- Egypt applies for first Arabic domain name
- Finnish technology workers warn of strike
- Broadcast pioneer NBC prepares for cable takeover
- Intel to remain open on Sabbath in Jerusalem
- New ‘Call of Duty’ rakes in $310 million in 1 day
- Intel settles AMD claims but isn't off the hook
- 'Call of Duty' sells $310M in N Amer, UK in 24 hrs
- Applied Materials to cut 1,300 to 1,500 jobs
TECHNOLOGY NEWS FROM NYTIMES.COM
- Video Game Review | New Super Mario Bros. Wii: Mario and Luigi, Back to the Wii: The More Players, the Deadlier
- Underdog Palm Takes on Giants in Smartphones
- From Treasury, an Invitation to Financial Bloggers
- About Half in U.S. Would Pay for Online News, Study Finds
- At Checkout, More Ways to Avoid Cash or Plastic
MOST SHARED
- BlackRock: Central Banks To Be Net Buyers of Gold
- Gold Is in a 'Bubble' And Will Keep Going Higher: Gartman
- Weak US Housing Market Drags on Lowe's Profit
- CNBC Video: Warren Buffett & Bill Gates - Keeping American Great
- Signs of Stability, but 'We're Not All Satisfied': GM CEO
- Taking a Page from Obama's Asia Agenda in Investing
- EADS Cautious on Full-Year Forecast after Earnings Dip
- Cisco Ups Tandberg Bid, Claims Over 40% Backing
- Devon to Sell its Gulf, International Assets
- Gold Is in a 'Bubble' And Will Keep Going Higher: Gartman
- Millions May Have to Repay Part of Obama Tax Credit
- Madoff Auction Raises $1 Million for Ponzi Victims
- Retail Sales Show Gain, But Manufacturing Gauge Slips
- Business Inventories Fall 0.4% in September
- Intel Plans to Increase Dividend 12.75%; Shares Gain
- Several Credit Card Companies See Default Rate Fall
- Signs of Stability, but 'We're Not All Satisfied': GM CEO
- How Much Do You Know About Green?
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
- Where, what, how.
- Warren Buffett and Bill Gates spoke to Columbia students, and Buffett made the students a startling offer.
- For the chief of cable company Comcast, growth has been about making deals – generally very large deals.
- Some companies may start using insurance to shift carbon risk from their balance sheets to maybe... yours?
- The president and founder of Genesis Today wants to improve America’s health, and thinks Wal-Mart can help.
- If a terrible driver on your morning commute has you feeling like you want to scream, check this out.
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes