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Retro RPG Pier Solar HD out for Wii U on November 6
The Wii U version of WaterMelon's classic-styled JRPG Pier Solar HD will hit the eShop on November 6, suffering a brief delay after its recent cross-platform launch. Tracing its origins back to a Sega Genesis homebrew release in 2010, Pier Solar later transitioned to modern platforms thanks to a successful Kickstarter campaign. Pier Solar premiered for the PlayStation 4 and PS3 in September, arriving alongside releases for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Ouya. Pier Solar HD boasts stylish art and turn-based combat that recalls the 16-bit RPG era. A release for the Xbox One is also in the works. [Image: WaterMelon]
New Nintendo eShop releases: Bayonetta 2, Fantasy Life, Aria of Sorrow
It's a busy week on the Nintendo eShop, with PlatinumGames' inimitably stylish action game Bayonetta 2 premiering on the Wii U while Level-5's RPG Fantasy Life leads the charge on the Nintendo 3DS. Players who purchase Bayonetta 2 on the eShop will additionally receive a copy of the original Bayonetta for free starting this week. Other Wii U games premiering today include Ubisoft's Just Dance 2015, Activision's karaoke sim The Voice, and a Virtual Console port of Konami's 2003 Nintendo DS platformer Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow. Over on the 3DS side of the eShop, Nintendo's instructional app Pokemon Art Academy and WayForward's exploratory platformer Shantae and the Pirate's Curse headline a selection of 10 new games. 3DS owners may also want to check out Detune's portable synthesizer KORG DSN-12, Bandai Namco's Power Rangers: Super Megaforce, and Activision's The Legend of Korra: A New Era Begins. Nintendo additionally teased next week's Virtual Console lineup, revealing that Capcom's ghoulish side-scrollers Demon's Crest and Gargoyle's Quest 2 will launch alongside Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land on October 30. Hit the jump below for a full list of this week's featured releases.
New Nintendo eShop releases - Lone Survivor, more Castlevania
Castlevania? More like Castlemania, amirite? Hello? Is this thing on? My point was if you've been following October's eShop games you'll have noticed a trend. Namely, a new Game Boy Advance entry from Konami's vampiric series appearing out of thin air each week. We've already had Dracula X and Circle of the Moon; this week, it's Harmony of Dissonance and next week it's Aria of Sorrow. It's almost like we're leading up to some kind of horror-themed celebration ... is this thing still not on? Anyway, ahead of Bayonetta 2 next week, this week it's more about download-only stuff: games like side-scrolling horror Lone Survivor: Director's Cut and shoot-em-up Ballpoint Universe: Infinite. According to developer Arachnid Games, Ballpoint was drawn entirely in ballpoint pen, and it looks a treat in the below-the-break trailer. You'll also find the full list of new releases there, and if sales are more your bag check out the eShop deals here. Don't forget, you can now buy (some) eShop games on Nintendo of America's website and have them automatically download to your system of choice. No, it's true. Yes, we're talking about Nintendo. Stop looking at us like that.
You can now do your eShopping on Nintendo's website
Nintendo's website now allows you to buy certain downloadable games directly, forgoing the need to hop on to the eShop on your 3DS or Wii U. Eagle-eyed types saw a new "Buy Digital" button on Nintendo's North American site this week, allowing you to either buy and receive an eShop code or tie the purchase to your Nintendo Network ID. As a FAQ explains, if you use your NNID, that leaves the game ready to redeem and download on your Nintendevice. As Tiny Cartridge details, you can also use your browser to pre-order certain eShop games. At the mo', this includes games like Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Super Smash Bros. Wii U and Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. Nintendo hasn't released a list of the games supported by the service, but did note it's currently only available for "select first-party titles."
Shovel Knight hits Europe and Australia's eShops in November
European and Australian Wii U and 3DS owners can finally go on the trowel in November, when Shovel Knight reaches their eShops following a lengthy wait. While the retro-inspired platformer came to Nintendo systems in North America back in June, it was only available internationally on PC. Developer Yacht Club Games put the eShop delay down to localization processes such as translation and certification. "Thank you European and Australian region players for hanging in there with us for so long," reads the studio's latest Kickstarter update. "We learned some new things and have a wealth of ideas for how we can improve on in the future. We're truly sorry for the delay."
