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Pokemon and upcoming releases

Posted by: Sean Colleli at 3/12/2007 10:06 PM - Comments (0)
More On: Nintendo
Well, it turns out that Pokemon Battle Revolution will be the first Wii game to be online in the states, much like it was in Japan.  And here I was hoping Smash Bros. Brawl would kick off the online mode.  Expect to use friend codes with this one, but only because of the unique linking it'll have with Pokemon Diamond and Pearl on the DS.  Hit the jump for the details, and a release list up through June.  Still no Metroid Prime 3...sigh...


 Upcoming Pokemon Battle Revolution Named as First Wi-Fi Game for Wii 
 
      Nintendo Reveals Strong Second-Quarter Lineup for Wii, Nintendo DS
 
    REDMOND, Wash., March 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Wii(TM) owners of all ages have 
discovered the fun of playing with a group of friends in the same room.  Now 
for the first time players can compete with one another near and far with 
Pokemon(R) Battle Revolution, a game of remarkable firsts:
 
    *  the first Wii game to include Nintendo(R) Wi-Fi Connection play
    *  the first Pokemon game for Wii
    *  the first game to link Wii and the hand-held Nintendo DS(TM)
    *  and the first Wii game that can be controlled using Nintendo DS
 
    When Wii and Nintendo DS are linked, players can use their Nintendo DS 
units as controllers or import characters from the upcoming Nintendo DS games 
Pokemon(R) Diamond Version or Pokemon(R) Pearl Version.  Pokemon Battle 
Revolution launches on June 25 exclusively for Wii and brings a dramatic new 
chapter to the Pokemon franchise, which has sold more than 155 million units 
worldwide.  Pokemon Battle Revolution also serves as one of the standouts in 
Nintendo's second-quarter launch lineup, which the company revealed today in 
conjunction with the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
    (Logo:  http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050516/NINTENDOLOGO )
    Pokemon Battle Revolution will be joined by Super Paper Mario(TM), the 
first Mario(TM) game for Wii; Mario Party(R) 8, a multiplayer party game; and 
Big Brain Academy(TM), a brain-training game that builds on the phenomenal 
success of the Nintendo DS brain games.  These will add to the ever-growing 
library of Wii games, which will total more than 50 by the end of June. 
Nintendo DS fans will see the arrival of Pokemon Diamond Version and Pokemon 
Pearl Version, two surefire smash-hits.
    "With strong third-party support, Wii and Nintendo DS have games on the 
way for both casual and veteran gamers," says Nintendo of America President 
Reggie Fils-Aime.  "Our new ways to play have attracted millions of players 
around the world.  This lineup demonstrates our commitment to leading the 
industry with the future of video gaming."
    Third-party publishers also have stepped up their support of both Wii and 
Nintendo DS, recognizing these systems as the hottest things going in the 
video game industry.  The list of games for April, May and June includes the 
following:
 
    Wii
    April 9      Super Paper Mario                      Nintendo
    April        Prince of Persia Rival Swords          Ubisoft
    April        Bust-A-Move Bash                       Majesco
    April        Bioncle Heroes                         Eidos
    May 15       Mortal Kombat: Armageddon              Midway
    May 29       Mario Party 8                          Nintendo
    May          Tamagotchi Party On                    Namco Bandai
    May          Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean      Disney Interactive
                 at World's End
    May          Escape from Bug Island                 Eidos
    May          Spider-Man The Movie 3                 Activision
    June 11      Big Brain Academy                      Nintendo
    June 25      Pokemon Battle Revolution              Nintendo
    June         Cosmic Family                          Ubisoft
    Spring       Heatseeker                             Codemasters
    Q2           Legend of the Dragon                   American Game Factory
    Summer       Shrek the Third                        Activision
    Summer       Transformers the Game                  Activision
 
    Nintendo DS
    April 22     Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl      Nintendo
    May          Pirates of the Caribbean 3             Buena Vista
    May          Dragon Ball Z: Harukanaru Densetsu     Atari
    May          Pony Friends                           Eidos
    May          Diner Dash                             Eidos
    May          Touch the Dead                         Eidos
    June 4       Nintendo DS browser                    Nintendo
    June 4       Planet Puzzle League                   Nintendo
    June 11      Touchmaster DS                         Midway
    June         Zendoku                                Eidos
    Spring       Naruto Ninja Council 3                 Tomy
    Spring       Time Ace                               Konami
    Spring       Death Jr. and the Science Fair of Doom Konami
    Q2           Rune Factory: A Fantasy Harvest Moon   Natsume
    Summer       Shrek the Third                        Activision
    Summer       Transformers: Autobots                 Activision
    Summer       Transformers: Decepticons              Activision
 
