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[There's even more to collect!]

176

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: September 07, 2007, 10:01:54 AM »

There's even more to collect!
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14361

 Hurray for another week of Brawl hype!  It was a pretty good week too, that was finished off with an announcement of something else we'll be able to collect while we play!    

 New Movie: Pit's Descent
Pit saw what happened to Peach and Zelda from the heavens and Palutena has tasked him with helping out.  Not much is revealed in this new trailer, other than showing some more stunning CG work.  Pit's entry into the story mode kind of flies in the face of the rather disconnected 'all the characters are trophies' story that the previous games in the series had, yet we know those trophies will play a role somehow.  Click the image at the right to check out the video over at the Dojo.
   

 New Special Moves: Diddy Kong
A couple of Diddy Kong's special moves were revealed on Tuesday.  This is more of a follow-up post to his character announcement which revealed his special moves would involve his Peanut Popgun and Rocketbarrels.  

• Peanut Popgun (standard): His Peanut Popgun seems to be a similar attack to Link's bow attack.  Players will have the ability to charge it up before firing, which will adjust the speed of the shot.  However, unlike the bow, the Peanut Popgun can be charged too much, exploding in poor Diddy's face.  One final interesting note is that the peanuts that come out of the gun are shelled.  Somehow those shells can be broken, revealing a nice little nut that will restore some health.
 
• Rocketbarrel Boost (up): Diddy's up special move is another classic recovery move.  Perform the move and he'll strap on a jet pack made out of barrels and blast off.  It sounds like it will initially work much like Fox and Falco's up special move from Melee.  In the time between when the button is pushed and the blast off occurs, players can use the control stick to adjust the trajectory of the flight.  Diddy's move will also be able to be charged up like some of the other recovery moves unveiled in Brawl.  Therefore, waiting until the last second to let it go will help you get back to the stage from even greater distances!

   

New Character: Meta Knight
Finally, coming after we found out about a lot of his special moves, Meta Knight has officially been announced as a playable character.  There really isn't anything new to say about him.  Maybe now we'll start seeing more brand new characters (seeing as we pretty much have to).
   

New Special Move: Mario's F.L.U.D.D.
One of Mario's special moves was announced on Thursday, and surprisingly, it isn't a direct rip of what he did in Melee!  When performing his down move, instead of pulling out the Mario Tornado, he's going to strap F.L.U.D.D. on his back!  It will apparently be fully aimable and fully chargable.  This attack doesn't do any damage, instead, like a fire hose against rioters, it pushes other combatants back, and hopefully off the stage.  Fans of the tornado shouldn't fret though, as it was still shown in a screenshot, so it will be doable somehow.
   

New Stage: Pokemon Stadium 2
The Pokemon Stadium level that has been seen in a few trailers was officially confirmed on Thursday.  They added the 2 to the title (which is strangely reminiscent of the two N64 titles) and revealed that the terrain will still change, but in different ways.  It will shift between Electric, Ground, Flying, and Ice types.  From the screens that were shown the ground stage is particularly interesting because two Pokemon, Cubone and Dugtrio, can be seen in the background as well some Pokemon fossils.  Also interesting, when the stage is in the Flying mode all of the characters can jump a heck of a lot higher to force battles into the air!
   

New Song: Super Smash Bros. Brawl: Main Theme
The theme of the original trailer revealed at E3 '06 was officially shown on the web site.  You can hear it over at the dojo.  Sakurai himself was the lyrics supervisor and Taro Yamashita was the lyric translator.  What the heck are they saying?  Nobuo Uematsu of Final Fantasy fame was the Composition Supervisor.  Can Sora be playable please?    

New Song: Pokemon: Pokemon Stadium/Evolution
At least one of the songs that will play during the new Pokemon Stadium 2 level was announced on Friday as well.  You can hear it at the dojo too.  It's a nice composition that ends with the famous “Evolution" theme from the games.  Many have predicted that that section of the song will come up when the stage itself is shifting between types.  Junichi Masuda was the Composition Supervisor, who headed up the music on Pokemon Diamond and Pearl.    

New Game Feature: Music
The week finished up with one of the most interesting announcements so far.  They really are putting a focus on the music in this game, which backs up the sheer amount of talent behind it.  Each stage will have several possible songs that can play, all themed after the same things.  The player can adjust the likelihood of each song playing when the level loads, which will allow people to play the music that they like the best.  Also, all of the music choices won't be available when you first fire the game up.  Like Trophies and Stickers, you'll have to collect CDs while you play in order to build your music collection.
   

That's it for this week.  With Meta Knight out of the way, there's a strong likelihood we'll see a brand new character again soon.

[The blog is still releasing new details every weekday!]

177

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: August 31, 2007, 06:51:26 AM »

The blog is still releasing new details every weekday!
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14326

 There weren't any huge announcements this week, but there weren't any major duds either.  The week ended with an extremely cool new stage!    

New Item: Superspicy Curry
A brand new normal  item was announced on Monday.  The Superspicy Curry, coming right out of the Kirby universe, engulfs players in flames.  They will also shoot out of the character's mouth, directly in line with how the item works in the Kirby games.  It looks like the item will be more of a passive one, as players will be able to carry out their normal moves but, with the help of the flames, do more damage!
   

New Game Mechanics: Special Move Types
While we didn't necessarily need it, Tuesday brought confirmation that the special move system present in both the original Smash Bros. and Melee will make a return.  The most interesting part of this announcement is that Meta Knight was used as the demonstrating character when he hasn't even been officially Dojo unveiled yet.  Each of his special moves was named and showed in screenshot form, but they weren't described beyond that at all.    

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

Standard Special Move Mach Tornado	Side Special Move Triple Dash
Up Special Move Shuttle Loop	Down Special Move Dimensional Cape

   

New Assist Trophy: Andross
Andross will be in the game, but not as a villain in the single player adventure.  Instead he'll be popping out of Assist Trophy items!  Sporting the classic polygonal look from the original Star Fox, he'll show up behind the stage and start spewing out squares.  Presumably, these squares will damage everyone except the person who opened the trophy.
   

New Special Moves: Pokemon Trainer
The Pokemon Trainer is going to be one crazy character to play with.  It was announced that each of his three Pokemon will have their own set of special moves, with the exception of the down special move which switches between them.  Therefore, Squirtle, Ivysour, and Charizard will each have three unique moves.  Two for each character were revealed this week.    

 
• Squirtle
    •Waterfall (up): When using this move Squirtle will climb a huge waterfall up in the air.  This move will most likely damage enemies as well as be used as a third jump when trying to return to the stage.
    •Withdraw (side): Based on the screenshot and description, this move appears to be similar to Yoshi's egg move from Melee.  Squirtle will withdraw into his shell and then propel along the ground using water, most likely damaging anyone in his path.
  
   
 
• Ivysaur
    •Bullet Seed (standard): Ivysaur's standard special move simply fires a barrage of of seeds directly upwards.  This move sounds very similar to Pikachu's thunderbolt attack from Melee.  It will be very helpful when used to torment players higher than you as well as harass those trying to float safely back to the stage.
    •Vine Whip (up): Ivysaur's up special move is a tether move similar to the one used by Zero Suit Samus.  Instead of giving Ivysaur another burst of upwards momentum, it will fly for the nearest ledge and try and pull him up.  While it wasn't demonstrated in the update, this move will also most likely have an effect when used while not falling.  If I had to hazard a guess, I would expect it to work like Ness's up special in Melee, allowing the player to control the vine and seek out opponents.
  
   
 
• Charizard
    •Flamethrower (standard): Charizard's standard special move looks to work just like Bowser's flame breath from Melee.  Hold down the special button and just start spewing flames at the spot directly in front of you!
    •Rock Smash (side): Do Charizard's side special move and he'll pull a giant boulder out of nowhere and smash it with his head.  Presumably, if someone is standing near him, they will feel the shock of the hit as well.  This move sounds like a slow, yet extremely powerful move, similar to Captain Falcon's Falcon Punch in Melee.
  
   

   

New Game Mechanic: Gliding
Many people have been wondering how all of these new winged characters would work in a game where the only goal is to knock someone off the screen.  It was revealed on Thursday that those characters (Pit, Meta Knight, and Charizard so far) won't actually fly.  Instead they will glide.  This glide will be initiated by performing a double jump and holding the jump button down.  It was described in a way very reminiscent of Mario's cape from Super Mario World.  Maybe he'll put it to use in Brawl.  Basically, each character will build up momentum and alter it by tilting their character up or down in the glide.  Expect to see these gliding characters diving to what looks like their death, only to pull up at the last second and land safely on the edge of the stage.
   

New Stage: WarioWare
  In probably the most exciting announcement of the week, a brand new zany stage was announced on Friday.  It makes sense that Wario is in his WarioWare garb now that we've seen this stage.  The main area that players fight in is the famous elevator, complete with the poorly drawn pig.  Throughout the match the doors will open up, revealing a fighting area themed directly from one of the many WarioWare microgames.  Now players will have to successfully avoid obstacles in five second spurts and fight at the same time!  The bomb timer is even there!
   

That's it for this week.  Expect even more info next week, and every week after that leading up to Brawl's launch on December 3rd!

[Lich King Studios is starting a new DS project self described as a mix between Pokemon and Mario Party.]

178

TalkBack / Destiny's Dilemma Announced for DS

« on: August 30, 2007, 05:07:29 AM »

Lich King Studios is starting a new DS project self described as a mix between Pokemon and Mario Party.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14318

 Lich King Studios Begins Development Of Destiny's Dilemma    

  MORRISVILLE, NC - August 29, 2007 - Lich King Studios began development of Destiny’s Dilemma this month. Destiny’s Dilemma combines the best parts of board games, card games, and minigames in a fresh and fun way. The gameplay compares to a combination of Pokemon and Mario Party or Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales and Puzzle Quest.    

