Episode 24: The Running Men

Runner games are taking over the world and Nintendo platforms are no exception. In this episode of the Random Nintendo Podcast, we discuss Nintendo’s first foray into the genre with the recently announced Harmo Knight for 3DS, as well as look back on BIT.TRIP Runner and the entire BIT.TRIP franchise with impressions of BIT.TRIP Saga. We also debate different approaches to downloadable content and dive into a flurry of news, including Wii U release date rumblings, the announcement of Ace Attorney 5, and the latest Nintendo Direct.

To top it all off, we’re giving you a chance to play the Wii U months before its release! If you live in the Los Angeles area and would like to go hands-on with the Wii U, simply leave a comment below saying which Wii U game you are most excited to try. We’ll choose three comments at random, sending each selected poster an invitation for the 8:00 – 9:30 PM time slot of the Wii U Experience tour on Saturday, September 22. More information on the event and how you can get in can be found in this episode.

As always, if you would like to learn more about any of the topics discussed on today’s episode, we have provided links below. Be sure to also subscribe to the podcast on iTunes and follow us on Twitter @RandomNintendo so you don’t miss a thing. Enjoy!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:45:24 — 48.4MB)

News

• Animal Crossing 3DS: New Details, Japanese Release Date (IGN)
• Pokemon Developer’s New 3DS Game: Harmo Knight (IGN)
• First Look at the New Professor Layton Adventure. It’s the Last One. (Kotaku)
• Denpa Ningen RPG 2 Screens and Trailer (Andriasang)
• Nintendo Has a New Tomodachi Collection. This Video Justifies Its Existence. (Kotaku)
• Brain Age 3DS coming to US in December, Animal Crossing next year (Tiny Cartridge)
• Source: Gaming Accessory-Maker Says Nintendo Will Launch the Wii U on November 18 (Kotaku)
• Nintendo Wii U pricing, release date revealed? (CNET)
• Phoenix Wright to return in Ace Attorney 5 (Eurogamer.net)
• La-Mulana/EnjoyUpGames Announcement (Official La-Mulana Blog)
• Ron Gilbert’s platformer / adventure game ‘The Cave’ also headed to Wii U eShop (Joystiq)
• Bethesda not yet sold on Wii U (VideoGamer.com)
• Pissed Off ‘Employees’ Bash Pretty Much Every Major Video Game Company (Kotaku)
• Nintendo Products Represent 70% of Entire Japanese Game Market (Wired.com)
• Darksiders, Mario sequels lead as U.S. retail sales continue to decline (Gamasutra)
• New Super Mario Bros. 2 Emerges as the Best-Selling Video Game of August (GoNintendo)
• Where Are Our New Super Mario Bros. 2 Coin Rush Mode Download Courses? (Andriasang)

Games

• BIT.TRIP (Official Site)
• Animal Crossing 3DS (IGN Game Page)
• Rhythm Hunter Harmo Knight (Official Japanese Site)
• Professor Layton And the Legacy of Advanced Civilization A (IGN Game Page)
• Brain Age: Concentration Training (Nintendo World Report Game Page)
• Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (Nintendo.com E3 Game Page)
• Ace Attorney 5 (Official Japanese Site)
• La-Mulana (Official Site)
• The Cave (Official Site)
• New Super Mario Bros. 2 (Official Site)

Official Contest Rules: All registrants must be a resident of the United States of America and age 13 or older. The contest begins on September 9, 2012 at 12 AM PDT and ends on September 14, 2012. at 8:59 PM PDT. Visitors may only enter the contest once by leaving a comment below that includes the Wii U game they would most like to try. Any additional entries that a given visitor makes will be disqualified. Three (3) comment posters will be given an invitation code to sign up for the 8:00 – 9:30 PM time slot of the Wii U Experience tour on Saturday, September 22 in Los Angeles, CA. The winners will be chosen at random at 9:00 PM on September 14 and contacted by email. Random Nintendo staff members may not participate in this contest. Random Nintendo reserves the right to disqualify any entry for any reason.