Over the past two days, Nintendo has released their earnings reports: Corporate Management Policy Briefing / Second Quarter Financial Results Briefing for the 75th Fiscal Term Ending March 2015 - Outline & Company President's Presentation and Earnings Release: Six Months Ended September 30, 2014. In the reports, there are some interesting figures for the current generation of Pokémon games on the Nintendo 3DS.

Nintendo announced that global sales of Pokémon X and Y have reached 13.3 million. For comparison, the last games of Generation 5 Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 sold a total of only 7.81 million. Unfortunately, pre-order sales for ORAS are down in Japan compared with XY but are on par in North America and ahead in Europe.

Nintendo stated: "While ORAS, being remakes, were never expected to get the kind of sales XY did, the attitude towards our current promotional phase seemingly betrays our expectations in a very positive way. The company thought of an interesting explanation for why it is this way, called the "Ruby/Sapphire Generation Hypothesis (スマブラ・ルビサファ同世代仮説)" factor".

The reason behind the lower pre-order sales can be attributed to one of Japan's key demographics, the 18 to 25 year old's which represents about 30% of the Nintendo 3DS market whereas it only represents 5% of the market in the United States and Europe. Many in this demographic were in elementary school when the games Pokémon Ruby & Sapphire (ポケットモンスター ルビー&サファイア) were released. If this key demographic plays a significant role in the sales in Japan due to the nostalgic Ruby/Sapphire Generation Hypothesis will not be known until sales figures are recorded but regardless, ORAS is still on pace to sell millions of copies worldwide.


In its report, Nintendo stated: "We expect to expand sales in the year-end sales season with “Pokémon Omega Ruby” and “Pokémon Alpha Sapphire” to be released globally in November, and a number of key titles from third-party publishers."

Sources: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2014/141029e.pdf, http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/library/events/141030summary/index.html and http://www.inside-games.jp/article/2014/10/30/82066.html

The official Nintendo website announced further details on how to obtain a demo code for Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire in the United States. The details below are from their press release. Our ORAS demo page has been updated with the latest dates and locations to get codes.

Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire Special Demo Version

The Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire games will arrive on Nov. 21, but you can get a taste of them early with the Special Demo Version.

This free demo lets you experience exclusive scenarios in the Hoenn region. You’ll encounter Pokémon that will Mega-Evolve for the first time—and you’ll even be able to bring a new Mega-Evolved Pokémon into the full version of Pokémon Omega Ruby or Pokémon Alpha Sapphire. Items that you obtain while playing can also be transferred to the full versions once purchased.

How to get a demo code:

• Codes will be distributed at select cinema locations nationwide from Nov. 7–Nov. 13 (while supplies last).
• Check with your local retailer during the holidays to find out about special demo code giveaways (while supplies last).
• Get a code with your purchase of the new Pokémon Art Academy game (out Oct. 24) when you buy from Nintendo eShop on your Nintendo 3DS or 2DS system.
• You’ll also get a code with your purchase of one of two classic Pokémon games coming to the Virtual Console service on Nintendo eShop: the Pokémon Puzzle Challenge game (out Nov. 6) or the Pokémon Trading Card Game (out Nov. 13). You'll find your free demo code on your eShop receipt (download codes available while supplies last).
• Codes will be emailed the week of Oct. 31 to select Nintendo customers with Nintendo Network IDs who have signed up to receive promotional emails from Nintendo.
• Codes will also be distributed during the holiday mall tour from Nov. 24‒Dec. 21 at 16 different locations throughout the nation. Talk to a staff member to try out Pokémon Omega Ruby, Pokémon Alpha Sapphire or any of the featured Nintendo 3DS games to receive two codes—one for you, and one for a friend (while supplies last). Check back soon for a list of tour locations.

Source: http://www.nintendo.com/whatsnew/detail/q-_odTxvSXW6AVesSiQazTQhq2lKENNc

The Pokémon Company International and Nintendo Russia have announced that the Pokémon Trading Card game will launch in Russia on October 6th, 2014. XY Theme Decks and Booster packs deaturing 10 cards in the Russia language will be sold at participating stores.

Those that visit Comic Con Russia 2014 at the Crocus Expo in Moscow, Russia from October 2nd, 2014 until October 5th, 2014 will be able to purchase boosters and theme decks at the official Nintendo World boost located at the event.


Russian fans of the anime will be able to view the new TV series Pokémon the Series: XY which will premiere on September 20th, 2014 on 2X2. Some of the anime episodes can also be viewed on the official Pokémon TV Russian app which is available as a free download on the iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Android OS devices and the Kindle Fire.

