I think yesterday's Nintendo Direct sold me on Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. (3DS) and Splatoon (Wii U)

I'm especially enamored with Splatoon, which reminds me of something Sega's geniuses might've concocted back in the day, after encountering the footage below during yesterday's Nintendo Direct.

Honestly, what was shown of this upcoming Wii U title at this year's E3 event didn't impress me much. The following video, though, did just the opposite and even caused a huge grin to spread across my face.



As a result, Splatoon, which is being made by the software-development group at Nintendo of Japan that previously produced Animal Crossing: New Leaf and Nintendo Land, is now on my "Wii U wish list"--despite the fact that I still don't own a Wii U.

Who knows, maybe I'll finally buy one when the luscious-looking Kirby and the Rainbow Curse drops in February? (Which would give me a few months to break in the system before Splatoon hits the streets.)

Yesterday's Nintendo Direct also sold me on Project S.T.E.A.M. for 3DS, which will be hitting both physical and virtual store shelves throughout North America this coming spring (alongside The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D, curiously enough).



As was the case with Splatoon, the E3 reveal of Project S.T.E.A.M. left me more than a smidge cold--which is pretty sad when you consider it's being developed by the mad scientists at Intelligent Systems, makers of the Advance Wars, Fire Emblem, Paper Mario and WarioWare franchises.

The trailer (above) shown as part of the most recent Nintendo Direct, though, went a long way toward defrosting me in regard to this tactical title. I don't know if I'd go so far as to say it's now a shoo-in purchase for me, but it's at least a "probable pick-up" at this point.

How about all of you? Did yesterday's Nintendo Direct sell you on Code Name: S.T.E.A.M. or Splatoon or any of the other 3DS or Wii U games that were showcased?

My 3DS XL will soon sport one (or more) of these adorable Animal Crossing menu themes

Word on the street is that the handful of Animal Crossing: New Leaf 3DS menu themes that have been available in Japan for some time now will be brought to the European and North American eShops this week.

That's music to my ears, as I've been clamoring for the Sable Able one (below) since I first became aware of it.



Later, I'll pick up the "Isabelle in Town Hall" (below) and "Timmy and Tommy Nook" ones, too.



To see (and hear) the rest of this batch of 3DS menu themes in action, check out this video (for the "Bulletin Board" one) and this video ("Mabel Able").

Are any of you planning to add one or more of the above themes to your 3DS systems in the coming days? If so, which ones? And if not, have you bought--or are you considering buying--any of the other menu themes that have been made available so far?

I'm not entirely sure what a 'sofubi' is, but I'll take one of each of these Animal Crossing: New Leaf sofubi figures anyway

Seriously, if anyone can provide me with a comprehensible definition of "sofubi," I'd greatly appreciate it. I attempted to find one on my own last night, but all I could come up with is that sofubi refers to the soft vinyl material that's used to construct figures like the ones seen below.

My question to all of you "figure heads" (get it?), though, is this: how do sofubi figures differ from, say, the nendoroid figures that seem to be all the rage these days?

Regardless, I think the K.K. Slider, Lisa (Reese), Shizue (Isabelle) and Tom Nook figures seen throughout this post look pretty sweet.

Each of them look to be about five inches tall, by the way--if size matters to you when it comes to such things.

Also, AmiAmi is selling each of these New Leaf-inspired concoctions--which will hit store shelves in early August--individually and in sets of two. Individually they'll run you about $13, while the sets (K.K. Slider and Isabelle or Reese and Tom Nook) will set you back just $24.

I think I'm finally free of New Leaf's grasp

And all it took was the "triple combo" of Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale, the just-released Bravely Default demo and the four new-ish 3DS StreetPass Mii Plaza games.

Of course, I was heading down this path--to not checking in on my two Animal Crossing: New Leaf towns every single day, at least for a few minutes--before I nabbed all of the above from the 3DS eShop, but I'm not sure I would've done so as quickly as I have without their "help."

Illustration by leav

All that said, it's possible I'll slip back into my old, nasty ways once I've beaten both Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale and the Bravely Default demo, but I'm going to do my best to keep that from happening--mainly by booting up a few of the games I picked up in 2013 but have yet to actually play.

