Is Mayor Tortimer actually a man in California that asks for naked images from Missouri children? That's what Missouri's ABC 17 News suggests in a story posted on March 11th regarding the increasing use of game consoles as tools for sexual predators. The report, which you can view in its entirety below, suggests that Animal Crossing allows children to interact with complete strangers, encouraging them to exchange notes, items, and "favors" in order to reach the next level in the game.

Another example of the sort of sensationalist television "news reporting" aimed squarely at terrifying parents into tuning in. In case any parents are actually reading this, Animal Crossing: City Folk only allows other players to visit each other if they exchange friend codes. Your task, as a parent, is making sure your children aren't posting their codes on forums, or sharing them with strangers.

The whole situation isn't helped by the Mid-Missouri Internet Crimes Task Force, who seem to be aware that internet crimes are going on, but don't seem to have any real knowledge of how communication on the Wii occurs to impart to our newscaster friends. All they know is Animal Crossing is a kid's game, and adults shouldn't be playing it.

"I cannot come up with any legitimate reason that an adult would be playing that particular game," says Andy Anderson, Mid-Missouri Internet Crimes Task Force. Um. How about game reviews? Is that legitimate? I don't want to be playing for the wrong reasons here. Either Andy Anderson just isn't trying hard enough, or I am a sexual predator.

I don't mean to downplay the dangers of online play for children. As we've seen recently, it's an issue that's becoming more and more widespread. My problem here is that ABC 17 News is combating a real problem with misinformation. I know that news programs make a great deal of advertising revenue off scaring parents senseless, but a certain amount of actual "journalism" isn't too much to ask from our well-paid television news personalities.

Is Mayor Tortimer an internet predator from California? No. That's ridiculous. Everyone knows it's Tom Nook that likes them young.

Wii Gamers Vulnerable To Crime [ABC 17 News via Game Politics]

Nintendo Co., Ltd. just released a Q&A that was held during last week's Nintendo Third Quarter Financial Results Briefing in Tokyo, where president Iwata conceded: "I agree that Wii Music, as of now, has not achieved its true potential. On the other hand, I feel that Wii Music is a software that elicits largely two extremely different reaction from consumers. There are people who highly appreciate it and those who do not appreciate it at all."

Continuing, Iwata points out that the typical reaction towards a game is that lots of people enjoy a game and the buzz towards that game becomes positive — or vice versa. "For Wii Music, the impression seems to completely depend on each individual player," said Iwata. "It is unfortunate that Wii Music was not immediately appealing enough to some consumers, but it simply might have not been the right game for them."

That's not to say Nintendo has given up on the title. Iwata points out that when Brain Age originally launched in Japan, the game didn't become a hit until Brain Age 2 went on sale.

"We do not like to think that we failed with Wii Music nor that we should abandon sales support," sai Iwata. "If we had approached Brain Age with that mentality, the software would have not achieved the current sales situation."

Wii Music was launched along with Animal Crossing: City Folk at the end of 2008 in hopes of appealing to Japanese consumers and "revitalize the Wii market in Japan." Continuing, Iwata said, "Our efforts have not lived up to our expectation. While Wii had very strong momentum in the overseas markets, the Wii market in Japan (during the year-end sales season) showed a slow start, did not show sharp trajectory in sales, and ended up moving back to the sales level of non-sales-season level quickly."

In short: "So, what happened at the end of last year in Japan was simply that it did not go as we had planned."

Iwata is very quick to point out that the sales figures for both Wii Music and Animal Crossing: City Folk are "nowhere near that of failing software." Nintendo has extremely high sales expectations for its titles — these games did not meet those sales expectations. "To generate strong sales," Iwata added, "we need to effectively communicate Nintendo's messages to our consumers."

Gamasutra has the rest of the NPD top twenty, showing that October's chart-topper, Fable II, slipped to the nineteenth spot. Another Xbox 360 Fallout 3 fared a little better, dropping from third place in October to twelfth last month.

What didn't squeeze into the first twenty were previous top-tenners LittleBigPlanet, SOCOM Confrontation, Saints Row 2 and Dead Space. New debuts like Animal Crossing (#11) and Guitar Hero: World Tour (#15 and #17) squeezed them out. As did... Mario Kart DS? Someone's got legs!

