Cakes

Agree this looks fab. But the headline's a bit deceiving, no? Especially since the Kickstarter is over ten grand away from being successful with five days left. Not quite "confirmed," I'd say. (Readers may be less willing to chip in if they assume it's a done deal.) But I hope it is!

REVENGE OF THE GATOR.

Looks pretty rad. Like BIT.TRIP BEAT 2. Also reminds me of Art Style: light trax, in how it goes from 2D to 3D at times.

Is it weird I'm excited about the horizontal stand that comes with this? I got a lot of use out of my 3DS Uprising stand, using it as a tripod when taking stop-motion pictures. Love the idea of turning GamePad into mini arcade cocktail cabinet.

@Rafie Also: Monster Bash!!

@Rafie Thanks... hmm, I bet the Wii U version releases at the same time as the PS4 version, which I believe is at launch, so around 11/15? To consolidate marketing resources. That's my very uninformed guess. Hope the Nintendo community comes out and supports it, even if the game's coming out waaaay later than on other systems.

I'm irrationally excited for this. I think the regional Club idea could potentially be a huge way to reignite some enthusiasm for this game and remind people how much fun they were/are.

@Rafie Good points, all. What I really want to know is: What's the latest on Pinball Arcade Wii U? You've usually got your ear to the ground. I'm aching for some GamePad Theatre of Magic over here...

Still have my Wii hooked up to a SDTV for Virtual Console and the occasional WiiWare game. Re-discovered Art Style: lighttrax and love it. Really hope Wii U devs keep pushing what made Wii games interesting — use of pointer, motion where it makes sense, innovative mechanics — and not just make the same games as are available on Xbox/PS#.

Too bad, but a very classy move on their part to give away the Steam version. Projects are announced and then canceled all the time. Rarely do the consumers get anything for it. I ain't mad at'cha, Two Tribes.

This is a silly article. (Jon's, not Damien's.) But in all fairness, he ends with this:

"On this 15th anniversary of the game’s release, I encourage readers to dust off their Nintendo 64 and return to Hyrule. Hike up Death Mountain. Swim in Lake Hylia. Explore the Lost Woods. “Ocarina” is a fantastic piece of art we can enjoy while being aware that, like so much other art, it has a lot of problems."

So in the end he's promoting the game as worthy and artful...

Glad to see I'm not the only one exciting about this one. Only ever played Wii Party at a buddy's house, but we had a good time. And this looks much more inclusive for non-gamers than NintendoLand, which was amazing but pretty mechanics-heavy for people who never play games.

@BulbasaurusRex Personally I hoped Zen would do what Farsight did for Pinball Hall of Fame, which is allow you to flip the system upside down and have the table in 3D on the bottom (the top-screen flipped) and the score and dot-matrix display on the top (the bottom-screen). It works really well and just makes sense, as that's the orientation of a real table. The lack of this feature is one reason I haven't bought either Marvel or Star Wars pinball on 3DS yet.

Am I the only one who would kind of be disappointed by Retro making another Metroid Prime game? The original is one my favorite games of all time, and the next two were both excellent, worthy sequels. But I feel like the trilogy has run its course.

Other M is shamefully underrated. Folks say Nintendo never take risks... then stomp all over them when they do. Not saying I want an Other M 2 (Otherer M?). But a new team or another new direction would be more exciting for me than one last trip to the Prime well.

The more I think about this, the more I'm curious how the sports will benefit from Motion Plus. Could feel quite nice.

Man, Nintendo is doing some serious counter-programming this holiday. XB1/PS4: Battlefield, Forza-Turismo, GTAV. Wii U: Mario 3D, Donkey Kong, Wii Fit/Party/Sports. A strong push for families. Can't wait to see how it all plays out.

Kind of amazing/sad that we get the chance to re-experience two of Nintendo's landmark games (SMB & Wind Waker) the day Yamauchi passes away. RIP, good sir.

Wow. This is very, very interesting.

I have to imagine this is a fairly quick-and-easy way to get some HD Wii Sports out there in the world while they work on the proper follow-up which uses the GamePad. Also a nice way to test its online components. Then come Summer 2014 they release a full-featured Wii Sports University or something.

