It’s settled: There has to be at least one person working for Google who is either a fan of the triforce specifically or Zelda in general. Nikola Tesla’s birthday was yesterday and the company changed their typical logo image into a Tesla Coil to celebrate his birthday. But more important to Zelda fans is that deep in the picture is a hidden logo of the triforce. Interestingly, that’s not the first time that this is happened, as many will remember that the same thing happened on Earth day. You can also see someone wearing a Link costume at the Google headquarters.

Since The Conduit released in North America, gamers have been predicting how well the game will sell, understanding that the performance of the game could impact developer and publisher decisions on the Wii in the future. This is SEGA’s third true hardcore Wii title this year and the results of the first two titles – MadWorld and House of the Dead: Overkill – were very disappointing. While we’ll have to wait for NPD numbers next week to understand just how well The Conduit has done so far, SEGA’s vice president of marketing Sean Ratcliffe has shared his opinion about the first week sales of the game. And luckily, the company seems happy thus far.

“…The game is already successful with us as the reviews have been pretty impressive. Overall the reviews have been strong, and though there will always be some naysayers we definitely feel we have been able to offer gamers the Wii experience we were looking for…Though it is still early days in the retail life of the game, we are seeing very strong week one sales and being the best shooter on the Wii means that we think we will see this game out there and selling well for a long time.”

Top Model and Yoga Enthusiast Anja Rubik Will be Your Motivating Companion Through Peaceful Yoga Sessions

Vienna, Austria, July 10, 2009; JoWooD Productions and DreamCatcher Games are pleased to announce that top model Anja Rubik will be featured in their upcoming Wii title Yoga (http://anjarubik.com). A very enthusiastic yoga practitioner, Anja will not only grace the cover, but also accompanies players during numerous relaxing Yoga exercises, providing player motivation throughout the game. Anja Rubik is considered one of the upcoming stars of the model scene and is ranked among the top 15 international supermodels.

“We’ve invested a lot in creating a fun and authentic Yoga title for Wii suitable for everyone. Regardless of your age or gender, anyone who is interested in learning more about this ancient Indian philosophy will love this game.” says Markus Reutner, Marketing manager JoWooD Productions. “Anja Rubik embodies the spirit of Yoga and thus is the perfect guide to increase motivation and promote the practice of this peaceful fitness regime.”

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Nintendo Wii

North America:
1. Wii Fit (Nintendo
2. EA Sports Active (EA Sports)
3. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo)
4. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 Wii MotionPlus Bundle (EA Sports)
5. Punch-Out!! (Nintendo)

Japan:
1. Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo)
2. Wii Fit (Nintendo)
3. Winning Eleven Play Maker 2009 (Konami)
4. Grand Slam Tennis (EA Sports)
5. Suzumiya Haruhi no Heiretsu — Chou SOS Danhiro Collection (Sega)

UK:
1. Wii Fit (Nintendo)
2. EA Sports Active (EA Sports)
3. Mario Kart Wii (Nintendo)
4. My Fitness Coach (Ubisoft)
5. Wii Play (Nintendo)

Nintendo DS

North America:
1. Mario Kart DS (Nintendo)
2. The Legendary Starfy (Nintendo)
3. New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo)
4. Guitar Hero: On Tour — Modern Hits (Activision)
5. Pokemon Platinum (Nintendo)

Japan:
1. Tomodachi Collection (Nintendo)
2. Pocket Monsters Platinum (Nintendo)
3. Gyakuten Kenji (Capcom)
4. Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (Square Enix)
5. Super Robot Taisen K (Banpresto)

UK:
1. Professor Layton and the Curious Village (Nintendo)
2. Pokemon Platinum (Nintendo)
3. Club Penguin: Elite Penguin Force (Disney)
4. Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir (Nintendo)
5. Classic Word Games (Ubisoft)

Source

This information comes from CoroCoro…

– You follow Entei, Suicune, and Raikou around Johto, just like in the original games. However, Eusine is stalking Suicune.
– Ho-Oh is in the Tin Tower and Lugia is in the Whirl Islands, both at Level 45.
– There is a new feature in the game called the “Pokeathelon,” which is a mini-game feature that uses the stylus.
– The Pokemon Gyms have various traps.
– Red Gyarados appears in the Lake of Rage at Level 30.
– The Kimono Girls are part of the storyline and you meet them many times.
– Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina each learn moves they could not previously learn – Metal Burst, Hydro Pump, and Shadow Sneak (respectively).
– There are 9 mini-games. One of them could be the racing game I saw at the early premiere of the Arceus movie.
– Eusine, a character from Crystal, is in the game.
– Latios and Latias are in the games at Level 30.
– Mewtwo is in the game – Possible Kanto confirmation if it turns out to be true.
– Lugia and Ho-Oh have a “hidden ability.”

Kirby classic returns for the Nintendo DS & DSi this Summer – Kirby Super Star Ultra!

9th July 2009 – Run, float and fight your way through Kirby’s adventures as Kirby Super Star Ultra heads to the Nintendo DS & Nintendo DSi across Europe on 18th September 2009. Not only do you have the opportunity to try out all the modes and adventures, but there are also three new Touch Screen-controlled mini-games that you can play with up to three friends via Nintendo DS Download Play.

Kirby Super Star Ultra is a remake of one of the most beloved Kirby games of all time – the 1996 classic, ‘Kirby’s Fun Pak’. On top of an array of new adventures, the modes found in the original Super NES game are all here but this time with newly added fully rendered movie scenes and updated graphics.

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Rumors began to appear last night that High Voltage is developing two unannounced titles. While it remains to be seen if the speculation was valid, signs are pointing to the fact that the company is indeed working on at least one project. A member of High Voltage commented on the new HVS title and said that gamers “are in for a real treat.” So, the chances of there being two secret titles, as was the original claim, is a strong possibility.

“Thanks for all the support guys! Im not on Grinder right now (I only helped kick start it, and no, I wont say what im on right now : ) ) but you guys are in for a real treat! I LOVE the whole horror genre and they are really coming up with some AMAZING stuff!!”

Thanks to Jake for the news tip!

There have been a number of different applications for Wii including the News Channel, Weather Channel, and even a food ordering channel (Japan only). However, none are as unique as Silver Star Japan’s newest tool for WiiWare: Easy Non Smoking Appli Wii. You can probably guess what this application is all about, but details can be read below.

– Called Raku Raku Kinen Appli Wii (“Easy Non Smoking Appli Wii”)
– Teachers others how to quit smoking in seven days
– Application also has a book
– Releasing July 14
– Smoking/Non Smoking modes
– Smoking mode – measure smoking status with Smoking Counter, record Smoking History
– Non Smoking mode – smoking journal -> answer questions
– 4 people can use the application at once
– Mii support
– 1,000 points

Small update: Wanted to thank Jake again with some help with translating!