Source: http://www.nintendo.ru/-/2014/-/-Pokemon--915203.html

The official Nintendo UK Store has revealed the pre-order gifts for Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire. Those that pre-order the Pokémon Alpha Sapphire Limited Edition SteelBook from will receive a Primal Kyogre mini figurine. Those that pre-order Pokémon Omega Ruby Limited Edition SteelBook will receive a Primal Groudon mini figurine. High resolution images of the SteelBooks and figurines are on the Imageboard thread.


GAME UK will also be giving out the figurines for those that pre-order the games through them while those that pre-order one of the games from ShopTo will receive a Torchic 2D Keyring.

Sources: http://store.nintendo.co.uk/games-3ds/pokemon-alpha-sapphire-steelbook/10991143.html and http://store.nintendo.co.uk/games-3ds/pokemon-omega-ruby-steelbook/10991144.html

Nintendo has revealed the release date for Pokémon Art Academy in North America. It will be released on October 24th, 2014.

POKÉMON ART ACADEMY LAUNCHES FOR NINTENDO 3DS ON OCT. 24

Aug. 22, 2014 - This fall, Pokémon Art Academy will welcome students of all ages and skill levels to study the fun and fine art of drawing some of their favorite Pokémon. Starting Oct. 24, aspiring artists can hone their skills through a series of easy-to-follow lessons under the tutelage of esteemed Professor Andy in this new 2D art-instruction game for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems.

Drawing their way toward graduation – from the art basics of simple shapes and coloring, to exciting advanced techniques of shading and blending – players will wield a variety of tools, including markers, colored pencils, pastels and paints to illustrate popular Pokémon from all known regions. As they advance, players can unlock special lessons featuring Mega-Evolved Pokémon.

On the road to becoming Pokémon artists, players can showcase their 2D artwork in Miiverse galleries or save their creations to SD cards and print their limited-edition artwork to share with friends and family.

Pokémon Art Academy will be available Oct. 24 in stores and in the Nintendo eShop for Nintendo 3DS. For more information about the game, visit http://artacademy.nintendo.com/pokemon.

Source: http://press.nintendo.com/articles.jsp?id=41916

Nintendo released information about the sale of their software up to July 2014 in the United States. Pokémon X and Pokémon Y have sold a combined 4 Million copies in the United States alone now.

MILLION-MILE MARKERS: MARIO KART 8 CROSSES 1 MILLION, NINTENDO 3DS SOFTWARE HITS 40 MILLION

Mario Kart 8 has now sold more than 1 million total units in the United States alone, becoming the second Wii U game to cross that milestone, along with New Super Mario Bros. U (1.69 million). Mario Kart 8 continues to drive momentum for the Wii U platform. Through the first seven months of 2014, total sales of Wii U hardware and software have increased by nearly 60 percent and more than 135 percent, respectively, over the same period in 2013.

Notable Wii U games on the way this year include: Hyrule Warriors (Sept. 26), Bayonetta 2 (October), Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (Holiday) and Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Holiday). These games will be joined by amiibo, Nintendo’s foray into the toys-to-life category, which will launch this holiday season. Super Smash Bros. for Wii U will be the first game to support amiibo. Other games that will support amiibo include Mario Kart 8, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Mario Party 10 and Yoshi’s Woolly World, with more to come.

The continued strength of the Nintendo 3DS platform can be attributed to the breadth and quality of its overall lineup of software. To date, more than 40 million Nintendo 3DS software units have been sold in the United States alone. This includes 41 titles with a Metacritic score of 80 or higher, seven of which have a score of 90 or higher; and nine games that have sold at least 1 million units in the U.S. alone:

• Mario Kart 7: 3.48 million
• Super Mario 3D Land: 3.09 million
• New Super Mario Bros. 2: 2.28 million
• Pokémon X: 2.10 million
• Pokémon Y: 2.01 million
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D: 1.39 million
• Animal Crossing: New Leaf: 1.36 million
• Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon: 1.33 million
• The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds: 1.09 million

Four of the 10 best-selling software SKUs for July are exclusive to the Nintendo 3DS platform. This includes Tomodachi Life, which finished at No. 5 and sold more than 85,000 units in its second month, and Pokémon Y (No. 8), Pokémon X (No. 9) and Mario Kart 7 (No. 10). Those last three games appeared on the list despite being on the market for 10 months, 10 months and 31 months, respectively. The lineup for Nintendo 3DS will be bolstered by three of the most anticipated games of 2014: Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS (Oct. 3) and Pokémon Omega Ruby and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire (Nov. 21).​

Source: http://press.nintendo.com/articles.jsp?id=41899

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata has announced that new "Emerging Markets" consoles will be released starting next year. Nintendo is currently studying legal regulations to launch a console in China after they removed the ban on video game consoles.

