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Sim City DS Trailer - Currently for Japan Only?
Posted by Michael Cardiff Categories: Electronic Arts, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Simulation, Trailers,
It can’t be long until Nintendo and EA announce that Sim City DS will also be hitting the states… this footage just looks too good, and Nintendo fanboys will be whining A LOT if this doesn’t get ported state-side. Plus Will Wright’s native language is English, so we should get a game with him speaking English… right?!?
The trailer found in the link is the latest advertisement for the Japanese version of the game, and shows of the variety of ways in which the touch-screen is used. This is looking to be a fabulous fit for the DS. The touch screen is of course used to design buildings and layout roads, but you’ll see in the trailer that you can also use the stylus to do things like fight off alien invaders and giant apes that attack from time to time. Hopefully we’ll hear some news from EA soon about a US release…
Read More 
| GameBrink.com
Gallery: Sim City DS Trailer - Currently for Japan Only?
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Nintendo Flys High On Wii, DS Sales
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Corporate News, Hardware, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Wii,
Nintendo today reported its nine-month financials for the fiscal year; sales for the nine month period are up 73%, with a profit increase of 43%, according to an Associated Press report. Gross sales grew from 412 billion yen to 713 billion yen ($5.9 billion) for this year; profit grew to 132 billion yen ($1.1 billion) from 92.2 billion the previous year. Nintendo sold 3.19 million Wii consoles worldwide, and said that they shipped 4 million, leaving roughly 800,000 units in distribution channels. The company’s decision to avoid costly air freight probably hindered their distribution efforts. Nintendo also estimated that the Wii strap recall would cost the company approximately 1 billion yen, about $8 million. Nintendo also announced that they had sold 18.9 million DS handhelds worldwide, and in a related press release Nintendo of America announced that they have shipped 10 million handhelds in “the Americas.”
Read More | BusinessWeek
Gallery: Nintendo Flys High On Wii, DS Sales
Nintendo DS Sells 1.7 Million In Europe
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Wii,
Nintendo of America celebrated the success of the Wii and the DS in North America, now Nintendo of Europe is doing the same in their territory. Sales monitoring company Chart Track has released their sales numbers for the month of December, and in the UK Nintendo sold nearly 200,000 Wii consoles and 500,000 DS handhelds.
In Europe, Nintendo moved more than 700,000 Wii consoles and an amazing 1.7 million DS handhelds. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess nearly matched the attach rate in the US, selling 500,000 copies to 70% of Wii purchasers during December. With huge sales in Europe, Nintendo has basically stormed across the globe this holiday season.
Read More | Nintendo Europe
Gallery: Nintendo DS Sells 1.7 Million In Europe
Japanese Hardware, Software Markets Show Massive Growth
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, PSP, Wii, Xbox 360,
Japanese publisher Enterbrain has released the software and hardware sales totals for 2006. According to a report from Gamasutra, the publisher is claiming that Japanese video game hardware grew year over year 160%, while software sales grew 125%. The best selling hardware for the year was, of course, the Nintendo DS, moving over 7.5 million handhelds. Software sales charts were also dominated by the DS, which represented 8 of the top 10 titles of the year. Leading the list was Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. The top non-DS title was Square’s Final Fantasy XII for the PS2. Wii Sports made the top 100 in the 21st position, but no title for the Xbox 360 or the Playstation 3 were represented on the list. Nintendo managed to completely dominate Japan this year, and so far there are no signs of this changing any time soon.
Read More | Gamasutra
Gallery: Japanese Hardware, Software Markets Show Massive Growth
NPD December Numbers: $3.7 Billion, PS2, DS Dominate
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Hardware, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Gamecube, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360,
December’s NPD final numbers have been released, and the video game industry as a whole did remarkably well, selling over $3.7 billion during the final month of the year. According to a GameDaily report, this puts industry growth year-over-year at 27.8%. In hardware, the biggest seller overall was the Nintendo DS, moving over 1.6 million handhelds. This was followed by Sony’s “last-generation” console, the PS2, which sold an amazing 1.4 million consoles sold.
For the current generation of consoles, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 lead the pack at 1.1 million sold through December, followed by Nintendo’s Wii with 604,200 sold and Sony at 490,700. Supply constraints clearly impacted both Nintendo and Sony for their next generation offerings; Nintendo’s worldwide launch stretched console supply impossibly thin, and production issues kept Sony from pushing as many consoles to market as they would have liked. Microsoft has to be happy with their totals, maintaining their lead in the face of new competition, and the continued success of the PS2 helps take the sting out of Sony’s meager PS3 launch.
