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Thursday, October 23, 2008
Wii firmware update ushers in Nintendo Points
The update relates to the Wii Shop, where you'll know notice that Wii Points have become Nintendo Points, to bring it in line with the launch of the Nintendo DSi and its new point system, that will allow users to download content onto their handheld. Points won't be transferable between the two consoles, but Nintendo obviously just wanted to avoid confusion by identically labelling the points scheme across both platforms.
There's also a minor aesthetic change with some new icons added to make sure you don't inadvertently purchase items from the shop when you didn't mean to. How very gentlemanly of them.
Included in the most recent titles for Nintendo's virtual console and WiiWare services are Tetris Party, a four player online version of Tetris. Incredible Maze, which is a maze game that sounds far from being 'incredible' and Gradius 2.
Source : http://gaming.hexus.net/
Ignition, AQ Interactive release Boing! Docomodake for Nintendo DS
Shrooming across North America in March 2009 at an affordable suggested retail price of $19.99, Boing! Docomodake is a fun and interactive game, sure to entertain gamers of all ages.
Set on the day of the annual festival held in the Docomodake Forest, the Docomodake family is nowhere to be seen. Gamers play as Papa Docomodake and guide him through various obstacles and challenges in order to find his family and get them to the festival on time. Papa Docomodake has a trick or two to help him on his quest. With a tap of the stylus he can release 'Minis' that aid him when the going gets a little tough. Remember, Minis make the impossible possible.
"Boing! Docomodake utilizes the Nintendo DS stylus to deliver a gaming experience that blends action, adventure and strategy with a fun and memorable storyline. We expect the game to be a great addition to the handheld market heading into the New Year," said Ignition Entertainment president Ajay Chadha.
"Boing! Docomodake is a must-have game for every DS owner as it offers something for everyone. We are thrilled to partner again with Ignition Entertainment to bring another of Japan's top games to North America," added AQ Interactive CEO Tomoyuki Takechi.
Source : http://www.businessofcinema.com
Sunday, September 7, 2008
Metal Slug 7 Coming Soon To Nintendo DS [screens + trailer]
See 6 screenshots here.
Watch a video trailer of it below.
A summary of Metal Slug 7: "Players will join Marco, Tarma, Eri, Fiolina, Clark and Ralph as they prepare to take on Modern's Forces across 7 new missions that will bring them from Garbage Island to the Fortress of Ruins and beyond. Aside from featuring 7 brand new and fully detailed missions and six playable characters, Metal Slug 7 will also feature a host of new weapons, colossal new bosses, new Slugs to pilot and new gameplay modes for added replay value."
Metal Slug 7 is set for a November 18, 2008 release for $29.99 MSRP. Pre-order here.
Check out more of Metal Slug 7 here at the official website. Read up on the series there, check out the characters in the DS release, and watch for some illustrations coming soon.
From : http://www.gamingbits.com/
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Super Nintendo controller table signals a trend
Credit : http://www.engadget.com/
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Evolution or revolution? Suspense builds for Wii 2
Nintendo fans rejoice: there may well be a new arrival in the group's family of consoles sooner than you think. Satoru Iwata, president of the Japanese computer games group that has been lauded for its ability to attract new waves of gamers, has admitted that the company is hard at work on a follow-up to the motion-sensing Wii.
Mr Iwata said this week: "The hardware team started work on the next thing as soon as they were done with their previous project, but what they think up doesn't necessarily become a product."
However, the speculation that has followed Mr Iwata's hint demonstrates the interest in Nintendo's next offering.
Fans around the world are salivating over how far the concept of motion-sensitive accessories might go: a full body suit that would capture a player's every movement is one suggestion, as is the possibility that Nintendo would dispense with the television as its chief means of displaying games and favour projecting everything on to the inside of a mask. There is even talk of a mind-controlled console that could take the form of a claw-like unit strapped to the head, which would translate brain activity into movement.
