Being the die-hard romantics that we are, it's unclear how we managed to miss Nintendo's little Valentine's gift to the residents of Animal Crossing: Wild World. Upon connecting to the Wi-Fi network, you should receive a letter from "Your friendo, Nintendo" along with a "Lovely Loveseat" item for your home. How lovely--be sure to lovingly put it in a lovely spot so as to lovingly convey the loveliness of your lovely home (which is brimming with lovingly lovely love.)
Well, Nintendo's big DS press conference in Japan has come and gone, with the fallout raining down upon us like a torrent of delicious, bite-sized candy. Though the main purpose of the conference was to parade the extraordinarily beautiful DS Lite about, Nintendo also took the opportunity to unveil some exciting new add-ons.
As many of our readers correctly predicted, the melancholy and overly dramatic Internet browser, Opera, is indeed being released for the DS! Launching in June for approximately $30, the Opera browser is a fully featured, non-firmware web browser adapted to display pages on both screens and allow for stylus-based input. Yay!
Nintendo also revealed a TV tuner add-on that simply plugs into the DS card slot and beams television programming straight to your portable. Though the chances of this little device making it to the West are slightly slimmer than the web browser, don't count it out just yet.
Other points of note regarding the conference:
The New Super Mario Bros. game will be released in Japan this May.
Tetris DS will sell at a budget price.
Calligraphy Training is coming to the DS, doing for the hand what Brain Training did for the mind.
New footage of Xenosaga Episode 1-2 and Children of Mana was shown.
Super Robot Wars, Dynasty Warriors and Winning Eleven 9, oh my! The last two will be using the Wi-Fi connection.
Well, I guess we'd better get working on a DS-optimized version of DS Fanboy.
The nostalgic sight of plummeting Tetris blocks (or Tetrominoes, if you prefer) is sure to foster a warm feeling deep inside any gamer. Right now, we have an insatiable desire to give those L-shaped pieces a loving, yet slightly uncomfortable hug. Nintendo undoubtedly feels the same way, at least judging by all the love they're giving the upcoming touch-enabled Tetris DS.
The chaps over at British Gaming Blog have posted some videos of the game in action, including some showing the game's Push and Touch modes. Don't worry, they're safe for work. The latter mode is a more slow-paced affair, with Tetrominoes awkwardly stacked on top of each other and awaiting the player to spin them about, thus allowing them to slot into each other and disappear. As for the ingenious Donkey Kong-themed Push mode, it seems ideally suited for Wi-Fi multiplayer battles. Each player is relegated to one of the DS screens, with the opponent being mirrored in the bottom screen (i.e. his blocks move upwards). Each player slots Tetrominoes into a cluster of blocks that's initially right in the middle of the two playing fields. Performing well and racking up combos pushes the block cluster away and into your opponent's screen, lessening his maneuvering space and chances of survival.
If that explanation doesn't make sense (and we don't blame you), just check out the videos. A word of warning, though: Turn off the sound. Those catchy old-school remixes will become lodged in your brain for the rest of the day.
A while back we asked you to tell us how good you really were at Mario Kart DS. Now we might ask you to prove it. You see, the guys over at DS Meet, one of a few sites that allows users to share their friend codes and meet new players online, have implemented a cool new online tournament system. It allows you to join up with existing tournaments or create your own, all via a reasonably easy to use interface.
Once you've created a tournament, the site will automatically take care of rostering (though you can manually alter this as well) and keeping track of the friend codes of those competing. You also have the option of having a forum to discuss and coordinate matches with your fellow DS players. The onus is on the tournament operator to keep track of everybody's scores though, so a level of honesty may be required if you're going to take charge of a tournament. Being thebest Mario Kart DS players in the known universe, we're all about the honesty.
Mind you, it's not all about the snaking. With support for Animal Crossing's various competitive activities and the upcoming Metroid Prime: Hunters, it's about fishing and shooting too. It's also about competing with people from all over the world. How about a DS Fanboy reader Mario Kart tournament? Can we have a show of hands from those who would be interested?