Pokemon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire demo due next week on 3DS
A trial version of Game Freak's re-remade monster-battling RPG pair Pokemon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire will hit the 3DS eShop next week, Nintendo announced today. Nintendo also teases new Mega Evolutions for Latios and Latias in the video above, giving players an early look at the advanced forms that await its classic Pokemon characters. Other recent Mega Evolution reveals include Audino, Pidgeot, and (unquestionably best of all) MEGA SLOWBRO. Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire hit retail and the 3DS eShop on November 21. The demo version launches on October 21. [Video: Nintendo]
Get a sweater for the holidays with Ace Attorney Trilogy 3DS
Capcom announced court dates for the 3DS redrawn, higher-res Ace Attorney Trilogy, with eShop orders scheduled for December 9 in North America and December 11 in Europe. The constitutional compilation includes the first three GBA/DS games starring sweat-soaked defense attorney Phoenix Wright, namely Ace Attorney, Ace Attorney: Justice for All and Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations. Legal fees are $30 in North America and 30 euros/£25 across the pond, and like Dual Destinies the game is eShop-only, with no physical release in the West.
Mutant Mudds dev's Xeodrifter blasts off in first trailer
Developer Renegade Kid mixes a dash of Metroid with its Mutant Mudds formula in its latest project Xeodrifter, shown in action for the first time in the trailer above. Xeodrifter marries Metroid-style alien environments and exploration with Mutant Mudds' signature background-hopping mechanics, challenging players to explore multiple side-scrolling planes as they plumb nearby planets for crucial supplies and ability upgrades. The trailer above shows off a dash mechanic similar to Super Metroid's, and suggests that environments will hide plenty of hidden goodies for players to discover. Xeodrifter is slated to launch exclusively in the 3DS eShop. A release date is not yet known. [Video: Renegade Kid]
Give your 3DS a Mario paint job with new themes, out now
3DS users can spice up their portable lives with new Home Menu themes, available now not just in Japan but in North America and Europe too. There are five free themes that give the startup screen a basic splash of color, but if you're after something with more pizazz there are purchasable themes too. These themes don't just change the menu wallpaper, but also alter icons and folders as well as sound effects and music. The Zelda: A Link Between Worlds theme, for example, features the game's "Hyrule Main Theme" as its menu music, while the top and bottom screens display the mirror worlds of Hyrule and Lorule. The current selection, with each theme priced between a buck or two, includes liveries for Mario & Luigi, other Nintendo stars like Yoshi and Peach, and "Geometric Patterns" for those who prefer stripes and polka dots on the go. To start sprucing up your portable following a quick system update, go to the Change Theme menu via the Home Menu button on the top left of the startup screen. There's a specific shop for the purchasable themes, but if you're not prepared to pay you can go with a simple red, blue, yellow, pink or black look, or stick with the default white. Heads-up: aqua blue 3DS plus simple blue theme equals lovely blue loveliness. Also, if you're holding out for other styles, Nintendo of Europe says an Animal Crossing: New Leaf theme should hit the shop towards of the end of the month.
