particular scene, Admiral Dane says, “Damn! They’re targeting the planetary-defense system.” Yet Nintendo felt compelled to censor “damn” for the re-release of Corruption in Metroid Prime Trilogy. When playing through the game on the Trilogy disc, the sentence can now be seen/heard as “No! They’re targeting the planetary-defense system.”

It’s a bit odd that Nintendo changed one little word this time around. Most gamers probably wouldn’t even think twice about listening to the word “damn” while playing. Seeing as how Nintendo deemed it perfectly fine to leave it in there the first time, it makes one wonder what motivated the censorship of that one word.

Source 1, Source 2

Thanks to Ross M for the news tip!

Nintendo’s Denise Kaigler on a DSi Virtual Console…

“I’m glad that your readers are so enthusiastic about the potential for Nintendo DSi. That’s one of the things that’s so great about the system: It fires up the imaginations of developers and users alike to come up with creative new features and content. Unfortunately, a portable Virtual Console isn’t something that we have plans for right now. It’s an intriguing idea, but I have to give you a straight answer, even if it isn’t the one you necessarily want to hear.”

Denise Kaigler on Club Nintendo…

“Well, we can’t announce new specific items until all the details have been locked down. Sometimes that’s frustrating to us as well, since we want to get the news to Nintendo fans as soon as we know about it.

…Because you asked, I wouldn’t dare let this Nintendo Minute expire without leaving you with one, albeit small, piece of insider information about Club Nintendo. Keep your eyes on the Club Nintendo Web site in September. That’s when we will offer members some exclusive Nintendo artwork. For the reason I mentioned earlier, I can’t say any more than that right now – it’s a secret to everybody. I’m really sorry. Hopefully some of you will enjoy it. Others may choose to hang on to the Coins and wait for a different reward. I love surprises. I hope you do as well.”

Would it be too much to ask for more Zelda Wii artwork? That’d probably be too good to be true, wouldn’t it?

Source

It may not seem like there has been a huge jump in the overall average compared to last year, but now the system is right around where the quality of PS3/360 games stand. Titles such as MadWorld, House of the Dead: Overkill, Punch-Out!!, and even Wii Sports Resort have contributed to the increase in review scores. And 2009 isn’t over yet – We still have Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories, and New Super Mario Bros. Wii to look forward to, which will boost this year’s number even further.

Source 1, Source 2

Square Enix announced today that the official FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES: THE CRYSTAL BEARERS Fan Site Kit (FSK) is now available for download at http://www.thecrystalbearers.com/.

The FSK (10 MB) includes all the materials bloggers and webmasters will need to create a compelling Crystal Chronicles-themed Web site, including artwork, characters, icons, monsters, screenshots and logos. FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES: THE CRYSTAL BEARERS, the highly anticipated action-adventure game, will be available this winter, exclusively for Nintendo Wii.

About FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES: THE CRYSTAL BEARERS
FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES: THE CRYSTAL BEARERS provides a fresh take on the FINAL FANTASY CRYSTAL CHRONICLES series as it combines the storytelling depth, expansive world and graphical quality of FINAL FANTASY with motion-driven, real-time action gameplay. In this world, realistic gameplay and fantastical art direction are brought together for a truly unique experience for Wii users around the globe.

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