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Three new 2DS Mario Kart 7 bundles race toward retail
Following Nintendo's earlier announcement of a new 3DS model, the Japanese gaming giant has also unveiled three new bundles headed to North America, including the 2DS handheld and a copy of Mario Kart 7. According to Nintendo, at some point in "early October," retailers will begin to offer bundles including a download voucher for Mario Kart 7 and one of three new 2DS colors: Electric Blue, Crimson Red or Sea Green. Despite the inclusion of Mario Kart 7, these new 2DS bundles feature the same $130 price point as standalone 2DS handhelds. Edit: This post initially stated that a standalone 2DS is available at $100, when it is in fact priced at $130. [Image: Nintendo]
3DS XL holiday bundle includes free Mario Kart 7
A new 3DS XL bundle offered in North America starting December 2 will include a pre-installed copy of Mario Kart 7. The new "limited-edition bundle" contains a stock blue/black system with a free copy of last year's online-enabled kart racer loaded onto the SD card.The set is priced at $199.99, the regular price for a 3DS XL, making the game effectively free. Also available at retail is Nintendo's Black Friday 3DS bundle, with a red (non-XL) 3DS and Super Mario 3D Land.
Club Nintendo coin rewards changing on July 1
You may want to redeem those coins you've accrued through Club Nintendo, because the reward values are changing as of July 1. Completing registration surveys for the Nintendo DSi or Nintendo DSi XL will yield only 100 coins, as opposed to the previously established 160 coins.Software rewards are also getting a shake-up, though only select titles will see a decrease. Completing registration surveys for some 3D Classics and other downloadable titles will grant fewer coins; however, a lot of first-party 3DS games like Mario Kart 7 and some third-party ones, such as Resident Evil Revelations, are seeing increases. Wii and DS/DSi games are sadly seeing a reduction pretty much across the board. Better put in your Animal Crossing: City Folk code before time runs out!
PSA: Mario Kart 7 patch fixes Maka Wuhu exploit
Along with a 3DS firmware update (which doesn't do anything interesting), a new patch sent to 3DSes yesterday closes up the Maka Wuhu shortcut, in Mario Kart 7. The patch is required for online play, so you will no longer see miraculous leaps forward on that particular course. The glitch still shows up in time trials.Now you have only your own driving skill to rely on in Mario Kart. Well, that and blue shells. Actually, mostly blue shells. Now, you have only the random chance that you'll get a blue shell and not be hit by a blue shell to rely on.
3DS firmware update on April 25 makes it easier to organize Home menu
During the Nintendo Direct conference livestream, Satoru Iwata revealed a new firmware update is inbound. Apparently folks have been complaining of clutter, so the new update is aimed at cleaning up your Home screen. Users will be able to create folders, name them and store up to 60 items within.Update: The Nintendo of America Twitter account pegs the update for April 25.
Boingo offers free Wi-Fi to 3DS users at select UK airports
No longer will exotic StreetPasses be the sole reason for you to loiter around the airport. In between the acquisition of traveling Miis, you can now pass the time with some free Wi-Fi.Similar to its deal in North America, Boingo has set up free Wi-Fi hotspots that will allow 3DS users to automatically connect when in range at London Heathrow, Southampton, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Gatwick and Stansted airports ... unless you plan on checking out some PDF files or watching a Flash cartoon online, that is. We don't know about you guys but that's, like, 90 percent of what we do on the internet over here in America.The other ten percent of the time? Google image searches of Atsushi Inaba, of course. Best hair in the biz!
Nintendo doesn't plan on fixing Maka Wahu track in Mario Kart 7
"Wuhu Island" may sound like an innocuous place, but it's apparently rife with dirty, dirty cheaters. And that cheating doesn't sound like it's stopping anytime soon, with Nintendo telling StickTwiddlers that the island's "Maka Wuhu" track in Mario Kart 7 won't be patched or updated to fix the glaring glitch found at the start. "We are aware that it is possible to navigate a certain part of the track in Wuhu Island in a way that allows a large part of the course to be bypassed," Nintendo rep Buddy Roemer (no, not that Buddy Roemer) told the site. And though Nintendo acknowledges the glitch, Roemer said there "are no plans to update the game to remove this shortcut." Not for the moment, at least. The logic behind not updating the game is perhaps even more bizarre than acknowledging the glitch and refusing to fix it. "Doing so would create an unfair advantage for the users of the original release of the game," Roemer said, though he did also say the request for a fix has "been added to our records for Mario Kart 7." We imagine a printout of the email is now sitting in an official three-ring binder somewhere, biding its time next to fan art of Yoshi with a glider.
3DS, Nintendo lead Japan's 30 best-selling games of 2011
The top two spots in Japan's 2011 list of best-selling games are taken by a pair of Nintendo 3DS games: Mario Kart 7, with more than 1.6 million sold, and Super Mario 3D Land with more than 1.08 million sold. In third is Capcom's Monster Hunter Tri-G for 3DS, followed by 27 more titles for 3DS, DS PSP, Wii and PS3. These include From Software's Dark Souls and Square Enix's Final Fantasy XIII-2. Check out the entire list, provided by Media Create of Japanese Hardware Sales fame, below!
