Famitsu, one of Japan's premier video game publications, has released its list of top 25 games for 2007. Interestingly enough, almost half of the games in the list belong to the Xbox 360 platform, which has been trailing behind in Japan's hardware sales. Go to the full article to view Famitsu's top 25 list.

Famitsu sent questionnaires out to gamers and retailers in Japan to let them be heard, and decide which developers, video games, and industry figures did exceptionally well in 2007. Find the results at the full article.

Want some good ideas for gift-giving this holiday season? Nintendo offers a couple of good gift items that may brighten up someone's day, in purty colors: the limited edition Metallic Rose and Gold DS Lite bundles, both packed with great games such as The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and Nintendogs: Best Friends. Check the full article for more details!

With the trend of games being released under the Touch Generation label and the vast popularity of Dr. Kawashima's disembodied head, Nintendo UK boss David Yarnton still reassured hardcore gamers that they are not being ignored - whether you're talking about titles on the Wii or DS.

At a press conference in London, a couple of Nintendo fans who grew up on the classic first-party titles on the NES and SNES (oh, you can throw your own example here: Legend of Zelda, Star Fox, etc.) expressed their concern about the recent and upcoming releases that Nintendo has in its games library. A couple of games that were pointed out were Brain Training and Wii Fit.

Yarnton replied with a number of games to prove that they are indeed not ignoring the hardcore gamer. Said Yarnton, they (Nintendo) are still very much in touch with their roots:

It's important to know that we're not ignoring the hardcore gamer. They're still very important to us. // And Christmas alone we have already catered on the Wii with Metroid Prime 3 and Super Mario Galaxy, and on DS with The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass.

We all have different definitions of "hardcore" gaming. And true enough (some of you might even agree), Metroid Prime delivers in the hardcore department (Ridley battle FTW!). Galaxy does go back to the Mario 64 roots with a lot more to offer. And Phantom Hourglass, despite having a new kind of control scheme, still takes us back to the days of classic top-down dungeon crawlers like A Link to the Past.

But what about other games to follow Super Mario Galaxy? Let's hope Nintendo starts making announcements soon. We can't wait for a Star Fox on the Wii.

Sometimes in our travels across the Internet, we find certain gems that are really great reads. For DS lovers out there who've picked up a copy of Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, we've got a gem that you'll really like: a quick list of helpful, non-spoilerrific tips to help make your gameplay experience easier.

The list tackles everything from the basics of actually using the stylus to roll (a feat that's tougher than you'd normally expect) to treasure hunting on the high seas. For us though, the best tip happens to be the one about making money: dig everywhere for rupees and you're bound to find some big scores!

In any case, feel free to check out the read link for all sorts of information you can use to save the day in The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass.

Now that European Nintendo fans can avail of the silver Nintendo DS, here's a commercial for The Legend Of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass that should help them decide what game to play next. It's a simple 10-second TV advertisement, but we like it.

The video shows players how they can make Link throw a boomerang with the Stylus. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass is already out in Japan and North America while Europe waits for the October 19 release date. There's no need for gamers in the UK to feel sad though because they have a chance to grab limited-edition Zelda-themed silver Nintendo DS handhelds.

Not much else can be said about Nintendo's TV spot. It's short, it's simple - it's embedded below.

UK Zelda fans are in for a treat: a limited edition The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass-themed DS is out through UK online retail site Nindie.com, with a cute illustration of Link and the fairy emblazoned on a silver DS Lite. With this, we can now add the UK as another enviable country when it comes to limited edition bundles and consoles, aside from Japan.

This limited edition bundle includes everything you need to play Nintendo's Zelda on the go: a Phantom Hourglass DS cart, DS power supply, two styluses, a strap, and of course, the limited edition DS handheld guaranteed to make you the envy of the group. The bundle will cost GBP 129.99, which is around US$ 264.

Well, those who live in the US can always import. Of course, there's the cool DS mods as well.


For more information and to purchase the bundle, check out the Read link!

There's a new The Legend of Zelda-themed DS mod up for grabs in Ebay, and its just in time for the recent US release of The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. Do take note that the bidding is taking place in Australia, however, and that bets are placed in Australian dollars.

This DS mod sports a nice, cool white-and-blue color scheme, topped off with Link's sword and shield emblem. We couldn't help but feel that green or gold should have sufficed, but this blue motif is still nifty in its own right. Another cool feature is that green LEDs are placed underneath the shield, giving the shield a nice, ethereal glow everytime the DS is turned on. This nice effect just about puts this DS mod in the same category of coolness as the NES Controller and Koopa mods.

The highest bid as of this writing is AU$ 285 (about US$ 255). 15% of the bets will be donated to Penny Arcade's Child's Play charity, giving the winning bidder a feeling of doing something good in the world, along with the purchase.

Interested in bidding? Check out the Read link for more pictures and details on how to bid!

It's a given that not a lot of people love answering survey questionnaires, but sometimes there are important things that depend on your honest answers. To compel gamers to share their thoughts on Nintendo's latest big release, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Nintendo is sweetening the deal by giving away a free Feather Pen Stylus in return for your effort.

The process of answering the survey is pretty simple. Just sign up for a free My Nintendo account on their home page, register your Phantom Hourglass game, take the survey, then share your address to them. All you have to do now is wait eight weeks for your new and improved stylus. Make that 10 weeks if you live in Canada.

Creating a My Nintendo account is pretty important if you're a Nintendo Wii or Nintendo DS owner. The account makes you eligible for more promos similar to this one in the future, and you'll be receiving newsletters regularly to keep you updated on the latest Nintendo news. You can view Nintendo's site for more details by following the Read link below.

It's that time of the week again: time for GameStop to dish out their deal of the week. This week's offerings will expire this coming October 11 so you have a few days to sit on it. Halo 3 is no longer part of the GameStop offers this week but times moves on and new games come in every week.

This week, pre-ordering The Orange Box will save you US$ 5 from the original price (US$ 59.99 for the Xbox 360, US$ 49.99 for the PC and US$ 59.99 for the PS3). The game bundle will be available on October 10 for the 360 and the PC, and on December 12 for the PS3. You can also get 20% trade-in credit when you trade any game for reserving a copy of Super Mario Galaxy.

It doesn't need any help, but The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass sales could be boosted with GameStop offering a free Art Cell of Link upon the purchase of the game and a new DS. US$ 20 have also been knocked off from Major League Baseball 2K7 (US$ 39.99 for the Xbox 360, US$ 29.99 for the PS3) and Stranglehold for the Xbox 360 (US$ 59.99).