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WRUP: The usual suspects edition
This week's releases are the usual for the DS: plenty of titles to choose from. For a first, though, there isn't much we're dying to get our hands on. We think we're going to give the old wallet a break this weekend. Who cares about us, though? What will you be playing? Plan on picking up any of the new releases or will you be chiseling away on an older title
Ultimate Mortal Kombat trailer rips our heart out, lovingly caresses it
When we were all given the news that Ultimate Mortal Kombat would be gracing the DS, we found ourselves thoroughly excited at the prospect of playing online with the lot of you. Now that there's a trailer (conveniently embedded past the post break), we find our excitement to be almost immeasurable. November can't get here soon enough!%Gallery-4363%
Konami reveals 'Animal God Transmission' card game for DS
OK, maybe "Animal God Transmission" isn't quite the right title, but it's the one machine translation gives us, so we're just going to have to go with it. And, what exactly are these animal gods transmitting? Card battles, apparently, as images show an attachment that goes in the GBA slot of the DS and allows players to swipe cards in, much like Sega's Love Berry add-on peripheral. No silly swiping, though, as Konami offers up an easier way of inputting card data than even Spectrobes did, asking the player merely touch the card to the device.
Phantom Hourglass sells 350K in two days
Sure, we thought hotcakes would be all but forgotten once the game released in Japan, but we never knew the game would sell this well. And in selling 350,000 copies in just two days, it has done very well in the region. In fact, this makes Phantom Hourglass the fastest-selling Zelda game since Ocarina of Time released (and would later be called "the greatest game of all time" by many). Phantom Hourglass is currently slated for an October release in the United States.%Gallery-3279%[Via Joystiq]
Sid Meier's Civilization coming to the DS
And we couldn't be happier the rumor from long ago has come true!See, we're huge fans of the Civilization series, so when we caught an eye full of the press release stating that a new game was being designed by Sid for "next-generation consoles and handhelds," we almost let loose a brick from the seat of our pants. We were surprised. "Civilization Revolution is the game I've always wanted to make!" says Sid Meier. He goes on further to hype up Civilization Revolution, stating that they are "excited to take advantage of the power of next generation consoles and the ingenuity of handhelds, to create a great and unique strategy game for newcomers to the series, as well as the millions of fans around the world who enjoy Civilization on the PC." The touch-screen controls are going to be perfect for this game, so let's hope it doesn't have to be too stripped to fit on that DS cartridge.[Via Game Stooge]
DS Fanboy presents: Game Night 6/28/07
Oh, it's like some holiday up in here. It's the only way to explain just how good we feel right now. We're looking forward to gaming with you all tonight, so head past the break and get all of the deets.
Insecticide trailer gives us the backstory
After it was announced late last month, we found ourselves excited as to what Insecticide could bring to the DS. Now that we got a glimpse at the embedded backstory trailer, we find ourselves craving it that much more. The game looks like it will have a lot of charm.Check out the concept art in the gallery below and be sure to head past the break for the trailer.%Gallery-3405%
DIY DS Lite stylus pen
Frustrated with the DS Lite's stubby stylus, but not enough to empty out your pockets for one of those new-fangled, overpriced utensils we're always featuring? Faced with that very dilemma, Sal Cangeloso decided to save himself a few bucks with a homemade solution, trimming the stock stylus and packing it with a bit of rubber into his pen's emptied casing (Pilot Hi-Tec-C Coleto). Though it isn't a new idea at all, we were impressed with Sal's handiwork and wanted to share the small project with our readers. It looks better than most of the high-end styli we've seen for sale![Thanks, Kris!]
Conjecture Countdown: 14 days to go
Even with a diminished E3, there's no controlling the wave of rumors that hit the Internet every year before the show. Why fight it? From now until E3 hits, we'll be posting one piece of wild speculation every day. Some may be patently ridiculous, and others just might turn out to be true. Even some of the ridiculous ones might turn out to be true! Rest assured, everything will be totally made-up and unfounded. Except, of course, when we speak about all the ass Reggie is going to kick. That part? Totally true.Rumor: Nintendo will announce that they are finally doing away with the 12-digit Friend Code system for Wi-Fi compatible DS games. Instead, it will be replaced by the 24-digit Buddy Password system.
Phantom Hourglass helps kanji impaired
We're not really too good at reading Japanese kanji. We'll be honest and just say it. Our horrible inability to translate the ancient Japanese script has been something that not only gets in our way of enjoying delicious Japanese gaming news, but something that also keeps us from maintaining an equal correspondence with our Japanese pen pal Hiro. We believe he might be getting bored of the magazine clippings we keep sending him. He hasn't mailed us back in months.But, the Japanese version of Phantom Hourglass is set to at least help folks in that region, namely children, with the difficult task of reading the kanji characters. The smart approach Nintendo has come up with is to allow the player, through use of the stylus, to touch the kanji letters and switch to the furigana characters (which allow the reader to phonetically read the kanji), making the dialogue that much easier to read. The furigana characters normally reside atop kanji, but with the small screen size of the DS, Nintendo came up with this different solution.See also: First 6 minutes of Phantom Hourglass shown
Korean retailers relying on the DS
One of the writers over at 4cr lives in Korea, so what better person to gauge the shop owners' and overall market feel over there than him? Nobody, that's who, and according to his latest findings in the busy section of Yongsan (the be all, end all authority on the Korean games market, apparently), the DS Lite is driving sales in the region. This, of course, comes as no surprise, seeing as how the handheld dominates the Japanese market month after month and does its fair share of work in the U.S. and Europe.One shop manager says that without the DS Lite they'd "have virtually no income at all, and it's been this way for months." In terms of volume of units sold, the DS Lite apparently flies off the shelves as the handheld "moves over 200 units a day, and while we don't make any profit on the system itself, we make money off of the games." And, according to him, at least, the "PSP is as good as dead" as sales for Sony's handheld have leveled off months ago.
