By Spook.
Wednesday, 25. November 2009, 17:36:02
Spook, games, news, ds
...
That's right, people... Japan is getting YET ANOTHER Professor Layton game, and it won't be too long until they can get it, too. At a launch event for Professor Layton and the Devil's Flute (the first game in the second Layton trilogy) Level-5 announced the next game to be released next year.
While us non-Japanese are still eagerly awaiting to have the first, complete trilogy in our handhelds (at least have the third game announced!), Japanese gamers are getting more love from Level-5 by getting the second game in the second Professor Layton trilogy by next year. Akihiro Hino, Level-5 president, announced during a launch event for Devil's Flute that the next game, to be titled 'Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask', will be released in Japan by fall 2010.
The game is supposed to have Layton and Luke investigating said artifact through Casino City which, in turn, seems to have been created by the very same item they seek. If early reports from a leaked
Famitsu report are true, this game could also bring a shift in regular Layton gameplay.
Also, Hino said, the game could come accompanied by a second Professor Layton movie (which, still, has not come outside Japan, by the way) depending on how well the first movie does at the box office.
Via
Joystiq
By Spook.
Tuesday, 24. November 2009, 01:36:37
Spook, nintendo, news
...if he was applying for one today, that is. (You may breathe again...thank you) According to a yet-unpublished interview with Edge magazzine that
Develop Online got their hands on early, Mr. Miyamoto, creator of Nintendo's most emblematic IPs and some of the greatest video game characters (and videogames in general) of all time, admitted that should he be looking for a job today, Nintendo probably would not have hired him.
Nintendo has become one of those companies that graduates from colleges and good universities really want to work for. Because of that, the competition’s really become so fierce for positions. And that means that a lot of the recent recruits for Nintendo have tended to have the higher degree from the prestigious colleges and universities and whatnot. I often say to Mr Iwata: ‘If I was applying for a job here today, I, with my actual college degree, would probably not have been employed by Nintendo’.
Kinda makes you put things into perspective, doesn't it? How many really bright minds have been turned down because they didn't have enough money to pay their way through a prestigious college? But then again, aren't those prestigious colleges prestigious for a reason (and costly for the very same reason)?
But fear not, Shiggy still tries to get involved in the interview process and pick out those rare diamonds in the rough.
I might pick up on [applicants] and try to find out something really different within them which you can’t judge just by a college degree. That’s one of the special little jobs I set myself.
By Spook.
Sunday, 22. November 2009, 09:58:22
news, nintendo, Spook
As usual, IGN posts its "Nintendo Minute" featuring Denise Kaigler... but this time, Nintendo of America's vice president of corporate affairs had some shocking news: She's leaving Nintendo.
I know how your readers like me to reveal news and surprises in my Nintendo Minutes, and I'd say that today definitely qualifies as my latest surprise. It's a fact of life that job and family often pull us in opposite directions. As regular readers of this feature know, this has proved particularly challenging for me, as I've spent the last two years commuting almost constantly between San Francisco, Seattle, New York and my home in New England. It has been a fantastic adventure, but the time has come where I need to choose one over the other … and I have to choose my family. [...] Thanks for giving me the opportunity to answer your questions and talk so directly with Nintendo's fans. For now, my "Minute" is up.
Farewell, Denise...and the best of luck wherever fate takes you to.
Via
IGN.
By Spook.
Thursday, 19. November 2009, 17:11:32
news, games, Spook, wii
...
New details on the Next Zelda for the Wii have surfaced (don't get overly excited, it's not really that detailed) thanks to an interview
by IGN to series producer, Eiji Aonuma.
First of all, the already-known (but now sort of confirmed) focus on MotionPlus for swordplay and archery within the game.
We're taking advantage of MotionPlus. It's become very natural – the movement of your arms is precisely reflected in the gameplay. Thanks to the technological advancements, we hope the gameplay can be more accessible to people.
As for the gameflow, it will change (and he confirms that the game will not be ready before the next E3).
We're making efforts regarding the total flow of the Zelda game. So far, the basic flow of the Zelda games is you're exploring a field, you go to a dungeon, you conquer it and return to the field. We're looking at altering that traditional flow. That's all I can share, and I can't say more until E3 next year.
By Spook.
Thursday, 12. November 2009, 23:39:18
news, industry, Spook, shopping
It doesn't exactly take a genius to realize that New Super Mario Bros. Wii will be a hit... but apparently it does take a savvy market analyst to predict its supremacy and get people stirred up about it. According to Jesse Divnich at Electronic Entertainment Design and Research, Nintendo's upcoming (and greatly anticipated) title will be the greatest hit of the year and will outsell the competition, including Activition's X-Box 360 version of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 by the end of the year.
