via dsfanboy

A new Japanese trailer for Professor Layton has surfaced over at GameTrailers.com, showcasing some of the stylus-driven puzzles and excellent anime-inspired FMV the final game is to hold. It increases our desire for the game ten-fold, however we wonder if we are the only ones. Are you guys as excited as we are?

The game is currently slated for a February 15th release in Japan.

Trailer Here ...

via dsfanboy

You might have noticed that there was a conspicuous hole in our look at some of this year's most exciting games. Whither Diddy Kong Racing, you asked, tear-streaked faces turned up to the sky as you shook your fists in rage and dismay. Okay, maybe we're a little dramatic, but it was missing, and here's why: we wanted to take some time to get intimate with Diddy Kong without the pesky interference of so many other droolariffic games.

After Rare went to the dark side, we never thought we'd feel the shining spotlight of their love again, but it looks like they've come crawling back for a piece of the DS, and all may be forgiven. Even though Diddy Kong Racing DS is an enhanced port of the (beloved) N64 game, the mere fact that it's happening makes it a contender for this year's single most interesting game.


Of course, last week's big news of the Stamper brothers fleeing Rare might change things for the Nintendo-Microsoft-Rare relationship. Diddy Kong Racing may be the one thing we have to cling to over the next few years, or it may be the rekindling of a rich and lucrative relationship. We'll hope for the latter, of course, but the future is murky for Rare. Their last few outings haven't exactly been up to the level of promise that Microsoft obviously saw in them, since they paid a record $377 million for the company, which has since produced little in the way of commercial success. Critical success is all well and good, but it doesn't fill the pockets.

Now, with the company's future up in the air and few details about Diddy Kong Racing DS released to date, gamers are holding their collective breath and wondering just what it is that's in store for them with the handheld racer. We decided to take a little time out to recoup what we know. A short teaser video (included below) has been available for a long time, but actual facts are scattered hither and yon ... or they were.



The facts:


Diddy Kong Racing DS is an enhanced port of the N64 game. This means that gameplay will be largely similar, though the game will look (and perhaps play) even better than the lauded original. That promise alone gives Rare some pretty big shoes to fill.
All the original tracks are carried over, though they have been retextured.
The tracks may be the same, but significant changes have been made to the world itself; look for lots of little additions, like Taj the genie's upgrade to a tent in a tree-lined area.
Few changes have been made to characters. Predictably, Conker and Banjo will not be making their DS debut here, but will instead be replaced by Dixie Kong and Tiny Kong. It is as yet unknown if the two unlockable characters from the N64 game will be available, but we will assume so, as there are four spots for unlockable characters. Look for the N64's T.T. and Drumstick, as well as two unknown characters (though it seems they will have previously been NPCs who are now playable).
Eight person multiplayer. Once this game is released, we're gonna guess that Mario Kart DS Game Nights may be a thing of the past.
The microphone has been confirmed for use in Diddy Kong Racing, but don't get too excited about voice chat. So far, all we know is that players must blow into the mic to boost off in hovercraft.
In that same vein, to boost off with the car and plane, the player must rub the touchscreen. Mind those sweaty fingers!
DKR 2.0 - the DS game is set to be laden with opportunities for players to create their own content. In Wish Race mode, you can create your own tracks, and you can customize many other aspects of the game, such as your vehicles.

Share your works of racing art created in Wish Race mode with others via Nintendo WiFi.
The N64's Silver Coin challenges will not be included in the DS game. Instead, take Taj's magic carpet into the air for a target-shooting minigame.
Various changes have been made to power-ups, including the removal of the speed-boosting bananas.

The game is slated for February 5 for North America, and nothing beyond "first quarter 2007" has been announced for other regions, and DKR DS was conspicuously absent from NoE's recent rundown of games to watch in 2007, which focused largely on Q1 titles.
We are waiting very, very impatiently for this game's release. Okay, maybe that's not quite a fact in sense of the other items ....
There you have it -- the details we have to chew over for the remaining month until the debut of Rare on the DS. Are you as excited as we are? ...

Lotti has released a sound fixed version of his MancalaDS Game:


Download and Give Feedback Via Comments ...

