Pokemon + Nobunaga Crossover heading to DS next year.

All I can say is,"huh"? 

Once every blue moon a crossover comet streaks through the open sky, flailing it's multiple arms about screaming: "Hi there!" No, it's not just a hybrid of two delicious holy entities of Peanut Butter and chocolate, it's more than that. This unpredictable force breaks the mold of gaming, shattering the tried and true formula of making a franchise, release a sequel every year, try to improve them as time goes by not making them feel all the same, etc., but instead combines two incredible series and in the process creates a whole new different franchise all on it's own. Who would've thought that a Disney and Final Fantasy crossover would've worked as well as it did, spanning sequels, prequels, and spin-offs while created a new fanbase of gamers? Who would thought we'd see Marvel heroes/villains duke it out with Street Fighter characters, or Pheonix Wright and Professor Layton would be pointing fingers and yelling "Objection!" in a courtroom together?  

I am proud to say that this tradition of crossovers is not over; a new crossover is in the making for the DS: Pokemon will team up with characters from the popular turn-based grand role-playing PC game Nobunaga Ambition. Players will command their team of Pokemon in turn-based battles in an ancient Japanese setting against other Warlords (who spark a mild resemblance to their main Pokemon) commanded by the main warlord of the game, Nobunaga, who is seen with his Zekrom. The game let's choose to be either male or female and your default Pokemon is none other than the versatile Eevee. So it's more or less the same Pokemon game we've grown to love with a slight Tactics twist. A trailer of the game is released and images of the game can be seen here. 

The game is due for release in Japan sometime next Spring. No word on an America release, but knowing how well Pokemon games sell in America, it would be a shame for both the fans and Nintendo if it wasn't released in the West.  

It's great to see two franchises like these unexpectedly clash, and if the game becomes popular enough to garner sequels, then color me excited.

Pokemon + Nobunaga Crossover heading to DS next year.

3DS Ambassador GBA game list

And it is......fricking amazing stuff.

F-Zero: Maximum Velocity
Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
Kirby & The Amazing Mirror
Mario Kart Super Circuit
Mario vs Donkey Kong
Metroid Fusion
Wario Land 4
WarioWare Inc: Mega Microgame$

Depending on what you liked on the old GBA, these are some of the highest, most top quality Nintendo first party titles on the system and to be honest a lot of them haven't aged much at all! Yoshi's Island is top-notch, Zelda: Minish Cap is great, Kirby and the Amazing Mirror holds a special place in my heart, Wario Land 4 and WarioWare....oh em gee.

Although free for ambassadors, these are the kinds of games people would snap up in a heartbeat anyway even if they had to pay for them. Let's see a release to everyone else, Nintendo!

3DS Ambassador GBA game list

2012 Nintendo game release dates

And finally we get concrete dates on some of the other talked about games last year that couldn't make it before the end of this year, those that aren't named Zelda or Mario Kart or 3D Land. And some of them have really been sitting in TBA for a long, long time now *glares at Kid Icarus Uprising*

It's been in the 3DS hot seat since the console's revealing at E3 2010 but never made it to launch or anywhere near that. No idea why, but it's now slated for March 23 2012, according to Nintendo.

Remember this thing? I just posted about it right below this, and it's going to US as well, but not with Monster Hunter 3G in tow. Rather, it'll be released together with Resident Evil Revelations on February 7 2012. The catch? 3DS' very own frankenstick will only be sold in GameStop, much like the cautious limited US release for Xenoblade Chronicles. I don't understand why Nintendo are giving GameStop the exclusive treatment, it's just limiting sales.

The adorable Rhythm Heaven Wii which made a decent wave in Japan some months ago gets a new title, Rhythm Heaven Fever, and a box art bursting with color! It's coming on February 13, one week after RE Revelations.

No it's not a Mario bowling game, this is Mario Party 9, and it gets a 2012 release date on March 11. That's a goodd way to fill up the release schedule pre-E3 2012....maybe. I do dig some Mario Party though; been itching for something better than the mediocre MP8.

Okay so this may not be on every Wii gamer's wishlist but it's definitely something worth noting anyway since Pokepark 2, right from the first revealed screenshot, already looks ten times more polished than the first game and features at the very least more replayable minigames and battle games. Instead of Beyond the World, the US subtitle is Wonders Beyond, and it's coming on February 27, 2012.

Other release dates to look out for:

• Tales of the Abyss for 3DS, February 14
• Mario and Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games for 3DS, also February 14
• Tekken 3D Prime Edition for 3DS on February 2012
• Metal Gear Solid 3D on Q1 2012

And some other things including downloadable eShop and VC games are coming out too. Good ones at that; a Jett Rocket sequel on 3DS, VVVVV and Kirby's Block Ball among other things.

We've yet to hear from the other 3DS big titles like Luigi's Mansion 2 and Paper Mario, but time will tell.

2012 Nintendo game release dates

In support of 3DS Circle Pad

Brought over from my other blog at Gamespot.com. I said I'd make a Circle Pad Pro post, so here it is!

Now, like anyone else I experienced the same backlash when I first found out and saw the Circle Pad Pro Nintendo was planning to release for 3DS. It looked ugly, it looked big, it looked uneccessary and my biggest issue with it was it had to use an AAA battery! Now what kind of half-hearted attempt is this? Knowing Nintendo this will probably be in the next hardware revision so why should I bother?

