Nintendo Drums up Pre-E3 Press

• Scribbled on June 25th, 2008 by Jonathon Howard
• Filed in Casual Gaming, E3, Nintendo DS, Nintendo Wii, Platformer, Press Release, Release Date(s), Sports

Nintendo has decided, probably to avoid having their games lost in the news glut of E3, to announce new releases, beforehand. Today, the company released a statement to the press announcing a quartet of titles.

For the DS, we have a new Kirby side-scrolling adventure aptly titled, Kirby Super Star Ultra, which the press release calls a “re-imagining” of the series and its iconic ball of… I don’t know what Kirby is. New mini-games, new challenges and the ability to play with friends through the DS’ wireless system will all be yours on September 29. The other title, Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir is a find the hidden object book (remember “Where’s Waldo”?). Nintendo is trying really hard to make this game sound exciting, and apparently there is an entire series of these games by Big Fish Games, first I’ve ever heard though. Mystery Case Files comes out in the beginning of September.

The new title for the Wii is the new Wario game, Wario Land: Shake It! It’s a traditional side-scrolling adventure. It’s so traditional that you’ll be using your Wiimote just as you used your original Nintendo controller. Expect gameplay to be reminiscent of Super Mario Bros. 3 and New Super Mario Bros.: separate stages which can be revisited to collect additional coins, and unlocking secrets. Players will be able to shake their controllers to defeat enemies and gather loot. The Wario titles on the original Gameboy were some of my favorite, while I like WarioWare, I’m happy to see Mario’s evil twin back in a platformer where I can run, crush, and stomp my way to hordes of treasure. Wario Land: Shake It! is slated for a September 29 release. The other game is Mario Super Sluggers, launching Aug. 25 for the Wii console, which is one of the ongoing series of Mario sports titles, like Super Strikers and Tennis and so on, except this one is, of course, baseball.

Click “Read more…” for the full press release.

(Thanks, Business Wire.)

Nintendo’s Wario, Kirby Bring the Fun; Sleuths Get a New Mystery Case Files Game

REDMOND, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–While the game world awaits the E³ Media & Business Summit in Los Angeles next month, Nintendo isn’t waiting to announce new titles for its mushrooming libraries for the Wii^™ console and Nintendo DS^™. Classic Nintendo characters like bad-boy Wario^™ and pink powerhouse Kirby^® will star in their own platform games. A new Mystery Case Files^™ game brings the best-selling Big Fish Games franchise to Nintendo DS for the first time. These games join the recently announced Mario^™ Super Sluggers baseball game for the Wii console.

“Nintendo’s game libraries continue to grow at a rapid pace,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “Wario stars in a great new platformer, Kirby enthusiasts get an updated version of a fan favorite, there’s a new mystery for Mystery Case Files aficionados and baseball gets a few new Mario-style twists.”

Wario Land^™: Shake It!, a classic side-scroller for the Wii console launching Sept. 29, stars Wario, the smelly, bad-mannered alter ego of Mario^™. With the Wii Remote^™ controller turned sideways like an old-school controller, veterans and newcomers alike can run, jump and smash their way through hectic side-scrolling stages. Players shake the Wii Remote to help Wario take down his enemies, empty bags of treasure or cause earthquakes. Best of all, there are numerous stages each offering multiple missions to keep players coming back again and again to unlock everything, collect more coins or just improve their best times.

Kirby Super Star^™ Ultra for Nintendo DS, launching Sept. 29, re-imagines one of the most beloved Kirby games of all time. Kirby Super Star Ultra features new graphics and fully rendered animated cut scenes. With so many adventures waiting to be unlocked, there will never be a dull moment as Kirby runs, floats, copies enemies and uses Helpers to fight King Dedede and Meta Knight. New modes like Revenge of the King and Meta Knight Ultra await, along with classics like The Great Cave Offensive and Milky Way Wishes. On top of the main modes, there are also three new touch-screen-controlled mini-games that can be played with up to three friends via DS Download Play. Not only that, but players can go on Kirby adventures with a friend via local wireless as well.

Mystery Case Files^™: MillionHeir^™, launching Sept. 8, uses the unique Nintendo DS interface to expand upon the seek-and-solve game play of the popular series from Big Fish Games. Players seek out cleverly hidden items in a multitude of painted scenes. Players progress through an interactive detective story investigating a cast of characters and uncovering new evidence to find the rightful heir to a million-dollar fortune. This new portable installment is available only for Nintendo DS. With interactive logic puzzles that use both the touch-screen interface and built-in microphone and include the first ever multiplayer mode for a Mystery Case Files game, Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir presents a new generation of seek-and-solve games for casual gamers and franchise fans.

Mario^™ Super Sluggers, launching Aug. 25 for the Wii console, stars the ever-lovable Mario and his crew of friends. It builds on the social-gaming fun and movements people learned in Wii Sports^™ and turns them into a full-fledged baseball game that can be played by every member of the household. Players make a throwing motion with the Wii Remote controller to pitch the baseball and make a swinging motion to swing at the pitch. The game boasts more than 30 playable Nintendo characters and all the madness of a Mario sports game. Just like Mario Kart^® Wii, it bridges the gap between experienced players and those new to the Wii console, with fun challenges and beautiful graphics.

Remember that Wii features parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other Wii features, visit Wii.com.

For more information about these and other Nintendo products, visit Nintendo.com.

About Nintendo: The worldwide innovator in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii^™, Nintendo DS^™, Game Boy^® Advance and Nintendo GameCube^™ systems. Since 1983, Nintendo has sold more than 2.7 billion video games and more than 460 million hardware units globally, and has created industry icons like Mario^™, Donkey Kong^®, Metroid^®, Zelda^™ and Pokémon^®. 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.