According to the guys over at Cubed3, Reggie Fils-Aime recently dropped some hints in an EGM interview regarding potential web browsing functionality for the DS. With so many online pieces already in place, it's quite surprising that Nintendo hasn't put more effort into getting the necessary software out. Supposedly, a third-party initially expressed interest in providing a browser and Nintendo thought it best to step back and give them free reign. However, with no real results yet, Reggie suggests that Nintendo is likely step up soon and get the job done.
In an announcement that undoubtedly involved a lot of determined strutting, intimidating glances and overt hand pyramids, Reggie Fils-Aime revealed that there are some interesting things in store for DS owners this year. Speaking at the D.I.C.E. conference in Las Vegas, the name-taking, ass-kicking Nintendo marketing machine revealed that the ridiculously popular handheld would soon be privy to features more often associated with a Microsoft console--downloadable demos and online voice chat.
As of next month, Nintendo will be placing Wi-Fi kiosks in retail locations all across the United States for the sole purpose of wirelessly providing gamers with demos and other content. When you're within range of these kiosks, all you have to do is open up your DS, hit "DS Download Play" and start downloading the goodness. Unfortunately, due to the lack of any permanent personal storage, you can only test out one game at a time. The data will also disappear as soon as you switch the system off. It would probably be a good idea to make use of the DS' sleep mode if you want to take something home with you and amaze your parents / siblings / pets / captors. The initial batch of demos include Mario Kart DS, Meteos, True Swing Golf, Pokemon Trozei, Tetris DS and Brain Age.
The Reggie also discussed the upcoming and highly anticipated Metroid Prime: Hunters. The game's online mode will support voice chat, allowing players to discuss matches, arrange settings and offer advice, all in a completely curteous manner. Or not. Brace yourself for a glut of trash-talking, n00bzor.
Our level of anticipation for Metroid Prime: Hunters, Nintendo's forthcoming first-person blasting, bounty hunting, morph-balling, Wi-Fi connecting, pad jumping, pirate bashing extravaganza, is clearly reeling out of control. When we're not scouring the Internet for tasty globules of information, we're subliminally influencing others to do it for us. Naturally, we were quite pleased to be pointed in the direction of an article written by the ever-grimacing NOA_Andy over at Nintendo's website.
It details some of his experiences with beta testing Hunters over the Wi-Fi connection service and, perhaps unsurprisingly given his involvement with Nintendo, all of them are good. The lobby system is said to be greatly improved over that of Mario Kart DS, allowing the user to choose when to stop searching for opponents and when to actually start playing. The issue of lag didn't come up either, though given the small scale of the test, it may yet to come back to haunt us when the game launches towards the end of March.
Things sound promising, but we're still quite interested in seeing more of the game's single-player side. Actually, let's turn that into a question: Are you buying the game primarily for Wi-Fi play, or do you want a strong solo experience too?
Ubisoft announced today that it will publish a new RPG called LostMagic for the Nintendo DS. From the article: "... gamers wield the handheld's stylus like a wand, using the touch-sensitive screen to 'draw' spells. By etching out certain patterns, players will cast different in-game spells... [LostMagic] will also feature a Wi-Fi multiplayer mode..."
The title is set for a Q2 release in both North America and Europe. But what if you suck at drawing?
The fine folks at Siliconera have posted a playtest of Sega and Treasure's Bleach DS: Souten ni Kakeru Unmei, a 2D fighting game based on the hugely popular anime. But really, we should have had your attention at "Treasure". As previous classics like Dynamite Heddy (that final boss still gives us nightmares), Silhouette Mirage and Astro Boy: Omega Factor have proven, Treasure is a developer that just knows how to do 2D games right.
