Two new Pokémon adventures for Nintendo DS are on the way, and Nintendo plans to reward fans for ordering early with guides to help them navigate the games. Starting March 16, fans who place an order for either Pokémon Mystery
Dungeon: Explorers of Time or Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness will receive a free, limited-edition Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Explorers Guide. The guide contains an exclusive collection of tips, interviews and an original manga by Ken Sugimori, main art director of Pokémon video games.

In these two new games, players journey through time and darkness as actual Pokémon as they attempt to find out why they've been turned into a Pokémon. Their epic quest leads them through countless, randomly generated dungeons, encountering more than 490 Pokémon. Players also have the option to send rescue alerts to their friends via e-mail or mobile text message when they are connected to Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. These two new Dungeon games give Pokémon fans another excuse to upgrade to Nintendo DS, which also plays all their favorite Game Boy Advance games in single-player mode.

Pokémon games remain as popular as ever. Last year's release of Pokémon Diamond Version and Pokémon Pearl Version for Nintendo DS sold a combined 4.33 million copies to date in the United States alone.

courtesy of IGN

So a Guitar Hero game is coming out for the DS. Still trying to comprehend how this will work and how well the peripheral will hold up to the abuse it will suffer at the hands of kids trapped in a minivan for 600 miles on their way to a gruesome family-friendly destination.

According to Australia’s Office of Film & Literature Classification, Guitar Hero: On Tour was rated “G” on March 4th and while this news in no way shape or form implies what will or will not be included in the game, suffice it to say that it apparently headed our way. Some say it will be here in June, but we will wait for an official press release from RedOctane and Activision before getting too frenzied about it. Hopefully they will send us something soon.

Source:Australian Government Classification Board

Nintendo Power has just reviewed Brawl and the review was great.  Here are some quotes from the review.

Chris Slate:

"I'm ecstatic to report... that Brawl isn't just amazing, and it isn't just one of the best titles on Wii, but it's one of the very best games that Nintendo has ever produced"

"The single biggest new addition to Brawl is The Subspace Emissary, a vastly expanded adventure mode that by itself is well worth the price of admission. Just imagine if you'd never heard of the Smash series, but someone told you that nintendo made a side-scrolling action/adventure game starring all of its top characters-you'd flip out, right? And to think, Brawl throws it in as a bonus! I can't stress enough that this mode isn't some fluffed-out afterthought- it's packed with loads of enemies and stage types, offers incredible boss battles, supports two-player co-op, and has lots of classic Nintendo references for long-time fans to geek out over. The cinema scenes are gorgeous and contain a long list of cool and funny moments, and I'm pretty sure that Brawl has more cinemas than all other Nintendo games ever made combined. The Subspace Emissary takes longer than many top stand-alone action games to finish, and even more play value can be found in clearing each stage on harder difficulties."

"Maybe, if I set my mind to it, I could scrounge up some negative things to say about the game, some details that could've used a tiny bit more polish. But against the grand scope of how much Brawl does amazingly well, any other possible concerns would be trivial at best. To deny this game a 10 purely for the sake of shying away from the top of our review scale would be a shameful disservice to one of the greatest gaming achievements in years. Rarely has any title delivered so much amazing action, such a wide variety of modes, and so many hours of value. It doesn't get any better than this"

One of the most surprising videogame-related announcements in recent history was that by proven studio BioWare, which revealed last year that it was in development with an epic Sonic the Hedgehog themed RPG for Nintendo's DS handheld. Titled Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood, the game journeys back into the franchise's history to deliver an all-new tale complete with classic characters, a deep battle system, fantastic music, and much more. We recently caught up with the game's producer, Mark Darrah, for an update on the ambitious project. You can find our interview along with nearly 20 new screens of the beautiful game in motion below.

Battles are tun-based with real-time elements.

A Sonic RPG developed by BioWare. Sign us up.

