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Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 23, 2014 in Videogames 
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call is coming out September 16 in North America and September 19 in Europe, which is right around the corner. To help promote this music-focused game, Square Enix is holding a contest for musicians to arrange and perform Final Fantasy‘s Main Theme that has appeared in almost every Final Fantasy game. If you’re selected by original Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu, you’ll win a grand prize: a round trip for two to a Distant Worlds: Final Fantasy concert, a limited edition Nintendo 3DS LL released for Curtain Call, the official soundtracks of all fourteen main Final Fantasy games, a collector’s edition copy of Curtain Call (signed by Uematsu), and a Final Fantasy Static Arts mini figure. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Final Fantasy, square enix
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 15, 2014 in Videogames 
Masahiro Sakurai has said we’re nearing the end of new character announcements for Super Smash Bros. for 3DS and Wii U (or at least new characters they feel like announcing that aren’t a surprise unlockable). The latest trailer adds two more Fire Emblem characters from Fire Emblem Awakening, joining previous fighters Marth and Ike. For the first time, you’ll be able to play as Robin (the main character) and choose whether the character is male or female, just like in the game. Lucina is also joining the fray. Meanwhile, Captain Falcon will be a returning character, having appeared in every previous Smash Bros. game. It’s all looking good, but I wouldn’t mind even more new character announcements by the time the game is out! Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, Super Smash Bros., Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 12, 2014 in Videogames 
Nintendo promised one more big 3DS announcement at E3, and it’s Code Name: STEAM. It’s an original IP with elements from comic books, steampunk, Abraham Lincoln, aliens, and more. Hitoshi Yagami (Fire Emblem, Xenoblade Chronicles) is working with Intelligent Systems (Fire Emblem, Advance Wars) to make a turn-based strategy game with action elements from shooters for movement and attacking. As expected from such a mix of influences, the game’s concept is pretty wild too. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, steampunk
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 12, 2014 in Videogames 
An English release for Final Fantasy Type-0 and Final Fantasy Agito was already announced at this year’s E3, but that’s not the only Final Fantasy announcement Square Enix has for RPG players. The latest Japanese issue of Shonen Jump revealed Final Fantasy Explorers, a new multiplayer RPG for 3DS. You can pick different jobs you’re likely familiar with like black mage or monk. You can team up with three other players to fight various summons from previous FF games. Basically, it seems that Square Enix is doing their own take on Monster Hunter. Since the 3DS doesn’t have as many MH-style games as the Vita, the only big game this needs to compete with is Monster Hunter itself! Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Final Fantasy, square enix
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 11, 2014 in Videogames 
Because Atlus doesn’t have a European branch, releasing their games is always iffy because it relies on other companies publishing the games. As a result, some games don’t come out or are hard to get. (Persona 4 Arena was just taken off the European PSN store.) Atlus is fixing this somewhat with Shin Megami Tensei IV, which is finally getting released in Europe. Sadly, there is no physical release, as the game is only available as a digital download from the eShop. The game is also only in English, reusing the localization for America. Still, this is good news for hardcore RPG fans. The price hasn’t been set yet, but we do know the game is coming out in Q3 later this year. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Atlus, shin megami tensei
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 10, 2014 in Videogames 
While Microsoft and Sony had solid press conferences yesterday, Nintendo’s E3 Digital Event on the first day of E3 was much more impressive to me because it captured the self-awareness mixed with new hype of E3s past. Robot Chicken produced the opening (and various interstitial skits) in which Nintendo of America CEO Reggie Fils-Amie definitely ate a fire flower and lit a press member on fire. Then, Reggie and Nintendo of Japan CEO Satoru Iwata began fighting each other. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, E3 2014, Nintendo, Nintendo Direct, Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 5, 2014 in Videogames 
