Looks cool and we can’t even see it in 3D!

[source: Nintendo 3DS Blog]

The acclaimed BIT.TRIP game series for the WiiWare^™ service has thrilled audiences with its mix of retro style and inventive game play. This week, new and longtime fans are invited to experience the series’ final installment, BIT.TRIP FLUX, and join CommanderVideo for one more unforgettable ride. Also this week, the Nintendo DSiWare^™ service offers a variety of new hand-held games to satisfy a multitude of tastes. Rise to the challenge of running your own eatery in My Little Restaurant, enjoy physics-based arcade action in Magnetic Joe or fend off an alien invasion in Monster Buster Club.

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The Telegraph writes:

As prepared as you may think you are after the raucous, widespread hype Nintendo’s new video games console has garnered, the first time you peer into the screen of the 3DS –the revolutionary glasses-free 3D handheld– it catches you off guard. Your brain just isn’t ready for it, your eyes squinting and focussing, just to make the 3D ‘work’. But the best thing to try is not try at all. You do have to position the console just so, but once you relax and find that sweet spot, the experience is disorientating yet mesmerising.

The only real knock was the “paltry battery life” that could “leave a lot of commuters disappointed halfway through an important boss battle.” That said, reviewer Tom Higgins also recommending trying before you buy to ensure you’re eyes are comfortable with the glassess-less technology.

Image courtesy of Kansas City Star

The wait for Nintendo’s newest handheld is almost over for us Yanks. During the recent lauch in Japan, 400,000 units were sold as the 3DS sold out almost instantly. The Internets seem to be split on the 3DS launch line up, and whether the games are compelling. What titles have past Nintendo handhelds launched with? (more…)

March 6 is one week away. For me, that means goodbye $34.95 plus tax.

Yes, I’m falling for it again. I’m picking up Pokemon Black/White with the slim hope that maybe…just maybe…it’ll offer something fresh in its gameplay and plot beyond the graphics overhaul.

On the other hand, it’s a no-lose situation. Even if the experience is 99% the same, I’m pretty much guaranteed a polished, well-paced, humor-filled romp through a highly enjoyable fantasy world. (more…)

Think it’ll happen everywhere else, too?

[source]

Anyone else find DK and Diddy hanging out on your bananas?

Looks like he’s promoting a Chiquita Bananas contest where you show off your Donkey Kong dance skills for a chance to win a trip to Chichen Itza in Mexico. The deadline is tomorrow.

- If Okamiden isn’t your cup of tea, perhaps either Pokémon Black or White can tide you over before the imminent release of the 3DS. Both versions in the fifth iteration of the series will be released to North America on March 6, 2011. And now, with a limited time offer, if you pre-order from Amazon you can receive two special bonuses: a Liberty Pass to obtain the mythical Victini (not available through normal play) and a $10 Amazon promotional credit. Hit the link to check out the offer! (Amazon)

- The 3DS has been officially released today in Japan, going on sale for 25,000 yen ($300 USD). According to NPR, “Nintendo expects to sell 4 million of the 3DS machines through the end of March — 1.5 million in Japan and the rest overseas.” Analysts raved that the release of the 3DS heralded the introduction of “the first mass-market 3-D device.” But perhaps most promising of all are the starry-eyed endorsements of the customers themselves. “The images seem to pop out. There is a sense of a world spreading beyond. I can’t wait to play it.” (NPR)

- Sony has cut the price of the PSP from $169.99 to $129.99 — the same price as the Nintendo DS. This price slash has been interpreted by Forbes as a strategic effort to take attention away from the impending release of the $249.99 3DS. Sony has their work cut out for them, as Forbes notes that “Since launching the device in 2005, Sony says it has sold more than 23 million units in North America and 67.8 million worldwide. But the various models of Nintendo DS have far outperformed them, with more than 145 million units sold worldwide.” (Forbes)

- The upcoming risque Wii game “We Dare”, which looks like an awkward electronic version of spin-the-bottle in that it’s another thinly disguised excuse for people to make out under the pretense of playing a game, is being decried by parents as inappropriate, largely in part to the 12+ rating it has apparently received. “No wonder we have problems in society with unsafe sex and under-age sex when kids can get hold of games like this,” said one parent. With all due respect, kids can “get hold of” lots of things they’re not supposed to if you’re not paying attention. The incredibly complex and terrifying solution is probably to just not buy the game for kids that are too young to have their own income. Going out on a limb here. (DailyMail)

The augmented reality playing cards included with the 3DS (currently being pawed and played in Japan) are as much for the enjoyment of the player as they are for the minds of third party developers.

If your mind—player or developer—isn’t racing with ideas after viewing this video (2:00 mark onward), you may have been secretly lobotomized as a young child.

Can you hear that? That’s the sound of the Wii’s arthritis ridden bones creaking as it yells at you to get off of it’s lawn. Yes, it seems more apparent with every quarterly report that Nintendo will soon be forced to show their hand and reveal the Wii’s successor. That certainly doesn’t mean that there aren’t any great games left for the console, so with that said here are the upcoming games all Wii owners should know about.

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