DS day is almost here

Folks, tomorrow is the big day. The day when the 3DS comes out and we can all toss our old DSs aside for this new system. So how big is this menace that is the 3DS? Well, this big.

Nintendo is all set to launch its 3DS this weekend in North America, and the buzz has been huge. GameStop said on its earnings call yesterday that there's been "very strong demand," and today Nintendo has confirmed (via Lazard Capital Markets) that pre-order levels for the handheld at this point are now two times the level Wii saw at the same point before its launch.

Previously, we had heard from across the pond that 3DS pre-order levels were two times the Wii specifically at Amazon U.K. The global demand for Nintendo's new system will likely remain high and supply will be tight.

Folks, this is gonna get worst. Global demand of the 3DS is gonna make the Wii look very wee wee. However, there is also a hidden clause to this

Interestingly, Nintendo recently changed its stance on 3D games, saying, "We’re moving away from any stance that says if you don’t use the 3D functionality you can’t play this game.” We wonder if that will limit the true 3D potential of the handheld.

It's the opposite of the Wii. They're not forcing companies to adopt this gimmick. Very hypocritical.

But on the other hand, you can't spell more hypocritical when you meet this guy from CNN who reviewed the 3DS by calling it "No Match for the iPhone." The post courtesy of GamesRadar

JP Mangalindan, a gamer who says he grew up on Halo, provided the official 3DS review for CNN.com, and although he seems to do a pretty good job reading off the teleprompter, he clearly doesn't know a lot about video games.

Folks. If you want a real opinion, someone who grew up on Halo has more factual opinion than someone who grew up on Super Mario Bros. It's like someone's opinion on movies when it comes to Avatar is better than someone's opinion on movies when it comes to Citizen Kane.

But that's not the only thing he bashes Nintendo on.

Comparing it to the iPad and iPod Touch, Mangalindan said it was "funny to come across the 3DS, which does one thing." Of course, we all know that down the road it will be able to play 3D movies, browse the Internet, and download future upgrades for new features.

Mangalindan also slammed the 3DS for using cartridges, saying that's "something we haven't seen since the last Game Boy, pretty much." Either he's talking about the DSi, which wouldn't be that big of a deal ("Wow, we haven't seen this kind of technology since, well, the thing that's on the market right now"), or he's actually referring to the Game Boy Advance.

Then, he exclaims, "To add insult to injury, it also features a stylus, something we haven't seen since the Palm devices of the early 2000s." We'd like to point out that the entire DS family of systems, on the market from 2004 - 2011, uses a stylus, and has sold 47 million units in the US alone.

This guy has a point. Why bother having a gaming device that plays games, yet will also browse the internet and play movies, when you can have a device that plays games, movies, internet, acts as a cell phone, all without giving you the option to replace your battery with a new one. And he's got a point about Carts. We haven't seen those since the Game Boy of old. The GBA and the DS, don't look like carts to me.

And I also agree. Stylus are so out of style even if the iPod touch screen is not as accurate as the DS's touch screen. But there's one more thing he also added

He finished the review saying, "With the iPhone and iPod Touch, will it sell as well as other Nintendo devices?" That is a good question, except the 3DS has already garnered more than twice the amount of pre-orders as the Nintendo Wii in the UK, and people are waiting in line as much as five days to get one in the US. Doesn't sound like the kind of device where we have to be wondering if it'll sell.

Unfortunately, there's two things I gotta slam this kid on. First off, the iApocalypse is slowly being eclipsed by the 3DSapocalypse. With sales twice as large as the Wii's, it is gonna sell, and that will worry those who hate Nintendo. And finally, there's one more major flaw. He's from CNN. Now if he were from Fox, I would have taken his credibility more seriously.

Finally, more shock towards the 3DS

I bought my Aqua Blue 3DS at launch with ghost recon as my game of choice. Now it has gotten an error message for the second time:( It’s when I have played ghost recon for about ten minutes, the screens go black and the bottom screen says “A problem has occured, hold down the power button and restart the system. Contact your local support center if the problem persist”

Hah. In your face kid. At least I went and got a Jet Black 3DS. So HA HA HA HA HA...

Wait. I just realized something. I didn't get Jet Black. I got Aqua Blue.

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Works Cited:
Industrygamers
GamesRadar
Nintendo 3DS Blog

The Angry and the heartbreaking

Before we get to today's topic, let's check in on a news post early this month. It seems we all have an obsession of gaming and death. Especially if its Television vs the Radio, or Internet vs Television, or Social Websites vs Email. If you're Peter Vesterbacka of Rovio games, maker of Angry Birds, you'd say the same thing about Console Games.

Innovation in gaming has clearly moved into mobile and social, Vesterbacka said, largely because those companies are more “nimble” — it’s easy to develop and release new content quickly. In fact, he said as mobile gaming (including games on tablet devices like the iPad) continues to grow, console games are “dying”. Vesterbacka scoffed at the traditional model where companies charge $40 to $50 for a game that’s difficult to upgrade. (Nokia’s Tero Ojanpera, who was also on the panel, countered that there’s still a place for consoles, because gamers aren’t going to plug tablet devices into their televisions.)

He has a point, even if Console Games are creating ways to update with patching and DLC. Now I'm no expert at death in technology, but PCs were suppose to triumph consoles back during the industry crash. Till Nintendo stuck its nose in and brought it back. Of course, UberGizmo's George Wong decided another path.

"While it is true that mobile phone games are cheaper and much more accessible due to the fact that everybody has a smartphone nowadays, those games just don't live up to the experience you get from full-blown games that you experience on your TV," explained Wong.

"As casual games for you to play while waiting for the bus or standing in line at a long queue, mobile phone games are great time wasters. But hours spent playing Angry Birds aren't going to draw you in like the storyline-based games of Final Fantasy, or Heavy Rain."

Wong added that cellphone gaming was likely to "complement" the industry rather than "killing off" consoles, as both offer their own advantages and disadvantages.

Complement? COMPLEMENT? How dare you talk about how Cellphone games are gonna complement the industry. And who cares which has an advantage. The industry isn't big enough for 4-5 sources of gaming. And I reckon someone's gotta go.

Now folks, I normally would talk NPD. But with the heartbreak going on in Japan, I am going to put that on hold even longer than normal. You may not expect it till next week. Apparently, I also know what it's like to feel a quake as I recall an earthquake in Mexico back in Easter of 2010. I felt the outer core of the earthquake as my room shook up for awhile. The aftershocks were also felt.

When it comes to donations, the industry is no stranger. Nintendo has donated 300 Million Yen, or $3.6 Million in US dollars, to the relief effort. Sony took it up a notch by also donatin 30,000 radios in addition to the similar donation to the effort. Other Japanese companies like SEGA(200 million yen), NamcoBandai(100 million yen) Capcom(100 million yen) SquareEnix(100 million yen), Konami(100 million yen) and Tecmo Koei(10 million yen) also made donations.

Capcom is taking it up a notch by slashing the price of Street Fighter IV on the iPhone and will make 100% of its donation go to the relief effort.

But it's not just Japanese companies that are getting into donating. Microsoft is also jumping in on with their donation of $2 million. Social Media developers like Gaia Online and EVE Online are starting fundraisers for the people of Japan.

But if you're Zynga, makers of FarmVille, you're taking it up a notch.

Zynga — maker of "FarmVille" and "CityVille" — has partnered with Save the Children to raise money for its Japan Earthquake Tsunami Children Emergency Fund.

If you want to get involved, you can also check out the Zynga/Save the Children partnership to help those in need. Another recommended group is the American Red Cross. You can do so At the Red Cross. Remember, every little bit helps
Works Cited:

Venture Beat
TGDaily
Gear Diary
MSNBC

Pokemon's Revenge

Folks, it's been 6 days since Pokemon Black and White debuted in America. The newest saga in the "Gotta Catch em all" fad that started in America in 1998, introduces new Pokemon, like Snivy, Tepig and Oshawatt. Sadly, no sign of Pikachu, or its evil twin brother Meowth, are catchable.

What is catchable is the sales of this game. In just one day, the game sold more than 1 million units on both Black and White.

"Longtime Pokemon fans are attracted to the new Pokemon, new battle systems and a new region to explore, while newcomers enjoy the ability to jump in and have fun right away," said Nintendo of America's Charlie Scibetta. "These sales numbers illustrate the continued strength of the Nintendo DS family of systems. Already established as the nation's best-selling video game platform of all time, the installed base of more than 47 million makes it the ideal hand-held for developers to reach a huge gaming-focused target audience."

Proof that Pokemon fever is as huge as Call of Duty fever, except much more dangerous. Folks, it won't be long before children put down their digital guns and get out their digital Animals. Where's PETA on this? They should be outraging over Pokemon, especially when the main antagonists are a parody of PETA

Team Plasma is the villainous team in Unova. Team Plasma’s goal is to free Pokémon from humans.

Unlike time past one’s, Team Plasma mandate is not to take over the world, but to free Pokemon from being enslaved.

Another thing that is outrageous about Team Plasma. They have the same initals as the Tea Party. Obviously, this is Nintendo's ploy against both PETA and the Tea Party. But you know what else has the same initals as Team Plasma and the Tea Party? Toilet Paper.

Finally, as you are aware, an earthquake has hit Japan on Thursday night. Rumors of Satoshi Tajiri's death were flooding the internet like a tidal wave. Unfortunately, said rumors were considered false as it revealed by Ken Sugimori, that Satoshi Tajiri is alive and well

[[Final Update: Pokemon Art Director Ken Sugimori has confirmed via twitter that Satoshi Tajiri is alive. Thankfully this rumor has been proven false. Thanks for the tip, Twilight.]]

Furthermore, Nintendo's building in Japan was also spared the tidal wave of the Earthquake as well. My condolence goes to those in Japan who were ravaged by the quake. Just don't expect me to give you my Victini that I won fair and square.

Works Cited
1up
Gapolitic
Japanator

The 3DS: Apocalyptic monster or innocent gaming machine?

Folk, the Nintendo 3DS will be released in a few weeks. But in Japan, it has already went on sale much to a delighted crowd. Within 24 Hours of its release, the system completely sold out.

According to Andriasang, Nintendo shipped 400,000 3DS units for the system’s debut launch in Japan over the weekend, all of which have now sold. Reportedly, initial stock sold out in a single day of pre-orders on January 20.

Major retailers were said to have shifted their stock by midday on Saturday and in scenes that are becoming increasingly less common for hardware launches, queues stretched from 400 to 900 people – many of whom had been waiting since before midnight.

The handheld was priced at 25,000 yen ($305) and supported by a launch line-up that includes Winning Eleven 3DS (PES), Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition, Nintendogs + Cats, Ridge Racer 3D, Combat Of Giants: Dinosaurs 3D, Samurai Warriors: Chronicles, Professor Layton And The Mask Of Miracle and Bust-A-Move Universe.

It seems when it comes to Nintendo, they know how to make long lines. In fact, I believe Nintendo is up to something, like at the Keynote early ago.

It was recently reported that Nintendo's 3DS will also support Netflix, the same internet video service that is used on the Wii, will also be available on the 3DS when it goes online in May. It must be a brilliant tactic by Nintendo to lure everyone away from Sony. But that's not the only thing that Nintendo is using

In addition to select, hand-picked Game Boy and Game Boy Color classics, the 3DS's Virtual Console will also play host to titles from two slightly surprising sources: The Sega Game Gear and TurboGraphx-16 handhelds. No specific entries from the two devices were named during Reggie Fils-Aime's presentation at Nintendo's GDC keynote today -- though we've got our fingers crossed for the speedy arrival of Sonic Chaos.

This is the same tactic that Nintendo used to lure gamers to the Wii, except now directed with the short on battery life Game Gear and the once a console TurboGrafix. And we know one thing, this service won't be available till May

Fils-Aime also confirmed the late May arrival of the Virtual Console via a system update, which wiill also introduce a handful of the device's other online features, including: DSiWare (and the ability to transfer DSiWare games from a DSi or DSi XL), the web browser and eShop. It's likely to be the same update that will add Netflix and some 3D video features, too.

Everyone. It's not too late to give into Nintendo's evil system before it goes on sale at the end of this month and online in May. The best thing to do is to build a Fallout shelter. Boycotting will do you no good because Nintendo's lures are epic lures and the only way to stay away from the 3DS is to hide in said shelter and hope it fades out. Otherwise, we're gonna be in for a rude awakening that makes the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS look like the SEGA Game Gear.

Works Cited: Next-Gen
JoyStiq