On the software side, Microsoft’s Gears of War continued to sell well and moved more than 815 thousand units, and clearly helped drive sales of the Xbox 360. Guitar Hero II was a huge seller for the Playstation 2, and the combined sales of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess for the Wii and Gamecube moved over one million sold; Zelda for the Wii continued to have a huge attach rate with Wii console buyers, selling 519,200 units against more than 600,000 consoles.
Overall, each of the three console manufacturers has something to brag about for the month of December, and while the relative sales are interesting now, this is just the beginning of the next console war; most analysts are predicting that the holiday season for 2007 will be when consumers will see how the competition really shakes up.
Read More | GameDaily
Gallery: NPD December Numbers: $3.7 Billion, PS2, DS Dominate
Nintendo Again Raises Year End Profit Forecasts
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Corporate News, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Wii,
Nintendo last raised its profit forecasts for the fiscal year in October, when it adjusted its estimates upwards based on better than expected sales of the Nintendo DS. Recently, Satoru Iwata hinted that another adjustment might be in the future. Today, Nintendo of Japan again raised its profit forecasts by 20% to 120 billion yen, again based on stronger than expected sales of its DS console. The DS and software just continues to surge in popularity; a report on Bloomberg News indicates that the company now expects to sell roughly 23 million DS consoles for the fiscal year with related software sales of 100 million. While Nintendo did not raise its Wii sales projections, the general belief is that the only reason this was not adjusted upwards is that the company does not believe it can manufacture any more units. Overall, the success of the DS worldwide has been nothing short of amazing, allowing Nintendo to build up a war chest for the console wars.
Read More 
| Bloomberg
Read More | Nintendo News Release (PDF)
Gallery: Nintendo Again Raises Year End Profit Forecasts
Treasure Talks Next Generation Gaming
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Action, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Retro, Wii, Xbox 360, Xbox Live Arcade,
1up recently talked with Treasure, creators of the famed Radiant Silvergun and Gunstar Heroes, about their future development plans for next generation consoles. Treasure is working hard on their Xbox 360 shooter, which should feature 3D graphics with classic 2D-style gameplay. The company confirmed that the game is being developed by the same team that created Ikaruga, but is shying away from calling the game a Radiant Silvergun sequel, which puts into doubts recent rumors of a true sequel. Treasure also talked about their upcoming releases for the Virtual Console, and potentially some releases for the Xbox Live Arcade. The company also seemed excited about possibly developing for the Wii specifically; a future release seems more likely than not. Unfortunately for PS3 fans, however, Treasure doesn’t believe they will have the resources to work with the Playstation 3 for some time. Overall, the interview is an interesting look at a developer approaching the next generation consoles with current graphics but a somewhat retro design esthetic.
Read More | 1up
Gallery: Treasure Talks Next Generation Gaming
Tingle RPG Heads To Europe
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Role Playing Games,
Gaming site Cubed³ is reporting that the quirky Tingle RPG will be heading to Europe in 2007. The odd game received a decent amount of success in Japan, and the game’s unique gameplay may make it a title worth checking out. One assumes that the title will be localized to something a bit less of a mouthful than Freshly-Picked Tingle’s Rose-Colored Rupee Land; on the other hand, that may be part of its charm. At least with a European release, gamers will be able to import the title if the game never makes its way to the United States.
Read More | Cubed3
Gallery: Tingle RPG Heads To Europe
Club Nintendo Japan Members Offered New Premiums
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Culture, Nintendo, Nintendo DS, Wii,
Club Nintendo members in Japan with enough points qualify for one of two limited time offer premiums that put the freebies in other territories to shame. Club members that have accumulated over 400 points can choose either a battery cover for their Wii remote customized with an image of their Mii or a limited edition DS game Tingle’s Balloon Fight. Either offering is much better than anything Nintendo of America has offered its site members; loud complaining or petitioning Nintendo might help, but such premiums are highly unlikely for the United States.
Read More | Club Nintendo Japan
Gallery: Club Nintendo Japan Members Offered New Premiums
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fate Trailer Online
Posted by Christopher Sasaki Categories: Nintendo DS, Role Playing Games, Square Enix,
Square Enix has continued to offer the trailers from the recent Jump Festa online, this time with a video sampling of Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fate for the DS. The trailer largely focuses on in-game play mechanics versus the larger balance of pre-rendered video for Revenant Wings. The images of the new game look well-detailed for a Nintendo DS game, and the trailer shows off multiple characters. The game will support local ad hoc wireless support, but does not feature full Nintendo Wi-Fi connectivity.
Read More | Square Enix Japan
Gallery: Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fate Trailer Online
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