The latest issue of Famitsu has a massive Splatoon interview. Producer Hisashi Nogami, art director Seita Inoue, designer Keisuke Nishimori, sound director Toru Minegishi, and sound composer Yuki Tsuji spoke with the magazine. That’s a lot of developers indeed!

During one point of the discussion, Inoue and Nishimori spoke about how the Inkling design centered around the girl at first.

They said:

“The main emphasis was on the girl, to the extent that we thought at first whether it would be alright to not have a boy (laughs).” – Inoue

“When having a chance to design a new character, there is the fact that it’s rare to have a girl lead in a Nintendo title and also having a strong and active female may make it easier to become accepted overseas. The design was centered on the girl at first, and then the design of a boy was thought of in comparison.” – Nishimori

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Famitsu interviewed Valhalla Game Studios’ Tomonobu Itagaki in one of its recent issues. Today, Itagaki posted the entire transcript in English for all to see.

We’ve picked out a few highlights below. Those include the game’s lengthy development, the process of getting the game on Wii U, and more.

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Badland: Game of the Year Edition is hitting the eShop on July 30. View some footage from the Wii U build below.

Yesterday, we mentioned that Amazon was offering $10 savings on Super Mario Maker for those who have a Prime subscription. The retailer also has a $7 discount on Splatoon for such members.

Fry’s has a discount on Splatoon as well. It’s $54.95 on the retailer’s website, but if you have a promo code, it’ll be brought down another $10. It seems you need to be on Fry’s mailing list for the $10 code.

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

Wii U

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

3DS

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

Q.U.B.E: Director’s Cut will finally be out on the Wii U eShop next month. Watch some footage from the game below.

Woah Dave! came to the 3DS eShop last year (and there are also plans to bring it to Wii U). Developer Jason Cirillo spoke with Destructoid about the game’s success, which came as a slight surprise.

He told the site:

“…despite the fact that we felt very strongly that we had created a truly fun game, I think even we were a bit surprised at how well it did.”

“I think the surprise came in that we knew we’d made a very simple game that would appeal mostly to more mature gamers who grew up with score-chasing arcade games in the 80s, but what we didn’t expect was the general enthusiasm we got from all crowds on all platforms. It was a very big success for MiniVisions both critically and financially.”

MiniVisions is building on the success of Woah Dave! with the studio’s next project, Space Dave!, which will be revealed at PAX Prime in August.

“…Space Dave! would most likely still have happened even if Woah Dave! hadn’t done well. The reason being is that MiniVisions games are largely driven, in all honesty, by us making games that we want to play ourselves. They’re all kinds of experimental.”

“We’re never sure if everyone else will be as in to these ideas as we are, but the passion on our end to make it is there, so we kinda roll with that. Also, probably worth nothing that Space Dave! is a surprisingly different formula, but still 100% a ‘Dave’ game.”

We don’t know which platforms Space Dave! will be on, but 3DS and Wii U seem like pretty safe bets. Information about the project should be shared very soon.

Source

Dragon Fantasy: The Volumes of Westeria made its way to the Wii U (and 3DS) eShop on Thursday in North America. You’ll find a ton of footage from the title after the break.

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The third Japanese Splatfest in Splatoon wrapped up a few hours ago. How’d the results pan out?

KIRIN milk tea dominated lemon tea in pretty much every area. It won in both popularity and wins, which led to an overall victory of 178 points to 122 points for the other side.

Source

Let’s Talk #16: Most anticipated Wii U games

There are still plenty of Wii U games to look forward to. From Nintendo alone, the company is bringing us Zelda Wii U, Super Mario Maker, Star Fox Zero, Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem (Genei Ibun Roku #FE), Xenoblade Chronicles X, Yoshi’s Woolly World (in North America), Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water, Devil’s Third, Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival, and Mario Tennis: Ultra Smash. There are also a smattering of third-party offerings like Rodea: The Sky Soldier, LEGO Dimensions, Disney Infinity 3.0, Skylanders SuperChargers, and Guitar Hero Live. It goes without saying that there’s still a ton of indie content on the way as well.

All of that being said, is there one Wii U game that you’re looking forward to above all else? If you can’t pick one, what are your top highlights? Let us know in the comments below!

Right now there are three games I’ve been wanting to get my hands on above all else. Let me briefly talk about each.

– Zelda Wii U: it’s Zelda! This series is what really motivated me to pay more attention to video games. Even though I had played games before, going through Ocarina of Time is when my interest really spiked. I was disappointed when Nintendo announced Zelda Wii U’s delay to 2016, but we should be getting a fantastic title in the end.

– Xenoblade Chronicles X: honestly, I do wish this one had already launched in the west at this point. That original January 2013 trailer feels like so long ago. Still, Xenoblade Chronicles X should be worth the wait. Xenoblade ended up as one of my favorite games of all time, and while X should be a fairly different experience, I’m anticipating that there will be enough there to make it both familiar and new at the same time.

– Super Mario Maker: after Nintendo showed this game at last year’s E3, I was mildly interested. I knew I’d pick it up eventually, but it wasn’t something where I thought I needed it at launch. My opinion changed greatly following Super Mario Maker’s showing at E3 2015. I’m just amazed by the amount of crazy things you can do inside different levels. I’ll be playing other creations rather than making them myself, so I can’t wait to see what people come up with.