Courtesy of ds.ign.com 

If you made a list of the highest anticipated DS titles out there, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates would assuredly sit somewhere very near the top. Announced nearly two years ago in May of 2006, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is the DS (and future Wii) continuation of the GameCube-exclusive Crystal Chronicles series. Back on Cube, the game required a system, game disc, four players, four GBA units, and four GBA/GCN link cables in order to play the game right. The game was innovative and pretty entertaining overall, but at a total asking price of over $600 for all the needed hardware/software to play it, it just wasn't meant to be.

The series is far from dead though, and DS may end up being the perfect place to play it. Ring of Fates keeps the same class-based action RPG feel, blending character-specific abilities with Four Swords inspired puzzle solving, full equipment and item customization, and a ton of hack-n-slash action that is heavy on the co-op. Simply create a character, chose one of four main classes, and let the multiplayer madness begin.

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You start alone...

but finish as a team.

Since you're never guaranteed to have four players always on-hand, however, the main guts of Ring of Fates is a single player RPG. This is where the majority of our time has been spent thus far, though we did have a chance to go hands-on with the multiplayer from the final Japanese version; more on that later.

The main story in Crystal Chronicles follows two twins, Yuri and Chelinka, that are torn from their world of "good ol' harmless youth," and sent on a quest to defeat an ancient evil that has taken over the world. It's a pretty straightforward story, and nothing we haven't seen time and time again in RPG's, but it does a decent job of setting the mood just the same. You'll begin the game as Yuri in a main town, and learn from your father and sister as you battle through intro dungeons and take your first step into newly-discovered towns and cities. All the while you've got quick tutorials from friendly moogles, shop owners, and family members, and after an hour or so will be free to cruise around the world more or less.

Straight away we've noticed a few key things about Crystal Chronicles that certainly make it a notable experience. For starters, there's some extremely high production value in this product, and it's obvious this is Square's big effort for 2008 (or at least the first half of it). The CG is top-notch once again, Toshiyuki Itahana's Crystal Chronicles character designs make a return once again, translating extremely well on the small screens, and the game features a lighthearted mix of comedy though some well done voiceover work and the return of mischievous moogles that actually poke fun at the fact that they always seem to show up just when you need them. It may be a pocket title, and as such doesn't have the mind-blowing next gen graphics or use of huge sound systems, but we've been pulled into the Crystal Chronicles world just the same, and that's a huge achievement right off the bat.
 

As for the actual gameplay, DS owners are going to get a very similar experience to what we saw on Cube a few years back, as you've got generally the same structure and style throughout. The more enemies you kill, the more experience you get, which leads to level-ups, new techniques, and ultimately tougher enemies again. Magicite is again a huge aspect of the Crystal Chronicles world, though you'll do all your basic magic casting through small Magicite orbs, rather than learning attacks and cashing in MP in the familiar Final Fantasy gameplay. All pocket items are handled on the bottom screen, with action remaining on the top for the majority of the game. Casting magic requires a quick tap of an icon, whereas moving or dropping items is as simple as clicking and dragging them off screen or to another area.

Based on your tribe affiliation, you'll also have different built-in abilities for your characters. The Clavat can make use of a charge attack, the Yuke has a mage's needle for telekinesis grabs, Selkie have an arrow barrage, and Lilty can summon an urn and roll around the map inside of it. With each of the special skills, the action on the screen switches from the main screen to the touch screen, using direct stylus touch for each execution. Simply tap the intended target or drag the pointer, and you'll pull off your skill. As an added note, the use of Magicite takes the same screen-swap into effect, as you drag where you want to cast, and then let it go. Since you start as Yuri and Chelinka your abilites will be pretty basic, but as you akrew other party members you can switch at any time between them, gaining a bit of the multiplayer feel in a one-person situation. All other party members are controlled via AI, but can be called to your position with the tap of the L button. It isn't co-op, but it works.

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The mage in action.

Multiplayer goodness.

Our only concern thus far – small, but worth noting – is that the 3D movement with the DS's d-pad, specifically the DS Lite, is a bit stiff. Like many other 3D titles before it, Crystal Chronicles makes use of full circles of movement, which we found to be easier on the smaller, clicky DS pad, rather than the softer Lite hardware. It's as much a hardware gripe as anything else, but since this is a full-range 3D dungeon crawler, it certainly comes up, and is worth noting.

