Category: Nintendo DS

Buy Pokemon Black/White Early, Get Special Victini

Gamers that buy Pokemon Black/White early will be able to obtain a new super-rare Pokemon: Victini! This new legendary Pokemon packs psychic and fire powers. Here are the details from Nintendo’s press release:

Consumers who purchase either of the new games between launch and April 10 will be able to receive a special Liberty Pass via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection (broadband Internet access required), which will enable them to catch the never-before-seen Mythical Pokémon Victini.

Victini — the Victory Pokémon — is the first Pokémon that’s Psychic- and Fire-type and cannot be obtained through normal game play.

The game comes out in early March, so you don’t necessarily have to pre-order to get Victini. I’m psyched to meet Victini. Now I just need to think of a silly name for mine. I’ll probably use some pun-ridden form of martini. Any suggestions?

Nintendo 3DS eShop Delayed Until May: Deal Breaker?

At a recent financial results briefing, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata confirmed that the Nintendo 3DS eShop will not launch until May 2011. Numerous videogame pundits have criticized Nintendo for not having the online service ready for the 3DS’ launch. Here’s an excerpt from the briefing:

I would like to take this opportunity to inform you of our scheduled system updates of the hardware in detail. The first system update is scheduled for late May, at almost the same time around the world. Upon this update, you will be able to use some features including:

  • Nintendo eShop,
  • Transfer of Nintendo DSiWare from Nintendo DSi to Nintendo 3DS, and
  • Internet Browser.

Does the delay change your 3DS purchasing decision? Are you going to wait until the eShop is ready or are you going buy a 3DS on launch day? Does the delay reinforce Nintendo’s shaky Internet reputation in your mind? Or is the company wisely waiting until it gets things right before it launches the service?

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NGP Developer Buzz: id, Q Entertainment, and Kojima Productions

John Carmack (id Software) posted an interesting tweet on the Sony NGP that said, “Low level APIs will allow the Sony NGP to perform about a generation beyond smart phones with comparable specs.” The tweet reminded me of several Twitter and AIM conversations I had with friends in Japan about the NGP. Contacts at Kojima Productions and Q Entertainment told me that their respective companies are psyched to work on the NGP. One of the reasons both contacts cited is that development will be easy and powerful. Both pointed out that working on the NGP will be much easier than working on the PS3.

Sure it’s early and developers are excited to finally be able to talk about NGP development, but there appears to be something here. A lot of developers struggled in the early days of the PlayStation 3. It took many developers a long time before they could harness the considerable power of the PS3. The early buzz on the NGP is that it will be easy to work with from the get-go. It will be interesting to see what the first generation of NGP games will look like as a whole.

Will the NGP’s purported ease of development combined with Sony’s superior third-party relations give it a better and more diverse catalog than the 3DS? I’m excited to see how it all plays out!

Coffee Talk #293: Nintendo 3DS vs. Sony NGP Poll

Now that you’ve had a day to think about what the Sony NGP brings to the table, I wanted to see which 2011 portable gaming system you prefer. Based on what you know so far, would you rather have a Nintendo 3DS or a Sony NGP?

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Lea Michele pegged to sing “American the Beautiful” at the Super Bowl, if puberty will derail Justin Bieber’s career, or Charlie Sheen believing he’s immortal, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Now that you’ve had a day to think about what the Sony NGP brings to the table, I wanted to see which 2011 portable gaming system you prefer. Based on what you know so far, would you rather have a Nintendo 3DS or a Sony NGP? Kindly take today’s poll and explain your answer in the comments section.

[poll id=”99″]

Coffee Talk #292: 3DS vs. NGP is the Same Fight…But Different

The upcoming round of console wars feels a bit familiar. Based on what you know so far, how do you think the upcoming portable console war will play out? Will Nintendo’s…

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, Roger Federer falling at the Australian Open, 15-year olds dominating American Idol (so far), or looking forward to seeing Jay Mohr, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

Before I start today’s column, please remind me to never switch to a new keyboard the same night a console company unveils new hardware. That was…not so smart. Anyway, the console wars have heated up with Nintendo’s announcement of the 3DS’ global launch dates and Sony unveiling the (codename) NGP. As I mentioned back in September 2010, this is going to be an amazing year for portable gaming.