And it is not only gamers who have been known to hyperventilate when considering the possibilities of Nintendo's next offering.
Investors, who have goggled at the increase in the company's profits - which surged in the first quarter by 33.7 per cent to 107.3 billion yen (£507 million) and buoyant share price, may have been forced to reach for the smelling salts when considering the issue of what will come next.
One question that is exercising the investors is how Nintendo will handle the economics of that project. Will it just be a technological beef-up of the Wii platform - a Wii2 - or will the famously innovative company take things in an entirely new direction?
And amid the adulation, some gamers, too, are wondering whether the Wii has reached its limits. Its graphics are perfectly good, but the machine's lack of computing horse-power is evident when its games are compared with those on the Playstation 3 or Xbox 360.
Analysts are worried that the company's historical practice of "front-loading" its software line-up - squeezing at least 70 per cent of the most attractive titles into the console's first two years - may force the timing of a Wii2 more fiercely than in the past.
However, it is not just the traditional gamers who are thinking beyond the Wii. The ever-growing "casual" gaming community - those people tempted into the world of video games for the first time by either the Wii or Nintendo's handheld DS console - may not necessarily be satisfied for much longer.
Hiroshi Kamide, a games analyst at KBC Financial Products, said: "The casual gamer's tastes today are pretty basic but they won't be in five or ten years' time.
"The ones who came into gaming with the Wii are going to become more demanding and Nintendo will not be able to fob them off with the level of graphics and processing it is offering in the Wii today. Nintendo has got to make a pretty tough decision about whether the next Wii is going to be evolution or revolution," he said.
To maintain its margins, the bill of goods - components, assembly and shipping - for the Wii2 would have to be about $250 (£130) initially and fall to about $100. If Nintendo were to launch its next-generation Wii within three years, $250 would probably buy it about the same graphics and processing power as are currently included in the Xbox 360. By then, Microsoft may have stepped up a level of sophistication.
Dawn Paine, marketing director at Nintendo UK, is confident that there is still a "huge appetite" for the Wii in its current form across the world."The Wii is still finding its way into new markets. It is being played more in public areas like pubs and we heard recently that it was used in a care home," she said.
However, Ms Paine admitted that the group is "always looking at developments".
From : http://business.timesonline.co.uk/
The Nintendo gaming world awaits another Mario
After Shigeru Miyamoto developed a love of puzzles, the "brain-training" software that has proved to be an international "killer application" on the Nintendo DS console was born.
He became interested in taking more exercise, and Wii Fit was created. He took up music lessons, and Wii Music was the result.
Now, according to sources at Nintendo, the games designer has been banned by the company from speaking publicly about his hobbies.
It's not that they are naughty, illegal or even nerdish, it's just that any glimpse inside his head could be worth billions. Particularly so now: the Wii still sells strongly around the world, but its successor is the talking point. Unfortunately, the only place where the discussion has any grounding is inside Mr Miyamoto's head.
Having managed to lure millions to games with the inventiveness of characters such as Zelda and Mario, it became Mr Miyamoto's hobbies that shifted gears for Nintendo in the next-generation console era. And as Nintendo's Wii games console approaches its second year, even the most fleeting insight into how Mr Miyamoto is spending his work or play-time is creating huge interest.
In short, the gaming and investment communities are wondering which of his current pastimes will be translated into a virtual rendition that will attract millions of sales five years from now.
Keeping Gray Matter Sharp
A growing variety of electronic products are targeting consumer anxiety over the aging mind. And we're buying what they're selling: The "Brain Age" game program alone has sold at least 17 million copies worldwide since its launch nearly three years ago in Japan.
The simple answer: While the science attached to many such games points to immediate stimulation of the brain, there's little if any evidence indicating long-term results.
"It's hard for anybody to say that a specific amount of exposure to any of the things on the market is going to benefit them many years down the line," says Marilyn S. Albert, a professor of neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She helped pioneer studies, dating back to the mid-1990s, on the maintenance of cognitive function.