Happy to see a majority of positive responses here. There's a lot of content coming down the pipe this holiday. Hope they get the word out...

(And I love the idea of Damien writing this and then writing the GTAV opinion piece for some reason. It'd be even better if 200 people argued over pinball physics in old Game Boy games and didn't care about someone's personal belief w/r/t violence, misogyny, etc. Oh well.)

If we can't get Pinball Arcade on the 3DS, at least we can get this. Bring this to NA, pretty please.

This would good news. But for me, I still say NintendoLand was the right choice to show people what the Wii U does differently. NSMBU clearly has a bigger audience but it's safer, a known quantity. I appreciate that they took a risk and gave us something weird and new in NLand. (And awesome. So underrated, that game.)

@rjejr Do a lot of people mock Jungle Beat? I've mostly heard praise, but this is from hardcore Nintendo fans. I guess other gaming associates of mine who just play on 360/PS3 probably don't know about it. It's a wild concept. Would love more experimental stuff like that to come to Wii U eventually, once they have their coffers lined with a bit more green.

@RetrogamerFan @Rafie Count me among the Pinball Arcade's disappointed Wii U fans. Am still holding out for that version, since it's the way I'd most like to play those tables, but am really hoping they get it out before the holidays. Was supposed to be a launch window release, yeah? Oh well. The Zen tables are fine, but I just don't feel the same connection with them as I do the real, physical tables I've played in person.

I stumbled upon this while watching a sports game with TVii this past weekend. But I don't think you can "pause live TV" as the article says... only add doodles to the captured screenshots already in the TV Tag section. If that makes sense.

Kinda neat... but would be better if you could truly draw on the screen, as in Wii U Chat. This only goes on the GamePad and then onto Miiverse.

Huh. This could be a very interesting development. Exclusives will still sell the Wii U better, methinks, but it seems like the audience already invested in Nintendo would dive into Minecraft way more than one going to PS4 (where Minecraft will also be released). Would love to see this happen.

Loved this game. Played it for ten hours with many more to go. Then it was stolen. (Could have been a lot worse, as my 3DSXL was the target, but I got the system back without the game in it.... long story.) So I might be tempted to replenish with this one. Really hope other games get the Theatrhythm treatment though. Come on, Nintendo and Square, combine forces for an all-star music medley rhythm fighting bonanza!

@AlexSora89 Just compared 'em, and US DS boxes seem to be about a centimeter thinner, though I'm eyeballing it. I'm sure there's official stats somewhere. Anyway, not a big difference, but I definitely noticed it when I opened the envelope and saw the Jam with the Band box.

It's crazy that a sequel to Link to the Past is barely registering on people's radar, what with Pokemon and Monster Hunter dominating Japan. 'Tis gonna be a big holiday for 3DS.

This is one of the few games I've ever imported. Man, you UK DS owners had chunky game boxes! Still a cool, unique take on music games that ratchets up into quite complex arrangements... would love to try a local group "jam" sometime where each person takes on a different instrument. Hopefully eShop makes an overseas release more likely.

Actually one of my favorite parts of the game is the Radio function. Would pop open the system and listen to songs and DJ Bat... who needs Spotify, hmm?

The world needs more Chibi-Robo. The GCN original is highly under-played. Would love to see a full-on sequel come to Wii U, but smaller downloadable games seems to fit more with the franchise's niche audience.

I remember hearing about this when it came to mobile and thinking, "Man I wish this came to consoles." Good good news, this. Will gladly take cool mobile titles on Wii U/3DS if done well, e.g. Gunman Clive.

@Marshi @Rafie and the fact that the controller itself is the palette & canvas is what sets this apart. Otherwise you'd need a whole separate peripheral (Udraw or whatever it's called). Really hope straight-up games use the Pad as an impromptu sketchpad...

I'm surprised not more of you are expecting/suspecting a..... Price Drop?
"All these games are rad and coming out, etc.
...
OH YEAH one more thing: You can buy a Wii U Deluxe in white or black for $299."
Two years ago this month it happened with 3DS. Perhaps it's the first big push to get Train Wii U out of the station?

