Nintendo 3DS

[JaidynReiman]

Apparently Donkey Kong Land is coming to the 3DS Virtual Console next week. though it's for Japan only, to DK fans there are three things to be happy about right off:

 

A Rare-developed Donkey Kong game is showing up on a download service again, implying any rights issues blocking the original Country games have since been sorted or never existed (Super Donkey Kong was pulled in Japan a little under a month after DKC was pulled for NA)

 

An entry in the Land series is being made available in any non-secondhand form since the mid-90s.

 

A Country-relevant game besides Tropical Freeze Digital can be part of the Donkey Kong spotlights and sales on the Nintendo eShop.

Nintendo licensed out Donkey Kong to Rare, which means that Nintendo owns everything Rare created for Donkey Kong. They never had any licensing issues with Rare at all. There were certain things Nintendo themselves just didn't want to do. It took about ten years for them to finally bring Dixie Kong back, for example (not referring to her absence in Returns; I mean after DKC3 Dixie didn't appear for a long time).

 

King K. Rool hasn't appeared much recently, either, but he's still appeared after Rare went to Microsoft.

[Thigolf]

But if there aren't licensing issues in some way, why did they remove the DKC Trilogy of the Wii VC?

[Marcello]

Nintendo licensed out Donkey Kong to Rare, which means that Nintendo owns everything Rare created for Donkey Kong. They never had any licensing issues with Rare at all. There were certain things Nintendo themselves just didn't want to do. It took about ten years for them to finally bring Dixie Kong back, for example (not referring to her absence in Returns; I mean after DKC3 Dixie didn't appear for a long time).

 

King K. Rool hasn't appeared much recently, either, but he's still appeared after Rare went to Microsoft.

This isn't true.

 

These are the games she appeared in for the first time after DKC3 (1996):

• Donkey Kong Land III (1997)
• Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)
• Donkey Konga 2  (2003)
• Donkey Konga 3  (2005)
• DK: King of Swing (2005)
• Mario Superstar Baseball (2005)
• Mario Hoops 3-on-3 (2006)
• Diddy Kong Racing DS (2007)    
• Donkey Kong Barrel Blast (2007)
• DK: Jungle Climber (2007)
• Super Smash Bros. Brawl  (2008)    
• Mario Super Sluggers (2008)

The only games she's not playable there are the Smash Bros games.

[JaidynReiman]

This isn't true.

 

These are the games she appeared in for the first time after DKC3 (1996):

• Donkey Kong Land III (1997)
• Super Smash Bros. Melee (2001)
• Donkey Konga 2  (2003)
• Donkey Konga 3  (2005)
• DK: King of Swing (2005)
• Mario Superstar Baseball (2005)
• Mario Hoops 3-on-3 (2006)
• Diddy Kong Racing DS (2007)    
• Donkey Kong Barrel Blast (2007)
• DK: Jungle Climber (2007)
• Super Smash Bros. Brawl  (2008)    
• Mario Super Sluggers (2008)

The only games she's not playable there are the Smash Bros games.

Ok, my mistake, Dixie was absent for about six years. Still a long time. I never really counted the Donkey Kong Land games, though, because I was pretty sure they were just inferior remakes of the Donkey Kong Country games on Game Boy.

 

A cameo in Smash Bros. Melee as a trophy doesn't really count as an appearance. Between Donkey Kong Land 3 and Donkey Konga 2, Dixie's next appearance, there were actually quite a few Donkey Kong games that Dixie was completely and totally absent from, most notably DK64.

 

As it stands, her prior appearance in 2008 was a lot later than I thought, but by this point she had far more appearances and there were far fewer DK games from her next appearance eight years later. The only DK game I can think of was Returns, and there were a couple of Mario Kart games, too. And even then, Returns dropped everyone that wasn't from the first game.

[Milo]

But if there aren't licensing issues in some way, why did they remove the DKC Trilogy of the Wii VC?

 

Nobody knows. :/

[Mr Loopone]

But if there aren't licensing issues in some way, why did they remove the DKC Trilogy of the Wii VC?

 

Nobody knows for sure however I can guess at least one of them. For Donkey Kong Country 2, there is a poster from a character in Killer Instinct and since Microsoft has the rights to that game Nintendo took it off as a pre-caution (plus unlike Nintendo's N64 games where a couple had texture replacements, they can't replace the pre-rendered sprites since not only they were compressed but Rare might not even have the source code anymore).

 

Doesn't explain Donkey Kong Country or Donkey Kong Country 3 though however it could also explain why Donkey Kong 64 isn't coming back [Microsoft/Rare has rights to Jet Pac, Nintendo themselves don't have the rights to the arcade version of Donkey Kong but do have rights to the NES and Game Boy versions].

[Conando]

Nobody really knows, it's just assumed it's licensing issues. There are Rare related things squirreled away in all their Donkey Kong titles (most egregious is Jetpak in DK64), though it's possible they could have lost the license to the graphics engine as well. A similar issue happened with Nintendo no longer having the license to the Super FX chip, so they can't release the original Star Fox or Yoshi's Island (hence the GBA version being released instead) on the Virtual Console.

[Milo]

How the heck can Nintendo just "lose" the license to their own hardware? I know it was developed by Argonaut Games, but they went defunct back in 2004. Did they just let the rights lapse or something?

[Conando]

They let the rights lapse since they weren't using it anymore, yeah. It's entirely possible the Silicon Studios technology used for DKC could be a similar case.

[VO.SUPER]

I guess it makes sense. Nintendo probably never expected that something like the VC would exist back when they let the rights run out. They probably thought they'd just keep remaking their old games, ala the GBA ports. That makes me wonder if the GBA versions of these games may come out before the SNES versions on VC again. Yeck; wretched colors and music aside.

[Mando-Whirl-Wind]

for those curious, this comes out the 3rd

http://www.gonintendo.com/s/225045-rusty-s-real-deal-baseball-confirmed-for-april-3rd

 

Nintendo of America ✔@NintendoAmerica

Follow

Rusty’s Real Deal baseball, launching in the #3DS #eShop on 4/3, stars Rusty the dog. He loves doughnuts.

 

[Badnik Mechanic]

Hold everything!

 

 

PINK!

 

http://www.polygon.com/2014/3/28/5557326/gamestop-exclusive-nintendo-2ds-peach-pink-disney-magical-world

[Gabz Girl]

I...actually want Disney's Magical World. .w. It looks so cute, kinda like Animal Crossing with Disney characters.

[Conando]

From what I understand, it pretty much is. You do stuff like fishing, playing with your neighbors (who happen to be the like of Goofy, Donald, etc), and gardening. Apparently there are further things like being able to run a cafe business and such. I believe it was well received in Japan.

[Gabz Girl]

From what I understand, it pretty much is. You do stuff like fishing, playing with your neighbors (who happen to be the like of Goofy, Donald, etc), and gardening. Apparently there are further things like being able to run a cafe business and such. I believe it was well received in Japan.

 

It sure was! Apparently it sold half a million in Japan as of January this year, so it was a huge success. I've just noticed there isn't a European release date yet though but I hope we get one soon. 8<

[Conando]

Nintendo of America is localizing it for North America, so I'm sure NoE is either working with them or working n their own version right now.

[Doctor MK]

16th May is now officially going to be a very pink day in Europe, as Nintendo has just confirmed they will be launching this alongside Kirby Triple Deluxe:

 

 

Real men play pink Nintendo consoles!

[Salamander]

"PLAYS IN 2D!"  Oh, wow.  Is this what we've come to.

[Jovahexeon Jax Joranvexeon]

This just in, seems the 3DS Hardware's taken a nice boost in sales in Japan: http://www.nintendolife.com/news/2014/04/3ds_enjoys_a_major_hardware_boost_in_japan_as_wii_u_sales_also_increase

 

3DS Enjoys a Major Hardware Boost in Japan as Wii U Sales Also Increase

Posted

Wed 2nd Apr 2014 09:35 by Thomas Whitehead

Increase in Japanese sales tax drives extra pre-rise sales

The results for last week's sales in Japan are here thanks to Media Create, and they bring pleasing news of hardware sales increasing for both 3DS and Wii U. It may be a peak before a notable dip, however, as Sales Tax in Japan increased from 5% to 8% in 1st April; many likely rushed ahead with expensive purchases, such as games systems, before the increase took effect.