"But there's no downside to being mentally active. Nobody thinks (brain games) are going to do anyone harm."
And that includes the old-fashioned, pencil-on-paper kind of brain teasers.
"I do crosswords a little bit, but my daughter does them more than I do. So does my mother -- and she's about 95," Albert says.
Hoping you'll be as sharp when you reach that age? Here's a look at the various types of products aiming to catch your mind's eye; any of them are bound to at least keep you busy in the meantime.
Among the handheld video games are:
Get smart: Since the monster success of "Brain Age," Nintendo's pocket-size, touch-screen DS system has gained a small stable of games aimed at brain-building. "Big Brain Academy" (also available in a version for the home Wii console), "Brain Age 2," "Flash Focus," "Your Word Coach" and other titles promise activity to keep your mind agile.
-- Upside: Great portability -- perfect for tucking into your carry-on bag when flying -- and sharp, engaging graphics. Hard to beat these for the fun factor. Based on your performance, the "Brain Age" games calculate -- yup -- the age of your brain; it probably won't surprise you that this varies from day to day.
-- Downside: The trouble lies in the daily "training" these games encourage: Familiarity breeds boredom.
-- Cost: about $120 for the DS Lite system, $20 to $30 for most game titles.
The Web-based applications include:
Get smart: If you have a PC with Internet access, you have all the equipment you'll need to access mental exercises at such sites as happy-neuron.com and lumosity.com. Rather than buying a game system or software, you're paying a monthly or yearly subscription to access the multimedia puzzles and exercises.
-- Upside: Although not as playfully designed as the Nintendo DS titles, they're still fun. Typically, the sites offer a wider variety of games than individual video-game titles. You'll probably find your PC monitor screen easier to read than that of a tiny handheld device. Subscriptions can be given as gifts. Try them out online before paying anything.
-- Downside: When you're without Web access, you're without your training gear. And if your Internet connection is slow, you may get frustrated when switching between games.
-- Cost: Happy Neuron, $9.95 monthly, $99.95 yearly; Lumosity, $24.95 for a three-month membership, $79.95 for a one-year membership.
Computer software:
Get smart: A one-time purchase gets you some serious brain training, with games tailored for various cognitive functions. "MINDFIT" is specifically aimed at ages 45 and up; "Brain Fitness Program 2.0" was the overall winner of a recent Wall Street Journal product test.
-- Advantages: No need for an Internet connection; wide variety of stimulating exercises. Test games online before buying.
-- Disadvantages: Playing these feels a bit more like taking your medicine than enjoying a puzzle. They're not cheap.
-- Cost: "MindFit," $139 for download, $149 for CD-ROM, e-mindfitness.com; "Brain Fitness Program 2.0," $395, positscience.com.
Puzzles in print:
Get smart: Look for the crossword puzzle in today's paper. If you're looking for a different style of brain-busters that you can curl up with at night, try "The Big Book of Brain Games: 1,000 PlayThinks of Art, Mathematics & Science," by Ivan Moscovich.
-- Advantages: Old-fashioned portability and no need for batteries or an Internet connection
-- Disadvantages: No motion or sound, unlike the computer-based products (though some people might find that an advantage)
Contact Jay Dedrick of the Rocky Mountain News at www.rockymountainnews.com.
Test your skills
Ready for a quick workout? Here are two mind puzzles from "The Big Book of Brain Games." The first is easy, rating 1 on a difficulty scale of 10; the second is trickier, with a 6 rating.
-- Ahmes' Puzzle: Seven houses each have seven cats. Each cat kills seven mice. Each of the mice, if alive, would have eaten seven ears of wheat. Each ear of wheat produces seven measures of flour.
How many measures of flour were saved by the cats?
-- Lottery Draw: If you draw the lucky ticket, you win the lottery jackpot. You are given the option to draw one ticket out of a box of 10, or draw 10 times out of a box of 100. Which choice gives you the better odds?
