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Delightful deal on bundles at Amazon
If you're in the market for a new DS Lite for yourself or a lucky giftee, you may want to have a look at this Amazon deal. From now until November 15, if you purchase a DS Lite and one of a selection of games, the game's price will be knocked down to $4.99. The eligible games include, among others, Millionheir, Flash Focus, Cooking Mama, Clubhouse Games, and both Brain Ages. It's clear that these selections were chosen with the "expanded audience" in mind, and consequently, this deal is a great way to get someone started with the DS. Oh, and if you want a second $5 game, today's Deal of the Day is The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.
New Nintendo Channel DS demos feature Arkanoid
While it's likely to be the same demo featured before (meaning there's no paddle support), it doesn't deserve to be ignored. Those of you who didn't check out Taito's revival of the classic on the DS should be heading over to your Wii (or, if you fail to own one, a friend's house) to give the demo a download now. Seriously, we thought it was a pretty decent game.Head past the break for the details on all of the demos available this week.%Gallery-19376%
Practice crashing planes in latest downloadable demos
DS demo updates on the Nintendo Channel often get a disappointed reaction from us, but this week's batch does contain at least one interesting addition: Sonic Powered's Air Traffic Chaos, as localized (complete with generic and terrible boxart) by Majesco. At the very least, we're hopeful that the game can replicate the frenzied, panicked pace of a Trauma Center game.The rest of this week's update is fairly humdrum, consisting of a Crosswords DS wordsearch, a Pictoimage demo, and a chance to try out Carnival Games, which has stuck around like a bad smell. The full list of both old and new demos is past the break!%Gallery-20691%
Carnival Games makes its return to the DS Download Service
For people longing to play new demos via the Nintendo Channel, the frustration continues. All we saw on the channel today was the return of two demos that we never really missed in the first place (we're looking at you, Carnival Games and Crosswords DS Wordsearch).Nintendo also extended the availability dates on three of the existing demos, probably because offering three new ones would have been too satisfying (/bitter). The good news is, you have another week to try out Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2 and Contra 4 if you haven't done so already.Click past the break to see yet another underwhelming list of demos.
DS Download Service updates with old demos
For those of you looking to play something brand new this week, you're out of luck. Instead, Nintendo offers us a chance to catch up with some demos me might have missed in the past, allowing folks to download these up until next week. So, if you missed out last time, get on it!
Another unimpressive week of Nintendo Channel demos
With Trauma Center 2 and Contra 4 on the Nintendo Channel's demos list, you may wonder why exactly we're unimpressed. Perhaps it's because there's nothing new offered this week, unless you count the reappearance of certain demos on the list as "new." We don't.To see why we're thoroughly uninspired, check past the break for the full list of "been there, done that" demos.
Searching for more than words in Nintendo's latest demo offerings
This week was a bit of a let down in terms of demos -- then again, it's hard to follow up the excitement of Arkanoid. It seems like Nintendo didn't even try, though. While we were interested in the demo the first time around, Cake Mania 2 already had its heyday. Then, there's Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, which we can't help but be underwhelmed by. Last and maybe least, the only other new demo is from Crosswords DS, which now offers the wordsearch game in addition to crossword puzzles. We guess beggars can't be choosers.Since things always look better in list form, check out the full list of demos available for download after the break.
New DS demos are the old DS demos
When we turned on our Wii earlier to check and see if the recent habit of providing us with new DS demos every week would continue, we stumbled upon something very odd. You see, this week's new DS demos are, in fact, the first set of DS demos that released alongside the Nintendo Channel. Just now, they don't have an expiration date attached to them.For those of you with a bad memory (or no desire to click links), the list of demos available has been placed past the break.
Nintendo Channel: New week, new demos
Will the line-up of DS demos available on the Wii's Nintendo Channel change every week? We're not sure, but it's starting to look like it; at least, some of the demos available have been rotated out in favor of fresh meat. If you were looking for something that was previously available, it might just be gone. Lesson? Download quickly rather than putting it off, because the demo you want may just disappear!Peek past the break for the current list of available demos -- you may be surprised at what you'll find!
