The Blog

Earlier this week, Nintendo hit Valve with a DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act) complaint over a Steam listing for the Dolphin emulator, which lets people play Wii and GameCube titles. Valve reached out to the team behind the emulator to let them know of the issue, which is why Valve yanked the listing from their digital storefront…or so we thought.

Some new information has come to light on the situation, and we now know that it was Valve who reached out to Nintendo first about the Dolphin situation, which is why Nintendo stepped in to have the listing pulled before it even released. Valve confirmed that they acted first by reaching out to Nintendo in a statement provided to The Verge.

The entire email exchange between Valve and Nintendo has made its way online, and it shows some more details on the DMCA as well. Reading through the finer points reveals that legally, Valve wouldn’t be able to say the issue was with the team behind Dolphin and not Valve. Sometimes you see situations where a platform-holder can’t get in trouble for content uploaded to their service, but in this particular instance, the legalese wouldn’t shield from trouble. Long story short, Nintendo could have filed a lawsuit against Valve if they saw fit to.

Now, would Nintendo have actually pursued that legal action against Valve? We’ll never know, but that’s likely why Valve reached out to Nintendo first, instead of letting this situation boil over into trouble for them.

To make things extra clear, Valve also released a full statement on the situation, which you can read below.

Japan, the land of unique advertising, has just seen the launch of another interesting campaign. This one sees Capcom working with Clear, a hair care brand, to spread the word on their product lineup through a Street Fighter collab.

The Street Fighter X Clear collab is live in Japan right now and runs until June 14th, 2023. Billboards have been plastered around Japan showcasing not only Clear’s products, but street fighter characters like Guile, Blanka, and Dhalsim. The campaigns all include lines about how even strong guys care about their hair.

Each ad has its own theme, with Dhalsim looking for a tonic to help him grow hair, Guile looking to take care of scalp issues, and Blanka wanting to boost volume. If you’d like to take a closer look at the campaign and its ads, you can find them here.

Columbus Circle has announced that they’re re-releasing Cotton 100% for the Super Famicom in Japan, and it’s set to launch sometime in Sept. 2023.

This cartridge reprint is priced at roughly $55 and comes with a box featuring brand-new artwork inspired by the original release. Also, to be clear, this re-release cartridge will indeed work in an original Super Famicom!

Cotton 100% originally released in 1994 and is a scrolling shmup from Success. The second installment in the Cotton franchise, it is a follow-up to Cotton: Fantastic Night Dreams. In the game, players assume the role of the titular young witch who, alongside her fairy companion Silk, sets out on her broomstick on a quest to defeat several monsters and get her Willow candy.

Best of all, Cotton 100% is being sold through Amazon Japan, so you can snag a copy for yourself! If you’d like to import this release, you can lock in your purchase here.

Radirgy Swag originally came to the Switch back in 2019, but if you try to find the game right now on the Switch eShop, you’ll be completely out of luck.

Turns out Radirgy Swag was removed from the North American, Australian, and European Switch eShops back in April, but the game remains available on the Japanese Switch eShop. This is likely because the Japanese version was published by developer RS34, while all other versions were handled by Dispatch Games.

If the name Dispatch Games rings a bell, it also likely makes your stomach a bit uneasy. Dispatch Games has been haunted by complaints pretty much from year one, as the company promised multiple physical Switch releases that never came to be. For years on end, the company promised that things were going to be fixed up soon and packages would be sent out. Unfortunately, that was never the case.

Should Dispatch Games share an update on the status of Radirgy Swag on the Switch, we’ll be sure to let you know.

QUByte Interactive has announced that they’re bringing Talk to Strangers to Switch on June 8th, 2023. The title will be priced at $5 and takes up 122 MB of space.

Survive door to door conversations ranging from bizarre to mundane while trying to sell products to strangers. But beware: nothing is what it seems in this neighborhood.

Work for Sunny Morning and sell products of the most varied natures! What kinds of products, you ask? Do not worry about it, your role is only to sell them

Each step of the conversation can increase or decrease your Rage, Depression and SALES!

Choose carefully which house to visit at each time of the day: The mood of each potential buyer varies with time!

Balance your spending between Motel daily costs and items that help you deal with Rage and Depression.

Game Features

• Explore a vast array of 36 DIVERSE ENDINGS in the game.
• Delight in the visually APPEALING and CONSISTENT ART style.
• Encounter a plethora of HILARIOUS lines that will keep you entertained.
• Immerse yourself in an immersive and PERFECTLY FITTING SOUNDTRACK.

The Pikachu Sweets store is already filled to the brim with delectable Pokémon-themed treats, but the menu is set to expand with a new item this July.

Starting July 1st, 2023, customers at Pikachu Sweets will be able to purchase the ‘Pokefuru’ Waffle that features Jirachi, the Wish Pokémon. For a limited time after launch, those who pick up this snack will also get to take home an exclusive Jirachi sticker.

Wondering what flavor this Jirachi Pokefuru is? According to the official website, the only option available is ‘mango yogurt.’

They say there are two things in life you can depend on; death and taxes. We’d argue that there are actually three; death, taxes and new Pokemon plush dolls.

Pokémon Co. has revealed that the next wave of their ‘Saiko Soda’ merch line is in the works, and it includes 5 more plush dolls. This time around, Pikachu, Eevee, Solosis, Litwick, and Bounsweet are getting the special treatment.

This Saiko Soda line of plush dolls is set to arrive in Japan on June 10th, 2023, and they’ll be available to grab at Pokémon Center locations. One week after that launch, the line will also be sold through Amazon Japan.