The main proving ground for Crystal Chronicles won't be found in the single player modes, but in the multiplayer adventure. Since the game is built on co-op roots, this is where the majority of returning fans are going to sink most of their time. We've had only a short time with the multiplayer, but got to try four players, each running with a different tribe affiliation. From the get-go each player will boot up their copy of the game (no DS download play), grab a created character, and link up with nearby friends. From there you can either play through Free Mode, which is basically the main game's story mode opened only as far as the lowest player's single player mode, or go into a Quest Mode, where you chat with the King in Rebena Te Ra, and have the chance to play through co-op missions based on the suggested level and number of players. These challenges focus more on actual co-op play, and are hand-made for using different tribe classes in tandem.

Our time was spent in Quest Mode, and the overall experience was very positive. There was a definite drop in framerate with four players in the game at once, but the experience was very fun despite its quirks. Players can attack each other as well as enemies, but only score one damage with each strike, so it's more for comedy than anything else. You can also grab a team member and throw them at enemies, or actually create a full four player stack by having one person grab another, a second grab them both, and so on. All the same advanced combat can be found across single and multiplayer as well, so there's a focus on slamming enemies against walls, grabbing onto the legs of flying creatures and hitting them mid-air, or pulling off extravagant mutli-tier magic attacks amongst the four players. You of course also get the joyful frustration of co-op adventure games as well, as people leave or trap teammates to grab items first, run off to far corners of the map while everyone waits for them to come use their tribe-specific skill, and the always entertaining "pick up a teammate and carry him to the objective" strategy. It's all there, and it's fun. Hopefully the framerate issues we saw in the Japanese version have been cleared up for the US release, but even so it's still very entertaining despite some wonky tech.

To say we have more Crystal Chronicles left to play is a gross understatement. We still need to experience the majority of the single player mode, tinker with the "Custom Order" system at workshops (basically item creation through merging of material), play more of the multiplayer mode, unlock the classic Blazin' Caravans mini-game – inspired from the GameCube racing mode – and draw new faces and bodies on local moogles and send them to friends via the Mog Trader.

We'll have more on Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates as we near the game's March 11 release date. Until then, check out our new media in the gallery below.

Courtesy of ds.ign

In an interview today with Bloomberg News, Square Enix president Yoichi Wada revealed that the latest entry in Japan's biggest RPG franchise is nearing completion.

Said Wada about Dragon Quest IX, "It's almost complete." He also touched upon a possible area of fine tuning for developer Level-5 as he noted, "The balance between single player and multiplayer is important."

Sadly, Wada wouldn't give a specific time frame for the game, only stating that Square Enix does not want to rush it out.

Dragon Quest IX may just be Square Enix's biggest title for the DS, but the company also appears to be interested in supporting Nintendo's other hit platform, the Wii. "We'd like to increase appropriate software," he said of the platform, noting the company's plans for downloadable games to coincide with the start of the Wii Ware service this Spring.

On the business side of things, Wada revealed to Bloomberg that Square Enix plans to take part in more mergers and acquisitions, similar to what it did with Taito back in 2005. The company is interested in companies not only in Japan, Europe, and North America, but in emerging markets like China and India.

Courtesy of Ign.com 

The Nintendo DS has topped the Japanese Hardware Chart for another week. It recorded sales of 124 627 units for the week ending the 2nd of December, up from last week’s 116 694 units. These sales figures bring its life-to-date sales to 20 million, 284K and with that the PS2’s record life-to-date sales of 20 million, 851K firmly within its reach.

If you take a closer look at the life-to-date sales figures of the Nintendo GameCube and the Wii, you will notice that the GameCube is sitting at 4 million, 179K while the Wii is just behind with 3 million, 945K. Keep your eye on this figure because the Wii is sure to overtake its predecessor in the next couple of weeks, an impressive feat given that the Wii was launched just over a year ago in Japan on the 11th of November 2006 while the Nintendo GameCube was launched almost six years ago now in Japan on the 14th of September 2001.