Players traverse game boards and battle each other using timed, touch screen abilities represented as cards. To successfully use an ability card, a player selects it and completes the corresponding minigame that is presented. When one player eliminates their opponent’s hit points, they win the battle and receive rewards such as new cards. The flow and gameplay is immediately addicting and accessible as players race against the clock to acquire better cards for battle.    

This title places an emphasis on light deck building and multiplayer action. Aside from the single player story mode (featuring cut-scenes and dialogue), a flexible suite of multiplayer games is available for both local and internet wi-fi. Graphically, Destiny’s Dilemma is sure to please with its blend of 2D and 3D components. Characters are large; originally-styled sprites while backgrounds are a mix of real time polygonal objects and sprite overlays. This title appeals to casual players due to its character-driven nature, touch screen controls, board game setting, and prominent minigames. Meanwhile, the deck building, item system, and streamlined battle rules provide the strategy and depth that will satisfy hardcore players and add replay value.

[Actually playing the game won't be the first thing you do when you put the disc in your Wii.]

179

TalkBack / Metroid Prime 3 Prompts System Update

« on: August 28, 2007, 08:30:07 AM »

Actually playing the game won't be the first thing you do when you put the disc in your Wii.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14308

 There are probably plenty of people out there putting Metroid Prime 3: Corruption into their Wii for the first time and noticing a strange message.  The first time you go to the disc channel a message will come up asking you to install a system update directly from the disc before playing.  Thankfully this update happens very quickly so it won't delay the experience too much.    

It's currently unclear what the update does exactly.  There could be new Prime specific features or this could just be a way of getting already released system updates out to the people that don't have their Wii connected to the internet.  We'll bring you any new details that come up as we become aware of them.

[It was an exciting week over at the Dojo!]

180

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: August 26, 2007, 03:17:07 PM »

It was an exciting week over at the Dojo!
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14300

 This week was very interesting!  We got to see a brand new character as well as some more insight into the story mode of the game.  Master Hand won't be the only boss in Brawl!    

New Special Moves: Link's Complete Set
On Monday Link became the first character to have his entire roster of special moves unveiled (assuming there isn't a new game mechanic that will add more possibilities).  They are as follows:  

• Gale Boomerang (side): Link's side special move will again be his classic boomerang attack.  It did receive a nifty Twilight Princess upgrade though, as the Gale addition is more than just a visual upgrade.  Now, on top of getting damaged, characters who get hit with the boomerang will be “lightly" pulled back towards Link.  The word lightly is pulled directly from the blog itself, so don't expect this to have a Scorpion spear to the chest type effect.
 
• Hero's Bow (standard): Nothing was specifically said about the bow attack, but it is probably a safe assumption to say that it will work like it did in Melee.  Hold down the button and it will charge up, changing from a slow, arching shot to a fast, direct shot.
 
• Bomb (down): Like the bow attack, nothing was really said about the bomb attack either.  It does have a new look though, taking on the rough appearance of those made by Barnes in Twilight Princess.  Again, assuming it works the same way it did in Melee, performing the attack will cause link to pull a bomb out.  The bomb can then be thrown like any other projectile in the game.
 
• Spin Attack (up): Only one sentence was given for the Spin Attack, but it was an interesting one!  Apparently it will now be chargeable, like so many other attacks in the series.  What effects will the charging have?  It will most likely do more damage to the opponents, but could it also give Link more lift on his third jump?  Will we see players charging the spin attack for as long as possible as they fall back toward the ledge, unleashing at the last second for maximum height?
 
• Clawshot (grab): His clawshot is also returning as his grapple attack.  Following up the tether announcement of last week, it was also revealed that it will be able to grip edges as it did in Melee.  This time though it sounds like it won't be as much of an expert move, as it “automatically flies to the closest ledge."

   

New Story Details
As reported earlier, a new trailer was shown that talks more about the Subspace Army that will be the main antagonist in the story mode.  Check out that original story for more details!
   

New Character: Diddy Kong
Another piece of news that we touched on on the day it happened was the unveiling of Diddy Kong as a playable character.  He's going to be using his Rocketbarrel Boost and Peanut Pop Gun for his special attacks, but they weren't shown in any of the initial screenshots.  It looks like he's going to be a crazy character to play as, as he'll sometimes be on his hands or tail.
   

New Final Smash: Yoshi's Super Dragon
When Yoshi grabs a Smash ball, he don a pear of angel wings, seemingly inspired by Pit himself.  Obviously, he'll be able to fly around with these wings.  To damage enemies, he breathes large amounts of fire.  When the player pushes a button, he'll spit out a fireball.  Controlling him during this attack was not really detailed, but it was revealed that it may be “clumsy" and that it may be easy to fall off the screen if the attack ends at an inopportune time.
   

New Music: Go K.K. Rider
It's always nice to hear some of the music that will be in the game.  Thursday, the theme song to the Smashville level was revealed.  It's Go K.K. Rider, and it comes complete with the patented me-me-mi-mo lyrics of Totakeke himself.  To hear it, head over to the Dojo.  The composition supervisor  is Toru Minegishi, who has worked on every Zelda game since Majora's Mask.
   

New Boss: Petey Piranha
In Friday's update even more story details were revealed.  It was previously revealed that bosses would play a role in the story mode.  Petey Piranha was even shown in the video from earlier in the week.  It turns out he will be a boss.  Some may think this means he won't be playable.  Others may think he'll be an unlockable character.  Master Hand was never playable, but that doesn't make the thought impossible.  As shown in the trailer, he locks up the two princesses in cages.  Revealed in the blog post, it will be up to the player to chose which one they save.  We don't know what effect the choice will have on the story, but something will definitely change.
   

That's it for this week's updates.  We are only a matter of hours away from Monday's update, so make sure you check out the blog to see what happens!

181

Nintendo Gaming / 360 and PS3 Gamer-tags

« on: August 21, 2007, 08:29:04 AM »

I figure there are plenty of NWR people who play non-Nintendo Systems, so we should probably have a thread for them.  So post up your 360 or PS3 names here.  Make sure you specify which system (obviously).  I'll start things off.

PS3: PaleZer0
(The last 0 is an actual zero)

360: Don't own one yet.

[Stick stick stick stick stick stick stick...]

182

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: August 19, 2007, 02:51:51 PM »

Stick stick stick stick stick stick stick...
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14246

 This week was an interesting one.  Two characters were announced, one of which was brand new and surprising.  A new mode was showcased that has several fans up in arms.  Read on to get the details.    

New Character: Pokemon Trainer
As reported earlier, Pokemon Trainer will be playable in Brawl.  Well, actually, Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard will be directly playable when the Pokemon Trainer is selected.  Check out the original article for more details, but this is another character that will be using a switching technique similar to Zelda/Sheik in Melee.  Now we just have to keep waiting for our Sheik confirmation!
   

New Assist Trophy: Devil
Another obscure NES game was highlighted with the unveiling of the Devil assist trophy.  The game is called Devil World and was never actually released in the US.  You can check out some screens over at our favorite 'have-screenshots-of-every-old-game-ever' site VG Museum.  The speedo wearing blue devil does a little dance and shifts the whole stage all over the place.  Based on screens, it looks like the stage can go almost completely off the screen, so staying on land will be difficult.  This is another Assist Trophy that doesn't benefit the player who let it loose in any way.  Everyone will be equally challenged by the shifting stage.
   

New Game Mode: Stickers
It looks like the brawl team will be adding something new to collect as you play.  Stickers can be earned as rewards as you play, and appear to show up during the match.  As they are collected, you can go into a sticker album and place them all over the place.  Pages can then be saved to Wii memory as screenshots.  Many people are worried that this will completely replace the popular trophy collecting that was introduced in Melee.  Based on how many times trophies have already been mentioned in one form or another on the Dojo blog, there most likely isn't anything to worry about.  If that doesn't help calm you down, the following quote should.    

"Stickers are easier to get a hold of than trophies."    

We would all be shocked if collectible trophies were no longer in the game.
   

New Game Mechanic: Tether Recovery
Tether recovery isn't exactly a new feature, as it was introduced as somewhat of an easter egg in Melee when certain characters used their grapple attack while falling.  It was quite difficult to pull off.  This time it will apparently be the up special move of some of the characters, like Zero Suit Samus.  It will have an interesting effect on the overall gameplay, as apparently even more characters' up special move won't work like a third jump.
   

New Character: Peach
The week ended with a character announcment that we all saw coming.  Peach got officially unveiled and a couple screens were shown.  As with most other returning character announcements, the screens all showcase moves that seem to be exactly the same as those from Melee, like her levitation, Toad block, and hip check.
   

That's it for this week.  No sign of Ness as many people expected.  Maybe he'll come up next week.

[Another Wii system update already?]

183

TalkBack / Nintendo Releases Another Wii Update

« on: August 13, 2007, 03:57:21 PM »

Another Wii system update already?
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14223

 Nintendo sent another message to Wii consoles tonight notifying users of another system update.  Apparently there was a stability issue that occurred when the Reset button was pressed while using the Opera Internet Channel.  Also, something was done to address stability issues when using the Wii LAN Adapter.    

The system version is still 3.0U after running the update, so apparently this small fix was not even worthy of a point release, as it was most likely just a small bug fix after the last system update.    