NPD Top 20 Proves Animal Crossing's Appeal, Shows Fable II's Slide [Gamasutra]

When you come upon Baabara, the town's resident sheep, you're greeted with a racial epithet. The word is used repeatedly in your conversation with the sheep.

"I almost forgot about you, N—-a" "So got any juicy gossip for me, N—-a?" "Just thinking about it gets me all excited, N—-a."

The word, written with a tilda over the N and an accent over the A, apparently popped up in the game because the person who was playing it, most likely a Nintendo employee, customized the greeting of the critter to include the word. One of the draw's of the original DS title was that the text speech of the game's inhabitants can be customized.

The sheep was first discovered by MTV's Stephen Totilo, who reported on it over on Multiplayer. I was able to track the sheep down on the version sent me by Nintendo and verified that she's just as mouthy in my version.

It appears that Nintendo copied the save for the game to multiple copies of Wild Word and then sent it out to game writers. The copy came with a letter explaining that content had been unlocked so writers could check out how moving stuff from the DS Animal Crossing title to the recently released Wii version worked.

We've contacted Nintendo for comment and will update when they reply.

Nintendo Plays a Game for Me, Includes Slur [Multiplayer]

Anyway, with Animal Crossing: City Folk now disappointing AC fans across America, it hasn't taken long to find the tune in his latest work. All you have to do is leave the game running during Kapp'n's bus ride at the start of the game. Easy.

By pressing down a special key it plays a little melody [Offworld]

Promising the same relaxed social simulation gameplay as the first two titles along with a city to explore and the introduction of Wii voice chat using a special microphone peripheral, Animal Crossing: City Folk looked to be the shining star of Nintendo's holiday lineup.

Now the game is out and the bus is pulling up to your stop. Should you hop out, or keep on riding? Read our review to find out.

Loved
Take Daily As Needed: By far, my favorite aspect of the Animal Crossing series is the way the game is meant to be played, in small chunks, day by day. It's still the perfect game to just switch on at the end of the day, just to check up on what's happening in your town, see who might be passing through, and check out special events that occur on specific days. Remember, Saturday night is KK Slider night.

Time Passages: As in the previous AC titles, City Folk works in real time according to your specific region, so the autumn leaves currently on my trees will soon give way to winter snow before coming back to life in the spring. This also allows for the celebration of holidays, which makes revisiting the game on special occasions a must.

Mii Crossing: It's just a silly little feature, but there is something neat about wandering around the town of Kotaku and interacting with my animal friends with my own Mii head attached to my body. I suppose it just feels better when it's me starting a letter propaganda campaign against Tom Nook than the regulation cute little guy.

Viral Visitors: While I didn't get to try out the microphone (the game arrived without one), sharing your city with friends is a pleasant change of pace from the everyday fruit-picking grind, especially now that your neighbors no longer hide from visitors as if they had the plague. The fact that your letters and notices get passed around your friends' towns makes for... well, makes for some really dirty letters I should probably apologize for beforehand.

Control Tweaks: One tiny change can make a whole world of difference. Being able to press the d-pad on the controller to switch between butterfly net, fishing rod, and shovel takes a lot of frustration out of the three major activities your town has to offer.

Hated
More of the Same: When it comes right down to it, Animal Crossing: City Folk is the same game we've already played on two other systems. It may be wide screen, and there may be integrated support for voice chat, a slightly new area, new dialog, and some extra collectibles, but other than that, the core game is completely unchanged.

This City Life: The city portion of the game is only interesting and new until you realize that a good chunk of what you find in the city is simply old content moved to a new location. The fortune teller, the hairdresser, and even Redd are simply transients from the DS game who have set up permanent shop. It was almost more exciting when they were limited to certain times of visit, giving the player something to look forward to.

Pausing at the Threshold: While not much was added in the way of gameplay, the folks at Nintendo did manage to add several seconds of load time between entering and leaving buildings and new areas. It might not seem like a lot, but bop around your town as much as I do and the frustration begins to build.