Updated release of the port of Heretic by HEP to the Gp2X. Heres whats new:


Download and Give Feedback Via Comments ...

The Cobra team who are famous for their GameCube Modchip posted a new bios for that modchip and posted this:


I personally hope for an easier way to get homebrew on the Wii. ...

The Cobra team who are famous for their GameCube Modchip posted a new bios for that modchip and posted this:


I personally hope for an easier way to get homebrew on the Wii. ...

News via Pink Godzilla

While considered the gaming authority in Japan, Famitsu is also renowned for its constant surveying of consumers, retailers and developers. This week, Famitsu published the results of its 2007 predictions based on the responses it received in its survey. Continue reading for the results.

The first question posed to consumers, retailers and developers was, "What piece of hardware or software do you think will be the break away hit of 2007?" The Wii was picked #1 by a wide margin, nearly quadrupling the vote total of second place Dragon Quest IX for the NDS. Here are the complete results with the total number of votes in parentheses:

1. Nintendo Wii (412)
2. Dragon Quest IX for NDS (122)
3. Nintendo DS (107)
4. Playstation 3 (56)
5. "I can't predict." (50)

Sadly, "I can't imagine" nearly doubled the vote total of the Xbox 360. So people might want to hold off before they start picking out a coffin and headstone for the PS3. After all, no console has ever won the console wars without finishing first in the Japanese market.

Of note, when Famitsu posed the same question in the beginning of 2006, the results were quite different with the Playstation 3 receiving the most votes, the NDS coming in second and the Nintendo Wii finishing in third. What a difference a year makes.

The next question was, "Which system do you think will sell the best in 2007?" Predictably, the Nintendo DS, the fastest selling game system in Japan's history, was the biggest vote-getter. Surpisingly, the Sony PSP couldn't even muster the 15 votes needed to beat out "I can't predict." Here are the complete results.

1. Nintendo DS (432)
2. Nintendo Wii (326)
3. Playstation 3 (116)
4. Xbox 360 (26)
5. "I can't predict" (15)

Question #3 asked the respondents to select the five most anticipated titles for each of the major systems in 2007. Here are the results.

PLAYSTATION 2
1. "Nothing in particular." (280)
2. Grand Theft Auto San Andreas (97)
3. Kingdom Hearts II Final Remix + (67)
4. Super Robot Taisen OG (64)
5. .hack//G.U. Vol. 3 (28)

PLAYSTATION 3
1. Metal Gear Solid 4 (269)
2. Final Fantasy XIII (262)
3. "Nothing in particular." (115)
4. Biohazard 5 (45)
5. Gran Turismo 5 (41)

NINTENDO Wii
1. Smash Bros. X (370)
2. "Nothing in particular." (127)
3. Dragon Quest Swords (122)
4. Super Mario Galaxy (94)
5. Fire Emblem (56)

XBOX 360
1. Lost Odyssey (199)
2. "Nothing in particular." (166)
3. Halo 3 (95)
4. Blue Dragon (91)
5. Lost Planet (67)

SONY PSP
1. "Nothing in particular." (243)
2. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd (219)
3. Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core (109)
4. Final Fantasy Tactics (71)
5. Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops (58)

Nintendo DS
1. Dragon Quest IX (608)
2. Phoenix Wright 4 (52)
3. "Nothing in particular." (51)
4. Final Fantasy XII (23)
5. Legend of Zelda DS (21)

Questions #4 and #5 asked the respondents to pick their most anticipated Publishers and Developers of 2007. While it is hardly a surprise that Kojima (of Metal Gear fame) and Miyamoto (of Mario and Zelda fame) were picked #1 and #2 for the developer category, the most anticipated publishers list might surprise you.

1. Nintendo (266)
2. SquareEnix (181)
3. Capcom (118)
4. Sony Computer Entertainment (60)
5. Sega (45)
6. Konami
7. Microsoft
8. Level Five
9. Bandai Namco Games
10. Mist Walker ...

News via Pink Godzilla

While considered the gaming authority in Japan, Famitsu is also renowned for its constant surveying of consumers, retailers and developers. This week, Famitsu published the results of its 2007 predictions based on the responses it received in its survey. Continue reading for the results.

