The homebrew coders from the SSBRumble DS team has released a new version of Super Smash Bros. Rumble DS, a homebrew game based on the ever popular Wii game Super Smash Bros. The latest update features 21 new characters, added collision detection, timer, attribute system, new stages and various other improvements.

Download: Super Smash Bros. Rumble DS v0.6

Currently, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days is tagged with a TBA 2008 release. But it was only recently that Square Enix revealed that they still haven't gotten the game polished much (compared to how polished Dissidia is, at least). Could the KH title for the DS be pushed back to as late as 2009? Well, a scan found in the DQ5 box seems to keep Square Enix's promise. C'mon, Roxas, you don't have to put on that red dress tonight...

Joining the hype of Leipzig, Nintendo has announced its lineup for another popular Games Convention, the Penny Arcade Expo. Those of you planning to make the trip to PAX at Washington State Trade and Convention Center will find Nintendo at booth 810.

Visitors will be able to play Metroid Prime 3: Corruption for the Wii and The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass for the DS in anticipation for their release. Other games they'll be featuring for hands-on gameplay are:

Wii

• Metroid Prime 3: Corruption
• Fire Emblem
• Mario Strikers Charged
• Pokemon Battle Revolution

Nintendo DS

• The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
• Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day
• Chibi-Robo: Park Patrol
• DK Jungle Climber
• Flash Focus: Train Your Vision in Minutes a Day

PAX will be held on August 24 to 26, and set to be the biggest gaming convention in America. Last year, 20,000 gamers made it to the Expo. And this year is expected to see even more with triple the space from last year, plus the fact that the floorspace already sold out to game developers.

 

Nintendo has announced its lineup of games for its very own Nintendo DS during E3. As of March 31 this year, the DS has sold more than 40 million units worldwide. The DS has introduced some of the most innovative - not to forget educational - games that have hit the gaming industry thanks to its interactive design. Now the new generation of games are about to be released.

Flash Focus: Vision Training in Minutes a Day involves the user in a series of tests in hand-eye coordination, eye agility, reaction time and peripheral vision. It's designed to help users focus better and launches on October 15.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass is the all new Zelda game that pushes the graphics capabilities of the DS, Phantom Hourglass has intuitive controls and promises to intrigue long-time fans and new fans. The game will be out on October 1 for the US and in June for Japan.

Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day brings the best selling brain exercise game back! Introducing more than a dozen all-new puzzles to exercise those neurons, this game will be available on August 20.

Picross DS should be out by July 30, while Donkey Kong Jungle Climber will be stretching its legs on September 10. Chibi-Robo Park Patrol should hit stores by October 2, with Mario Party DS signing up for a bash on DSes everywhere by November 19. Nintendo Magic chimes abacadabras on November 26, while Professor Layton and the Curious Village satisfy their brain itches on December 3.

Nintendo Crossword (working title) was also mentioned to be one of the other DS titles to be released this year, although not target release date was specified as of press time.

It seems that a lot of hype has been building for Electonic Arts latest video game, EA Playground. Currently being developed by EA Canada, it's slated to be released for the Nintendo Wii and DS. Dave McCarthy, the executive producer for the game, was recently interviewed by IGN and had a lot to say about their project.

He discussed four things: what the game is about, the controls, multiplayer, and surprisingly the storyline. The game, McCarthy said, is intended to capture "the sheer fun of being a kid." Set in a playground, they filled it "full of interesting characters, cool collectables, and most importantly, a mix of easy to pick up and incredibly fun playground games." He even mentioned a single-player campaign mode, but we'll go into that later.

With regards to controls, he assured that the Wii and DS versions of the game would take advantage of the unique controls of both systems. He mentioned of the use of the stylus in the DS for a game he called Bug Hunt and the microphone for Spitballs. He also said that there are a lot of other games but he "won't get into all the games and mechanics quite yet." Oh phooey.

With regards to multiplayer, it seems that this title is ideally a party game, and it is "the ideal way to play EA Playground. Whether you do four-player local parties on the Wii or wireless sessions on the DS, you'll find that all games are multiplayer supported and that frantic simultaneous play is the order of the day." This could be interesting considering that Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario Party 8, and DK Jet are all set to be out this year as well.

The full article awaits after the jump!

We have just gotten more details and screens about Yoshi's Island 2, and from what we've seen so far (we have cartloads of screens here), Artoon seems to be doing a good job in developing the game.

As for what the game's plot will be, we just heard that Baby Mario won't be playing alone in the sandbox, because Baby DK, Wario, and Peach will be joining him in the said game. Mind you, these babies roles won't be a minimal one as each baby will function as Yoshi's power-booster, with each baby giving Yoshi different specific powers.

For example, Yoshi will get extra speed when Mario is on his back while Peach will give him the ability to fly. We have no word yet on how Wario will boost Yoshi's power, but what we do know is that DK will serve as Yoshi's strength booster. As in the first title under the same name, Yoshi will be doing all of his trademark egg-throwing, ground pounding, flutter jumping and vehicle morphing moves.

So what exactly is Yoshi's mission? He, with the help of the babies, will try to rescue Luigi from kidnapper Kamek. Kamek attempted to kidnap all of the babies when they were hanging out on Yoshi's Island, but luckily, Baby Mario, Peach, DK, and Wario were able to escape. Luigi however, wasn't that successful. So they all join forces and set out to rescue poor Luigi. The game won't be hitting shelves until November 13, so while waiting, why don'tcha get a fill of these two new screens we have for you and rest assured we'll keep you posted for more updates.