Miyamoto: Retro could handle a Zelda game, smartphones aren't competition
The full transcript of Wired's interview with Shigeru Miyamoto -- in which the industry legend triggered some panic over his future -- has been posted. Surprisingly, that pseudo-retirement news isn't even the juiciest angle; Miyamoto also discussed the company's troubled recent past, as well as its potentially Miyamoto-less future. He explained that Nintendo's goals this generation have focused on "the expanding of the gaming population," a task which would seemingly put them at odds with the ever-increasing smartphone market. Miyamoto posits that his company isn't "directly competing" with phones; rather, both might just have increased the size of the gaming market, and "expanded the definition of videogames" themselves. In the more recent past (last week, in fact), Nintendo launched the Retro-developed Mario Kart 7 for 3DS, a project which Miyamoto said succeeded due to its multicultural development approach. "We were able to join forces in order to realize a variety of different courses, a variety of different tastes," he explained. "I think that's one reason how it worked out well between a Japanese development team and a Western development team." It seems Retro has earned the games industry maven's trust, as Miyamoto added, "As you know, we have already collaborated with Retro for the Metroid Prime series in the past. And I think when we talk about any other franchise, Zelda might be a possible franchise for that collaboration." We think we speak for everyone when we shout in support of this idea while doing fist pumps into the air. Check out the full interview for more on the future of Zelda, the 3DS, the Wii U and the other pies Miyamoto's got his fingers in.
Mario Kart 7 sells 420K its first week in Japan, Iwata says game did even better internationally
Nintendo president Satoru Iwata recently held a state of the union with Japanese newspaper Nikkei (via Andriasang) for the company's performance in its home country. Mario Kart 7, which launched on December 1, has done quite well. In its first week on retail shelves, the game sold a whopping 420,000 copies, almost double the first-week performance sales of Mario Kart DS back in 2005. And, according to Iwata, the game did even better abroad, though we kinda already knew that. Despite suffering through a lackluster launch, Nintendo's latest handheld is set to reach the three million sold mark two weeks faster than the original DS did, Iwata said. Thanks, price cut! He expects the 3DS to hit four million before its one year anniversary on February 26.
GameStop giving away real Mario kart to a PowerUp Rewards member
And here we thought Nintendo commissioned the real-life Mario Kart kart just so its existence could tease us perpetually. The real reason is so some lucky person out there can own this thing; a GameStop patron to be exact. The kart will be given to a select PowerUp Rewards member. Eligible members simply need to purchase or trade something in during the month of December to be entered into the drawing, either in-store or online. Good luck, because nothing really ties the living room together like a giant, life-sized Mario Kart prop. ... What? You would put it in the garage? Psh.
Mario Kart 7 review: An exercise in fun/frustration
Mario Kart 7 is, as its predecessors always have been, an exceedingly hateful game. Three laps' worth of perfect corner negotiation, aggressive drafting and creating enough sparks to manufacture a small sun can be overturned instantly, sometimes in sight of the finish line. Who am I kidding? It is always in sight of the finish line, and it's always Toad, an innocuous-looking bastard who's caused me to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory more times than I could ever hope to count. (Estimated guess, though: A hundred billion.) Frustrating though they may be, those turnabouts are how the franchise skirts around recurring poxes of the racing genre. Last place racers get far more potent weaponry than the pace cars -- not rubber-banding in the traditional sense, but the result's the same. Mario Kart 7's changes and additions are few in number, but they're rich in the refinement of that concept. More than ever, it's a game about getting screwed over without getting too angry about it, a pair of goals it achieves with panache. %Gallery-135959%
Retro took Mario Kart 7 from 'emergency' to 2011 launch
In the latest Iwata Asks column, not yet translated into English by Nintendo, the CEO discusses development of December's high-profile 3DS release, Mario Kart 7, with not only recent series developer Nintendo EAD but also Austin-based Retro Studios. "But Retro Studios only worked on the Donkey Kong Country Returns level," you whimper. While that was true as of last E3, Hideki Konno, Manager and Producer at EAD Software Development Group No.1, tells Iwata that since several production designers were working to get Nintendogs + Cats ready for the 3DS launch, as well as other Nintendo projects, there was "an act of emergency" to get Mario Kart 7 finished by the end of the year. Retro was brought in to help on some courses, notably the aforementioned DKC-themed level, and to work on the game's 16 classic courses, while EAD ostensibly worked on the 16 new tracks. With the 3DS still recovering from a rough launch, plagued by pricing concerns and a paucity of premium software, we'd say it was a smart move to ensure Mario Kart 7 would find its way onto shelves this year.
