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The April Nintendo Direct presentation just ended, and you can check out the full video here. But if you just want the highlights, you’ve come to the right place!
Nintendo came out guns blazing this morning, with a slew of new announcements and reveals. While this Direct focused mainly on Nintendo 3DS, there were a few Wii U announcements thrown into the mix as well. We’ll recap the big 3DS announcements here.
In the way of game announcements, we had several reveals for 3DS this morning. Perhaps the largest reveals were of the new Legend of Zelda and Yoshi’s Island games for 3DS. You can check out our full stories for those games.
A new Mario Party title was also revealed. The game has no official title or release date, but it is slated for a winter 2013. The game will feature 7 new boards, each with their own unique rules. For instance, one board will focus on cooperation, while another will revolve around using items. It looks to be a fresh change of pace for a series that is now on its twelfth entry (counting the Game Boy Advance and DS parties).
Also revealed was the online component of Mario Golf: World Tour. While Iwata gave no date for the game and indicated that “there is still some time” before release, he did confirm that the game’s title will refer to its online capabilities. Players will be able to golf with others around the globe simultaneously.
Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D is dropping on May 24. The game will have the “New Mode” feature which tweaks the difficulty and adds helpful items that can protect DK and Diddy from certain doom. Of course, the tough as nails version from the Wii game is also available for skilled players. An all new world is also being added to the game so players of the Wii version can have something more to play.
Other previously known 3DS titles were also given solid release dates. Mario & Luigi: Dream Team is coming on August 11 for retail and eShop. Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move is coming to the 3DS eShop on May 9. Shin Megami Tensei IV is arriving from Atlus on July 16, and every copy of the game’s initial shipment will include a soundtrack, strategy & art book, and a limited slipcover.
A new 3DS XL bundle is also coming on June 9 alongside Animal Crossing: New Leaf. The bundle will include a brand new Animal Crossing themed Nintendo 3DS XL system with a digital copy of New Leaf. The bundle will retail for MSRP $219.99 in North America.
We also received a trio of new games, which will be coming from Level-5 to the Nintendo 3DS eShop. First is The Starship Damrey, an atmospheric sci-fi horror game that will provide players with no tutorials or instructions. Next is Bugs vs. Tanks! from Mega Man creator Keiji Inafune, a game which is just what it sounds like– tanks shooting bugs. Last, there is the intriguing Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale, which takes place in a village where Japanese heroes and kaiju from the 70s come to life every Friday. The three Level-5 games have no release dates yet.
To finish off the exhaustive list of 3DS announcements, Nintendo confirmed the localization of two 3DS games that have been released in Japan. Bravely Default from Square-Enix is coming in 2014. Professor Layton and Azran Legacy is also coming in 2014 to wrap up the latest Layton saga.
Phew! What a lineup! 2013 is truly an exciting year to be a Nintendo 3DS owner.
