N +

Now, this is something you don't see everyday: a Wii-to-PS3/XBox360 port. Now, I know this is not exactly a Nintendo-related video, but it's No More Heroes... and what it could have been like should the Wii had supported HD graphics. Now, the HD-consoles version of the game will NOT take advantage of any existing (Six-Axis) or upcoming (Wand/Natal) motion technologies for these consoles, so Travis will be joystick-bound for this version... What do you guys think? Are graphics enough to warrant a better experience? Or the Wii version can still remain on top with better control schemes and 'softer' graphics?

There are no specific dates, there is no official announcement from Square Enix, there is no confirmation of any kind...so this is JUST a rumor, so far.

Someone snooped around the EU trademark database and came across trademark registration number 008724528 by Square Enix. This registration entry has trademarks for the phrase "Sentinels of the Starry Skies" in English, French, Spanish, Italian, and German. Ring any bells? The title of the Japanese version of Dragon Quest IX is "Hoshizora no Mamorubito", which roughly translates to "Defenders of the Starry Sky".

While Square Enix has admitted in the past that they will localize the game at some point in the next fiscal year (to begin in April 2010), they may be waiting until after Final Fantasy XIII is out to make an official announcement.

Via Joystiq.

WalMart wants your videogaming money, and it wants it badly. So, in time for the Holidays, the supermarket chain is offering a $50 gift card with the purchase of a $199 Wii. Yeah, that's 25% of your purchase. That's good.

From December 5th trhough 12th, WalMart stores nationwide are offering a $50 gift card if you purchase a Wii. Not content with giving you that, they are also knocking off $10 from several games' price tags until December 24th (List after the break).

Via Kotaku.

Read more...

Thought the Wii had seen it's fall already? Thought the DS/DSi duo would falter in anticipation of DS-XL? Think again. Nintendo just released their sales figures for the Thanksgiving week: they rock.

According to the staggering numbers, between November 22 and 28, Nintendo managed to sell 2.5 systems EVERY SECOND. That's right... every second. 550,000 Wiis were sold during that timeframe, and a million DS/DSi were moved into eager customer hands. Sales for the handhelds were said to surpass the all-time handheld sales record set by the GameBoy Advance during 2002's Thanksgiving week (although, to be fair, we're talking about two different DS models here...so it's kinda not fair...). And this was only in the US alone...

So, the Wii and the DS systems still have some more money-printing left to do.

Via

IGN.

Cute as a button... geeesh...

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

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.