Doublesix to provide downloadable games for Wii.

Digital Addiction - Kuju launches doublesix

New studio dedicated to digitally downloadable games

30th November 2007. Guildford, Surrey, UK. Based in Guildford, doublesix has been established to create addictive, "have another go" video games across all downloadable formats with the intention of establishing themselves as a world leader on digital distribution across all platforms: XBLA, PSN, Wii-Ware and PC.

Aside from Retro and NST, Nintendo will leave western development to western publishers.

Asked by Wired News about whether Nintendo was looking to develop more American games, Nintendo Senior Vice President George Harrison confessed, “I’m not aware of any plans for more software development here in the U.S." Harrison went on to explain that the question of what to make and where to make it lay in the hands of people like Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto in Japan.

This week's software sales really show how poorly Super Mario Galaxy is doing.

Media Create’s software charts show another strong week for Nintendo platforms, but you may be surprised at with what games.

At No. 1, clocking almost 600,000 units in sales was Dragon Quest IV on the DS.

The only Wii game in the top tier was at No. 6, with Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games, reaching just over 62,000 units sold.

Nintendo denies charges of under-shipping, points to unprecedented demand instead.

It’s not exactly a stunning revelation to anyone doing their Christmas shopping, but the Wii is still selling out everywhere you go. Wired talked about the situation with Nintendo Senior Vice President George Harrison, who refuted accusations that Nintendo was hoarding stock to create artificial demand.

Your favorite levels from Melee may still show up in the new Smash Bros.

The newest update to the official Smash Bros. DOJO!! blog is short but sweet, confirming after much speculation that "a number" of stages from the previous game, Super Smash Bros. Melee, will be included in Brawl. The only one shown so far is Temple, the massive stage set in Hyrule with upper platforms and underground tunnels. New screenshots depict new characters like Wario and Diddy Kong chasing each other through this popular battlefield.

Developers are reminded to keep it simple if they want to swim in the blue ocean.

Historically seen as a very private and secretive company, Nintendo has opened its doors and is helping third party publishers work out the design kinks in casual oriented games they are developing for the Wii and DS.

One scene that Business Week describes is two Ubisoft executives being invited... Read more...

Oxygen to release two new quiz games for Wii.

WII-HEY! MORE CHEGGERS & HANSEN!

November 29th 2007: Northamptonshire, UK: Now that the PlayStation®2 and PC versions of Cheggers’ Party Quiz and Alan Hansen’s Sports Challenge have launched successfully, Oxygen Games™ is delighted to confirm that the Wii™ quizzes will be in the shops on December 7th.

Director Yoshiaki Koizumi shares lessons in developing Mario, stretching from Super Mario 64 to this season’s Super Mario Galaxy.

At the 2007 Montreal Games Summit, Nintendo Developer Yoshiaki Koizumi took to the stage to share lessons from his history of working on Nintendo games, like The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening and Donkey Kong Jungle Beat. Recently, Koizumi has just finished directing Super Mario Galaxy, so Nintendo’s mascot figured greatly in his presentation, as related by Gamasutra.

Edward Zinser has stepped down from his post for unspecified reasons.

THQ's Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President, Edward Zinser, has resigned from his position with the publisher. The move is effective immediately.

Zinser's departure comes as THQ has lowered sales estimates and delayed several key titles outside of the holiday release period. ... Read more...

Rockstar and the BBFC make their respective cases to the Video Appeals Committee.

As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, the first day of the Video Appeals Committee hearing on the case of the British Board of Film Classification’s banning of Manhunt 2 saw Rockstar’s representation explicitly question the motives behind that decision.

In making Rockstar’s case on Monday,... Read more...

The environmental group calls Wii the most "energy efficient" console, then slaps Nintendo with a zero rating.

Greenpeace’s quarterly Guide to Greener Electronics, issued yesterday, gave Nintendo the "dubious honour of being the first company to score 0/10." The rating comes as the environmental group added video game console manufacturers to its ranking, which also included Microsoft with a rating of 2.7/10.

A look back on developing Metroid's greatest trilogy.

Ever wonder how those awesome Metroid Prime games were developed? How a first-time Texas developer was able to take the reigns of one of Nintendo’s most important franchises? Why Metroid Prime 2 feels a whole lot like Link to the Past? Gamasutra sat down with Retro Studios’ president and CEO, Michael Kelbaugh, to discuss those and many other issues. Here are some highlights from that interview:

This week we map our inventory to waggle.

Monday, it was reveled that Super Smash Bros Brawl will offer totally customizable controls. Want to map jump to the C Button? Go right ahead!

So, dear readers, here’s what we want to know from you. Should fully customized controls be the future of all games? What are some recent games would... Read more...

Courtesy of Nikitova Games.

Nikitova Games announces two of its own new IP titles in production

Chicago, USA, November 26th, 2007 – Tatiana Makarova, “Nikitova Games" VP of Sales announces two of it's own new IP titles are currently in production and planned for release in 2008.

“We are happy to share the details... Read more...

The handheld surpasses the mark set by rival PSP with 191,000 units sold.

Nintendo is celebrating more record breaking in the British market as official ChartTrack sales data shows that the Nintendo DS has sold more units in a single week than any other hardware format has managed in history. The 191,000 units finding homes last week edged out the previous UK record held by the Sony PSP’s September 2005 launch when 185,000 units were shifted in seven days.

Japanese Children to learn English from early age via their DS

Benesse Corporation, a leader in language learning tools for Japanese children, has announced an intensive English language course for Nintendo DS. The 18 title series is targeted at Elementary school students. The “dynamic learning" DS program will offer written and verbal challenges and chart... Read more...

Customize your controls to the nth degree, then save them on your Wii Remote.

Controls for Brawl have long been a source of discussion and worry among Smash Bros. fans, and the official "Dojo" blog continues to feed more information regarding the extensive options available to players. The newest update details how button configurations can be changed and saved for all four controller options (Remote, Nunchuk, Classic, and GameCube).

Nintendo's system reaches 200k in record time.

The Wii is now the fastest selling console in Australia, reaching 200,000 sales just a couple weeks south of the one year anniversary of its release, according to Nintendo Australia. The Australian Wii launch took place in December 2006.

The title of "fastest selling console ever" is a true... Read more...

An undercover investigation found that many stores aren't adhering to ESRB rating policies.

The San Diego East County Youth Coalition, in conjunction with the National Institute on Media and Family and other youth-oriented organizations, has found that 46% of stores involved in an undercover investigation sold M-rated video games to minors.

The two-month study found that despite ESRB... Read more...

Europeans, get ready to rock.

Let The Diamond Hunt begin as Boulder Dash®-ROCKS!™ hits the Shelves Today

Darmstadt/Geneva, November 22nd 2007 –10TACLE STUDIOS AG, Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS); and First Star Software, Inc. today announced the Europe-wide release of “Boulder Dash®-ROCKS!™" for the Nintendo... Read more...