The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds 3DS XL Comes Stateside on November 22nd!

Nintendo bares wonderful news to Zelda fans who have been hearing rumors of a Zelda themed 3DS on the horizon. With the release of the new 3DS Zelda title, A Link Between Worlds, comes a brand-new 3DS. While, in my opinion not as fancy as the original Zelda theme 3DS, this one is still quite lovely to look at. For those pining for a 3DS XL upgrade and missed the Pokemon X/Y ones, this one might be for you. 

The 3DS XL (Or LL as it is in Japan) will be released November 22nd with price tag of $219.99. Keep in mind, though the price is higher than a standard 3DS XL, you'll be receiving an downloadable copy of the new Zelda game as well! Sorry Vita, I think I need to skip you again this year..

Project X Zone - U.S. Release Trailer 2

Check out the attached trailer for Bandai Namco's awesome 3DS cross over, Project X Zone. If you can't wait to try it out there is a demo on the Nintendo 3DS eShop that will toss you right into battle with Ryu, Ken, Kite, Black Rose, Soma, and many more. Any fan of the Super Robot Wars game will also be interested in this epic three-way cross over. Due out later this month!

Here is hoping it can tide me over for a few. ^^x

Project X Zone English Trailer

     Not only a release date and a trailer, but they also upgraded the game to special edition! $39.99 for the 3DS game, a mini-art book, music CD, and poster. Day 1 buy for me on June 25th in the U.S. You friends looking to spend your Euros will have the chance on July 5th.Check out the trailer below and let me know if you're going to be a day 1 buyer!

Looks exciting despite the fact that the trailer is kind of generic. ^^;

Coming To America: Project X Zone & One Piece Pirate Warriors 2

We knew the next entry in Koei's brawl-em-all would eventually hit our shores over here in N. America, but here we go again.. One Piece: Pirate Warriors 2 be only available for the PS3 via Playstation Network. I actually really would love a physical release so I could play it at my friends house. Hell, I still have to review the first game. >.> This second entry in the series brings back everything you know and love from the first game and includes new versions of Luffy and his crew as well as characters missing from the first game such as Eneru and the Skypiea Arc. Hopefully it either got rid of or vastly improved the phoned-in platforming of the first game. Sorry Vita owners, if you want to play the Vita version you need to import it. Warrior game release dates are pretty predictable, so expect this game to be download-ready sometime past October 2013.

Still wish they would give us a physical release..

Another great Japanese game is hitting the USA. One that I honestly did not think would make it here. Project X Zone for the 3DS is a RPG that crosses generations of characters from Namco/Bandai, Sega, and Capcom. Like games such as Super Robot Wars and Shonen Jump Superstars that had issues making it outside Japan, Projectt X Zone brings over 50 characters from the three companies together in a fight against some random darkness that probably won't be as memorable as the characters that you get to see. This game looks great despite the fact that it did not sell to expectations. I look forward to a nice 3DS RPG that will star characters from games that may never come to America. Looking at you VC3. -.-;

The 'X' is read as "cross." I guess we should call it Project Cross Zone, which would make more sense.

3DS: Charizard 3DSXL

Pokemon Japan is releasing a super limited Charizard (known as Lizard in JP) 3DSXL. This isn't going to be a wait in line all night type of thing either, as they will be sold via drawing. Damn do I wish I could get to Japan for this bad boy!

In other news, I'm a terrible blogger this month. XD I'll have some good posts coming soon!

Utada Hikaru wants to be your friend.. in the new Animal Crossing.

Japanese music icon Utada Hikaru may be taking some time off from the music industry but that doesn't mean she's fallen off the face of the planet. The Kingdom Hearts songstress and popular Jpop icon also loves to talk about her video game addiction. She can kick your ass at Tetris, but soon she may need a little help from her friends.

Utada is looking forward to playing the new 3DS Animal Crossing game, and is also in need of some friends to play it with. Maybe you could play with her and help her obtain items that only friends can give to you. It's probably the equivalent of playing those Facebook games that require you to have friends send you stuff to help along the way.

The link to her Twitter account is here. Works well if you read Japanese.

Capcom/Sega/Namco Bandai's Project X Zone Opening

Check out this opening to Project X Zone (Pronounced Project Cross Zone.) It's a collaboration of Sega, Capcom, and Namco Bandai characters working together in this JRPG like Xover. Song by Yoko Takahashi.

Game comes out in Japan on Oct. 11th, my daughter's birthday. Game director Katsuhiro Harada has promised a legalization version to be released in the future. Time will tell. ^^

Review: Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance (3D)

The game that bridged Final Fantasy with Disney movies celebrates it's 10th anniversary with the release of Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance. Will this be the spiritual Kingdom Hearts 3 or will it be a spin-off in the wrong direction?

Micky Photo Bomb

The Story: Set up previous by the events of Birth By Sleep & De:coded, Sora & Riku are summoned by Yen-Sid to participate in the Mark of Mastery exam. Despite Sora feeling that he should be able to skip the exam using his battles against Ansem the Seeker of Darkness and the Organization XIII leader Xemnas, the two go into the dream worlds where they are given the task to awaken the worlds that fell into the darkness and remain sleeping. The main story line keeps you very interested if you've been following the games. If you haven't been, you may be very confused as enemies you once felled seem to be returning. Even a special fan favorite returns back in his original form to surprise players at a moment notice.