A couple of examples: Airu de Puzzle (PSP), Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate (3DS) and Shin Megami Tensei IV (3DS). And then there are a few older games that I've wanted to sink my teeth into for some time, like Contact (DS), Fragile Dreams: Farewell Ruins of the Moon (Wii), Opoona (Wii) and Touch Detective (DS).

There's also the Feb. 7 release of Bravely Default to consider--because once that sucker's in my hands I probably won't even think of playing anything else until I've beaten it. (Assuming I don't falter at the very end like I did with its predecessor, Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light.)

Anyway, all of this is just a really long-winded way of saying, "I'm finally free of New Leaf's grasp!"

I'm not entirely sure why I feel the need to share that here, but rather than overanalyze why that may be let's just celebrate the fact that it means I'll be playing--and, as a result, blogging about--a lot more games in the next six or so months than I did in the preceding ones.

My favorite games of 2013

I haven't played as many games in 2013 as I imagined I would before the year began, but I've still played enough to be able to write a post about the ones that have pleased me the most.

Strangely--or perhaps not, considering my current obsession with the dual-screened handheld--all of the games discussed herein were released for Nintendo's 3DS. (That's not to suggest I've only played 3DS titles this year; pretty much all of the other games I played in the last 12 months, though, were for "older gen" systems like the DS, GameBoy, PC Engine, PlayStation and PSP.)

Animal Crossing: New Leaf--If I were to hold up one of these games as my absolute favorite of 2013, it would be this one. Not only have I played it more than any other title this year, but I've spent more time with it than I've spent with any game in the last few years (if not ever). I'm still not sure which Animal Crossing game I like best, the original or New Leaf, but it doesn't really matter--they're both among the most entrancing games I've ever come across.

Attack of the Friday Monsters! A Tokyo Tale--Thank goodness for the 3DS eShop. Without it, gamers outside of Japan probably never would have gained access to this nostalgia-tinted title, which I can only describe as three parts open-ended adventure and one part card battles. Don't worry if that sounds less than thrilling--I can't imagine anyone but the most crotchety of gamers disliking this digital release.

THE "DENPA" MEN 2: Beyond the Waves--Although I haven't enjoyed Beyond the Waves as much as I enjoyed its more simplistic and straightforward predecessor, I've still had a good time with it. Sure, I find some of the newly introduced elements to be overwhelming, but I like a number of them, too--such as the new body colors and the additional clothing and equipment that can be used to alter the looks and even abilities of your adorable "Denpa" crew.

Nintendo's four "new" StreetPass Mii Plaza games--I held off on buying Flower Town, Mii Force, Monster Manor and Warrior's Way for quite a while (I only did so about two weeks ago) because I was unsure as to whether they'd be worth $15. Now that I've spent some quality time with each of them, I can safely say they're well worth the asking price--assuming you regularly StreetPass other 3DS owners--with Mii Force (the shmup shown above) and Monster Manor being my current faves.

Pokémon X--Back when it was first revealed, I wasn't all that sure what to think of the latest pair of Pokémon games. As soon as I started playing one of them, though, I was sold on its brilliance. That I've yet to get even close to finishing it says more about how hectic my life has become in the last few months than it does about the quality of this portable RPG, so rest assured I'm going to do my best to beat it in 2014.

Witch and Hero--It may surprise some of you to hear this, but I think this eShop title may be my second favorite game of 2013. There's just something about its mix of simplicity and depth (in terms of its gameplay--as in, there's more to Witch and Hero than simply bumping into baddies as quickly as possible), I guess. It's not for everyone, as the saying goes, but for me it's been the perfect title to turn to whenever I've got five or 10 minutes to blow.

A few games that I likely would've included here if I'd played more than an hour or so of them so far: Darumeshi Sports Store, Fire Emblem: Awakening and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds

Hmmm, I may eventually need to start a third Animal Crossing: New Leaf town just so I can make use of this F-Zero-themed path design

Seriously. I mean, I need another copy of Animal Crossing: New Leaf like I need another trip to the ER, but I'm strongly considering the former after coming across the following F-Zero-themed path (and "environment") design while perusing NeoGAF yesterday.

It was created by someone who calls himself (or is it herself?) RawNuts, by the way, and it's based on the original F-Zero's "Big Blue" track (see below).