Except, you don't have to bother if you didn't need the 2nd analog in the first place, and if you wanted one, you don't have to wait for the hardware revision if you already own a 3DS, because after looking at it for a few weeks the Circle Pad Pro kind of settled on my mind and it wasn't so bad after all.

Now it's not in my power to change your opinion of what you think of the Circle Pad attachment, but I can at least dispel some of the unreasonable and unfounded attacks on it. A lot of retarded comments are made simply by looking at the accessory for one second then think 'It's crap' right away and act like they're being forced to pay $20 for it. Terrible attitude, guys. Especially if you don't take five minutes of your life to actually go find out more about it.

My counters to stupid comments?

1. Objects on the Internet look larger than they actually are

By far the greatest complaint was that the Circle Pad was too large. It's a valid complaint but not when 90% of people exaggerate the comment as if it was over 9000 metres/cubic miles/light years long. Get your ass back down to earth and actually LOOK at a real 3DS if you haven't. It's not THAT huge.

Now, I did a little measuring of my own based on a 3DS I saw from a store, and I'm going to use a picture for scale. The handheld itself is roughly 13.5 centimetres wide, about the same as the width of a DSi. That's already smaller than what most people would make the console out to be if they haven't yet seen a real one.



I brought this official picture to Photoshop and again did some measuring. To the right of the 3DS, the Circle Pad attachment adds around 2.7 cm to the width, and on the left no longer than 0.5 cm. Let's make that 3cm, shall we? So the total width of your 3DS with Circle Pad attached is now 16.5 centimetres. If you have a DSi, put 2 rulers on its side and add that extra width. Smaller than you thought right? I absolutely do not believe your palms cannot grip that extra 3 cm.

As for thickness?


(picture above taken at Tokyo Game Show 2011)

It resembles a Gamecube controller, only slightly less thick, though at this angle it's hard for me to judge it by scaling like I did with the first picture. This same size argument can be used for the Wii U controller as well, though that's a story for another day. It's also not as big as you might think.

Here's a few more pics for comparison. See how a human hand can still envelop the entire console and accessory comfortably?

2. It is not a prosthetic arm or leg to the 3DS

Aside from the obvious size issue the other thing I keep hearing is 'I can't bring this outside!' or 'how is this supposed to fit in my pocket?'. Newsflash: It's NOT supposed to fit in your pocket. It only compromises portablility if you actually USE it. So go ahead, buy it, place the 3DS on top of it. But when you bring your 3DS out of the house, you can take the 3DS away from the Slide Pad Pro, you retards. People are acting as if the attachment is permanently FUSED to the 3DS the moment you use it. You don't have to take it outside if you find it difficult to. Oh but what if the game I play supports the use of the Circle Pad Pro? That's my next point.

3. It is completely optional

Note, I said 'support'. 'Support' meaning the game can be played with the Circle Pad Pro as an ENHANCEMENT to the experience and your controls, but plays PERFECTLY WELL even without the accessory. This is one of the biggest misunderstandings of the circle pad, that every game that 'supports' it can't be played without it. Monster Hunter 3G proved it pretty well; you can use the D-Pad to control the camera in the absence of the Circle Pad Pro, or you can even assign camera controls to the touch screen! That's what the DS line handhelds were made for anyway!

 
Same case goes for the rest of the supported games; they can ALL be played without the Circle Pad Pro. There, you just saved 20 bucks on an accessory you weren't planning to buy but still want to be able to play, say, Metal Gear Solid without the thing being force-fed into your mouth. You're not being ripped off, the extra circle pad is an OPTION, not a NECESSITY. I can't stress this enough, can I?

This does not disprove that there will be a hardware revision with the 2nd analog and extra shoulder buttons put on the 3DS (i.e. Wiimote Plus), but if you already own a 3DS anyway you can choose whether to get it or not, it won't detract from your playing experience.

4. It's more than just a circle pad

This one's minor, but also applies to the same people who don't hunt for info long enough (apparently 5 minutes is too long for some attention spans...) but it's not just the circle pad that the accessory adds, it's three shoulder buttons. Three. So many possibilities in extra control mapping and people miss looking at it because all they see is the front view. Though like I said before all this stuff can be integrated onto the touch screen.

---

When it comes right down to it, there are still genuine drawbacks to the Circle Pad Pro, and it still indicates a lack of foresight by Nintendo (unless you want to think that this will remain optional throughout the 3DS' lifespan), but it's definitely not the size, nor the controller support, that people should be complaining about. Do at least some basic research before making yourself look stupid.

In support of 3DS Circle Pad

Xenoblade, are thou standing before me?

It’s official. Xenoblade is finally coming to North America via Gamestop exclusive! Surprised? I can’t blame you. With Nintendo’s response to Project Rainfall with a frequent "We never say 'never,' but we can confirm that there are no plans to bring these three games to the Americas at this time. Thanks so much for your passion, and for being such great fans!" chances of this game getting an American release just became dimmer and dimmer as the months went by. And considering Nintendo’s history of not bringing new IP titles overseas (Fatal Frame 4, Mother 3, Freshly Picked Tingle’s Rosy RupeeLand), it seemed uneventful  that we would ever see Xenoblade. So it was a big slap in the face when this title was announced for Europe and soon Australia along with Pandora’s Tower and The Last Story; two other Japan exclusives. Not bashing Nintendo or anything, but that was a pretty dumb move.