The real surprise of the week comes with the Wii beating Sony’s PSP. The Wii rockets to second place on the chart with 74 764 units, streaks ahead of last week’s 54 362 units, pushing Sony’s handheld into third place with 74 626 units, marginally lower than last week’s 75 027.

The PS3 experiences a considerable drop from 50 564 units last week to just 37 092 units while the PS2 remains steady at 13 703 units in comparison to 14 875 units last week. The Xbox 360 records slightly lower sales from last week’s 7 117 units with 6 632 while the GBA sold 33 units and the Nintendo GameCube 32 (both down from 82 and 44 last week, respectively).

To catch up on last week’s Japanese Hardware Chart, head over to Nintendo DS sells over 100K, Wii back on top. Also make sure you check out this week's Japanese Software Chart Prof. Layton tops, Wii Fit performs well.

Hardware Chart

Source: Media Create

Sega has announced that it will be bringing Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games to the Nintendo DS in January 2008. This upcoming game for Nintendo DS promises to have exclusive new content and will utilise its unique touch screen and stylus.

Click to enlarge

The Nintendo DS version of the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games will give players a chance to play as any one of 16 video game characters – eight from the world of Mario and eight from the world of Sonic.

The game will also have a Single Event Mode where players can choose one specific event to play, a Circuit Mode where players can choose a series of events to compete in, and the Mission Mode where players are presented with solo challenges that test their athletic capabilities, timing and reflexes. The game will also have a Gallery mode, where mini-games and Olympic trivia will come together, the company says.

Sega also says that the game will have 16 official Olympic challenges, two new events (10m Platform Diving and Cycling), and will include eight Dream events – five of which can be found on the handheld game. Each Dream event takes an Olympic sport and brings it into a video game-inspired world filled with obstacles, power-ups and familiar opponents from the worlds of Mario & Sonic. These exclusive DS Dream events are: Dream Canoe, Dream Boxing, Dream Basketball, Dream Long Jump, and Dream Shooting (Skeet) and are available to play in both the single and multiplayer modes.

The game will also take advantage of the DS wireless communication capabilities and will offer both Single-Card and Multi-Card gameplay options. Multiplayer gameplay can be enjoyed in Single Event Mode that includes the Dream Events and a Circuit Mode for up to four players.

Availability

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games for the Nintendo DS will release in Australia January 2008. For more information about the game, please visit the website at www.sega.com/marioson ic.

 

Courtesy of smarthouse.com

Sega has announced that it will be bringing Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games to the Nintendo DS in January 2008. This upcoming game for Nintendo DS promises to have exclusive new content and will utilise its unique touch screen and stylus.

Click to enlarge

The Nintendo DS version of the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games will give players a chance to play as any one of 16 video game characters – eight from the world of Mario and eight from the world of Sonic.

The game will also have a Single Event Mode where players can choose one specific event to play, a Circuit Mode where players can choose a series of events to compete in, and the Mission Mode where players are presented with solo challenges that test their athletic capabilities, timing and reflexes. The game will also have a Gallery mode, where mini-games and Olympic trivia will come together, the company says.

Sega also says that the game will have 16 official Olympic challenges, two new events (10m Platform Diving and Cycling), and will include eight Dream events – five of which can be found on the handheld game. Each Dream event takes an Olympic sport and brings it into a video game-inspired world filled with obstacles, power-ups and familiar opponents from the worlds of Mario & Sonic. These exclusive DS Dream events are: Dream Canoe, Dream Boxing, Dream Basketball, Dream Long Jump, and Dream Shooting (Skeet) and are available to play in both the single and multiplayer modes.

The game will also take advantage of the DS wireless communication capabilities and will offer both Single-Card and Multi-Card gameplay options. Multiplayer gameplay can be enjoyed in Single Event Mode that includes the Dream Events and a Circuit Mode for up to four players.