Still, between this, the original 3.0U update, and the Metroid Prime Preview channel, Nintendo has been quite busy utilizing the Wii message board as of late.    

The full message that Nintendo is sending out to Wii systems is below.    

A new update for your Wii console is available!    

This update will prevent your Wii console from locking up, which can occur when using the Internet Channel if you press RESET on either your Wii console or within the HOME Menu.  This update also corrects some Internet connection stability issues when using the Wii LAN Adapter from Nintendo.    

Please press the Update button on the bottom-right to update your Wii console.    

-- Nintendo

[Boy, that goddess is showing a lot of skin!]

184

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: August 10, 2007, 08:45:26 AM »

Boy, that goddess is showing a lot of skin!
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14210

 After Ike was revealed, Sheik and Ganondorf were confirmed, and the elaborate adventure mode was teased about last week, we forgot to do a round up of the smaller pieces of news for the week.  Don't fret though, as we rolled them into this week!    

New Final Smash: Donkey Kong's Konga Beat
Donkey Kong's final smash was revealed and much like the scrolling Rumble Falls stage, it is pulled directly from his Bongo Drum adventures on the GameCube.  If DK grabs a Smash Ball, he'll immediately sit down and pull out a pair of bongos.  Left, right, clap, clap, clap!  The game will still take button input during this move, so players can decide when to hit the bongos.  Presumably, the move will somehow distract the other combatants, as it was hinted that the best time to use this move may be while a stage is scrolling.  It could be yet another suicidal move in Donkey Kong's arsenal!
   

New Item: Pitfall
Joining Smashville as another aspect of the game themed after the Animal Crossing universe, the pitfall item was announced.  It will work almost exactly like it does in Animal Crossing.  If placed on the ground a trap is set.  When a player walks on that location, they will be temporarily incapacitated as they wiggle around trying to get out.  Unlike Animal Crossing though, once it is set it becomes completely invisible.  Players will have to try and remember where it's located!  As a final twist to the item, if it is placed on a pass-through floor (a floor that players can jump through from directly below and still land on) the player who springs the trap will actually fall completely through it.
   

New Stage: Castle Siege
Following Ike's announcement, a new stage based on the Fire Emblem universe was officially revealed.  It had previously been seen in some of the official trailers, but some interesting information about how the stage changes was included in the blog update.  There will be at least three main areas in which a match takes place.  They will start out on the castle walls, where flaming catapult bombs will be flying around.  After a certain amount of time the floor will break and players will fall into the throne room.  There large stone statues will be holding up platforms.  These statues can be destroyed, changing the layout of the stage.  That's not all though.  Apparently that floor can shatter as well, causing players to fall into the underground, which was only briefly hinted at.
   

New Item: Smoke Ball
Possibly created by some developers just having fun with the extra horse power of the Wii, the Smoke Ball item has been introduced.  It looks like a little ball of yarn.  When thrown, it simply explodes into a little puff of smoke, making it harder to see what is going on.  It has no direct effect on any of the characters.  Each one apparently explodes into one of several possible colors.  Changing the game settings so all you get is a ton of this item could make for some interesting, fog filled matches.
   

New Special Moves: Ike's Up and Standard
Continuing the onslaught of Ike, some of his special moves were revealed this week.  His Up move, called Aether is an aerial combination that involves throwing his sword.  He starts out by tossing the sword at another character.  Presumably, this launches the character high into the air along with the sword.  Ike then jumps up, catches the sword, and slices downward for a combination of hits.  One of the interesting bits of information also revealed with this move is that several of the characters (including Ike) will not flinch while performing their special moves.  This means it's impossible to interrupt his Aether attack, but you can still hit him to raise his percentage!  A single screenshot and caption was shown of his standard special move, called Eruption.  From what was shown, it appears to create an eruption of fire directly in front of Ike.  It was also said that this move can be charged up, varying the size of the ensuing explosion.
   

New Music: Kid Icarus: The Underworld
A brand new song was revealed on Wednesday.  It comes directly from that memorable music in the first stage of Kid Icarus.  Watch out!  Towards the end the Grim Reaper will see you and you'll die!  Man this game is HARD!  Too hard for most people APPARENTLY!  Tanaka Hirokazu is the Composition Supervisor on the song.  He actually wrote the original music for the game and is currently the president of Creatures Inc.  Sakai Shougo is the Arrangement Supervisor.  He's worked for HAL for a number of years and his pieces can be found in titles like Mother 3, Kirby Air Ride, and Super Smash Bros. Melee.  To listen to the piece, head on over to the Dojo.
   

New Final Smash: Pit's Palutena's Army
If Pit grabs a Smash Ball, a humongous Palutena will appear in the background of the stage.  She'll summon an army of flying Centurions, complete with golden winged helmets, to attack Pit's opponents.  The Centurions will dive bomb other players at high speed.  These attacks are not unlike Kamikaze, as they fall in battle after just one dive.  Based on one of the screenshots (featuring Ike) it looks like it may be possible to block these attacks.  No one knows for sure though.
   

New Item: Franklin Badge
 Coming right out of the Mother/Earthbound series, this item can be picked up and worn by any character in a battle.  Named after Benjamin Franklin, the wearer of the badge will reflect any projectile attacks thrown at them, much like it reflects lightning attacks in the Mother games.  Probably the most exciting aspect of this news is this mock question and answer posed at the beginning of the blog post.    

Q: Why does it say MOTHER on this item?
  A: Is there anything WRONG with having an item that says that?    

Now this could be taken two ways.  One, maybe they are just saying this because the games weren't called Mother in North America.  Two, maybe this is just a not so subtle hint that the official Ness announcement will be coming soon.  After quickly checking the Japanese version of the blog and seeing the same question and answer there, the first option doesn't seem to make sense anymore.  So is it time to see the new Ness model on Monday?  Sounds possible!
   

That's it for the latest batch of updates!  As usual, head over to the official blog for updates as they happen.  Now, thanks to long time forumer Bill, you can see all of the updates, organized by type, in a handy thread over at the brand new Super Smash Brothers Discussion forum.  Check it out!    

Jonathan Metts and Aaron Kaluszka contributed to this article.

[It's a good puzzle game in a good package.]

185

TalkBack / REVIEWS: Picross DS

« on: July 31, 2007, 02:53:53 PM »

It's a good puzzle game in a good package.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewArt.cfm?artid=14128

 I've got something you've probably never heard before.  Games aren't for crazy people like us any longer.  They are for all of the  normal people out there.  Nintendo's latest foray into this market is a Touch Generations puzzle title called Picross DS.  Before you read any farther, if you don't know what Picross is, make sure you check out our preview for the game.  It'll explain just how you play.    

The main single player mode of the game consists of more than 130 puzzles of increasing difficulty.  These puzzles are divided up into two different categories.  The difference between those categories highlights one of the odd features of the game.  One half is your standard pencil and paper simulation.  What that means is that you won't know if you make a mistake.  It will be up to you to figure it out.  The other half of the games (and all multiplayer modes) tell you immediately if you get something wrong.  The only penalty is a time one, and in single player it's basically pointless.  Getting enough of them will keep you from seeing the rather pathetic animation of the picture at the end.  Trust me, this isn't a huge loss.    

Keeping up with other recent Nintendo games, one of the more interesting feature is called Daily Picross.  There, each of several modes can be played daily, and the time taken to complete each is recorded and tracked on a nice little chart.  Overall, this is quite fun, and it really teaches you to think with speed in mind as you do the puzzles (which will prep you for the multiplayer mode).  The only problem is that the pool that potential puzzles are pulled from seems a bit too small.  After only playing for 5 days, I already started seeing some repeat puzzles.  In a game like Picross, repeats can really defeat the purpose, and when you are trying for the fastest time possible, repeats can really mess up those rankings.  It's apparent if you look at my copy of the game, as my overall average for solving five 10x10 puzzles is 1:30, while my fastest time is 22 seconds.  That's a pretty huge difference.  I did it in 22 seconds when three of the five puzzles were repeats.    

So this brings us to multiplayer.  If you are going to play a game like Picross competitively, about the only statistic you could rank is the time it takes to solve the puzzle.  In the primary mode (playable both online and locally) players simply race to complete the puzzle as fast as possible.  I completely and totally stink at this mode.  I played about 25 matches online and lost every single one, most of them to players who have won more than 500 matches.  While you can't see what you opponent is doing (to avoid cheating) you can keep track of a little progress bar that tells you how far along he is.  When a player gets something wrong, he can't make any more moves for five seconds, and his progress bar shakes.  This shaking makes it so you can classify every player in one of two categories.  Some of them bash through it, taking plenty of time penalties but uncovering enough of the puzzle for them to finish.  I always lost to them.  The other group barely ever takes time penalties and solves the puzzles the proper way.  I always lost to them too.  I tried both strategies and couldn't make either work, but the "always play fair" part of me tries to minimize time penalties as much as possible.  Multiplayer would have held truer to the spirit of the game if it didn't tell the players when they did something wrong, but this would hurt the competitive aspect of the mode.  Maybe a better solution would have been to increase the time penalty a bit.  It's quite frustrating to lose to someone who seems to make a mistake on every other move.  However, if you do happen to get a game against someone with a similar skill or experience level to yourself, it can still be quite fun.  That's just quite hard to do in the random matchmaking mode.  Playing online is also very impersonal.  Communication during matches is non-existent.  Unless a game is so intense that it can make a case for needing all of the bandwidth possible, there is no reason for it not to have voice chat similar to what was done in Pokemon Diamond and Pearl.  Those games set a standard, and we better start seeing more games like them.    