Splatoon 3 has been updated to Ver. 4.0.1. You can see the patch notes for this update below.

River City Girls 2 has been updated to Ver. 1.0.3. You can see the patch notes for this update below.

Two more videos have been released for Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE, and both showcase the game’s voice acting. First up is Pucci Lavmin, portrayed by Yui Horie in Japanese. After that is an English voice clip showcasing Fubuki Clockford, who is brought to life in English by Xanthe Huynh.

Pucci is one of the Master Detectives dispatched to Kanai Ward. Her Forte is Audial Aptitude. Despite her child-like appearance, she has machine-like composure and mental processing speed. Perhaps because she avoids communication, she sometimes shows awkward reactions and intense displays of emotion during conversation.

Fubuki is another of the Master Detectives dispatched to Kanai Ward. Her Forte is Time Leap. Because of her upbringing as a lady of the world-famous Clockford Family, she is a bit naive. She has a uniquely peculiar way of thinking, which can frustrate and confuse the people she talks to.

Finally, an absolutely insane amount of screens have also been shared for Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE. We’re talking about over 200 screens to sift through, which showcase gameplay, cut-scenes, character cut-aways and much more. You can find the entire gallery of screens here.

Retro platforms have been seeing an incredible amount of love recently, with a ton of output seen for the NES in particular. Now we have one more example of that, as yet another brand-new game is in the works for Nintendo’s legendary console.

ANNA, a tough-as-nails 2D platformer is currently being developed by EASTPIXEL for the NES. In this title you play as the titular ANNA, a main character who just so happens to be trapped inside an NES game!

ANNA takes you through dangerous dungeons, the jungle and up to snowy mountains. Your task is to find lost scrolls, assemble them, and free yourself from a curse to get your normal life back.

If you’d like to learn more about ANNA or give a free demo a shot, you can check out the game’s official website here.

You might remember a tidbit we shared about Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE awhile back concerning how long the game has been in development. According to the dev team, Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE has taken 6 years of work to bring to life. Now we know half of that time went to just one feature in the game.

You’ll spend a lot of time in Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE in the Mystery Labyrinth, which changes its design based on the case being investigated. If the culprit misleads and sets traps to prevent a case being solved, these elements will also be reflected in the Labyrinth, making it even more complex.

In a recent Famitsu interview with Master Detective Archives: RAIN CODE writer Kazutaka Kodaka, we learn that the Mystery Labyrinth was an incredible challenge for the team to put together, taking them the better part of 3 years to figure things out.

LEGO and SEGA recently revealed a slew of Sonic-related LEGO products on the way, but it turns out they were keeping one special set a secret until today. Pretty fitting news to share on SEGA’s 63rd anniversary!

LEGO has pulled back the curtain on their Sonic vs. Dr. Eggman’s Death Egg Robot playset, and it’s set to launch on August 1st, 2023. Unfortunately, we don’t have the official pricing info just yet, but those details should come soon.

The villainous Dr. Eggman and his minion, Cubot, are capturing animals to power up their inventions. Can you launch Sonic in the speed sphere so he can rescue his animal friends? You’ll need to avoid the spikes to ensure a clean hit on Dr. Eggman and power down his mech. With Dr. Eggman out of action, Sonic and his friends can explore the research station to gather intel for their next mission.

If you’d like to get a closer look at this LEGO playset, you can find the official listing here.

Nippon Ichi Software has released a new trailer for Xicatrice introducing that shows off the game’s basic systems like lessons, combat, and skill builds. The trailer is narrated by Tomohito Takatsuka, the voice actor for the game’s protagonist.

Xicatrice is a “superpowers x academy RPG” in which you play as a teacher who leads a special unit of students on dangerous missions in response to emergencies. The game combines the depth that comes with a huge variety of skills, with highly flexible character development, allowing each player to play with their own strategy.

The game is scheduled to release on June 29th, 2023, in Japan for the Switch. There’s no word on localization at this time.

This month, Pikmin Bloom’s Community Day will once again span two days, June 10th and 11th, 2023, and Big Flowers will be blooming into Calla Lilies! Get ready to paint the world around you in vibrant colors this Community Day! Additionally, the shop will be offering a limited time Community Day bundle pack, and a special Community Day mission ticket - don’t forget to check them out!

Big Flowers will bloom into Calla Lilies when you plant regular blue, red, yellow, or white petals around them (Each Big Flower will bloom for 3 hours only)

Players achieving the 10,000 step goal on either the 10th or the 11th will be awarded a special Calla Lily Flower Badge

Please note that if you don’t reach 10,000 steps by the 10th at 23:59, your progress will be reset on the 11th at 0:00 am local time. Your steps for the 10th may be updated by your device after the 11th at 0:00 am, but even if they end up displaying a total of more than 10,000 steps for the 10th, you won’t receive the badge in this case.)

In order to receive the badge, you must launch the app on the day when you plan to complete the 10,000 step task. Please note that if you don’t open the app at least once on this day, you may not be able to redeem your badge.

Seedlings in your planter pack will grow at 1.5x the usual speed (and more, if you’re flower planting!)

The Community Day Bundle Pack will be available in the shop from June 10th at 0:00 until June 11th at 23:59 local time.

The special Community Day mission ticket will be available to purchase from June 10th at 0:00 until June 11th at 23:59 local time. When you purchase this ticket, you will have access to a special mission. The Community Day special mission obtained through the ticket purchase must be completed before June 12th, 2023 at 23:59 local time.