Nintendo and West Coast Customs bring Mario Karts to life
Normally, Mario's Kart is just a bit of virtual video game magic, confined to a world where turtle shells fly and banana peels litter racetracks. But Nintendo has joined forces with auto shop West Coast Customs to produce two real life Mario Karts, currently on display at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Both Mario's main ride, above, and Luigi's Bumble V kart were made, and both are equipped with front-wheel drive, 18-inch wheels in the back, and a propeller add-on for traveling through water. Unfortunately, that propeller doesn't really work underwater (so says the press release), but the karts really do move. Their construction will be spotlighted in an upcoming episode of West Coast Customs' reality TV show. You can see more shots of the karts over on the company's site (including one of Reggie Fils-Aime himself driving).
Mario Kart 7's impressive commitment to community
When it comes to Mario Kart, you can always count on two things. The first: an overabundance of "Nintendo Fairness," wherein race-leaders endure firestorms of powerful item attacks, while lagging competitors are showered with said items -- and brandish them with reckless abandon. This inexorably results in an embattled first-place spot, and guarantees even the least-competent players a decent shot at claiming a last-second lead. The 3D-powered Mario Kart 7 thankfully dials this down a bit from the artificial-fairness excess last seen in Mario Kart Wii, but damn, is it ever annoying. I've learned to live with this, though.%Gallery-135959%
Here's the Mario Kart 7 steering wheel for 3DS
Oh, you're still worried about the unfortunate form factor of the Nintendo 3DS slide pad peripheral? That's old hat -- Andriasang recently uncovered an attachment which further turns the once sleek handheld into an unpocketable monstrosity: The Hori Mario Kart 7 steering wheel. The attachment, which carries the official Nintendo seal and will cost ¥1,280 ($17), snaps onto the back of the handheld to give players who use the game's tilt-to-steer functionality a greater sense of ... realism? We guess? All we know is that it better come with a fanny pack to carry around its unwieldy frame, and then some sort of invisibility cloak to protect the wearer from being savagely beaten by everyone who sees them.
Club Nintendo 'Dot Mario Cushion' is another reason to envy Japan
We get it. Everybody deserves to come home from a long day at the office and embrace a loved one, whether it be an actual human being, a pet or just a really awesome pillow. In this case, it's all pillow. Get it? Get it?! Ahem, sorry -- Nintendo's latest Club Nintendo Platinum goodie for Japan (yeah, we're upset, too) has us all aflutter with excitement. It's the very awesome Mario pillow you see above, available as one of three different freebies for Platinum members. The other two freebies up for grabs are two table calendars or two different soundtracks, from a total of five, though we know eligible members would never go against the pillow. Because that'd just be insane.
Mario Kart 7's online and StreetPass features detailed
Mario Kart 7 will have wireless connectivity features that use both broadband internet and the 3DS's own "StreetPass" connection, Nintendo announced today. As noted at E3, you'll be able to race online or off, with 8-player online retaining a 60 FPS framerate. You can set up "communities" that allow you to create groups of people to race against, setting up various criteria for inclusion in the "community" and racing settings. You'll be able to collect data from other players by passing by them, using StreetPass. You'll pick up win/loss records, coin data, and more, including "ghost" data of other players' races, which you can then race against. You'll also have the option to install a Mario Kart Channel to your 3DS, to act as a hub for downloaded Mario Kart 7 stuff. Nintendo also announced a couple new playable characters: Lakitu and Metal Mario. In other news, Nintendo is apparently running out of ideas for Mario Kart characters.
Nintendo holding conference on Friday about 3DS firmware, Mario Kart 7
Nintendo is springing another press event on us, this Friday, October 21 at 8PM (7AM EDT). The pre-recorded presentation will be streamed online, and will focus on the upcoming November firmware update for 3DS, along with details about Mario Kart 7's wireless functions (probably referring to online play). Those two things alone don't seem like much for a press conference, so either this thing will be mercifully brief or there will be some surprises. There might be more to this firmware update than video recording. Maybe. [Thanks, Dali!]
Retro Studios helped to craft Donkey Kong course for Mario Kart 7
When Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto revealed that Donkey Kong Country Returns dev Retro Studios was collaborating with Nintendo on Mario Kart 7, he stopped himself there. "But wait," we wondered at the time, "What does that mean?" As it turns out, it means that the Texas-based dev house helped to develop the game's Donkey Kong Country Returns-themed level. I played through the level this morning during a preview event at Nintendo of America's upper Manhattan offices, and can back up its Donkey Kong-ness. There were rotund wooden barrels with "DK" in capital letters on the side, some bats, plenty of palm trees -- what you'd expect to see in a level based around Mr. Kong. Unfortunately, it's unclear whether MK7 will feature other levels that were co-developed by teams outside of Nintendo, as company reps told me it's not something they're speaking about just yet, but we're hopeful for more when Mario Kart 7 launches on December 4.%Gallery-129866%