The other intriguing feature of this game is the ability to make and share your own puzzles.  This sharing can be done online (friend codes only) or over local wireless.  It's a cool way of extending the life of the game by sending clever puzzles around, but actually creating good puzzles is a lot more complicated than I expected.  The first thing I wanted to do was make some classic Nintendo sprites, as I'm not the most artistically inclined person in the world.  The first issue is that you are only dealing with two colors in Picross games.  So then I went to some classic Game Boy sprites for inspiration.  These would have worked alright, but the vast majority of them were just too large.  Shrinking them down messed the image up beyond recognition.  I eventually found some good candidates and began entering them into my game.  After finally completing the sprite, I found out that it wasn't a solvable puzzle yet.  I clicked the "Fix" button and a bunch of squares were added that screwed up the image pretty badly.  I never could get one of those sprites to work.  While drawing a picture seems like a simple task, creating a puzzle that can be solved without guessing obviously isn't.    

Overall, Picross DS is a good little package.  Competitive play just doesn't work as well as it does for some other puzzle games, but it can still be fun in short spurts.  If you like pick up and play puzzle games on your DS, that's sufficient reason to pick up Picross.  It will go nicely in your case next to Planet Puzzle League, Tetris, and Brain Age.

Pros:
       

Plenty of puzzles

 

Online play

 

Daily Picross

       Cons:
       

It's hard to make working puzzles.

 

Errors are called out immediately.

 

Frustrating multiplayer

               Graphics:  6.0
       While nothing much can be done to improve on the actual visuals during a puzzle, the reward animations could have been a little more fun.

               Sound:  5.0
       You get three different music types to choose from while playing.  You'll probably get sick of all of them before too long.

               Control:  9.5
       The stylus controls are nearly perfect and allow for very quick scanning and solving of the puzzles.  For those who don't like that mode (for whatever reason), the game even includes a standard d-pad and buttons mode.

                      Gameplay:  8.0
       Picross is just a fun logic game to work through.  Relying so much on immediate error feedback hurts the integrity of the puzzles a bit.

 

       Lastability:  8.5
       Daily Picross, tons of packaged puzzles, and the ability to download new puzzles from friends should keep this game in your DS for a while.

 

       Final:  8.0
       While there is room for improvement, the general package gets the job done in most areas.  Picross is a fun puzzle game that is suited perfectly to the DS hardware.      

[Here are this weeks announcements from the Dojo blog. Two new stages and a cool new game mechanic are inside!]

186

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: July 27, 2007, 05:41:15 AM »

Here are this weeks announcements from the Dojo blog.  Two new stages and a cool new game mechanic are inside!
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14105

 This week at the Dojo was similar to most other weeks.  A bunch of minor announcements were made that are somewhat interesting.  Still no brand new characters though.    

New Stage: Rumble Falls
In somewhat of a twist, what could end up being the spiritual successor to the oft maligned Icicle Mountain stage was announced on Monday.  This time taking on Donkey Kong: Jungle Beat as a theme, Rumble Falls is a level that will be constantly scrolling upwards.  Therefore, players will have to climb up while they battle in order to avoid falling off the bottom.  The end of the post leaves a cryptic quote, “Hey! What's at the top? Huh? Hmm...I wonder..."  Should we expect a giant fruit to dig into?  Most likely.    

New Character: Yoshi
Another returning combatant was officially announced on Tuesday with the unveiling of Yoshi.  It seems many of his attacks will remain similar to what they were in Melee, including his sandbag destroying mid-air bicycle kick.  Apparently the egg toss will now be able to be used as a third jump as well, allowing him to get back to the stage easier.  

  New Stage: Skyworld
This week was a good week for stages, as Skyworld is the second one that was announced.  Themed to go along with Kid Icarus, it features a platform system similar to that seen in many of the levels thus far.  The twist here is that all of the platforms can crumble away.  They will regenerate quite quickly though, so it will be interesting to see how that affects the battles.  

  New Mechanic: Footstool Jump
A brand new game mechanic that has not been in a Smash Bros. game before was announced on Thursday.  Possibly inspired by the original Mario Bros. game for NES, players will now be able to jump on the heads of other players and spring off.  The result is a comical squishing animation of the victim.  At the end of the post it was revealed that this can be done in mid air, allowing for vicious, unrecoverable meteor smashes.  Of everything revealed thus far, this mechanic could have the most effect on how bouts will play out.    

New Assist Trophy: Knuckle Joe
The week was rounded out with today's announcement of a new Assist Trophy.  Knuckle Joe, from the Kirby games, may pop out of some of those trophy cases.  He'll unleash a combo attack that starts with a barrage of Vulcan Jabs, moves into a strong punch that is strangely reminiscent of Captain Falcon's Falcon Punch, and ends with a Rising Break lightning attack.    

That's it for this week.  It's always sad when there aren't any huge new announcements, but the trickle of interesting tidbits is pretty neat in its own right.

187

Nintendo Gaming / Is Super Paper Mario 480p + Video Lag issues

« on: July 22, 2007, 10:18:13 AM »

So I know some of you are quite the videophiles... I'm quite confused right now.  So I don't personally have an HD tv of any sort.  My dad however, has a 67 inch Samsung DLP set.  He's got his Wii hooked up over component and set to output in 480p.  All that seems normal.  Now, I played a lot Zelda: TP last november and never noticed any issues.  I also played a lot of games here since then, and never noticed any issues.

Well I was home for the weekend this weekend and I brought Super Paper Mario with me to try and actually finish the game.  I fired it up and noticed a very significant and very frustrating lag on the jumping.

So here's the wrinkle.  The TV has a "Game" mode that is used to get rid of delay.  The interesting part, is that it only is available for 480i signals (which makes sense, as 480p signals shouldn't lag).  So, if I tell the Wii to output in 480i instead of 480p, then let the TVs Game mode kick in, the lag goes away.

Why the hell would it be lagging?  Is Super Paper Mario not actually outputting in 480p so the TV is just confused?  Have all the games I've played on here lagged and Super Paper Mario just happens to be the first one I've noticed?

This is all especially relevant because this WAS going to be the next TV I buy.

[So that's how you play as Zero Suit Samus.]

188

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: July 22, 2007, 07:00:43 AM »

So that's how you play as Zero Suit Samus.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=14078

 It was an interesting week over at the Dojo.  The highlight of the week was probably the official unveiling of Zero Suit Samus.  We''ll get to that in a bit.    

New Song: Star Fox: Space Armada
This is a slightly different arrangement to a song that came right out of Melee.  The composition supervisor is Hajime Hirasawa, who wrote the music for the original SNES Star Fox title in 1993.  The arrangement supervisor is Kenji Ito, who wrote  the music on several Square games, like Children of Mana and Romancing SaGa.  To hear the song, check out this post over at the Dojo.    

New Pokemon: Deoxys
  A new Pokemon was revealed on Tuesday.  Deoxys could pop out of some of those randomly thrown pokeballs.  It appears to be another uber one, in the vein Lugia and Ho-oh from Melee.  After leaving the ball, it will float up to the top of the screen and unleash a Hyper Beam attack that will send everyone flying, leaving smoke trails in their wakes.  

   

New Final Smash: Samus's Zero Laser
Samus's final smash was officially unveiled.  It proved to be identical to what was shown in the original E3 '06 trailer, all the way down to the origin of the Zero Suit model.  If Samus grabs a Smash Ball, she will be able to unleash the Zero Laser, which is a massive beam that is around twice the height of Samus herself.  Afterwards however, her suit is overloaded and falls off.  Presumably, the player will remain Zero Suit Samus for the rest of the match.  To add some humor to the whole situation, the pieces of the suit can then be picked up and used as projectiles.    

New (sub)Character: Zero Suit Samus
To follow up the announcement of how Zero Suit Samus will be playable comes the 'official' announcement of Zero Suit Samus as a character.  As was already evident from all of the trailers and screenshots that have been released, Zero Suit Samus will be significantly faster than regular Samus and use a weapon that is sometimes a gun and sometimes a whip.  

   

Story Details
Friday's announcement was one of the strangest and most vague posts to come out of the blog to date.  It shed some light on the story behind the game, showing that it will be basically similar to the (minimal) story of the past Smash Bros. games.  Characters will originate as trophies.  In fact, the screenshots of Mario as a trophy are virtually identical to the intro of Melee.  The entire post is ended with an ominous message about something that breaks the rules and a screenshot is shown of Metaknights aircraft coming into view, followed by another shot of a strange shadowy looking character.  Who knows what all this means?  Is there going to be a more in depth single player experience in this game?    

Now that the rush of E3 is over with, maybe we'll get some more interesting announcements next week.  The blog still hasn't unveiled a previously unknown character (who isn't a returning character) and I think it's about time.

[Make cool pixel art while solving puzzles!]

189

TalkBack / PREVIEWS: Picross DS

« on: July 16, 2007, 03:20:30 AM »

Make cool pixel art while solving puzzles!
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/previewArt.cfm?artid=14030

 Picross is a simple puzzle game concept that has been around almost as long as video games. Given the current popularity of Sudoku, many people will draw comparisons between the two games.  Firstly, both games don't require any sort of electronics.  Traditionally they can be solved using just a pencil.  They also both take place on a grid of squares.  That is where the similarities end though.  In Picross you never actually write a single digit.  Instead you use the clues given to fill in certain squares in the grid.  When completed, a pictures of some sort is revealed.  Interestingly enough, Picross DS is not Nintendo's first release to feature the puzzle game.  Mario's Picross was released in 1995 for the original Game Boy.  Picross DS will actually feature some of the puzzles from that original game.    

