The DS demo section of the Nintendo Channel is usually swamped with bland Touch! Generations fare, but it now looks like Nintendo has abandoned that policy to bring us some potentially interesting games to try out. What a novel concept! Top of your "to download" list (if you haven't already bought it) should be Lock's Quest, 5th Cell's ace tower defense/real-time strategy, which reviewers have been throwing superlatives at from every direction (stay tuned for our review later this week).
Spore Creatures is there also, and while it may not have attracted the same loving critical response as Lock's Quest, it still piques our curiosity, simply because it's not the Spore everybody else has been banging the drum for. There's a demo of MySims Kingdom as well, which looks adorable, and an anagrams demo for sdrsorsCwo SD. These all expire October 5th, so don't delay!
With the ability to download demos through the Nintendo Channel, we've definitely been hit with more lows than highs. Demos are often repeated and we haven't seen a lot of third party titles available in demo form. Nintendo has kept the same roster of demos available week after week, but where's the variety? Where are the new demos each week?
What would you like to be able to test drive? A game already released? A new upcoming game? What demo are you dreaming of?
While it's likely to be the same demo featured before (meaning there's no paddle support), it doesn't deserve to be ignored. Those of you who didn't check out Taito's revival of the classic on the DS should be heading over to your Wii (or, if you fail to own one, a friend's house) to give the demo a download now. Seriously, we thought it was a pretty decent game.
Head past the break for the details on all of the demos available this week.
DS demo updates on the Nintendo Channel often get a disappointed reaction from us, but this week's batch does contain at least one interesting addition: Sonic Powered's Air Traffic Chaos, as localized (complete with generic and terrible boxart) by Majesco. At the very least, we're hopeful that the game can replicate the frenzied, panicked pace of a Trauma Center game.
The rest of this week's update is fairly humdrum, consisting of a Crosswords DS wordsearch, a Pictoimage demo, and a chance to try out Carnival Games, which has stuck around like a bad smell. The full list of both old and new demos is past the break!
For people longing to play new demos via the Nintendo Channel, the frustration continues. All we saw on the channel today was the return of two demos that we never really missed in the first place (we're looking at you, Carnival Games and Crosswords DS Wordsearch).
Nintendo also extended the availability dates on three of the existing demos, probably because offering three new ones would have been too satisfying (/bitter). The good news is, you have another week to try out Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2 and Contra 4 if you haven't done so already.
Click past the break to see yet another underwhelming list of demos.
Those of you interested in Rhythm Heaven have probably already read JC's impressions jealously -- though if you're neither interested in the game nor spent the time to read about it, shame on you.
All you sane-minded folks don't have to be too jealous of "Lucky Dog Fletcher" anymore, though. The video above shows the exact demo that he got to try during E3, only it's in Japanese. Sure, that's not quite the equivalent of playing the game, but it's enough to make us squeal all the same. (We rhymed, so it must be true.)
Go on now and watch the video above to see extended play of the Assembly Line, Robot Gallery, and Chorus musical microgames.
For those of you looking to play something brand new this week, you're out of luck. Instead, Nintendo offers us a chance to catch up with some demos me might have missed in the past, allowing folks to download these up until next week. So, if you missed out last time, get on it!
We missed an awful lot of homebrew news this past week, what with the E3 Media & Business Summit demanding our complete attention, but we intend to amend all that over the next couple of days. First on our list: The Sonic 3D game project (no relation to the Sega hedgehog).
It's difficult enough for commercial developers to create a decent looking 3D game for the DS, imagine the challenges that come with homemade project! Admitting that he's neither an animator or artist, programmer Ritz used textures and model data from BioWare PC RPG Neverwinter Nights to put together this demo. Despite the distance fog, we're impressed with the smooth animation and the maneuverable camera!
According to Ritz, Sonic's features include skeletal animation, static and dynamic point lights, shadow volumes, skyboxes, picking, gravity, and object and environment collision detection. He also hopes to eventually include an "interactive 3d map builder for easy world creation and object and creature placement." Slick!
With Trauma Center 2 and Contra 4 on the Nintendo Channel's demos list, you may wonder why exactly we're unimpressed. Perhaps it's because there's nothing new offered this week, unless you count the reappearance of certain demos on the list as "new." We don't.
To see why we're thoroughly uninspired, check past the break for the full list of "been there, done that" demos.