Telekinesis.... TelekiNESis.... hmmm...

I'd taken for granted how visible these little guys have been throughout the years, even without a proper sequel... most notably being found in the system update/transfer screens. I love how Nintendo treats their characters as part of their plans even outside of full games: I'm thinking of the Game&Watch and ExciteBike modes in 3DS Sound, and how the franchises make cameos in WarioWare, etc. A good way to stoke the memories of long-time gamers.

Pikmin 3 is so good, btw.

Give me Pinball Arcade or give me nothing.
(Okay fine, you can give me these...)

I would definitely nab Space Harrier and maybe Sonic if they came to NA. Would still love a second "season" of 3D classics from Nintendo, though... imagine a remastered Starfox. Worth it for the music alone.

Considering how much time and fun I've gotten out of the pre-installed Plaza, I'm happy to plunk down 15 bones for a new suite of games. Living and working in Boston gets me at least a few StreetPasses a day. Just hope they make the relay's optional since I like knowing I actually "pass" another 3DS out there in the wild...

I've been playing a lot of Super Mario Bros 2 lately. Loving the Boss Fights.

Seems like he's downplaying the need to think up crazy-unique concepts for the touchscreen so as not to dissuade skittish developers to work on Wii U games. OR: He's referring to the touch capabilities as useful for menus, but I don't think he's boiling down the entire GamePad's existence as being for menus, as so many here are claiming. He's not talking about the Gyro, or the 2nd screen itself. Just the touch aspect. No need to fret over how they spent millions of R&D on a menu selection device. Just another case of reading too much into an interview without the proper context. (With a side of misleading headline.)

Am I the only one that loved the Wii-branded "casual" stuff last gen? I've played games for the past 25 years and the experiences that most excited/enthralled me on Wii were those I couldn't have done the twenty years before. Sports, Resort, Music, even Fit were all really interesting titles I'd come back to for weeks if not months. So when they say they're trying to excite the non-gamer, my ears perk up.

Everyone asks for something new. But what you really want is more of the same. I'll take Nintendo Land over New SMB U every time.

Methinks this is not the most interesting part of that investor Q+A, just the part reported by other sites. Read the answer to the first question and try not to be titillated with excitement for the unknown...

@russellohh Amen to you and your loved ones. Agreed x 10.
(Although I have and do enjoy my 360 for some exclusive XBLA stuff. And I'm seriously considering getting a cheap PS3 simply for all the crazy awesome PSN stuff already there or coming soon. But right now my Wii U gets daily game-time when I can tear myself away from the 3DS, so I ain't hurting for fun.)

To counter bahooney's sarcasm up there, I will say that Vegas Stages is such a rad game. Sincerely! I have fond memories of playing this with my brother growing up. A fun little casino game with interesting story bits and a touch of fantasy elements.

@Rafie I will always and forever trust you

@Frapp Agreed. The lack of enthusiasm for NLand astonishes me.

I love the idea of a No TV videogame... with the GamePad as the center of the action, a group of people can all sit in a circle around the Pad, like they would a boardgame, and see/interact with each other. Otherwise, everyone is staring at the TV, not focused on the other players. It's kind of similar to how Sing Party wants you to face your audience. Really hope this gets some traction and other studios take advantage of what the GamePad can do.

Did Farsight announce the Sept release date for Pinball Arcade? I've been waiting many moons to hear about that...

And @Donjwolf, what's this other game for 3DS with Williams/Gottlieb tables? A sequel to Pinball Hall of Fame?

I will like this game a lot more than many people, methinks.
In fact, I already do. (mysterious face.)
Be nice to Shy Dog.

1) I'm actually glad to hear him say they'd rather make these games internally, as a few IPs (esp. Star Fox) lost their luster after other companies took a stab. (I love Q Games, but SF Command didn't do it for me, and SF Adventures [Rare] /Assault [Namco] pale in comparison to the original/64.)

And 2) This reminded me to cash in my coins for F-Zero X! The only one in the series I've never played. Shame.

I mean: Super Luigi U. And I'm intrigued by Super Acorn Turbo Power, or whatever it's called. Quel semaine...