Nintendo are going to launch their next handheld, a 3D version of the hugely popular Nintendo DS known as the 3DS, in October. That is, of course, if mysterious "industry insiders" are to be believed! A senior games industry figure had this to say to CVG on the matter:

"It's a surprise - we were expecting it much closer to Christmas. But I suppose it gives Nintendo the opportunity to get it front and centre in people's minds nice and early.

"In my experience, you don't launch a product that early to Christmas unless you're confident in it - and going to spend a lot of money on it. We're reassured that Nintendo is going to give it some decent backing in Q4."

The clever money is on the catchy and memorable date of 10/10/10. If this is the first you've heard about this mysterious device, or if you've forgotten already, make sure you read our roundup of the 3DS hardware specifications and other rumours!

Nintendo launches the highly anticipated third game in the 'Monster Hunter' series this Friday in the UK. Read on for the press release for this hotly-anticipated game...

I don't know much about this original Gameboy, other than the fact that it has had the guts from a much more modern Gameboy Advance SP crammed inside it. That means that it can now play GBA and Gameboy Colour games, as well as original Gameboy games. All of the buttons work and it also features an internal rechargeable battery!

Some more good news for DS fans! The hugely successful Nintendo DS family is getting a whole new member. As if the DS, DS Lite, DSi and DSi XL weren't enough, Nintendo have confirmed that we're getting the 3DS, a 3D iteration of the popular handheld.

Rumour has it that the 3DS will sport the following features (according to Nikkei):

• Some sort of "3D Joystick" controller
• Force feedback "...that will let players feel the collisions of a game character"
• Improved wireless communication speed
• Improved battery life
• Screens slightly smaller than the new DSi XL
• Potential accelerometer for motion control
• 3D LCD screen technology from Sharp / Hitachi which does not require 3D glasses (source)

These rumours are supposedly directly from inside Nintendo, so I'm hedging my bets that all of these features will be making it into the new handheld. Nintendo will unveil the new device officially at E3 in June, so there's not too long to wait.

The 3DS will be backwards compatible with all existing games and DS accessories, although rumour has it that it will not be carrying the DS name at all and may be the first in a new handheld family for Nintendo. The line has been around since 2004, so that would also match up nicely with the 6 year "offifcial" lifespan of the original Game Boy.

More news in June, or as and when it comes in!

Way, way back in the mid-1980s, Nintendo's 8-bit NES console was where it was at. They sold millions of the things all over the world (over 60 million to be exact), and introduced gamers to the likes of Mario, Zelda, and Mega Man. The console was sold until 2003 in Japan, giving it one of the longest lifespans of any games console ever made.

In Japan, the NES was known as the Famicom, short for "Family Computer". As well as being a games console, it was also marketed as a full-blown computer, with a keyboard and various software applications available to justify the purchase to any self-respecting parent.

Fast-forward 25 years and we have this - an homage to the Famicom days of old. An intrepid casemodder has crammed a modern PC into its retrolicious case, bringing it bang up to date. Well, actually it's running Windows 2000, but I guess that gives it even more retro charm.

The motherboard is a Pico-ITX running a 1GHz Via C7 CPU. It's equipped with a 16GB SSD for near-silent operation, just like the original. I bet that squidgy old keyboard is fun to type on!

Check out the complete collection of build videos and photos here (site is in Japanese).

Last year's Ghostbusters game for the Wii was surprisingly good, making excellent use of the console's motion controls. But those standard Wii controllers aren't enough for some people as this excellent mod by GBFans forum member irrelevanttomfoolery proves.

The pack's creator has this to say:

"The cyclotron features four blue LEDs allowing you to know which player is selected or active and the Blue Power Cell actually shows you how much power the pack has. The Thrower has been carefully designed in regards to ergonomics and function. The front of the wand has an area in which you can place the Wii-mote and the back handle is where the Nunchuck is placed. Since the Wii-mote has in internal speaker in it's ABS housing, when playing the game the pack makes all the iconic Ghostbusters SFX. And being that the Wii utilizes wireless technology, the wand is not tethered to the pack via a cord."

He's also going to be making a video of the thing in action... Watch this space!

The wealth of legal DS "homebrew" apps includes a port of the Linux Operating System.

Nintendo has had its case against the Divineo group, a major trade supplier of the popular R4 and other flashcarts for the company's DS handheld system, dropped in a French court on Friday. The judge ruled that the devices open up the system to software development, and that Nintendo have deliberately been locking out developers from its consoles.

It was suggested by the court that Nintendo should open up its hardware platforms for development by anyone, much like Microsoft's Windows operating system.

Of course, this is a major blow to the company's anti-piracy efforts, from which they have every right to protect their business, but it does highlight the perfectly legitimate uses of these flash-based devices. If Nintendo added proper media support and completely opened up the DS to homebrew games developers, not only would they increase sales by increasing the usefulness of the system, but they'd also kill off the market for these "piracy-enabling" devices.

That's a win-win situation, I'd say.

DeviantArt user Thretris has a thing for painting classic Nintendo consoles, and this awesome Kill Bill themed duo caught my eye. Nintendo have always been well known for releasing lots of different limited editions and colour options for their systems over the years (the crazy Pokemon N64 and millions of colour variations of the original Gameboy spring to mind), but the NES mostly missed out on this.

Of course, Tarantino's wild west / kung fu / gangster epic wasn't around back in the days of the NES and Gameboy, but that doesn't stop the film's striking visual style from looking anything but awesome when gracing these retro consoles.

(via)

BBC News have announced today that, due to the huge popularity of their online video service iPlayer with the UK's 6 million Wii owners, they will soon be releasing a dedicated player for the console. The downloadable channel will install directly to the Wii's home screen and will allow users to bypass the web browser and view on-demand TV programmes directly throught their TV and home entertainment system.