The only negative related to RawNuts' creation: he (or she) wasn't able to make an "inside corner" pattern thanks to Nintendo's idiotic decision to allow characters to hold just 10 designs at a time.

Oh, well. Nothing's stopping one or more of us from picking up where RawNuts left off and creating those missing "inside corner" pieces ourselves, right? Anyway, go here if you want to scan the QR codes for these awesome designs and add them to your New Leaf 'hood.

Anyone up for a few more QR codes of Animal Crossing: New Leaf Christmas clothing designs?

As if one post packed full of holiday clothing designs for Animal Crossing: New Leaf wasn't enough, right?

Actually, I like the ones featured here a bit more than the ones highlighted in my last post--"Is it too early for me to post QR codes of Animal Crossing: New Leaf Christmas sweater designs?"--on the same subject. They're more fun and creative--or at least I think they are.

The first of the bunch (below) was inspired by Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, obviously.



Now that I think about it, three of the four designs shared here incorporate reindeer--including the next one, which was inspired by those ugly Christmas sweaters that are all the rage these days.



I stole the reindeer "sprites" from this old Animal Crossing: Wild World pattern, by the way.



And then there's the shirt above, which is supposed to depict that iconic moment when Santa and his sleigh (and reindeer) are seen soaring above the rooftops (the gray triangles at the bottom of this particular design) courtesy of the shining moon.

By the way, I seriously considered creating a shirt design that depicted "Santa coming" in a more straightforward and direct manner, but in the end I decided against it. (Drat, right?)

Finally, we have the "Holly Dress," above. It would make a pretty terrific pair when combined with the "Xmas Tree Dress" I shared here, don't you think?

All of the above-mentioned designs were developed in Arbor, my "alt" New Leaf town, by the way. (Ardenne is its mayor.) Should you ever want to pay it a visit, feel free to do so using this Dream Code: 5300-3135-3333.

See also: 'Is it too early for me to post QR codes of Animal Crossing: New Leaf Christmas sweater designs?'

I'd love to receive one of these Animal Crossing 3DS XL cases for Christmas (hint, hint)

Don't worry readers, the "hint, hint" in the header above isn't meant for any of you.  It's meant for my husband. Or my parents. Or my sister-in-law.

Basically, anyone who typically buys me a gift or two for Christmas.

Unfortunately for me, none of the above-mentioned folks read this blog with any regularity (if at all), so I'm keeping my expectations low.

Still, I think the snazzy Animal Crossing 3DS XL case shown above is well worth sharing here--especially if it (or one like it) ends up in your possession after this season's holidays.

This particular case was made by etsy seller PaisleyMouseHandmade, by the way, and it can be bought here for just $20.

Green not really your color? No worries, PaisleyMouseHandmade is willing to customize orders--to a point, I'm guessing. Although who knows? Maybe she'd actually make me a rainbow-patterned one if I asked really nicely.

Actually, I think I'd prefer something a little more subdued--like the brown-and-blue 3DS XL case above with an Animal Crossing logo attached to it--but that's just me.

Is it too early for me to post QR codes of Animal Crossing: New Leaf Christmas sweater designs?

I know the answer's a resounding yes, but I'm going to share them here anyway. After all, winter and its related holidays are just around the corner, so even if now isn't the time, it will be soon enough.

Not all of the following QR codes (you'll likely want to click and enlarge them before scanning) are of Christmas sweater designs, by the way. One is simply a long-sleeved shirt, one is a sweatshirt and one is a short-sleeved dress. I also made an autumnal coat that could be worn by those who turn their noses up at tacky holiday clothing.



The "Santa KK sweater" above is my favorite of the designs I conjured up, of course. It's also by far the most elaborate.



The candy cane sweater, on the other hand, is quite a bit more subdued, although its red-and-white piping gives it a smidge of seasonal whimsy.



You can't have winter garments without one of them being branded with a snowman, right? The one above does double duty by also featuring s pair of gaudily wrapped presents.



Here we have a rather plain sweater that's been perked up with a prettily decorated tree. (Note: this is the one I most want my villagers to wear in the coming handful of weeks.)



The wreath sweater above caused you to nod off, didn't it? Don't lie. I understand. Really, I only made this one to better cover both the color and holiday spectrum.



