This week sees the launch of the new Nintendo DSi XL. With bigger screens and a wider viewing angle, you will be able to experience your favourite games like never before when the Nintendo DSi XL, which has already been enjoyed by many people in Japan, launches across Europe on 5th March 2010.

To truly understand the difference Nintendo DSi XL makes to your favourite games, you need to get your hands on it. This week you can do just that! Get ready for 5th March 2010, when Nintendo DSi XL is available across Europe.

The “Happy Series” title, Happy Hammerin’ is now available through the WiiWare channel across America for 500 Wii Points. Created by Japanese development studio Agenda, the team behind the hugely popular Nintendo DS game “Clubhouse Games”, ‘Happy Hammerin’ is a fun packed mole whacking party game with a variety of modes suitable for single players, friends and family alike.

SHIGERU MIYAMOTO, the creative force behind some of the world’s most popular and enduring video games, will receive the Fellowship at this year’s GAME British Academy Video Games Awards.

General Manager of Nintendo Entertainment, Analysis & Development, Miyamoto is celebrated globally as the “Steven Spielberg” of the gaming world and is often referred to as “the father of modern video games.” His design credits read like a who’s who of classic gaming and include: Mario Bros, Donkey Kong, The Legend of Zelda, Nintendogs and Wii Music.

On being invited to receive the Fellowship, Miyamoto said “I am very grateful to be able to receive such an honourable award from the British Academy. Our video games cannot be created by one person; since Donkey Kong until the most recent New Super Mario Bros. Wii, I have been working closely with a number of friends for three decades in order to develop fun and enjoyable games. I would like to receive this honourable award on behalf of all of these dependable colleagues.”

Atlus U.S.A., Inc. today announced that Shiren the Wanderer for Wii, the new entry in the long heralded Shiren series, is now available in retailers across North America. This new chapter in the legendary franchise stands as one of the most addictive, highly rewarding, and endlessly replayable games available on the platform, not to mention the most accessible Shiren game yet.

With more emphasis on story than practically any other game of its type, Shiren the Wanderer also stands as one of the more captivating narrative-driven roleplaying games in recent memory. A wealth of authentic Japanese history and mythology, an assortment of mystical beasts to encounter and defeat, a cast of colorful characters to interact with, and novel time-travel elements all translate into an epic adventure for Wii owners. Those who complete the game will be treated to post-game content that offers significantly more gameplay and increased challenge, making Shiren the Wanderer a great value as well.

ABOUT Shiren the Wanderer

For a thousand years, a princess has slept inside the Karakuri Mansion. When Shiren’s former master bestows upon him the Karakuri key, he quickly finds himself entangled in a millennium-old mystery, wandering through past and present to unravel the story of the girl and vanquish an ancient, lurking evil…

KEY FEATURES:

- Epic adventure in feudal Japan — As the wandering samurai Shiren, you will explore a vision of historic Japan that is beautiful and vibrant. An epic story that begins 1000 years prior takes you through villages and dungeons and places you alongside figures straight out of Japanese mythology.

- Variable challenge — A brand new easy mode lets even newcomers to the genre find a foothold while experienced players will find a more rigorous challenge in Normal mode. Post-game activities will test the most advanced gamer with additional quests, super dungeons, a tournament, and the “ultimate challenge”-the Millennium Dungeon, a pain-staking 1,000 floor dungeon crawl.

- Challenging depth and strategy — Control your time in the dungeons down to the details. Choose direct control over your party members or take advantage of the excellent AI that lets you specify attitude and tendency. Power up equipment through the new Dragon Orb system, and imbue them with special abilities via more than 100 Seals. New Spells allow targeted casting of effects on enemies.

For more on Shiren The Wanderer head over to the official website

Konami Digital Entertainment GmbH has released the first trailer and assets for its forthcoming Gormiti: The Lords of Nature! title for Wii and Nintendo DS. The game also made its first public appearance on the Giochi Preziosi/Gormiti event at the International Toy Fair Nürnberg in Germany which was held between February 4th-9th.

The action starts as a character called Razzle, while cleaning the library, accidentally knocks some old books into a Portal. These books tumble down to Gorm and land at the feet of Magmion, the evil Lava Gormiti. Magmion reads the book and learns of an old legend which talks about reuniting five sacred amulets which have been scattered across Gorm. Once reunited these amulets allow the holder to open an inter-dimensional portal to Earth! The Lords of Nature need to use all their unique powers to hinder Magmion’s plans and save Earth.

Partnership brings the Season Switching “Best WiiWare Game of 2009″ to Asia.

Frontier Developments, one of the games industry’s leading independent developers, is delighted to announce a further partnership with Square Enix to publish ’the best WiiWare game of 2009’ (IGN) LostWinds®: Winter of the Melodias in Japan and Asia. The game will be released in Japan on 22nd December 2009.

Illustrating the widespread acknowledgement of the game as one of the better Wii titles – disc or download – LostWinds: Winter of the Melodias was rated as No.8 in the Metacritic* chart of Wii titles for the year and is the only WiiWare game to feature in the Top 10 alongside established franchises like Tiger Woods, Guitar Hero and Metroid Prime. Official Press Release

The highly anticipated Nintendo DS title known as A WITCH’S TALE is now available for purchase here in the US. This Halloween themed RPG takes full advantage of the Nintendo DS touch screen by utilizing a unique drawing combat system. Players will cast spells and attack enemies with easy drag-and-drop skills, and draw magic runes to cast special spells. This is definitely a title many DS owners will hope to have in their gaming library.

Story
1,000 years ago, a tribe of powerful witches who used potent, dangerous magic lived beneath the world. One day, the witches invaded the surface world. When all seemed lost, the mystical Alice appeared. She used the witches’ own magic against them and sealed them away. They say the Witch Queen still lurks beneath the land, waiting for her chance to return to power.

Key Features
Drawing magic–Use your stylus to draw various runes and cast powerful spells.

Touch action–All combat actions, like escape, attack, items, and casting, are executed using the touch screen.

Dual screen map–Easily navigate through the vast world of A Witch’s Tale with the dual screen. Your location and the land map will be displayed on the top screen.

Card collection–Search out and collect all the playing cards to unlock the secret Blackjack battles, where you can take on both enemies and friendly units.