Picross is a simple game that can be confusing to new players.  As you can see in the picture on the right there are a series of numbers above and to the left of the main grid.  These numbers are the clues you need to solve the picture.  In this example, the grid is 15 x 15 squares.  You'll notice that one of the horizontal rows is labeled “3 4".  This means that, working from left to right, there will be exactly one set of 3 filled squares and another set of 4 filled squares.  There could be any number of empty squares between those chains.  In the example, the row is already solved.  So, expanding that simple concept to all of the rows and columns, it becomes possible to deduce which squares should be colored in.  This process is aided by being able to mark which squares you are sure shouldn't be colored in.  Those squares are represented by the Xs in the example.  That is basically all there is to know about solving Picross puzzles.    

The DS game will feature several different modes of play.  In the standard mode, players simply solve the puzzles as fast as possible.  These puzzles vary in size.    Incorrectly filling in a square will result in a time penalty.  If the puzzle is solved in under an hour (including those time penalties) the player is rewarded with an animation based off of the picture they revealed in the puzzle.    

In My Picross, players will have the ability to create their own puzzle using the stylus.  These puzzles can then be shared over local wireless or over Nintendo's Wi-Fi Connection.  Presumably because it is possible that some homemade puzzles might be unsolvable (without randomly guessing), the game will automatically correct any issues before sharing occurs.    

Daily Picross is a mode similar to the Brain Age games.  It is designed to be played daily in order to improve Picross skills.  Activities in this mode are opened up over time, so the longer people own the game, the more puzzles become available.  These puzzles can be played in several ways, like nonstop time attack, no X marks, and find the error.    

Besides the single player modes, there are also several things that can be done over local wireless, all of which require just one Picross game card.  The player with the game card acts as the host and can design challenges for up to four other friends.  Therefore, the host acts as a game master that challenges the players with home made puzzles..  Any DS unit can also receive a standard demo puzzle from someone who has the game.    

The developers added an online mode as well.  There, players can race against others to solve puzzles as fast as possible.  It is unknown if this mode can be played with anyone or only people on the player's friends list.  It is confirmed that sharing of puzzles created in the My Picross mode can only be done with people from the friends list, presumably to protect people from receiving potentially offensive puzzles.    

Picross DS follows Planet Puzzle League as another popular puzzle game packaged up on a DS cart.  It ships in just a couple of weeks.  Stay tuned to NWR to see if it will receive similar critical acclaim.

[Look! It's Smashville!]

190

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: July 13, 2007, 06:11:41 AM »

Look!  It's Smashville!
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=13936

 The blog this week revealed several new pieces of information.  Probably the biggest news (which was actually revealed at Nintendo's E3 press conference), was the North American release date of December 3, 2007.  Should we go get in line now?  Anyway, here are the other new details.    

Game Mechanics: Standard Combos
In previous versions of Smash Bros. standard combos were performed by tapping the attack button.  The interesting part was that the speed at which the button was tapped didn't effect the combo in any way.  This meant that the absolute best way of performing these combos was to simply tap the button as fast as possible.  Things will change in Brawl as they apparently decided to just cut to the chase.  Now all players will have to do is hold down the attack button to keep a combo going.    

New Assist Trophy: Dr. Wright
A new assist trophy trophy was revealed and followed by a resounding “Huh?" that echoed across the Internet.  Dr. Wright, of SimCity fame will be popping out of trophy cases.  He'll immediately use his magical pointing device to make skyscrapers grow out of the floor, popping any unsuspecting characters high into the air.  This announcement is especially interesting because it really shows just how deep into the history of Nintendo's library they will go for these Assist Trophies.    

New Item: Bumper
The Bumper from the original Super Smash Bros. is making a return in this game after being left out of Melee for some reason.  Inspired by bumpers in pinball games, players that run into them will be bounced away.  They can be placed on the ground or in the air, which should allow from some interesting situations.  It could be an entirely new method of protecting the edges of the stage from recovering players.    

New Character Donkey Kong
Another classic Smash combatant gets return confirmation this week with Donkey Kong.  He's sporting a nice new fur texture that brings him to life a bit more.  Based on initial screenshots and the text that went along with them, his special attacks look like they will remain consistent with those that were in Melee.  He'll still have the haymaker, the ground pound, and the ability to pick up and carry other characters.    

New Movie
The Dojo also officially released the same clip that was shown at Nintendo's press conference on wednesday.  It features shots of both the Lylat Cruise and Bridge of Eldin stages in action, some of Wario's silly animations, the Cracker Launcher being used, and the final smashes of Pikachu, Bowser, and Link in action.  Overall it also shows just how smooth and fast the game will play.  The overall speed seems very consistent with what was set forth in Melee.  Click the picture at the right to see the video itself.    

New Stage: Smashville
While we didn't get any new information on a Wii iteration of Animal Crossing at the press conference, we were treated to a brand new stage for Brawl inspired by the game as today's update.  Titled Smashville, it's a simple stage that appears to involve just a single main platform with a smaller moving platform hovering above.  During any match several spectators from Animal Crossing will be standing in the background.  It's unknown how they may effect the battles themselves, but several characters, including Tom Nook, Tortimer, Gracie, Crazy Redd, and Sahara, were shown in screenshots.  Probably the most interesting aspect of this announcement is that the stage will be effected by the time of day based on the Wii's internal clock.  This is taken so far as to have Totakeke show up in the stage if it is played on a Saturday at 8pm.  On one hand the addition of this stage could mean that an Animal Crossing character will in fact be playable.  On the other hand, if all of the key characters in the series show up in the background, who's left to battle it out?    

That's it for this week's announcements.  I'm sure most of you are hoping for a late E3 announcement revealing even more info, but it's not looking like that's going to happen.  We'll just have to wait until next week.

[Some interesting stuff came out this week.]

191

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: July 06, 2007, 01:52:58 PM »

Some interesting stuff came out this week.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=13778

 The official Smash Bros. blog released a few interesting pieces of information this week, most of which we reported on the day of.  We were also given a brand new stage to drool over today from one of the most memorable moments of Twilight Princess.    

New Item: Assist Trophy
As reported earlier, a brand new item (or items), was shown.  Similar to Pokeballs, players will be able to call on one of many characters to help them do battle.  In the introductory post, it was revealed that the Nintendog from last year's trailer actually originated form this item.  They also showed a Hammer Brother in a couple of the screen shots.

   

New Assist Trophy: Samurai Goro
In a separate post, another brand new Assist Tropy character was revealed.  Samurai Goro from the F-Zero series will pop out of one of the trophy cases and slash at everything that moves (except for the person who got the item) while he runs across the stage.  He will be invincible, so it was noted that it is best just to run away.  He sounds like a combination of the Marill and Scizor Pokemon from Melee.

   

New Character: Bowser
Another Melee combatant got some return confirmation this week as Bowser was officially announced.  The blog itself hinted that he will have a slightly different flavor (along with many of the other characters) but initial screenshots reveal an incredibly similar move set, as his fire breathing, slash, and shell spin all seem to be returning.  It will be interesting to see just what makes him feel different.    

New Final Smash: Bowser's Giga Bowser Transformation
Remember fighting Giga Bowser in Melee?  Well now you'll be able to fight as him as long as Bowser can find some of those Smash Balls.  From the sound of the post, Bowser will be virtually invincible and immeasurably strong while in Giga Bowser form.  It will only last a short time though.  I wonder if barrels and crates will ever contain more than one Smash Ball at the same time.  Three or four final smashes going on at once will be insane.    

Game Mechanics: Smash Attacks
Another announcement that we reported on earlier was the confirmation that the basic attack controls would remain nearly identical to what was used in Melee.  Smash attacks will be done the same way; by hammering the analog stick in a direction and pushing the attack button.  The only exception is when players use just the Wii remote, as there is no analog stick.  In that setup, players must push a direction as well as both the 1 and 2 buttons to achieve a similar result.  As brought up by our own Mike Sklens and discussed in the talkback thread for the earlier article, this seems to imply that some special attacks may no longer be affected by a smash like motion of the analog stick (Like Samus's missile in Melee).  This feature may be removed, changed, or maybe people who play with just the Wii remote won't be able to perform the move.  It's hard to say.    

New Stage: Bridge of Eldin
We already know that both Link and Zelda will be taking on their appearance from Twilight Princess.  With today's announcement, it's obvious that the momentous game will show up in the Brawl even more.  Bridge of Eldin will be a stage that is strangely reminiscent of The Pit from Mortal Kombat.  It will be one single flat area for people to fight on.  At random times throughout a match, King Bulblin will arrive and wreak havoc.  How will players dodge him on such a skinny little bridge?  Who knows?  He will also use bombs to destroy the bridge, possibly completely separating different combatants.  Luckily Midna will be transporting new pieces in to fix it throughout the battle.    

That's it for this week's updates.  Stay tuned here for more announcement summaries every Friday as well as articles throughout the week on big items of interest.  Also, don't forget to check out the official blog yourself.

[They expect us to think this is a stand-alone game?]

192

TalkBack / REVIEWS: Pokémon Battle Revolution

« on: July 02, 2007, 05:00:31 AM »

They expect us to think this is a stand-alone game?
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewArt.cfm?artid=13741

 Most people knew that Pokemon Battle Revolution wasn't bringing a heck of a lot to the table.  It's a simple game that allows for Pokemon from Diamond and Pearl to be battled in a variety of single player tournaments as well as battle others online (making it the first online Wii game in North America).  It also carries the full price tag of a standard first party Wii game.  Therefore, those simple features better be excellent to warrant a purchase.    