But it’s finally coming. You can now pre-order the game on Gamestop. This is really happening!  

This is not a time to hesitate; we need to show Nintendo that there ARE gamers like us that will buy these kinds of games. If you are the kind of gamer that is sick of seeing games like Mother 3 not being localized then you must act. Nintendo is not going to localize games that don’t sell: YOU have the power. Buying this game will say: “Yes Nintendo, we still support you! We are still your core gamers!” Make this a reality! AND If you don’t want new IP’s to become dust in the wind like the sadly underappreciated titles Drill Dozer, Chibi Robo, and Elite Beat Agents, which never became full series, then like I said before: you must be ready! We may never get a chance like this again, so we mustn’t fail. Spread the word. Tell every gamer. The final year of the Wii will not be in vain!  
 
It’s coming. Can you believe it? And it’s all thanks to an unlikely source. Here’s to you Gamestop; I never thought I’d see the day that you’d do something that made me want to come to your store.

Xenoblade, are thou standing before me?

Will Zelda Wii U be a Skyrim-like experience?

This month two fantastic games were released: The Legend of Zelda Skyward Swords and The Elder Scrolls V Skyrim. Both are similar and different in their own right: Both are set in a fantasy world filled with secrets, but while Skyrim takes a realistic approach to graphics, Skyward Swords is Cel-shaded and colorful; and while Skyrim asks for a more mature crowd, Zelda appeals to a broad crowd of gamers, and etc. Though Zelda can’t quite compare to Skyrim’s enormous nonlinear world - or can it? Could the next big console Zelda game be just as or even more nonlinear than Skyrim? With the Wii U I think it could be a possibility.

"Dang, should've brought my horse..."

Try not to soil your pants while imagining this: Hyrule - bigger than ever. Imagine the first time you ever played The Legend of Zelda on the NES and amplify that experience by 11. Imagine riding Epona, it’s mane flowing gently through the breeze, riding through an never ending Hyrule field filled with so many secrets you wouldn’t mind riding a bit longer to find each one! Never ending freedom. Who says you can’t do whatever you want? Want to go the 5th dungeon before going to the first? Yep, you can do that! Want to get the flute item before venturing out anywhere else important? Go right ahead! Want to study more about Hyrule? Go to the local castle Hyrule library and read full length books to your hearts content. Don’t like reading? Then get out there and explore! Travel by boat, travel by horse, and even travel by bird - the sky is NOT the limit! There’s no limitations! It would be the most satisfying Zelda experience ever crafted.

And all of this can be done. It’s just a matter of if or how it will be done. I know Nintendo is not one to borrow inspiration, but wouldn’t this bet the next logical step in the series? This will be the first time Zelda will appear in HD, sure, but graphics isn’t everything: we need something to knock our socks off. We’ve been pretty spoiled by the fantastic treatment the console Zelda has been getting now, so anything less at this point would be disappointing. And I think Nintendo feels the same way.

And the Wii U is the perfect opportunity to try a full nonlinear Zelda. Having the Wii U tablet as a map guide will ensure that this adventure would never get too confusing and you’ll know exactly where you are at all times (call it the Navigator). It will also double as a handy item storage device to quickly switch items on the fly. There’s just so much potential for making a quintessential Zelda game here.

"Eat steel, Dodongo!"

But I could be wrong, and the next Zelda game could turn out to be vastly different game than I imagined. Though could the next Zelda game be so nonlinear and vast that it could make Skyrim look barren in comparison. Probably not. But whatever the Zelda team has planned I’m sure it exceed all our expectations.

Will Zelda Wii U be a Skyrim-like experience?

What Kirby's Return to Drealand could have been

These two were from an untranslated Iwata Asks interview on Kirby's Return to Dreamland and its protracted 7 year development cycle. Post-Gamecube era, it seems two diffeent visual styles were considered for the Wii version but were dropped for normal 3D graphics on a 2D plane.

....when it could have been a whole lot more stylish. I don't care much for the second style, which is isometric but would look quite bland in actual play if not done right.

But the first one.....GOD. It's a Kirby version of the amazingly good cel-shaded style of Wario Land Shake It. Everything looks so adorable in that style....I'd really kill someone just to get my version of the game with those semi-anime graphics with fluid animation. Dang.

What Kirby's Return to Drealand could have been

Monster Hunter Tri G + Slide Pad

Okay, I know I haven't been covering enough of the combination of these two so I'm going to do them in one go very briefly.

If you've played Monster Hunter Tri on Wii before and enjoyed it while playing offline, you're going to enjoy this even more! A 3DS port is on the way and was announced at Tokyo Game Show this year together with Monster Hunter 4, also on 3DS. It contains all the monsters you've fought in Tri plus recolored versions who are stronger, AND most of the monsters ans new areas introduced in the PSP version, Portable 3rd.....AAAND brand-new monsters, of which one of them (Brachidios) is the cover boy, replacing the sea dragon Lagiacrus. (Brachi is on the top left of the next scan)

Here's the trailer.



Oh, and there will be no online for Tri G, unlike its Wii big brother. Before you guys start bringing pitchforks to Capcom (again), remember that Monster Hunter was never big on online to begin with. None of the PS2 nor the PSP games have online play of any sort despite having the capability to do so. Tri was the first one, and we were lucky to even get it; Japanese had to pay a subscription fee of 1000 Wii Points for 3 months of online.

