Nearly eighteen years ago, a little role playing game was released on the SNES that quickly became a beloved favorite and a classic. EarthBound has become one of those games that every gamer needs to experience at least once in their life. Original copies are extremely hard to find, however. Back in 2008, Nintendo of America announced a Wii Virtual Console re-release of the title, but that never happened. Audiences were teased for nearly five years about the possibility of seeing EarthBound again. The wait is finally over.
EarthBound is now available on the Wii U Virtual Console.
For $9.99, players can download EarthBound and either experience its magical wonder again or for the first time. Old school gamers probably remember that the original came with a guide book. Nintendo has stated that a digital eguide is available for free to keep up with the title’s tradition. The strategy guide has also been optimized to work on the Wii U GamePad for quick, easy access to tips and hints while gaming. Though sadly there are no scratch and sniff cards this time around.
But that is not all the Nintendo has up their sleeve…
This morning’s Nintendo Direct Mini was filled with all sorts of goodies for upcoming released on both the Wii U and 3DS.
eShop Games
Speaking of new releases for the eShop, a handful of other titles are on their way to your Wii U soon. DuckTales: Remastered is due to be released on the Wii U Virtual Console later on this year. Announced back at Capcom’s panel at PAX East, the fan favorite DuckTales game is back with beautiful hand drawn sprites and vivid backgrounds complete with original voice cast. Cloudberry Kingdom is a new randomly generated platformer from Ubisoft. The game can be adapted to fit a player’s specific skill while offering a fresh environment every time you play. Party goers can look forward to Spin the Bottle: Bumpie’s Party from KnapNok. Two to eight players will be able to gather around the GamePad and play a series of fun mini-games that will have you dancing, spinning, jumping, hiding, and passing your way through each one.
Pikmin 3
Pikmin 3’s head-to-head battle mode will contain a total of 12 stages with 3 variations per stage. Every battle will be different requiring players to adapt quickly in order to keep themselves in the game. You will be able to share and compare your score and stats to other players for the Single Player, Co op Mode, and Mission Mode via the internet.
If you want a chance to try out Pikmin 3, this weekend is your weekend. Nintendo has stated that 250 GameStop locations across the United States and Canada will have playable demos of Pikmin 3 between July 20-21. US gamers can check GameStop’s web site for participating stores. Canadian gamers will need to swing over to EB Games. Pikmin 3 will be available for pick up at both retailers on August 4th. However, if you do not wish to wait, Nintendo has said that anyone who per-purchases the digital version from GameStop will be able to download their copy on August 3rd – a whole day before its official release.
Nintendo Zone StreetPass Enhancements
We recently saw an update to the StreetPass Plaza and we can expect to see another update here soon that will improve the way 3DS owners can earn StreetPasses. When passing a participating Nintendo Zone, you will now be able to virtually StreetPass the last 3DS owner at the location. You will then receive date for all your StreetPass games at once. This enhancement will open up more opportunities for you to StreetPass other players without the need of physically passing them. With over 29,000 Nintendo Zones across the United States, you should see a nice increase of Miis to your Mii Plaza population as you pass Best Buy, Future Shops, and AT&T wi-fi hot spots found at places like McDonalds, Starbucks, and Barnes & Noble.
Quick Reminders from Nintendo
* Holding down the L and R buttons on your 3DS while playing Animal Crossing: New Leafwill take an active snapshot of your game that can then be uploaded directly from their 3DS via the 3DS Image Share web site to social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr.* The Fire Emblem Awakening and Shin Megami Tensei IV promotion ends on August 31st. Be sure to register both games (physical and/or digital) to your Club Nintendo account to receive free $30 to your eShop account.
