Zelda Anniversary Takeover Day Announced

The 25th year of The Legend of Zelda definitely has got all the fans up in a frenzy of excitement. Yet another event was announced in honor of the said occassion, this time courtesy of videogame festival GameCity.
The said event is the Zelda Anniversary Takeover Day, happening in Nottingham's Old Market Square, on October 29th, Saturday. Basically, the whole square will be magically transformed in a Hyrulean market, much to the definite delight of fans.
Among the many activities line up for this festivity are the make-your-own sword and shield booths, or the Ocarina lessons. If you just want to chill out, then you can head over to the LonLon Milk bar and have a sweet fix. If you complete all these, then you will be rewarded with pieces of the Triforce, and tehreby be able to complete the Hero's Quest.
Probably the best thing about all of these, however, is the fact that the upcoming The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, will be available for hands-on play throughout the day. That's some three full weeks ahead of folks who are just going to have to wait till the game comes out to the market on the official date of November 18th.

Of course, there's plenty more to do there, as the Takeover Day is just a part of a bigger ongoing occassion, which is the GameCity festival. So be sure to make your way around and enjoy the sights, sounds, play, and more.
Nintendo has launched an official 25th Anniversary Website, where fans can take on a little nice trip down memory lane. If you can't come to Nottingham for the Takeover Day, then you can just head over to Los Angeles in October for the Zelda orchestra concert.
Via [Official Nintendo Magazine]

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The Best Of Nintendo's Castlevania

Happy Birthday, Simon Belmont! 25 years ago, on September 26, 1986, the first Castlevania game went on sale in Japan.
If you've been following our 25th anniversary coverage for the past few days here on IGN's Nintendo channels, you've seen us first go back to the franchise's beginnings by Revisiting Castlevania on the NES. We then moved into the modern era with Revisiting Castlevania on the DS. And today, to wrap up our look back on Konami's vampire-hunting brand we're presenting The Best of Nintendo's Castlevania.
These are the top picks -- the absolute essentials that you've got to experience to consider yourself a true Belmont fan. So read on, take our recommendations and scrape some cash together to make a couple of purchases from this list. It's the right thing to do for Simon's birthday.
Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse
Released September 1, 1990

Why It Made the List
All three of the series-starting titles that kicked off the Castlevania series on the NES deserve your time and attention, but if you've only got time and attention enough for one then go straight to the trilogy's 8-bit conclusion. Playing Castlevania III again today takes you right back to the franchise's beginnings to appreciate how the Belmonts first looked, controlled and fought against Dracula in Nintendo's first console era -- but this third installment also succeeds on more than just nostalgia with its multiple playable characters, branching paths and brutal difficulty that make it worth much more than just five bucks. You can download it through the Wii Virtual Console for that amount right now, and you should. Immediately.
Super Castlevania IV
Released December 1991

Why It Made the List
When Nintendo made the leap to the upgraded graphics of 16-bit technology, Castlevania was right there to help make the transition happen. Super Castlevania IV was a bigger, bolder vision of the 'Vania world that served as one of the early showpiece titles for the SNES -- and it innovated in gameplay as well as graphics, by introducing multi-directional whip attacks for our vampire-hunting hero. This one's on sale through the Wii Virtual Console as well, and you can make it your own for just eight bucks. Or, if you'd rather win a copy for free, that can be arranged as well.
Castlevania X: Rondo of Blood
Released October 1993

Why It Made the List
The legendary lost game of the series, Rondo of Blood originally didn't come to a Nintendo system in the States -- or any system for that matter. It stayed in Japan, unlocalized and untranslated for our audience, while America had to make due with a watered-down pseudo-port called Dracula X. The Wii's Virtual Console righted the injustice of the '90s just last year, though, finally giving us this game in America, in its original form, for a Nintendo platform. So it totally counts now. And you should totally buy it, for just nine bucks.
Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow
Released May 2003

Why It Made the List
After an ugly era through the late '90s when Konami first tried to transition Castlevania into 3D on the N64, traditional 2D 'Vania had a huge resurgence on the Game Boy Advance. The GBA launch title Circle of the Moon and its follow-up Harmony of Dissonance paved the way for one of the series' best portable adventures ever, Aria of Sorrow. Though Game Boy Advance games are not as easily available now as classics from other systems, it'd be worth your while to scour some local game shop bargain bins and track down this title -- its introduction of Soma Cruz, futuristic setting and innovative soul-capturing system helped make it one of the best Nintendo Castlevania titles ever.

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia
Released October 2008
Why It Made the List
Finally, though Dawn of Sorrow and Portrait of Ruin are both excellent as well, forcing us to pick just one of Castlevania's modern DS sequels means we have to highlight the most recent. Order of Ecclesia is the current culmination of the combination of the Castlevania franchise and Nintendo's hardware platforms, a dark and difficult journey across the 17th century Transylvania countryside as a uniquely non-Belmont female fighter. It's coming up on its own three-year anniversary of release, but that's not so long ago that you shouldn't still be able to find it in stores. Fire up that DS one more time and join the Order. We command it.
And there you have it, Castlevania fans. Our top 5 picks for the best of the best among Nintendo's options for enjoying the series. You'll have to venture to other company's hardware to seek out some big hits like Symphony of the Night, but overall it's easy to be a very well-versed Castlevania aficionado by just owning a Wii and DS.
Now get crackin'! It's your duty as an honorary member of the Belmont family to spend your day today stalking Dracula with murderous intent. And feel free to make your own suggestions for other 'Vania options in the Comments below while you're lacing up your leather boots and spraying on your bat repellent -- we've just presented our picks, but we want to know yours too.
Happy Birthday, Simon!

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Sony Unsure Of Nintendo's 3D Strategy

A Sony rep still thinks gamers would prefer to wear glasses to view 3D games.

"People are projecting their issues with other media onto gaming. When you play a game, you're not looking away from the TV like watching a film," said Sony's Simon Benson.

Sony has no plans currently to add 3D support to their upcoming handheld, the PlayStation Vita. PS3, on the other hand, has several games featuring 3D through the use of glasses.

"Gamers are also more comfy with peripherals compared to the average consumer. Maybe people could be looking at other ideas in the future, like a headset that gives you both 3D glasses and fully 3D audio to deepen the immersive experience," he continued.

Do you think that Sony should change the way they think about 3D?

Check out the latest info on Vita's release date.

via Gamasutra

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Layton Vs. Ace Attorney Features Actors From Ace Attorney Movie

The upcoming Layton Vs. Ace Attorney game will be voiced by the same actors charged with bringing Nick and Maya to life on the Japanese silver screen.

Andriasang reports that the upcoming Layton Vs. Ace Attorney game -- which still doesn't have a U.S. release date -- will feature voice work from the actors confirmed to be performing in the Ace Attorney movie.
Layton and Luke will be voiced by their usual Japanese voice actors Yo Oizumi and Maki Horikita. Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey will be voiced by Hiroki Narimiya and Mirei Kiritani.
A special TGS presentation regarding the game is set for tomorrow at 12:30 (Japanese time). Many of us here at GamePro are hoping for news that the game will receive a localization and head to our shores, in which case it'll need some American voice actors. Who would you put in the leading roles?

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Is This the Title for the Next Super Smash Bros.?

A leaked document reveals what may be the title of the next Wii U installment in the popular fighting franchise.

The image above (courtesy of Reddit user Hector_Kur) reveals what may be the name and logo of the next Super Smash Bros. game: Universe.

Nintendo refuses to comment on rumor and speculation, and the name has yet to be officially revealed, but the document looks pretty legit, even if the writing makes too small to make out any other details.

While hardcore fighting fans may not care much about the series (even here in the GamePro office), it's still my favorite fighting franchise. So, even if this isn't the real name, the game itself has to come out sometime, and it would be a great Wii U launch title. But what new characters would you like to see?

Personally, after going through so many iterations, I don't know who else I'd want to see from Nintendo's main roster (though I wish they'd stop removing characters I do like, like Mewtwo), but if we can bring in characters from other franchises, how about Professor Layton?

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Metroid II Comes to Virtual Console in Japan

The Return of Samus finally comes to Virtual Console, meaning a Western release can't be far behind.

While Nintendo announced last month that Metroid II: The Return of Samus would be coming to the Virtual Console before the end of the year, it looks gotten very close to happening.

Siliconera reports that the game is coming to the Japanese 3DS Virtual Console tomorrow. Wide release can't be far behind.

If you've never tried this portable chapter in Samus' history before, you're in for a treat...at least I hope so. I haven't played it since I was a kid, actually. I'm just assuming it'll still be just as much fun today.

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