rhythm-heaven
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DSi launch title: Rhythm Heaven dated April 5
Nintendo has the perfect companion piece for that DSi you'll probably end up buying on April 5: Rhythm Heaven! Coincidentally, Rhythm Heaven will also be the best way to console yourself if you walk into a store and find DSi systems sold out. In either case, the rhythm microgame collection from the WarioWare team will be available in North America on April 5, exactly as "predicted" by retailers, and is compatible with all DS hardware models. Nintendo is seemingly putting a lot of confidence in a very strange game by positioning it as the DSi's "launch title." This is an especially surprising move considering that Nintendo never released the Game Boy Advance predecessor, Rhythm Tengoku, in North America, despite its hit status in Japan. %Gallery-26615%
Retailers suggest April release for Rhythm Heaven
Rhythm Heaven could be out in North America on April 5th, according to listings on the websites of Amazon and Best Buy. Gamefly lists the 7th, but their release dates are uniformly a couple of days behind the official one. Nintendo has yet to specify the release date for the WarioWare team's rhythm microgame collection beyond the "first half" of the year. At least Amazon moved their date up from November!Siliconera notes that Nintendo has scheduled one first-party DS game for every month in the first quarter: Personal Trainer: Math in January, Fire Emblem in February, and Pokémon Platinum in March. Rhythm Heaven could be their one game in April! It could also be the "launch game" for the DSi, also rumored to come out in April.%Gallery-26615%
Punch-Out!! coming first half 2009, and more US / Europe Nintendo release dates
Nintendo has dropped a bob-omb of release dates for 2009 (via Videogamer). While mostly vague launch windows -- some of which will still likely be missed -- New Play Control! Pikmin and Mario Tennis will hit Europe February 6 and March 3, respectively, with the US getting both sometime in March. Other notable titles include Pokemon Platinum (March 22 for US, sometime 2009 for Europe) and Punch-Out!! (first half of 2009 for both regions).Additionally, the Big N said Europeans will be able to welcome the DSi into their homes sometime this spring or summer -- not exactly the most narrow window there, and nothing we haven't already heard since president Satoru Iwata said the portable would be launching worldwide by summer 2009. Check out the the full list for Europe and US after the break.
DS Daily: 2009: The year of the DS (again)?
While pretty much everyone expected the DS to have another awesome holiday, it was still a surprise when the NPD Group announced that the aging system had broken an all-time one-month sales record in December, beating (everything else, obviously, and) even the Wii. The DS will have a killer software lineup in 2009, with awesome third-party games and Nintendo releases like Fire Emblem, Rhythm Heaven, and Pokémon Platinum, and will even see the launch of a new hardware configuration, which should boost sales. Do you think the DS's fifth year will turn out to be as successful as its fourth? And will anything outsell Mario Kart this year? %Gallery-36348%
Rumor: Rhythm Heaven to be late, expensive
Amazon has updated their listing for Rhythm Heaven with some new boxart, along with a terrible new release date and terrible new price: November 30 and $40, respectively. We are hoping against hope that these are both just placeholders, because while we will wait that long and pay that much, we really, really don't want to. The game is out in Japan! It was shown off at E3 2008! It's done! All we know for sure is that Rhythm Heaven is not coming out in the first quarter of this year. Nintendo's press site still has it scheduled for "1st half 2009." However, the fact that Gamestop has no listing at all for it does suggest that it's fairly far off.%Gallery-26615%[Via GoNintendo]
Rumor: Wii Fit 2, Wii Rhythm Heaven on the way
Japanese game magazine Game Labo is sometimes hilariously off base with their wild rumors (like when they had Dragon Quest IX heading to PSP or when they teased a redesigned Wiimote with a rechargeable battery), but sometimes they hit the nail on the head (in the very same issue as the Dragon Quest thing, they scooped everyone on the imminent release of the DS TV Tuner). 1up shared the latest rumors from the magazine, which include a couple of rather half-heartedly masked Nintendo rumors. One, about "Game Company 'N'" and a sequel to "its fitness game 'W'" is pretty clearly about Wii Fit. According to the magazine, a sequel to the megahit exercise game is on the way, adding stretching and massage to the directed activities, and potentially featuring endorsement from a "certain former U.S. Army instructor." Considering that Wii Fit is, like, a cultural institution, we are not surprised at all to hear about a sequel.Also unsurprising, but about five million times more awesome if true, is the rumor that the same Game Company N is working on a Wii version of the DS "Rhythm game 'R'," or Rhythm Tengoku. Since the DS rhythm minigame collection turned out to be a big hit in Japan (and had better be a hit in the US, people), this makes total sense.Also rumored is that Bandai Namco is going to make a ton of Tales games for every platform. Wow, such insider information. We also heard somewhere that EA is working on some games about playing sports. Don't go preordering just yet -- these rumors are just that, rumors, and may just be junk some guy made up. But it's plausible junk!%Gallery-4745%
DS Daily: Rhythmblem
We have a pretty simple topic today. Two big first-party games are coming out for the DS in early 2009: Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and Rhythm Heaven. Well, there's also Mario & Luigi 3, but we've barely seen anything about that yet. Of the two that we know stuff about, which excites you more? Which, in your estimation, has better sales potential: a new entry in the beloved series, starring that one guy from Super Smash Bros., or a musical microgame set that's been explosively successful in Japan? Games aren't worth talking about unless they can be forced into unnecessary comparisons. %Gallery-8394% %Gallery-26615%
DS Daily: Besides the DSi
Nintendo announced and showed off a lot more than just the DSi, though understandably, it's taking most of the spotlight. This is a new handheld, people: it's big stuff. But we've talked about it, and we'll keep talking about it. Right now, we want to talk about something else. There's been a boatload of news in general the last couple of days. What else did you see that got your blood pumping? Release date for Rhythm Heaven? Mario & Luigi 3? New glimpses of Kingdom Hearts? New Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles?