To start with the software top 20, Mario Party: Island Tour has shown decent momentum and has now passed 200,000 physical retail sales in its first two weeks — it's been pushed off top spot by new Vita arrival Hatsune Miku: Project Diva F 2nd. Yo-kai Watch continues its impressive run while New Love Plus+ is a newcomer in 7th place; 3DS software has lost some of its dominance in recent weeks, however, with a high number of arrivals on Sony systems. The top 20 is below with lifetime sales (physical retail only) in brackets.

1. [PSV] Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd – 98,628 (New)
2. [3DS] Mario Party: Island Tour – 78,098 (210,767)
3. [PS3] Hatsune Miku Project Diva F 2nd – 59,965 (New)
4. [3DS] Yokai Watch – 48,345 (662,724)
5. [PS3] Samurai Warriors 4 – 46,490 (166,942)
6. [PS3] Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes – 38,617 (158,232)
7. [3DS] New Love Plus+ – 31,258 (New)
8. [PS3] J-Stars Victory VS – 25,300 (143,540)
9. [PSV] J-Stars Victory VS – 24,825 (122,646)
10. [PSV] Hakuoki SSL: Sweet School Life – 21,640 (New)
11. [PSV] Samurai Warriors 4 – 19,596 (59,193)
12. [PS3] Winning Post 8 – 19,156 (New)
13. [PS3] Dark Souls II – 17,771 (310,253)
14. [PS3] Pro Yakyuu Spirits 2014 – 16,897 (80,795)
15. [PSP] Pro Yakyuu Spirits 2014 – 14,877 (42,700)
16. [3DS] Kirby: Triple Deluxe – 12,966 (120,379)
17. [3DS] Kaseki Horider: Mugen Gear – 12,966 (120,379)
18. [PS4] Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes – 12,374 (104,277)
19. [PSV] Winning Post 8 – 12,120 (New)
20. [PSV] Atelier Ayesha Plus: The Alchemist of Dusk – 11,663 (New)

The hardware results show that aforementioned sales bump across the board, with eager shoppers getting in ahead of the rise in tax. The 3DS LL (XL) was the biggest beneficiary with a substantial increase to over 50,000 units to reclaim the number one spot, while the Wii U enjoyed a jump back into five figures. In worrying signs for Sony the PS4 was the only system to suffer a drop; the results are below with last week's sales in brackets.

3DS LL – 52,124 (28,291)
PlayStation Vita – 39,752 (35,374)
PlayStation 4 – 23,327 (30,201)
PlayStation 3 – 17,154 (15,455)
Wii U – 13,026 (9,982)
3DS – 12,508 (11,985)
PSP – 4,206 (3,563)
PlayStation Vita TV – 2,115 (1,754)
Xbox 360 – 304 (288)

A strong week for Nintendo in terms of hardware sales, with the 3DS prospering ahead of a potential all-round drop in the coming weeks due to increased taxation; it's pleasing to see the Wii U climb for the second consecutive week, too.

Not bad.

[Conando]

Not often you see a significant jump in the middle of April. Japan's next buying season isn't until Golden Week.

[VO.SUPER]

Rusty's Real Deal Baseball - lowest possible values you can pay for each game

Click Here to View Story

Haggling/Story-Unlocking Games

1st game: $2.00

2nd game: $1.90

3rd game: $1.80

4th game: $1.70

5th game: $1.60

6th game: $1.00

Discount Coupon Games

All four games: $1.50

Link

[PSI Wind]

That's about, what, $10?

[Conando]

It's 16 dollars.

[Ming Ming Hatsune]

Off-topic but I love to see one of my favorite characters top the chart. <3

 

No Wii U title in the top 20 either... O.o

 

Still that's a pretty good jump for the 3DS. Interesting. =)

[Autosaver]