In a recent issue of Famitsu, the magazine caught up with several of the developers behind Splatoon. The lineup included producer Hisashi Nogami, art director Seita Inoue, and designer Keisuke Nishimori. Toru Minegishi and Yuki Tsuji, who worked on the game’s sound, were also in the discussion.

We’ve been poking through Famitsu’s interview again, and came across a few more interesting excerpts. We now have those ready to share.

During the interview, Famitsu asks if things like the characters’ “heads tall” ratio were firmly decided when characters were still rabbits. The developers were basically asked about body proportions and how big the head was going to be compared to the body as a whole.

Inoue and Nogami replied:

Inoue: “That wasn’t changed to an extent. As this is an action game, if you don’t make the action easy to see to a certain degree, it feels out of touch, so it was decided to have big legs and hands.”

Nogami: “There was also a reason to have a low ‘heads tall’ ratio. You can tell when a character is covered in ink from an attack because the head is big. It isn’t so just to make them look cute.”

Another topic brought up during the interview was the design points of the Inkling boy and girl. Inoue mentioned that they wanted to make elements such as the eyes and tentacles easily visible, but the form and silhouette were given a great deal of attention.

Read More

More: Famitsu, interview, Splatoon, top

Nintendo World Report has published a preview of SteamWorld Heist with some additional details. You’ll find them rounded up below.

– Different difficulty settings to choose from
– Image & Form hinted that drops and enemies change depending on this choice
– You no longer have to backtrack to your ship
– Instead, you will have to approach a newly opened passageway and get there safely as possible
– This makes matches faster, but there is less sense of dread
– Even after completing a level, new opponents could still appear and this made it a harsh ride all the way through
– While this still happens in the current version, there is more of a safety net
– Can skip some of the loot, but you need to destroy all of the enemies in the level
– Every character, friend or foe, can only move a set amount of steps and can only do so much once they are settled
– If your steps remain within a certain buffer area, you are able to fire at your opponents
– Not all the gunmen in your crew can hold the gun still and the firearms all act very different from one another
– Some only shoot one strong bullet, while others shoot three weaker ones
– The female captain, Piper, has a gun with reticle right from the start
– You have to bounce shots from walls so you can reach enemies from afar
– Can swap for a different gun that is more effective
– You won’t get any support though
– Use different items to keep yourself in the game
– Healing Oil: recover a robot’s hit points
– Characters wear different hats
– Hats give the people status in this universe
– Every hat and gun also has its own stats and abilities
– Individual crew members will level up, which allow them to better defend themselves
– Unlock new abilities as you progress
– Piper can use a Power Shot right from the get go
– Seabrass, your partner in crime, can use Payback
– This will charge him up when he takes damage
– When ready, the damage he can deal increases by 50%
– Characters have pretty straightforward skill trees
– In the original demo, you could freely explore space and tackle any mission you were interested in
– But the game now has a map screen now, so you will hop to every mission almost instantly
– You can still visit bars and purchase items, as well as recruit members
– These will only join if you have reached a certain level, so you don’t have to straight up pay for them anymore
– You will still lose them if you fail to protect them in battle

Source

More: details roundup, Image & Form, indie, SteamWorld Heist

A few days ago, Nintendo shared a few tidbits about its sales performance in the U.S. last month. But the company didn’t have much to say regarding Wii U hardware sales. While Nintendo is remaining quiet on that front, we now have a sales figure for the console thanks to creamsugar, who often leaks NPD data.

Wii U managed to sell roughly 46,000 units in the U.S. during the month of July. That would be a slight decline compared to May’s estimate of 70,000 units.

According to Nintendo, Wii U software sales increased by 10 percent through the first seven months of the year compared to the same period in 2014 in large part due to the success of Splatoon. The Big N also said that 3DS hardware sales are up by close to 35 percent.

Source

More: NPD, sales, top

We don’t usually post a whole lot of Nintendo news from South Korea, but we’ll make an exception here. It was announced today that the territory will be receiving the standard New 3DS on September 10 for 188.000 Won. The big takeaway? It comes with the snazzy-looking cover plates pictured above.