The first question posed to consumers, retailers and developers was, "What piece of hardware or software do you think will be the break away hit of 2007?" The Wii was picked #1 by a wide margin, nearly quadrupling the vote total of second place Dragon Quest IX for the NDS. Here are the complete results with the total number of votes in parentheses:

1. Nintendo Wii (412)
2. Dragon Quest IX for NDS (122)
3. Nintendo DS (107)
4. Playstation 3 (56)
5. "I can't predict." (50)

Sadly, "I can't imagine" nearly doubled the vote total of the Xbox 360. So people might want to hold off before they start picking out a coffin and headstone for the PS3. After all, no console has ever won the console wars without finishing first in the Japanese market.

Of note, when Famitsu posed the same question in the beginning of 2006, the results were quite different with the Playstation 3 receiving the most votes, the NDS coming in second and the Nintendo Wii finishing in third. What a difference a year makes.

The next question was, "Which system do you think will sell the best in 2007?" Predictably, the Nintendo DS, the fastest selling game system in Japan's history, was the biggest vote-getter. Surpisingly, the Sony PSP couldn't even muster the 15 votes needed to beat out "I can't predict." Here are the complete results.

1. Nintendo DS (432)
2. Nintendo Wii (326)
3. Playstation 3 (116)
4. Xbox 360 (26)
5. "I can't predict" (15)

Question #3 asked the respondents to select the five most anticipated titles for each of the major systems in 2007. Here are the results.

PLAYSTATION 2
1. "Nothing in particular." (280)
2. Grand Theft Auto San Andreas (97)
3. Kingdom Hearts II Final Remix + (67)
4. Super Robot Taisen OG (64)
5. .hack//G.U. Vol. 3 (28)

PLAYSTATION 3
1. Metal Gear Solid 4 (269)
2. Final Fantasy XIII (262)
3. "Nothing in particular." (115)
4. Biohazard 5 (45)
5. Gran Turismo 5 (41)

NINTENDO Wii
1. Smash Bros. X (370)
2. "Nothing in particular." (127)
3. Dragon Quest Swords (122)
4. Super Mario Galaxy (94)
5. Fire Emblem (56)

XBOX 360
1. Lost Odyssey (199)
2. "Nothing in particular." (166)
3. Halo 3 (95)
4. Blue Dragon (91)
5. Lost Planet (67)

SONY PSP
1. "Nothing in particular." (243)
2. Monster Hunter Portable 2nd (219)
3. Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core (109)
4. Final Fantasy Tactics (71)
5. Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops (58)

Nintendo DS
1. Dragon Quest IX (608)
2. Phoenix Wright 4 (52)
3. "Nothing in particular." (51)
4. Final Fantasy XII (23)
5. Legend of Zelda DS (21)

Questions #4 and #5 asked the respondents to pick their most anticipated Publishers and Developers of 2007. While it is hardly a surprise that Kojima (of Metal Gear fame) and Miyamoto (of Mario and Zelda fame) were picked #1 and #2 for the developer category, the most anticipated publishers list might surprise you.

1. Nintendo (266)
2. SquareEnix (181)
3. Capcom (118)
4. Sony Computer Entertainment (60)
5. Sega (45)
6. Konami
7. Microsoft
8. Level Five
9. Bandai Namco Games
10. Mist Walker ...

via wired

A big part of Opera's CES lineup is their Web browser for Wii. Since the device is in public beta right now, I decided to ask what we might see in the final version that Nintendo will offer this spring. The thing is, Opera reps don't know -- in fact, they say, it's Nintendo who's calling the shots. They'd like to add support for widgets, maybe some tabbed browsing, all that good stuff. But if Nintendo doesn't tell them to put it in, it doesn't go in.

Opera also brought their Nintendo DS browser software -- currently only available in Europe and Japan. Why isn't this out in the US? Opera says they'd like to, but again, it's Nintendo's call. They speculated it might be because Nintendo wanted to have internet hot-spot partners up and running first. I guess that whole thing with McDonald's wasn't the success they'd hoped it would be.
Opera was also passing out wrist straps that read Opera Powered, right by the Wii demo area. "You're not allowed to use those with your Wii remote," said the guy as I took one. I think that was their intention at first, but the flimsy line looked like a recipe for disaster ...