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Mario Kart 3DS shooting for 8-player online

It will likely surprise no one that Mario Kart 3DS will have online races, as the feature really helped with the popularity of Mario Kart DS despite its clunkiness.

Something new and unexpected that will be included in Mario Kart 3DS when the sequel releases this holiday season, though, is support for double the players — up to eight gamers will be able race each other.

Nintendo’s Hideki Konno talked to JC about Mario Kart 3DS’ online multiplayer, and said: “Our goal right now is to have the same number of players for both local wireless and multiplayer over Wi-Fi.” The company wants to first make sure that it will still run at 60 frames per second in both 3D and 2D modes while online.

[Update: I’m a doofus and forgot Mario Kart DS has 8-player local races — it’s been a while! Anyway, forget all this and watch the MK demo track after the break.]

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Retro Studios behind Mario Kart 3DS, 60FPS

At an ongoing first-party roundtable discussion at E3, Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto revealed that the developer working on Mario Kart 3DS is one you all are likely familiar with — Retro Studios, makers of Donkey Kong Country Returns and the Metroid Prime series.

[Update: Other reports indicate Retro is collaborating on the title with another Nintendo house, co-developing or contributing to the tracks and other content.]

Miyamoto also says that Mario Kart 3DS, which will release later this year, will run at 60 frames per second. He mentioned that he originally wanted to call the game Super Mario Kite, too, due to the glider portions.

Here’s the Mario Kart 3DS trailer we posted earlier. From what I’m hearing on other sites’ hands-on impressions, the hand-gliding portions are actually fun. I’m more excited about the kart customization stuff.

Buy: Nintendo 3DS console (Cosmo Black, Aqua Blue)

Find: Nintendo DS/3DS release dates, discounts, & more

See also: More E3 trailers and news

Donkey Kong Country Returns for $35 and other Amazon deals»

Though prices for the Dragon Quest Slime Speaker have skyrocketed back up to $37+, there is still a lot of other game product discounts worth your attention on Amazon, like the very well received (and really difficult) Donkey Kong Country Returns for only $34.99.

[Update: The Donkey Kong deal is now dead, but you can still jump on the other sales mentioned here.]

Also on sale right now at the online shop:

I can’t believe we only got three posts out of that photoshopped Dragon Quest Slime Speaker image — I was hoping to get at least a dozen updates out of that.

Donkey Kong Country Returns concept art by Retro Studios’ Sammy Hall. I’ve been meaning to post this and a bunch of other things a while ago, but then 3DS stuff sort of got in the way. Hall put up a bunch of these beautiful pieces from his work on the recently released Wii game. I love his updated take on Donkey Kong and Diddy in those paintings — it makes you wonder how different the characters (and the game) would have looked if Retro Studios wasn’t saddled by Rare’s original art style. This related video of Donkey Kong’s idle animation with a Nintendo DS Lite also made the rounds not too long ago, but we never got around to posting it: Cute! Buy: Donkey Kong Country Returns ($43.99) See also: More Donkey Kong Country Returns [Via Wait — NSFW language]

Donkey Kong Country Returns concept art by Retro Studios’ Sammy Hall. I’ve been meaning to post this and a bunch of other things a while ago, but then 3DS stuff sort of got in the way. Hall put up a bunch of these beautiful pieces from his work on the recently released Wii game.

I love his updated take on Donkey Kong and Diddy in those paintings — it makes you wonder how different the characters (and the game) would have looked if Retro Studios wasn’t saddled by Rare’s original art style.

This related video of Donkey Kong’s idle animation with a Nintendo DS Lite also made the rounds not too long ago, but we never got around to posting it:

Cute!

Buy: Donkey Kong Country Returns ($43.99)

See also: More Donkey Kong Country Returns

[Via Wait — NSFW language]

Donkey Kong Country Returns’ new “Eruption” trailer. There’ve been so many great franchise reboots this year — Donkey Kong, Metroid (though not everyone’s a fan), and Kirby. From what I hear, Activision’s new Goldeneye 007 game is actually pretty good, too!

Those people who refuse to boot up their Wii for whatever reason are missing out on some great games this year.

Preorder: Donkey Kong Country Returns (November 21)

See also: More Donkey Kong posts

Donkey Kong Country Returns screenshot, featuring a pixel Donkey Kong statue looming in the distance, holding a Wiimote up (click for a larger image). These are the kind of great details you won’t ever notice while playing the game, because you’ll be too busy dying. You’ll notice that pretty much every preview of the game, including the one Andrew Yoon wrote up for Joystiq today, makes a point to bring up the difficulty. Based on the few minutes I had with the thing at E3, they aren’t overstating it. That game is designed to mock you for thinking you can play what is ostensibly a kid’s game. Here’s a trailer for this brutal-ass game: Preorder: Donkey Kong Country Returns (November 21) See also: More Donkey Kong posts

Donkey Kong Country Returns screenshot, featuring a pixel Donkey Kong statue looming in the distance, holding a Wiimote up (click for a larger image). These are the kind of great details you won’t ever notice while playing the game, because you’ll be too busy dying.

You’ll notice that pretty much every preview of the game, including the one Andrew Yoon wrote up for Joystiq today, makes a point to bring up the difficulty. Based on the few minutes I had with the thing at E3, they aren’t overstating it. That game is designed to mock you for thinking you can play what is ostensibly a kid’s game.

Here’s a trailer for this brutal-ass game:

Preorder: Donkey Kong Country Returns (November 21)

See also: More Donkey Kong posts