Wednesday Update with Nintendo tightening up their character trademarks, new JRPG, plus more news!
● Nintendo Co., Ltd. have applied for trademarks for the names Kinopico (Toadette), Kinopio (Toad), Rosetta (Rosalina), Wario and Waluigi for the purpose of clothing, bags, kitchenware, key holders etc. The Wario and Waluigi trademarks are in addition to those recently applied for (which were for the actual caps). The names are also in addition to the recent Super Mario Bros., Luigi, Donkey Kong, Yoshi and Koopa (Bowser) trademark applications. The applications certainly look like Nintendo are tightening up their trademarks and likenesses in light of the ongoing MariCAR dispute. In an unrelated filing: Nintendo have also applied for a Nintendo 2DS trademark.
● Kemco announced another EXE-Create developed JRPG for the Nintendo 3DS eShop next week (14 June) with Asdivine Cross priced at ¥1,080.
● ACA NEOGEO Shock Troopers: 2nd Squad will be available on the Nintendo Switch eShop today along with Human Resource Machine and Plantera: Garden Life DX Edition.
● Two titles will be removed from the 3DS eShop next week (14 June) with Kuroko Style from iNPLAS and Maru Pass! Homebuyers Examination Heisei 28th Edition from Media5.
● The Alliance Alive is now available to pre-load on 3DS for ¥6,782 and requires 13,052 blocks. Digital purchases until 31 December 2017 can download this exclusive theme. A demo is for the game is also available.
● Nintendo Co., Ltd. and CyberZ have signed a license agreement for the monetisation of videos using Nintendo’s copyrighted work using the OPENREC Creator’s Program which begins in early July on OPENREC.tv (which is available online, on the App Store and on Google Play).
● Nintendo Switch sold 23,524 in Japan last week, Nintendo 3DS sold 16,495, Seiken Densetsu Collection opened with 29,564 and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe 20,984. These are Media Create numbers. Expect Famitsu numbers on the frontpage shortly!
● Today’s 3DS Theme Shop update saw a Disney Tsum Tsum Princess Ver. theme from Nintendo priced at ¥250, and THE FROG and Shirokuma Days themes both from FuRyu priced at ¥200 apiece.
● In mobile news Pokémon Duel has been downloaded over 20 million times since it released in April 2016, Fire Emblem Heroes updated to Version 1.4.0 adding extra gameplay features, a new event type, increasing the number of teams to eight and more. Miitomo also added the second ‘Ring the bells! Happy Wedding 2′ Miitomo Drop stage.
● Finally, Brandon J. Laird of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters baseball team was awarded the monthly Nippon Life MVP prize money of ¥300,000 ($2,750) and when asked what he would do with the money, he replied “I want a Nintendo Switch”!
Please support Japanese Nintendo