The best aspect is probably the graphics.  While many of the Pokemon models and animations are obviously borrowed directly from Pokemon Colosseum and XD, the new rendering engine is stunning.  There is a good amount of anti-aliasing, keeping jaggies to an absolute minimum.  This is combined with a cool depth focus that transitions very smoothly over distances, allowing for a bit of realism to sneak into the great cartoon art style of the game.  Special effects on attacks and weather effects are also top notch.  Overall, this is the first completed Wii game I've played that I don't think would be possible on a GameCube, and it's refreshing to see an art style like this pulled off so well without using cel-shading.    

So, when you're done enjoying the great visuals, it's time to start actually playing the game.  When you set up your account, you can dive right into the first tournament.  There you choose a Battle Pass that has a set of rental Pokemon associated with it.  If you are successful at that tournament, you get to keep that rental Battle Pass for future use.  Throughout the game you can compete in the initial tournament multiple times in order to earn more and more rental Battle Passes.  If you don't own the DS games, this is your primary way of obtaining new Pokemon for you to battle with.  For some reason, these passes are entire teams, not individual Pokemon, so don't expect to create your own customizable teams if you don't have the DS games.  If you do have one of the DS games, you can copy over every Pokemon and then create your own Battle Pass with your own trainer associated with it.  This is where the fundamental value (if you can call it that) of the game comes into play.  You can save several different teams and associate a different trainer with each one.    

Any of these Battle Passes (custom or rental) can be used in single player tournaments or online over Nintendo's Wi-Fi Connection.  The single player tournaments feature a variety of rules, but most of them center around choosing 3-5 of your Pokemon before each match and defeating the opponent.  Any one tournament can last upwards of an hour and a half.  Thankfully, you can save and quit between rounds, but losing towards the end can be extremely frustrating, given the fact that you basically have to throw out an hour of play time.  These forced replays only add to the already repetitive process of simply battling other trainers.  Because none of your Pokemon gain experience, level up, evolve, or learn new moves throughout this entire process, the one benefit of winning tournaments (besides the overly dramatic credits) is earning points that can be exchanged for a variety of things in the shop.  These things are divided into two categories; Mystery Gifts and Gear.  Mystery gifts are items that can be used in the DS games (mostly technical machines and Pokemon hold items) that are transferred using the Mystery Gift feature from the handheld games.  Gear is all of the accessories that can be used to customize your trainer in the game.  This is a feature for which fans of the series have been clamoring for a long time, but the delivery is far from flawless.  Firstly, very few options are available in the beginning, and new ones are unlocked very slowly.  Also, there is no way to see what the accessories look like before spending your hard earned points on them.  All you get is a vague text description.  Overall, the amount of effort it takes to make your character look significantly different from the basic starter version is just too much.  By the time you have unlocked all of the cool accessories, you have done almost everything there is to do in the game.    

Playing online is great, but the lack of any communication options (like the voice chat in Diamond and Pearl) makes it quite impersonal.  You can jump right in against a random foe somewhere in the world, which is nice, but only highlights how ridiculous it is that the feature wasn't included in Diamond and Pearl.  After battling someone online, you can exchange Battle Passes with them.  These passes can be used in the quick battle mode, as well as to check the statistics of that player.  If you totally got your butt kicked, you can check the pass to see how good that person was.  Was it his first victory?  That must mean you really stink.  Has he won his last 50 battles?  Now you know you can sleep at night.    

The last interesting part of Battle Revolution is that of using the DS as a controller.  Too bad it's just a tacked on feature.  It's so bad that when you start the game up, you literally pick between two options:  play the main game, or battle someone using the DS as a controller.  This DS mode is literally identical to what happens when two people with the DS games normally battle each other.  The only difference is that instead of watching the action on the top screen of the DS, you watch it in 3D on the television.  It's clever the first time, but the process of turning your Wii on and putting the game in makes you wonder why you don't just use the DS units by themselves.  As pretty as the graphics are, they don't affect the gameplay in any way.    

This game is definitely not for everyone.  In fact, it isn't even for all hardcore Pokemon fans.  In most cases, those fans can be put into one of two categories.  Some live for collecting and training the monsters.  They want to level them up and watch them evolve.  Battle Revolution is not for them.  Pokemon won't gain a single experience point for their efforts in the game.  The other type of player does whatever it takes to power level the monsters up to level 100 so they can start shuffling their team around and choosing move sets.  Those are the kind of people that will find something here.  The random online play will act as a great proving ground for all of those team ideas.  Pokemon Battle Revolution would have been perfect as a $10-20 WiiWare game.  $50 at retail just doesn't make any sense.

Pros:
       

Great graphics.

 

Random online battles.

       Cons:
       

Tournaments get boring.

 

Accessories take forever to unlock.

 

Can't communicate online.

               Graphics:  9.5
       The art style, presentation, and animations are all outstanding.  It makes me want a real Wii Pokemon game even more.

               Sound:  8.0
       The music is great and carries over the style from Diamond and Pearl.  The announcer can be a bit repetitive, but it isn't nearly as bad as a lot of video game announcers have been in the past.

               Control:  8.0
       The pointer style works well for single player, but the DS connectivity should have been used more.

                      Gameplay:  4.0
       They took one tiny aspect of the great portable games and made an entire game about it.  Sadly, it isn't even the best feature.

 

       Lastability:  5.0
       Unless you're the hardest of the hardcore Pokemon fans, you'll only get about 10 hours of single player playtime out of this game, and it isn't even a great 10 hours.  The online play can be a good proving ground, but I have a feeling most players will stick with the features in Diamond and Pearl.

 

       Final:  5.0
       There just isn't enough in the package.  If the features in this game were added to Diamond and Pearl, that game would have been even better.  Those features by themselves do not make a game.      

[Some more info trickled out of the blog this week.]

193

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: June 29, 2007, 05:35:50 AM »

Some more info trickled out of the blog this week.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=13729

 While there were no huge announcements this week, a couple assumptions were confirmed regarding a new character and player profiles.    

New Character: Zelda
Zelda was officially announced as playable, making her the first character that wasn't previously revealed in a trailer to be announced on the blog.  She isn't exactly surprising though, as the Sheik/Zelda combination was one of the most popular characters in Melee.  It's important to note that nothing has been mentioned about Sheik yet on the blog.  Did the transformation get pulled?  Are they just holding back the announcement until they talk about Zelda's special moves?  Only time will tell.    

New Song: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Medley
A clip (1:28 long) of a new song was posted.  You can hear it here.  The composition supervisor was obviously Koji Kondo.  Interestingly enough, the arrangement supervisor was Michiko Naruke, who composed most of the music in the Wild ARMs series of RPGs, which have all been released on Sony platforms.    

New Item: Banana Peel
Presumably borrowed from the Mario Kart series, players will now be able to chuck banana peels at each other during a match.  If a player walks on it, they will slip and fall.  It's currently unknown exactly how this will affect the slipping player.  Will they take damage?  Will they just become incapacitated for a second?  Can they recover from it if they slip and fall off a ledge?  Only time will tell.    

New Feature: Names
Player profiles make a welcome return as well.  Names will be entered using a cell phone-like entry system.  These names will have control layouts tied to them.  That means that not only will the game support four different types of controllers (as previously reported), but each of those controller types can also be customized on a per button level.  These unprecedented customization options can be saved into your profile, which can then be saved to a Wii Remote and brought to a friend's house.    

Special Moves: Wario
A couple of Wario's special moves were revealed, but both were shown in one form or another in previously released trailers and screens.  First his side special move is called Wario Chopper.  During this move, Wario jumps on his motorcycle and runs over everyone in his path.  It sounds like it will work similarly to the Yoshi's egg move from Melee, in that you will be able to change his direction.  Also, apparently Wario can fall off the motorcycle and it will remain on the screen.  It can then apparently be picked up by other players.  Wario's down special move is called Wario Waft.  This is is trademarked passing gas technique that has been hinted at all along.  There's an interesting twist to the move though.  Apparently if the move is used often enough, Wario can run out of gas and the strength of the attack will go down.  Therefore, if you give Wario plenty of time to build up gas, a massive explosion will occur!    

Those are the announcements for this week.  As always, you can see these as they are posted over at SmashBros.com and we'll have the weekly summary posted here every Friday.

194

NWR Forums Discord / 7 years ago...

« on: June 28, 2007, 05:23:32 AM »

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media.cfm?artid=570&MedTID=1

Man, I was in my starting college and trying to forget about video games phase at that moment, but seriously, look how much stuff has changed!

[This Wii games marks a lot of firsts for North America, as pointed out in this press release.]

195

TalkBack / Pokemon Battle Revolution is Shipping Now

« on: June 25, 2007, 02:11:39 AM »

This Wii games marks a lot of firsts for North America, as pointed out in this press release.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=13701

 ONLINE GAMING STORMS ONTO WII WITH POKÉMON BATTLE REVOLUTION    

Epic Franchise Reaches Several Firsts    

REDMOND, Wash., June 25, 2007 - Today's launch of Pokémon® Battle Revolution heralds a number of firsts for Nintendo's hot-selling Wii™ video game system. Pokémon Battle Revolution is:    

• The first online Wii game in the Americas.
   




• The first Pokémon game for Wii.
   




• The first Wii game to wirelessly link to Nintendo DS™.
   




• The first Wii game that lets players use their Nintendo DS as a controller.

   

Pokémon Battle Revolution is set to become a groundbreaking smash hit this summer.    