“We want to make new things, with new thinking rather than a cheaper version of what we currently have. The product and price balance must be made from scratch.” Iwata said in an interview in Tokyo on May 8th, 2014.

Nintendo also revealed that Pokémon X and Y (ポケットモンスター Ｘ・Ｙ) have sold 12.26 million copies worldwide to date. 4.37 million copies in Japan and 7.89 million outside of Japan.

A NFC 3DS adapter will also be released which will communicate via IR. Mario is the only confirmed new NFC figure to be released.



Sources: http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/library/events/140508/04.html, http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2014/140508e.pdf and http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-05-08/nintendo-plans-to-sell-new-consoles-for-emerging-markets-in-2015.html

The Super Smash Bros. Direct which was broadcast on April 8th, 2014 revealed that Mega Charizard and Greninja will be main playable characters in the upcoming game Super Smash Bros. The Nintendo 3DS version runs at 60fps while some of the Pokémon and Assist Trophies will only run at 30fps.

It was also revealed the non-playable Pokémon will be able to come out of the Master Ball item. The following Pokémon may randomly come out of the Master Ball: Arceus, Meowth, Electrode, Eevee, Staryu, Metagross, Fennekin, Meloetta, Gogoat, Entei, Deoxys, Palkia, Kyurem, Victini, Keldeo, Xerneas, Goldeen, Snorlax, Mew, Bellossom, Entei, Darkrai, Chespin, Spewpa, Dedenne.

Pictures from the Nintendo Direct video and the press kit are available on the Imageboard.

Super Smash Bros. Direct Video

Source: http://www.nintendo.com/nintendo-direct

Nintendo has confirmed that a Pokémon Battle TROZEi Download Card (『ポケモンバトルトローゼ』のダウンロードカード) will be available to purchase at participating retail stores across Japan on March 12th, 2014 for 762yen (excluding tax). All Pokémon Centers will also sell the download card.

Store Locations

• 7/11 (セブン-イレブン)
• Circle K Sunkus (サークルKサンクス)
• EDION (エディオン)
• Geo (ゲオ)
• Joshin Denki (上新電機)
• 3Bee
• Sofmap (ソフマップ)
• TSUTAYA
• Don Quijote (ドン・キホーテ)
• Bic Camera (ビックカメラ)
• Book Square (ブック・スクウェア)
• Furuhon Ichiba (古本市場)
• Home Expo (ホームエキスポ)
• Yamada Denki (ヤマダ電機)
• Yodobashi Camera (ヨドバシカメラ)

Source: http://www.pokemon.co.jp/info/2014/03/140307_g01.html

Nintendo has revealed that they will be closing the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection for Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii. All games that have Internet functionality will no longer be able to access those options. Games will still be playable locally, just without the Internet options.

Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service for Nintendo DS and Wii to end in May

As of May 20, 2014, certain online functionality offered through Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection will no longer be accessible. The discontinued services include online play, matchmaking and leaderboards for many Wii, Nintendo DS and Nintendo DSi games. For a comprehensive list of games and services that are affected, please check http://support.nintendo.com/servicesupdate. Users can still play the games in offline mode, which continues to offer a rich game-play experience.

Online play for Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games will be unaffected (aside from the Wii mode on Wii U and Nintendo DS games on Nintendo 3DS family systems). Other online functionality, such as access to the Wii Shop Channel, the Nintendo DSi Shop and video-on-demand services, are also not affected at this time.

We at Nintendo sincerely thank our fans for their continued support of our company’s legacy systems. Your enthusiasm for games made for these systems speaks to their longevity, and the passion of Nintendo fans.

List of affected Nintendo software titles:

Note: Game functionality that does not require an Internet connection will remain unchanged.

• Pokémon Black Version
• Pokémon Black Version 2
• Pokémon Diamond Version
• Pokémon HeartGold Version
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky
• Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time
• Pokémon Pearl Version
• Pokémon Platinum Version
• Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs
• Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia
• Pokémon SoulSilver Version
• Pokémon White Version
• Pokémon White Version 2
• Pokémon Battle Revolution
• Pokémon Conquest
• My Pokémon Ranch

Source: http://www.nintendo.com/whatsnew/detail/vyWpoM6CBIe6FjW8NIY7bvzOrgBURhzw