My, what a nice 3DS lineup you have for 2012’s remaining months, Nintendo!

Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon may have been pushed back to 2013 (boo!), but Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask is coming out on October 28th, Paper Mario: Sticker Star arrives November 11th, and Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion tags along a week later on November 18th. Oh yeah, and New Super Mario Bros. 2 and the 3DS XL both land on store shelves next week. Fun times ahead!

Plenty more is on tap for Nintendo 3DS, both retail and eShop, as 2012 approaches the end of summer and the beginning of the all-important holiday shopping season. Sure, there’s a lot of licensed shovelware, but unfortunately that stuff comes with any Nintendo platform.

Here is an updated list of the games to look forward to through the rest of the year.

Nintendo 3DS

Publisher Title Available

Activision Publishing, Inc. Angry Birds Trilogy – October
Activision Publishing, Inc. Bratz: Fashion Boutique – October
Activision Publishing, Inc. Lalaloopsy: Carnival of Friends – October
Activision Publishing, Inc. Moshi Monsters Moshlings Theme Park – October
Activision Publishing, Inc. Skylanders Giants – Oct. 21
Activision Publishing, Inc. TRANSFORMERS PRIME – Oct. 30
Activision Publishing, Inc. The Trash Pack – October
Activision Publishing, Inc. Wipeout 3 – October
Activision Publishing, Inc. Wreck It Ralph – October
Aksys Games Localization, Inc. Zero Escape: Virtue’s Last Reward – Oct. 23
ATLUS (Index Digital Media, Inc.) Code of Princess – Oct. 9
D3Publisher Rise of the Guardians: The Video Game – Nov. 20
D3Publisher Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why’d You Steal Our Garbage?! – Fall
D3Publisher Ben 10: Omniverse – Fall
Disney Interactive Disney Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion – Nov. 18
Disney Interactive Disney·Pixar Finding Nemo – September
Disney Interactive Disney Princess: My Fairytale Adventure – September
Electronic Arts FIFA 13 – September
GameMill Entertainment Hotel Transylvania – Sept. 18
Majesco Entertainment Hello Kitty Picnic – October
Maximum Games 50 Classic Games – October
Maximum Games American Mensa Academy – October
Maximum Games Junior Classic Games – October
Maximum Games Jett Tailfin – November
Natsume Inc. Harvest Moon: A New Beginning – Q4
Nintendo New Super Mario Bros. 2 – Aug. 19
Nintendo Art Academy: Lessons for Everyone! – Oct. 1
Nintendo Crosswords Plus – Oct. 1
Nintendo Style Savvy: Trendsetters – Oct. 22
Nintendo Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask – Oct. 28
Nintendo Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive! – Nov. 5
Nintendo Paper Mario: Sticker Star – Nov. 11
SEGA Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed – Nov. 20
Storm City Entertainment Chevrolet Camaro Wild Ride – August
Storm City Entertainment Old Skool Classics – September
Storm City Entertainment Word Wizard 3D – September
Telegames, Inc. Classic Games Overload: Card and Puzzle Edition – November
Ubisoft Rayman Origins – Q3
Ubisoft Imagine Babyz – Oct. 23
Ubisoft Imagine Fashion Life – Oct. 23
Ubisoft Petz Countryside – Nov. 6
Ubisoft Rabbids Rumble – Holiday
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment LEGO The Lord of the Rings – Fall
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Spy Hunter – Fall
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment Scribblenauts Unlimited – Holiday
XSEED Games Unchained Blades – Summer

