I would give up an arm and a leg for the Tropical Freeze soundtrack! It's an AMAZING OST, one of the catchiest I've heard in years (I <3 you David Wise) and it's so sad that all I can get to listen to it is meh-quality rips and sometimes incomplete versions of the songs. I would give anything for it. MK8, FE:A, full Smash soundtrack, and all the others would be amazing too, but DKC:TF is top. Just bring us more soundtracks in general, Nintendo! Even if only digitally. I don't have a disc drive on my laptop anyways

Oh god no. I want to try out the demo because I'm really on the fence on whether or not I want to buy it but I have the WORST luck with Gamestop and their "no purchase necessary" promotions. They NEVER respect it and will likely tell me that I need to pre-order the game if I want the code like they did with the Pokémon codes unless they finally got nicer staff that know what they're doing. Man I hate Gamestop.

I know a bunch of people that would much rather have the standard size than the larger. Many think they still might get the XL eventually, but they are no longer in any sort of rush to want to do so because of this, showing there /IS/ demand for them and there are people that /WOULD/ rather have the smaller one than the big. I can understand it probably all comes down to specific economic decisions, but unlike other 3DS this isn't just a normal model change. From this, it sounds like Nintendo might think that the only people that will buy the smaller model are those who want to spend less money, or people of a younger age group that they'd rather target with the current 2DS stock. That is simply not the case in the slightest from what I've seen on the internet. I've heard of many people that did feed into the crowd buying the XL that have since decided the stretched out screens and larger size are not for them, for instance, and that's clearly not something interest-wise that pure sales numbers can reflect.

If Nintendo is worrying about the economic decision, I think it would be within their interests to release interest surveys to gauge actual and not ASSUMED interest in the Standard model, and go from there. That way, they know whether it is worth the risk, and can make a safer and more informed economic decision. But I doubt they'll even bring the matter up. sigh

WOW! A lot of REALLY good stuff in this direct. Wii VC FINALLY coming (now I can play Metroid Prime Trilogy like I've always wanted to! ), NEW FIRE EMBLEM, the obligatory New 3DS announcement, and of course, more great stuff on already announced games and new amiibo (with a lot of one's I am looking forward to ).
It's... really weird how NoA is doing the New 3DS, though? XL only, with the standard mysteriously not present, and in ugly Red instead of the Blue (seriously, I was REALLY banking on getting the blue one or a bundle on Smash or MM, and we got none of those except a kind of... boring MM design). I wanted to get alongside Majora's Mask after the previous leak that they would be same day but unless the MM model can particularly sell me I'm not sure if I will as I may want to wait for a better design. Seriously, who's idea was to give America that ugly red model instead of something better?
Good stuff as far as Nintendo games; disappointed as far as the New 3DS announcement details. Oh well....

Dang.... I just bought Shovel Knight a week ago with eShop money from Christmas. In fact, more like four days ago.... and I haven't even played it yet. There's no method Nintendo has for compensation for things like this, right? Dang.
Nothing for me this week. I have five bucks left in my eShop from my last Digital Deluxe code and will probably buy the Pikmin movies or something with it.

I main Diddy Kong, and honestly, I kind of want him nerfed just so people will stop giving me flack for maining him and using him to decent potential

No, really..... I've gotten some (indirect) flack from it, such as people getting really ragey at Diddy mains and insulting them as cheap and what not, and I'm probably one of the few that just main him out of love for the character (he's always been my favorite Nintendo character alongside Kirby. ) "No fun allowed" as people would say.

I use the down throw to aerial attack combo pretty often (been using it less into Uair among friends because of how cheap it feels, though...), and while I do think up air especially deserves a SERIOUS nerf (it's hit boxes make it very easy to hit, and even compared to other killing aerials I use on my other mains it kills much earlier) it doesn't make Diddy exactly ban worthy I wouldn't say...? And lots of characters have down-throw combos. But Diddy has a LOT of options- Bananas to trip your opponents up, very good tilt attacks, fsmash kills easy... I would love if he got nerfed in a few areas and he'd still be fine, and DEFINITELY wish people would stop holding him so high on a pedestal and rely on him so much (seriously, been watching competitive matches, and EVERYONE has a pocket Diddy) and I'm sure people are learning to counter him. Just want to be able to main without feeling shame for it... I got Greninja, Ness, Jiggles, and Kirby either way I guess.

In for a Pikmin/Mario case! I've needed a more secure place to keep my 3DS games in, and I had exactly 400 coins left to spare after having bought the Smash poster set earlier. Would get the shirt, but I'm a bit too far off in coins to have any hope of getting it in time, heh. Ah well, happy to have another physical item anyways!

