- EU drops Qualcomm antitrust probe
- Barnes & Noble reports 2Q loss, cuts guidance
- Nokia to ax 220 R&D jobs in Japan
- Fox CEO wants US to join France on Internet piracy
- Newspaper circulation may be worse than it looks
- GE, Vivendi talks over NBC Universal stretch on
- B&N Nook sells out, too late for holiday orders
- Dell's profit, stock drop on weak quarterly report
MOST SHARED
- The 'Real' Jobless Rate: 17.5% Of Workers Are Unemployed
- GM's Agreement to Sell Saab To Swedish Firm Falls Apart
- US Home Prices Up 5th Month, 2nd Straight Quarter
- Buyers Look For Bargains At Luxury Condo Auction
- FDIC Fund Falls into The Red, Bair Urges Lending
- Revised GDP Reading Puts Growth at 2.8%; Inflation Tame
- Weak Dollar Is Golden for Mining Companies
- Behind The Scenes With Warren Buffett
- 10 Holiday Cocktail Recipes from Top Mixologists
- $42 Billion US Bond Auction Receives Strong Demand
- GM's Agreement to Sell Saab Unit Falls Apart
- Consumer Confidence Improves but Still Shaky
- US Home Prices Up 5th Month, 2nd Straight Quarter
- FDIC Fund Falls into The Red, Bair Urges Lending
- Six Ways to Boost Your Income in a Big Way
- Buyers Look for Bargains at Luxury Condo Auction
- Ron Paul's Plan to Audit Fed a 'Serious Attack': Mishkin
- Strong Banks, Weak Credit: Treasury Rethinks TARP
Text Size 
While its competitors focus on new hardware and new peripherals, Nintendo is focusing entirely on the games.
 |
Courtesy Image / Nintendo |
The game maker, which leads Microsoft [MSFT
Loading...
()
] and Sony [SNE
Loading...
()
] in hardware sales this generation, plans to release a new Mario game and an updated version of its extraordinarily popular "Wii Fit" game for the Wii later this year.
Two big existing franchises will also receive updates. "Super Mario Galaxy" and the "Metroid" franchise, which will see its next installment developed by Team Ninja, a Japanese development house best known for the "Ninja Gaiden" line of games.
Nintendo [NTDOY
Loading...
()
] president Satoru Iwata also introduced the company’s next unique game controller. The "Wii Vitality Sensor" resembles a fingertip pulse monitor — and lets you see things like your internal stress or excitement levels.
"Maybe everyone under pressure in our stressful society could use this to relax," said Iwata.
 |
The device was not shown live, nor was any gameplay footage shown. The company did not announce any potential release date.
"New Super Mario Bros." revives the company’s most beloved franchise. The game supports up to four players and has new maps and features, but doesn’t rely heavily on the Wii’s controller. Players control buttons using more traditional controls. The game is due this holiday season.
Nintendo also showed a trailer for "Super Mario Galaxy 2," showing the plumber once again soaring from planet to planet. This time, though, he has some friends with him, including longtime ally Yoshi. The company did not give any release information about the game, however.
The follow-up to "Wii Fit" will feature new exercises and more personalization options — as well as incorporating some Mario mini-games that involve exercise.
 |
Courtesy Image / Nintendo |
Nintendo also announced a partnership with author James Patterson for a new handheld game. "James Patterson’s Women’s Murder Club: Games of Passion," due this fall, combines elements of gameplay with the author’s popular book series.
While Nintendo’s Wii is the best selling console of this generation, sales have been falling in recent months. Iwata briefly acknowledged the decline, saying it has conducted internal research to look into the momentum slowdown.
However, he said, he believes there is still substantial room for growth.
"For every two people playing a game, there’s one waiting to jump in," he said.
Print
Email
- Remember when auto shows were major events where new models could generate buzz?
- A diet high in fat and sugar might actually be good for your portfolio.
- A new McDonald's in Manhattan is the nation's first to sport a sleek, chic interior imported from stores in London and Paris.
- Italians were outraged by a minister's comments that lunchbreaks are bad for waistlines and the economy.
- From the AIG&T to the Merrill Lychee, Jane Wells lists this year's holiday cocktails.
- For nearly three decades, these on-call experts have been dishing advice on how to – and not to – cook turkey.
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes