Thursday, May 31, 2007

5/31 Thought of the Day: Brawl Predictions



Today's Thought of the Day will be about my most anticipated game: Super Smash Bros. Brawl. I'm going to predict the release date, some characters, the controls, and more. Well, as you know, Nintendo's "Big Three", which are Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and Super Mario Galaxy, are all scheduled for release this year. Metroid comes out on August 20th, leaving September to December open for Brawl and Mario. My guess is that Super Smash Bros. Brawl will release in October, particularly late October, and Super Mario Galaxy will release in December. The reason for that is that Brawl is said to feel very complete, and so I think it will release before Super Mario Galaxy does. I also think that Nintendo will want to space out the releases of their "Big Three" games this year, and so I think 2 months in between each game is enough of a gap. When will we find out the actual release date? My guess is at E3.

As for the characters, the confirmed characters so far are Mario, Link, Kirby, Pikachu, Samus/Zero Suit Samus, Snake, Wario, Metaknight, Pit, and Fox. I doubt they would take out any of the original starters from Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 64, so I'm almost 100% sure Donkey Kong and Yoshi will appear. Scenes of Yoshi's stage have also been shown in a trailer for Brawl. Sakurai has stated that some characters will not be returning, and I'm pretty sure those characters not returning will be clones. I think that these characters will also be in Brawl: Bowser, Captain Falcon, Ice Climbers, Jigglypuff, Luigi, Marth, Mr. Game & Watch, Ness, Peach, and Zelda/Sheik. As for the other characters from Melee that I didn't mention, I think they either will get new moves or won't be in Brawl.

As for newcomers, there are a few series that I think will have a presence in Brawl. One of them is Animal Crossing. You can't deny the success the series has had, and so far, they've only been shown in a trophy or two in Melee. I think that either an item or a character from Animal Crossing will be in Brawl. If it was a character, I would have to say it would be either be Tom Nook, Mr. Resetti, or K.K. Slider. We know there will be a few third party characters added besides the already announced Snake from Konami. If I had to guess, I would say SEGA will be represented by Sonic. I also think the following are likely: Mega Man (Capcom), Pac-Man (Namco), and Bomberman (Hudson).

As for new items and stages, I'm not sure on exactly what they would pick, but I'm sure that almost all, if not all, of the items will return from Melee. We already know of the Gooey Bomb, the Cracker Launcher, and the Smash Ball. I'm sure we'll get plenty more new items and new stages. As for returning stages from Melee, I would have to guess that Hyrule Temple, Green Greens, and a few others will return, along with one or two stages from Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 64.

Lastly, I will discuss the controls. This has been of much debate lately. First, I'll tell you what we know. Sakurai has said not to throw away our Gamecube controllers just yet. Also, the Brawl site has a picture of a Wii Remote sideways as the control icon. Today, with the debut of the news of the Cracker Launcher item, the control stick is mentioned. From all of these facts, I would have to guess that three different control options will be allowed. I think that we will be able to choose from the Wii Remote/Nunchuk, Classic Controller, and the Gamecube Controller. Sakurai has said there will be no motion sensing in the main game, and even with that, the Wii Remote/Nunchuk combo could work. It probably won't be that great, but it could still work. I think I'll probably be using the Gamecube controller, and maybe buy a Classic controller.

Anyways, that's it for my predictions. I really like the new updates every weekday. It gives me something to look forward to everyday, except weekends. Another new update tomorrow. One last prediction. If I had to guess about the update tomorrow, I would say it's a character update, maybe a Final Smash update, a special attack update, or a character profile. Either way, I think it'll be old info, except for new screens. We've been getting new things a lot lately, so I think we'll be getting something old. Hey, maybe I'll be surprised and we'll get new stuff. That's all for now. I hope you enjoyed my predictions. Please post your own predictions as comments!

Brando Gun Shell

Nintendo showed us the prototype of their Zapper Attachment at E3, but we have yet to hear more about it. A couple of 3rd parties have been working on gun attachments, and this one is by far one of the best I've seen. It's made by Brandon, and costs $17. Here are some pictures:







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Upcoming Japanese Virtual Console Releases: 6/5

These games are coming out on the Japanese Virtual Console on June 5th:

Adventures of Lolo (NES)
Front Line (NES)
Golden Axe 2 (Genesis)
The Kung Fu (TG-16)

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Harry Potter Theme Park Announced


Ok, so it's not Nintendo news, but it's still big news and I'm also a big Harry Potter fan. I'm sure all of you will find this interesting. This morning, Universal Studios and Warner Brothers made a joint announcement: a Harry Potter theme park is coming. Here's what MuggleNet has revealed:

- "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando Resort"
- Announcement was made live via internet at 12:01 AM EST today to select media, including MuggleNet.
- Areas of park to include Hogsmeade, Hogwarts Castle, and the Forbidden Forest.
- 20 engineers working on project.
- Universal came to WB looking for authenticity.
- Potter park to be built in "Islands of Adventure" area of Universal.
- Stuart wants to "take his grandchildren" to the park.
- Opening early 2010.
- Universal's Potter website to be available at this link soon.
- JK Rowling has been involved "since the very beginning" of the project. Also "supportive and encouraging."
- Stuart thinks that the park will be better off in the United States.
- Have been in design "for at least a year and a half."
- "Important that the theme park represents the entire saga from Book 1 to Book 7"

And now for the Concept Art. Here's one for Hogwarts:


Hogsmeade:



Owl's View of Park:


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Cracker Launcher: Super Smash Bros. Dojo 5/31 Update

Awesome update from the Dojo site today. We have a new item for Super Smash Bros. Brawl! It's called the Cracker Launcher. Basically, once you grab the item, it'll start shooting out fireworks. You can walk around and jump while holding it too. You can also aim it at different angle by tilting the control stick up or down. Here are the pictures:







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Wednesday, May 30, 2007

The End of Day 1

And now, Day 1 of the NES Online blog has passed. I just wanted to let you guys know that I may be testing things over the next few days, so if anything weird happens, don't worry. I hope you liked what I had so far. I'll be posting news stories, a thought of the day, and a video and song every week. If you guys have any particular requests or suggestions, you can email me. Don't forget to check out the forums if you haven't already!