Voted for Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze in both ballots it's in. I absolutely LOVE Smash Wii U, but gee, Tropical Freeze does not get enough love. Stellar gameplay, amazing environments and visuals and creative level design (running quickly through a burning savannah using juice-filled fruits to clear the path, put out burning trees and vines, and save the wildlife? got it. railing through a raging lumber mill with the wooden ride you travel on being cut and molded into different objects that affect gameplay as you go? sure. a whole world that, as you only realize later, is an entire fruit based world with each level representing a part in the factory process all in the end to just make POPSICLES? this game is amazingly creative and charming) the most catchy and yet atmospheric soundtrack I've heard in ages (gotta love that David Wise!), and so much more. Smash U is amazing in a lot of ways; AMAZING soundtrack as well, fantastic visuals, good characters that are fun to play, etc. But since a lot of it's fun comes from multiplayer experience, I'm leanin' more torwards the game that gives me the best, most memorable experience that I don't need another person to "feel" all the way. DKC:TF is amazing, and I really wish more people would play it.

I sure hope they get restocked soon! Definitely would love to get Villager and Marth, and one of my friends has been trying to get Marth, their main, desperately. I've learned from this experience that I should probably pre-order or buy every amiibo I'll want as soon as they come out. So many I want, though...

The thing that really sucks is that I was planning on getting Marth and Villager especially, but I was going to wait a little bit to buy instead of purchasing too many amiibo in one day. Days later, after I came back, Villager and Marth were the ONLY ones not in stock (there was a single Wii Fit Trainer that now I realize I maybe should've gotten, whether to keep for collection or resell), and in their place were restocks of other characters. I really regret not getting them, Nintendo really should give warning about which characters are limited stock before they come out I guess resellers would try to buy them all if they did that, but it would give a warning to those that want the characters amiibo to buy immediately and pre-order.

Happy birthday to Donkey Kong Country! Easily one of my favorite game series of all time, even though I wasn't alive for it's release and originally played the GBA ports. Every game in the series is a masterpiece, both Rare's and Retro's, and the original who has it's birthday will always live on in my heart
Now, if only I could actually play the trilogy on VC instead of Jungle Climber, to celebrate it's 20th anniversary.... (coughs at Nintendo of America)

I'm happy with what the update changed for the most part. The fix of Bowsercide and Wario wectoring was much appreciated for instance (though both were tons of fun to play with, they were obviously not intended to happen ). Very sad though that Greninja took some decent hits, with Shadow Sneak no longer canceling aerial lag and full up smash animation. Lost two of my favorite toys to play with for one of my several mains now
Also, what the heck happened with Zero Suit Samus? People say she's got more buffs than nerfs when she needed nerfs probably the most of all? Why??

I'm getting a Kirby amiibo, so woo-hoo! It probably won't drive me (pun not intended) to pick Miis over Green Shy Guy or Orange Yoshi (my MK8 mains ) but it's a neat little extra and so cool to have these out-of-franchise characters in Mario Kart in some way! And here I thought the Smash amiibo wouldn't be getting anything in MK8 unless they were already racers, haha
I personally don't see why so many are complaining; what did everyone expect, that they'd bring the whole Smash roster and make them full Mario Kart racers? If these amiibo unlocked major features in the game, there'd probably be complaining that Nintendo is "forcing them to buy all of these overpriced amiibo," no doubt. People need to chill, y'know? I'm personally getting this amiibo more for the figures honestly, in a way. Many of the Smash characters that will be getting figures are from franchises with NO merchandise whatsoever, so the Smash functionality, and this MK8 bonus, are just neat little extras. Personally I like the way Nintendo is going about Amiibo, although I do agree many's idea of a Disney Infinity or Skylander's esque Amiibo hub game would be amazing

Aww, no Smash characters in MK8. Expected of course, though. Would've loved to have my Kirby amiibo stretch across games though, hehe
I really wonder what the Amiibos will do on MK8 and Mario Party 10, though. Definitely considering the Yoshi amiibo even more now, as it seems it works with a whopping total of four games (and, with how high tier people are using Yoshi, he's pretty good to train against for the sake of online). I imagine Villager, Link, and Weeg (and Diddy? please Diddy...) should work with MK8 and Zelda with HW as it seems this screen only includes Wave 1.

Got mine! Although the set wasn't of my main favorite Newcomers (besides Villager, love em!) I had been HOPING they would make a Smash poster set and I wasn't going to pass it up! Especially with how little physical rewards we're getting. I wish it had the Greninja, FE:A Duo, or Shulk posters, but I'm happy with the Rosalina and Villager ones, and the Palutena one is alright I guess. My only hope is that they don't end up having a second set with the ones I just mentioned.... would love for them to make them still so I can buy em off of somebody, but that would certainly leave a bitter taste in my mouth, hehe.

Oh man!!!! Finally! I have the trilogy on GBA, but all three on the Gamepad, in their original quality, and Donkey Kong Land too!? Sign me up! These games better come to the U.S., and hopefully this is a sign that DK64 should come once N64 VC begins! (I still need to play it!)