In battles using Nintendo® Wi-Fi Connection, Nintendo's wireless gaming service, players can use their Wii Remote™ to compete with friends after exchanging friend codes, or against players of comparable skill. The game automatically searches for other players who are online. The sights and sounds of the game bring the action to life as well: The beautiful graphics show each move in full detail, while the action is narrated by the same announcer from the Pokémon TV show.    

The game contains a number of battle modes for different kinds of play. In Colosseum Battle Mode, players have 10 different Colosseums in which to stage their epic challenges. In Nintendo DS Battle Mode, players battle Pokémon that they have raised in their Nintendo DS Pokémon® Diamond and Pokémon® Pearl games. Up to four players can use their Nintendo DS systems as a wireless controller, which uses the same battle interface found in the DS games.    

"Already more than 2 million copies of Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl have sold in the United States alone," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "The arrival of Pokémon Battle Revolution brings those players a whole new set of challenges and, for the first time on Wii, online battles."    

Online setup is extremely easy, even for novices. With a few clicks, players are instantly connected, whether they're using a Wii Remote or a Nintendo DS as a controller.    

Trainers are fully customizable. Players can select one of three female or three male Trainers and outfit them with clothing, hats and glasses after earning points during competition. Players can even create personalized in-game text for their Trainers to use when they win or lose a battle.    

Pokémon Battle Revolution, rated E for Everyone, launches June 25. For more information about the game, visit www.pokemon-games.com. The Official Nintendo Pokémon Battle Revolution Player's Guide is now available at retail.

[Here's a summary of everything that was announced this week at the official Smash Bros. blog.]

196

TalkBack / Smash Bros. Dojo Updates

« on: June 22, 2007, 06:12:37 AM »

Here's a summary of everything that was announced this week at the official Smash Bros. blog.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=13694

 There were several new announcements made over at the official Smash Bros. DOJO!! blog this week.  Sadly, none of them were especially earth rattling, but for those of us who are salivating for the release of Brawl, there are a few tidbits to drool over.    

   

Link's final smash was officially revealed, but it had already been shown in the trailer that came out last year.  It's called Triforce Slash.  One interesting additional piece of info is that the glowing Triforce that appears around Link's opponent actually originates from the back of Link's hand.    

   

Pikachu's final smash was also revealed.  It is named after the very rare and very powerful electric attack from the Pokemon universe called Volt Tackle.  During this attack, Pikachu can still be controlled, but like the Power Hammer, it is dangerous to move around too much, as made evident in this quote: “It's quite speedy while airborne.  This...can be dangerous."    

   

Wario was officially announced as a new character, even though he was also unveiled in the original trailer that came out a year ago.  He will be using bodily functions like farting as his primary means of attacking, as this quote suggests: “It's rumored that this unpredictable character will give birth to a form of martial arts that other characters cannot even see."    

   

Two of Fox's special moves were also unveiled, and they seem to be identical to moves that were in Melee.  His down special move is the reflector shield that bounces projectile attacks aback at his opponent.  His standard special move is a rapid fire blaster that does damage to opponents, but does not cause them to flinch.    

   

Lastly, a new stage was revealed.  It's based in the Star Fox universe and is called Lylat Cruise.  It appears to be similar to the Venom level from Melee.  Combatants battle on the multi-level rear end of a space ship.  The ship travels to different environments like asteroid fields and cloudy atmospheres.  Players will have to dodge laser fire from incoming Arwings as they battle it out.    

That's it for this week's updates.  If you want to see them as they go up, make sure you visit SmashBros.com every day.  Also, check back here next Friday for another summary of the week's announcements.  If any big news comes during the week (like a release date or brand new character) we'll post it as it happens.

[What does the Wii game bring to the universe?]

197

TalkBack / PREVIEWS: Pokémon Battle Revolution

« on: June 22, 2007, 02:53:31 AM »

What does the Wii game bring to the universe?
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/previewArt.cfm?artid=13690

 Pokemon Battle Revolution is a game, like Colosseum and Stadium before it, that is designed primarily as an extension of the portable Pokemon games.  The main concept behind the game is the ability to battle Pokemon from Diamond and Pearl while taking full advantage of the hardware benefits of the Wii.    

The first differentiating feature that expands upon what is done in the portable games is that of a Battle-Pass.  Upon importing Pokemon, the player will be asked to set up one of these passes that will then be tied to the Trainer ID that is saved on the portable game.  This pass acts as a customizable way of keeping track of a player's progression through the single player mode as well as success in multiplayer and online battles.    

Besides the basic customization options like changing the background picture of the Battle-Pass, players can also choose a 3D avatar to represent themselves in all battles, including those that are online.  This is done by first choosing one of six characters as a starting point, three of which are girls and three of which are boys.  Each one has a different body type and age.  Throughout the game accessories can be earned to change the look of the character and give it an appearance that will be unique among other players online.  These accessories range from shirts and pants to glasses and backpacks.    

Certain Pokemon teams can also be associated with a Battle-Pass, making it so a DS does not have to be connected to the Wii every time someone wants to have a quick battle online.  Any time a DS is connected, all stored teams will be automatically updated so that each Pokemon remains as they have been trained in the portable games.    

Besides battling online, each team can also be used to compete in a number of tournaments that are included in the single player portion of the game.  Each of these tournaments has different rules associated with it.  One may only allow pre-evolved Pokemon, while another may just give the trainer random Pokemon to work with.  These single player events will earn players points that can be exchanged for anything from special Pokemon to accessories for their trainer.    

So what happens if you don't have Pokemon Diamond or Pearl?  Well, all of the same features are available using what the game calls “Rental Pokemon".  These are just a collection of Pokemon that come pre-trained.  Using them, players can compete in all of the single player tournaments.  However, most of the rewards can only be used on Pokemon that were trained in the DS games.    

Pokemon Battle Revolution ships early next week, on June 25th, to retailers throughout North America.

[Is it a strategy game or an action game?]

198

TalkBack / REVIEWS: Tank Beat

« on: June 21, 2007, 04:44:29 AM »

Is it a strategy game or an action game?
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewArt.cfm?artid=13677

 Tank Beat is one of those games that tries to pull two genres together into one.  It accomplishes this primarily by taking advantage of the two screens in the DS.  The top screen is like a 3D action game.  The bottom screen is a pure, top-down strategy game.  Neither experience is exactly exceptional, but there is some fun to be had.    

The basic premise is that you are a tank driver who was recently on the losing side of a war.  At the end of the war, you ran away with just the basic tank you were driving at the time.  While out exploring you come across a small group of rebels trying to defeat the tyrants who took over the area.  Naturally you team up with them.  The story gets a bit stereotypical at this point.  The male protagonist with a huge heart joins up with a team where the primary character is a prideful female.  They immediately become involved in some flirtatious bickering that continues throughout the story.  Combine that predictability with the fact that the story is only driven by non-animated sprites and speech balloons, and there really isn't that much to draw you in.    

So basically, the only thing left to make the game enjoyable is the gameplay, and thankfully it has some entertaining aspects.  Tanks are controlled almost exclusively with the stylus.  You can use it on the bottom screen (which displays the top-down view) to draw the path you want your tank to follow.  This allows you to set up relatively intricate and/or haphazard patterns.  To attack, you hold down the L button on the DS and then touch an area on the screen.  If that area is within your tank's range, you will fire whatever weapon is currently selected.  The vast majority of the missions are spent staring at the bottom screen and the result is a slightly above average real-time strategy game.  The top screen is being used throughout, though.  It displays a third-person view of your tank in 3D.  The graphics are nice and smooth, if a bit uninspired.  It would be nicer if you spent a little bit more time checking them out during a mission though, as it is nearly impossible to function effectively if you take the time to see the sights.    

The developers did add a dynamic to the game that forces the use of the top screen.  In some missions, the radar system in the tank does not function for whatever reason.  Therefore you have to rely on your own sight to aim at the enemies.  You drive around constantly peering at the top screen.  Once an enemy is spotted, you'll want to switch gears and start looking at the top screen, somehow connecting the location in which you see the enemy with a spot on the 2D map.  This is where the action aspects of the game come in, as the best tactic to use is to switch to machine guns, set up a strafing pattern for your tank, and then fire like mad while staring at the top screen.  It's like a one-on-one brawl in Quake, only with tanks.  While this diversion is a welcome one, it would have been nice if the developers could have pulled the two different views together in even more interesting ways.    

Tank Wars does include a multiplayer mode that can be played online over Nintendo's Wi-Fi connection.  This adds a bit of longevity to the title, but the options are scarce.  You select if you want to battle either people on your friends list, or anyone who is actively searching for a game.  Then you pick how many combatants you want to have involved in the match (from 2 to 4).  After that, the matchmaking software takes over, and eventually (if you are lucky), it finds some opponents for you to fight.  You are then asked to choose your tank and are thrown into a random stage.  While having several tanks to choose from is interesting, the fact that many of them are designed with specific uses in mind really hurts the ability to have competitive matches.  For example, there is one tank that is actually a long range missile launcher, and that's it.  It has no machine guns and very poor armor.  If you pick this tank, your success is totally dependent on the level that you get thrown into.  If it's a wide open area where any tanks can roam as they please, as soon as you are spotted, the opponent will come in for close range combat and you are done for.  However, if a stage is chosen that is full of lakes, you can use them to constantly keep your distance, allowing you to take full advantage of the range of the missiles.  You'll have your opponents dead before they even get a shot off.    

Besides the shortcomings of the random stage selection, the scoring is actually quite clever.  Points are awarded for both destroying an opponent and just landing hits.  While destroying someone will land you the biggest chunk of points at one time, the fact that all successful shots score points keeps people from only picking off the weak tanks while letting other combatants do most of the dirty work.    