Rune Factory 4 may tend European fields after all
Rune Factory 4's European release was canceled following the closure of developer Neverland, leaving only North American and Japanese fans to tend its crops. Maybe 2014 was just a bad planting season across the pond though – a report from Siliconera suggests Rune Factory 4 will launch in Europe after all, eventually arriving as a digital piece of produce on the 3DS eShop. After noticing a content rating for the RPG simulator on USK (Germany's equivalent of the ESRB) which lists both Marvelous and XSEED as publishers, Siliconera contacted XSEED Executive VP Ken Berry to learn more. Berry explained that an unnamed group has been working in place of the original development team to secure a European launch "for months," and that XSEED hopes to start the master submission process with Nintendo of Europe "within the next couple weeks." Berry added that the effort was meant to be kept under wraps until the game actually passed Nintendo of Europe's certification, just to ensure European fans wouldn't face another letdown. Content rating boards always spoil all the fun, huh? [Image: Marvelous AQL]
New Nintendo eShop releases: Curtain Call, Smash 3DS Demo
Sure, there are a few new releases on Wii U, but this week the eShop's really all about the 3DS. For starters, if you've yet to grab a code for the Super Smash Bros. demo, the good news is it'll be available for all starting 9AM PT/midday ET tomorrow, September 19. The demo includes Mario, Link, Pikachu, the Villager and Mega Man (where's my Wii Fit Trainer dangit!) and a single stage, namely Battlefield. Other things to note: The demo supports local multiplayer but not online, its save data isn't compatible with the full game, and like other eShop demos you can only open it 30 times. If you'd rather wait it out, the game proper hits stores on October 3. If you're more a lover than a fighter, there are plenty of other activities to explore on the go. Musical types can take on Theatrhyhtm Final Fantasy Curtain Call, which Danny Cowan said "easily surpasses its predecessor" in our review, and there are fishing RPG (yup) and culinary larks in Legend of the River King 2 and Cooking Mama 5. River King dev Natsume has another Virtual Console game this week in arcade-style western shooter Wild Guns, available on Wii U. As ever and ever, the full list of new releases is below the break. Also, the pre-Smash sale is still ongoing - check out this weeks offering - and you can find all the other offers here.
Mega Man 7 acquires Wii U power, now available on eShop
Mega Man 7, a rare SNES game featuring Capcom's "Blue Bomber," is no longer quite so hard to find; it's waiting patiently in the eShop, so that you and every other Wii U owner can give it a spin. "Released somewhat late in the SNES cycle, Mega Man 7 somewhat slipped through the cracks during its initial release," Capcom community manager Brett Elston wrote on the company's blog, where he announced the release. There's more than a handful of Mega Man games available via Wii U now - Mega Man 1-7, Mega Man X and Mega Man: Battle Network to name a few. As for the number of evil robots defeated by the automaton hero, Mega Man 7 brings the number up to ... uh ... a lot. [Image: Capcom]
New Nintendo eShop releases: Adventure Island, Teslagrad
Oh, the NES... simpler times. Blowing into cartridges, power gloves, cheat codes, Minus World, R.O.B. and The Wizard. It was a time when people could make Adventure Island, a game in which a rotund man clad only in tiny green shorts and a white cap went running, jumping and skateboarding around the forests and caves of the South Pacific. And, with the help of a fairy called Honey Girl, he saved a princess from a witch doctor. Time-travelers, take yourselves to the Wii U this week and go skate some clouds. If you want something a bit fresher on Wii U, Teslagrad offers Metroid-like platforming with a dollop of electromagnetism, steampunk and Eastern European art. There's also the kung-fu rhythm of Kickbeat, and on 3DS you've got first-person, old-school dungeon crawler The Keep. Apart from that, Nintendo's pre-Super Smash Bros. sale is also worth a look. Running through until the release of Smash on 3DS, the big N's discounting games starring the fighter's roster. Check out the Smash sale here and all the other discounts, and jump past the break for the full list of new releases.