"BRAIN GAME" ANSWERS
-- Ahmes' Puzzle: 16,807 measures of flour. That's 7 x 7 x 7 x 7 x 7. This puzzle, which comes from the ancient Egyptian "Rhind Papyrus," was written by the scribe Ahmes in 1850 B.C. Perhaps the world's oldest puzzle, it has inspired a great many variations over the thousands of years since its creation.
-- Lottery Draw: The choices offer identical odds. But in a psychological experiment, about four in 10 people preferred the single draw and held to this view even when the other choice was altered to provide 50 draws from the box of 100.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Project Beauty coming to Nintendo DS
Project Beauty coming to Nintendo DS
Videogame Company Sega is collaborating with cosmetics giant Shiseido to launch a new title for the Nintendo DS gaming console.
This gaming application has been named Project Beauty and it would go on sale later this year.
The application would require a scanning device which feeds in user photos to the game. The game then analyses the shape and position of the eyes, lips and other parts.
The application would ship with the scanning device and the package would retail for 6,090 yen.
After scanning the application would show two images on the screen. One without makeup and the other one with the proposed makeup.
Sega spokeswoman Rei Sugiyama spoke about this new title for the Nintendo DS: "The same user can have a variety of make-up tips for different occasions such as business, dating or formal gatherings. You would find colors that are good on you but you never realized before. The new software targets women in their 20s and 30s including children, elderly people and women who were not considered core game players."
From : http://games.techwhack.com/
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GTA for Nintendo DS - rumoured new features
GTA Chinatown Wars was the only real surprise to come from Nintendo at this year's E3. No further details were given about this GTA spin-off, which should be out exclusively on the Nintendo DS. The most asked question in the handheld gaming universe at the moment though is: how will this Rockstar game fare technically on the DS touchscreen? This heated discussion still divides gamers. The first details about GTA Chinatown War's content seem to be trickling through.
Rockstar did not give up this information too willingly though. According to the online portal Game|Life, the gamer blog "URO" carried out a survey titled "GTA Chinatown Wars details revealed" about the new "GTA to go". New features were revealed in this survey, and then the article suddenly disappeared. Now there is just an empty page in its place. This hasn't stopped details about this new feature spreading like wildfire through the internet.
The first piece of news was related to the open world aspect of the game. Besides the huge world waiting to be explored there are reportedly also brusque changes in the weather conditions. The streets should be as bustling as ever, and the police as on hand as usual in GTA Chinatown Wars trying to maintain law and order on the streets. The story should be quite similar to that in GTA San Andreas. The reports state that in this Nintendo DS version the player is a small time criminal who finds himself in the middle of a bloody internal gang war. The URO game blog stated that GTA Chinatown Wars will include more than 70 missions and a playing time of at least 20 hours. For the first time in GTA history, players will also be able to start missions which have already been completed again, giving the game added playability.
As seen in extracts of the URO article, this game is true to old school GTA. Amongst other missions players will find the classics such as auto theft and eradicating people through snipers. The multiplayer aspect of the game hasn't been forgotten either. Thanks to WiFi handheld gamers can play with or against others in up to four different modes. This includes a racing mode with seven different tracks. The game should also feature a co-op mode. We will only find out if all of this is true or just speculation when GTA Chinatown Wars reached the shops. Rockstar Games' developers are keeping a tight lid on the details for the moment. As of yet there is no official release date for the Nintendo GTA.
From : http://news.idealo.co.uk/
Holly Willoughby and Fearne Cotton to front Nintendo ad campaign
Dancing on Ice host Holly Willoughby and TV and radio presenter Fearne Cotton are fronting a TV campaign to promote a new Nintendo DS video game, Girl Band, that lets girls become a part of a virtual rock group.
The TV ad, created by ad agency Audacity for Ubisoft, the videogame publisher behind Girl Band, breaks on August 9 targeting six- to 12-year-old girls.