I'm not quite sure what Nintendo was thinking when they decided to release a new game in a franchise that has millions of devoted fans around the world without actually adding anything new for those fans. Despite a few tweaks, Animal Crossing: City Folk could almost pass for a port of the DS version rather than a completely new title. It's extremely disappointing, especially considering what could have been done had developers actually worked on innovating the title, such as integrating with the Wii Weather channel to mimic local conditions, or even just adding in some mini-games that made use of the Wii's unique control scheme. It's still an excellent game, but an excellent game fans have already played.

Animal Crossing: City Folk is a wonderful game for players who have never experienced the relaxing yet strangely addictive gameplay of the series, but the more AC savvy will find themselves treading all too familiar ground.

Animal Crossing: City Folk was developed by Nintendo EAD and published by Nintendo, released in North America on Nov. 16 for the Wii. Retails for $49.99. Played more that 24 non-consecutive hours, invited a couple of friends to visit, upgraded house twice, and at least one character says the word "flatus" at the end of every sentence.

Confused by our reviews? Read our review FAQ.

Wii Speak Channel Only For Wii Speak Purchasers, Don’t Buy It Used [MTV]

With just under three weeks to go before the new Animal Crossing hits the Wii, Nintendo is kicking off a Cosplay contest to try and generate a bit more attention for their game.

But not content to get gamers to dress up in absurdly embarrassing outfits, the Animal Crossing Welcome Waggin’ Costume Contest is an invitation to instead embarrass pets.

The entrants of the top 50 photos of animals dressed in costumes or characters from Animal Crossing will receive a Wii video game system, a copy of Animal Crossing: City Folk, a Wii Speak microphone, access to exclusive information about the game and the eternal and voiceless scorn of their pets.

Daily photo picks and details about the contest will be posted over at www.welcomewaggincontest.com, which appeared not to be working when I checked it a bit earlier today. Entries for the contest will be accepted starting today and running through Nov. 16.

Nintendo News: Animal Crossing Costume Contest Gives Fans a Chance to Win Prizes, Exclusive Info

Fans of Nintendo’s Animal Crossing™ franchise are some of the most loyal in the world. To reward them for their devotion to these community-building games and to get players fired up for the Nov. 16 release of Animal Crossing™: City Folk for Nintendo’s Wii™ console, Nintendo is hosting an outrageous animal costume contest.

Critter lovers can show their creativity by submitting the most original images of animals dressed in costumes or even as characters from the hit video game franchise Animal Crossing. The entrants of the top 50 photos in the “Animal Crossing Welcome Waggin’ Costume Contest” will win membership to the exclusive Welcome Waggin’ Committee. All committee members will receive a Wii video game system, a copy of Animal Crossing: City Folk, a Wii Speak™ microphone, access to exclusive information about the game and more.

Expanding on the popularity of the Animal Crossing series, Animal Crossing: City Folk lets every member of the household partake in the fun of a unique animal-filled town. Players use the simple controls of the wireless Wii Remote™ controller to customize their own characters and surroundings. And for the first time, players can take their adventure to the city, complete with shopping and theater excursions. It’s also the first game to make use of the Wii Speak microphone, a new accessory that enables players to use voice chat over a broadband Internet connection. The Wii Speak microphone is sold separately.

Daily photo picks and details about the “Animal Crossing Welcome Waggin’ Costume Contest” will be posted at www.WelcomeWagginContest.com. Entries will be accepted Oct. 27 - Nov. 16. For more information about Animal Crossing: City Folk, please visit www.Animal-Crossing.com.

OFLC [via Go Nintendo]

According to tipsters, the bundle will set you back $69.99, making the WiiSpeak mic a $20 value, presumably. Pricing in bells was not provided. We're double checking with Nintendo to ensure maximum accuracy.

Hit the jump for hazy, disjointed hands-on impressions for Infinite Undisovery, Animal Crossing: City Folk, Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, Damnation, Rise of the Argonauts, Lord of the Rings: Conquest, and Mirror’s Edge.

