Nintendo Direct 10/1
Today’s Nintendo Direct was filled with updates about upcoming Wii U and 3DS games. Most of the information was about games we all have seen a few times already, though there was one fresh announcement and a lot of interesting details about everything else. Let’s get straight into it:
Super Mario 3D World for Wii U got a new trailer, displaying some beautiful graphics, storyline, and gameplay details. The game’s got many new power ups, including a Goomba suit, Cannon suit, Clone power-up, and a usable Piranha plant. Familiar enemies mixed with power-ups and 4-player multiplayer should make this a unique experience. The game launches November 22nd, with Mario and Luigi Themed Wii Remotes on the 1st.
Wii Party U hits the 25th of this month, with some cute gamepad implementation, like scooping water from the gamepad to the TV. The 4-player party game comes bundles with a horizontal Gamepad stand, to make playing with multiple people on the Gamepad more comfortable.
Mario and Sonic at the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games features online play for 4 events, with leaderboards that pit national scores against each other. The game will get a bundle with a Blue Wii Remote. It lands on Wii U November 8th in North America.
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for Wii U has been delayed to February to tighten up the game even further. This should give the game a bit more breathing room, outside of all of the holiday releases.
Pikmin 3 is receiving an update to its mission mode, that allows players to see the top worldwide scores. Along with that, new DLC missions are releasing today and in the future to extend the gameplay of that mode. One mission will be available for free.
To commemorate the upcoming Sonic Lost World for 3DS and Wii U, Sonic the Hedgehog is back in Super Smash Bros. Fans have been clamoring for this, and it’ll be awesome to see Sonic, Mega Man, and Nintendo’s all-stars fight it out once again.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for 3DS features new, non-linear Item and dungeon structure. The game features a shop that has most of the games items in it, and players are now free to pick which item they want to tackle the games levels in any order they choose. Awesome. The game is out on November 22nd.
Bravely Default, a highly requested 3DS JRPG from Japan got a new English trailer today, showing off its traditional gameplay and new voice acting.
Etrian Odyssey Untold hits 3DS today, with a limited first run set that includes a soundtrack CD, like other ATLUS games.
Other releases include:
Just Dance 2014 (Wii U)
Skylanders Swap Force (Wii U, Wii, 3DS)
Lego Marvel Super Heroes (Wii U, 3DS)
Batman Arkham Origins: Blackgate (3DS) – 10/25
Sonic Lost World (Wii U, 3DS) – 10/29
Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag (Wii U) -10/29
Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies (3DS eshop) -10/24, Demo out today
Nintendo’s going to appear at the IndieCade International Festival of Independent games later this week to support and show off new digital titles from indies around the world. This is a very positive thing for independent developers and gamers alike.
Quite coyly, a QR code for Animal Crossing New Leaf was shared to let players have Link’s Outset Island shirt from The Wind Waker HD, to coincide with the upcoming physical release of the game.
3DS Streetpass relays are getting an upgrade, from one street pass to six. Relays are at any Nintendo Zone location, like Best Buy and Starbucks. With the relay update, Nintendo Zone locations will be delivering new content for Kid Icarus: Uprising, Mario Kart 7, and Super Mario 3D Land.
Finally, a new Kirby game was announced for 3DS, coming in 2014. Details on it were scarce, but it looks to be in the style of the recent Kirby’s Return to Dreamland on Wii. Kirby games are always fun, if a bit easy, and the game should easily find an audience, especially with the 2DS coming soon.
Interestingly, there was absolutely no info on the Wii U Firmware Update. Don’t worry though; we’ve got you on that one.