The new year is just underway, and Nintendo wants to make sure the world knows how well they’re doing and how confident they are heading into 2012. In a gleeful press release, Ninty broke news that they sold more than 12 million total hardware units in the US in 2011. It breaks down like this: 4.5 million units of Wii, more than 4 million Nintendo 3DS systems, and over 3.4 million units of the Nintendo DS family of systems were sold last year. Some calculations later, the current install base for Wii is 39 million and for Nintendo DS it’s over 51 million. The house that built Mario blames their recent successes on a strong software lineup. 3DS games Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7 have been crowned the fastest-selling titles in the history of their respective franchises when they launched. Additionally, Nintendo notes that they are now also the first 3DS games to sell 1 million units each in the US. Zelda also made an impact on the Wii; The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword became the 45th Wii game to sell over 1 million units in the States. And 2012 is already looking to be a solid year for Nintendo with highly anticipated games on the horizon; first-party titles from franchises such as Mario Party, Pokémon, and Kid Icarus as well as third party titles like Resident Evil Revelations (Capcom) and Metal Gear Solid 3D Snake Eater (Konami) are coming soon. And of course, don’t forget that their next home console the Wii U is expected to launch later this year. Get the full debrief directly from Nintendo after the break.
The concept of the original Scribblenauts that debuted at E3 2009 really blew my mind. It was a game that allowed you to type whatever you wanted and poof! the object would appear on-screen ready to be interacted with. Due to a number of control issues the game did not successfully execute where it should have. Super Scribblenauts leaps ahead of its predecessor with improved controls, adjectives support, and better levels. The most exciting controls update allows you to manipulate Maxwell’s position (including walking and jumping) on-screen with the D-pad and action buttons; you are no longer forced to use the stylus and touchscreen to make him move. The addition of adjectives greatly increases the number of objects that can be spawned into the world. In the first game you could easily produce a “pogo stick”. In the sequel you now spawn an “angry armed metal pogo stick.” (That’s right–you can assign more than one adjective to an object.) As you can see in the demo above, the angry pogo stick will annoy and bump into you. By adding a “protective metal box” to the environment, it will protect you from the pogo stick. So in other words, objects can enhanced with artificial intelligence by adding an adjective before its name. With the addition of thousands of adjectives, the game now supports over a whopping trillion different objects you can spawn. The only restrictions you have in spawning an object are inappropriate words and the 100 character limit.
With over 120 new puzzle-oriented levels to play through, tighter controls, and the ability to make all kinds of objects with adjectives, Super Scribblenauts will likely fulfill that promise of bringing unique gameplay on a portable platform when it releases later this fall for Nintendo DS.
The Nintendo booth at E3 was filled with Wii, DS, and 3DS software. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Swordwas contained in its own section. Attendees were directed to wait in a specific area to gain some hands-on time with the game demo. A bunch of other first-party titles were playable in their own sections, too, and they include Metroid: Other M, Kirby’s Epic Yarn, Mario Sports Mix, and Wii Party. Other notable titles that were playable at the booth: Donkey Kong Country Returns, Pokemon Wii, Sonic Colors, Epic Mickey, GoldenEye 007, NBA Jam, Just Dance 2, Dragon Quest IX (DS), and Golden Sun: Dark Dawn (DS).
Mario Sports Mix looks and feels just like another Mario sports/party game, so it’s a ton of fun. The game has beach volleyball, basketball, dodgeball, and ice hockey games and each supports up to four players. In volleyball it’s 2-on-2 and you flick the Wii-mote up to serve and hit the ball and the nunchuck to move your player around. Basketball works similarly to Mario Hoops 3-on-3 for DS. After you set up a 2-on-2 game, dribbling is not required; you can pass the ball and flick the Wii-mote up when you’re near the basket to jump and shoot. You can also collect items and use them to trip up opponents. For both these games there’s a special meter that fills up during the course of the sport. Once it’s filled, you can make your character use a special move that’s essentially a free point because they can’t miss it. (Think of it as a gamebreaker from NBA Street.) Though I was unable to play the other sports, I am confident in saying Mario Sports Mix is yet another fun party game starring our favorite plumber. It releases next year.