Unfortunately the Disney characters are less charming then they were in previous games. Even the Tron Legacy level left a little bit to be desired. It's not the characters, it's the way Sora and Riku just don't seem to belong in these worlds like Sora did in KH2. The secret endings are, sadly, predicable. A few of the events in the actual ending were more surprising then the original.  4/5

Can't see where I am with your hair cut blinding me!

The Look: Best looking game of the series hands down. The worlds are colorful and lush and the characters are an improvement from the KH2. Everything from game-play, heroes, enemies, and cut-scenes are some of the best on the 3DS currently. This is also the first 3DS game I've enjoyed in almost full 3D sense Mario 3D Land. An absolute 5/5.

Still waiting for Tron 3..

The Sound: New and old songs sound great coming from the speakers of the 3DS. Even though most of the songs are either remixed or rehashed from older games, the charming music of Yoko Shimomura, Takeharu Ishimoto, and Tsuyoshi Sekito carries on in your heart for most of the game. Voice acting is top-notch with returning actors for the entire main cast. Even Aqua's voice actor sounds better then she did in BBS. 5/5

Mysterious Cloaked Chatacer Number 6

 The Feel: I'm always a little concerned with Kingdom Hearts being on portables as the PS2 controller seemed to be the best way to control Sora, but Square did great at implementing every button they could. Even the circle pad pro could be used if you have one, making the camera easier to control. The new "Flow-motion" system feels like you're breaking the game's boundaries by leaping higher then normal and kicking off walls. Flow-motion isn't just a way to get around but also lets you pull off some great damage on enemies. It's a little bit like the "HIT TRIANGLE NOW!" command from KH2 but with a little more depth. You can feel the difference in a game that was made ground up exclusively for a system. The difficulty seems a little amped up from the previous games. Another new feature is the fighting and befriending of Dream Eaters. The Dream Eaters not only help you in battle, but also help you grow as a character with each one representing a different skill tree for Sora & Riku to gain new powers. 5/5

"I wonder if Sora ever had to deal with this."

The Filling: The main story can be completed in about 20 hours depending on the difficulty. I played on Proud Mode myself, so I had to take some time and grind a few levels in before moving onto the storyline. The Gotta Catch 'Em All Dream Eater system can keep you busy for some time as well as a handful of minigames featuring Sora and Riku's new companions. There is also a Trophey System that rewards players who meet a certain criteria with ingame Throphies. If this isn't enough for you, try to take on the optional boss or the Critical difficulty mode you unlock once you complete the game. The game is still short, even for a spinoff game. 4.5/5

Game should of been called "Riku's Sleepy Fun Time World"

Overview:

I dumped about 30 hours into the game before I completed everything with the exception of collecting all the treasures and Dream Eaters. This wasn't enough for me though: I still felt the game could of been a little longer.. but perhaps that is because I was expecting a full KH game, and not a game created to set up Kingdom Hearts 3. Perhaps this will be our last spin-off until we see Sora team up with his friends to battle the upcoming darkness threatening the worlds. Hopefully KH3 will come out within the next couple years, perhaps intime for it's 15th anniversary. 4.7/5.0

Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance English Trailer

Presenting the English trailer for the next KH game. This trailer seems a little rushed as it still have Japanese menus and no sound effects. The best part is something you should keep memorized. Hearing the Tron levels makes me smile..

Remember kids, the game comes out on July 31st in the US. There will be a US Special Edition. Not what they got in Japan, but more then what we thought we would ever get.

Kingdom of Hearts 3D’s Mark of Mystery Edition
$54.99
Includes the following:

• a copy of Kingdom Hearts 3D
• a branded clear hard case skin cover
• set of 12 art cards meant to reflect the history of the Kingdom Hearts series
• set of five augmented reality cards to unlock rare Dream Eaters and more
• and a branded magnetic box to keep it all in

Nintendo eShop Update: Metroid!

   For those of you who were not lucky enough (foolish enough) to be apart of Nintendo's 3DS ambassador program, you can finally download another of the eight NES original games released. This week it's Metroid, the original search and destroy game. For 4.99 it's not a bad deal to relive or experience for the first time. Once you spend a few days shooting questionable monsters and getting lost in pixel hell, you can continue the journey with Metroid 2: Return of Samus, also in the 3DS eStore.

Back when Ridley looked more like Puff the Magic Dragon.

    Another 3DS demo is out this week as well. Sega's Crush 3D demo is out for anyone who wants to give it a try. Let's hope they give us more then 10 times to play this game though. I'm looking at you Nintendogs + Cats >.>

N3DS: Demos start off on tomorrow's eStore!

   Nintendo has been very active with their DSi and 3DS eStore adding at least 2-5 games per week, a weekly video featuring a mildly attractive girl, and game videos often. Starting tomorrow, 1/19/12, Nintendo will start offering the much anticipated demo section of the eStore. Starting with the gold, Nintendo will first present us with a demo for the upcoming Resident Evil: Revelations.

   Gamasutra also reports that we'll be seeing a demo of Cooking Mama 4. We'll also have to look forward to demos of Mario & Sonic: London Games, Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D, Rhythm Thief, Rayman 3D, and many more in the upcoming months.