I need that Diddy figure!!! Weeg, Pit, and the Captain look great too, as all these amiibo figures do. Can't wait to drain all my money on these lil things.

@Aquilalex Any extra codes? My email is Jelly0817@gmail.com :] (fine if not)

If anyone has a code to spare, my Gmail is jelly0817@gmail.com. Would definitely appreciate one!

@Hero-of-WiiU Can I have it please?

I was already planning on upgrading to XL since I've been using the small standard 3DS since it's release, and now is the perfect opportunity to. Adding in all the other extras and inevitable exclusives, I'm getting it for sure

I'm really confused by about 20:55 in the direct and nobody seems to talk about it. Is it showing off lighting options, or does the screen get darker automatically in certain situations, or what? I'm confused what they're showing the new 3DS can do there.

I've been wanting to upgrade to XL already (been rocking the same old 3DS since the system came out, and my hands got too big for it since then) so this is perfect for me! Hope it comes out before Christmas in America, at least. Very glad I waited as I had a feeling something like this might happen eventually.

Wow, these look really nice! I definitely want that mini Alpha Kyogre figure, and the art on the steelbook is nice quality. Seems a tad too pricey for me for a pack that doesn't even include the game itself, but it'd still be nice if it came to the West and other countries for people that can afford it.

Love how they look! I'll definitely be tempted to get a bunch of them, and the way some of these figures look I'll probably be tempted to buy more than just my Smash character regulars. I'm honestly more excited to have a budget way to get all these cool Nintendo characters and franchises in figure form and in my room than I am for amiibo itself, probably! But who knows, the feature may be even cooler than I realize.
Hope we'll get to see the other characters in the coming weeks! It'd be nice to see how the figures are treating the newcomers and the other characters.

30 bucks for a digital-only copy? Um... well. I was hoping it would be 20, but 30 seems a bit much for a digital game. I'll have to think about whether I want to buy or not. Would've been an instant buy at 20; 30 just seems too steep.

@WiiULoveSquid Yeah, it's massive. Guess the 3D/models must be really in-depth I will probably get an SD card from Walmart or something. Probably can find one cheap.

Actually, I don't think my 3DS even COULD have enough space to download it. It takes 2 gigabytes/16k blocks... wow. Guess I will have to buy another card. Dang.
Fair warning to those getting Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D! Make sure you got a big SD card or the six-20 dollars to buy a bigger one...

@edcomics eShop credit actually wouldn't make any sense, given that it would allow the users to potentially purchase third party games on Nintendo's dollar. Which Nintendo would no doubt have to pay for out of pocket, and with probably a few thousand people getting Platinum rewards that wouldn't be good. Sorry for yours and others bad luck, it's hard to help. You might be able to sell a code possibly or redeem one for more coins if not.

@WiiULoveSquid Got it while I was typing this!! Seems I'll have to get another SD card to download this... um. Hmm. Guess I should've checked the size before requesting... I'll have to figure something out I guess. Thanks so much still though!!

@Olmectron You're welcome!

@Olmectron If you need to find a code that you've already redeemed, you can log into your Club Nintendo account on the website, click Account & Coins at the top right, and click "Order Inquiries". From there, you should see Paper Mario on the list with "View Game Code". Good luck

@WiiULoveSquid It has been sent! Check your email. If you didn't get it for whatever reason tell me

@WiiULoveSquid I meant that I haven't redeemed the Gold reward for any game yet I can redeem for the SML2 code, sure! I can send you the code through email or whatever way you want.

@WiiULoveSquid I'd love to do that! I haven't used my code yet and would love to trade it for Returns 3D.

@Ikki5 That seems to be the usual for Club Nintendo NA compared to Japanese CN, but still, the rewards don't look too terrible to me. Getting Game and Wario or DKCR 3D, normally 30/40 dollar games, seems not bad and it's not like Nintendo is obligated to do this entire rewards website anyways. They're the only company that does. I can understand why you'd dislike it in comparison though. I'm glad to get a game at all, but man is that gap between Gold and Platinum cruel...

Anyone else feel the gold rewards are especially lacking though? Gold status is just half of Platinum status and is still "elite", yet Gold gets only 5 or 6 dollar virtual console games (all for NES or no-color GB...) that you could get any time from monthly game reward offerings, while Platinum gets 15-30 dollar recent games... I mean, the least they could've done was give GBA or SNES Virtual console rewards or something. I guess I have only myself to blame for forgetting about the cut off, though... at least I can use my coins to hopefully even better rewards this year

The one, single year I didn't make Platinum, and they give entire games? And I would've made it to if I hadn't forgotten the window was closing... meh. Oh well, at least I got gold so I can get something, woo. I know some are rightfully disappointed probably, but I would've loved to have Platinum and get DKCR 3D. A 30/40 dollar game is sort of a bit better than posters or playing cards like the last two years in my opinion.

