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DS

Huge Nintendo DS Japan Update

by Michael Cole - October 7, 2004, 1:49 am EDT
Total comments: 17 Source: Nintendo NCL

Nintendo displays its Nintendo DS game pages to all.

Nintendo has finally opened up its full Japanese Nintendo DS website, revealing more insight to the line-up, including which games will come out with the system's Japanese launch on December 2nd. The confirmed first party launch titles are:

  • Made in Wario

  • Super Mario 64 DS

  • Pokemon Dash (a new Pokemon racing game)

  • Band Brothers (a new rythm/music composition game using the touch screen and wireless connectivity)

  • Intuition Hitofude (a new puzzle game)

    Other Nintendo-published titles featured on the website include Balloon Trip, Metroid Prime Hunters Tournament, Nintendogs, Mario Kart, Advance Wars, Yakuman, and a new RPG developed by Cing. None of these have launch dates.

    Of particular interest is Super Mario 64 DS's interface, showing exactly how the stylus will be used to emulate the N64's control stick. Other titles on Nintendo's page seem to have similar interfaces.

  • NOA Confirms American DS Titles

    Nintendo of America spills the beans.

    MARIO, MADDEN NFL, THE URBZ AND MORE READY FOR NINTENDO DS LAUNCH

    DS Changes the Rules: Players Control Games with Touch or Voice, Monitor Two-Screen Action, Compete Wirelessly with Others

    REDMOND, Wash., Oct. 7, 2004 - Imagine using the touch screen of Nintendo DS™ to call a secret audible at the line of scrimmage when your wireless opponent threatens a blitz. Is your Sim feeling blue? Redesign her apartment or create a pet with the touch of the screen. Can't find that last star? Use the second screen to track down your nemesis in the vast worlds of Super Mario® 64 DS.

    From Mario™ to Madden and The Urbz™, familiar characters and dynamic franchises will dominate the launch season for Nintendo DS, while allowing fans to play their favorites in entirely new ways. In the first 30 days of system availability, thanks to unprecedented support from third-party publishers, players can enjoy 10 to 12 DS games covering all genres. By the end of the first quarter of 2005, the Nintendo DS library will grow to 20 to 25 games.

    Nintendo DS will launch in the United States on Nov. 21 at an MSRP of $149.99.

    "DS provides the road map to the future of video games," says Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales & marketing. "The overwhelming support of strong third-party titles, combined with Nintendo's flagship franchise, makes this the strongest software support for any Nintendo system in more than a decade."

    As part of an incredibly strong launch offering, players will receive a free playable demo of Nintendo's upcoming Metroid Prime Hunters game, titled Metroid Prime® Hunters: First Hunt. Each system also offers a built-in PictoChat™ feature, which lets users type text or draw pictures and transmit them wirelessly to up to 15 other Nintendo DS users nearby.

    In all, more than 120 games are currently in development for Nintendo DS around the world. Titles available in the launch window include Super Mario 64 DS from Nintendo, Madden NFL 2005, Tiger Woods PGA TOUR® Golf and The Urbz™: Sims in the City™ from EA, and a major title from Activision. Other third-party titles available during the launch period include Ping Pals from THQ, Feel the Magic: XY/XX from SEGA, Rayman DS and Asphalt Urban GT from Ubisoft and Ridge Racer DS and Mr. DRILLER: Drill Spirits from Namco.

    Players can expect Nintendo-published games to retail for as low as $29.99.

    In the coming months, publishers will release a wide range of novel software. Nintendo's list of DS-specific first-party franchises includes a multiplayer Mario Kart, as well as Metroid Prime Hunters, WarioWare, Inc.™ DS, Animal Crossing, Yoshi's Touch & Go, Advance Wars® DS and a new Super Mario Bros., among others.

    Third-party publishers will add GoldenEye: Rogue Agent™ and Need for Speed™ Underground from EA, Viewtiful Joe from Capcom, Bomberman from Hudson Soft, Frogger from Konami, a Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles title from Square Enix, and many more.

    The dual-screened Nintendo DS is a portable video game and communication system that opens up new possibilities for both software developers and game players. Each dual-screened unit, which features a sharp, angular, silver-and-black design, has a built-in stylus for use on the touch screen, a built-in microphone for voice recognition and wireless capabilities via both local area network and Wi-Fi connections. Nintendo DS represents a third, distinct hardware line for Nintendo, along with Nintendo GameCube™ and Game Boy® Advance SP.

    Each title takes advantage of the unique Nintendo DS features. For example, in Madden NFL 2005, one screen will show all 22 players on the field, while the other will display the key action. Players also will be able to compete head-to-head wirelessly. In Super Mario 64 DS, players choose one of four characters as they experience the groundbreaking Mario game in completely news ways exclusive to Nintendo DS, such as head-to-head wireless battling, new touch-sensitive mini-games and innovative control options. In Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt, up to four players can compete wirelessly. Multiple control schemes take full advantage of the touch screen, giving all gamers an ideal way to play.

    In addition to these upcoming titles, Nintendo DS already features compatibility with more than 550 games. Its second game port allows users to play single-player modes of games made for Game Boy Advance SP.

