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New Nintendo eShop releases: Hyrule Warriors, Mario Golf: Advance Tour
Nintendo and Omega Force's The Legend of Zelda-inspired brawler Hyrule Warriors launches in the eShop today, letting Wii U owners slash their way through endless hordes of Moblins and other familiar critters as they quest to save Hyrule. Wii U players can also look forward to a Virtual Console version of Mario Golf: Advance Tour this week, along with other downloadable offerings like Angry Bunnies: Colossal Carrot Crusade, Darts Up, and a demo of Spin the Bottle: Bumpie's Party. The Nintendo 3DS, meanwhile, hosts its very first Yu-Gi-Oh! game with today's launch of Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL World Duel Carnival. Both platforms see a round of discounts as part of Nintendo's ongoing Super Smash Bros-themed sale, as this week spotlights a number of games starring Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Kirby, and other franchise characters. Nintendo partially revealed its October lineup as well, announcing that Konami's Castlevania: Dracula X (likely the SNES version) and Game Boy Advance launch title Castlevania: Circle of the Moon will stalk the eShop in the weeks leading up to Halloween. Hit the break below for a full list of all games hitting the Wii U and 3DS eShop this week. [Image: Nintendo]
How to (not) make a slumber party video game
When you think of slumber parties and gaming, you might mull over slumber parties involving video games, but you're unlikely to think of the reverse. While there are examples frittered around here and there, like Sleepover Party and the much maligned We Dare on the Wii, slumber party video games represent a genre - if you can call it that - which hasn't been explored properly. At least, that's the feeling of KnapNok Games' Lau Korsgaard, one of the designers of the 2013 Wii U downloadable Spin the Bottle: Bumpie's Party. If you've not played it, the above trailer summarizes Bumpie's Party neatly. Two to eight players take turns to spin a virtual bottle on the Wii U Gamepad, and the players selected have to complete one of many physical challenges. Things like pushing Wiimote buttons with your noses, or holding controllers behind a friend's back while both of you try to jump in sync - you get the idea. If you're wondering what the inspirations for Bumpie's Party's unusual design are, Ubisoft's We Dare was a big influence... but not for good reasons.
Wii U indie eShop sale offers buy one, get others 60 percent off deal
Waiting on Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze for a fresh reason to turn your Wii U on? We hear you, but several indie studios have banded together to offer the Super Indie Connection Sale, a deal on eShop titles you might have missed from the past year. From now until February 13, anyone that owns Spin The bottle: Bumpie's Party, Runner 2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien, Giana Sisters: Twisted Dream, Toki Tori 2 or Mighty Switch Force! may purchase any of the other titles for 60 percent off. It's generally a good deal to get 60 percent off of anything, but buying Spin the Bottle would be especially smart given that its price will gradually rise as more content is added. Toki Tori 2 developer Two Tribes also cited the game's low sales among reasons to recently cease development efforts, so this sale is a chance to reward their efforts for cheap. On a more general note, with Mario Kart 8 planned for May, the Super Indie Connection Sale is a great way to plan for March and April. [Image: WayForward]
Play a round of Spin The Bottle's first content update on February 13
Bumpie's parties get a little unconventional, so if you're looking for the same-old small talk and wallflower party scene, you've come to the wrong place. The first content update for Spin The Bottle: Bumpie's Party is scheduled to add six new minigames to the mix on February 13, some of which will use the Wii U Gamepad's camera. Dajana Dimovska, producer at developer KnapNok, described one of the upcoming camera-oriented challenges to Eurogamer: In "Don't Laugh," two players will use the Gamepad, keeping their faces within the camera's viewfinder. The audience will then say and do presumably polite and tasteful things to inspire snickers from the players, leaving the least stoic of the duo as the loser. Once updated, Spin The Bottle's entry price will rise slightly in the eShop store. If you're already in on the party however, you won't have to pay a cover charge for the new content. While the impending price has yet to be set, KnapNok said it will "probably be a 'couple of bucks.'"
Spin the Bottle points at Wii U next month
Spin the Bottle's protracted development cycle - ho ho ho - comes to an end in two weeks time, when it finally reaches the Wii U eShop on August 8, priced at $9/€7. KnapNok's' party piece was expected in the spring, but its eccentric mechanics meant quality assurance took way longer than expected - stuff like pushing Wiimote buttons with noses, or blindfolded players searching for controllers ... the usual. "Spin the Bottle: Bumpie's Party is our attempt to explore these unique possibilities of the Wii U," said KnapNok's Lau Korsgaard. "Players sit in a circle looking at each other doing silly, wacky and embarrassing stuff. This is a game that couldn't have been developed for any other console and we are super excited to see how the audience will receive it." All of which gives you an idea of how Spin the Bottle plays, as should the suitably quirky new trailer, highlighting how the game focuses attention around the GamePad, and doesn't use the TV at all. As for the exact mechanics ... we've watched the sequence between the 33 and 39 seconds mark over and over, and still have zero idea what's going on. Not that that's a bad thing, at all.
