Bravely Default Gameplay Trailer

First announced in Jump Magazine, Bravely Default: For The Sequel returns to the 3DS on December 5th, 2013 in Japan. The game will have support for save data from the original Bravely Default. According to the Japanese website, the game will have over 100 improvements and new features. Chief among them is support for Japanese or English voiceovers and text in Japanese, English, French, Italian, German, or Spanish.

Check out the awesome trailer below. Bravely Default comes to the Nintendo 3DS early 2014.

Nintendo disables Swapnote/Letter Box over “offensive material”

Inappropriate pictures being sent via service says publisher.

Nintendo has suspended its Swapnote service, known as Letter Box in European countries, after reports that it was being used to distribute “offensive material” to minors.

Although the messaging service only allows users to send content to people on their Friends list, many 3DS owners post their Friend Codes in public forums or on social networks to gain more friends. Nintendo specifically advises against this, but says many children don’t heed its warnings.

“Nintendo has learned that some consumers, including minors, have been exchanging their friend codes on Internet bulletin boards and then using Swapnote (known as Nintendo Letter Box in other regions) to exchange offensive material,” a statement explaining the decision reads. “Nintendo has been investigating ways of preventing this and determined it is best to stop the SpotPass feature of Swapnote because it allows direct exchange of photos and was actively misused.

“Nintendo always wants to provide a positive experience for all consumers and limit the risk of any inappropriate activity or misuse of a service. We feel it is important on this occasion to take this action.”

It’s unknown whether the service will be reinstated or not.

 

[source]

Wii U still misunderstood by consumers, retailers – Analyst

IHS analyst says Nintendo’s messaging troubles persist, people don’t understand how it differs from Wii.

As the Wii U closes in on its one-year anniversary, the system is still hampered by some of the same problems it faced at launch. Speaking with Benzinga, IHS senior games analyst Christine Arrington said people still don’t understand that there’s a difference between the Wii U and its seven-year-old predecessor, the Wii.

“I think one of the things that was a real indicator of that was just, anecdotally, if you went into a retailer and you talked to somebody in the games department, they didn’t even understand what it was,” Arrington said. “I did the secret shopper kind of thing, and they would say, ‘Well, there’s no difference between the Wii and Wii U.'”

Arrington said she was told the same thing multiple times in her secret shopping efforts. As for why the console was so poorly understood, Arrington lamented the lack of a Wii Sports-like launch title, a game that would let everyone understand at a glance why the Wii U GamePad would allow for different experiences from the Wii.

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata acknowledged both the lack of consumer understanding and the absence of a Wii Sports-like title for the Wii U earlier this year. However, he blamed the misunderstanding on Nintendo’s “relaxed” marketing efforts for the system.

 

[source]

Japanese Sales Charts: PlayStation Games Dominate the Top 10, Wind Waker HD Disappoints

Ignoring the fact that Monster Hunter 4 on the 3DS finished in first yet again, it was a pretty good week for PlayStation games with 7 titles in the top 10, including two for the PlayStation Vita. On the hardware side of things, the PS3 and PS Vita were up a bit at 11,382 and 6,031, respectively, while the PlayStation Portable dropped to 4,805.

Outside of PlayStation, The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD disappointed with a debut of just over 30,000 and Armored Core: Verdict Day gave the Xbox 360 a rare game in the charts as it sold 5,088 copies.

Here’s the top 20 selling games in Japan between September 23rd – 29th, according to Media Create:

1. Monster Hunter 4 (3DS) – 213,278
2. The Legend of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki (PSV) – 81,622
3. Warriors Orochi 3: Ultimate (PS3) – 80,398
4. The Legends of Heroes: Sen no Kiseki (PS3) – 67,718
5. Armored Core: Verdict Day (PS3) – 59,184
6. My Little Sister Can’t be This Cute: Happy End (PS3) – 31,054
7. The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD (Wii U) – 30,264
8. Warriors Orochi 3: Ultimate (PSV) – 25,483
9. Friend Collection: New Life (3DS) – 9,269
10. Arcadias no Ikusahime (PS3) – 9,252
11. Youkai Watch (3DS) – 8,578
12. Disney Magic Castle: My Happy Life (3DS) – 7,575
13. Animal Crossing: New Leaf (3DS) – 7,431
14. Mario & Luigi: Dream Team (3DS) – 7,361
15. Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn (PS3) – 6,866
16. Starry Sky: After Winter Portable (PSP) – 6,074
17. Meiji Toukyou Renka (PSP) – 5,963
18. Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion (3DS0 – 5,569
19. Armored Core: Verdict Day (Xbox 360) – 5,088
20. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (3DS) – 5,007

 

[Source 1, 2]

Donkey Kong delay hurts Wii U holiday lineup

Tropical Freeze pushed to February as Nintendo leans on Super Mario 3D World, Mario & Sonic Olympics, Wii Party U to bear the load.

The Wii U’s holiday lineup is looking a little lighter as Nintendo today delayed the launch of Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze. Previously set for a December debut, Tropical Freeze has been pushed to February in North America, as confirmed by Nintendo president Satoru Iwata during a Nintendo Direct presentation.

“In order to deliver the optimum gaming experience, we need a little more time for development of this title,” Iwata explained, adding, “We would like to apologize for this delay and hope you understand.”

The Wii U’s holiday lineup still has a handful of big exclusives yet to launch, including Super Mario 3D World on November 22. The same month will also see the launch of Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games Sochi 2014, as well as the digital debut of Wii Fit U. Meanwhile, October’s release slate is headed up by Wii Party U, Sonic Lost World, and this week’s retail launch of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD.

Analysts including IHS’ Piers Harding-Rolls and Baird’s Colin Sebastian have pointed to this holiday season as a key stretch for the Wii U. Sebastian said “the fate of the platform” rests on its holiday software lineup, while Harding-Rolls said this season’s sales performance will dictate his firms long-term outlook on the system.