Cing, Inc. CEO Takuya Miyagawa recently sat down alongside the person in charge of Hotel Dusk's art direction, Taisuke Kanasaki, in an interview about the sleeper hit, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 for the Nintendo DS, as well as the success of Another Code and the possibilities of a next-gen sequel for both. We now give you the skinny on all things Cing.

The interview began with Takuya Miyagawa explaining what it took to get Hotel Dusk made - and surprisingly, the game only took about one-and-a-half years of production with 20 staff members deeply involved in the development. That's not bad, considering the fact that Hotel Dusk is one of the most graphically-compelling (not to mention the storyline itself) games for the DS around with its realistic hand-drawn sprites and puzzles.

As for the unique visual style of pencil-sketched cutouts in a realistic 3D setting, Kanasaki explained that they wanted Hotel Dusk to have an unprecedented visual expression not found in any other game. He elaborated that it suited the game's interactive conversational style, with the conversation bits focusing on characters' facial expressions and emotions.

When asked if there was a sequel in the pipeline for Hotel Dusk, Takuya Miyagawa stated that players might have a chance to see Kyle Hyde again in the near future, and that the gruff character we've all grown to like is quite eager to see us too. He also mentions that games like Another Code and Hotel Dusk would work very well with the Wii's innovative control system, and it would be an unprecedented game experience if those two games were realised on Nintendo's console.

Which brings us to our final point, the possibility of a Wii sequel to either game. The CEO of Cing had this to say:

We feel that some ideas are important for DS, while others are important for Wii. Therefore, we think that there should be game styles specialised for each piece of hardware. I think there will be a possibility of the games appearing if something new can be brought to the table in the worlds of Hotel Dusk or Another Code.

Well, that's certainly teasing of them, don't you think? But if one thinks about how Hotel Dusk ended, it's frighteningly easy for Cing to make a sequel. And with the wealth of unique touch-based puzzles they managed to squeeze into the title, just think about what sort of new ones will surface with the Wii's motion-sensing capabilities. Updates as we get them, and you can check out the full interview at the read link we've supplied below.

Nintendo of Australia has announced that new downloadable demo games for the Nintendo DS have finally gone live at Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection hotspots all around Australia. Aussie DS owners can just grab their Nintendo handhelds and leg it on over to the hotspots. There, you can test drive games such as Mario vs Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 and Elite Beat Agents.

The hotspots also feature some unique Animal Crossing items that you can download to your copy of the game. A special Nintendogs function that allows Nintendogs owners to experience the joys of Bark Mode without having someone else physically there to play with is also available. For a list of the hotspots near your area, you can check out the Nintendo Wi Fi Connection hotspots list by clicking on the Read link below.

Cing, Inc., the makers of Another Code: Two Memories, have just announced that Hotel Dusk: Room 215, that incredibly creepy yet totally engrossing mystery title for the Nintendo DS, will debut in Europe this spring.

In Hotel Dusk, players take on the role of Kyle Hyde, an ex-cop turned salesman who flees the Big Apple following his involvement in the disappearance of his close friend, Bradley. Hyde is eventually led to an eerie, old hotel rumored to have a room where wishes are granted.

In keeping with the game's whole noir-ish, mystery novel feel, players must hold the Nintendo DS vertically like a book as they guide Kyle through his mysterious surroundings using the touch screen. Players must piece together the many missing elements of Kyle's past that are entwined with the residents of Hotel Dusk if they want to make sense of the intriguing and immersive storyline.

Hotel Dusk: Room 215 will launch all across Europe on April 13 at an estimated retail price of UK£ 30.

Who says the DS is for kids? The DS-exclusive title Hotel Dusk: Room 215 plans to put this whole issue to rest, and the plan is already in motion with the game already in stores all over the U.S.

Featuring deep characters, grown-up themes and an engrossing plot, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 has more in common with a gritty crime novel than a video game, and appeals to mystery lovers and video game fans alike. The dual screens of the Nintendo DS display stylized sketch animation evoking a comic-book-like film noir, with players holding the portable Nintendo DS system sideways like a book.

"Hotel Dusk: Room 215 could be considered a new genre for both video games and storytelling," explains George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "Just as audio books brought the printed word to a new medium, so does this new 'video game book.' "

With the game's launch looming over the horizon, a lotta DS users are probably all psyched to go rush to the nearest stores and be one of the first people to grab a copy. But for the benefit of those who've never heard of the game before, allow us to give you a brief primer on the game.

Hotel Dusk Room 215 by Cing, Inc. is based on the the tradition of Trace Memory and is set in L.A. circa 1979. You'll take on the role of a cop-cum-salesman named Kyle Hyde searching for his missing friend. As Kyle searches every nook and corner of L.A., he'll stumble upon an old, eerie hotel rumored to have a room where people's wishes are granted.

With hand-drawn character portraits and black-and-white animations, Nintendo's Hotel Dusk Room 215 is one that'll definitely stand out (especially graphics-wise) from your other DS games. Now that the primer is out of the way, let's get to the vid at hand. This should give Hotel Dusk newbies the much-needed quick-see of the game before they decide to grab a copy. Enjoy!

It's been pretty hush-hush on when we can expect Hotel Dusk: Room 215 checks into U.S. soil. But now, we've just picked up word on when the game could possibly make its US debut. We were scoping out the web earlier when we stumbled into the Hotel Dusk main website.

Well, not exactly - all we've seen on the so far is a heads-up for the January 22, 2007 launch date. That, and a link to an official Nintendo site giving the curious relevant game info. For the guys who've been waiting for news on the title's launch date, there it is. And to give you guys an idea of what the game's going to look like, here's a magazine image scan we picked up. Enjoy

Today Nintendo Europe has released its first party DS release schedule with titles from the Nintendo DS Browser to Yoshi's Island 2 for the rest of the year. So if you live in Europe this might help you mark your calenders for the upcoming games. It looks as though some of the releases dates are different than the German release dates that we posted yesterday such as Yoshi's Island, but this list is straight from Nintendo Europe. The full list is as follows:

• September 29th- 42 All-Time Classics
  
• October 6th- Nintendo DS Browser
• October 13th- English Training: Have fun improving your skills
• October 27th- Sudoku Master, Actionloop
• November 10th- Mario Slam Basketball, Pok?n Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team
  
• November 24th- Hotel Dusk: Room 215
• December 1st- Yoshi’s Island 2
• Q4 2006- Harvest Moon DS
  

If there was a hotel room that grants all your wishes, wouldn't you want to check in everytime you need a heart's desire fulfilled? If the room also comes with unusual characters, I'm not sure you'd still want to... but you might consider playing a game with the same plot.

Hotel Dusk: Room 215 is one of the E3 playable games for the Nintendo DS. But what is it all about? A graphic adventure patterned after the tradition of Trace Memory, Hotel Dusk: Room 215 takes players to 1979 Los Angeles. As a cop-turned salesman Kyle Hyde in search of a missing friend, players will stumble upon an eerie, old hotel rumored to have a strange room where wishes are granted. Prepare a night of surprises as you meet the unusual characters and unravel the mystery that surrounds Room 215. Bask in the hand-drawn character portraits and the black-and-white animations that make this game graphically distinct.

Hotel Dusk: Room 215 lets you follow plot twists and turns while holding your DS like a book. Grill characters, search for clues, and solve mystifying puzzles with the use of the touch screen.