Debunked? Nintendo Denies Rumors of New DS Redesign

The head of PR for Nintendo of Japan (NCL) has issued a statement to the gaming media denying the rumors of a new Nintendo DS. The rep also questions what evidence the source of the rumors (Enterbrain CEO Hirokazu Hamamura) had to make such claims.

The rumor was that a new Nintendo DS redesign would be revealed at this summer's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). It quickly made gaming headlines after Hamamura-san made the unofficial announcement in Weekly Famitsu. Famitsu is Japan's #1 video gaming media network, publishing a handful of magazines as well as Famitsu.com. Hamamura-san's company, Enterbrain, is the parent company of Famitsu.

While this statement kills the rumors for now, I wouldn't be surprised if we do in fact see a redesign sometime within the next year. That's just how Nintendo rolls (not to mention they've denied rumors that turned out to be true before).

Source
1UP.com

Rumor: New Nintendo DS to be Revealed at E3

Rumors of a new Nintendo DS have been circulating the internet and gaming scene for a while now, but the latest rumor seems the most likely.

Many people, including average gamers to game industry big wigs (such as Enterbrain's CEO), are speculating that Nintendo will announce a new Nintendo DS at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in July.

The rumors suggest that the new DS will simply be another redesign (like the DS Lite), in order to keep the DS brand going strong as Sony's PSP is finally gaining momentum. In other words, the new DS will likely be the same as the previous DS systems, with a few new features and likely a smaller and/or lighter design. Seems logical considering Nintendo released the DS Lite shortly after the PSP first launched (and they also redesigned the Game Boy Advance twice - first with the SP and then again with the Micro).

Personally, Super Nerd would much rather see a completely new system (such as a "DS 2" or a revival of the Game Boy brand), but a redesign might not be so bad if it significantly improves the hardware or functionality in some way.

Just keep in mind that this is merely rumors and speculation. Nothing has been officially announced or confirmed and Nintendo does not comment on rumors.

Stay tuned to the Super Awesome Nerd Blog! for more details as they become available.

'God of War 2' Greatest Hits Edition Now Available

God of War 2 has joined Sony's 'Greatest Hits' budget series. New copies now retail for only $19.99 US and still include the bonus DVD. If you haven't played this epic action game yet, now would be a great time to redeem yourself before Kratos hunts you down and rips you in half. Not joking.


Sources
Best Buy
1UP.com Message Boards

New 'Final Fantasy' Games Plot to Conquer Your Summer

This summer North American gamers will be bombarded with new Final Fantasy titles, according to recent updates by Square Enix. FF fans can expect to see Final Fantasy Tactics A2, Final Fantasy IV DS and Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon on store shelves beginning in June.

Final Fantasy Tactics A2 is the long awaited Nintendo DS sequel to 2003's Final Fantasy Tactics Advance on the Game Boy Advance. The game will play similar to the previous game, but will feature a new storyline, new characters, better graphics, new job classes and online capabilities via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. FFTA2 is scheduled to ship June 24th.


Final Fantasy IV for Nintendo DS is a remake of the original FFIV for SNES (also ported to PS1 and GBA), featuring for the first time 3D graphics and voice-acting. It is expected to ship this July.



Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo's Dungeon is a light hearted dungeon crawler for Wii where gamers will play as a chocobo and explore dungeons and battle with cute monsters. It looks like a simple children's game, but will offer some depth and little bit of fan service for series fans. Just don't dive in expecting a full Final Fantasy experience. Chocobo's Dungeon is scheduled to ship July 8th.



Related Links
Square Enix

Sources
IGN
1UP.com
1UP.com Message Boards

Atlus's Anime Surgeons Return to Nintendo DS in 'Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2'

Atlus USA has revealed that their quirky surgery game will get a sequel on the Nintendo DS this July.



The original Trauma Center was released for the Nintendo DS in 2005 and gained a moderate fanbase for its fun (though challenging) procedures, dramatic storyline and cute anime nurses. Truama Center: Second Opinion, a remake of Under the Knife, was released in 2006 for Wii with better graphics, additional chapters and different difficulty levels. 2007 saw Trauma Center: New Blood, a full-fledged sequel with voice-acting and 2-player cooperative play. New Blood was only released on Wii.



Under the Knife 2 is the first Trauma Center to be released on Nintendo DS since the original in 2005. It features a brand new storyline starring the cast from the original. The first game's fantasy virus GUILT may be gone, but the negative effects it caused are still at large. Under the Knife 2 will feature some new procedures as well as an easy mode for those of us who got our asses handed to us last time. Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2 ships in North America on July 1st.



Related Links
Atlus USA

Source
1UP.com

'Mass Effect' PC Delayed

Bioware, developer of hit action/sci-fi RPG Mass Effect, has announced that the release of the PC edition of the game is delayed to May 28th in North America and June 6th in Europe.

Mass Effect launched on the Xbox 360 late last year to critical acclaim and high sales. The PC edition will be the same game with a few enhancements that improve the overall quality of the game and make it more suitable for playing on a PC.

Bioware is also known for hit games such as Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and Jade Empire. They also developed the upcoming Sonic the Hedgehog: Chronicles of the Dark Brotherhood for Nintendo DS.

Related Links
Bioware

Source
1UP.com

We're Back!

Hey everyone, sorry I haven't updated in a while. To make up for it, I'm going to post a lot of updates and new features over the next few days - so stick around!

Also, the 'Upcoming Releases' feature has been removed. It was a hassle to keep updated. I might bring it back later, but I'll only list big releases.

As always, thanks for supporting The Super Awesome Nerd Blog!