New Nintendo 3DS Console Gets Official North American and UK Release Dates!

The wait is finally over for Nintendo fans in the UK after a special Nintendo Direct broadcast at 2pm today has revealed some more information about the upcoming New 3DS, including the all-important European release dates!

Mini Gamers can now reveal that the console, which has already been released in places such as Japan and Australia will now debut in the UK and North America on the 13th of February 2015. Furthermore, both the New 3DS and its XL counterpart will debut in the UK on the same date, so there will be no need to upgrade to the larger model (which is equal in size to the current 3DS XL) at a later date. North America will only have the XL model of New 3DS.

Furthermore, there is good news  for Nintendo 3DS users who wish to use their existing 3DS games on the new system, which was initially considered incompatible with existing 3DS software as it has a different, more advanced processor.

Nevertheless, Nintendo yesterday revealed that some existing 3DS titles, including the ever-popular Super Smash Bros. 4, WILL receive a firmware update on the 13th of February that will make them compatible with the New 3DS system. However, Nintendo will still be bringing out some exclusive titles such as Xenoblade Chronicles 3D, (which is set to debut in April 2015,) which will work exclusively with the New 3DS systems only.

As well as being larger and having more processing power than the previous 3DS models, the New 3DS comes equipped with a new C-stick, for enhanced control, as well as a special 'Amiibo' button, which will allow users to sync their New 3DS with Nintendo's unique range of NFC figurines for the first time ever! Nintendo  also announced its second wave of Super Smash Bros. 4 'Amiibo' toys during the broadcast.

We here at Mini Gamers HQ are very excited by the news. Those of you who are desperate to own the New 3DS for yourselves will not have very long to wait at all! If you missed the broadcast yesterday, watch it below now:

New 3DS UK Price Range Confirmed, but January 12th Release Date Only For Club Nintendo Members So far, it seems...

Happy New Year! Well, with the start of 2015, comes some interesting information regarding the New 3DS handheld console. Nintendo has revealed that the average price range for the latest addition to their 3DS range will be around £155.99 in the UK later this year.

The price was revealed in an email sent to select Club Nintendo members inviting them to get their hands on a New Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Edition Bundle, a special edition bundle featuring a white New Nintendo 3DS along with exclusive Ambassador Edition cover plates, Super Smash Bros. cover plates and a charging cradle.

The exclusive offer will open on the 6th January 2015, but only those members with an email invitation can purchase the handheld device early. The Ambassador Edition Bundle will cost £179.99 in the UK, with Nintendo pricing the value of the console at £155.99, and the cover plates and cradle at £7.67 each.

Surprisingly, Nintendo has confirmed that Club Nintendo members who which to take advantage of the exclusive invitation could in fact receive the new console as early as next week, but for the rest of the Nintendo fans in the UK, no official release date has yet been given.

The early release of such a console by Nintendo is a very smart move as it is likely to swell the numbers who wish to pre-order the device for themselves, as well as encouraging more fans to sign up for Club Nintendo membership in order to capitalise on any future console deals.

HAVE YOUR SAY...

What do you think of the limited-edition Ambassador New 3DS bundle?

Will you be taking advantage of the offer? 

If you have any comments about this article and you wish to share your opinions with other readers, then please feel free to leave us a comment and let us know.

Pokemon Art Academy Spin-Off WILL Get UK Release...

Nintendo have announced that a special Pokemon edition of Art Academy will be released for the 3DS in Japan,  North America and Europe throughout 2014.

The game was originally thought of as a Japanese exclusive, (given the popularity of the Pokemon franchise in Japan) but UK fans can now look forward to drawing their favourite Pokemon characters when the game debuts in Europe on the 4th July 2014.

According to the game's specifications, players can take part in forty step-by-step art lessons, which will teach them to paint and draw many different Pokemon, including: Picachu, Oshawott, Charizard, Torchic, Fletchling and Fennekin, amongst others.