And then there's the 2nd Slide Pad, which I rather like despite all the hatred everyone's been pouring over it since TGS due to the added bulk and asymmetrical design it gives the 3DS. I'll talk about why I don't hate it in a later entry.

Anyway, six titles have been confirmed to use the thing, which has not just an analog stick, but also three extra shoulder buttons, one on the left and two on the right, which is great for added functionality. At least six games are confirmed compatible with it (and Luigi's Mansion 2 being rumored to support it due to this scan of the Monster Hunter Tri G bundle and a green 3DS with Slide Pad and Luigi's Mansion 2 being on the screen). It uses one AAA battery.

One thing I cannot emphasize enough about it, and to be honest still not enough people know this, is that every game that supports this accessory can also be played perfectly fine without it. It is NOT COMPULSORY.

Okay

Monster Hunter Tri G + Slide Pad

Kirby's Return to Dreamland footage!

There's been more than ten videos of note ever since our last post on the game. Aw let's just post a whole lot of these shall we?



Opening scene of the game showing the spaceship crash and Kirby volunteering his help, with that happy smile of his as always.



Video of most, if not all the Copy Abilities in the game



Some multiplayer footage



Some more gameplay, with a boss battle!

Kirby's Return to Dreamland footage!

Makes some lines! Tetris Axis has been released on the the 3DS!

     As of October, 02, 2011.Tetris Axis has been released for the 3DS. Now you may be thinking, "Another Tetris remake!?" But this version of Tetris comes packed with 20 modes and online multi-player, all for 30$! I haven't gotten the game, but I will be getting it eventually. I personally would advise for gamers who plan on getting this game, to get it soon. It’s unknown if this game will suffer the same fate as in Tetris DS for the DS, when regarding limited copies.

Makes some lines! Tetris Axis has been released on the the 3DS!

Professor Layton vs Ace Attorney TGS trailer

Watch for the most epic moment in the history of the two series right at the end! No actual puzzle-solving gameplay yet (Level-5 wasn't at TGS so the Layton half wasn't shown, this trailer leans more to Phoenix Wright), but we'll see them again at Level-5 World next month.

OBJECTION!

Professor Layton vs Ace Attorney TGS trailer

Nintendo 5-Star 2011 SummerCon final report

Yep I know. Long overdue because of the blog hiatus, but let's put this out for posterity's sake before I move back into making blog posts.

Nintendo 5-Star 2011 SummerCon final report

First update in a while

toadster101 here, letting you guys know that the Nintendo 5 Star Blog has been experiencing downtime recently. Don't worry, however, we're indeed back on track, and promise weekly updates for those of you who follow us. Here's a recap of some important information we may have missed:

- Mario Kart 7 (3DS) and Super Mario 3D Land (3DS) have been given release dates of December 4th and November 13th, respectively.
- Kid Icarus: Uprising (3DS) will not be coming out until 2012, according to Sakurai, the game's director. 
- A special edition of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii) - which includes a golden Wii-remote and bonus CD - has been given a November release date.
- There exists a third party peripheral for the 3DS that emulates a second circle pad. No further information has been revealed.
- New games in the Fire Emblem and Mario Tennis series have been announced for 3DS.
- Kirby's Return to Dreamland (Wii) and Pokemon Rumble Blast (3DS) are scheduled to be released this fall.
- Pokepark 2 (Wii) has been announced, with no release date available.

First update in a while

Xenoblade and The Last Story coming to US?

http://oprainfall.blogspot.com/2011/07/source-ntsc-xenoblade-done-last-story.html

Sent to Operation Rainfall's website from an 'inside source at Nintendo' is the rumor that both Xenoblade and The Last Story have been fully localized and will be ready for testing within a month's time from now. Is this all too good to be true? Could it be just Nintendo withholding information tightly like they usually do?

Xenoblade and The Last Story coming to US?

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy

Oh, so this was our 3DS Final Fantasy game? A spinoff that isn't even an RPG? Does look cute though.

From Andriasang

"Square Enix has a new Final Fantasy game on the way for 3DS, but it's not quite the RPG we're used to. The new game is titled Theatrhythm Final Fantasy. Yes, this is that Final Fantasy themed rhythm game we've all been waiting for.

Revealed in this week's Jump, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is a "Theater Rhythm Action" game. The game has field scenes set in dungeons and towns, and battle scenes that resemble the side-view battles of older Final Fantasy games. However, everything is played like a rhythm game, where you tap the screen in accordance with prompts.

Needless to say, the game's music is pulled from past Final Fantasy games. Characters, including the likes of Lightning and Cloud, are also in the game, only they're shown in cute "chibi" style form.

There seems to be somewhat of a story to the game. Jump says that the classic Final Fantasy characters are fighting to return light to the crystal.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is currently without a final release date."

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy

A save file that cannot be deleted?

This would be the first of its kind Ive ever heard of. Resident Evil: THe Mercenaries for 3DS has an invincible save file which cannot be deleted on the part of the player. There's no delete option on the game. It's not a glitch, nor was it a mistake that the delete button was omitted, but it's something crazier than that- the mechanic was intended by Capcom. The controversy has been going on for since the game was released, and many have expressed their disenchantment.

