Oh hey, there’s actually a decent amount of news this week! And some cool videos! And a great DSiWare release! There’s quite a bit to cover, so we should probably just get right into it.

NEWS

Nintendo Celebrates 25 Years of Zelda With Flipnote Studio

Nintendo is holding a special contest in Flipnote Studio to celebrate a quarter-century of Zelda, challenging you to come up with an original, Zelda-themed animation like Nintendo’s brilliant example below. To enter, select “Zelda Flipnote” from the Flipnote Hatena menu and download one of the soundtrack samples provided by Nintendo. There are four judges for the contest, including Miyamoto himself, who will select their favorite entries and post them up on Flipnote Hatena and the Nintendo Channel. Submissions close on September 9th, and you can see the full details (and advice on drawing Link) here: US | Europe

Free Four Swords Still on Track

Just in case you were concerned about the lack of news or screens since its announcment at E3, the free DSiWare port of The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords is still coming this September according to a recent Nintendo press release. Nothing new was announced, but it will still be out in just a few weeks.

Professor Layton Movie Release Date Announced

VIZ Media has announced the release date for Professor Layton and the Eternal Diva. It’s out on DVD and Blu-ray in North America from November 8th, and that’s the boxart on the right there. They also said that The Last Specter (set before the movie) should be out a few weeks prior, which would put its release in October sometime.

Pokémon and Solatorobo DLC Updates

Solatorobo’s Euro DLC schedule for August has been announced. The Air GP Pharaoh Cup came out on August 12th, Futzu Tower Data is coming next Friday (August 19th) followed by Prairie Kingdom Cup and A New Simulation on August 26th and September 2nd respectively. For Pokémon Black and White, two new C-Gear skins are now available: one is a Pokémon World Championships skin that wasn’t released in Japan – enter the code “WorldsCGear” at the Global Link website to get it. The other skin features Audino and is part of a Yahoo Kids promo – the code for that one is “YAHOOAUDINO”. Both skins are only available until September 15th.

Aliens: Infestation Delayed?

According to customers who pre-ordered Aliens: Infestation from Amazon, they’re sending out emails stating that the game has been delayed until October 31st. Given how lon git’s been since the game was originally announced (under the name Colonial Marines) a delay of less than 2 months isn’t that big a deal, but it puts it awfully close to every other video game that’s out this Fall. I’d hate to see what looks to be a great, Metroidvania-esque sidescroller lost in the holiday lineup.

Solatorobo Makes Up for the Wait With a Bonus

When Solatorobo: Red the Hunter makes it to North American shores on September 27th, XSEED is packing in a cool bonus. The game will include a 24-track orchestral soundtrack CD (pictured to the right) that was originall included in the Japanese collectors edition. The package will run you $34.99, but given the positive impressions from Japan, it’s probably worth the extra few dollars.

VIDEOS

Nintendo’s example Zelda Flipnote animation

Kirby Mass Attack – North American gameplay trailer

Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2 – “Mysterious Island” trailer

NEW RELEASES

North America (8/16)

• Puzzler World 2 (Tommo)

Europe (19/8)

• Mystery Tales 2: The Spirit Mask (Easy Interactive)
• Virtual Villagers (pqube)
• Timmy Time (Avanquest Software)

LAST WEEK ON DSiWARE

North America

• Go! Go! Kokopolo ($7.99/800 Points, Room 4 Games)
• My Asian Farm ($1.99/200 Points, BiP Media)
• Crazy Hamster ($1.99/200 Points, Gamelion)

Europe

• Oscar’s World Tour (£4.50/€5/500 Points, Virtual Playground)
• Hearts Spades Euchre (£4.50/€5/500 Points, GameOn GmbH)
• GO Series Fishing Resort (£1.80/€2/200 Points, GAMEBRIDGE)

DEALS

This week in the US, Amazon has a “Summer Road Trip Handheld Gaming Event“, featuring games like Chrono Trigger, Monster Tale, Professor Layton, Dragon Quest IV and V, WarioWare DIY and more.

In the UK there’s Sonic Classics Collection for £11.99, Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword for £8.54, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars for £14.91, and Aqua Panic for £12.67.

2DS VIEW ARCHIVE