As with the other Art Academy games, lessons will gradually increase in skill and difficulty, allowing players the chance to really see their progress. Players will start out by sketching the basic Pokemon cartoon shapes, but will later be taught to add depth, colour, shading and perspective to their drawings.

This special Pokemon edition of Art Academy will also allow players to take pictures using the 3DS camera and use them as a reference when creating their art in the Free Paint mode, which lets players draw their own Pokemon characters from scratch or allows them to use provided images of over 100 Pokemon as reference.

Furthermore, all of the artwork created in the Free Paint mode can be uploaded via the Miiverse application of the 3DS to be shared with other players around the world. A new Japanese trailer shows some of the techniques that will be explored during the game:

(Having trouble viewing this trailer? CLICK HERE)

We here at Mini Gamers HQ are very excited about the prospect of a new Art Academy game and we look forward to bringing you all a full review of the game when it launches in July.

Professor Layton VS. Phoenix Wright: New Plot Details, Teaser Trailer and Unlockable Bonus Content Revealed!

Nintendo has provided further information about the eagerly-awaited 3DS cross-franchise title Professor Layton VS. Phoenix Wright, which is due to be released in Europe on the 28th March 2014. 

So far, the exact plot details have been a little bit sketchy, but Mini Gamers can now reveal some more concrete facts about the game's storyline. The game first takes place in London, where both Phoenix Wright and Professor Layton - along with their trusty sidekicks - Maya Fey and Luke Triton, happen to mistakenly cross paths when they are both invited to meet a mysterious young woman called Espella Cantabella, whereby they suddenly find themselves transported to a strange, medieval world known as Labyrinthia.

Labyrinthia is ruled over by a shadowy figure called The Storyteller who has an apparent gift for prophecy, as every story penned by The Storyteller later seems to come true, sparking rumours about 'magic' and 'evil witches' amongst Labyrinthia's inhabitants.

It does not take long for the locals to point the finger of suspicion in the direction of Espella Cantabella, and a local witch hunt begins. Professor Layton and Phoenix Wright decide to combine their unique puzzle-solving and crime-fighting abilities to save Espella and clear her name of any wrongdoing.

Nintendo has now revealed exactly how these two giant franchises will combine together throughout the game. Firstly, Phoenix Wright, (best known from the Ace Attorney series of games), returns to the courtroom, determined to uncover the truth about the events happening in Labyrinthia and prove that Espella could not possibly be guilty of such crimes.

As in the traditional Ace Attorney games, Phoenix Wright will be required to examine evidence and question witnesses. However, Phoenix Wright will now be able to use Hint coins - a staple game mechanic of the Professor Layton series - in order to narrow down the options when presenting evidence, or as a way of gaining helpful information when cross-examining witnesses.

Furthermore, it has also been suggested that Professor Layton will occasionally be allowed to raise objections within the court room, not only for the defence, but also for the prosecution, where necessary.

Nintendo have also provided further details about the game's bonus unlockable content. This content such as twelve short new episodes for the game, as well as over sixty exclusive illustrations and all the main theme music from the game, will become available once players have completed the main story.

Nevertheless, how much of the content that players will be able to access will depend upon how many Picarats players have managed to accumulate throughout the puzzle-solving portions of the game. The faster a puzzle is solved, the more Picarats will be awarded, which is another staple of the Professor Layton series.

A new teaser trailer for the game has also been launched, showing some of the cutscene sequences from the game, along with the new pre-order information for the game. If you are having trouble viewing the trailer, then please CLICK HERE.

  

Level 5 inc. and Capcom have clearly put a lot of thought and hard work into producing a game that will appeal to fans of either franchise. Level 5 inc's involvement can clearly be seen in the inclusion of many Professor Layton game mechanics, whilst Capcom's essential Ace Attorney structure will be instantly recognisable to the game's many fans.

Mini Gamers looks forward to bringing you our own full-review when the game launches next month.