Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 9 Comments

In the U.S., amiibo led the way in dollar sales out of all interactive gaming toy offerings during the month of May. It’s the first time since the figures launched that this feat was accomplished.

Thanks to amiibo’s strong performance, interactive gaming toy sales as a whole rose 73 percent in the U.S. last month.

NPD Group’s Liam Callahan said:

“May 2015 was a positive month for video game accessory sales, with dollar sales up 20 per cent. The top 5 accessory types: Interactive Gaming Toys; point cards; gamepads; headsets/headphones; and power supplies, all experienced year-over-year growth. Interactive gaming toy sales experienced stellar growth of 73 per cent in May 2015 as Nintendo’s amiibo accessories led dollar sales for the first time since launch.”

Source

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS eShop, News | 0 comments

It was only yesterday that Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night cleared its prequel mini-game stretch goal on Kickstarter. With $4.5 million having been raised, Inti Creates is being tasked with creating this smaller title for a few platforms, including Wii U.

We can now say that this same mini-game will be on 3DS as well. Combined with PayPal donations, the Bloodstained Kickstarter has surpassed $4.75 million. That amount was needed in order to bring the prequel mini-game to portables.

Bloodstained’s Kickstarter has one final stretch goal to hit before the campaign ends. If funds reach $5 million, the game will feature a rogue-like dungeon mode.

You can check out Bloodstained on Kickstarter here. 13 hours remain before the campaign ends.

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 1 Comment

With E3 2015 just a few days away, Nintendo has sent out a new schedule recapping the company’s events at the expo.

Here are some notable tidbits:

– 2015 and “select 2016 software” will be featured at E3
– Nintendo “will continue to share information on future games and initiatives in the months ahead”
– There will apparently be “additional announcements between matches” of the Nintendo World Championships
– Developers will be at the Nintendo Treehouse: Live @ E3 sessions
– On the second day of the Nintendo Treehouse: Live broadcast, there will be content not shown at Nintendo’s E3 booth

You can check out Nintendo’s E3 2015 plans in the graphic below. Lots of specific information is in the announcement below.

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii U | 64 Comments

NPD published its latest software chart based on data collected throughout May on the U.S. market. As Splatoon launched on May 29, it just managed to sneak its way into the reporting period.

Splatoon managed to take the fifth spot in NPD’s chart for May. But the big question is, how many copies did the game actually sell?

NPD hasn’t provided specific numbers in ages, and Nintendo did not send out a response to the May report. But thankfully, well-known sales leaker “creamsugar” has come through with data. creamsugar says that Splatoon sold 136,000 copies in May, which is based on just two days of sales.

Splatoon’s U.S. debut is fairly similar to its performance in Japan. Through four days, the title sold 145,000 units on the Japanese market.

Source

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in General Nintendo, News | 26 Comments

Masahiro Sakurai’s latest Famitsu column has now been translated in full. Two big topics were addressed in his piece: those who say Sakurai has a bias for certain characters, and overall game balance.

Continue on below to check out the column transcript. The full translation comes courtesy of Source Gaming.

When it comes to Smash, every once in a while people will wrongly direct their anger towards me. They accuse me of things such as giving preference or strength to the characters that I’ve worked on in the past—in other words, the Kirby and Kid Icarus series characters. Oh my.

However, if I had worked on the Mario series, people would say, “You’re favoring Mario too much,” wouldn’t they? The same would hold true for Fire Emblem, Pokémon or Starfox. The truth is, though, I put a lot of work into all the characters. It’s a mix of labor, love, and fine tuning.

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii U | 26 Comments

NPD Group has released a listing of the top ten best-selling games in the U.S. for the month of May 2015. The results can be found below.

1. The Witcher III: Wild Hunt (PS4, Xbox One, PC)
2. Mortal Kombat X (PS4, Xbox One)
3. Grand Theft Auto V (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3, PC)
4. Minecraft (360, PS3, Xbox One, PS4)
5. Splatoon (Wii U)
6. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (PS4, 360, Xbox One, PS3, PC)
7. NBA 2K15 (360, PS4, Xbox One, PS3, PC)
8. FIFA 15 (PS4, Xbox One, 360, PS3, Wii , 3DS, Vita)
9. MLB 15: The Show (PS4, PS3)
10. Super Smash Bros. (3DS, Wii U)

We don’t have any numbers, but this seems like quite a good debut for Splatoon. Remember, it launched at the very end of May!