The review in question seems to indicate that they haven't yet lost their touch, as the game features a solid fighting engine and relatively smooth online play through Nintendo's Wif-Fi service (it's the first Japanese 3rd-party title to do so). Also worth mentioning is the game's intriguing card system. At any point during the battle, you can select a card from a customizable deck on the bottom screen and temporarily influence the battle above, be it via an instant attack boost or disabling some of your opponent's moves. However, the article makes no mention of how difficult it is to use the touch screen in the midst of battle. We imagine that rapidly pressing face buttons and making selections on the screen at the same time may require an extra limb or two.
Still, it seems unlikely that fans of the show will be disappointed by the large character roster and the beautiful artwork. Siliconera notes that the level of Japanese understanding required to enjoy the game isn't too high and so, given that it doesn't look like the game is getting picked up for US release within the conceivable future, you're best off with importing it. It'll certainly go nicely with that Bleach themed Nintendo DS you stole in a daring heist last month.
[Update: Added another instance of the word "Japanese".]
As if those vile tulips weren't content with terrorizing the innocent population of Amsterdam, they've now spread to the wild world of Animal Crossing on the DS. Some unfortunate virtual villagers mistakenly thought they were receiving a wonderful new gift from Nintendo today, only to be pricked by the thorn amongst the "Red Tulips". If you receive a gift marked as such, pawn it off on Tom Nook right away.
That way, he'll be the one forced to deal with the weird glitch that comes attached with the gift. Placing it inside your humble abode will actually cause it to create an invisible and immobile piece of furniture and prevent you from using that space for anything else. Don't drop the item inside your house or even outside (it'll plant itself as a tree sprout) and be wary of visitors of your town that come bearing suspicious gifts. You don't want them dropping these evil, invisible tulips all over the place, now do you?
According to 4 Color Rebellion, the glitch comes from an unfinished letter that was accidentally sent out by Nintendo. Apparently, they've already stopped the letter from going out anymore and are looking at a fix for those that were affected. Check out some video proof of the glitch over here. Get revenge by going outside and stomping on your mom's flowers.
Wow, the homebrew community is steamrolling their way through DS features this month. In fact, they've already examined said steamroller, disassembled it and converted into a much a more useful helicopter that drops Wi-Fi enabled cinder blocks on targets selected from your DS screen. Probably.
So, we've seen the wardriving and the wireless games controllers, but how about the remote desktop viewers? Using the PointyRemote homebrew application, you can view your computer's desktop on your DS screen and, of course, operate your programs with the touch screen and the stylus. Essentially, your DS will display whatever's on your computer monitor at the time and it will allow you to click on icons, enter text and even zoom in on parts of the screen. We rather like the idea of playing some music on your PC, sitting back on the couch and adjusting the volume or skipping through tracks using our trusty portable. Note that the link takes you to some jargon-heavy pages, so if you're unfamiliar with homebrew in general, we've got just the place to get you started.
Next, could somebody from the homebrew community get started on a DS that controls minds? That would be great, thanks.
The Nintendo DS has hit 3 million online users in the UK. From the article: "The service now has over three million players online, according to Yarnton, continuing the phenomenal success which was first indicated when almost 50 per cent of US purchasers of Mario Kart DS used the online service in the first week of availability."
We can't think of any place that wouldn't appreciate free online gameplay.
Yes, the DS Fanboys of the world continue to innovate. Hot on the heels of transforming the DS into a wireless PC game controller, the community is using the chameleon-like DS as a Wifi scanner (and using the exact same application they did for turning it into a PC gamepad).
TheYak comes through again with the details via the 3DGPU community forums: "I've idly used my Nintendo DS to look for hotspots with its limited WFC applications, but have wanted a more dedicated scanning application for awhile. Enter DS2Key - It's actually more of a wireless gamepad emulator so you can remotely control games and applications on your PC with your DS. Having some glitches in getting it set up, I checked out its 'Wardriving' section... it quite adeptly displayed signal strengths, WEP status, MAC addresses and SSID's for 6 networks around me. My wi-fi adapters only ever came up with 3. Usefulness? Checking signal strengths (it auto-refreshes) for your networks, looking for DS hotspots for on-line play. Homebrew stuff just keeps getting cooler."