Since their reinvention with Persona 3, the Persona games have been known for their striking, colorful openings, showing off the characters and setting the tone of the game. I know I’m not the only person to have rewatched them too many times to count. Well, it seems that Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth, the upcoming 3DS dungeon crawler, isn’t too much of a spin-off to get its own fancy opening number. It shows the characters from Persona 3 and 4 looking cool and interacting with each other, since this is a crossover game. I’ve already watched this a few times, because the music is as catchy as usual. Alas: this game won’t be out in North America until Fall 2014. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Atlus, Persona 3, Persona 4
Posted by Bob Muir on Jun 4, 2014 in Videogames 
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy was one of the early reasons to own a 3DS, offering a fun musical romp through the history of past Final Fantasy games. The sequel, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call, is coming out in North America on September 16, 2014, and it’s especially enticing for those who skipped the first entry. With 221 songs, you’ve got access to every previous song, every previously-released DLC song, and new songs, plus the option to buy more DLC songs in the future. That’s a lot of songs! But if you’re really excited for the game, you might consider preordering the collector’s edition. Only 5,000 copies are available on Square Enix’s online store. If you pony up the $70, you get a big box (similar to Kingdom Hearts 3D‘s collector’s edition), a collector’s pouch for your 3DS, a 20-song soundtrack CD, an additional CD with 5 remixed songs, and 5 premium cards based on CollectaCards seen in the game (with passwords to unlock the card in-game). If you don’t have the scratch for all that, you can still preorder and get the 5-song remix CD. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Final Fantasy, square enix
Posted by Ben Huber on May 24, 2014 in Videogames 
Hey! There’s a new 2DS color! I was wondering when we’d get one of those, and I suppose the upcoming release of Tomodachi Life is a perfect time for that. The new color is Sea Green, which seems like an alright name. What happened to “teal,” though? This is a bit lighter than your average teal, and with that white contrast, it looks very… beach-y! This 2DS and Tomodachi Life release June 6th, but no word on if there will be a bundle. I was honestly hoping they’d bring the mint green 3DS XL (that they paired with Tomodachi Life in Japan) over to us, but alas, it is not to be. It’ll retail for $129.99. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, Tomodachi Life
Posted by Bob Muir on May 8, 2014 in Videogames 
After dropping a few hints in Pokemon X & Y and years of fans speculation, Nintendo has announced that they are remaking Pokemon Ruby & Sapphire for 3DS, due out this November. It fits rather perfectly: X & Y just came out last fall, so it will have been a year since the newest main game release; meanwhile, Nintendo has already remade Pokemon Red & Blue (as Pokemon FireRed & LeafGreen on GBA) and Pokemon Gold & Silver (as Pokemon HeartGold & SoulSilver on DS), the first two generations of Pokemon games, so Ruby & Sapphire are the only pre-DS games left to remake. The new remakes will be called Pokemon Omega Ruby & Alpha Sapphire. In a nice touch, the temporary box art has red or blue bands at the top and bottom, which is reminiscent of the Japanese box art for the original games. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, Pokémon
Posted by Bob Muir on Apr 24, 2014 in Videogames 
Nintendo’s Satoru Iwata had previously said that the next Ace Attorney game would be totally different, and now we know why: it’s set in Japan’s Meiji era (1868-1912). The main character is no longer Phoenix Wright, but his ancestor, who has a new sidekick as well. The game is for 3DS, so hopefully Capcom will still bring this over. (I’m nervous ever since they declined to localize Ace Attorney Investigations 2.) I just wonder how they’re going to localize the game now that it’s very clearly, unavoidably set in Japan. You can’t just say that sushi are hamburgers now. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Ace Attorney, Capcom, Phoenix Wright
Posted by Bob Muir on Apr 23, 2014 in Videogames 
Final Fantasy fans enjoyed Theatrhythm Final Fantasy when it was released on 3DS in 2012. Maybe a part of that was that the 3DS was just starting to gain momentum, but some of it had to do with how fun it was to tap out rhythms to your favorite Final Fantasy music. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call, the sequel, is releasing in Japan this Thursday, so of course Square Enix is just now announcing that it will come to America like we still live in the dark ages of localization. But hey, it’s coming out in North America sometime this year, and with more characters (over 60) and more songs (221!) than the original game. In my ideal world, this sequel has every original song, every DLC song, and then even more new, exclusive songs so that I never have to put the original game into my 3DS. It’s a lot to ask considering Square Enix made a game just designed to separate you from your money, but hey, I can dream. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Final Fantasy, Music, square enix