Yep, unless your internal cartridge battery runs dry, you won't be able to start a brand new game. Thanks, Capcom. This is just what we wanted, a save file that doesn't selfdestruct so we won't have to undergo the frustration of beginning an erased game. That's going to be soooo useful when you trade the game in and someone else buys the game and finds out he can't play it because it's already been completed for him.

Capcom's reason? A statement from them on June 30 says:


In Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D, all mission progress is saved directly to the Nintendo 3DS cartridge, where it cannot be reset. The nature of the game invites high levels of replayability, encouraging fans to improve mission scores. The save mechanic ensures that both original and unlocked game content will be available to all users. Secondhand game sales were not a factor in this development decision…”


“There was no intention of lessening the experience of the game. Essentially, RE Mercs was treated like an arcade fighting game. You unlock characters, levels, etc and they just stay unlocked as they would in an arcade machine. There was no hidden motive to prevent buying used copies. It’s not some secret form of DRM. It’s simply the way we designed the save system to work with the arcade type of gameplay.

Capcom has owned up to it and promised there won't be anymore weird and stupid save systems like this one again.

A save file that cannot be deleted?

Even Gamestop cares for Operation Rainfall

From GoNintendo, multiple posters a Gamestop manager put up on his store in support of localizing great Wii games. Support the cause!

Even Gamestop cares for Operation Rainfall

Operation Rainfall denied!

A week ago, a massive operation was started by North American Nintendo fans, clamoring for the localization of Xenoblade, The Last Story and Pandora's Tower, all of which have been released in Japan and Xenoblade going to Europe. Pre-orders were placed on Amazon for an imaginary copy of Xenoblade (called Monado in US), and Nintendo's Facebook page, email inboxes, and Youtube profile were plastered with comments by eager Nintendo fans. Of course that sort of thing would gain attention. and this was Nintendo's reply to everyone's enthusiasm.

It's not a resounding 'no', but we're all pretty sure those three games will never be localized anyway. Which doesn't make any sense- effort has already been made to translate Xenoblade into English and they're not releasing it for US Wiis? What's keeping them from doing so? All three are quality games, why keep your fans from being able to play it? Region locking your consoles only adds fuel to the fire. Oh, but Skyward Sword and Kirby are coming out? Not enough Nintendo, considering the timeframe between now and the release of the Wii U, not nearly enough. Mario Party 9 and Wii Play Motion? Which serious gamers are going to buy those jokes for games now, five years after the initial hype?

Now the same people are mass-posting comments of protest all over Nintendo's Facebook, and a lot of threatened boycott. Way to treat your loyal fanbase, Nintendo. You were never great at listening to the gamers' voices but this is just unacceptable. My faith in humanity has dropped.

Operation Rainfall denied!

Sakurai: Why Smash Bros 4 is dual-platform

'Project Sora had intended to make a 3DS Smash Bros. once it had finished up a game on the system and had gotten used to the hardware's feature set. With the advent of the Wii U, though, we had a choice to make. Iwata asked us if wanted to make the next Smash Bros. on the Wii U or 3DS, and my thought was that we had to go on both platforms.

If we went solely for the Wii U, the HD graphics would really bump up the visual effects, but then we'd be stuck in another arms race. If we made this game another extension over previous one, we'd have to cut out the new things we could possibly do on the 3DS hardware and compete with ourselves again over the size of the character roster and the amount of gameplay we can put it. It wouldn't be a fruitful competition, but doing something completely new would be difficult for many reasons, not least of which that the gamers may not be satisfied with it. That's why we decided to think about ways to link the personal connection one has with his portable system to the gather-around-and-play aspect of console systems.'

From GoNintendo.

What could be done on the 3DS that can't be done on Wii U other than 3D graphics? If anything it should be the other way around since 3DS carts have much less storage.

Sakurai: Why Smash Bros 4 is dual-platform

Kirby TV Channel

With all the fuss surrounding the Netflix services and TV channels coming to 3DS (in Japan, at least), it was really a nice surprise when this new channel was released for Europe. The Kirby TV Channel is exactly what it is, a channel for streaming episodes of the Kirby anime, dubbed in English. Episodes will be available only on certain days, so if you're a fan of the show, you might not wanna miss them.

No word on a US release yet. The Kirby anime was pretty good however, and should be brought over to other regions to enjoy!

Kirby TV Channel

Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time 3D glitch

A glitch in the first dungeon, where you get a heart container and urn the 3D slider on at that moment. The game will freak out and split into two different outputs., giving you two hearts, two Links, and mirrored dungeon walls (oddly the text box isn't affected).

Wait I always thought the 3D effect was a hardware thing and doesn't affect what's in the actual games.

Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time 3D glitch

Wii sales collapse after Wii U announcement

The moment Nintendo's brand new shining star was revealed to the world, Japan dropped whatever remained of Wii sales like a bowling ball, bringing it down to just under 7500 units last week and ranking it 4th overall in hardware sales.

Depending on how you see it this could be a good or bad thing. People in Japan must be getting excited for the new tech and are putting the old console down to save up for it- the backwards compatibility is helping to accelerate the process. Or you might say the market for Wii is saturated, which has been the case for the whole of last year already.