He also predicts that, although the PS3 outsold the Wii during September, October will see a turn of events and the Wii will be on top again.(UPDATE: He was right on this one...
NPD confirmed) He also expects the Wii to retain supremacy during November and December as well.
However, he does expect the PS3 to be the only console to show gains during October in comparison to the past year, thanks to the PS3 slim (which I'm not so sure if that's fair, taking into account it's not exactly the same console...it's like taking the DS and DSi as the same console; that would make the numbers shockingly high
).
Via
GamesIndustry
By Spook.
Thursday, 12. November 2009, 16:52:15
news, games, Spook, wii
It's official. Konami has announced that, despite rumors that the game would be pushed for a 2010 release, Silent Hill: Shattered Memories will hit the American market on December 8th, 2009... for the Wii, at least.
The date announcement came only for Nintendo's console, and the dates for the PSP and PS2 versions was still left on hold (which makes us think that the 2010 release rumor is actually for these two versions), so unless they come up with a surprise announcement in the following days, Wii players will enjoy a few weeks of exclusivity.
By Spook.
Thursday, 5. November 2009, 14:06:02
dsiware, Spook, nintendo, WiiWare
...
According to reports by
IGN UK, Satoru Iwata, Nintendo's CEO, has admitted to investors that the current WiiWare and DSiWare market is small. But he offers a solution: WiiWare demos.
He states that as a part of a test program, a few WiiWare titles are going to be offered with a demo, with which he hopes to increase the market by luring more users into the service this way. This is because they are aware of the fact that most users only browse the WiiShop channel (or the DSi one) when they already know which title they are going to buy, which limits the market possibility a good deal. He does go on, however, to admit this is not THE solution to this particular problem. So, let's see how well this one plays out.
So far, there are not reports as to whether or not the service is going to make it outside of Japan.
By Spook.
Thursday, 5. November 2009, 03:23:48
news, nintendo, games, Spook
...
Remember the
'gag clause' they put into Miyamoto's contract? Well, Nintendo should review that. Shiggy has done it again and went on to 'spill the beans' on an interview granted to
GameLife, stating that the next Legend of Zelda game for the Wii will in fact make use of Motion Plus for a more realistic experience.
n this (installment of the series), we're using MotionPlus to make you feel much more like you're actually fighting while holding a sword in your hand. In the previous game, you aimed at things by pointing at the screen, but this time we'll use MotionPlus to create a much more convenient targeting system and a more pleasurable playing experience.
Now, I get how Motion Plus could help swordplay, and call me paranoid if you like, but how would you improve AIMING by removing pointing at the screen and using the add-on instead?
Nintendo, however, has yet to make an official announcement on this, so things are a little unclear as to whether the game will only use Motion Plus as a complement or if it will be mandatory to be able to play it, so stay tuned...maybe the announcement will come at next year's E3 (boom, baby!
).
By Spook.
Monday, 2. November 2009, 17:24:04
news, industry, software, nintendo
...
No surprise here: Wii Sports Resort has sold a lot of copies. In great contrast with
past declarations of bad Wii sales and lowering earnings forecast for the company, Nintendo has informed investors it's top selling software, confirming that Wii Sports Resort has sold nearly 7 million copies to date, and the original Wii Sports nearing the 51-million-copies mark.
Following those games, Wii Fit stands at 22.5 million copies sold, Mario Kart Wii at 18.4 million, Wii Play 24.4 million, and Wii Fit Plus 2.13 million.
On the DS front, New Super Mario Bros. (with a long-awaited Wii 'sequel' coming up this month) is nearing 20 million copies sold. Mario Kart DS sales have hit 16.1 million, Tomodachi Collection 1.45 million and Professor Layton and Pandora's Box is at 1.26 million.
Via
GamesIndustry.
By Spook.
Friday, 30. October 2009, 14:01:05
news, industry, nintendo, Spook
It's a harsh world out there, right now... Especially if you're a videogame company such as Nintendo. Although sales did go up with the recent price cut, the measure didn't boost sales enough to reach past levels (which is a bad thing as a specific, but in general Nintendo did manage to rake in billions in profit). But don't take it from me, take it from THE MAN himself.