Posted by Ben Huber on Apr 11, 2014 in Videogames 
Holy crap: this is the weirdest and craziest Nintendo Direct I’ve ever seen: Bill Trinen hosts a news show announcing Tomodachi Collection is coming to America and Europe as Tomodachi Life, but then it gets bizarre. Reggie and Iwata battle Bill for Samus’ hand, Aonuma dates Princess Zelda, and to top it all off, there’s a musical number at the end. It’s really insane. The game itself looks like the right combination of Animal Crossing and Miis in an island-life sim. Throw in some dating, eating, and a collection of eccentric minigames, and you’re starting to get close to the essence of Tomodachi Life. Check out the Nintendo Direct below! Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, Nintendo Direct, Tomodachi Life
Posted by Bob Muir on Apr 9, 2014 in Videogames 
Nintendo just held a Nintendo Direct on the upcoming Super Smash Bros. game for 3DS and Wii U, and boy, did they really spill the beans. Director Masahiro Sakurai light-heartedly hosted a 40 minute presentation that led off with the long-anticipated release date for the two games. While exact dates were not given, we finally know that the 3DS version would release in Summer 2014, while the Wii U version won’t be out until Winter 2014. Still, that’s earlier than I expected it to be finished, so that’s a good sign. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, Super Smash Bros., Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Apr 1, 2014 in Videogames 
It’s taken long enough, but I guess that’s typical for Virtual Console releases these days. Capcom has confirmed that they will release six Mega Man Game Boy games on the 3DS Virtual Console in May — a “Mega May,” according to Capcom. The first Mega Man Game Boy game is already available, but I guess this is the remaining ones: Mega Man II through Mega Man V (the latter of which isn’t just a remix of NES levels), plus the two Mega Man Xtreme games based on Mega Man X (the letter, not a tenth installment, since things could get confusing with the Game Boy games using roman numerals). The games will all be released in one month, but fans can vote on Capcom Unity to decide what game will be released first. Personally, I don’t see anything wrong with just going in release order; they’re all going to be out by the end of the month. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Capcom, Mega Man
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 15, 2014 in Videogames 
Yup, at the Nintendo Direct yesterday, Nintendo announced another new character for the next Smash Bros. installment on Wii U and 3DS: Little Mac! The boxer from Punch Out! will be a newcomer to the series, but it definitely looks like he’ll still pack a wallop. He’s a bit on the short side, though. His introduction trailer is actually really cool, and I’m glad Sakurai and the team are taking the time to do these elaborate videos for each new character. Watch the video below, check out some images, or head over to the official site for more. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Super Smash Bros., Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 13, 2014 in Videogames 
One of the many reasons I love Nintendo games is their attention to detail. It’s not enough for Nintendo that things just work properly; they want to put little bonuses in there too. GameXplain created a YouTube video highlighting the idle animation for Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, the new Wii U game that is just about to come out. (Idle animations are what game characters do if you don’t move them for a while.) Not only do three of the four playable characters have two idle animations, not only do they have additional tweaks depending on which characters are paired up with DK, but Donkey Kong has an amazingly detailed idle animation. One of his animations involves him pulling out his 3DS and playing for five seconds. That would be cool enough, but if you listen closely, you can hear him playing one of four real 3DS games, including Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D, his previous game. That’s the kind of attention to detail that more developers need to implement. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Donkey Kong, Nintendo, Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Feb 12, 2014 in Anime, Videogames 
Pokemon X & Y have been out for a few months, and the only free pokemon giveaway was a Torchic with a special evolutionary item. That means it’s about time for Nintendo to start giving out event legendaries — rare pokemon you can’t get through normal play, like the famous Mew. CoroCoro magazine reveals that the first event legendary is Diancie, a rock/fairy type pokemon that will star in the 17th (!) Pokemon movie, Cocoon of Destruction & Diancie. Nintendo hasn’t revealed how it’s giving it out yet, but hopefully players will be able to just connect their 3DS to the internet for the download, instead of having to go to Gamestop, the movie, or some other event like cavemen did. Diancie confirms a leak (spoilers!) from a few months back about pokemon hidden in the game’s code, so perhaps all those other pokemon will be made available in the next year or two. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, Pokémon
