That’s the contingency plan enacted by NOA in the face of the Pokemon Financial Crisis, to leave the eShop up only half the time. In Europe, the downtime is 10pm-10am CET.
First reaction: ughhhhhhh. Second reaction: if this works out, it’s 12 hours a day more eShop uptime than we’re getting right now.
BUYNintendo 2DS&3DS/XL, upcoming games, our holiday gift guide
Through January 3rd, save on DRM-free indie games from Japan and around the world on Playism. PC game sites aren’t always our deal, but I think it’s a neat service and maybe you’d be interested!
Like PixelJunk Monsters Ultimate and PixelJunk Shooter, available as a bundle for $7.50! Or monster apartment sim Unholy Heights for two bucks!
Oh man, IREM Arcade Hits, containing Ninja Spirit and 17 others, is $7.50. Check out the video above for some highlights of Playism’s lineup. As a bonus, if you’ve heard the name EF-12 but haven’t actually learned what it is, you’ll be surprised.
Check out Playism’s Winter Sale!
Statement from Nintendo about recent eShop outages in North America. So… maybe… it’s over? Except for the part about Pokemon Bank still being delayed.
BUYNintendo 2DS&3DS/XL, upcoming games, our holiday gift guide
TinyCast 19! After talking about our favorite tiny cartridges in the last episode, we close out the Year of Luigi by looking at our most anticipated Nintendo 3DS and PS Vita games releasing in 2014 (or really, just all the games we know will come out eventually).
We also discuss announcements from the recent Nintendo Direct like NES Remix and Hyrule Warriors. We recorded this before the Pokemon Banking crisis and the eShop market crash, so you won’t hear an edge in our voices when we bring up the digital storefront.
Direct download (MP3, 30.8 MB) / RSS
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Episode notes:
Music features in this episode:
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Did we miss any exciting games coming out in 2014? Let us know!
On one hand, origami paper with Pokemon faces printed on it is kinda cheating. On the other hand, cute! This set is available at J-List for $3.50.
BUYPokemon X and Y, upcoming games
As I neared the final case of Ace Attorney: Dual Destinies, I was certain it was not only my least favorite game of the series, but the worst game. After completing the thrilling final case and experiencing the story as a whole, I no longer think it’s my least favorite story, though there’s no doubt in my mind it’s the worst in terms of gameplay.
Rather than connect all the thoughts swimming around in my head into some kind of coherent opinion, I thought I’d just… list them, or something.
My verdict for this not-a-review: I’m still glad I bought it, and still delighted to have played it, but the perfunctory cameos make it feel almost like Phoenix Wright fanfic than the genuine article. And don’t expect to be asked to work your brain to execute the dramatic turnabouts we love. I still love playing Ace Attorney games, and Dual Destinies is still one of those – there’s nothing like them – but it’s not a standout within the series.
The good news is that Capcom has a really flexible 3D Phoenix Wright engine now, so I’m guessing we’ll get a couple more games. Let’s just hope Shu Takumi is back on the next one — apparently something is already in the works, and Takumi intends to announce his next project in 2014.
(Image via Court-Records)
BUYNintendo 2DS&3DS/XL, upcoming games
Props to Tiny Cartridge reader JDavis for the colorized artwork, and Jonatan Iversen-Ejve for the original mock-up.
BUYZelda: A Link Between Worlds, upcoming games
WayForward’s James Montagna put together this rad Famicom-color 3DS XL using, it looks like, a Zelda 3DS XL and a red one. It’s pictured here among his other Famicom-style handhelds and some business card cases.
Bold move, taking apart the sought-after Zelda 3DS XL!
BUYZelda: A Link Between Worlds, upcoming games
Need more Slime for your 3DS XL? Finally – FINALLY – Square Enix has made a Slime stylus compatible with the 3DS. Unfortunately for 2DS/3DS owners, it’s sized for the XL. It’s available in blue, grey or orange and comes with a matching cleaning cloth.
Other new Smile Slime goods: the 3DS Card Case (blue, orange) and a 3DS XL pouch (blue, black). They all ship on Feb. 6 from Play-Asia and I want every single one of them.
BUYDragon Quest games, upcoming games
You already have plenty of options to make sure 20Luigi goes out with a bang, including the new Dr. Luigi release that hit Wii U’s eShop today, but here’s one more option. It’s an actual NES ROM hack based on the Luigi Bros. game included in Super Mario 3D World!
Hacker Clippit made sure you could play as either modern Luigi or classic Luigi — download the patch here (you’ll need the Mario Bros. ROM, preferably acquired legally somehow, to get this to work).
BUYSuper Mario 3D World, upcoming releases
I guess this Collector’s Edition set is going to be in limited supply? Amazon (which has the box for $50, five bucks cheaper than GameStop’s price) stopped taking preorders for this not too long ago, which must have made some regret they didn’t reserve the RPG earlier. It’s now accepting preorders again, but who knows how long they will be up this time. That’s pretty nuts, considering its release is still five weeks away!
Credit too Yohan Sacre for the illustration above.
[Update: Preorders no longer available. :o( That was quick.]
PREORDERBravely Default, upcoming games
Don’t forget to drop into your Animal Crossing: New Leaf town tonight and pick up your Sparkling Cider from Isabelle. Credit to Birthday Town for the pic.
Are you going to count down the new year with Crazy Redd and the gang? Who are you hoping to kiss when the clock strikes midnight? Hugh? Or Lloid if you’re lucky?! Maybe even sneak a smooch from Reese when Cyrus isn’t looking?
BUYAnimal Crossing: New Leaf, upcoming games
Hand-painted by Etsy seller Derilyn, this vegan leather case emulates the look of the Animal Crossing: New Leaf 3DS XL, while holding up to eight tiny carts! The version shown is for the 3DS, but she makes them to order for 3DS XL, PS Vita, and 2DS as well!
BUYAnimal Crossing: New Leaf, upcoming games
Credit to @timoteidalton for the original pic, and @ProbablyExoByte for the via.
BUYLuigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, upcoming games
Here are two of my favorites, from Anne Marcellino and Shattered-Earth. This piece is also amazing. I need to return to A Link Between Worlds so I can collect the rest of the Baby Maiamais and try out the Treacherous Tower.
BUYZelda: A Link Between Worlds, upcoming games
Aw yiss. Amazon carrying PSN codes again means Amazon is discounting PSN codes again — here’s Hotline Miami for a crazy $2.49, with Cross Buy so you get both versions. As Eric’s mentioned on the podcast a few times, the PS Vita release really is the best version!
So if you didn’t already get it through PS Plus, get it here! Image via KurkoBoltsi.
BUYPS Vita, upcoming games, our holiday gift guide
Yay, a reason to talk about 3DS news and the eShop that has nothing to do with the service’s downtime lately. It’s also something to tide you over until this RPG releases in five weeks (or until Yumi’s Odd Odyssey hits this month).
Don’t forget that the downloadable trial contains content that isn’t in the main game, and that you can carry over bonuses from the demo to the retail version. Credit to Chiisanpo for the above pic.
PREORDERBravely Default, upcoming games
Back to being the younger brother. The second player. The sidekick. The timid character with the silly jump. We had some fun times in 2013, didn’t we? :o(
Image is via Gman.
BUYLuigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, upcoming games
Don’t forget about the Bravely Default AR cards ⊟
They work with the demo! They also look really dang nice! They come in the packaged version of the game, but, like, that doesn’t help for the demo, so you should download them here.
PREORDERBravely Default, upcoming games
He’s waiting for you at J-List (ships in June!). Look at his little legs.
BUYLuigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, upcoming games
