Earthbound!!!

So, after a shock Earthbound reveal and Nintendo Direct Mini, here's your Nintendo Download update, North America. We have a good idea what many of you will be downloading right away, but there are some other tempting goodies on the way to both Wii U and 3DS, so let's get to it.

Wii U Virtual Console

Earthbound (Nintendo, $9.99) — Deep breaths everyone, Earthbound is available now. It's had a passionate following demanding its Virtual Console release since the service began on the Wii, but supposed licensing issues seemingly prevented it from arriving on the service. Announced earlier this year with much fanfare it makes a surprise appearance this week, delighting many retro gamers even if it does come in above the standard SNES price band; Europeans, it's also waiting for you in the Wii U eShop. We'll work on a review of this Wii U Virtual Console release very soon.

Wii U Retail Download

The Smurfs 2 (Ubisoft, $39.99) — Available from 23rd July.

Wii U eShop Temporary Discount

Puddle (Neko Entertainment, $4.49 until 1st August, normally $7.99)

3DS eShop

Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale (Level-5, $7.99) — Possibly the most intriguing of the Guild02 titles coming to the eShop, this is a mystery title that'll likely focus on exploration and storytelling above all-else. Has Level-5 saved the best for last in this series? We'll work on a review to let you know.

Robot Rescue 3D (Teyon, $2.99) — The third entry in this puzzle series from Teyon, and the first on 3DS, previous titles have offered tough puzzles at a budget price. This is apparently a MEGA pack of content with some levels from the DSiWare releases alongside new additions; we'll wrap our head around moving multiple robots at once and bring you a review.

Undead Bowling (G-Style, $6.99) — So it's a zombie apocalypse, you find the nearest weapon and shoot your way to safety, right? Wrong, you use dangerous customised bowling balls and put your ten-pin skills to the test, at least you do in G-Style's End of Days scenario. We'll see whether this bowls us over in our upcoming review.

3DS Virtual Console

Shantae (WayForward, $4.99) — Happy news for all as, after a bit of a delay from its original release date, this Game Boy Color title from WayForward finally arrives. The action / platformer / exploration game, where hair is a very useful weapon, has been on a number of wishlists, especially as DSiWare sequel Shantae: Risky's Revenge was one of the best and most popular games on the service. We'll be whipping our hair back and forth to bring you a review, soon.

3DS eShop Demos

The Denpa Men 2: Beyond the Waves (Genius Sonority, free)

Undead Bowling (G-Style, free)


So, a relatively small number of downloads, but nevertheless a lineup with blockbuster qualities. Let us know what you'll be downloading in the poll and comments below.

What will you be downloading first this week? (443 votes)

  1. Earthbound (Wii U Virtual Console)60%
  2. The Smurfs 2 (Wii U retail download)  0%
  3. Puddle (Wii U eShop discount)1%
  4. Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale (3DS eShop)8%
  5. Robot Rescue 3D (3DS eShop)1%
  6. Undead Bowling (3DS eShop)1%
  7. Shantae (3DS Virtual Console)14%
  8. Just a free demo or two for me8%
  9. Nothing for me this week8%

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