The BBC have announced that the new channel will also support radio, with some unique animations and visualisations, and will utilise the Wii Remote's vibration feedback in some capacity. Of course, HDTV owners will probably benefit from a component video cable for the best possible picture quality while using the service.

The dedicated channel is a response to user complaints about the original browser-based interface, and is available from the Wii Shop Channel on November 18th. It is only available to users with a broadband connection in the UK.

We now have fantastic Wii Remote and Nunchuck controllers in stock! We sold out of our OEM controllers in no time at all last time, and while we couldn't get those again this time, we did manage to source these fantastic Japanese imports. As with all of our stock we ship them direct from our UK warehouse and delivery is free!

Order now and get them in time for Christmas!

Buy Wii Remote Controller UK

Buy Wii Nunchuck Controller UK

Buy Wii Remote & Nunchuck Gift Pack UK

We've had real trouble keeping our Wii Remote and Nunchuck controllers in stock, and who can blame us at this price? There have been a lot of enquiries about whether they will ever be returning, so we're pleased to announce that we have a large shipment of these coming in during the next few weeks - just in time for Christmas!

As soon as they arrive we'll be updating the site to make them available once more, so hang in there and we'll keep you posted.

Did you know that the Wii Remote and Wii Nunchuck are also available separately? Aren't we good to you!

This LEGO Mario is a whopping 6ft tall, and was built by intrepid Dutch builders extraordinaire Game Mania. It's so big, in fact, that it's actually claimed the title of the biggest LEGO Mario in the world! Don't worry about stability though - it has an internal framework and has been glued together for strength. The entire model contains over 40,000 LEGO bricks.

It's up for auction on the Dutch ebay site, with all proceeds going to Ronald McDonald house, a charity that supports critically ill children and their families. The current asking price is €2550. I'm not sure what the little Luigi statue is all about, but it's not included in the auction.

We could do with one of these to brighten up the place here at ConsoleBUZZ!

(via)

We're introducing some new lines over the coming weeks, and first up will be the DS cases you see above. They're suitable for the Nintendo DS Lite and DSi. We've also set up a new Nintendo DS Cases category so that you can check them all out in one place!

The new designs feature Pikachu, of Pokemon fame, and a mushroom from the Mario games. They're big enough to safely carry a DS Lite or the new DSi, and have a secure velcro fixing. The soft yet tough construction will keep your handheld safe from knocks and scratches.

Look out for them appearing on the site in the next 2 weeks!

Nintendo have finally announced a release date for the long-awaited black Wii bundle, and that date is November 6th. That puts the newly-released console on shelves just in time for Christmas, and if previous releases are anything to go by supplies should be tight - not helped by the fact that this bundle is strictly limited edition.

The black bundle (pictured above) includes the following:

• Wii Console
• Wii Remote & Nunchuck
• MotionPlus Addon
• Original Wii Sports Game
• Wii Sports Resort Game

There will also be a classic controller (also pictured above) available separately. This bundle is exclusive to Europe, as the black Wii isn't available in America until an unannounced date in the future. The bundle releases in the rest of Europe on November 20th.

(via)

It's that time of year again, and it's looking like it's going to be a busy time for the happy little elves at ConsoleBUZZ. We recently decided that we'd discontinue our old range of flashcarts to concentrate on those that are compatible with the latest DSi firmware 1.4 update (don't worry - they also work with the original DS and DS Lite!). The reason we took this decision was to reduce potential compatibility issues and potential disappointment for our customers - there's nothing worse than opening your new flash cart on Christmas morning only to discover that it doesn't work with your shiny new DSi.

So, here are a few tips for DSi owners out there, old and new, looking to buy a new flash cartridge in the coming months:

Buy a well-known brand

The R4 is arguably the best-known name in Nintendo DS flash cartridges, with TopToy's DSTT a very close second. Some of the lesser-known flash cartridge manufacturers out there can fade into obscurity, leaving their users stranded without software updates.

Avoid cheap clones

It helps to spend the right money for these cards, and make sure they're from a reputable source - there are plenty of cheap clones of these cards around, and they're plagued with reliability problems, not to mention compatibility issues with the "official" firmware.

Buy from UK stock

All of our flash carts are shipped from stock from our very own UK warehouse (for free!). There are plenty of disreputable sellers out there who hide the fact that they drop ship from China, potentially leaving the customer with the bill for customs charges and extortionate airmail shipping fees. It also means that they can't personally test and update every cartridge, which is what we do to ensure that your experience is as painless as possible.

Don't buy old stock

Due to some of the "shadier" uses of these carts, Nintendo blocked them with a recent firmware update. The now-notorious DSi 1.4 firmware rendered most R4 cartridges useless. Only the very latest R4i Gold supports DSi firmware 1.4, and some retailers are selling off old stock without mentioning compatibility. Don't fall into the trap - when it comes to flash cartridges, you get what you pay for!

A flash cartridge should give years of enjoyment, and can really help to enhance and expand your new handheld investment. If you follow the simple hints above, you can avoid many of the pitfalls which can be involved in buying one of these cards.

If you have any more questions at all about flash carts, please do contact us via our contact form or by email. You can get hold of a DSTTi flashcart here or an R4i flashcart here. As an added bonus, all of our flash carts come with a 2GB MicroSD card and USB reader - everything you need to get you started!

Check out this awesome Mario rug, hand crafted by Crafster user enemyairship. As you can see, Mario's wearing his famous Tanuki suit which enables him to fly. The rug measures 7ft x 7ft and is made up of 386 individual granny squares, each one representing a pixel. The rug took 15 days to complete, and should go along very nicely with enemyairship's other Mario-inspired work, including the leather ottoman you see above.

Keep up the good work!

(via)