Wii has stalled. We were unable to continually release strong software, and let the nice mood cool. We were unable to show a new game to become 'the next thing.' In the game market, once you’ve lost the momentum, it takes time to recover. - Satoru Iwata
So, Nintendo's president blames the lack of good software (and would you rebate that?) and has stated that while sales went up with the price cut, it wasn't enough to recover from the low ones from the first half of the year. But he has hope: he expects to sell 20 million consoles by March 2010 (maybe with
Wii 2?
).
Via
GamesIndustry.
By Spook.
Friday, 30. October 2009, 02:12:29
news, Spook, wii
All right, so it's NOT a general rule...but wouldn't that be something? Canadians have been famous for their bacon for ages, and now they 'make history' by making a 12-year-old surrender his Nintendo Wii in exchange for his freedom. We're not kidding.
The
Winnipeg Sun reports that Judge Marvin Garfinkle (it's obvious why the guy's bitter with a name like that) has arranged for a 12-year-old boy, who has been in a lot of trouble with the law lately, surrender his Nintendo Wii as a sort of bail. The terms, the article states, are that the boy keeps peace, appearing for court dates, live with his grandma, and participating in a bail management program. Should the boy fail to honor the agreement, the court gets to keep the console.
He is pledging as a security, akin to a cash deposit, his Nintendo Wii, and if he doesn't comply, he loses it. - Judge Garfinkle
The boy's lawyer, although the brat has spent some time in court already for breaking his school's door windows with a rock-filled sock and chasing and beating another boy, among other mishaps, claims that the boy is not violent but instead just someone who often finds himself in the wrong place at the wrong time.
I know it doesn't look good. I've never seen him enraged, I've never seen him upset. He's a 12-year-old who is generally quite scared. - Serena Puranen, Lawyer.
By Spook.
Monday, 26. October 2009, 16:25:20
news, Spook, japan, dsiware
Square Enix will be releasing this week it's mobile title, Kuni Yaburete Sanga Ari (Hills and Rivers remain) onto DSiWare. Unfortunately for the rest of the world, such title is only slated for a Japanese release, with no word on whether or not this title will ever make it outside Japan (let's hope it does, as long as it is a good one).
The game features 4-player wireless gameplay, updated stylus control, and according to reports, some exclusive maps when in multiplayer mode. The game will be sold at 800 DSi Points (around US$8) and will be available from October 28th.
Via
Andriasang.
By Spook.
Tuesday, 20. October 2009, 17:54:54
news, Europe, nintendo, Spook
...
Black Wii is in Japan, now Black Wii will be in Europe. Nintendo has announced that it will be releasing a Black Wii Bundle across Europe this month.
The bundle will be available as a Limited Edition pack including a Wii, WiiMote, MotionPlus, and Nunchuck (all in luscious black), and of course, Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort. The bundle will be available in the UK and Ireland on November 6th, while the rest of Europe will have to wait until November 20th to get their anxious hands on the shiny, new console.
Of course, separate versions of each accessory will be available in black, including the Classic Controller Pro in the same dates across Europe. No pricing details have been given out yet, though.
Via
Nintendo UK.
By Spook.
Sunday, 18. October 2009, 20:01:27
news, nintendo, Spook
It seems Nintendo is getting ready to unveil an online surprise for its fans, or so teases Denise Kaigler, Nintendo of America's vice president of corporate affairs in
IGN's Nintendo Minute while commenting on the positive response the new Nintendo Channel has been getting.
We're working on a little surprise for those who connect their Wii to the Internet, so keep your eye on the Nintendo Channel for that announcement to come in the near future.
What do you guys think? Could this be that the Connection Ambassador Program is finally coming to the US? Could they FINALLY get more games to use WiiSpeak (or give it better functionality than the dreadful WiiSpeak channel)? Could they be getting rid of Friend Codes?! Personally, I think it'll have something to do with video streaming...
By Spook.
Thursday, 15. October 2009, 00:03:58
nintendo, hardware, news, Spook
...
Ready to get your black WiiMote and MotionPlus? Are you going to add a black Nunchuck to the mix? Well, it turns out that you'll be able to do this very soon. Nintendo announced today that they'll be releasing a black WiiMote + MotionPlus bundle and a black Nunchuck by November 16th.
The WiiMote/MotionPlus bundle will be sold at US$50, while the Nunchuck will go for US$20. Get your wallets ready.
The Wii Remote revolutionized not only how people play games, but also who plays them. The new color lets people customize their setup, and the controllers make great stocking stuffers for players of any age. - Cammie Dunaway
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