I literally got no more than 10 minutes with each title in the Exhibition Hall and with the exception of The Conduit, I didn’t get to chat up the demo-keepers for the usual details a journalist needs to report on her games. But since most of these titles are coming out soon, already have demos available or were previewed at E3 and Leipzig only a week or so ago, 10 minutes is really all you need to get to know a game for yourself, if you’ve been following it in the news.

Above: Tabletop... meh.

I bee lined for Infinite Undiscovery first thing, since it’ll be the first thing I buy in that list of games. This action JRPG is the closest replacement Square Enix has offered me to replace Kingdom Hearts, and while I could deal with the lack of Disney, I’m not sure I could deal with the art design. Like Lost Odyssey, everything was proportional and colors were muted for a more realistic-looking experience – to me, it seemed ugly, but we were only playing in two areas that weren’t very well-lit (caves and stuff). The combat served me well enough – button mashing is what I expect when someone says “action” RPG. I sort of liked that you could be strategic when it came to setting up your primary party and your secondary party, and even a third party to have in reserve – but then I realized all of these characters were onscreen with me as I ran off to locate hidden energy crystals. Talk about crowded! At least Goofy and Donald weren’t so far up Sora’s ass, you couldn’t see the boss.

Despite not being able to see the demo boss, I took him out in short order (the save featured over-leveled characters, huzzah!) and gave up the controller to the girl in line behind me.

Above: You catch more bees with honey... and more gamers with food.

Then it was on to Animal Crossing: City Folk, but that was only because the line for Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World was longer. Animal Crossing: City Folk looked like it was directly imported from the GameCube Animal Crossing, with a larger town area to run around in and different NPCs. I was the most fugly-looking little boy with a beanie and I spent most of my time in the demo, running around and trying to find my house so I could empty my pockets. Failing that, I just settled for dropping cherries, fossils and decorative end tables to make enough room in my inventory to put my watering can away.

Then the line for Symphonia abruptly got shorter, so I made my move. However, the guy ahead of me got his hands on the controls and played Dawn of the New World for a solid 23 minutes straight. Other people gathered around me, fidgeting, wondering when this guy would give it up – but nobody wanted to be the asshole who asked for a turn. So I watched him play and marveled that he couldn’t seem to get the motion controls to work. How hard could it be to point the cursor at the flower and press A to trigger the flower bridge? He kept getting attacked from behind as he struggled, and most of the battles he spent mashing on the artes button to send his character into aerial attacks. Dude didn’t even bother to change his elements the way Nintendo Power says you’re supposed to…

Finally, I got my turn and wandered around the world map, trying to trigger the flower bridges. But the motion controls sucked and I found myself piddling around just as much as the guy ahead of me had. The only difference was I gave up after only 10 minutes instead of making the poor bastards behind me wait another half hour.

In disgust, I wandered over towards the back of the Exhibition Hall, maybe to get another look at the Pink Godzilla store, but I got turned around and wound up getting my hands on Damnation – since there wasn’t a line. I’d read a little bit about the game and knew that it was supposed to be this big, open-world adventure that featured acrobatic-type stunts and stuff. But I hadn’t read anything about cowboys, so I was surprised to see myself playing as one – gun slinging some far-off enemy I couldn’t figure out how to target (yeah, yeah, I don’t do shooters, so kill me). A small cluster of 12-year-olds formed behind me and one of them told me to use my “spirit vision” to target the sniper I was having trouble hitting. When I couldn’t figure out how to do it, I handed over the controller and watched to see what he would do – but I’d left him in a bad place and the sniper took him out three seconds later.

Above: Mountain of Pink Godzillas!

I wandered away before the demo level restarted and found myself staring at Rise of the Argonauts. And my only question is: how have I not heard of this game before? I’m totally down with mythology and I even suffered through God of War and God of War II just because I get a fangirl’s thrill of watching Zeus interact with Hera (it’s like the original soap opera). The game is still in early days yet, so the graphics were a bit chunky and the frame-rate was crap – but it played pretty well as far as movement. The environments were rich with detail and the cartoon-ish style of the characters totally worked for me; so I was really loath to give up the controller after only 10 minutes. But I didn’t want to be a dick and there were a lot more games to play.