    Game Boy(R) Advance
    Summer       Shrek the Third                        Activision
 
    The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, 
Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and 
software for its Wii(TM), Nintendo DS(TM), Game Boy(R) Advance and Nintendo 
GameCube(TM) systems.  Since 1983, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.2 billion video 
games and more than 387 million hardware units globally, and has created 
industry icons like Mario(TM), Donkey Kong(R), Metroid(R), Zelda(TM) and 
Pokemon(R).  A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in 
Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the 
Western Hemisphere.  For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's 
Web site at www.nintendo.com.
    Pokemon USA, Inc., a subsidiary of The Pokemon Company in Japan, manages 
the property outside of Asia which includes licensing, marketing, the Pokemon 
Trading Card Game, an animated TV series, home entertainment, the official 
Pokemon Web site and an online retail center www.pokemoncenter.com.  Just 
coming off its 10th worldwide anniversary in 2006, Pokemon was launched in 
Japan in 1996 for play on Nintendo's Game Boy(R) and has since evolved into a 
global cultural phenomenon.  Pokemon was introduced in North America in 
September 1998 and today is one of the most popular toy and entertainment 
properties in the world.  For more information, visit www.pokemon.com.
 

Scene It? Box Office Smash! dated

by: Dan - posted: 10/7/2008 11:38 PM - Comments (0)
Microsoft announced today that Scene It? Box Office Smash! will be hitting retailers on October 28th The second Scene It? game for the Xbox 360 offers more HD content, new questions, puzzles and integration of the New Xbox Experience Avatars. The game comes bundled with more of the "Big Button" controllers and will retail for $59.99.
[READ MORE]

News Roundup: Facewound Beauty Factory

by: Randy - posted: 10/7/2008 10:11 PM - Comments (0)
FREE GAMES, DEMOS, UPDATES
VIDEOS
SCREENSHOTS
ARTICLES
Thanks to AtomicGamer, MMODB, and Legit Reviews for today's News Roundup.

Mirror's Edge soundtrack is "Still Alive" -- but not in the way that you think

by: Randy - posted: 10/7/2008 9:45 PM - Comments (0)
These better be some stellar remixes, that's all I'm sayin'.  Swedish pop star, Lisa Miskovsky, is having her song "Still Alive" -- no, not that "Still Alive," that's Jonathan Coulton -- being remixed by five different deejays for the Mirror's Edge soundtrack.  While the original version will serve as the theme song, Benny Benassi ("Satisfaction"), Paul Van Dyk ("Time Of Our Lives"), Junkie XL ("Cities In Dust"), Teddybears (uh, haven't heard of them, but they're apparently Swedish too), and Armand Van Helden ("The Funk Phenomena") will be spinning the wheels of steel, remixing Miskovsky's "Still Alive."  Which I haven't heard of either -- not that I'm completely wired into the house music scene.  But if it's anything like this (not new) video's soundscape, then the entire project definitely sounds like it's in good hands.

[READ MORE]

Saints Row 2 rocks 11 radio stations, 129 tracks

by: Randy - posted: 10/7/2008 9:19 PM - Comments (0)
Still runnin' and gunnin' for its October 14th release next week, Saints Row 2 just spilled the details on its entire 129-song soundtrack.  And while Apache's "Gangsta B****" is Chuck's favorite, hip hop and R&B makes up only 12% of the entire soundtrack despite the game's heavy gangsta lean.  You can spend equal amounts of time disturbing the peace in Stilwater's streets while playing music across a plethora of genres.  You can 187 on an undercover cop listening to Lamb of God or Tchaikovsky; put the Saints back together while getting folksy with Okkervil River or nu wave with Duran Duran; smoke out to Eek-A-Mouse, Hot Hot Heat, or Bad Medicine.  Eleven different stations (no NPR-styled ones, however) will be at your fingertips in Saints Row 2.  Or, if you're upset that The Naked Brothers Band didn't make the cut, there's always the Off button. [READ MORE]

NBA 2K9 does a no-look pass onto Windows PC

by: Randy - posted: 10/7/2008 8:18 PM - Comments (0)
For the first time in the 2K Sports' ten-season streak, NBA 2K9 will be dribbling its way onto the PC.  October 21st marks the release date on Windows (while the 360 and PS3 versions both hit store shelves today).  All the functionality built into the console versions -- including the newly-touted Live Rosters, which updates players' statistics through the real-world season -- is rolled into the PC release as well. [READ MORE]

Tomb Raider: Underworld DLC Promoting Console Favoritism

by: Eva - posted: 10/7/2008 5:00 PM - Comments (1)
In a recent post announcing the exclusive Tomb Raider: Underworld downloadable content for the Xbox 360, I speculated as to whether other versions of the game would get platform specific DLC. Unfortunately, MTV Multiplayer has an answer that many players won't be pleased with.

