Oh, look, yet another reason to buy one of those PINKxWHITE 3DS LLs at some point

With the reason in question being that Nintendo of Japan just added Club Nintendo Picross to its heaping pile of awesome Club Nintendo rewards.

Club Nintendo Picross, which apparently features Nintendo-focused puzzles of up to 80-by-80 squares in size, isn't a boxed game like previous Club Nintendo-only releases Game & Watch Collection and Tingle's Balloon Fight; rather, it's a digital title that can be downloaded to your 3DS or 3DS LL should you have 80 Club Nintendo points that you're willing to hand over.



Granted, it's more than possible that Club Nintendo Picross will be localized and offered to North American Club Nintendo members at some point, but I'd really like to make use of some of the Japanese Club Nintendo points I surely could obtain should I finally register all of the Japanese DS games I purchased over the last few years.

Also, I'd really like to own one of those sweet-looking PINKxWHITE 3DS LLs (sorry, I can't type that without using capital letters), so just let me believe it'll remain a Japan-only title, OK?

I'm totally buying this 3DS eShop game on Sept. 27 despite its rather terrible name

The game I'm talking about in the header above, by the way, is THE "DENPA" MEN: They Came By Wave.

As for why I'll be buying it despite its cringe-worthy name: It's the North American localization of Genius Sonority's Denpa Ningen RPG, a Japanese eShop release I've mentioned here on quite a few occasions.

Anyway, even if you've never read any of my drool-filled, Denpa Ningen RPG-focused posts, you'll probably want to check out the following trailer for THE "DENPA" MEN, as I think it looks pretty cool:



As mentioned in this post's headline, THE "DENPA" MEN will hit the North American eShop on Sept. 27. Oh, and it'll set you back $6.99.

See also: 'Who wouldn't want to play an RPG with characters who look part Teletubby, part Tingle, part Pikmin, part Mr. Driller and part Mii?'

A few not-quite-random thoughts on the Wii U's launch date, price and software line-up

I'm calling these not-quite-random thoughts, of course, because they came to mind after watching the trio of online, Wii U-focused events Nintendo aimed at fans in Japan, Europe and North America earlier today.

Before I get to my opinions on the Wii U's launch date, price and software line-up, though, it'd probably be a good idea to share these particulars:

* The Wii U will be released in North America first, on Nov. 18, followed by Europe on Nov. 30 and then Japan on Dec. 8.

* Two bundles will be released in each region: A "Basic Set" (above) that will include a white Wii U system (with 8 GB internal memory), a Wii U GamePad, AC adapters for both the system and GamePad, an HDMI cable and a sensor bar, and a "Deluxe Set" (below) that switches the while Wii U system for a black one (while bumping up the internal memory to 32 GB) and adds a copy of Nintendo Land, a charging cradle for the GamePad, two stands (one for the GamePad and one for the system) and enrollment in Nintendo Network Premium, which rewards those who purchase digital titles with points (discounts) that can be applied to future purchases. (The latter bundle will be called the "Premium Pack" in Europe and the "Premium Set" in Japan, by the way. Both will differ slightly from their North American counterpart in terms of components and price.)

* In North America, the "Basic Set" will retail for $299.99, while the "Deluxe Set" will sell for $349.99.

* Although a number of games will be released alongside the Wii U system, it appears that only two will be Nintendo-made: New Super Mario Bros. U and Nintendo Land.

As for my thoughts on all of the above (and a few other tidbits that were covered during the aforementioned events):

'What an awesome crotch'

A few days ago, I happened across the following illustration thanks to Tumblr user dizzybone (proprietor of the tumblog known as the laboratory).

The drawing caught my attention for two reasons: 1) it features the flame-haired protagonist of a rather awesome Mega CD/PC Engine/Super Famicom action-adventure game called Popful Mail, and 2) when the aforementioned tumblogger re-blogged it, he/she added the comment, "What an awesome crotch."

Which, of course, made me chuckle.

As for who is responsible for creating this lovely drawing: I don't know his/her exact name, sadly, but I can direct you to his/her Tumblr, SssHannah-Man.

Acquisition #143: Magical Puzzle Popils (Game Gear)

If you visit this blog with any regularity, you've likely seen a mention or two (or five) of the Tengen-published puzzler known as Magical Puzzle Popils in Japan and Popils: The Blockbusting Challenge in Europe.

As I'm sure you can guess from the frequency of those mentions, I'm a pretty big fan of this Game Gear title, which was designed by the man responsible for both Bubble Bobble and Rainbow Islands, Fukio Mitsuji.

In fact, I'm such a big fan of this game that earlier this year I bought a loose copy of it via eBay. (You can see a photo of that acquisition and read more about it in this post.)

Given that, some of you are likely to be a bit surprised to hear that I recently picked up a complete-in-box copy of the very same game. Why did I do that, you ask? I think the cover art shown in the following photos is all the response I need to share.

In addition, I've also long wanted to own (and mindlessly flip through on a regular basis) Magical Puzzle Popils' manual. So, in a way, you could say this particular acquisition was kind of a two-for-one deal for me.

Expect to see scans of said manual in an upcoming "Manual Stimulation" post, by the way. Also, a few additional photos of both the front and back sides of this game's box will be uploaded to my Flickr photostream shortly, so keep an eye out for them, too, if you're so inclined.

See also: Previous 'Acquisition #123' posts