Stealth Inc 2 sneaks to Wii U eShop October 23
Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones will launch October 23 on the Wii U eShop, Curve Studios confirmed with Joystiq today. The game was announced as a Wii U exclusive in May and carries on the sneaky puzzle-platforming gameplay style set by the first game.The series began with the free PC game Stealth Bastard in November 2011 before the enhanced Stealth Bastard Deluxe hit Steam one year later. It received a name change in 2013 to Stealth Inc before arriving on consoles. Unlike Stealth Inc's linear level design, the sequel will adopt structures similar to Metroid and Castlevania series with a "fully explorable" overworld. The game has players infiltrating a cloning facility, obtaining equipment to unlock new areas as they go. Not only is Curve Studios promising a slick 60 frames-per-second presentation, but Stealth Inc 2 will also include a full co-op multiplayer mode in which one friend can use tools and skills on the Wii U GamePad to keep the player well-hidden. [Image: Curve Studios]
Nintendo discounts eShop games starring Smash Bros fighters
With a new Super Smash Bros. entry on the horizon, Nintendo has announced a number of discounts on eShop digital games starring the various iconic characters of the publisher's flagship mascot fighter. According to a new eShop page, the "Super Smashing Sale" offers discounts of up to 33 percent on "some of the games that helped make your favorite fighters famous," as Nintendo puts it. Though the sale itself will run through October 2, the deals on offer rotate every week. This week the featured Smash Bros. characters include Mario, Bowser, Peach, Yoshi, Rosalina, Luigi and Little Mac, and the games on discount include the Wii U's Virtual Console release of Super Mario Bros. 3 (reduced from $5 to $3.49) and the 3DS' Super Mario 3D Land, which was originally $30 and is now only $20. For a full listing of current discounts, visit the Nintendo eShop. If you can't find anything you like at the moment, the page also lists the upcoming discounts to follow throughout the remainder of September. [Image: Nintendo]
Shin Megami Tensei 4 delayed once more in Europe
Atlus pushed back the European release of Shin Megami Tensei 4 to October, fueling the idea that when game and continent finally meet, it'll be a universe-imploding, hell-frozen-over act of irrevocable consequence. The 2013 3DS JRPG was due to launch this month in Europe after a year of silence about it ever reaching the region. To Atlus' credit, PR Manager John Hardin explained the delay was due to a few "last-minute issues specific to the EU version, and the studio's keenly aware of what's been a long wait.
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call demo waiting in the wings
Europeans can conduct a trial of Theatrhythm Final Final Curtain Call when a demo hits their eShop on Thursday, September 4. We've reached out to Square Enix for word on the same for North America, but given the rhythm game releases in both regions on the same week, it seems likely the demo will hit stateside this week too. The Japanese demo that was available just ahead of release featured two songs: "Edgar and Sabin's Theme" from Final Fantasy 6 and the piano version of "Those Who Fight" from Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children. Battle, Event and Field categories were playable for both songs, but the new two-player versus mode wasn't.
Ultimate NES Remix slides onto 3DS later this year [update]
Ultimate NES Remix infuses 3DS with the series' mashed-up tapas approach to revisiting 8-bit classics, starting November 7 in Europe and December 5 in North America. According to Nintendo's brief announcement the 3DS entry features content from 16 NES games, but the company didn't note if any of that content comes from the NES Remix 1 and NES Remix 2 games already out on Wii U. We've reached out to the big N to learn more, but for now all that's left to say is that it's coming to stores and the eShop, and it's priced at $30. Meanwhile on Wii U, the NES Remix Pack compilation of the two released entries is coming to North American stores, and also with a $30 price tag. Update: A Nintendo spokesperson tells Joystiq the 16 games represented in Ultimate NES Remix are the same 16 found in the original NES Remix, though it's unclear what form these revived 8-bit classics will take in the newer release. Correction: The European release date is November 7, and not November 11 as originally listed. The post's been amended to reflect the correct date. [Image: Nintendo]
New Nintendo eShop releases: Layton vs Phoenix Wright, Mega Man X3
There's a good helping of eShop eStuff to tuck into this week, both on Wii U and 3DS. On the portable side, Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright features two characters who were born to point together - check out our review for a more nuanced analysis. Also, Azure Striker Gunvolt pumps Mega Man-inspired side-scrolling action onto the 3DS, complete with Mighty No. 9 crossover mini-game. Talking of the (original) blue bomber, Mega Man X3 coming to Wii U completes the Nintendo set of X games on the system. If you prefer your platforming a bit more vertical and underground, Steamworld Dig may be the Wii U game for you. As ever, the full list of new releases is below the break. On the sales side, Capcom has a decent-sized one this week across Wii U and 3DS, and Splinter Cell Blacklist will be permanently reduced from $40 to $20 starting September 1.
Gone Home going to Wii U, says Nintendo manager
For more on Gone Home, check out our review. (The Unite 2014 video is below the break as well as the text from the image for anyone who has difficulty reading it.)