Wii sales collapse after Wii U announcement

How Kirby got his name

From GoNintendo, in an interview between GameInformer and Miyamoto:

Yes, it is a fact that I met John Kirby and got to know him when he was defending us during the lawsuit against Universal. And it is a fact that the Kirby name was partially chosen in connection to him, but it wasn’t named after him. Instead, we had a list of names that we were looking at and Kirby was one of the names on the list. As we were going through the list and narrowing down the selections we saw that Kirby was there and we thought John Kirby’s name is Kirby, and started thinking that if those two had a connection that would be kind of funny.
The other element to the naming is that the character is very cute. Kirby is this soft and fluffy character and he’s very cute. In Japan, for cute characters they use very soft names with soft sounds in them. I thought the name Kirby had these harsh sounds to it, and I thought the 
 juxtaposition of this cute character with this harsh-sounding name was very funny.

Harsh sounding name? Maybe I must be pronouncing it wrong.

How Kirby got his name

Super Pokemon Scramble screenshots and trailer

This is from the official site's main page. If you view it there and mouse over this picture you can see it move too. Nice 3D effect! Release date confirmed too- Scramble will be out in Japan for 3DS on July 28th this year!



Official trailer for the game. Not the most exciting one though, I expected a lot more flash from a game like this. Shows Battle Royale, some sort of showdown between two groups of toys, and a boss battle with Zekrom. Same deal as WiiWare then.

Gen 5 Pokemon aren't the the only species to be on Super Pokemon Scramble- it would be otherwise limited and boring. Shown here is a Lumineon.



The charge battle! Looks like rapid button pressing.


Miis are now official. They're the owners of the Pokemon toys you control.



Boss battle with Zekrom, equally as chibified as everyone else.



Battle Royale, the Smash Bros.-like main attraction of the game where you're dumped into a closed arena and beat the crap out of everything till a clear winner is announced.

Super Pokemon Scramble screenshots and trailer

Legendary Wars and Plants vs. Zombies Updates

Hello there all, DG is here again to talk about two popular mobile games which have both just received huge updates.

I'll only touch on Legendary Wars for a second, because I'm going to give this game the spotlight in my next article. Suffice to say, this game is pretty great. It's just received a huge update, but my app store is behaving rather oddly so I can't comment on it beyond how great it sounds. If you're a mobile gamer, I recommend you look into this title.

(This is a PC screenshot, but you get the idea!)

The other game to recently receive a noteworthy update is Plants vs. Zombies. Yes, everyone knows about this game, but this is worth talking about, and here's why. On your iPod or iPhone is THE way to play this game. For one thing, it is much cheaper than it is on the PC, only $3 compared to $20, and that deal is as good as it sounds because the recent update added basically everything the PC version has that the mobile version didn't. The recent update introduced the last feature supported by the PC version and not the mobile version, which is the Zen Garden, a passive minigame where you take care of plants and get money for it. The update also added a lot of fun new minigames, which you must purchase from Crazy Dave's shop. Did I mention Dave's shop has two new pages of things to buy, one each for new minigames and the zen garden? It does. These, along with a bunch of new achievements, give PvZ a lot of new replay value, so if you haven't got it yet, you have absolutely no reason to wait any longer, and if you already have PvZ, a lot of new gameplay is available to you.

Legendary Wars and Plants vs. Zombies Updates

Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword offscreen footage

I have to admit, the trailer looked really jaggy to me, but I'm really pleasantly surprised at how vibrant and fluid the game looks in motion. Definitely a far cry from the deathly black and brown Twilight Princess, for the better.

Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword offscreen footage

Kirby Wii- gameplay videos

This game gets cuter and cuter the more I see of it! From these two you can catch some co-op gameplay and a few of the stages in more detail. New abilities too- like the Monster Flame ability very early into the second video. Very, very nice.

Kirby Wii- gameplay videos

Super Pokemon Scramble boxart

By far, one of the best boxarts for a Pokemon game I have ever seen. Look at everything so big-headed and cute...aww. Doesn't have a release date yet, and the only things we know are from the two pre-release screenshots below, and that the gameplay is the same as the WiiWare version. WWell with this box we know it's a retail 3DS game, and that it has lots of battle modes and supports SpotPass.

Super Pokemon Scramble boxart

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online Wii U gameplay

Note that this is a very, very early indication of what Wii U can do, and that we're still over a year away from release. Things could change drastically by then!

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Online Wii U gameplay

New moderator!

http://z6.invisionfree.com/N5S/index.php?showtopic=3199

TheFreakyManga, one of our most active members since last year, has been promoted to be part of our N5 team! You can always count on him to lighten the mood in any forum topic. He won't be joining the blog team for the time being but that's a story for later.Click on the link to go congratulate him!

New moderator!

Super Pokemon Scramble

Is this the 'new Pokemon game'? Either way this is a Gen 5 sequel to the spinoff title on WiiWare, Pokemon Rumble. 2 pre-release screenshots above- not even CoroCoro has featured the game yet! (by which time there will be a lot more details).

Also, there's going to be Miis in the game. Miis fit almost anywhere, don't they?

Super Pokemon Scramble

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 coming to Wii?

Found on a display at E3, image from GoNintendo.com.

Well this is weird. Modern Warfare has never been on Wii before. There's a lot of story to cover, and the graphics will definitely be scaled down anyway, so why? Not that I'm complaining.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 coming to Wii?

Fiery Red 3DS and gold Wiimote Plus

New colors for our Nintendo hardware!