The upcoming round of console wars also feels a bit familiar. I had an exchange with my friend Giant Bomb Jeff about the matter. He said, “It’s still kind of crazy to see Sony go tech and Nintendo go quirk considering how it all panned out last time.” I replied, “I see it as Sony being the electronics company and Nintendo being the game company. They gots roots!” On several levels, it’s the same story as before. Sony has the superior tech and third-party partnerships. Nintendo has the more obvious gimmick and beloved first-party games. Yet these wars have played out differently in the past. PlayStation vs. Nintendo 64, PlayStation 2 vs. GameCube, PlayStation Portable vs. Nintendo DS, and PlayStation 3 vs. Nintendo Wii were all very different battles. How do you think Nintendo 3DS vs. Sony NGP will pan out?

Certainly it’s too early to tell…but it’s still fun to see if you can do a better job than Michael Pachter. Based on what you know so far, how do you think the upcoming portable console war will play out? Will Nintendo’s longtime dominance in the handheld space and eye-catching 3D gimmick help the company maintain its dominance? Or will Sony’s modern social features, motion controls, and superior hardware win the day? Perhaps you’ll go with the safe option of predicting that the Nintendo 3DS will do worse that the Nintendo DS while the NGP will perform better than the PSP? Put on your videogame analyst hat and let me know (please)!

Nintendo 3DS American Launch Lineup

According to Nintendo of America, the company will have more than 30 games for the Nintendo 3DS’ launch window — a conveniently concocted term that covers the period from the 3DS’ March 27 launch to E3 2011. Here’s more information from the press release:

During the launch window (between the March 27 launch date and the E3 Expo in early June) more than 30 games will be available to Nintendo 3DS owners. These include Nintendo-created games like Pilotwings Resort, which has players soaring acrobatically over iconic Wuhu Island; nintendogs + cats, a new version of the Nintendo DS classic with a feline enhancement; and Steel Diver, a side-scrolling submarine adventure that gives the illusion that the player is peering into an aquarium. Other Nintendo 3DS games in the works include The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, Star Fox 64 3D, Kid Icarus: Uprising and new installments in the Mario Kart, Animal Crossing and Paper Mario series.

Nintendo 3DS also enjoys some of the strongest third-party support of any system launch. A partial list of titles coming soon to Nintendo 3DS includes Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor Overclocked from Atlus; Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition and Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D from Capcom; Madden NFL Football from EA SPORTS; The Sims 3 from Electronic Arts; Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 3D from Konami; LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars from LucasArts; Ridge Racer 3D and Dual Pen Sports from Namco Bandai Games America Inc.; Super Monkey Ball 3D, Thor: God of Thunder and CRUSH 3D from SEGA; BUST-A-MOVE UNIVERSE from Square Enix, Inc.; Samurai Warriors Chronicles and Dead or Alive Dimensions from Tecmo Koei America Corp.; and Asphalt 3D, Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Shadow Wars, Combat of Giants: Dinosaurs 3D, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell 3D, Rayman 3D and Rabbids Travel in Time from Ubisoft.

I’m all about the first-party games, as well as Dead or Alive and Street Fighter. And you? Which Nintendo 3DS launch games have your attention?

Nintendo Announces American 3DS Pricing and Availability

At a recent press conference, Nintendo announced that its upcoming 3DS gaming console will be available on March 27, 2011 for a price of $249.99. Industry pundits expect the 3DS to be another dominant handheld gaming system from Nintendo, but the company has more and different competition than in years past. In addition the Sony PlayStation Portable 2 (expected to be announced on January 27, 2011), the 3DS will compete with the Apple iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.