Source, Via

More: South Korea

New off-screen footage of SteamWorld Heist has come in. Check it out in the video below.

More: Image & Form, indie, SteamWorld Heist

Several announcements about Disney Infinity 3.0 were made during the D23 Expo earlier today.

A new Play Set is on the way known as “Marvel Battlegrounds”. This features new story-based levels, and it will be the first play set with 4-player cooperative multiplayer. Marvel Battlegrounds launches in spring 2016.

Disney Interactive has many new figures on the way. Hulkbuster and Ultron are coming in November, followed by Spot from Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur and Judy and Nick from Disney’s Zootopia. Peter Pan will also be getting a figure sometime in 2016.

Last but not least, a new set of limited edition Light FX Star Wars character figures were unveiled. Consumers will be able to pick up figures based on Luke Skywalker, Darth Vader, Anakin Skywalker, Yoda, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and Kanan Jarrus this holiday. Each one features Lightsabers that light up when placed on the Disney Infinity base.

Source 1, Source 2, Source 3

More: Avalanche Software, Disney Infinity 3.0, Disney Interactive

Below are the latest titles that can be currently pre-ordered at retailers:

Wii U

Disney Infinity 3.0 – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Super Mario Maker – Amazon (save $10 with Prime), Best Buy, GameStop
Skylanders SuperChargers – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Skylanders SuperChargers Dark Edition Starter Pack – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
LEGO Dimensions – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Shovel Knight – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Yoshi’s Woolly World – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Adventure Time: Finn and Jake Investigations – Amazon (new), GameStop
Guitar Hero Live – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Just Dance 2016 – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Snoopy’s Grand Adventure – Amazon, GameStop
Rodea: The Sky Soldier – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash – Amazon, GameStop
Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival – Best Buy
Star Fox Zero – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Devil’s Third – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Xenoblade Chronicles X – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
LEGO Marvel’s Avengers – Amazon
Terraria – Amazon
Mighty No. 9 – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Shin Megami Tensei x Fire Emblem – Best Buy
The Legend of Zelda – Amazon, Best Buy

3DS

LBX: Little Battlers eXperience – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Senran Kagura 2: Deep Crimson – Amazon, GameStop
Hatsune Miku: Project Mirai DX – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Skylanders SuperChargers Racing – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash – Amazon, GameStop
Shovel Knight – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
The Legend of Legacy (pre-order for launch edition) – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Adventure Time: Finn and Jake Investigations – Amazon (new), GameStop
Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Master Splinter’s Training Pack – Amazon, GameStop
Snoopy’s Grand Adventure – Amazon, GameStop
Gravity Falls: Legend of the Gnome Gemulets – Amazon, GameStop
Rodea: The Sky Soldier – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Moco Moco Friends – Amazon
Yo-Kai Watch – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Stella Glow – Amazon, GameStop
Return to PopoloCrois: A Story of Seasons Fairlytale – Amazon, Best Buy
Sonic Boom: Fire & Ice – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Final Fantasy Explorers – Amazon, Best Buy (new), GameStop
LEGO Marvel’s Avengers – Amazon
Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam – Amazon
Hyrule Warriors Legends – Amazon
Project X Zone 2 – Amazon, Best Buy, GameStop
Terraria – Amazon
Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright – Amazon, Best Buy
Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest – Amazon
Metroid Prime: Federation Force – Amazon
Zero Escape 3 – Amazon

More: pre-order

Each one of the Disney Infinity games have featured something known as the “ultimate unlock”. These are special rewards available to those who collect all of the related figures.

At the D23 Expo, it was revealed that Disney Infinity 3.0’s ultimate unlock is none other than the Keyblade from Kingdom Hearts. There are also 5,000 Kingdom Hearts costume change power discs being distributed to attendees, which will never be sold in stores.

Source

More: Disney Infinity 3.0, Disney Interactive

We have another quick look at the Super Mario Maker idea booklet included with the game. See it in the video below.

Thanks to Jake for the tip.

More: Super Mario Maker

Off-screen footage is available showing the Scooby Doo level in LEGO Dimensions. Check it out in the video below.

More: LEGO Dimensions, TT Games, Warner Bros. Interactive