Mario's Assist Block power-up from Super Mario 3D Land returns, among other gold-tinged power-ups.

White Tanooki Mario returns in New Super Mario Bros. 2 as the game's Assist Block, according to Famitsu.

The power-up first appeared in Super Mario 3D Land, making Mario invincible for the rest of the level. Like 3D Land, the Assist Block containing a Golden Leaf appears after you die five times in the same spot. It is unknown if there will be any other additional boosts other than invincibility from the suit in New Super Mario Bros. 2.

The developer's website promises to krash kart racing together with elements of platforming game play later this summer.

Kart Krashers will be coming to the DSi and 3DS download stores later this summer. Developer Big John Games is perhaps best known to Nintendo gamers for their many Wii, WiiWare, and DSiWare releases, including the Big Bass Arcade franchise and 2009 DSiWare title Thorium Wars.

Kart Krashers, which... Read more...

Hit up the eShop if you like sparkly snapshots of you and your friends. 

Sparkle Snapshots 3D is coming to the Nintendo 3DS eShop in Europe this week on July 12.

A sequel to Sparkle Snapshots on DSiWare in 2009, Sparkle Snapshots 3D allows users to decorate their 2D photos with 3D frames, backgrounds and original 3D stamps. Users will be able to share their creations with their friends wirelessly. The game will also feature Mario-themed DLC including a Mario Core Set as well as a Mario Kart 7 set.

Users will be able to share their training data with other players. 

Tōhoku Daigaku Kareiigakukenkyūjo Kawashima Ryūta Kyōju Kanshū Monosugoku Nō o Kitareru 5 funkan no Oni Training for the Nintendo 3DS, or Oni Training for short, will support both SpotPass and StreetPass.

Users will be able to upload their training data via SpotPass as well as exchange training... Read more...

The latest DLC is missing a track from the second set of DLC set released in Japan.

The next set of downloadable songs for Theatrhythm Final Fantasy are on their way to Europe this week on July 12 for €1 (£0.90) each. Below you can preview the four tracks:

Final Fantasy I – Matoya’s Cave (FMS)Final Fantasy III – Battle 1 (BMS)Final Fantasy V – The Final Battle (BMS)Final Fantasy XIII – Archytte Steppe (FMS)

Nintendo seems to be focused on the 3DS this time.

Nintendo has unveiled their plans for this year's Comic-Con. The Nintendo 3DS XL will be playable at Nintendo's booth (#5135) in the San Diego Convention Center for convention attendees from July 12 to 15.

Nintendo will also be holding an additional event called the Nintendo Gaming Lounge, which... Read more...

His name is Swarm and he is a giant bee.

Swarm, the new Air Giant Skylander, was revealed in this month's Nintendo Power.

The character, which appears to be an anthropomorphic bee, is a bee prince who grew so large that he could not fit in his honeycomb pyramid kingdom. Naturally, that means he had to go fight the good fight with his fellow Skylanders.

Did you doubt the Activision CEO when he said Skylanders was hitting Wii U?

Skylanders Giants on Wii U has been rated by the ESRB, proving that Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg's comment at E3 2012 that the series was hitting Wii U was right on the money.

The game was rated E10+ for Cartoon Violence. Below is the full description:

This is an action platformer in which players... Read more...

He believes the GamePad opens up 'fantastic' possibilities for Metroid.

Shigeru Miyamoto is interested in seeing Metroid and Star Fox come to the Wii U.

Mr. Miyamoto points out that the functionality of the Wii U GamePad offers the possibility of interesting new gameplay mechanics. Specifically, he mentioned that "having another screen with the gyro built in really gives you a lot of interesting opportunities for development, and we can bring a lot of our games to life in a completely unique way with that."

The European box art includes a Nintendo Network logo.

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon will feature online connectivity through Nintendo Network, according to the box art Nintendo sent out to European retailers. It is unknown at this time what specifically that functionality will entail.

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is the 3DS sequel to GameCube launch title Luigi's Mansion. It is being developed by Next Level games, and is set to release later this year.

Join us this Monday night!

Join the Nintendo World Report community this Monday, July 9, for multiplayer action in Kid Icarus: Uprising. We're starting at 9 p.m. Eastern/6 Pacific (1 a.m. UTC for anyone overseas). You can exchange friend codes in the Talkback below, or go stock up in the official NWR 3DS Friend Code thread, which is located in the Handheld Discussion section of our forums.

Platinum members can choose between playing cards, posters, a calendar, and a free game, while Gold members are limited to the calendar or a game.

UPDATE: The prizes are now live.

The prizes for the 2011-2012 North American Club Nintendo year were revealed early this morning and then promptly taken down. It's still very likely these are the prizes, but there could be tweaks when it finally does go live. We'll let you know when the prizes go live and you can make your choice.

All three consoles will be getting the title.

Frogger: Hyper Arcade Edition is coming to WiiWare, PSN, and Xbox Live Arcade next week, as reported by developer Zombie Studios on Episode 32 of PlayStation Blogcast.

The game is an update of Frogger's traditional mechanics and features new game modes, like Tile Capture, Freak Out, Battle Royale, and four-player matches against people or the CPU.

Download Nintendo's feudal Japan Punch-Out-esque game for $2 less this weekend.

In case you didn't know, Sakura Samurai is available on the North American eShop for a $2 discount, bringing its normal $7 price down to $5. The sale began at 9 a.m. PT/12 p.m. ET today, and will run until 9 p.m. PT/12 a.m. ET on July 8/9.

This game is the third "Game of the Weekend" sale that Nintendo of America is doing for the 3DS eShop. The first two games were Super Mario Land and VVVVVV.

Could Nintendo's new Internet push suggest a change of heart?

New Super Mario Bros. 2 now has an eShop price of TBD.

On July 4, it was revealed that the eShop price of the title had a listed price on the eShop at $39.99, but that has since been removed. Whether it suggests a change in price or Nintendo accidentally revealing the information too early is unknown.

What does "727" mean to you?

Pokédex 3D Pro received a new promotional video on the Japanese Nintendo channel.

Notably, it has been revealed that every single form of every single Pokémon will be in the upcoming eShop title, bringing the total number of in-app Pokémon to 727.

In addition to this, the video also clarified... Read more...

Let's hope those full game downloads can be played across systems.

A unified eShop account system will be implemented by Wii U and 3DS, as reported by a Nintendo Customer Service Representative David Marshall.

"A unified account system will be implemented later this year with the launch of the Wii U. Eventually this same account system will be made compatible with... Read more...

...in Japan.

Hello Kitty & Me! Block Crash Z has been announced for 3DS release in Japan.

The game is part of the Hello Kitty & Me series, traditionally featuring human mascots dressed in Hello Kitty branded clothing. The Block Crash games have gameplay similar to Breakout and Arkanoid, and the 3DS version has 200 stages to play through.

Japanese people receive some good news on the standalone adapter.

The price for the standalone AC adapter for the Nintendo 3DS has received a price cut in Japan. The price was originally set at ¥1500, but the adapter will now be sold for ¥1000. The new price will be in effect starting July 12, 2012. 

This price drop comes not long before the Japanese launch of the Nintendo 3DS XL, where the adapter is not included with the system in that country.

Don't worry though. It's not as bad as you think.

Nintendo "cannot promise" that all online services will be free of charge no matter what, as reported by Nintendo President Satoru Iwata during the recent investors meeting.

"[Nintendo] cannot promise here that Nintendo will always provide you with online services free of charge no matter how deep... Read more...