Wii Party. Simply put, this game plays just like Mario Party, with the main difference being that your Miis star in the gameplay instead of classic Nintendo characters. You’ve got the dice to roll by flicking the Wii-mote up, there’s the game spaces you move across to reach for stars, and obviously the plethora of mini-games to keep things interesting. I played a mini-game that involved balancing a growing stack of presents. Party games support up to four players. In addition to party games, Mario Party also includes pair games (co-op) and house party games (these use the Wii-mote in various ways). The game drops later this year.
Donkey Kong Country Returns brought me waaaaay back to the good ‘ol days, if you know what I mean. Though it’s a brand new side-scrolling platformer made exclusively for Wii and its motion controls, it feels as if you never dropped the SNES controller. Thanks to the classic soundtrack and familiar environments, DKC Returns plays like a true modern DK game. If you’re playing single player, Diddy rides on DK’s back; in multiplayer mode the characters are controlled separately. And get this–if player two is having a hard time getting through the level, Diddy can jump onto DK’s back and go on a ride to the end of the level (all the while shooting peanuts to fend off nearby enemies). Diddy also has a jetpack in this game, allowing him to briefly fly to reach hard to get items (such as collectible stars). Both DK and Diddy share a ground pound attack that can help fight enemies and reveal hidden items in the environment. Sure, the DK experience is different thanks to motion controls but it’s most definitely a new one that I’m really looking forward to playing. DK has finally returned. Coming this holiday.
GoldenEye 007 is being described as a reimagining of the original classic shooter from N64. This time around the game stars Daniel Craig takes over the starring duty from Pierce Brosnan as James Bond. The game features a new single player campaign that follows the GoldenEye story but from a different perspective, Craig’s instead of Brosnan’s. At the booth I played the multiplayer demo. Thanks to an aesthetic facelift, the graphics look polished and the environments are more inviting. The muliplayer modes you’ve come to know and love, such as deathmatch and team deathmatch, are back, as well as character favorites like Odd Job and weapons like the coveted Golden Gun. Multiplayer is expanded with online functionality; you can connect and play with friends over the Internet and there’s an achievement system that involves experience points and unlockable items. I happened to play with a Classic Controller, and I was told other methods of input (with the Wii-mote/nunchuck) are being considered. 007 releases this November.
In their latest quarterly earnings report, Nintendo happily announced that their DS line of handhelds (DS, DS Lite, DSi, DSi XL) has officially sold more units than the their Gameboy predecessors. The DS family has sold around 129 million units, briskly passing the 118 million Game Boy handhelds sold. Although this makes the DS line the best selling handheld gaming device in history, the Sony PlayStation 2 still wears the crown when it comes to all video game devices with 140 million units sold. Anyhow, way to go Ninty! Nintendo 3Ds, come out, come out wherever you are.
Hot off the heels of these latest rumors, Nintendo may or may not have slipped up in releasing a short but sweet press release about a forthcoming successor to the Nintendo DS handheld temporarily dubbed the Nintendo 3DS. That’s right, as in 3D. According to the press release found on Nintendo’s Japan website, the 3DS will allow games to be “enjoyed with 3D effects without the need for any special glasses.” Whether or not the 3D tech will work like this DSi Japanese game is yet to be known. It’s also important to note that it specifies the 3DS as the successor to the DS series (which includes the DS, DSi, DSi XL). The 3DS will be backwards-compatible with both DS and DSi games. Engadget scooped up further information; it looks like the 3DS will pump out 3D images using a parallax barrier LCD screen made by Sharp and Hitachi. The 3DS will pack dual screens, each sizing at 4 inches diagonally, 3D control sticks (these just might end up being analog nubs), vibration feedback, faster WiFi transfers, and improved battery life. We won’t have to wait much longer to hear the final word; Nintendo is expected to officially unveil the Nintendo DS successor this June at E3 2010.
