Update News
Nintendo Direct 12-18-2013
REDMOND, Wash.--(December
18, in the year of our Lord 2013)-- One of Nintendo’s
popular characters from the recently released Super Mario 3D
World game is coming to two of its biggest titles of 2014 for
Wii U. Rosalina will be playable in both Super Smash Bros. and
Mario Kart 8. Nintendo also launched NES Remix in the Nintendo
eShop on Wii U, re-imagining parts of 16 classic NES games. A
new game for Wii U developed by Tecmo-Koei that will feature the
action-packed Warriors series set in the world of The Legend of
Zelda was also revealed for launch in 2014. This is a separate
project from the new installment of The Legend of Zelda series
that is in development for Wii U by longtime series producer
Eiji Aonuma and his team. Nintendo made these announcements and
revealed new information about a number of Wii U and Nintendo
3DS games during a Nintendo Direct announcement.
Some of today’s announcements included:
Wii U News
Super Smash Bros.: Rosalina, who was introduced in the Super
Mario Galaxy games for Wii and makes a surprise appearance in
the new Super Mario 3D World for Wii U, will be a playable
character, accompanied by her starry friend, Luma. The game will
launch in stores and the Nintendo eShop on Wii U and Nintendo
3DS in 2014.
Mario Kart 8: New playable characters include Rosalina and
various “Baby” Nintendo characters, like Baby Mario and Baby
Luigi. New course settings include an airport, the desert and
high in the clouds, and vehicles include UFOs, four-wheel ATV
buggies, standard karts and bikes.
NES Remix: Select parts from 16 classic NES games have been
remixed with new challenges. For example, players might be
tasked with completing a familiar Super Mario Bros. stage while
running to the left. Or they might encounter a revamped level of
Donkey Kong that allows them to play as Link from The Legend of
Zelda series. NES Remix includes Miiverse compatibility, so
players with broadband Internet access can show off their
skills, complete with cool 8-bit stamps. NES Remix is now
available exclusively in the Nintendo eShop for $14.99.
Sonic Lost World: A new Nintendo-themed level is coming to the
Nintendo eShop. Yoshi’s Island Zone is now available for free.
Done in a Yoshi art style, the level has Sonic speeding through
areas filled with pipes, coins, Shy Guys and Piranha Plants.
Dr. Luigi: The Year of Luigi continues to deliver surprises,
with a new title starring Mario’s green-clad brother. Much like
the classic puzzle game Dr. Mario, Dr. Luigi requires players to
line up color-coded pills to destroy viruses. Dr. Luigi offers
different skill settings and attacks in multiplayer games, and
an original mode where the pills are, of course, L-shaped. The
game comes with a Dr. Mario mode, Wii U GamePad compatibility
and online play, so wannabe virus busters from all around the
world can compete. Dr. Luigi launches exclusively in the
Nintendo eShop on Dec. 31 for $14.99.
Wii Sports Club: Launching today, golf becomes the third sport
added to the Wii Sports Club lineup, joining bowling and tennis.
In a move not possible on any other system, golf asks players to
place the Wii U GamePad controller on the floor in front of
their TVs. Players can then use a Wii Remote Plus to swing at
the ball on the ground, just as they would a real golf ball,
enabling more precise control with each stroke. When they take
their swing, the ball flies from the screen of the GamePad to
the TV screen in one fluid motion. Wii Sports Club – Golf
includes the nine-hole course from the original Wii Sports game,
in addition to a newly developed nine-hole course based on Golf
US Course, a Famicom game that Nintendo Global President Satoru
Iwata helped develop more than 25 years ago. Wii U owners can
play a free 24-hour trial of Wii Sports Club, which lets players
sample all three sports. The trial offer is open to everyone,
even to people who previously sampled the 24-hour free trial. A
Club Pass for the full golf game, allowing unlimited access, can
be purchased for $9.99. Boxing and baseball will be coming to
Wii Sports Club in 2014.