Nintendo eShop

Publisher Title Available

Arc System Works Vector Racing – Aug. 23
Endgame Studio Fractured Soul – Q3
Gamelion Speed X – Q4
Konami Gradius – Q4
Konami Mystical Ninja starring Goemon – Q3
Nicalis Cave Story – Q3
Nicalis Nightsky – Q4
Nintendo Pokémon Dream Radar – Oct. 7
Nintendo Sparkle Snapshots 3D – Oct. 18
Nintendo Pokédex 3D Pro – Nov. 8
Nintendo Fluidity: Spin Cycle – Q4
Nintendo Wario Land II – Q4
Nintendo Zelda II: The Adventure of Link – Q4
nnooo Spirit Hunters Inc. – Q4
Teyon Crazy Chicken: Pirates 3D – Aug. 16
UFO Interactive Johnny Impossible – Q3
XSEED Games Unchained Blades – Q3

Over the next month leading up to the August 19th Nintendo 3DS launch of New Super Mario Bros. 2, Nintendo will be offering weekly discounts on eShop Mario games as part of the Month of Mario.

The commemorative promotion actually begins this week, opening with a July 26 – August 1 sale of Super Mario Bros. for $3.99. Super Mario Land, Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins and Mario’s Picross will each be discounted to $2.99 during the respective weeks of August 2 – August 8, August 9 – August 15, and August 16 – August 22.

Before getting too excited, let me temper expectations a bit by letting you know that these discounts only amount to a dollar off each title. A Steam Summer Sale, this is not. To expect it to be would be unfair.

But still, if you have eShop credit to burn and are itching for some retro Mario action before the new game comes around the Mushroom Kingdom block, you might as well grab these while they’re cheaper than usual.

Nintendo land marks the third stop on our recap tour of the many games of E3 2012, and coincidentally enough, a game called Nintendo Land is among the top sights to see. Nintendo Land is but one of many shiny new titles Nintendo brought to its Wii U coming-out party. Mario, Luigi, Wario and those adorable Pikmin are all on the guest list, joined by third-party icons like Rayman, Batman, Ryu Hayabusa and Ubisoft’s rascally Rabbids.

E3 was also a show of continued momentum for the Nintendo 3DS. After a sluggish start, Nintendo’s 3D gaming handheld has survived through a tough recovery process and is now charging full steam ahead with new installments in mega-franchises like New Super Mario Bros., Paper Mario, Luigi’s Mansion, Kingdom Hearts and Castlevania.

Nintendo Land (Wii U):
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New Super Mario Bros. U (Wii U):
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Pikmin 3 (Wii U):
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New Super Mario Bros. 2 (3DS):
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Paper Mario: Sticker Star (3DS):
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Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (3DS):
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ZombiU (Wii U):
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LEGO City: Undercover (Wii U):
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Trine 2: Director’s Cut (Wii U):
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Rayman Legends (Wii U):
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Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition (Wii U):
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Wii Fit U (Wii U):
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Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Mirror of Fate (3DS):
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Code of Princess (3DS):
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Game & Wario (Wii U):
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Heroes of Ruin (3DS):
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Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance (3DS):
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Marvel Pinball 3D (3DS):
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Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge (Wii U):
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Panorama View (Wii U):
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Project P-100 (Wii U):
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Rabbids Land (Wii U):
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Scribblenauts Unlimited (Wii U):
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SiNG (Wii U):
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Sports Connection (Wii U):
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TANK! TANK! TANK! (Wii U):
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Mario is back and greedier for gold coins than ever in New Super Mario Bros. 2, coming to Nintendo 3DS on August 19th, both at retail and as a digital download via the eShop.

New Super Mario Bros. 2 marks a return to classic 2D Mario platforming after the delightful Super Mario 3D Land, but now collecting coins is the main objective (in addition to rescuing a certain kidnapped princess, of course). I guess the economy’s gotten so bad even Mario has decided to invest in gold.

Multiplayer will also come supported in two forms. Players can challenge the high scores of other players in a new Coin Rush mode, and a cooperative option will let two players hop through the entire game together. Sadly, co-op will only play over a local wireless connection.

One of the top stories of the week was Halo 4 getting its confirmed November 6 global launch date so it’s only fitting that Master Chief’s grand return to Xbox 360 glory headlines the latest edition of Screenshot Saturday. New Super Mario Bros. 2 and Crysis 3 certainly deserve to share the spotlight, as does the charmingly beautiful PS3 RPG Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch. (Level-5’s latest is a treasure trove of desktop wallpaper material.)