Nicole Kidman Brain Age 2 ad
Yesterday, we brought word that Nicole Kidman would be the new face set to advertise Brain Age 2, and now we have the ad in which she is featured. The best part of the ad? Her brain age is junk. Yup, let us all grab our tummies and let loose an earth-shattering laugh, for she has many millions of dollars, but at least we can draw a better Koala bear than she can.Check out the ad past the break.
Buy 2, get 1 at Toys R Us again
It's been awhile since we've been able to get some DS games on special at Toys R Us, but the excellent chance at picking up some much-needed DS games has come back. The excellent thing is, though, that the sale isn't limited to just the company's website, allowing patrons inside its stores to take advantage of the offer as well. So, should you be the type of person who hates to wait for things to ship to you, just walk in your local store and you're set.You'll only have until Saturday, however, as the sale only extends until then. And, as always with this sale, the cheapest game you pick up will be the title given for free from the retail chain. So, what will you be getting through the sale? As for us, we'd definitely like to get our hands on ... well, to tell the truth, we've pretty much got every game we could want.[Via Joystiq]
Nintendo breaks into Japanese Top 10
When you hear the names Honda and Toyota, does it make you think Nintendo? Well, it will soon, as the Nintendo has entered into the prestigious class of top 10 companies in Japan. Nintendo has beaten even its biggest competitor, Sony, as the company has managed to earn incredible amounts of revenue through its handheld DS system, as well as its newest console, the Wii. As of now, shares in the company go for 46,350 yen (about $375 USD) and it is currently valued at 6.57 trillion yen ( about $53 billion USD).See also: Nintendo is almost worth as much as Sony
First Taiko Drum Master DS commercial
Sure, we've had plenty of screens from the game to look over, but footage has been few and far between. Well, thanks to YouTube, we get our first glimpse of the game, courtesy of a Japanese commercial. And, as with all Japanese commercials, its fairly short and completely ridiculous.Check the video past the post break.
Itadaki Street creation vid
Sure, we've known for awhile now the wide range of different characters that would be available in Itadaki Street, but now our imagination gives way to reality. The crew over at Siliconera have posted a video detailing the process of character creation in the game, giving us all who've sat for hours in the dark wondering how one would manifest a digital entity in-game a look at the process. Sadly, the video is on the shorter side, but gives us a look at the wide variety of options available to the aspiring character creator.
WRUP: So many games, so little time edition
With so many excellent games having released this week, no doubt many of you are having a tough time deciding on what new game (or games) to pick up, if any. As for us, we picked up a certain puzzle game and are considering joining the front lines, but have nothing else really planned for play in our DS Lite.What about you, fine reader? Are you going to pick up something new or will you be rocking something a bit older? What are you playing?
First 6 minutes of Phantom Hourglass shown
YouTube user vladimire356 recently imported The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and, as a reader of DS Fanboy, took video of the game's opening movie and emailed us the link. It doesn't stop there, though, as we're given a look at the beginning gameplay segments of the title, also. Now, if you're one who just loves to have things spoiled for you, go ahead and head past the post break for the video.
DS Fanboy presents: Game Night 6/21/07 aftermath
Another successful Game Night went down yesterday evening and we only have one question: where were you? We took the time to set out some snacks and refreshments, only to have less people show up compared to last week. We still got to play Planet Puzzle League, but we thought more folks would be there to play other games with those who did not have Planet Puzzle League.You'll show up next week, we trust? What should be the theme game for 6/28/07? Tetris DS Animal Crossing Clubhouse Games
Bioware + Sonic = oh em gee
Sit down.No, seriously, sit down. We've got an amazing piece of news for you. Bioware, who've produced some of the most amazing RPG experiences the industry has ever seen, has finally let the cat loose from its bag prison, informing us that they're teaming up with Sega to create a Sonic role-playing game for the DS. How awesome is that?! Sadly, we won't be getting our hands on the game until next year, but we're incredibly excited for what Bioware can do with the Sonic IP and will gladly wait as the title is almost guaranteed to be something we'll be down for. SEGA of America, Inc. President and COO, Simon Jeffery, shares our optimism, stating that "Everyone at SEGA has huge confidence that Sonic is in the safest of hands, and that BioWare can create the ultimate handheld RPG experience for gamers of all ages." No kidding, Simon. When has Bioware made a bad RPG? That would be ... never.Knuckles punching people until they explode, anyone?