Availability

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games for the Nintendo DS will release in Australia January 2008. For more information about the game, please visit the website at www.sega.com/marioson ic.

 

Courtesy of smarthouse.com

Sega has announced that it will be bringing Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games to the Nintendo DS in January 2008. This upcoming game for Nintendo DS promises to have exclusive new content and will utilise its unique touch screen and stylus.

Click to enlarge

The Nintendo DS version of the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games will give players a chance to play as any one of 16 video game characters – eight from the world of Mario and eight from the world of Sonic.

The game will also have a Single Event Mode where players can choose one specific event to play, a Circuit Mode where players can choose a series of events to compete in, and the Mission Mode where players are presented with solo challenges that test their athletic capabilities, timing and reflexes. The game will also have a Gallery mode, where mini-games and Olympic trivia will come together, the company says.

Sega also says that the game will have 16 official Olympic challenges, two new events (10m Platform Diving and Cycling), and will include eight Dream events – five of which can be found on the handheld game. Each Dream event takes an Olympic sport and brings it into a video game-inspired world filled with obstacles, power-ups and familiar opponents from the worlds of Mario & Sonic. These exclusive DS Dream events are: Dream Canoe, Dream Boxing, Dream Basketball, Dream Long Jump, and Dream Shooting (Skeet) and are available to play in both the single and multiplayer modes.

The game will also take advantage of the DS wireless communication capabilities and will offer both Single-Card and Multi-Card gameplay options. Multiplayer gameplay can be enjoyed in Single Event Mode that includes the Dream Events and a Circuit Mode for up to four players.

Availability

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games for the Nintendo DS will release in Australia January 2008. For more information about the game, please visit the website at www.sega.com/marioson ic.

 

Courtesy of smarthouse.com

Konami today announced Contra 4 for the Nintendo DS has shipped to retail outlets nationwide. Celebrating the 20th anniversary of the popular action franchise, Contra 4 features 2D side-scrolling action that recalls the retro feel of the original fan favorite with the added bonus of massive battles that utilize both screens of the Nintendo DS.

"In celebration of the franchise's 20th anniversary, we wanted to bring back the retro look and feel of classic Contra while still providing fresh, compelling content," said Anthony Crouts, Vice President of Marketing for Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. "Well adapted to the Nintendo DS's dual screens, Contra 4 provides an action-packed experience for seasoned Contra players as well as new fans of the franchise."

Taking place two years after the events of Contra III: The Alien Wars, Contra 4 forces our heroes into battle against an army of alien invaders, including the return of the terrifying Black Viper. Players must dodge, shoot, and jump over obstacles and enemies coming at them from every direction. Unique to the series, Contra 4 introduces a grappling hook accessory that provides players a means to grab onto structures above, allowing them to move seamlessly from screen to screen on the DS. Pushing the limits of the Contra franchise to new heights, the grappling accessory also grants players the strategic use of environmental elements for timely escapes, better vantage points for devastating attacks and it becomes crucial in defeating the massive bosses that take up both screens of the Nintendo DS.

Courtesy of gamefreaks365.com 

Seeking to make the Nintendo DS more than just a personal gaming platform, Nintendo has released the WanSeg TV Tuner which can not only allow gamers to watch their favorite shows, but also to bookmark where they are and review images from the program later like a picture book.

The WanSeg Tuner plugs into the game cartridge slot and enables gamers to watch VHF and UHF TV signals. In addition, the there an accelerometer built in which changes the aspect ratio automagically when the DS is rotated, giving the users options on how to watch their favorite shows. In addition, users can also jot down notes as they watch. So, If students are watching a documentary, cooking show, or just about anything else, they can make note of interesting and important facts, web addresses, etc. to access later.

Viewers can also create a full screen or letterbox variant should they prefer a widescreen image.
Accessories include a special high gain antenna mount for areas with difficult reception.

Compatible with Nintendo DS™, Nintendo DS™ Lite, the WanSeg Tuner will sell for about $90 US and is available in Japan starting Black Friday, Nov 23, 2007.