Other top draws this week include Resistance: Burning Skies, Sorcery, Tekken Tag Tournament 2, Dragon’s Dogma, Inversion, The Dark Eye – Demonicon, Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, Mercenary Ops and the iOS version of Marvel vs. Capcom 2.

For sporty gamers, new shots are also in for Pub Games, Sega’s official London 2012 Olympic Games video game, Super Black Bass 3D and Pro Cycling Manager 2012 / Tour de France 2012. Anime lovers won’t want to miss the first screen grabs from Dragon Ball Z for Kinect and One Piece: Pirate Warriors, and casual Nintendo 3DS/DS players should enjoy the scenery of Thundercats and three newly announced titles from Rising Star Games, including Cradle of Rome 2, Cradle of Persia and To-Fu Collection.

Halo 4 (Xbox 360):
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New Super Mario Bros. 2 (Nintendo 3DS):
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Crysis 3 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360):
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Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (PS3):
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Resistance: Burning Skies (PS Vita):
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Sorcery (PS3 – PlayStation Move):
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Pub Games (PS Vita):
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The Dark Eye – Demonicon (PC):
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Tekken Tag Tournament 2 (PS3, Xbox 360):
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Inversion (PC, PS3, Xbox 360):
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Transformers: Fall of Cybertron (PS3, Xbox 360):
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One Piece: Pirate Warriors (PS3 – PSN):
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Dragon Ball Z for Kinect (Xbox 360 – Kinect):
[nggallery id=2332]

Pro Cycling Manager 2012/Tour de France 2012 (PC, PS3, Xbox 360):
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Thundercats (Nintendo DS):
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Cradle of Rome 2 (Nintendo 3DS/DS):
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Cradle of Persia (Nintendo DS):
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Super Black Bass 3D (Nintendo 3DS):
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To-Fu Collection (Nintendo DS):
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London 2012 – The Official Video Game of the Olympic Games (PC, PS3, Xbox 360):
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Marvel vs. Capcom 2 (iPhone, iPod touch):
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Mercenary Ops (PC):
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Dragon’s Dogma (PS3, Xbox 360):
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Check Out These Links:

• Nintendo Announces New Super Mario Bros. 2 for 3DS, Kirby Anniversary Collection for Wii
• NYC Becomes a Real Urban Jungle in Crysis 3
• Dragon’s Dogma Launches in May, Resident Evil 6 Demo Download Code Included
• Halo 4 Launching Worldwide November 6
• Deathmatch Goes Portable in Resistance: Burning Skies
• Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch Looks as Enchanting as Ever
• Transformers: Fall of Cybertron Launch Date Confirmed in First Gameplay Trailer

During a special video presentation in Japan last night, Nintendo put the spotlight on two key titles that are in the works for 3DS and Wii. Nintendo America followed up this morning with the official press release to announce details for us westerners.

Nintendo isn’t dishing out many specifics yet, but has confirmed that New Super Mario Bros. 2, “a traditional side-scrolling adventure game featuring Mario, Luigi and loads of other favorite characters from the popular Mario series,” is hopping onto North American store shelves for Nintendo 3DS in August, and a Kirby anthology collection is due out later this year for Wii in celebration of the character’s 20th anniversary. The collection will feature “a variety of previously released, fan-favorite Kirby games,” but Nintendo hasn’t announced which specific titles that includes or even how many games will be packed onto the disc.

“A new Mario game and a big Kirby celebration will help make 2012 an especially great year for Nintendo fans,” said Scott Moffitt, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “Whether they’re playing at home on Wii or using Nintendo 3DS to have fun on the go, players can look forward to experiencing some of our biggest franchises in exciting ways.”

I bet we’ll find out more on these titles real soon with E3 on the horizon, so stay tuned. For now, here are the first screenshots from New Super Mario Bros. 2.

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