In the TV ad Willoughby and Cotton are engrossed in the game and auditioning for parts in the virtual bands they are creating on their Nintendo DS handheld devices.
Willoughby, who is taking over from Cotton to present the ITV2 behind-the-scenes show The Xtra Factor when the show returns later this month, then reminds Cotton that she has completely forgotten about an interview she is meant to be doing with a real-life wannabe girl band.
A spin-off online campaign will give girls the chance to win a competition to have a song recorded, take dance lessons at the famous Pineapple Studios and do a photo shoot with their best friends for an album cover.
The pair have been signed by games maker Ubisoft to front a series of TV ads to promote a range of girl-targeted titles it makes under the Imagine brand for Nintendo DS.
Ubisoft's launch TV campaign, supported by a £2m ad spend, will be followed by another commercial breaking at the end of the month for the game Imagine Teacher.
Three more Ubisoft ad campaigns featuring Willoughby and Cotton will launch in the run-up to the key software sales season at Christmas.
Two of the ads will also be used in a cinema campaign targeting family films, such as High School Musical 3, City of Ember and I-gor, running from late October to early December.
Other Ubisoft titles to launch will include Dream Weddings and Movie Star.
Mark Slaughter, marketing manager at Ubisoft, said the company has developed a marketing approach based around the aspirational concept of "Live your dreams".
"Fearne and Holly were specifically chosen due to their complete fit with this territory and positioning," Slaughter added.
"They are great friends, are fun, friendly and positive role models. They also exist in the area of aspirational media."
Media planning and buying for the Ubisoft campaign has been handled by media agency Maxus with digital advertising by Candi International.
From : http://www.guardian.co.uk
Asus confirms Wii-style Eee Stick controllers
Asus has confirmed that it will launch its own Nintendo Wii-style gaming controllers, and ship them with some models in its Eee PC line.
Called the Eee Stick, the product is actually a pair of wireless controllers that use motion sensors so people can bowl, slash swords and play other games on an Eee PC or any other PC. One handheld device is an 'activation stick' featuring seven buttons, while the other is a 'navigation stick' with a thumb-operating joystick.
Both offer vibration feedback and connect to PCs over a distance of up to 10 metres. They provide 'up to' 72 hours of continuous play on two AA batteries per stick, according to Asus.
When Asus announced the Eee Stick earlier this year, rumours suggested the device would become available in mid-August. However, no details of a UK release date have been confirmed as yet.
From : http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Nintendo 64 system: $25.95
For those parents out there who are feeling pressure to buy their kids Nintendo Wii's or Playstations 3's, here's my rule of thumb: When your kids are mature enough to need the latest, greatest, coolest, video game system, they have hit the age where they are also cool enough to pay for it themselves ... with their own money.
Buying a 5-year old a $300 video game system is stupid. Do you really think he'll enjoy it any more than this $25.95 Nintendo 64 system, available used on Amazon? Of course not! Nintendo 64 was fun 10 years ago and it's fun now, gosh darnet. These days you can buy a lot of N64 games for a little more than 2 dollars apiece, and young kids have short attention spans so a wide variety is key.
Form : http://www.walletpop.com/2008/03/13/nintendo-64-system-25-95/
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
[Nintendo Wii Media] New We Ski Screenshots
Friday, February 29, 2008
Elderly stay active with the Wii Nintendo System
(WTNH) _ Staying active can be a challenge for aging people whose bodies may not work like they used to. But these days, more and more seniors are turning to video games -- to challenge their bodies and minds.
Who says video games are just for kids? Don't tell that to Helen Bower. She's become a real pro at 'bowling' on the Wii Video Game System -- and says it's a lot like the real thing.
"I actually thought I was in a bowling alley, holding a bowling ball," Bower, of Woodbridge, said. "And, when I got upstairs, my wrist even ached a little bit."
