UPDATE: Animal Crossing Direct coming before the game launches.

UPDATE: Animal Crossing Tobidase will get a special Nintendo Direct Event shortly before the title releases in Japan. Titles such as Oni Training and Pocket Soccer League Culcio Bit received the same treatment earlier this summer. No specific date has been set for the event.

Animal Crossing... Read more...

Gamers in Japan have yet another option when it comes to buying a 3DS.

A pink and white Nintendo 3DS LL, known as the 3DS XL in the West, is coming to Japan on September 27 for 18,900 yen. The system is releasing at the same time as the upcoming fashion game, Wagamama Fashion Girls Mode Yokubari Sengen. There is currently no word on this new color coming to the West. 

...in Japan.

Rhythm Hunter: HarmoKnight, a rhythm game developed by Game Freak (the same team that develops Pokémon), is coming to the eShop in Japan next month, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata revelaed during the latest Japanese Nintendo Direct.

Rhythm Hunter is a combination of rhythm and action, and tasks the player with jumping and attacking through a stage with correct timing. An Iwata Asks will be released for the game today.

Layton's second season comes to a close next year. 

Layton Kyōju Chō bunmei A no Isan, translated to Professor Layton and the Legacy of Super Civilization A, has been announced for a release on the Nintendo 3DS next year. The title promises to have the same puzzle-solving that we all know and love coupled with the same charming art style we've come to expect. 

The new game from Nicalis and Circle Edge will be playable at PAX Prime.

Game developers Nicalis and Circle Edge have announced that their newest game Yatagarasu, will be coming to the Nintendo 3DS in North America and Europe. The game will be playable at the upcoming PAX Prime event on August 31 and September 1 and 2, 2012, at booth 883.

Yatagarasu is a 2D fighting... Read more...

Does a tweet from one of Pachter's fans give a glimpse into a Wii U promotion?

Burger King might be offering Wii U toys starting on October 25, according to a rumor discussed by Game Industry Analyst Michael Pachter on a recent episode of Pach Attack.

There is also speculation that these Burger King toys could include some sort of NFC (near-field communication) capabilities, making use of a little-discussed feature of the Wii U GamePad.

There will also be a Kid Icarus tournament to play in and Paper Mario stickers to collect.

The Wii U and a slew of 3DS games will be playable at PAX Prime in Seattle this week, according to Nintendo.

At their booth (#462), players can check out the Wii U in what, we assume, will be the E3 2012 demos of those games, which include New Super Mario Bros. U, Pikmin 3, ZombiU, Rayman Legends, and more.

Developers will be able to use this rendering tool.

Umbra is now officially partnered with Nintendo to supply middleware tools for the Wii U.

With the partnership, a version of Umbra's rendering optimization middleware can be used by Wii U developers. The middleware is currently being used in the upcoming Wii U version of Mass Effect 3. 

UPDATE: PDP released an official statement regarding the rumors.

UPDATE: PDP's Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing William Otte has released an official statement regarding the rumors. The statement reads as follows:

"To All,

Performance Designed Products ("PDP") is aware of recent rumors posted alleging that PDP inadvertently "leaked" the official... Read more...

News about upcoming 3DS and *gasp* Wii software will the focus of the show. No Wii U. 

Nintendo will be hosting a Nintendo Direct Event in Japan tomorrow, August 29, at 8 p.m. (7 a.m. ET, 4 a.m. PT). The event will focus on upcoming Wii and Nintendo 3DS titles. Be sure to check out the official Nintendo Direct website for more information about the conference which will be also be streamed live on Nico Nico Video and Ustream. There will be no information about the Wii U at the event. 

And a 2013 release date.

Some people in Japan have gotten their hands on Atlus' Devil Summoner: Soul Hackers a little early and uploaded photos of the new Shin Megami Tensei IV teaser trailer. The end of the trailer indicates a 2013 release date. The photos below were taken of the trailer.

Bikes are out! Game Boy Tennis is in! 

The Game Boy version of Tennis, available on the 3DS Virtual Console, is now a Club Nintendo Award. The game replaced 3D Classics Excitebike. Club Nintendo members can download the title for 150 coins while non-members can still download the title for $2.99 on eShop.

Tennis was one of... Read more...

Do you think you could make it through the game with only one life?

ZombiU will feature a survival game mode in which you must complete the game with only one life and one character. The news comes from the recent Gamescom 2012 event.

"We really want to target and challenge the gamers with ZombiU because this game is very hard." said Nicolai Bouchai of Ubisoft Monpellier. Ubisoft is purposely ramping up the game's difficulty in order to target gamers who plan to buy the system at launch.

If you haven't gotten your AR card fill, you will now have another chance.

A pack of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance AR cards are making their way to the European Club Nintendo service.

Each pack, available for 200 Stars each, will hold the same three cards. When a card is used with your copy of Kingdom Hearts 3D, a friendly Dream Eater will then join your party.

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata discusses his thoughts on handheld gaming. 

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata discussed Nintendo's competition with smartphones as well as his beliefs on handheld experiences in an interview with Kotaku last week.

While examining the success of smartphone gaming, Iwata explained that there was a market for both their devices and smartphones. Nintendo has always had competition, whether it be Sony or Microsoft, now they just have new competition that must be considered.

This will be the last of its kind for North American users.

Pokédex 3D will receive a major update on August 31 in North America.

The update unlocks all of the Pokémon normally only accessible using special AR markers, including Coballion, Terrakion, Victini, Virizion, Reshiram, and Zekrom. In addition, the game unlocks every other Pokémon the player hasn't obtained, even those normally not exclusive to their game (like certain Pokémon forms).

UPDATE: The iOS version has officially been confirmed.

UPDATE: Square Enix officially announced the iOS game which is set to release on iPhone and iPad on August 27. The game dubbed The World Ends with You: Solo Remix is a new version of the original DS game.

Square Enix is set to release a new version of The World Ends With You on iOS later this year. 

PAX Prime attendees can blow bubbles in Kirby's honor.

Nintendo is set to celebrate 20 years of Kirby by attempting to break the world record for the most people blowing a chewing gum bubble simultaneously at PAX Prime 2012.

On Saturday, September 1 at 1 p.m. PST, PAX Prime attendees can begin checking in at the Washington State Convention Center Expo Hall Queue Area, Level 4, Room 4A. The event is scheduled to run from 2 p.m. 3 p.m. PST. The previous record is set at 304 individuals.

The PC version of the game is getting them, but will the 3DS?

The 20 new levels included in the PC version of Mutant Mudds may make their way to the 3DS says Renegade Kid co-founder Jools Watsham in a blog post.

The forthcoming PC release of the game is almost here, but the question many 3DS owners are asking is "Will the 20 new levels that have been added... Read more...

The new Mario sidescroller is already over 900,00 after one month!

New Super Mario Bros. 2 for the Nintendo 3DS is already well on its way to cross the one million mark in Japan, with 918,262 units sold as of August 19.

From the week of August 13 to August 19, during the Obon holiday in Japan, New Super Mario Bros. 2 sold nearly 152,000 copies. Other titles on... Read more...