 

Pre-Order: [Yoshi's Island 2]

Camp Hyrule, an online virtual camp held by Nintendo every year, is under full swing. Every year, Nintendo invites employees to take questions from the campers. Even Reggie Fils-Aime, who is now the president of Nintendo of America, has been a featured presenter! This year, the first chat has finished up and we have a full transcript for you.

Kent Miller is the Senior Online Producer for Nintendo of America. As someone who works on many of Nintendo's websites, he is currently working on the sites for Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, Elite Beat Agents, Yoshi's Island 2 and Children of Mana. As expected, he talked about every one of those games. I'd say the most intriguing tidbit was when he revealed that a demo of Elite Beat Agents would be hitting DS Download Stations! As a camper, I was able to get a complete transcript of what was said in the chat. I'll try and get the upcoming chat transcripts as well.

Remember that these are all questions asked by the campers at Camp Hyrule. Some may be pointless, but others reveal more about some interesting games. Also, since it's a live chat, some typos have been made by the chatters!

Click "Full Story" for the complete transcript.

Nintendo's Donkey Kong turns into a true silverback gorilla as he celebrates his 25th year this month. Donkey Kong was created by Shigeru Miyamoto and has appeared in many video games since 1981. But it wasn't until 1994 that he started wearing his one and only article of clothing - the necktie!

Donkey Kong was born to help sell the poorly received RadarScope to American gamers and to say he did a good job would be an understatement. Donkey Kong became a sensational breakthrough not only for Nintendo but for the entire videogame industry as the game became one of the best-selling arcade machines of the 1980s.

Some sources say over 80,000 Donkey Kong machines were shipped in the US alone. In contrast, Street Fighter II's total global sales was only around 60,000 machines.

Due to the game's success, Nintendo released Donkey Kong Junior and Donkey Kong 3, eight titles for the Game & Watch platform, and Donkey Kong based on the arcade versions. In the 1990's, a new wave of Donkey Kong franchise was released for various platforms including Donkey Kong Country, Donkey Kong Country 2, and Donkey Kong Country 3 (SNES), Diddy Kong Racing and Donkey Kong 64 (Nintendo 64).

Donkey Kong also appeared on Mario sport and party spinoffs and the Super Smash Bros. franchise. As far as his solo career is concerned, he starred Donkey Konga, Donkey Konga 2, Donkey Konga 3, and Donkey Kong Jungle Beat.

Unlike many Hollywood stars who started their careers 25 years ago, Donkey Kong's career is still alive and swinging. He will be seen in a number of new projects such as Mario Hoops 3-on-3, DK-King of Swing DS, Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis, and Yoshi's Island 2 (Nintendo DS) DK Bongo Blast (GC) and Donkey Kong Wii.

Not bad for an 800-pound monkey wearing nothing but a necktie! Happy Birthday, Donkey Kong!

While browsing CheapAssGamer, I came across the greatest Canadian sale since the Toys R Us pricing issue a few months ago. EB Games is having a "Game of the Day" sale for the rest of June and the first half of July. How good is this deal? $9.89 for games that aren't crap, that's how good. However, if you don't have a Nintendo system it might not be as great. Most of the "OMFG" games are on the GameCube with some gems on the GBA and DS. Here is a list I got from going through CheapAssGamer and RedFlagDeals.

June 12: Ape Escape 3 (PS2), Operation EyeToy (PS2)
June 13: Odama (GCN), Battalion Wars (GCN)
June 14: The Getaway Black Monday (PS2), Jak X Racing (PS2) for $20
June 15: Ape Escape Academy (PSP), Pariah (XBX) for $0.01 with purchase of Xbox title
June 16: The CON (PSP)
June 17: MLB 05 (PSP)
June 19: DK King of Swing (GBA), Mario Tennis (GBA)
June 20: Urban Reign (PS2), TimeSplitters (PS2)
June 21: Viewtiful Joe 2 (GCN)
June 22: Operation Eye Toy (PS2)
June 23: Without Warning (PS2)
June 26: Metroid Prime Pinball (NDS)
June 27: DK King of Swing (GBA), Mario Tennis (GBA)
June 29: Battalion Wars (GCN), Odama (GCN)
July 02: Viewtiful Joe 2 (GCN)
July 05: Donkey Konga w/ Bongo (GCN), DK Jungle Beat w/o Bongo (GCN)
July 06: Operation Shadow (NGAGE) for $.89
July 11: DK Jungle Beat w/ Bongo (GCN), Donkey Konga w/o Bongo (GCN)
July 18: SSX: Out of Bounds (NGAGE) for $.89
July 19: DK King of Swing (GBA), Mario Tennis (GBA)

This list should be for the most part correct. Some games may be added to it. Also, there are gaps so those should eventually be filled. I went to EB today and Pariah was indeed only $0.01 with the purchase of an Xbox game. I'm sad I missed Battalion Wars and Odama for $10, but I'll be sure to go by and pick those up the next time around. Same goes for Mario Tennis, Metroid Prime Pinball, and Donkey Kong Jungle Beat! Remember, this deal is good across Canada. Not in the US though, sorry neighbours.