Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros. out on December 4 in Europe
Worlds collide in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros., coming to Nintendo 3DS on December 4th
The Mushroom Kingdom is about to learn that two Marios are better than one in Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros.! Releasing on December 4th for Nintendo 3DS family systems, the fifth instalment of the popular RPG series will see Paper Mario jump off the page and form a superstar team of Mario Bros. to take on the only thing more threatening to the Mushroom Kingdom than one Bowser: two of them!
When Luigi accidentally opens a mysterious book hidden away in Peach’s Castle, he gets more than he bargained for when characters from the Paper Mario universe spill out of the pages and start running amok. Players must take control of the terrific trio of Mario, Luigi and Paper Mario to defeat Bowser and Paper Bowser and bring the Paper Mario characters back to their original world.
Adding Paper Mario to their ranks means that Mario and Luigi have even more ways to explore, solve puzzles and take down any enemies foolish enough to mess with the Mario Bros. In a first for the series, players can now battle with Trio Attacks, as well as use Paper Mario’s unique copy ability, allowing him to create duplicates of himself in order to bolster his attack power. Our papery hero also has special skills outside of battle, like his ability to slip through tiny cracks to areas inaccessible to the three-dimensional brothers.
Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros. will also see the introduction of Paper Craft Battles, tasking players with taking down the Bowsers’ forces with the power of dance! Craft battles see our heroes take part in rhythm-based events in order to power a giant papercraft and use it to defeat giant papercrafts from Bowser’s army.
Avoid a “tearable” fate as Mario & Luigi: Paper Jam Bros. for Nintendo 3DS family systems launches across Europe on December 4th.
Report: Nintendo NX is a console-handheld hybrid, dev kits are being sent out
Nintendo Begins Distributing Software Kit for New NX Platform
Nintendo has begun distributing a software development kit for its new NX videogame platform, people familiar with the matter said, suggesting the company is on track to introduce the product as early as next year.
The kit is used by third-party software developers to modify existing games for the platform or create new ones. Videogame console makers such as Nintendo like to have popular game titles ready when they start selling new devices.
Nintendo’s current flagship products are the Wii U, a console typically used in the living room, and the portable 3DS device. Both have been out for several years, leading analysts to predict that the Kyoto-based entertainment powerhouse will move fairly swiftly to bring out the NX.
“We are increasingly of the idea that Nintendo might launch the NX in 2016 because of the softness of 3DS and Wii U,” said David Gibson, an analyst at Macquarie Capital Securities.
A Nintendo spokeswoman said the company plans to disclose details of NX next year.
Square Enix said in July that it planned to make the latest version of its blockbuster role-playing game Dragon Quest for the NX. That version, called Dragon Quest XI, is also planned for the 3DS and Sony Corp. ’s PlayStation 4.
The exact shape of the NX hardware isn’t yet clear. People familiar with the development plans said Nintendo would likely include both a console and at least one mobile unit that could either be used in conjunction with the console or taken on the road for separate use. They also said Nintendo would aim to put industry-leading chips in the NX devices, after criticism that the Wii U’s capabilities didn’t match those of competitors.
Nintendo’s former president, Satoru Iwata, said in March that NX “is a platform dedicated for videogames.” Mr. Iwata died in July, and his post was assumed in September by Tatsumi Kimishima, a former banker who served as one of Mr. Iwata’s top lieutenants at Nintendo.
Mr. Kimishima is expected to carry forward the strategy of Mr. Iwata, a legendary figure for many videogame fans. In the months before his death, Mr. Iwata laid out plans to put Nintendo characters in games for mobile devices under a partnership with DeNA and made a deal with amusement park operator Universal Parks & Resorts, which is part of Comcast Corp.
“Nintendo is no longer just a traditional videogame company,” said industry veteran Hirokazu Hamamura, a director at Kadokawa Dwango Corp., which publishes magazines about videogames.