Is the South Korean MMORPG, Ragnarok Online, on its way to the DS? That's the question being asked over at the official Nintendo forums, as new scans from a Japanese mag have surfaced and seem to indicate that yet another online RPG may soon be joining the expansive DS games library.
Though there's nothing shockingly original about Ragnarok Online, what with its high abundance of fantasy landscapes and pointy hats, it's hard to deny the appeal of a fully fledged MorePeeGee in portable format. Of course, with the current status of Nintendo's Wi-Fi service, one has to wonder what sort of monthly costs would be involved and how things such as content expansions (perhaps via the GBA slot) and server switches would be handled. For all we know, this potential version of Ragnarok may be greatly simplified - cooperatively online as opposed to massively online.
Does the idea of a MMORPG on the DS excite you, or do you simply flee in terror when faced with so many capital letters at once?
Being the die-hard romantics that we are, it's unclear how we managed to miss Nintendo's little Valentine's gift to the residents of Animal Crossing: Wild World. Upon connecting to the Wi-Fi network, you should receive a letter from "Your friendo, Nintendo" along with a "Lovely Loveseat" item for your home. How lovely--be sure to lovingly put it in a lovely spot so as to lovingly convey the loveliness of your lovely home (which is brimming with lovingly lovely love.)
A while back we asked you to tell us 
According to the guys over at Cubed3, Reggie Fils-Aime recently dropped some hints in an EGM interview regarding potential web browsing functionality for the DS. With so many online pieces already in place, it's quite surprising that Nintendo hasn't put more effort into getting the necessary software out. Supposedly, a third-party initially expressed interest in providing a browser and Nintendo thought it best to step back and give them free reign. However, with no real results yet, Reggie suggests that Nintendo is likely step up soon and get the job done.
In an announcement that undoubtedly involved a lot of determined strutting, intimidating glances and overt hand pyramids, Reggie Fils-Aime revealed that there are some interesting things in store for DS owners this year. Speaking at the D.I.C.E. conference in Las Vegas, the name-taking, ass-kicking Nintendo marketing machine revealed that the ridiculously popular handheld would soon be privy to features more often associated with a Microsoft console--downloadable demos and online voice chat.
Our level of anticipation for 
Ubisoft announced today that it will publish a new RPG called 
The fine folks at Siliconera have posted a playtest of Sega and Treasure's Bleach DS: Souten ni Kakeru Unmei, a 2D fighting game based on the hugely popular anime. But really, we should have had your attention at "Treasure". As previous classics like Dynamite Heddy (that final boss still gives us nightmares), Silhouette Mirage and Astro Boy: Omega Factor have proven, Treasure is a developer that just knows how to do 2D games right.
As if those vile tulips weren't content with terrorizing the innocent population of Amsterdam, they've now spread to the wild world of Animal Crossing on the DS. Some unfortunate virtual villagers mistakenly thought they were receiving a wonderful new gift from Nintendo today, only to be pricked by the thorn amongst the "Red Tulips". If you receive a gift marked as such, pawn it off on Tom Nook right away.
Wow, the homebrew community is steamrolling their way through DS features this month. In fact, they've already examined said steamroller, disassembled it and converted into a much a more useful helicopter that drops Wi-Fi enabled cinder blocks on targets selected from your DS screen. Probably.
The Nintendo DS has hit 3 million online users in the UK. From the article: "The service now has over three million players online, according to Yarnton, continuing the phenomenal success which was first indicated when almost 50 per cent of US purchasers of Mario Kart DS used the online service in the first week of availability."
Yes, the DS Fanboys of the world continue to innovate. Hot on the heels of 
Is the South Korean MMORPG, Ragnarok Online, on its way to the DS? That's the question being asked over at the official Nintendo forums, as new scans from a Japanese mag have surfaced and seem to indicate that yet 