There's no company like Nintendo for understanding that the primary purpose of games is to have fun and to feel good. They set themselves far apart from a lot of other game developers, and if the feel of Nintendo's signature magic is enough to separate it as an entirely unique genre, I'm all for it.

Dang, and I was just in D.C. too! If only it came earlier Ah well, I'll just have to hope it's eventually held somewhere near me when I'm off school... this would certainly be a thing to see

I really want Kingdom Hearts 3 and Little Big Planet 3 (there sure is power in threes, eh?) but those are about the only two games I'd consider getting a PS4 for that are must haves (there are a bunch of Store titles & remasters that look good though). Doubt I'll be picking one up anytime soon if ever. I'm perfectly content with the Wii U and my PS3 for now, though I kind of want a Vita.
The fact that that "31%" (which I really doubt is an accurate number and wonder how they even researched it) is a merge of XBox 360 and Wii users says a lot here. The Xbox 360 is just behind the Wii in sales at 20 million less, and frankly, I'd bet anything that most of the users that make up that percentage were from Xbox 360. Let's face it, the Xbox One definitely hasn't presented itself very well since it's reveal, and it's no surprise that FP game fans (which the most hardcore Xbox fans usually are) are jumping ship to the superior PS4 which specializes in the exact same genre groups. In fact, I know a lot of people at my school that are huge fans of the 360 that criticize the One and talk about how much they want a PS4. It'd make far more sense than a casual Wii owner upgrading to a PS4 in my opinion.

Wanted to play the original before I played Bayonetta 2, and this makes that all so much easier. I will probably have to get this game now!

Alright! I was planning on getting into the series either through the iPhone app version or... other means, but I might just have to wait for this. I don't really use my iPhone anyway and I just feel it would be better to have it on 3DS. Will look forward to this if I can actually wait that long

Diddy Kong Pilot actually has an early ROM build floating around the internet that got leaked by a former RARE employee or something. It's actually a near complete build and a pretty decent game for the GBA's standards. Shame it didn't get released. I've never played Banjo Pilot (or any Banjo game...) but I can imagine it must've been pretty good. Never heard of any of these other racers listed besides Sonic & All-stars Racing (which I own and love both of- fantastic games )

This is the control method I was hoping this game would have on it's release! I've already beat the game, but I was already planning on replaying it soon now that summer's started again, and this just makes it all the better to replay it. Will definitely have to try this out!!!

But... Nintendo's big announcements are through Nintendo Direct, which is recorded separate from the E3 show floor itself. All she said was that she would be at E3, didn't even say who for. And since the E3 showing will be completely pre-recorded, this tweet means very little on if she is going to be used to reveal something Zelda-related, she'll just be at a booth or something. I wouldn't get my hopes far too high. For all we know, she might be revealing a game for another company, or hosting the Smash tournament thing or something.

Dang! I've been waiting to redeem my codes until near the end of the fiscal year, and they choose to do this right now? Well, thanks for the heads up, Nintendo...
At least it's just a demo... still sucks, though

The question I have for this, if it really doesn't have the characters on-cartridge, is what the game does when you're playing online/wireless against a character you don't have. I don't usually play fighting games and the like with downloadable characters and skins, so I wouldn't know how they'd handle it. Maybe it simply "appears" like another character that they're not, kind of like they did with the DLC classes in Awakening?

Remember two years ago where Nintendo said they weren't going to make a follow up device to the 3DS anytime soon and then revealed the XL months later? Maybe we'll be seeing a 3DSMicroLite soon now
I kid, I kid. I don't see why Nintendo really would need anything different from their current hardware, what with 3 3DS models and the perfectly fine Wii U. The most I could ever see them doing is them revealing that second Gamepads will now be sold in stores, since I believe I've heard the console does have that functionality, and they may incorporate it into one of their announced games.

FINALLY got finished with watching the Direct, after spending forever pausing over and over again to let the video buffer (whyyy internet). REALLY impressed with the game mechanics in pretty much every way, though admittedly I'm very disappointed in the character roster... particularly the lack of Diddy But hey, I still have Shy Guy, Luigi, and DK to play as I suppose, so I should be alright.

Sounds to me like all those people complaining about the Direct style need to lighten up a bit... I honestly kind of liked it myself. Perhaps a bit too much fluff over real info, but the direct style reminds me a lot of the Billy Nye show from my childhood, and I kind of liked the silliness of it

Now THIS is an amazing offer! I wasn't planning on buying Mario Kart 8 for a little while, but getting it with a free copy of WW HD is a HUGE plus and just might sell me over to pre-ordering! Too bad NA doesn't get as much selection as Europe, but hey, free is free! Guess Nintendo wants to rack up them sales eh?