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Black Wii U Gamepad Makes an Appearance on Nintendo’s E3 Stage
The darker variant to Nintendo’s new home console controller was spotted before Nintendo’s E3 press conference this morning. Is it too much to hope that it might be available at launch? Maybe we’ll find out later this morning.
By Evan Narcisse Published June 5, 2012 -
Kotaku EastNintendo’s Long Lost Adventure Game in Action
Almost all Nintendo published titles have made their way West sooner or later, but not Captain Rainbow on the Wii. This adventure game is filled with mini-games, C-List Nintendo characters, and stars a Power Ranger-esque superhero. It’s known in the west for its quirky sense of humor, but how does it look in action? Check…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published June 5, 2012 -
Kotaku East
I Never Expected To See a Sex Toy in a Nintendo Game
Always on the lookout for crazy games, I dove into my local game store’s bargain bin and came up with Captain Rainbow. This adventure game follows the titular Captain Rainbow, a Power Ranger-like transforming superhero as he encounters many of Nintendo’s C-grade characters. I expected it to be weird, but I never for a moment…
By Richard Eisenbeis Published June 5, 2012 -
Here We Go Again, Nintendo Calls New 3DS Report “Speculation” and Incorrect
This morning in Japan, respected newspaper Nikkei ran a story that Nintendo is unveiling a new 3DS. According to the Nikkei, the new 3DS will have a 4.3 inch screen, which is far larger than the current model’s 3.02 inch screen. It could go on sale as early as this summer. What’s more, the report…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2012 -
Nintendo Has So Much Stuff To Show, It Needs Three Conferences
Nintendo will host a special event to show off software for the 3DS, it said today. The briefing will run from 6-7 PT on Wednesday night and Nintendo will live stream the whole thing. (We’ll also be there, covering everything.) For those keeping count, that’s event number three for the big N: there was the…
By Jason Schreier Published June 4, 2012 -
This Dream-Like Flying Game Will Be a Wii U Launch Title
Indie developers have slammed Nintendo during the Wii console cycle saying that it hasn’t been worth the trouble to bring their games to the undernourished, practically forgotten WiiWare service. But it’s just been announced today that Broken Rules’ Chasing Aurora—a lovely 2D flying game last seen at the beginning of May—will be a launch title…
By Evan Narcisse Published June 4, 2012 -
Nintendo to Reveal a New Model of the 3DS?
Ahead of Nintendo’s E3 press conference tomorrow, it appears some news of what they’ll be discussing has already spilled out in the Japanese press. The most important piece being that the company plans to launch a new model of the Nintendo 3DS. According to a report from Nikkei, this new model of the 3DS will…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 4, 2012 -
Nintendo’s Wii U Smartphone Integration Won’t be Ready at Launch
One of the more intriguing things Nintendo showed off yesterday during its pre-E3 show was the ability for the Wii U to host some of its community features on devices like smartphones. Sadly, that’s a feature that won’t make the console’s launch. Nintendo president Satoru Iwata said as much over Twitter earlier today, while adding…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 4, 2012 -
We Called it In March: Nintendo Loves the Word ‘Together’
A 2/3 whip-smart, 1/3 kinda-out-there video from Nintendo yesterday outlined the company’s online strategy for the Wii U. It’s a fascinating strategy designed to bring people together to give them hints in games and to engender empathy among the gamer population. And that’s just part of it. If you watched closely, it appeared that Nintendo…
By Stephen Totilo Published June 4, 2012 -
Together Alone? How Nintendo Wants To Change the Way People Interact
A family gathers in a living room. They’re all together, but each of them is alone, looking at their hardware—laptops, smartphones, tablets, whatever And you, you go out with friends, but you find yourself checking your email or Twitter instead of talking to those around you. This is the age in which we live: we…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2012 -
Kotaku East
The Idea That Drives Nintendo
For a company known for colorful, cute games, Nintendo’s Kyoto headquarters is anything but. The first floor lobby—covered in white marble—looks more like an insurance company’s than one of Japan’s most creative companies. During a recent video presentation, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata noted that the room he was speaking from was plain. However, above Iwata,…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2012 -
Kotaku East
Paging Dr. Frankenstein, Here’s a Ridiculous 3DS Slide Pad Joystick
For gamers who aren’t exactly thrilled with the 3DS’ slide pad, a Japanese peripheral company has a cover cap that increases the pad’s size. One Japanese gamer decided to stack a whole bunch of them to make this slide pad joystick, which looks like it would be either great or plain awful to use. I…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2012 -
How the Wii U and Pokémon Could Destroy Wallets Worldwide
Nintendo’s upcoming home console, the Wii U, has a killer app. It’s not necessarily the feature you’d first figure as the machine’s most intriguing element. But it is what could help push the machine past rivals with the help of some cute monsters. The Wii U is outfitted with NFC (near field communication) that will…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2012 -
Culture
The Most Delicious Hardware Is Deep Fried Hardware
Can’t get enough food porn? Want more gadget porn? Well then, munch on this. This is “Deep Fried Gadgets”, a series of photos by photographer Henry Hargreaves. The series was inspired by Japanese kids who fried a PSP—and then ate it. Hargreaves, however, didn’t fry the actual devices, but rather, made foam models and fried…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 4, 2012 -
The Weirdest Thing About Nintendo’s E3 Are These Swollen Glands
Unless a giant, naked and mechanical Miyamoto crashes down the aisles during Nintendo’s E3 presentation, blaring a cover of Tori Amos’ cover of Raining Blood, this is likely to be the strangest thing we’ll see from the company at this year’s E3. And it wasn’t even shown at E3. It was shown before E3, during…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 4, 2012 -
Nintendo Shows Off Wii U Online Community, New Control Pads
Earlier today, Nintendo got the jump on its E3 rivals by holding a little pre-recorded conference to discuss some of the features of its upcoming console, the Wii U. There was no talk of games, no talk of a release date and no talk of a price. What Nintendo was talking about mostly were two…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 4, 2012 -
The Wii U Hardcore Controller Looks Familiar
Today, Nintendo revealed a brand new game controller for the Wii U. It’s aimed right at the hardcore. And boy, talk about déjà vu. Dubbed the Wii U Pro Controller, it looks very much like the Xbox 360 controller—not just in color, but also, in shape. There are shoulder buttons and what look to be…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 3, 2012 -
With Wii U, Nintendo Finally Admits the Internet Exists
Annoying friend codes. Lacking multiplayer functionality. If there’s any area where Nintendo’s really lagged behind Sony, Microsoft and even smaller indie game-makers, it’s been in capitalizing on the connectivity that the web offers game designers and game players. But with the Wii U, it finally looks like they’ve gotten a big clue. Arguably the biggest…
By Evan Narcisse Published June 3, 2012 -
Nintendo’s Wii U Has a Proper Online Community
Here’s a pleasant surprise: the Wii U looks like it’s going to have a proper online community built into the console. In a video shown during a pre-E3 conference, a user on the console jumps onto the controller and consults a GameFAQs-like service, while at the same his friend is monitoring Tweet-like messages on his…
By Luke Plunkett Published June 3, 2012 -
The Wii U GamePad Is Different. Here’s How.
Today in a pre-recorded statement from Nintendo’s Kyoto headquarters, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata introduced Nintendo’s new home console the Wii U and how the Wii U GamePad, the controller’s official name, is different. First, Iwata revealed that Wii U GamePad’s name harkens back to the Nintendo Entertainment System’s controller, the NES gamepad. Regarding the changes,…
By Brian Ashcraft Published June 3, 2012