Vision Training: the new steroid
Okay, we admit it: that headline was a little sensationalist. Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day is hardly comparable to jabbing needles into increasingly-gigantic bodies (if nothing else, it's slightly less controversial), but if White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski is any indication, the simple vision training game may also have an impact on baseball. We can only hope it's a better one.Pierzynski apparently worked out with his DS and Flash Focus every morning during spring training. While the stylus is certainly a bit lighter than anything on the weight bench, something seems to be having an effect: he's out of the gate with a .529 batting average and a team-high seven RBI in just four games. Can we be sure it's Vision Training? Nah, but hey, whatever works![Thanks, Mark!]
Professor Layton and the New, Low Price
Here's a puzzle for you, and we think you'll find it to be an absolute humdinger: if you haven't already purchased Professor Layton and the Curious Village, then why not? There are several different answers to this brainteaser, but you'll have to go past the break to find them.Anyway, Level 5's gorgeous adventure is now available at Target for $26, a minuscule price to pay for what is easily one of the best DS games of 2008 so far. Also in Target's bargains line-up this week: Brain Age 2 (for $17), Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day (also $17) and, um ... Petz Bunnyz 2 ($26 too much).%Gallery-12504%
Buy two games, save ten bucks at Toys R Us
We'll take almost any encouragement to buy a bunch of games, and there's little better incentive than a package deal, through which we "save" money by buying more stuff. Retailer Toys R Us knows this, and has dangled the carrot of reduced-price DS games at us with a "buy one, get $10 off" sale. The ad says "all DS games," but the sale is actually restricted to a selection of TRU's offerings.That's fine, though, because there's enough here for just about anyone to be driven into an impulse purchase! Standouts include Flash Focus, Professor Layton, WordJong, Cooking Mama 2, and even some pre-release stuff like Rondo of Swords! Or you could finally pick up the whole Imagine collection.
Best Buy does 2 for $30 deal
Best Buy is having a sale on all of their video games priced at $19.99, allowing those looking to stock up on titles to snag two games for the sum of $30. And, looking over the list of titles that qualify, there's quite a bit of fun to be had. Notable games in the sale include Nintendo's training titles Brain Age, Brain Age 2 and Flash Focus. There are also other games like WordJong, SimCity DS, Spectrobes and Orcs & Elves up for grabs too. [Via QJ]
WRUP: Vision improvement edition
Of this week's releases, Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day ranked as the title we were most interested in. While we have reported on the game for quite some time now, we couldn't really form judgment until we had it in our hands and we plan on doing just that this weekend.But, who cares about us? What about you, fine reader? What do you plan on playing this weekend? New game or do you have another title you've been chipping away at?
DS releases for the week of October 15th
We're not ashamed to admit that we're somewhat excited about Hannah Montana: Music Jam. Oh, not because of Hannah herself or anything, but because this very random little title just looks like it could put Jam Sessions to shame. You thinking of at least renting it? It's okay to admit it. We won't tell. If not, there's plenty more to choose from this week: Avatar: The Last Airbender -- The Burning Earth The Bee Game Disney Princess: Magical Jewels Fish Tycoon Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day Fullmetal Alchemist: Trading Card Game Hannah Montana: Music Jam Power Rangers: Super Legends Prism: Light the Way Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure Tony Hawk's Proving Ground And for the GBA: Avatar: The Last Airbender -- The Burning Earth Check out the rest of the world's major markets after the jump.
Nintendo flashes us with Vision Training
var digg_url = 'http://digg.com/gaming_news/E307_Nintendo_flashes_us_with_Vision_Training'; Halfway through its E3 2007 media briefing today, Nintendo announced that it will expanding its line of casual titles in the US with Strengthen Your Visual Power through Practice: Vision Training (Miru Chikara wo Jissen de Kitearu: DS Ganriki Training), retitling the game as Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day.If neither of the titles suitably sum up the game for you, it is a collection of exercises and minigames that test you on field of vision and eye-hand coordination, using the results to determine the age of your eyes. Shift your eyes past the post break for some video impressions of the Japanese demo from CAG's CheapyD!