The DLC for the Xbox 360 isn't going to be released on another platform at a later date. Eidos also has no plans to issue DLC for the PS3 or the PC. It would seem to me that if you have multiple platforms, the Wii with special interactions tailored to the Wiimote or the Xbox 360 version with the two extra chapters seems the logical choice.

I don't know about the opinions of our readership, but I'm less than pleased with this arrangement between Microsoft and Eidos. It's not that I object to that specific pairing, just favoritism of one platform over another in general. I hope that this isn't a new trend in the industry although Microsoft has already set the precedent with GTAIV. How do you weigh in on the issue?

Square Enix Opens the Gates of Vana'diel with 14-Day Free Trial of FFXI

by: Eva - posted: 10/7/2008 4:30 PM - Comments (0)
Square Enix is inviting gamers to come experience its Final Fantasy XI MMO. This is a Windows based trial which gives players access to the current Wings of the Goddess build for 14 days. Any characters you create  will be saved for 90 days after the trial ends. That's a more than generous period of time for you to decide whether you want to take the plunge and subscribe.

When I was playing FFXI, it was on the PS2 shortly after the game premiered in 2002. I think if I would get back into the game, I would start fresh on the PC anyway. This is a great opportunity to find out what I've missed over six years and four expansions later.
[READ MORE]

It's another NBA Live season

by: John - posted: 10/7/2008 3:48 PM - Comments (0)
It's that time again. The NBA pre-season is happening right now and we're getting our share of NBA games to come out. NBA Live 09 is now available in stores and the big selling point this year is Dynamic DNA. The feature helps emulate the player and how the team plays. Updating every day, Dynamic DNA looks to add some more depth into the series. I'm interested to see how this really works and to see if it really does add to the experience.

On a similar note, I'm really excited about the upcoming NBA season. With Cleveland's acquisition of Mo Williams form Milwaukee, they have a few guys that can create their own shot and score. I mean if Lebron can take a bunch of scrubs to the NBA finals a few years ago, this team should be explosive with his increased experience and overall better talent surrounding him. [READ MORE]

Classic Gaming Trivia for 10/7/08

by: John - posted: 10/7/2008 3:41 PM - Comments (0)
The last classic gaming trivia was for the classic  Great Giana Sisters on the Commodore 64. A lot of people enjoy this game more then Super Mario Bros. and well you know Nintendo wasn't going to let the folks behind this game continue to profit.


Here's today's game. Since this is a hard one, I'll give out the hint that it was on the Amiga.

First shots of Mirror's Edge Time Trial mode

by: Chuck - posted: 10/7/2008 12:00 PM - Comments (0)
Here is the first batch of screenshots from the Time Trial mode in Mirror's Edge.  It looks like you'll be able to quickly see how far ahead or behind you are by looking at the "ghost" of the person you're racing against.  The feature will also let you see which route they took to get the time they earned which will be helpful given how open the world of the game is.
[READ MORE]

You got the touch!.. You got the poowwweeer! YEAH!

by: John - posted: 10/7/2008 10:54 AM - Comments (0)
There seems to be a small movement to get The Touch from Transformers: The (Good) Movie out on either Guitar Hero or Rock Band. Personally, I'd love, love, LOVE to have that song in either game. Like how the Portal song was such a great addition to the list, I think the Touch would be that as well. I mean, who doesn't remember hearing that song and seeing Optimus Prime jump up and transform into his bad-ass robot self and take out a bunch of Decepticons. Count me in as one to want that song in the games as well. To take it a little further, how about a collection of 80's cartoon theme songs for the game? Put in Thundercats, GI Joe, MASK, and Transformers to name a few and I bet you'll get a ton of purchases. Come'on Harmonix and Neversoft, let's make it happen.

Gaming Gibs for 10/7/2008

by: Chuck - posted: 10/7/2008 8:21 AM - Comments (0)
Here are a few things I missed while realizing I'd probably electrocute myself if I tried to make a cool LED sign:
  • Kids, run....it's a TRAP
  • Life as a disabled gamer described
  • Peter Molyneux sets out specs for how Fable II should be reviewed, maybe Dyack should have done the same thing
  • Resistance 2 is less than a month out, check out the trophies from the game in advance so you know what to do when you get the game
  • Game designers share game design tips/the F word with a 7 year old gamer
  • Sony bringing all future MMO's to the PS3, hoping that Blizzard doesn't do the same
  • Music of LittleBigPlanet discussed