I made the "Xmas tree dress" above, though, for Aino, the mayor of my main New Leaf town. She hasn't worn it yet, but you can bet your butt she will right after the first snowfall hits the ground in Animachi.



Finally, we have the autumnal coat I mentioned at the start of this post. It would look rather classy paired with a brown beret, don't you think? And maybe some colorful pumps?

Have any of you designed any festive clothes for the upcoming holidays? If so, feel free to share links to photos or QR codes of them in the comments section below.

See also: previous posts featuring Animal Crossing: New Leaf QR codes

Aino's (and Bryan's) Adventures in Animachi, Weeks 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22

When we last checked in with the residents of Animachi, Aino and Bryan had just finished remodeling their homes, Robin and Winnie had just moved out of theirs and Chadder had moved into one of his own.

What has happened since then? For starters, Halloween happened.



Mayor Aino's favorite part of this spook-tacular holiday? Scaring the crap out of her neighbors--especially the ones who didn't vote for her during the last election.



Halloween wasn't the only cause for celebration in the last four or five weeks. Another: Snake's birthday on Nov. 3. Aino got him a treadmill as a joke, but Snake actually seemed to like it so she did her best to stifle her giggles after he opened it.



Aino and her fellow Animachians also celebrated the grand opening of Katrina's fortune teller shop earlier this month.



Sure, it could be a bit more visually appealing, but it still looks better than the defiled trash can that used to fill this empty alley.

Speaking of grand openings, Animachi recently welcomed the T&T Emporium to its main street, too.



The highlight of this gigantic, multi-floored store for Bryan: Gracie Grace's shop--despite the fact that its proprietress is a bit on the (strange and) snobbish side.



Although the fair citizens of Animachi said a good number of "hellos" in the last month or so, they also said a few "goodbyes." Case in point: Poppy decided to move to greener pastures shortly after Halloween. (Hopefully it wasn't because of that prank Bryan pulled on her?)

I'll show you mine if you show me yours

I sadly can't remember exactly who it was, but someone on Twitter last week prompted me to take a look at the amount of time I've spent with my most-played 3DS titles.

I was a bit surprised by what I found. So surprised, in fact, that I decided to snap and share a photo (or two) of it. Here are the first three results:

And here are the next three:

In case you can't make out the game titles and play times showcased in the admittedly crappy photos above, here they are: Animal Crossing: New Leaf (488.26 hours--uh, yikes!), THE "DENPA" MEN (42:51), Theatrhythm Final Fantasy (33:38), Mario Kart 7 (32:32), Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime (22:22) and THE "DENPA" MEN 2 (17:30).

What are all of your most-played 3DS titles at the moment, if you're willing to share?

Aino's (and Bryan's) Adventures in Animachi, Weeks 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17

You'd think more would've happened in the five weeks since I last published one of these posts, wouldn't you?

Actually, more did happen, but I decided to edit things down a bit for a few reasons--one of which has to do with my hard drive dying on me with little warning a week and a half ago.

Thankfully, all of that's behind me and my laptop now, so I can get back to the business of recounting the soap opera-esque lives of Aino and Bryan and their fellow Animachians.

Before we get to the drama, though, how about we traipse through a few of the previously unseen rooms in Aino's sprawling home?

For instance, here's the speakeasy-ish cafe-slash-coffee house that's located in Aino's basement.



Only those who know the secret handshake--and slip Aino a fiver at the door--are allowed entrance.

And here's a look at Aino's new--and rather garish--guest bedroom:



A pretty daring use of the Lovely and Polka-Dot furniture series, don't you think? Or did the design work here bring to mind another d-word--like "dreadful"?

Finally, here's an updated look at Aino's study:



Actually, this room has received a bit of an overhaul in the last week or so--a bit of which can be seen in the following photo (which focuses on the golden house model the mayor received for reaching 150,000 Happy Home Academy points).



Another new piece of decor that can be found in Aino's home:



Yep, that's Barold's picture. Which means all Aino needs is Snake's photo to complete her collection. (OK, so she needs to nab Rodney's and Rizzo's pics, too--but Barold's and Snake's are her Holy Grails.)