Overall Tank Beat is good game that may not leave you screaming for more, but at least it's an enjoyable diversion.  It's a cleverly designed game that could use a bit more polish.  It's one of those games that you can play through and enjoy, but afterwards you'll have a ton of ideas that you hope will be implemented in the sequel.

Pros:
       

Online multiplayer

 

Lots of tank types

 

Interesting use of the two screens

       Cons:
       

Little gameplay variation

 

Only random maps in online multiplayer

 

Most of the game is spent staring at the ugly 2D radar view

               Graphics:  6.0
       The 3D engine is smooth, but the graphics are all a bit uninspired.  The 2D radar view is just plain ugly.

               Sound:  7.0
       Voices are used throughout the game as your teammates send warnings and instructions to you over the radio.  It's a cool idea that makes you feel like part of the squad.  The music is a bland techno rhythm that pounds in the background.  It isn't exactly annoying, but it doesn't really add much.

               Control:  6.0
       The stylus controls work well for plotting a course, but the combat can be quite frustrating at times.  The scale of the map makes precise aiming difficult.

                      Gameplay:  7.0
       The initial concept behind the game is a good one.  It could use some more variation, but there is some fun to be had.

 

       Lastability:  7.0
       Having the online multiplayer mode is great, but it could use some more features.  Not being able to set up your own rules takes a bit away from what would otherwise be a very entertaining mode.

 

       Final:  7.0
       Tank Beat is definitely a game with potential.  It would be nice to see a sequel that expands on the concept by quite a bit.      

[The ESRB decided that they are giving Manhunt 2 an Adults Only rating.]

199

TalkBack / Manhunt 2 Receives Preliminary AO Rating from ESRB

« on: June 19, 2007, 01:53:15 PM »

The ESRB decided that they are giving Manhunt 2 an Adults Only rating.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=13658

 Kotaku is reporting that Take-Two confirmed that the ESRB has given Manhunt 2 an Adults Only rating.  The rating is not Wii specific, as the PS2 version received the same.    

This announcement comes hot on the heels of a recent announcement that the game will be banned all together in the UK.  Much criticism has surrounded the game in the US up to this point, from people calling for a boycott of Wendy's because they were promoting the Wii in general, to groups campaigning to have the Wii version receive the AO rating specifically because the Wii controls made it even more interactive.    

Take-Two has three options at this point.  They can release the game with the AO rating and have most large chains not carry it because the rating is usually associated with pornography.  They can clean the game up and resubmit it for a new rating.  Lastly, they can appeal the decision and try their luck.  If the rating sticks, Manhunt 2 will be the first game to be given the rating based solely on the violence level.    

The differences between the two ratings based on their description is small.  The ESRB describes and M rated game as follows...    

"Titles rated M (Mature) have content that may be suitable for persons ages 17 and older. Titles in this category may contain intense violence, blood and gore, sexual content and/or strong language."    

While an AO game is described like this...    

"Titles rated AO (Adults Only) have content that should only be played by persons 18 years and older. Titles in this category may include prolonged scenes of intense violence and/or graphic sexual content and nudity."    

It should follow that Manhunt 2 falls into the category of "prolonged scenes of intense violence." and apparently it is the first game ever to reach that level.

[It's obvious that Disney Interactive Studios is supporting Nintendo in a big way as all of these titles are coming to a Nintendo Platform.]

200

TalkBack / Tons of Disney Games are Coming

« on: June 14, 2007, 02:34:29 PM »

It's obvious that Disney Interactive Studios is supporting Nintendo in a big way as all of these titles are coming to a Nintendo Platform.
 http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=13619

 Family Fun Comes Home This Fall With Disney Channel Video Games    

Popular Characters From High School Musical, Hannah Montana and More Team Up on Consoles and Handhelds This Holiday Season    

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Families have a lot to look forward to with all-new video game adventures based on hit Disney Channel series coming to consoles and handhelds this fall. Published by Disney Interactive Studios, the video game lineup includes Hannah Montana: Music Jam on Nintendo DS™, Hannah Montana: Spotlight World Tour on Wii™ from Nintendo, The Cheetah Girls: Pop Star Sensations on Nintendo DS and The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Circle of Spies on Nintendo DS. Additionally, fans of all ages will be singing along with the gang in High School Musical: Sing It! on Wii and PlayStation®2 computer entertainment system, and showing off their dance moves in High School Musical: Makin’ the Cut on Nintendo DS. And finally, action-lovers will battle enemies alongside renowned heroes in Power Rangers: Super Legends on Nintendo DS, PC and PlayStation 2 system.    

“Whether they aspire to dance and sing with the characters of ‘High School Musical’ or save the world with the heroic Red Ranger, kids, tweens and families will have plenty of options with our lineup of video games based on popular Disney Channel properties," said Craig Relyea, vice president of marketing, Disney Interactive Studios. “We understand parents are looking for games that are appropriate for the entire family, and we’re providing a line-up of games that are positive, safe and fun for every member of the family.    

Get those vocal cords ready! Based on the phenomenally successful Disney Channel original movie “High School Musical," Disney’s High School Musical: Sing It! features songs, sets and characters from the original film and “High School Musical 2" premiering in August. Available for Wii and the PlayStation 2 system, this karaoke video game allows fans to interact with the movies’ stars for the first time on any gaming console. With 30 songs to choose from, along with 30 minutes of “High School Musical" bonus footage and cast interviews, High School Musical: Sing It! will be the karaoke game of choice for fans, kids, tweens and families. Players can also choose their favorite backdrop and belt out hit songs from other popular Disney Channel favorites. High School Musical: Sing It! will be available in August and rated “E" for everyone. On Wii, the product will be $59.99 bundled with a microphone. For the PlayStation 2 system, the game will be $49.99 bundled with a microphone and $39.99 without the microphone.    

High School Musical: Makin’ the Cut! on Nintendo DS tests players’ dance and rhythm skills as they compete in a cross-country musical competition, choreographing and dancing to the well-known songs from “High School Musical" and “High School Musical 2". In this addictive rhythm-based game, fans play as any of the six “High School Musical" stars (or their own customized character) as they dance to the beat and travel across America. Additionally, players can create their own music videos and share them with friends via the Nintendo DS’ wireless capabilities. High School Musical: Makin’ the Cut! will be available in August for a $29.99 MSRP with an “E" for everyone rating.    

Power Rangers fans play as the ultimate super heroes on an action-packed adventure to save the world from evil in Power Rangers: Super Legends. Players battle enemies, solve puzzles and explore an interactive world as some of the most beloved Power Ranger heroes from the original Mighty Morphin squad to the current Operation Overdrive team. The game combines fast-paced, martial arts combat with super moves and gravity-defying aerial combos. In the spirit of the series, players can team up with a friend for cooperative missions and massive Zord battles. Power Rangers: Super Legends will be available in November on the PlayStation 2 system, Nintendo DS and PC. Anticipated prices include $29.99 for Nintendo DS and the PlayStation 2 system, and $19.99 for PC with an anticipated E10+ rating for everyone 10 and older for all platforms.    

In Hannah Montana: Spotlight World Tour for the Wii, players tour the world as the pop princess herself and live the dream of rock stardom. Players dance with their Wii controllers as Hannah dances with you on stage to earn devoted fans worldwide. Off stage, players design the look of each show, including stage settings and wardrobe, and even special effects and pyrotechnics. Hannah Montana: Spotlight World Tour will be available in October for $49.99 with an anticipated E for everyone rating.    

In Hannah Montana: Music Jam on the Nintendo DS, girls are transported into the exciting and sometimes crazy world of Miley Stewart and her alter ego Hannah Montana. Playing as both characters, kids practice their musical talents, coordinate high fashions and live out their dreams of becoming a pop star in Hannah’s greatest musical challenge yet. To help her win this competition, players use their Nintendo DS touch screen to master instruments including lead, bass and rhythm guitars, along with drums. On top of everything else, a new and mysterious pop-star blasts onto the scene to steal Hannah’s thunder. Hannah Montana: Music Jam will be available in October for $29.99 with an anticipated E for everyone rating.    

The Cheetah Girls: Pop Star Sensations brings the pop star life to girls on the go in an all new adventure featuring the “cheetah-licious" Disney Channel stars. Available on the Nintendo DS, The Cheetah Girls: Pop Star Sensations takes advantage of the handheld’s touch screen and microphone allowing players to dance with the stylus and sing along to the official Cheetah Girls soundtrack. Players help Galleria, Chanel, Aqua and Dorinda practice their unique talents of song writing, singing, fashion and dance. Girls also take on the role of stylist, selecting new outfits for the Cheetahs and sharing them with friends. The Cheetah Girls: Pop Star Sensations will be available in October for $29.99 with an anticipated E for everyone rating.    

The popular characters of the hit Disney Channel Series “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody," take on their biggest mystery yet in The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Circle of Spies for Nintendo DS. The game transports players beyond the Tipton Hotel to the St. Mark, a rival hotel where clues lead to the discovery of a secret spy organization. Players will take on the role of Zack and Cody encountering characters from the show, plus new personalities such as “The Magician." Cool gadgets and entirely new places including a mysterious traveling carnival combine for a unique experience, with all the mischief, mystery and hilarious fun that fans of the show expect. Also, for the first time, fans will be able to play as Maddie and London in fun mini games. The Suite Life of Zack & Cody: Circle of Spies will be available in October for $29.99 with an anticipated E for everyone rating.