    Talkback

    MarioOctober 06, 2004

    Whoa, I need new pants.

    ruby_onixOctober 07, 2004

    I must say that I'm not too enthused about the idea of playing Mario 64 with a stylus.

    I could see playing it with the D-pad. You only ever needed two speeds in Mario 64. Walk and run. They could have you walk by default, and run old-school Mario style by holding down the "B" button. An 8-directional D-pad would be adequate for running recklessly around the world of Mario 64. For the finer movements, you could always adjust the camera angle.

    But, maybe that's just me. I just don't think the stylus could ever work as good as the controls in the original. I hope I'm wrong. Or that the D-pad method I described is available in an options menu. Because I really like the idea of playing through Mario 64 again as Luigi. Especially if he jumps higher than Mario does.

    Bill AurionOctober 07, 2004

    "I just don't think the stylus could ever work as good as the controls in the original."

    Thinking about something before you see it and feeling it for yourself are two different things...

    PaleMike Gamin, Contributing EditorOctober 07, 2004

    So uhh..... What the hell is pokemon dash and why isn't it a real pokemon game? =P

    joshnickersonOctober 07, 2004

    Pokemon Dash looks... interesting, to say the least. The characters look partially cel-shaded, but I never really liked top-down racers.

    Oh, and a new Pokemon RPG has been confirmed too. Probably launch in Japan next year or the year after.

    PaleMike Gamin, Contributing EditorOctober 07, 2004

    Well, i'm not really seeing how these announced launch titles can coincide with any of the Warp Pipe speculation...

    Mini Games in Mario64x4 won't exactly scream online play...

    MarioAllStarOctober 07, 2004

    So you actually move around with the stylus? DO you do it by pressing the "buttons" on the bottom screen shown in the new screenshots?

    Bill AurionOctober 07, 2004

    Doubt it...Those buttons are probably used to zoom in and out of the map...

    MarioAllStarOctober 07, 2004

    So do you think you do it by moving where Mario is on the map? I'm really confused here. There old system was fine for me (directional pad, press a button to run), but I guess I'll have to give this a try.

    Also, if you move with the stylus, and for most people that's with the right hand, do you use the stylus to jump?

    joshnickersonOctober 07, 2004

    Hmmm... what about camera control?

    couchmonkeyOctober 07, 2004

    I don't know how Mario 64 will control, but it certainly seems like better use of the DS' capabilities.
    There are a lot of games in that list. If all of those come out in the next year, I don't think it will matter so much that the launch lineup is a bit...crap.

    Ian SaneOctober 07, 2004

    What's this "Another" game? It looks really neat. The new Advance Wars looks really spiffy as well.

    This Japanese launch lineup isn't great but it's got some variety and some originality. It's not amazing but the Japanese launch lineup is perfectly acceptable. Now why can't some of those games be ready for the American launch? If the DS was going to launch in America first why didn't they aim for these games to be finished for that launch instead of the Japanese one? It looks to me that those in charge of the software only cared about Japan and whoever decided to launch first in NA didn't take that into account. If they were going to launch in NA first they should have had American teams working on games.

    It looks to me that Nintendo did have decent plans for a launch lineup. They just stupidly set the American launch to be first and thus completely wanged the American launch lineup. If all of your games are being made in Japan you should launch in Japan first. I'm thinking NCL and NOA didn't pay enough attention to what each other were doing.

    Bill AurionOctober 07, 2004

    "Another" looks to be a point and click adventure/mystery game, the first for Ninty since the Famicom Detective games that never left Japan...Hopefully this one will make it stateside... ^_^

    PaLaDiNOctober 07, 2004

    It looks like Mario Kart is using Karts again.

    Koopa TroopaOctober 07, 2004

    Quote

    "Another" looks to be a point and click adventure/mystery game, the first for Ninty since the Famicom Detective games that never left Japan...Hopefully this one will make it stateside... ^_^


    ::changes underpants::


    By the way, did you guys notice that Baby-Mario cloud game is looking like a new Yoshi/BMario platformer?

    couchmonkeyOctober 07, 2004

    Yeah, that game looks cool.
    Sad there's no sign of Super Mario Bros. DS, but I think the games that are there are still very exciting! I want to try this Hero game...it looks cool.

    FFantasyFXOctober 07, 2004

    Quote

    Originally posted by: Ian Sane
    It looks to me that Nintendo did have decent plans for a launch lineup. They just stupidly set the American launch to be first and thus completely wanged the American launch lineup. If all of your games are being made in Japan you should launch in Japan first. I'm thinking NCL and NOA didn't pay enough attention to what each other were doing.


    Actually, I think Nintendo of America's preeminent goal is to get the DS out before Thanksgiving, consequences on the launch lineup be damned. From a monetary point of view, it makes perfect sense to have your new product out before the busiest holiday shopping week of the year. I'm still baffled that none of these other titles could be available for the North American launch (how much effort would it take to port a game like Wario Ware?), but the silver lining in the launch lineup is that this will cause early adopters to take a second look at games they might not typically consider buying - 3rd-party games at that.

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