Later, I felt bad because I realized I hadn’t actually experienced any combat in Rise of the Argonauts – I just ran around a hallway and made slaves open doors for me. But when I went back for a second bite at the apple, the line had suddenly swelled to ten people (I guess that E3 Game of the Year Nominee sticker above the demo table got some attention). However, it turned out man friend had played through the demo from the start and he filled me in on what I missed later.

Apparently, this game is ultra-violent between light attacks and execution moves. “Like Ninja Gaiden II?” I asked. “No,” he said. “Like Conan – except all the animations are canned.” He totally dug the big ass mace, the big ass shield, the big ass spear and the smaller-ass sword. You can switch weapons in the middle of the combo, so if you start out hacking someone with a sword, you can finish by pulling out the mace and caving in a guy’s skull. “It’s a pretty big deal,” said man friend. The combos didn’t feel really fluid to him, but we agreed that that had more to do with the game being in early development stages as opposed to the game potentially sucking.

Oddly enough, man friend was sold on the deep-looking advancement system. I had Googled the game for info about the god-based affiliations, but he was talking about aspects related to astronomy. Whatever that means. I don’t care, because I’m totally going to get this game just based on my 10 minutes with it – never mind man friend’s experience.

Next up was Lord of the Rings: Conquest – and that’s only because Mirror’s Edge had a line out to next week. My man friend volunteered to start waiting while I wandered off, and the closest console available was where I wound up. There wasn’t much of a wait to play Conquest – I assume because everyone’s already seen it. Even I’d already seen it at EA’s last Showcase event; and not much has changed between then and now – it’s still a Star Wars: Battlefront-style of action game where you can get by with button mashing. It’s pretty, though.

Man friend stood on tiptoe and waved me over to him. I dashed, thinking he’d gotten his chance at Mirror’s Edge, but it turned out he just wanted to vent. Some Parkour expert had cut ahead of everyone in line and was being given the royal treatment by the demo handler. The guy right behind Parkour dude got a consolation shirt, but the rest of the the jilted line-waiters had to suffer.

“It’s because of his shoes,” I consoled my man friend, staring at the funky-toed footwear the Parkour guy was sporting. It certainly wasn’t because this guy was good with games – he died like half a dozen times. To be fair, the demo level started you off with a pretty serious jump and if you botched it, down you went. But after that, he was getting shot because he wasn’t running up stairs fast enough to get away and he kept over-balancing on the part where you’ve got to walk across a cable stretched between buildings.

“Why is everything red?” Parkour guy demanded. Clearly, he hadn’t read up on the game… Then the PS3 overheated and I thought he’d give up and go away. But the demo handler – anxious to please – restarted the demo for him and ran through the level to get back to the point where he’d left off.

I checked my watch. It’d been more than half an hour with just this one guy!

Finally, he finished the level and the line moved up. At long last, we got our turn with the game and I let man friend take it since he’d been a dear about waiting in line. Man friend says the controls were a lot simpler than he thought they’d be. He was really impressed by the sense of moment and speed – the faster you went, the better it felt. And the combat was very minimal, which fit in with the rest of the game. He disarmed at least three guys and stole their guns – but “it didn’t feel right” so he threw each firearm away and kept running. He also didn’t really use the “bullet time” feature because it made the free-running feel less fluid (even if it did make disarm moves look cooler). The little touches impressed him the most – the multiple paths through environments, the way Faith touched the wall before rounding corners. I thought it was kind of dumb that you had to punch open doors, but he didn’t seem to mind.

My favorite part? The dot they added to the middle of the screen to reduce motion sickness. Seriously – a life-saver.

Man friend finished the level in 10 minutes and I pried him away from the console, stressing my etiquette about not taking too much time. I felt like I had been pretty efficient with the whole day, but when I check my watch again, I realized three hours had gone by and I hadn’t even seen half the games on the floor.

And that’s why I’m glad Crecente had his magic yellow badge and that I had three friends with me at the convention. Because there is no way one PAX-goer could ever do it this year all without some way to cut in line or some way to be in four places at once.

Stupid Parkour guy…*mutter, mutter*