Who doesn't like muscle bears with shiny butts?

Wait, you didn't come here thinking this would be a Video Games Made Me Gay-esque post showcasing the hot, muscular bods of actual human males, did you? Or maybe you expected to encounter a post that's centered on the lascivious lads that populate Dudedle Studio's Sugar Shooter series?

If you did, please accept my apologies.

There is a muscular bear with a shiny butt at the heart of this particular post, though--although he's an actual bear (well, a cartoon one) rather than the figurative sort that make up a good portion of the gay community.

So, how many of you are now thinking to yourselves, I'll never look at Stitches (from the Animal Crossing series) the same way again? I'm guessing a good number of you.

The strip above was produced by the super-talented "Nightmare Bruce" who runs the Ribbon Black blog, by the way. Check out more of his adorable, New Leaf-inspired "This Week in Town" comics here.

Cherry on top

Dublin-based Twitterer (and YouTuber) MechaGamezilla made my night (no, not in that way) last week when he drew Animal Crossing: New Leaf villager portraits for five of his followers.

My favorite of the bunch was his rendition of the punk-ish pup, Cherry:

His Ankha and Snake portraits (below and, er, below-er) are pretty awesome, too.

As for how they were created: MechaGamezilla shared with me that he began with pencil drawings on paper, then scanned them and colored them using Photoshop's pen tool.

To see his takes on Gaston and Muffy, check out the "photos and videos" section of MechGamezilla's Twitter page.

Aino's (and Bryan's) Adventures in Animachi, Weeks 11 and 12

Let's get something monumental out of the way right of the bat in this installment of "Aino's (and Bryan's) Adventures in Animachi": Animachi finally has a proper town flag.

Here's a shot of Mayor Aino as she stands proudly beneath it:



Here's another look at it, in case you can't make out all of the details in the shot above.



The "A" is Animachi, of course--although a few of the town's snarkier citizens have suggested (in hushed tones, naturally) Aino may think it's supposed to represent and honor her on-going mayorship.

The figures that can be seen standing around the "A," by the way, are (from left to right) Ankha, Snake and Barold.



Hamlet, above, didn't make the cut, sadly. Is that what prompted him to pack up and leave town last week? No one knows, but at least a few Animachians suspect it may have been a factor.

Although both Aino and Bryan were sad to see the little jock go, the former was happy that the removal of his home meant an illuminated tower could be erected in its place.



The tower in question looks snazzy enough by day (above), but it looks nothing less than stunning at night (below).



Another reason Aino, especially, wasn't entirely gutted by Hamlet's departure: he sent her a framed photo of himself as a parting gift.



Speaking of villager photos: Aino also got Winnie's "pic" last week after completing an entirely mundane task for the long-faced lass.

Aino's (and Bryan's) Adventures in Animachi, Weeks Nine and Ten

Were Aino's and Bryan's ninth and tenth weeks in Animachi as adventure-filled as the ones that came before them? That depends on what you thought of those previous weeks, I guess, but I think both of the aforementioned citizens would say they were filled with at least a bit of adventure.

They certainly were filled with a smidge of intrigue, as it was revealed that Barold, Rodney and Snake all are gay.

OK, so maybe that's a stretch, but the conversations above at least suggest they could be gay.

Hamlet isn't gay--or at least I don't think he is--but he is a bit fidgety, as evidenced by his recent urge to leave the, er, hamlet of Animachi for greener pastures.

Being the meanies they are, Aino and Bryan didn't try to stop him, even though they like him quite a bit. Unfortunately, he's one of two hamsters in Animachi, and one of two jock villagers, and Aino and Bryan prefer Rodney and Snake when it comes to hamsters and jocks, respectively, so ... Hamlet had to go.

Only he didn't. Move out, I mean. The day before he was about to do so, Aino checked in on him and when she did she was informed that he would be sticking around for a while longer. (Yeah, right; she's heard that before.)

Which would've been all well and good, but around that same time Filbert wandered into town to make use of its campground. With Hamlet staying put, the adorable blue squirrel wasn't able to fill his spot as Animachi's tenth villager.

Aino got over her disappointment rather quickly thanks to the professionally shot photo Ankha gave her after she completed some gargantuan task (like catching and handing over a coelacanth).