The next iteration of the Nintendo DSi, the DSi XL, has yet to release in the States and already there’s word of an entirely new DS system. Let’s refer to it as the DS2, shall we? According to the latest rumors, the DS2 will continue the dual-screen tradition, but this time it will allow for gameplay to occupy a single screen or bleed onto the second screen, serving as one giant display. The two screens will be bigger and boast a higher resolution. Unfortunately the letters HD were not included in the mix. Playing off past rumors, the DS2 will contain an accelerometer and an advanced graphics chip, possibly the NVIDIA Tegra 2. Based on the hardware dev kit, the DS2’s graphics are comparable to Gamecube and even the Wii. Lastly many developers have spilled a late 2010 launch window–that’s when they plan on having their DS2 games ready for showtime. And what does that suggest? Nintendo will likely reveal the next significant upgrade to the DS hardware line at this year’s E3 in June. Remember, all of this is unofficial pieces of information being thrown into the rumor mill. But boy doesn’t it sound tasty?
We’ve heard about the specs and now we’ve got the launch info. Nintendo DSi XL, the next iteration of the Nintendo DS, will be made available for purchase on March 28 for $189.99. That’s $20 more than the current Nintendo DSi that’s been out for some time now. Initially the XL will sell in two color varients, burgundy and bronze. The handheld will come preloaded with two DSiWare Brain Age games, Photo Clock, the DSi Browser, and Flipnote Studio. If you already own a Nintendo DSi I cannot come up with a valid reason for wanting to make the jump to this new device. Remember, the added value comes in an increase in screen real estate screen (from 3.5 inches to 4.2 inches), it comes with a larger stylus, and the screen is a bit brighter. Besides that, it is nearly identical (internals and ports/switches-wise) to the DSi. If you’ve got the original DS or the DS Lite and you’ve been wanting to get in on the dual camera gameplay, maybe it’s something to think about. Look after the break to see the XL in action, Nintendo style.
In related DS news, Nintendo has teamed up with book publisher Harper Collins to create 100 Classic Book Collection, an eReader app of sorts that will be made available in the US on June 14. For $19.99 Americans will have the opportunity to purchase the same 100 classic books Europeans have had access to on their DS’ for over a year now. Joystiq makes a good point: “Why did it take Nintendo a year and a half to localize a bunch of books that were already in English?” Anyway, the collection includes works from Shakespeare, Dickens, Twain, and a whole lot more. Look after the break for the full breakdown. Though Nintendo promises specialized scrolling and zooming options, I just can’t see the Nintendo DS (even with a larger 4.2 inch screen) becoming a viable eReader. Unless of course getting maigrains is a hobby for you.
In a recent interview Nintendo President Satoru Iwata splilled the beans on what to expect from the successor of the Nintendo DS: “[It will have] highly detailed graphics…And it will be necessary to have a sensor with the ability to read the movements of people playing.” How interesting, Mr. Iwata. I can see an advanced accelerometer placed inside a new DS-like portable gaming device that will allow for motion control in Nintendo and third party games. As for the “highly detailed graphics,” this comment adds sparks to the fire about an NVIDIA Tegra chip being incorporated in the next DS.
In other Nintendo news, it was just announced that the Nintendo Wii will join the Xbox 360 and PS3 and finally support the Netflix service. Like the PS3, the Wii will require users to place an “instant-streaming” disc into the console in order to stream movies and TV shows. Obviously the Wii will not support HD content since its lowly graphics card can only handle 480p resolution. And per usual, there will be no additional fee to watch Netflix on top of Netflix’s monthly fees. If you’ve got a Wii and a Netflix subscription, head on over to Netflix to order your very own instant-streaming disc today. What are you waiting for?
Rumor has turned to reality: Nintendo will be releasing an updated version of its handheld gaming platform with the Nintendo DSi XL (DSi LL in Japan). The screen size is jumping from 3.5 inches to a noticably larger 4.2 inches. Nintendo has confirmed that the DSi XL will be released in the first quarter of 2010. Although there was no statement of price, take this and make what you will of it: The LL version releases in Japan on November 21 for ¥20,000 (or about $221).
YouTube user and musician “Denkitribe” replicates Daft Punk’s famous vocals in “Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger” using a Nintendo DS and Korg DS-10 software. Wicked cool.
