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All Articles: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Geoff Keighley has announced the nominees for the 2019 Game Awards
We’re getting closer and closer to the end of the year, and that’s means that it’s finally time for the Game Awards. The nominations for the annual awards show were announced earlier today, and Remedy’s Control, Kojima Productions’s Death Stranding, Obsidian’s The Outer Worlds, Capcom’s Resident Evil 2, From Software’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will all be competing for “Game of the Year.”
Host Geoff Keighley isn’t involved in the nominating process, but it still feels strange to realize that he actually appears as a non-player character in Death Stranding. Hideo Kojima’s latest game, and first as an independent developer, ultimately received nine nominations across eight categories (both Norman Reedus and Mads Mikkelsen were nominated for “Best Performance”).
Fans are once again encouraged to vote for their favorite games at the award show’s official website, and fan votes will have a real effect on the outcome, as they’ll count for a 10% share of the voting jury.
The 2019 Game Awards will be held on Thursday, December 12. In addition to all the winners, we can also expect to see a lot of World Premiere Trailers for upcoming games, some of which will be announced in the coming days.
In the meantime, you can find a complete list of all the nominees after the break. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One
Tagged Control, Death Stranding, Game Awards 2019, Resident Evil 2, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, The Outer Worlds
Nintendo adds VR Kit support to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Nintendo has announced that limited support for the VR Goggles from the Nintendo Labo: VR Kit has been added to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as part of the game’s most recent update.
Smash Bros. Ultimate’s Version 3.1.0 Update is now available to download, and it adds an optional VR Mode to the “Games and More” menu. VR Mode is compatible with offline single-player battles and players can use it to explore dozens of stages with a deeper third-person view. You can even look straight down and see exactly what’s holding up some of those platforms (answer… not much).
You can get a look at Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s new VR Mode in action in the trailer embedded above.
Posted in News, Switch
Tagged Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Kingdom Hearts III, Resident Evil 2, New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe unsurprisingly lead NPD’s list of best-selling games from January 2019
Kingdom Hearts fans were kept waiting more than a decade for the third game in the franchise, but Square Enix finally rewarded their patience with the launch of Kingdom Hearts III last month. As you might have guessed, fans purchased the game in droves, pushing it all the way to the top of The NPD Group’s list of best-selling games from January 2019.
Two highly-anticipated re-releases, Resident Evil 2 (#2) and New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe (#3) were close behind, and Bandai Namco’s Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (#7) and Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition (#12) also cracked the top 20.
However, while several games had strong starts on the sales chart, the industry overall suffered a decline last month versus January 2018. All together, GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that total sales (hardware, software, and accessories) were down 19% to $893 million.
You can find a full list of best-selling games from January 2019 after the break. (more…)
Posted in News, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Tagged Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, Battlefield V, Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, FIFA 19, Grand Theft Auto V, Kingdom Hearts III, Madden NFL 19, Mario Kart 8, Minecraft, NBA 2K19, NPD, Red Dead Redemption 2, Resident Evil 2, Spider-Man, Super Mario Odyssey, Super Mario Party, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Tales of Vesperia, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Celeste, God of War, Spider-Man, Red Dead 2, Smash Ultimate will compete for “Video Game of the Year” at 2019 SXSW Gaming Awards
The SXSW Gaming Advisory Board has sifted through all of 2018’s biggest games and announced the nominees for this year’s SXSW Gaming Awards.
As you might have expected, Sony Santa Monica’s God of War, Insomniac’s Spider-Man, and Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption 2 claimed the most nominations. Each of the three games will compete in a total of nine categories, and all three are in the running for “Video Game of the Year.” Matt Thorson’s brutal platformer, Celeste, and Nintendo’s crossover fighter, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, were also nominated for the big prize.
The public will get the chance to vote for the winners in all categories at this year’s SXSW Gaming Awards, and the final winner in each category will be determined by a weighted total between public and advisory board votes. Voting is open now at SXSW Gaming’s official website, and will close on Sunday, February 17 at midnight (Eastern Time).
The SXSW Gaming Awards will be given out on March 16 and you can find the full list of nominees in all categories after the break. (more…)
Posted in Mobile, News, PC, PS4, Switch, Tabletop Games, Xbox One
Tagged Celeste, Detroit: Become Human, Fortnite, God of War 4, No Man's Sky, Octopath Traveler, Red Dead Redemption 2, Spider-Man, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Tetris Effect
13 Nintendo-published games for the Switch have sold more than 1 million copies
Nintendo-branded products have always taken up a hefty portion of Santa’s sack, and 2018 was no different as Switch sales were huge during the holiday season.
Nintendo sold 15.05 million Switch consoles during the last quarter of 2018, bringing the platform’s total install base to 32.27 million. Consumers also spent the last three months stocking up on software, purchasing 63.51 million games from October through December.
