From their own annual press occasion, writer NIS America announced the indie strike Cavern Story would be released for the Nintendo 3DS handheld. On hand was Daisuke Ayama, creator of Cavern Tale, and Tyrone Rodriguez of creator Nicalis who’ll be handling development duties.
Facts are few and far between only at that point–there wasn’t a release date announced–but the demonstration do function a number of screenshots and focus on makes of the conditions and character models, that we have embedded beneath for the viewing pleasure.
Cavern Tale has already garnered an audience because of successful variations on both laptop computer and also the WiiWare support, but the Three dimensional function may be enough in order to persuade actually old fans in order to revisit the title when this produces on the 3DS.
The original rivalry has been revived and it’s up to the player to help Mario save Pauline from the clutches of Donkey Kong once again. The mustachioed plumber usually has played the role of the hero in the past and once again takes the spotlight with his army of mini-Marios. In my case, I’d rather play the role of Donkey Kong snatching the damsel away and keeping Mario away, but alas, that isn’t what is offered in Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem.
What Mini-Land Mayhem does well is continue to introduce new puzzle-solving elements in succession throughout the stages. Starting out with the red girders and eventually learning how to implement blue ladders, the obstacles are often easy to solve and overcome. At the very least, they are satisfying, so figuring out that one green pipe needed to be deactivated while another needed to be active for mini-Toad to reach his exit door was a worthwhile experience.
In total, there are eight levels with eight levels within them before a boss battle (against Donkey Kong, of course) is met. Each level has collectibles such as letters that spell out mini-Mario to unlock a mini-game, gold coins, and a few useable items such as hammers to hit Circus Kong (toy Donkey Kong) and other gorilla robots out of the way. Once the Normal Mode is complete and Donkey Kong is defeated at the top of an observation wheel, the Plus Mode is unlocked and players will play through the same levels again but this time they must have the mini-characters (Mario, Toad, Pauline, Donkey Kong, Princess Peach) enter the exit door in the correct order.
It’s safe to say that Mini-Land Mayhem has replay value in surplus. Special and Expert Levels can be unlocked with 10 more stages each to play and players are eligible to create their own levels through Construction Mode. The Normal Mode takes anywhere from 4-5 hours to complete depending on the skill level of the player, but it’s nowhere near as challenging as the Plus Mode or the Special and Expert Levels. It’s required to earn trophies to unlock the Expert Levels and to earn the trophies, players earn points in each stage based on the game score, time bonus and collection bonus. If players reach the goal score, they’ll earn themselves a trophy. Simple, but it’ll take a good 10 hours to earn all the trophies.
Thankfully, the controls are intuitive due to how basic they are. Tap a mini-Mario to kick-start him on his path towards the exit, drag a line between two red rivets to create a red girder or two blue rivets for a blue ladder. There’s nothing too complicated that mucks up the overall experience, but then again, it never goes above and beyond conventional puzzle standards to stand out. Want a purple conveyor to go in a different direction? Tap the arrow and, voila, it’s done. Need to clear the path of a shy guy that stands in the way? Grab the hammer and get a whacking.
The most attractive feature of Mini-Land Mayhem happens to be the online sharing of levels. The single-player campaign does a serviceable job, but the online is where the game exceeds expectations. While it does take some time to understand what’s possible and what isn’t, the Construction Zone elevates the title to a worthy recommendation for players who want to try out their hand at creating levels. Players are eligible to save up to 160 levels to their game card, so Nintendo has provided a great chance to share expertly crafted levels with friends.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem is a quality puzzler, especially when considering the lackluster year the genre is having. The more challenging aspects take a bit to get to, but when players do reach the Plus Mode and Special Levels, it’s worth every second.
It’s hard to talk about Dragon Quest without mentioning its massive presence in Japan, where it’s gone beyond a game series to become a cultural institution akin to Star Wars or Harry Potter in North America. Square-Enix knows well that DQ’s massive Japanese audience has certain expectations from the games, and they’re not about to risk taking their cash cow to slaughter. Thus, they rarely take risks in changing up the core game mechanics of the DQ titles, choosing instead to constantly augment its traditional turn-based RPG gameplay with different feature sets. It stands in very stark contrast to their Final Fantasy series — a franchise known for taking bold risks to sometimes mixed results.
So when I say that Dragon Quest IX is the series’ most drastically different installment yet, it really doesn’t mean that much. Its primary innovation — portable, four-player co-operative play — is something made popular recently by another Japanese megahit, the PSP Monster Hunter titles. In fact, there’s a lot of Monster Hunter influence evident throughout the game. But taking a cue from other proven hits isn’t a bad thing — especially when you can work their concepts into a completely different style of game well, as DQIX does.
When you start Dragon Quest IX, you get to create a character to your own specifications, akin to an MMORPG. It’s then revealed that you’re are already a demigod, living in a realm high in the clouds and tasked with helping the mortals below, working to earn affection and open the path to where the Almighty resides. That is, before your heavenly kingdom implodes, sending you careening to the earth below sans many of your supernatural powers. It’s up to you to solve the mystery behind the destruction of your homeland, and quell the chaos brewing in the mortal realm.
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Bayer’s Didget, an FDA-approved device that allows players to transmit diabetes test data to a Nintendo DS in order to earn new content, is now available in the U.S. via top online pharmacies.
Testing ones blood-sugar level–done by literally procuring a sample of blood from your finger–isn’t a pleasant prospect for most, not to mention the many children affected with diabetes. Bayer is hoping to make the procedure a bit easier on kids in America, as the pharmaceutical company has announced that its blood sugar-testing device, the Didget, is now available in the U.S. via CVS and Walgreens’ online pharmacies for $75–though that price may vary depending on your health plan.
Children will be able to quickly perform and receive results for their blood sugar levels using the Didget, and will earn points that can be transferred to the Nintendo DS via the Game Boy Advance cartridge slot included in pre-DSi models to earn new content in a game that comes with the testing device called Knock ‘Em Downs: World’s Fair. The points earned from tests can also be used by children to customize their own web pages on Bayer’s Didget World online community.
GameStop’s got an exclusive Pikachu-colored Pichu for your Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, or Platinum Version. The Pichu holds a secret for the upcoming Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver Version games.
Pokémon fans with a copy of Pokémon Diamond, Pearl, or Platinum have 12 more days to get in on GameStop’s Pikachu-colored Pichu giveaway.
The promotional freebie lets players add the level 30 Pichu to their Pokédex at GameStops across American (and in Puerto Rico) when they bring in their Game Cards and DS consoles. The Pikachu-colored Pichu comes with attacks like Charge and Endure, and special moves Volt Tackle and Endeavor. Also, he comes with the Held Item Everstone and his Poké Ball is actually the Cherish Ball – a special item only distributed at Pokémon events.
Obtaining Pichu provides gamers with a sneak peek at the upcoming Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver games. By trading the freebie into one of the new games, players get to meet Spiky-eared Pichu from the movie, Pokémon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life.
The Pikachu-colored Pichu giveaway event ends February 14.