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 2, 2014 in Videogames 
Despite Nintendo’s recent financial troubles dominating the news, one little tidbit did sneak out in a recent interview with CEO Satoru Iwata: Nintendo will be bringing Tomodachi Collection for 3DS to the US. Many of you might be saying, “What the heck is Tomodachi Collection?” Well, imagine if your Miis all lived on an island, and you could take care of them, hang out, complete various activities, and more, in an Animal Crossing-esque game. That starts to explain the silliness and fun of Tomodachi Collection. Tiny Cartridge also shared a video translating a trailer for the game, which I’ve included below. No news yet on when exactly the game will arrive here. Read more…
Tags: 3DS
Posted by Ben Huber on Feb 1, 2014 in Videogames 
I know I heard a lot of fans doubting his return, so I figured it’d be important enough to mention: Lucario has been confirmed for the next Smash Bros. game. The dual-release later this year on 3DS and Wii U features a bunch of new and old characters. Lucario is definitely a fan-favorite, but many had assumed that Mewtwo would return and take his slot on the roster… perhaps we’ll get both now? Sakurai says “We’ve increased the influence of Aura this time, so a damaged Lucario is truly a force to be reckoned with.” Sounds like Lucario, along with many other characters, are getting some serious reworkings and buffs. Check out some more images below and on the official site. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Super Smash Bros., Wii U
Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 24, 2014 in Videogames 
Looks like you’ll get a chance to buy the Ace Attorney trilogy all over again! The first three games in the series were originally released on the GBA, then ported to the DS, then released on iOS, and THEN released on iOS in HD. There was also a Wii port somewhere in there too! But if you own none of those systems and want to get in on the Ace Attorney series (or just want to own it again) Capcom has announced that the Ace Attorney 123: Wright Collection will be coming out on 3DS in Japan in April. This appears to use the updated HD visuals from the latest iOS release, but scaled down for the 3DS screen, which makes them look a bit nicer. Check out the Japanese trailer below. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Ace Attorney
Posted by Ben Huber on Jan 11, 2014 in Videogames 
Yoshi is finally back! Nintendo has announced that Yoshi’s New Island will come out in the US on March 14th. Thankfully that’s not too far away. The game is a new addition to the Yoshi’s Island series featuring Yoshi once again rescuing baby Mario. The art style attempts to recreate the classic original’s visuals, but I’m not sure it’s quite there. It still looks alright, but I feel that one more pass might’ve made it pop a bit more. I love the idea of soft, painted graphics though. It’ll be available in stores and digital download via the eShop. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Nintendo, yoshi
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 27, 2013 in Videogames 
Another returning character has been announced for Smash Bros., and it’s Zelda! This is really no surprise, but her upgraded look and (seemingly) some new moves involving the Phantom Armor from Spirit Tracks. Just recently we had gotten news of Rosalina being included in the game, so I’m glad to see more female fighters in the game. Especially when it’s called Smash Bros. I will say, I really like her design, as she looks even more fierce than before. Now we just need to wait for the inevitable Sheik reveal, eh? I’d also like to see Ganondorf get a more original moveset, ok Sakurai? Thanks. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Super Smash Bros., Wii U
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 5, 2013 in Videogames 
Okay, we had to have known that Bravely Default: Flying Fairy was getting a sequel when Japan got an updated version of the game called Bravely Default: For the Sequel. The new version wasn’t a sequel itself, but it added new content and revamped the battle system in a way that would be used for a future sequel. Now a leaked Japanese magazine has confirmed Square Enix’s sequel: Bravely Second. I’d like to get excited, but the English translation of Bravely Default (based on For the Sequel, not the original Flying Fairy) is only just coming out in Europe this Friday, while North America has to wait until February 7, 2014. Read more…
Tags: 3DS, Bravely Default, square enix
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