What do you think of the Nintendo 3DS’ price (vote in the poll please!)? Will you pre-order one? Or will you take a wait-and-see approach?

[poll id=”97″]

Nintendo 3DS 2011 Lineup

Nintendo of Japan has released a preliminary list of 2011 Nintendo 3DS games. While some of these game are specific to the Japanese market, most of them will see a global release. Check out the list and let me know if there’s anything that that interests you. I see at least 10 games that I might buy.

  • Winning Eleven 3DS Soccer – Feb. 26
  • Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition – Feb. 26
  • Samurai Warriors: Chronicle – Feb. 26
  • Tobidasu! Puzzle Bobble 3D – Feb. 26
  • nintendogs + cats – Feb. 26
  • Ridge Racer 3D – Feb. 26
  • Combat of Giants: Dinosaurs 3D – Feb. 26
  • Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle – Feb. 26
  • Asphalt 3D: Nitro Racing – March
  • Pro Yakyuu Spirits 2011 – March
  • BlazBlue Continuum Shift II – March
  • The Sims 3 – March
  • My Garden – March
  • Dead or Alive Dimensions – March
  • Shanghai 3D Cube – March
  • Super Monkey Ball 3D – March
  • Naruto Shippuden: Nin-rittai Emake! Saikyou Ninkai Kessen!! – March
  • Virus Shooter XX – March
  • Steel Diver – March 17
  • Nikori no Puzzle – March
  • Gundam The 3D Battle – March 24
  • Pro Yakyuu Famista 2011 – March 31
  • Tom Clancy Splinter Cell 3D– March
  • Rabbids: Time Travel – March
  • Cubic Ninja – Spring
  • Doctor Lautrec and the Forgotten Knights – Spring
  • Kuukan Ryoku Training – Spring
  • Fish On – Spring
  • Resident Evil The Mercenaries 3D – Spring
  • Super Black Bass Fishing Soul – Spring
  • EST – Spring
  • Fishing – Spring
  • Bikkuriman Kanjyuku Haou – Spring
  • The Legend Of Zelda Ocarina Of Time 3D – Spring
  • Pilot Wings Resort – Spring
  • Sudoku and 3 Puzzles – Spring
  • Deca Sporta 3D Sports – Spring
  • Tales of the Abyss – Spring
  • One Piece: Unlimited Cruise SP – Spring
  • Animal Resort – Spring
  • Tank Beat 3 – Spring
  • Me de Unou o Kitaeru: Sokudoku Jutsu 3 – Spring
  • Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon – Spring
  • Driver Renegade – Spring
  • Runabout for Nintendo 3DS – Spring

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NPD 2010 Console Sales Figures (Flame On!)

NPD Group has released its December console sales figures, giving flame warriors some nice 2010 numbers to play with. I haven’t been able to track down the PSP year-end totals yet, but I’ll add them as soon as I do. Here are the total U.S. console sales in 2010 according to NPD Group:

  • Nintendo DS:  8.56 million
  • Nintendo Wii: 7.07 million
  • Xbox 360: 6.76 million
  • PlayStation 3: 4.33 million

While most of the numbers were lower than 2009, Microsoft had a tremendous year with the Xbox 360, selling more than 40 percent more units in 2010 than 2009. The new model combined with Kinect made the Xbox 360 a huge winner in America.

What do you guys and dolls make of the 2010 console wars (in America)?

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This Week’s Videogame Releases

We’re barely into 2011 and there are already some excellent games coming out. There are three very interesting titles shipping this week…and I want them all! First up is DC Universe Online. I still have dreams of forming The Super Buddies, Part Deux with some of you. Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded bundles some KH episodic content that was released in Japan. As a fan of the series, I’m psyched to play more of Sora’s adventures. Last, but not least, is Prinny 2, the sequel to a super-funny and super-challenging platformer based on those lovable demonic Disgaea penguins.

Any of you picking up new games this week?