Konami's arcade shoot 'em up is scheduled to hit Japan next week.

The next 3D Classic, TwinBee, will launch on the Japan eShop on August 10 for 600 yen.

The shoot 'em up originally appeared in arcades in 1985 and then later came to home consoles, including the Famicom, in 1986. The game did not see an official release outside of Japan until it appeared on Konami Classics Series: Arcade Hits on the Nintendo DS in 2007 under the name RainbowBell. Its first sequel, Stinger, was released on the NES.

The team behind the 3D remake of the N64 classic discuss how the game came to be.

The latest "Iwata Asks" column focuses on Star Fox 64 3D as Nintendo President Satoru Iwata sits down with Q-Games, the developers in charge of the remake. The team is composed of Q-Games founder Dylan Cuthbert, Yusuke Amano from Software Development Department of the Entertainment Analysis & Development Division (EAD), Mitsuhiro Takano of EAD and Nintendo producer Shigeru Miyamoto.

Pac-Man fever and a hyperactive wildcat lead the way in this week's downloads.

European gamers have five new titles to look forward this week to on the various online services.

Nintendo 3DS owners will be able to download the all-time classic Pac-Man from the Virtual Console service. The game will be yours for the price of £3.60/€4.

DSiWare-wise, we mostly play catch-up... Read more...

The console will ship in time to receive Ambassador Program games.

The Nintendo 3DS is now available on Amazon.com for around $216. At the time of writing, the price was fluctuating between page loads, so it could be a good idea to check several times for the final price. Both colors, Aqua Blue and Cosmo Black, are available in limited quantities.

While... Read more...

Two more GBA titles are confirmed for the Nintendo Ambassador program.

Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 and Kirby & the Amazing Mirror have been confirmed to be part of the Nintendo Ambassador Program for users who purchased the Nintendo 3DS prior to the recently announced price drop. 

While not in the original press release from last... Read more...

Nintendo is working on new features for the Mii Plaza, as well upcoming titles that will make use of the Miis.

New features will be making way to the Mii Plaza on the 3DS by end of this year, Iwata announced at a recent investors briefing. Iwata was asked about updates for the application, and he responded by saying that he has heard complaints regarding the lack of replay value and that Nintendo plans to update the Mii Plaza with new features later this year.

Australians will also have a cool limited edition bonus.

Nintendo Australia announced today that Xenoblade Chronicles will be released for the Wii on September 1, 2011, for both Australia and New Zealand.

The first production run of the game will also include a special soundtrack CD, containing 12 tracks from the game.

The game will be priced at AU $99.95 and NZ $133.22.

Iwata speaks about Nintendo's future plans for the eShop.

During a recent Q&A, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata revealed that Nintendo is currently preparing a paid item transaction system (DLC), for both the 3DS and the Wii U. He also added that Nintendo will likely not be using this themselves, because they believe doing so would not be good for building a strong relationship with their customers.

Nintendo global president gives reasons for why the price has dropped so close to launch.

The drastic markdown of the Nintendo 3DS retail price was done at this time due to a need to increase market penetration before anticipated holiday season games are released, to boost sales to predicted levels so that it can be a sound successor to the Nintendo DS, and to reassure retailers and software publishers that the expansion of the platform will not be an issue.

An action packed week with 3D golf, mikoshi racing and some classic baseball.

The European download services have expanded their libary with six brand new titles, and as per usual most of them are for the eShop and DSiWare.

Gameloft's Let's Golf 3D marks the first real Nintendo 3DS Download Software title for the western audience. For the price of €6.00/£5.40, the package... Read more...

Poor 3DS sales means pay cuts across the board. 

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata will be taking a 50 percent pay reduction in response to poor Nintendo 3DS sales. The news was revealed at a conference in Tokyo, where Iwata stated to investors that he would be taking responsibility for the low sales figures.

Iwata was making approximately ¥137... Read more...

A DSiWare/eShop-heavy week featuring 3D golfing, ropes that burn and brothers who brawl.

Six new games have been added to Nintendo's download services, with DSiWare and eShop receiving the most titles.

The lone eShop-exclusive title is Gameloft's Let's Golf 3D. Players will be able to fully customize their golfers and take them through exotic locations. The game is available for download for $6.99.

The just-announced Virtual Console titles on 3DS will have additional features in their final releases.

NES games released on the Virtual Console for Nintendo 3DS will eventually be improved over the initial versions.

The pre-release versions available through the Ambassadors Program, as announced earlier, will have some missing features compared to the final releases. The earlier versions will... Read more...

Nintendo drops 3DS price around the world and announces release dates for Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7.

The Nintendo 3DS retail price will decrease in several regions.

In Japan, the price will drop by 10,000 yen. This brings the price of the handheld from 25,000 yen to 15,000 yen effective August 11.

In North America, the 3DS will be priced at $169.99, effective on August 12, 2011.

The European retail price is set by the individual retailers, but the trade price has been dropped by around a third.

Early adopters of the system in will receive lots of free goodies.

Nintendo announced that early adopters of the 3DS, who bought the system prior to the recently announced price drop, will receive 20 free games through the eShop. This initiative is called the "Ambassadors Program."

To be eligible for the free downloads, users must connect to the eShop through... Read more...

Along with the new site, there is a Facebook poll to get fan input on what games they want localized.

Level-5's North America branch has launched their  official website. It currently has a virtual tour of their U.S. office, as well as a history of Level-5's work and a list of the titles that are currently in development.

They're also running a poll on their new Facebook page, asking... Read more...

The upcoming 3DS Pokémon game has been delayed due to "various circumstances."

Super Pokémon Scramble, known in North America as Pokémon Rumble Blast, has been delayed in Japan.

The official announcement on Nintendo's website states that "various circumstances" have prevented the game from meeting the original release date. It will now be released on August 11, 2011.

Super... Read more...

Wii action RPG will see release in the land down under.

Xenoblade Chronicles is confirmed for Australian release by Nintendo Australia.

Previously rumored for release and rated by the Australian Classification Board, Xenoblade Chronicles is now slated for Australia. No release date has been given. The Monolith-developed action Wii RPG is the first of three RPG titles clamored for by Operation Rainfall, who seek their release by Nintendo of America.

Five points to anyone who can notice the difference.

Nintendo has launched a system update for the Nintendo 3DS which updates the system to firmware 2.1.0-4. While it is not immediately known what impact the software update will have, Nintendo states that the update was to improve system stability and that the udpate contained minor adjustments to enhance the overall user experience.

Title developed by Yuji Naka's Prope studio will be brought over by XSEED.

Fishing Resort, an arcade-style fishing game from Sonic creator Yuji Naka's Prope studio, will be coming to Wii this fall through XSEED.

The game is structured as an island vacation, where the player can travel all over the island through a variety of different environments, with fishing possible anywhere there's water. Characters are fully customizable, with hundreds of available items to choose from.