EMBARGOES UNTIL 5 ^TH OCTOBER 9AM CET

5th October 2012 – Nintendo 3DS took centre stage in yesterday’s European Nintendo Direct presentation , with further details released on upcoming titles such as Paper Mario: Sticker Star , Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate and a host of new downloadable games coming to Nintendo eShop .

The latest game in a franchise dating back to Nintendo 64, Paper Mario: Sticker Star will launch across Europe on 7th December and introduces a new sticker dynamic to Mario’s paper-craft world. Stickers are dotted around the landscape and can be peeled off and collected to bestow unique powers and special moves upon Mario. Players will even be able to make their own stickers using items found throughout their adventure.

In good time for the Christmas wish lists come two new Nintendo 3DS XL colours. From November 16 ^th the Nintendo 3DS XL White with Mario Kart 7 pre-installed will be available while a limited edition Nintendo 3DS XL Pikachu Yellow will be available later this year for Pokémon aficionados while stocks last.

By March 2013 team players will be able to experience first-hand the thrill of local multiplayer quests in Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate on Nintendo 3DS, a hugely popular phenomenon in Japan. Hunting parties allow up to four intricately customised heroes to co-operate locally via their handheld systems, taking on terrific beasts together in a sprawling, menacing ecosystem. Cross-platform functionality will even allow three handheld players to connect locally with someone playing the same game on a Wii U console, or transfer their save data between the handheld and console versions, ensuring the game continues whether playing on the go or on the big screen.

The coming months will also see a wealth of releases for Nintendo eShop, including the sequel to the popular puzzle game Pullblox. In Fallblox , Mallo returns with a barrage of even trickier puzzles as the blocks in his path can now also drop down. Pullblox itself is now temporarily available at a discount, starting a period of six weeks in which a different Nintendo eShop title will be available each week at a reduced price.

Players looking to download popular titles previously released as packaged software are also in luck, as SUPER MARIO 3D LAND , Mario Kart 7, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D and Star Fox 64 3D join the ranks of retail games now released for download directly through Nintendo eShop.

Puzzlers will surely be pleased with the impending launch of LEVEL-5’s Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask on October 26 ^th. For this Nintendo Direct, Akihiro Hino, President and CEO of LEVEL-5, was on hand to discuss three new titles, created in collaboration with famous Japanese game developers, coming to Nintendo eShop starting with LIBERATION MAIDEN from Suda51. 

Finally, if you’ve been clamouring to learn how to draw your favourite Mario enemies, now is your chance. A brand new Custom Lesson for New Art Academy: Learn New Painting Techniques and Share Your Art will show you how to draw your very own Goomba completely from scratch. This new lesson will be made available via SpotPass today so make sure you check the Custom Lessons section of New Art Academy when you receive the notification.

Full list of Nintendo 3DS titles featured in the latest Nintendo Direct:

* Pokémon Black Version 2 and Pokémon White Version 2 will be released for Nintendo DS but can also be played on Nintendo 3DS or Nintendo 3DS XL.

For further details:

Nintendo Direct website (UK) http://nintendo.co.uk/nintendodirect

Nintendo Direct on Ustream http://www.ustream.tv/NintendoUK

Nintendo  3DSXL website http://www.nintendo3ds.co.uk

Nintendo 3DS Guided Tour http://guidedtour.nintendo.co.uk

Nintendo of Europe on Twitter https://twitter.com/nintendoeurope

Nintendo UK on Twitter https://twitter.com/nintendouk

All assets will be available shortly from: https://assetslibrary.nintendo.co.uk

Ends

About Nintendo 3DS:

Nintendo 3DS offers Parental Controls so that parents can control the level of 3D their children can view on the Nintendo 3DS as well as the content they can access. Nintendo 3DS also features a 3D depth slider which lets players turn off or adjust the level of 3D they want on the 3D Screen, two built-in screens for different functionality, a Circle Pad which provides a full 360 degrees of direction, a built-in motion sensor and gyro sensor. It is equipped with three cameras (two of which are facing outwards to allow the taking of 3D pictures), houses a 2GB SD Memory Card and is compatible with AR Cards which come packaged with Nintendo 3DS. Nintendo 3DS is also backwards compatible with all existing Nintendo DS games, which can be played in 2D on your Nintendo 3DS system.

About Nintendo

The worldwide pioneer in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii™ home console, Nintendo 3DS™ and Nintendo DS™ family of portable systems. Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System™, Nintendo has sold more than 3.9 billion video games and more than 630 million hardware units globally, including the current-generation Wii, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi™ and Nintendo DSi™ XL, as well as the Game Boy™, Game Boy Advance™, Super NES™, Nintendo® 64 and Nintendo GameCube™ systems. It has also created industry icons that have become well-known, household names such as Mario™, Donkey Kong™, Metroid™, Zelda™ and Pokémon™.  A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of Europe, based in Grossostheim, Germany, was established in 1990 and serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in Europe.