Nintendo DS Wi-Fi Connection Grows Even Bigger

Currently, there are loads of titles for the Nintendo DS that are wi-fi capable. Among them are Mario Kart DS, Animal Crossing: Wild World, Metroid Prime: Hunters, and the newly released Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl. Because of all of those wi-fi games that are out, tons of people have connected online to race, battle, chat, and more. Today, Nintendo has announced that 2 new milestones have been reached:

1. More than 5 Million different users have played online using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection on Nintendo DS
2. More than 200 Million gaming sessions have been held online

Many people complain that Nintendo is behind on the online scene, and I would agree with them, but they're not as far behind as people think. These numbers show that Nintendo's online service is working for people, despite its flaws. The top 5 online games are the ones I listed above, which honestly was a complete guess from me. I just now read that part on IGN.

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How Hot is Your Wii?

Total Console has created a mod for the Wii, one that seems absurd, but honestly, looks really cool. Total Console's description is this: The ii Case HOT ROCK CASE is a new innovation in case modding technology. With a built in Digital LED thermometer, the HOT ROCK CASE is able to alert the user by changing the LED color when the Wii console reaches certain temperatures. Color changes takes place in 5 degree increments. For example, if your Wii console’s temperature reaches over 55 degree Celsius, the LED will display “RED” and flashing This will alert the user to turn off the console and check for problems.

It ships next week and the pricing details are coming soon. But for now, check out the absurd but awesome pictures:


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What Virtual Console Titles Have You Downloaded?

I've downloaded 7 total: Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong Country, Kirby's Adventure, Mario Kart 64, Sonic the Hedgehog, Toe Jam & Earl, and Bomberman '93. Once I get more Wii Points, I plan on downloading Starfox, and I'm also waiting for Paper Mario. What have you downloaded?

Song of the Week (5/27 - 6/2): Pokemon Diamond and Pearl Opening Demo

To start of the Song of the Week, I'm going to be posting songs from Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. First up is the Pokemon Diamond and Pearl Opening Demo. Enjoy!

Video of the Week (5/27 - 6/2): Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree Trailer

The game is coming June 11th, and that's pretty soon, so for the video of the week, check out the Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree trailer.

Ubisoft Apologizes


Well, Ubisoft has issued an apology. What for? For their crappy games, apparently. The CEO of Ubisoft, Yves Guillemot, said, "We made mistakes." They are apologizing for the lack of quality of the Wii titles they've released, and that is due to rushing to get them out in time for launch and soon after. For those that don't know, Ubisoft has released Far Cry: Vengeance, GT Pro Series, Monster 4x4 World Circuit, Open Season, Prince of Persia: Rival Swords, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Red Steel, and Splinter Cell: Double Agent. They've promised to not sacrifice the quality of a game to release it earlier. And I sure hope they don't, with Rayman Raving Rabbids 2, Red Steel 2, and more coming soon.

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Cheap Component Cables and Wii Remote Charger


Still looking for component cables for Wii? Still looking for a Wii Remote charger? How about both? Sam's Club is selling a pack of Nyko component cables and a Wii Remote charger (for two wii remotes, it looks like) for only $34. If I had money, I'd be over there right away. I need component cables for when I hook my Wii up to my projector and a charger for my Wii Remotes would be nice.

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5/30 Thought of the Day: Nintendo ON


I'm going to be doing a special Thought of the Day post everyday, or rather, I'll try to do one everyday. For the first Thought of the Day, I'm going to be talking about Nintendo ON. Many of you were there when all we knew about the console was its codename: Revolution. But what kind of revolution was it? There were crazy ideas out there. Here's someone's idea of the system:


Those pictures suggest that maybe the big revolution was gyro sensors. That seemed to be a popular idea at the time. But out of all the fakes pictures and videos made, there was one video that will live in legend. A few days before E3 2005, a supposed leak happened, and a video presentation of Nintendo's new console was spread upon the internet: Nintendo ON. The Video was incredible detailed. It couldn't be fake, why would someone spend so much time on something like this just to fool some people? Pablo Belmonte would do it, and I'm glad he did. It may not be real, but it provides a glimpse at what could be the future of Nintendo. It's a fanboy's dream and Nintendo ON was the ultimate fan-made video. And not only that but he did it in 5 days. 1UP's review of the Nintendo ON video and Pablo provides great insight into the legendary revolution that is Nintendo ON.

Moving and Shooting: Super Smash Bros. Dojo 5/30 Update

I'll start the posts on the NES Online blog with a post about today's update. In this update, we learn that the Super Scope is returning, which is cool. That item is loads of fun. But, the update's main purpose is to tell us about a new feature: moving and shooting. That's right, we are now able to walk and jump and still shoot, unlike before. Very interesting... I can't wait to see how it all plays out later. Anyways, here's some pics of the Super Scope and the moving and shooting in action:






Let Project: BLOG begin

Those of you reading this are most likely from the NES Online forums. I take it then that you know of the expansion of NES Online to include this blog. I hope this blog will be a very useful source of information in the future for you. Please feel free to leave comments. Long live Nintendo!