Two games stood out last quarter on the sales charts, as Super Smash Bros. Ultimate sold 12.08 million copies and the combined might of Pokemon: Let’s Go Eevee! and Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu! sold 10 million copies. All told, 13 Nintendo-published Switch games have joined the vaunted “Million-Seller” club during this fiscal year (April 2018 – December 2018):
| Title | Apr 18 – Dec 18 Sales | Total Sales |
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | 12.08 Million | 12.08 Million |
| Pokemon: Let’s Go Eevee! Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu! |
10 Million | 10 Million |
| Mario Kart 8 Deluxe | 5.8 Million | 15.02 Million |
| Super Mario Party | 5.3 Million | 5.3 Million |
| Super Mario Odyssey | 3.35 Million | 13.76 Million |
| The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild | 3.21 Million | 11.68 Million |
| Mario Tennis Aces | 2.53 Million | 2.53 Million |
| Splatoon 2 | 2.25 Million | 8.27 Million |
| Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze | 2.08 Million | 2.08 Million |
| Kirby Star Allies | 1.16 Million | 2.42 Million |
| Octopath Traveler (US + Europe Only) |
1.08 Million | 1.08 Million |
| Nintendo Labo: Variety Kit | 1.06 Million | 1.06 Million |
| Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker | 1.05 Million | 1.05 Million |
Even Nintendo’s dedicated handheld was still kicking along in 2018 (albeit slower than before). 3DS owners scooped up 1.07 million copies of Mario Kart 7 during the April through December period, bringing its total to 18.11 million copies sold.
Nintendo’s current fiscal year will end on March 31, and the consolemaker will announce their full-year sales figures sometime in April or May.
Posted in 3DS, News, Switch
Tagged Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Kirby Star Allies, Mario Kart 7, Mario Kart 8, Mario Tennis Aces, Nintendo Labo: Variety Kit, Octopath Traveler, Pokemon: Let's Go Pikachu/Let's Go Eevee, Splatoon 2, Super Mario Odyssey, Super Mario Party, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Red Dead Redemption 2 cowboys up as the best-selling game of 2018
A wise man once said, “When you have to shoot, shoot. Don’t talk.” And that’s exactly what Rockstar Games did with Red Dead Redemption 2.
The publisher’s western epic has been nine years in the making, and it blew away all expectations (and chased every other big release away from its October 26 launch date) as the best-selling game in November. Now, The NPD Group has revealed that it’s also the best-selling game for all of 2018.
Activision’s mighty Call of Duty franchise claimed the #2 spot with Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and many of the other usual suspects can be found throughout the top ten including NBA 2K19 (#3), Madden NFL 19 (#4), Far Cry 5 (#7), and Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey (#10).
It was also a good year all around for single-player games as Spider-Man (#6) and God of War both cracked the top ten. Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was also able to break into the top five (at #5) after only being on sale for a few weeks. Finally, the surprising success of Capcom’s Monster Hunter: World helped the latest entry in the franchise come in at #9.
Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, the NPD Group said that the entire game industry generated $16.7 billion in sales in 2018, a 13% increase over 2017. That includes a 33% increase for accessories, as a 7% increase for software, and 8% for hardware. On that note, the Nintendo Switch was the best-selling console of 2018.
The NPD’s Top 10 best-selling games for 2018 (in handy list format) can be found after the break. (more…)
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate beats up the competition as the best-selling game from December 2018
Even though it’s one of Nintendo’s marquee properties, the Smash Bros. series has always drifted a bit below the radar of the average gamer. That is definitely no longer the case, as The NPD Group revealed the best-selling games from December 2018 and Super Smash Bros. Ultimate absolutely blew away the competition.
In fact, the tracking firm told GamesIndustry.biz that Smash Bros. Ultimate had a record-setting debut, and set a new “Launch Month” sales record for a platform exclusive. More impressive, it set this record even though Nintendo doesn’t share digital sales data with The NPD Group.
With the gift-giving season in full swing, some of 2018’s biggest games populated the rest of the list. Red Dead Redemption II slid down to #2, and it was followed by Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (#3), Battlefield V (#4), and NBA 2K19 (#5).
Nintendo dominated the back half of the top ten, with three more titles on the list… Mario Kart 8 (#6), Super Mario Party (#8), and Pokemon: Let’s Go Pikachu (#9). Madden NFL 19 (#7) and Insomniac’s Spider-Man (#10) rounded out the top ten.
A complete look at The NPD Group’s list of the best-selling games from last month (in handy list format) can be found after the break. (more…)
Persona 5’s Joker will join Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in 2019
Nintendo has always been happy to add third-party characters to the Smash series, but the first character announced for the game’s upcoming Fighters Pass goes far beyond the likes of Sonic, Pac-Man, and Bayonetta. Revealed last night during the Game Awards, Persona 5‘s Joker will be coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate sometime in 2019.
Nintendo, and Director Masahiro Sakurai, proudly declared that “Everyone is Here!” during 25-minute mega-trailer that introduced Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s roster to the world. But Joker’s inclusion in the Fighters Pass (and the earlier announcement of Piranha Plant), definitely proves that the theme for Ultimate’s DLC is probably “Anyone Could be Added!”
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s Fighters Pass is now available to purchase for $24.99. All DLC characters will also be sold individually for $5.99 apiece.
Posted in News, Switch
Tagged Game Awards 2018, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate