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Items of Import: Let's Enroleplaying Games!

by Sachi Coxon { Jul 24th 2008 at 5:05PM }

After a lot of deliberation, Joe Player finally decided to try importing a game from Japan. It was nerve-wracking, clicking through to an online retailer and perusing the list of unusual titles. With fingers poised above the keyboard, he hesitated -- would his credit card information be safe? Should he choose express post? How long would delivery take?

He was worried -- did he make the right choice? Was his Japanese sufficient to play the game? He'd learned hiragana in classes, and picked up some ninja phrases from fansubbed episodes of Naruto. Would it be enough? He would soon find out.

Welcome to the inaugural edition of Items of Import, a new weekly feature that will make you feel a little less worried about your import choices. Sometimes playing a game in Japanese can seem like a daunting task. But make no mistake: Items of Import is here to nurture you, guide you, and teach you the ways of Japanese games. Keep checking this space for your dose of import impressions and language lessons.

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Paste Donkey Kong on photo, win a DS lite and DK Jungle Climber

by Kevin Kelly { Sep 13th 2007 at 1:00AM }

Do people exist somewhere that don't own this system? If the Japanese sales charts are to be believed, then there have been enough Nintendo DS systems sold so that every man, woman, child, and dog on the planet could have one of these. And a spare.

However, if you are DS-less and have a hankering to get onboard with the action, and you have some rudimentary photochopping skills, then try your hand at the Nintendo DS/DK contest at SmugMug. All you have to do is paste the little guy climbing to the top of pretty much anything, and then submit it. Keep in mind though, images must be under 12 mb in size (good gawd).

It's a pretty easy contest to enter, and the swag is well worth the time, so why not whip something up and get in? We made one in just a few seconds (hint, it's the image for this post) so you should trump our skillz easily and submit it to them.

Check out the rules on their site. Also, the comment on the first (and only) entry that's up so far is ... priceless. Ahh, the internets.

DS Daily: Your E3 winner

by JC Fletcher { Jul 15th 2007 at 10:00AM }

We didn't see much in the keynote, but plenty of delicious DS content appeared over the course of E3: Brain Age 2, Flash Focus, Professor Layton, Advance Wars 2, Contra 4-- the list goes on and on. It all looks nice! But us being gamers, and this being the Internet, we aren't comfortable with anything unless it's categorized according to arbitrary value judgments.

For that, we turn to you. Which game of the pack was the winner, in your mind? And, if it wasn't Contra 4, why not?

DS Daily: Is 2D obsolete?

by JC Fletcher { Jul 14th 2007 at 10:00AM }

We're not going to say a word. You already know how we feel about the issue. And we're not even asking if 2D is better than polygons, but just whether it has a place in the gaming world. We just want to see how this discussion plays out, to be honest. Just remember, as in all DS Daily topics, and every other post in which you comment, as well as pretty much everywhere, be courteous to your fellow gamers!

Gloss Silver and Metallic Pink DS Lites now available for import

by JC Fletcher { Jul 13th 2007 at 5:20PM }

The new DS Lites have been released in Japan and have shown up on import shopping sites. That's right, for only $179 + shipping, you can have a DS Lite in one of the two new Japan-exclusive colors! You have your choice of Like the Regular DS Phat Color but on a Lite, or Like the Pink One but Shinier.

Sure, you pay a premium, but it may be worth it to have a DS that looks somewhat different from other DS's in the immediate area. Depends on how you feel about the new colors! What do you think-- Gloss Silver or Gross Silver? Metallic Pink or Me-tacky Pink?

Rumor: Enamel Navy no more?

by Eric Caoili { Jul 11th 2007 at 11:30AM }

The morning's whisperings, hushed under raucous E3 speculation, indicate that the Enamel Navy DS Lite's days could be numbered. Supposedly, Nintendo will be halting all production of the Japan-and-China-only version of the handheld by the end of the month.

We don't favor its termination, but considering Nintendo's recent introduction of two new tints to the DS Lite line, Metallic Rose and Gloss Silver, trimming the number of available colors might be in the company's best interest. Expect to see import and auction prices for this endangered edition shoot up to the heavens.

Farewell, Enamel Navy! We hardly knew ye.

Everyone on the Internet should buy Spelling Challenges

by JC Fletcher { Jul 11th 2007 at 10:40AM }

Well, this is a start to solving the Internet's problems. Next up: Learning the Difference Between "Your" and "You're" Challenges!

We've received some screenshots of Crave's Spelling Challenges and More!, the spelling-based game show game with over 25,000 words to spell. We can see a sort of Jumble-style anagram game called "Mish Mash" and a "Bomb Blast" game that gives players a limited time to pick out a correctly spelled word from a group of horrible mistakes.

The game uses a very simplistic, clean presentation that we find appealing. Not every educational game needs a charismatic floating head.

Gallery: Spelling Challenges

[Via press release]

Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games screens

by JC Fletcher { Jul 10th 2007 at 4:30PM }

Everyone's eager to see what Sonic and Mario's first collaboration will look like, right? Well, here it is! The DS version, anyway. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games looks pretty okay! We don't really know what else to say about it. It's in 3D, and includes, at the very least, long jump, archery, hammer throw, and some kind of track event.

Sonic and Tails are participating in the manner of the ancient Olympians-- nude. We don't know if they've covered themselves in olive oil as the Greeks did, and we hope we never find out. We hope nobody ever finds out.

Gallery: Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games

Kururin Doughnuts randomly appears on Gametrailers with English subtitle

by JC Fletcher { Jul 10th 2007 at 11:30AM }

Is Kururin Doughnuts getting localized? You probably don't remember this as the donut-starring platformer with bonus dessert recipes that we highlighted back in March. It was released in Japan last week, and now some gameplay footage has appeared on Gametrailers.

The mere existence of the video on Gametrailers isn't conclusive proof of anything, since undeniably Japanese clips of Stock Trader Shun, Let's Try Fortune Telling DS, and our favorite, Doki Doki Majo Shinpan, were uploaded on the same day. But what piqued our interest was the subtitle given to the game: Enchanted Pastry. It's not just a translation of the Japanese subtitle, Okashi na Recipe (Recipe for Sweets)-- so where did Gametrailers get it? Either they made it up or there's a US trailer involved. Or something else. Enjoy some video after the break!

[Via Game|Life]

Continued →

Touching is good at Safeco Field

by JC Fletcher { Jul 10th 2007 at 9:50AM }

The Seattle Mariners baseball team is trying a new pilot program at Safeco Field that lets fans watch replays and live feeds of the game, answer trivia questions, and even order food from the relative comfort of their sticky bleachers. Sound interesting? Oh, we forgot one detail: all of this uses the DS.

For a $5 fee ($30 for 10 games), access to the Nintendo Fan Network software is granted. Two download points in the stadium broadcast the software wirelessly.

We're glad to see Nintendo getting some mileage out of that baseball team they bought. They've certainly got our interest with this context-sensitive non-game. We want to go to a baseball game now.

[Thanks, Dave and Matt!]

Animal Crossing styli to help Tom Nook pay for his hot tub

by JC Fletcher { Jul 9th 2007 at 5:20PM }

Hey, a thing with Animal Crossing characters on it! Must buy! Seriously, Nintendo did a bad thing by making a game full of super-adorable characters and then designing it such that players are required to interact with these characters on a daily schedule. Then, when you see Tutu or whoever on a toy, you feel more compelled to buy it because you've formed somewhat of a relationship.

We recognize this manipulation, but it still works. We may have to buy that Snowman stylus. We love the snowman.

User-created content in N+

by JC Fletcher { Jul 9th 2007 at 1:10PM }

Metanet just announced the winners of their SUBLIME (Submit Unique and Brilliant Levels to Metanet Event) competition, in which they asked fans to ~~do their work for them~~ design new levels for the DS, PSP, and XBox Live Arcade versions of N+. 29 user-created levels made the cut for the DS version, including "Endless Flight?" seen above. User-created levels on the retail cartridge? So awesome.

In addition to the honor of having their level in the game, winners get a free copy of N+. As cool as this contest is, we hope it isn't a substitute for an in-game level editor.

[Via GameSetWatch]

Namco Museum screens are as new as Namco Museum screens can be

by JC Fletcher { Jul 9th 2007 at 11:30AM }

We've seen countless releases of the Namco Museum collections over the years. We remember feeling quite special about the Playstation versions-- they were the real versions of real arcade games! At home! But now the Namco Museum series is, itself, old. How old?

Valkyrie no Densetsu (1989) was eight years old when it was released on Namco Museum Vol. 5. The original Namco Museum Playstation game is eleven years old. In other words, Namco Museum is now older, in relative terms, than a game that was old enough for Namco Museum.

Speaking of the Playstation editions, the new Namco Museum DS has something not seen since those days: an actual museum mode, in the form of a trophy collection and music player, as well as scanned instructions and flyers.

Relatively newer features include bottom-screen maps and hints for Galaga (?), Xevious, and The Tower of Druaga. Of course, the most exciting relatively-new thing is Pac-Man Vs., which, now that it won't require so much of a financial outlay, we may actually try with another person.

Gallery: Namco Museum DS

Find painting zen on the DS

by JC Fletcher { Jul 9th 2007 at 9:50AM }

Mercury Games is planning to release a series of Ertain's non-competitive DS games in the West as "Zen Games." The first game scheduled is something that recently popped up at the Renchi sale, in its Japanese incarnation as Kokoro wo Yasumeru Otona no Nurie DS. It'll be called Paint by DS here, and its user interface appears to have undergone a cosmetic makeover. Since it obviously has the same pictures, we assume that the minigames and puzzles are still there as well.

We were pretty interested in the Japanese version (as some of you seemed to be), so we're pleased to have the chance to check this out whenever it comes out in the US. It'll be out in Europe on the 24th of August.

[Via Game|Life]

What a horrible summer not to be going to Comic-Con

by JC Fletcher { Jul 8th 2007 at 11:16AM }

NECA, the company responsible for the awesome Castlevania figure prototypes, has a new Simon Belmont figure on the way. It's a somewhat more faithful sculpture of Simon as he appeared in the first Castlevania on the NES. Unfortunately, only 1,000 units will be produced, and it will only be available at the San Diego Comic-Con.

We totally want this, and we are all about pixel art, but we must say that this figure, with its rounded edges and inexact paint job, looks a little more like a cookie to us than an action figure. Which actually gives us an idea!

[Via NeoGAF]