Rhythm Heaven, Mario & Luigi 3 vaguely dated for US
Nintendo's fall media event confirmed a US release for the newly-announced Mario & Luigi RPG 3, as if we didn't expect it! The date wasn't specified beyond "2009," leading us to wonder if it will be positioned to coincide with the DSi. Or not. There are plenty of dates in one year for both.Also coming in 2009, specifically the first half: Rhythm Heaven, which has been selling like crazy in Japan. We really shouldn't let all the new hardware and new game announcements and such overshadow what is really important in life -- which is Rhythm Heaven.%Gallery-33393%[screen via Game Watch]
An extra dose of Rhythm Heaven
Can't get enough of those wacky Rhythm Heaven commercials? There's a new dose of quick and quirky spots, fresh for Friday, featuring footage of some different mini-games with the same players we've seen before. They've also swapped some games from the last batch of commercials (which are also included in the second half of this video, if you missed them). Considering the way Toshihiko Takamizawa is dressed, the other players should be grateful that's all they're trading. We're not so sure we'd want to raid that guy's closet.Check out the new (and old) commercials after the break, but be warned that, while the video plays just fine, the frame will display oddly here in some browsers. You can always go check it out at the source ... or at the real source, which is the Rhythm Heaven site. Or, uh, on Japanese televisions.%Gallery-26615%
DS releases for the week of July 28
Not a great deal out for DS owners in the U.S. or Europe this week, but a lot of options if you're willing to look to Japanese releases for your fix. Steal Princess, Windy x Windam, Rhythm Tengoku Gold, the larger of Koei's Nobunaga games, and everyone's favorite witch-touching game sees a sequel. In fact, you know what? If you need us, we'll be on a plane to Japan, since most of these aren't yet slated for release outside their mother country. Air Traffic Chaos Suzuki Super-Bikes Slog sadly past the break to see the rest of the major markets this week.
