Nintendo has enjoyed tremendous success thanks to the forward-thinking innovations of its DS and Wii systems, but the company’s lineup is focused squarely on the past. The publisher revealed today its first-party and third-party lineup of Wii and DS games through March of 2009, with a scattering of revamps and remakes comprising the majority of its own games.
For the Wii, Nintendo has only two releases planned, both remakes of GameCube games designed to support the Wii Remote’s motion-sensing capabilities. The self-explanatory New Play Control Mario Power Tennis and New Play Control Pikmin will both launch in March.
Nintendo’s DS lineup is a little more robust, spearheaded by the March 22 launch of Pokemon Platinum. Platinum reuses characters and settings from Pokemon Diamond and Pokemon Pearl in a franchise tradition dating back to Pokemon Yellow for the original Game Boy, a pseudosequel that incorporated elements of the previously released Pokemon Red and Pokemon Blue.
Beyond Diamond, Nintendo has two more DS games planned through March. Up first will be Personal Trainer: Math on January 12, an arithmetic addition to the practical game series that started with Personal Trainer: Cooking. Those looking for something a little more gamey can try Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon on February 16. The latest release in the turn-based strategy series will be a remake of the original NES Fire Emblem (which never made it to North America), with new touch-screen controls.
Wii
- Disney Sing It: High School Musical 3: Senior Year (Disney Interactive Studios)–Winter
- Neighborhood Games (THQ)–January 5
- Paws & Claws Pet Resort (THQ)–January 5
- Fishing Master World Tour (Hudson)–January 6
- Deer Drive (Mastiff)–January 20
- SimAnimals (Electronic Arts)–January 27
- Coraline (D3Publisher)–January
- Escape the Museum (Majesco)–January
- Word Jong Party (Destineer)–January
- NASCAR Kart Racing (Electronic Arts)–February 10
- Brave: A Warrior’s Tale (Southpeak)–February 17
- Little King’s Story (Marvelous)–February 17
- Roogoo Twisted Towers (Southpeak)–February 17
- Battle Rage (Destineer)–February
- Cradle of Rome (Destineer)–February
- House of the Dead: Overkill (Sega)–February
- Onechanbara Bikini Zombie Slayers (D3Publisher)–February
- Puzzle Challenges and More! (Crave)–February
- Solitaire & Mahjong (Crave)–February
- Tenchu: Shadow Assassins (Ubisoft)–February
- Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball (Southpeak)–March 17
- Monsters vs. Aliens (Activision)–March 24
- Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars Director’s Cut (Ubisoft)–March
- Burger Island (Destineer)–March
- Cate West: The Vanishing Files (Destineer)–March
- Crayola Colorful World (Crave)–March
- DanceDanceRevolution Disney Grooves (Konami)–March
- Madworld (Sega)–March
- Major Minor’s Majestic March (Majesco)–March
- Monster Pals (Crave)–March
- New Play Control! Mario Power Tennis (Nintendo)–March
- New Play Control! Pikmin (Nintendo)–March
- Play the World (Dreamcatcher)–March
- Rune Factory Frontier (Marvelous)–March
- Sonic and the Black Knight (Sega)–March
- We Ski & Snowboard (Namco Bandai)–March
- Super Pick Ups (XS Games)–Q1
- Trivial Pursuit (Electronic Arts)–Early spring
- Marble Saga Kororinpa (Hudson)–Spring
Nintendo DS
- Phineas and Ferb (Disney Interactive Studios)–Winter
- Paws & Claws Pampered Pets (THQ)–January 5
- Big Bang Mini (Southpeak)–January 6
- Retro Game Challenge (XSEED)–January 6
- Personal Trainer: Math (Nintendo)–January 12
- Moon (Mastiff)–January 13
- World Championship Games (The Game Factory)–January 19
- SimAnimals (Electronic Arts)–January 27
- Coraline (D3Publisher)–January
- Drivers’ Ed Portable (Dreamcatcher)–January
- Inkheart (Dreamcatcher)–January
- Jake Power Fireman (Ubisoft)–January
- Jake Power Policeman (Ubisoft)–January
- Learn Math (Dreamcatcher)–January
- Monster Band (Dreamcatcher)–January
- Powerbike (Majesco)–January
- USA Today Puzzle Craze (Destineer)–January
- Wonder World Amusement Park (Majesco)–January
- My World, My Way (Atlus)–February 3
- Legacy of Ys: Books I & II (Atlus)–February 10
- Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (Nintendo)–February 16
- Brave: Shaman’s Challenge (Southpeak)–February 17
- Jagged Alliance (Empire Interactive)–February 17
- My Fashion Studio Paris Collection (Ubisoft)–February 17
- Roogoo Attack (Southpeak)–February 17
- Avalon Code (Marvelous)–February
- Imagine Cheerleader (Ubisoft)–February
- Imagine Family Doctor (Ubisoft)–February
- JoJo’s Fashion Show (Ubisoft)–February
- Music Star: Pop Star (Dreamcatcher)–February
- My DoItAll (Tomy)–February
- My Personal Diary (Dreamcatcher)–February
- Petz Horseshoe Ranch (Ubisoft)–February
- Zoo Quest (Dreamcatcher)–February
- American Popstar – Road to Celebrity (Gameloft)–March 9
- Animal Planet (Activision)–March 10
- Chicken Hunter Star Karts (MumboJumbo)–March 10
- Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars (Rockstar Games)–March 17
- Trackmania DS (Atlus)–March 17
- Pokemon Platinum (Nintendo)–March 22
- American Popstar – Road to Celebrity (Ubisoft)–March 24
- Monsters vs. Aliens (Activision)–March 24
- Pimp My Ride 2 (Activision)–March 24
- Broken Sword: Shadows of the Templars Director’s Cut (Ubisoft)–March
- DinoPets (Destineer)–March
- Dreamer: Top Model (Dreamcatcher)–March
- Flower, Sun, and Rain (Marvelous)–March
- Hot n’ Cold (Majesco)–March
- Imagine Ice Champions (Ubisoft)–March
- Jake Power Handyman (Ubisoft)–March
- Learn Chess (Dreamcatcher)–March
- Matchstick (Dreamcatcher)–March
- Monster Pals (Crave)–March
- Paint by DS (Dreamcatcher)–March
- Sarah: Keeper of the Unicorn (Dreamcatcher)–March
- Zubo (Electronic Arts)–March
- Elebits: The Adventures of Kai and Zero (Konami)–Q1
- Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure (Electronic Arts)–Q1
- Litlle Magician’s Magic Adventure (Konami)–Q1
- Our House (Majesco)–Q1
- Puzzle Quest: Galactrix (D3Publisher)–Q1
- Suikoden Tierkreis (Konami)–Q1
- Dragon Master (Dreamcatcher)–April
- Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time (Square Enix)–Spring