The Fiery Red 3DS will join the blue and black 3DS on July 14th of this year. And no, it's not a limited edition color nor a Mario 25th anniversary gift- it's a permanent addition to the lineup.

The gold Wiimote Plus, emblazoned with the Skyward Sword logo we've actually heard of during the early parts of Nintendo's E3 press conference. From observation alone it's possible that this could be bundled together with Skyward Sword when it is released come year-end.

Fiery Red 3DS and gold Wiimote Plus

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo Wii U

The announcement trailer for Wii U, seen in the press conference, complete with motion control and screen interactivity tricks. It's hard to explain, just watch the trailer and you'll understand better how the controller's screen works with the TV. The games being played are Nintendo's own tech demos and not actual games.

The controller has symmetrical four-button setup and dual analog sticks. Not nubs, real sticks. It has speakers like the Wiimote, a gyrosensor, and an in-built camera. Rechargeable batteries are used in favor of AAs. The detailed console specs are still unknown, only a general overview was given. However we do already know Nintendo is going hi-definition with this one, supporting full 1080p output...finally! I'm not a graphics whore, but having the option is nice. And it also means 3rd parties will develop games for it without complaining about graphical limitations!

There were tech demos and a few minigames on show to allow people to get to grips with the new controller and see what games would look like, which Reggie called the 'Wii U experiences' in the press conference. The graphics demos were also here and could be interacted with, meaning they are not pre-rendered cutscenes but represent what gameplay footage would look like on Wii U, which is amazing.

Graphic Demo 1 (bird and trees)
Graphic Demo 2 (Zelda HD)
Chase Mii (to show usage of controller screen as a second screen, much like DS)
New Super Mario Bros. Mii (to show basic button controls, controller duplicating as TV screen)
Shield Pose (to show how the controller's screen matches up with the TV)
Battle Mii (to show controller's gyrosensor and controlling two things at once)
Measure Up (to show controller's pressure-sensitive touchscreen)

List of announced Wii U 3rd party games (in the order they appear in the trailer below). The footage shown are of the PS3/X360 versions (ironically) of the games and do not represent Wii U graphics.



Other announced titles from the roundtable or through statements:
Pikmin
Smash Bros 4 (together with 3DS version)

Expect to see Wii U sometime in late 2012 after Wii has exhausted its last legs.

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo Wii U

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo 3DS

Nintendo's latest handheld, finally getting a strong showing with new footage and gameplay of most of last year's announced titles that haven't already been released. No new games were actually announced save for Luigi's Mansion 2, but Nintendo already have enough on their plate as it stands.


Metal Gear Solid 3DS. Thank god no one forgot about it, though it doesn't look like it'll be released anytime soon. Watch for bonus Yoshi!


Hey, didn't know Paper Mario got a trailer as well. Finally shows some real gameplay, though the paper effect is less impressive than that of Super Paper Mario on Wii...but who am I to compare a handheld to a console?


Mario Kart 3DS with added things like customizable karts, underwater stages and gliders. For some reason a lot of classic tracks are shown here. Veterans of Mario Kart Wii and DS should pick them out easily.


Animal Crossing 3DS, which again, everyone thought was a no-show at E3, also has a new trailer. Aside from being generally better-looking than Wild World, you can now hang furniture on walls (saving space in the process), and swim in the water. Looks like the exact same gameplay to me, though there probably are even more things we don't know about AC3DS yet.


One more trailer for Kid Icarus: Uprising. Hopefully this is close to launch, being the very first 3DS game to be shown and all


Super Mario 3DS' first gameplay trailer, which looks bright and colorful. Whether it achieves Galaxy-like success and imaginative level is another issue, but enjoy the footage! Also, return of the Tanooki Suit!


E3 surprise Luigi's Mansion 2, a follow-up to the Gamecube original all the way back in 2001.

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo 3DS

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo DS

The handheld cousin to Wii, and the more successful of the two, both in sales and in reception by gamers, is also reaching the end of its run thanks to its successor, 3DS. But hey, all DS games can be played on the new handheld, right? No reason to worry.

Just 2 games of note were shown. Noticeably absent is any mention of a US translation of Japanese Level-5 RPG game Ninokuni. Hopefully in Level-5's own event sometime later.



Atsumete! Kirby gets a trailer! Or, I should call it by its US name now, Kirby Mass Attack. Logo is eerily similar to Kirby Wii, like they couldn't hire a better designer for this. It's fine and all, but why are the sound effects and music so primitive, like they came straight out of a GBA game? Oh well, we'll have to make do.



The other game that got people peeved because it wasn't highlighted at the press conference. Professor Layton and the Last Specter was released in Japan last year, and although it doesn't have a concrete release date yet, we'll probably be seeing this by the end of 2011

There was a third game. Remember the Zelda 25th anniversary announcement? Zelda Four Swords is coming to DSiWare. Unfortunately no footage of that exists yet.

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo DS

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo Wii

Ah, to finally reach the end of Wii's life cycle. The past five years haven't been easy. Although hailed as a revolution in gaming at first, it was and still is treated like a baby's toy by most people wanting better graphics and more mature games. Didn't stop Wii from being the top of the pack this generation in terms of sales, but at this point in the Wii's life, you can see where their worries stem from.