Bower is one of a growing number of residents at Coachman Square -- an assisted living center at Woodbridge -- learning how to use the Wii. "Oh, it's a great game," she said.
"People are realizing 'I can try something new' -- and it's moving them more than they've probably moved all day," Joan Cramer, an Occupational Therapist, said.
"You don't have to hit buttons on this game," Cramer said.
Malcom Webber, 91, is playing baseball on the Wii Nintendo system. And he's already having beginner's luck as a pitcher -- having struck two batters out.
"I couldn't do that well when I was a kid and used to pitch once and awhile," Webber, of Woodbridge, said.
Webber calls the game 'very practical' for older people -- it keeps them moving. For example, he and his wife used to play a lot of tennis. "So we've advanced from the real tennis courts -- to the tennis courts here," Rae Webber, of Woodbridge, said in reference to the Wii Nintendo game.
The game is something new and different -- a challenge for both mind and body. "I've tried to urge some of the other people who say -- 'No I can't do it' -- you can," Bower said.
After all, Bower never pictured herself as a video game player, but she is -- and she's pretty good.
The residents at Coachman Square are very busy practicing for a video game tournament in April. The tournament will feature the grandparents challenging their children and grandchildren.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Wii Fit Priced for Europe by Nintendo
Wii Fit is eagerly awaited by Nintendo Wii users in North America as well as Europe. There was some confusion about the price of the package in Europe, but it seems that Nintendo has put it to rest. IGN is reporting that Nintendo has confirmed that the Wii Fit pack will cost GBP 69.99 in the UK (approx. Rs. 5500) and EUR 89.99 (approx. Rs. 5340) in the rest of Europe.
Wii Fit will have four training categories like Aerobic Exercises, Muscle Workouts, Yoga and Balance Games. It will feature more than forty different activities within these training categories such as Hula Hoop, Ski Jump, Press-up Challenge, Rhythm Boxing, Rowing Squat, Lunge and classic Yoga poses such as Half Moon, Tree and Crocodile Twist. The game will include an on-screen fitness trainer as well as helpful tutorials.
Wii Fit will be released in the UK and Europe on April 25, 2008. Gamers in Europe would be happy to get the game before their North American counterparts, who get the game on May 19, 2008. Wii Fit was released in Japan in the first week of December 2007 and has sold more than 1.4 million units till now.
http://www.gameguru.in/nintendo-wii/2008/28/wii-fit-priced-for-europe-by-nintendo/
Nintendo Wii Outsells PS3 Four to One in Japan
The PlayStation 3 was outsold by nearly four-to-one by the Wii over the four week period. Nintendo shifted 331,627 units, while Sony moved 89,131 PS3s. Microsoft's Xbox 360, as ever in this region, trailed, selling 14,079 units. SPOnG did the maths and that means it was outsold by the Wii by 23.5 to one, while the PS3 outdid it by 6.3 to one.
In January, the Wii outsold the PS3 in Japan by nearly three-to-one.
Meanwhile, the Japanese software charts are in for the period from February 18th to February 24th, courtesy of Media Create. Smash Bros. Brawl once again rides at the top, while seven out of the Top 10 games are for Nintendo platforms. You can see the Top 10 in full below last week's position is bracketed.
(01) 1. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Nintendo) - 78,000
(NE) 2. Etrian Odyssey II: The Royal Grail (Atlus) - 69,000
(2) 3. Wii Fit (Nintendo) - 62,000
(NE) 4. Musou Orochi (Koei) - 47,000
(NE) 5. Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness (Marvelous Entertainment) - 45,000
(NE) 6. Winning Eleven Play Maker 2008 (Konami) - 36,000
(NE) 7. Lost Planet: Extreme Condition (Capcom) - 23,000
(NE) 8. Bioshock (Spike) - 18,000
(6) 9. Wii Sports (Nintendo) - 17,000
(8) 10. Mario and Sonic at the Olympic
http://news.spong.com/article/14909?cb=178