Rhythm Heaven looks heavenly
Those of you interested in Rhythm Heaven have probably already read JC's impressions jealously -- though if you're neither interested in the game nor spent the time to read about it, shame on you.All you sane-minded folks don't have to be too jealous of "Lucky Dog Fletcher" anymore, though. The video above shows the exact demo that he got to try during E3, only it's in Japanese. Sure, that's not quite the equivalent of playing the game, but it's enough to make us squeal all the same. (We rhymed, so it must be true.)Go on now and watch the video above to see extended play of the Assembly Line, Robot Gallery, and Chorus musical microgames. Gallery: Rhythm Tengoku Gold [Via NeoGAF]
Commercial Heaven
We didn't have to wait long for footage of more of Rhythm Tengoku Gold's games after the three-game E3 demo. Nintendo has posted seven short commercials demonstrating gameplay. The YouTube video above collects six of the commercials; to see the other one, you can check the website, although (spoilers!) it's just footage of a metronome anyway.The celebrities in the videos are almost as interesting as the gameplay videos themselves -- the Japanese Steven Tyler in the pink suit (actually Toshihiko Takamizawa from the venerable Japanese rock band The Alfee) is quite a departure from the indistinguishable idols these companies normally use in game commercials. If that's not enough Rhythm Heaven for you (it isn't), the Japanese site has also been updated with new screens and control diagrams.%Gallery-26615%
E308: DS Fanboy's E3 Endgame Evaluation
In its second year as a diminished behemoth, E3 still manages to be packed full with news, media, and more. While there wasn't much from Nintendo themselves for the DS this year, third parties are still incredibly strong and we're faced with more games than we can possibly handle. We're also pretty sure we saw almost all of them at E3 this year. Relive the entire experience right from the convenience of this post! Check out our choices for show highlights right here, or hit the break for the full rundown of our E3 coverage. Of course, we're still adding things, and will be over the next few days; keep up by clicking the E3 graphic in the sidebar. GTA: Chinatown Wars shooting up the DS in winter! Transfer data from Animal Crossing: Wild World to new Wii game Highlights from Nintendo's keynote Rhythm Heaven bumped by Cammie Dunaway's wrist Konami booth tour DS Fanboy reacts to the Nintendo keynote Three DS news items you may have missed Chrono Trigger's controls explained (and hands-on) DS Fanboy enters the Retro Game Challenge Rhythm Heaven is the best musical microgame collection at the show
E308: Rhythm Heaven is the best musical microgame collection at the show
Nintendo's E3 offerings included a three-minigame demo of the stealthily-announced U.S. version of Rhythm Tengoku Gold. The games featured are the ones seen in the trailer: Assembly Line, in which two metal squares roll toward the middle of the screen in rhythm as scales play, and you flick upward on the screen to launch a rod through them when the holes in the middle of the squares meet Robot Gallery, in which a newly-assembled robot moves from right to left on a conveyer belt and you have to hold the stylus down at just the right moment to drop the fuel pump and fuel the robot, then release before you overfill it. Chorus involves holding the stylus down until you want the player-controlled singer to join in the chorus with two other singers. You release the stylus to fit with the pattern of the two singers before. Frequently, the chorus leader will instruct everyone to sing out in unison, which I missed every time! These three games were (as far as I know) new to the DS version. Though two out of the three could just as easily have been controlled by buttons, the stylus worked great. Also, even though the game offered a tutorial for the "flicking" motion, it was easy to jump in. I consider the tutorial, then, a freeform minigame about knocking trucks over. %Gallery-26615%
Rhythm Heaven (aka Rhythm Tengoku Gold) announced for North America
While apparently not worthy of mention among juggernauts like Cooking Nanny Navi and Chinatown Wars during Nintendo's E3 2008 keynote, Rhythm Heaven was quietly announced on Nintendo's E3 press site today. Rhythm Heaven is, of course, the localized version of Rhythm Tengoku Gold, itself a sequel to one of Nintendo's last and greatest efforts on GBA, which was sadly never released outside of Japan. Today's confirmation (need not import!) included a fact sheet with these few tidbits: Players hold the Nintendo DS system sideways like a book and tap their stylus on the touch screen to the rhythm of the music. Players tap, slide or flick the stylus to hit the right beat. Rhythm Heaven features catchy tunes, charming characters and a wide variety of rhythm games. Well-known Japanese music producer TSUNKU? (pretentious, ain't he?) helped direct Rhythm Heaven and composed the music for it. Rhythm Heaven's release date is currently TBA. %Gallery-27707%
E308: Rhythm Tengoku brings heaven to the U.S.
Forget the keynote! (Well, maybe not Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars). Nintendo just announced on its press site that Rhythm Tengoku is coming to North America! Only, here it will be called Rhythm Heaven instead. As cheesy as the title is, it's only fitting.We suggest now that you hold on those imports. Even though Nintendo didn't give us the satisfaction of a release date, we can't imagine the game taking all that long to head to our shores. To play, you hold the DS sideways and use the stylus to tap, flick, or slide. You can expect Rhythm Heaven to include quirky and charming characters, as well as music from the Japanese composer TSUNKU. Also, make sure to check out new screenshots in our gallery.%Gallery-26615%[Via press kit]
UFO Catcher Tengoku
We still haven't heard word on whether or not Nintendo will ever bring Rhythm Tengoku to the states (Highly unlikely), but Sega has been keeping the rhythm-action title going in Japan with its GBA-to-arcade port and, according to this new find, UFO catchers filled with Rhythm-Tengoku-themed prizes!Provided that you're proficient with maneuvering a claw to pick up crap, you'll be able to win a number of brightly-colored, long-sleeved shirts with the minigame collection's characters screen-printed on them, as well as pillows shaped like Rhythm Tengoku's iconic, hairy onions. Click the link below to the beat, and check out more photos of the vending machine goodies past the post break.