This year, the showfloor had six Wii games worth looking at, all from Nintendo (the rest being your typical shovelware). Kirby Wii which you can see in the post below this, Zelda: Skyward Sword, Rhythm Heaven, and unrevealed at the press conference but was on showfloor, Mario Party 9. Also present at the show were Mario and Sonic at the London 2012 Olympics and of course, Wii Play: Motion.



Gameplay is identical to the Rhythm Heaven released for DS and GBA (Japan only), with an art style reminiscent of Wario Ware Smooth Moves from all the way back at launch day.



Seeing Kirby Wii in action finally made me so happy I could almost cry. How long has it been since the last proper Kirby console game? (and no, Epic Yarn doesn't count even though it's awesome in its own way) Though I'm not fond of the logo- I really hope this isn't the final name...



Flying on islands in the sky? Final frontier for Zelda in terms of transportation- at first there were horses, then there were boats, and now Link rides on birds! Land, sea, sky! Looks like a long way down if you let go. I'm glad they ditched Twilight Princess' dark graphics for something with more vibrant color, which just adds to the excitement.



And yet again another Mario Party game. We never get tired of this stuff, don't we? It's up to its ninth game, for chrissakes



Mario and Sonic, with a lavish opening cutscene like the one from four years ago. There are screenshots if you're willing to hunt them down- or I might just bring them over here in a bit! There's also a 3DS version.



Wii Play Motion, showcasing six different minigames out of the 12 available. Where's the ice-cream game? I wanna see that.

E3 2011 Showfloor- Nintendo Wii

Nintendo E3 2011 conference/Wii U- My thoughts

This is actually my first time catching a live stream of an E3 conference. Traditionally I'd leave everything till later because the conferences start at exactly midnight where I live! This makes it, under normal circumstances, impossible for me to watch, as this means sacrificing my beauty sleep, which I really like, by the way. This year however...lots of free time, I'm on holiday, I don't have to wake up early the next day, what's stopping me? All the Wii2 rumors were driving me absolutely nuts, from the extended 3rd party support, to the HD graphics, to the queer new controller with a screen on it. And then there were 3DS games to see. And then the final batch of good 1st-party Wii/DS games. My body was ready.

Nintendo E3 2011 conference/Wii U- My thoughts

Nintendo reveals new titles at E3 2011!

 Wii:

- Kirby Wii (Trailer here)
- Mario Party 9 (Trailer here)


 3DS:

- Luigi's Mansion 2 (Trailer here)
- Super Mario 3D (Trailer here)
- Mario Kart 3D (Trailer here)

Nintendo didn't confirm any specific games for their newly announced Wii U console, but Iwata insisted that Super Smash bros. is indeed in development for it, as well as the 3DS.

Nintendo reveals new titles at E3 2011!

Wii U

So, WII U has been announced at E3 today, and it looks awesome! The game demos looked great, and you can have up to 5 controller (1 WII U controller the rest WII motion plus). There are 2 analog sliders and a 6.2 inch touch screen! If someone comes in and wants to watch some TV while your playing the WII U, then just pick up your WII 2 controller and carry on playing with high resolution screen with ZR and ZL triggers (weird names!).
Here are the announced games:
Darksiders 2
Batman: Arkham City
"Tekken"
Assassin's Creed
Lego City Stories
Ghost Recon Online
DiRT
Aliens: Colonial Marines
Metro: Last Light
Ninja Gaiden 3: Razer's Edge
Here is an image of the controller:

Wii U

E3 Live

Wizzer10 and I are doing a live chat for E3 with all of the big news. Go to Nottoolikely.co.uk for the live chat, and other news and reviews on games.

E3 Live

Pokedex 3D Japanese trailer

It's known by a different name there, but it's the exact same thing.

Pokedex 3D Japanese trailer

Final Project Cafe rumor sheet

Not for 3DS, so don't expect the below post to talk about any new 3DS games. It's only a few hours to the conference anyway. From someone by the name of 'Round Cactus'. who apparently leaked the 3DS specs and was accurate to boot. Whether you want to believe him or not is up to you.

-Skyward Sword remains on Wii?
-New console to be called 'Nintendo Current'?
-Mario, Kirby, Pikmin and Smash Bros?
-Lots, and I mean lots of 3rd party support?

Click image below. We'll match up Round Cactus' predictions with the real deal in a few hours' time.

Final Project Cafe rumor sheet

Bowser's Galaxy Generator on piano

The epic final boss stage music for Super Mario Galaxy 2, on piano. Beautiful.

Bowser's Galaxy Generator on piano

Shiny Hydreigon and Golurk events

Pokemon movies have come a long way- so much so that now there's even two versions of the same movie! Reshiram and Zekrom, the Gen 5 legendaries, are getting the same movie reskinned with different locales, Pokemon and slightly different story (the only constant being Victini). To commemorate the launching, owners of Japanese Pokemon Black/White will be getting a shiny Pokemon corresponding to the Pokemon that appears in their respective movies! Black, which has Reshiram, will be getting a shiny Hydreigon, which appears in the Reshiram version of the movie, while White gets a shiny Golurk (which is also white, by the way).

Both will be downloadable in McDonalds for a month from June 17 to July 17. Wait, so we can't get them? Ah, but fret not- importers will be able to get them through Wi-Fi Mystery Gift for another two months after that!

Shiny Hydreigon and Golurk events