Source

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii U eShop | 3 Comments

The latest Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night Kickstater update covers a unique character as well as confirmation of two new stretch goals that have been reached.

Regarding Shovel Knight, Yacht Club Games has signed off on featuring the character in some fashion. We don’t know what exactly is planned just yet, however.

The team behind Bloodstained writes in its latest Kickstarter update:

Remember Natsume’s Shovel Knight fanart from earlier in the campaign? It’s been about a decade, in Kickstarter years, so I’ll refresh your memory (see above).

We’ve got good news: Inti Creates and Yacht Club Games have agreed that Natsume’s reimagining of their hero feels right at home in the demon castle!

They won’t tell us any more than that, but when the game comes out remember that you might bump into this guy in a crowded corridor somewhere. Who knows what might happen after that?

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS, News | 10 Comments

Atlus has officially announced that the company is bringing The Legend of Legacy to the west. In North America, the game is due out this fall.

Continue on below for some screenshots from The Legend of Legacy. You’ll also find a comprehensive overview after the break.

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in News, Wii U | 13 Comments

During its first week, Splatoon experienced one of the highest sell-through rates ever in Japan. That number came in at 97.33 percent, which was a sign that the game was almost impossible to find in all stores.

Splatoon has now been on the market for a second week and has yet to show any signs of slowing down. As stated in a Dengeki report, the shooter sold nearly 70,000 copies with a sell-through rate of 90 percent between June 1 and June 7. Media Create’s information will probably vary just slightly, but this is a sign that consumers are still very much interested in Splatoon.

Source

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Posted on 8 years ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in 3DS eShop, News, Wii U eShop | 3 Comments

This week’s North American Nintendo Downloads are as follows:

Wii U Retail

LEGO Jurassic World – $49.99 (available Friday)

Wii U Virtual Console

Harvest Moon: Friends of Mineral Town – $6.99

3DS Retail

LEGO Jurassic World – $29.99 (available Friday)

3DS Download

Dr. Mario: Miracle Cure – $8.99
Swords & Darkness – $6.99
Ninja Usagimaru: The Gem of Blessings – $4.99
Japanese Rail Sim 3D Journey in Suburbs #1 – $9.99
My Zoo Vet Practice 3D – $4.99

3DS Demos

BlazBlue: Clone Phantasma
Japanese Rail Sim 3D Journey in Suburbs #1
Ninja Usagimaru: The Gem of Blessings
Swords & Darkness

DSiWare

G.G Series THE HIDDEN NINJA KAGEMARU – $1.99
G.G Series SHADOW ARMY – $1.99
G.G Series CONVEYOR TOY PACKING – $1.99
G.G Series ALL BREAKER – $1.99

eShop Sales

Wii U/3DS

– Citizens of Earth (Wii U and Nintendo 3DS) is 50 percent off (reduced from $14.99 to $7.49) beginning at 9 a.m. PT on June 15 until 8:59 a.m. PT on June 22.
– Lone Survivor: The Director’s Cut, OlliOlli (Wii U and Nintendo 3DS) and more games from Curve Digital are on sale until 8:59 a.m. PT on June 25.

Wii U

– Cubemen 2 is 43 percent off (reduced from $7.99 to $4.49) until 8:59 a.m. PT on June 25.
– PING 1.5+ is 40 percent off (reduced from $4.99 to $2.99) until 8:59 a.m. PT on June 25.
– Zacisa’s Last Stand is 40 percent off (reduced from $1.99 to $1.19) until 8:59 a.m. PT on July 9.

3DS

– Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millennium Girl is 50 percent off (reduced from $29.99 to $14.99) beginning at 9 a.m. PT on June 15 until 8:59 a.m. PT on June 22.
– Family Tennis 3D, Family Table Tennis 3D and more games from Arc System Works are on sale until 8:59 a.m. PT on June 25.
– 3D Game Collection, Funfair Party Games and Murder on the Titanic from Joindots are on sale until 8:59 a.m. PT on June 25.

Price Reductions

Wii U

– Ice Cream Surfer is now $2.50 (reduced from $5).

3DS

– Bowling Bonanza 3D is reduced to $3.99 (from $5.99).
– Gummy Bears Magical Medallion and Gummy Bears Mini Golf are reduced to $3.99 (from $5.99)
– Johnny Dynamite is reduced to $3.99 (from $4.99)

Source: Nintendo PR

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