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze: Veteran Cranky Kong joins
playable characters Diddy Kong and Dixie Kong as companions for
Donkey Kong. Cranky Kong comes with his own set of special moves
that allow him to bounce off enemies and obstacles using his
cane. Players who collect 100 bananas in a stage can execute a
new move called the KONG-Pow, which turns all enemies on the
screen into items. Now that Cranky Kong is setting off on an
adventure, instead of overseeing the in-game shop as he did in
the Donkey Kong Country Returns game, the aptly named Funky Kong
will assist players by offering them items for trade in the
game. The game launches Feb. 21 in stores and in the Nintendo
eShop.
Nintendo 3DS News
Bravely Default: A free demo of the game launches in the
Nintendo eShop on Jan. 2, but this is much more than a demo.
It’s an exclusive story with hours of content not included in
the main game. The full game launches in stores and in the
Nintendo eShop on Feb. 7 at a suggested retail price of $39.99.
If players with the full game close their system while the game
is active, they might gather additional warriors via the
StreetPass feature, but they also earn Sleep Points for every
eight cumulative hours of down time. Sleep Points can then be
used during battle to change equipment, revive a fallen party
member, heal or unleash attacks beyond the game’s usual damage
cap. Players who don’t want to wait for their Sleep Points to
refill have the option of purchasing SP potions in the Nintendo
eShop to refill all three Sleep Points at once. Also launching
Feb. 7, a Collector’s Edition including the game, an art book, a
soundtrack CD and 34 augmented-reality cards will be available
via GameStop, Best Buy and Amazon.com at a suggested retail
price of $49.99.
Kirby: Triple Deluxe: The game is a side-scrolling platformer,
but players can move Kirby to the background and foreground to
dodge enemies and solve puzzles. Kirby can also use a new
Hypernova ability, which powers up his inhale ability and
enables him to suck up everything in his path. The game includes
more than 20 different copy abilities, including four new ones
created for this game. Kirby: Triple Deluxe also includes two
new game modes: Kirby Fighters lets up to four players pick one
of 10 copy abilities for their Kirby and then fight to see which
is the most effective in battle. Dedede’s Drum Dash asks players
to press buttons in sync with Kirby music while jumping and
collecting coins. The game is planned for 2014.
Chibi-Robo! Photo Finder: Everyone’s favorite helpful
4-inch-tall robot is back! This time Chibi-Robo has been tasked
with helping a new museum get off the ground. Players are given
silhouettes of needed objects, then use the Nintendo 3DS camera
to find matching objects, known as NostalJunk, in the real
world. Chibi-Robo will also help characters like superheroes and
singing sponge-bears with various tasks, all while keeping an
eye on his electricity reserves. The game also features
community events called NostalJunk Challenges that focus on
particular silhouettes, and give players opportunities to
showcase their creativity and maybe earn a special outfit for
Chibi-Robo to wear in the game. A demo will soon launch
exclusively in the Nintendo eShop, with the full version landing
on Jan. 9, 2014.
Pokémon Bank and Poké Transporter: Pokémon Bank is software that
lets players store up to 3,000 Pokémon from the Pokémon X and
Pokémon Y games. Poké Transporter is an application that lets
players take the Pokémon they’ve caught through the years and
transferred into Pokémon Black and Pokémon White, as well as
Pokémon Black 2 and Pokémon White 2, and transfer them into
Pokémon X and Pokémon Y. Pokémon Bank and Poké Transporter
launch Dec. 27. Players can download a 30-day free trial version
anytime between launch and Jan. 31, 2014. Following the free
trial, an annual usage fee will apply for Pokémon Bank. Anyone
who accesses a Pokémon Bank box by Sept. 30, 2014, will receive
the Pokémon Celebi as a special gift.
Yoshi’s New Island: The game launches this spring, and will be
produced by Takashi Tezuka, the creative director of the
original Yoshi’s Island for Super NES.
Official Family
Friendly Gaming Coverage