It's Monday, which means the Wii's Nintendo Channel is due to unleash some new DS demos for us to enjoy. Following last week's offerings isn't easy, that's for sure. Actually, it might be impossible. We're talking about one of the most awesome DS games available, after all.
So what's available this week? Head on past the break for the details.
Despite the success, don't bet on more DS Lite models being released anytime soon. "There are now seven different DS colours available, so we have no plans to release more colours at this time," said a Nintendo spokesperson. The new download centers, however, will be rolling out in a "steady and consistent manner," so expect new demos on a regular basis.
It's Monday, again. Usually, we'd frown and mope about all day, what with it being the beginning of another week of tirelessly blogging and all, but Mondays are turning into more of a celebration for us. We get new gaming content every week on this day!
Nintendo has updated the Everyone's Nintendo Channel on the Wii to include some sweet demos this week, so if you're in the mood for something new to play, you'll find it here. Aside from last week's demos, you'll also find several new ones. Head on past the break for the list of new demos available.
In one of the oddest gaming tie-ins we've heard of since the glorious days of Yo! Noid, Koei and Coca-Cola have announced a cross-promotion between Kunitori Zunou Battle Nobunaga no Yabou (Domination Battle of the Brains: Nobunaga's Ambition) and ... some kind of Coca-Cola-branded green tea.
We've not the foggiest how the two products are related (we find it difficult to imagine Sengoku period warlords indulging in some green tea-sipping action), but the deal did give us a chance to sample the game through the promotional site that's been set up (scroll down and click on the white box to get things rolling). It looks and plays very nicely, so give it a go!
Famitsu also mentions that 100 Japan-based players who try the demo will randomly be chosen to win a six-pack of Coca-Cola's green tea. Alas, it's not the most import-friendly of games, so even if we did reside in Japan, it looks like we'd be purchasing our green tea supplies like everyone else who doesn't have the knack for turn-based strategy.
[Update: Corrected minor details regarding brand of green tea and prize.]
If you neglected to pick up Super Dodge Ball Brawlers two weeks ago -- and we suspect you did, considering how few people are talking about the game -- you can still terrorize playgrounds with River City Dodge Ball All Stars!!
Developed by doujin groups Miracle Kidz and Downtown7 (along with Famicom Kunio series creators Yoshimitsu Yoshida and Mokeke Sekimoto), this PC title was actually released several months ago in Japan, but the demo is still worth downloading and playing. Plus, there's an English version of the trial!
The game doesn't suffer from the slow pace many have complained about with the DS release, and it even offers two speeds -- Normal and Retro. River City Dodge Ball All Stars!! doesn't, however, include some of the cool features introduced in Super Dodge Ball Brawlers, like the equipment shop, throwable items on the field, and the 8-player local wireless brawl mode.
As its title suggests, the PC game comes with the added bonus of a roster filled with recognizable names from the River City Ransom cast! Smack people in the face as end-boss Slick! Dodge super shots as Zombies gang member Turk! Wear panties on your head as, uh, Panty!
Nintendo is taking the whole portable connectivity concept one step further in the UK, with 33 brand-spankin' new DS Centers installed at various retailers. There used to be a bunch of creaky old "Download Stations" dotted about the place, but these latest models outstript the dated machines with their sleek superiority and high levels of rad.
The official website has launched, where you can learn what these white towers of fun can do for you and your DS. We love making generalizations around here, so we'll assume every UK citizen lives in a quaint little cottage in the countryside, always having scones and raspberry jam for tea. If you want to try one of these DS Centers, you'll need to crank up your old Reliant Robin and pop down to the local big-shot retailer to bust out some Wi-Fi fun.
These centers are a pretty good way to physically show UK gamers that their DS can do more than sit unloved at the bottom of a bag while waiting around for the next Coronation Street house party. You can download the latest demos, try a game you may have missed, and even get global with a worldwide network of DS players. It'll be just as fun as downing a pint at the Rub-A-Dub, right lads?
The DS demo section of the Nintendo Channel is usually swamped with bland Touch! Generations fare, but it now looks like Nintendo has abandoned that policy to bring us some potentially interesting games to try out. What a novel concept! Top of your "to download" list (if you haven't already bought it) should be Lock's Quest, 5th Cell's ace tower defense/real-time strategy, which reviewers have been throwing superlatives at from every direction (stay tuned for our review later this week).
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