Core Group relaunches Nintendo DS Lite in South Africa along with new Wii titles

Sunday 03 Feb 2008

Core Gaming Group, Nintendo’s representative company in South Africa, launched two popular Wii titles at a press event held this past Friday in Johannesburg. In addition, after roughly a year of the world’s best selling handheld console being absent from the South African market, Core Group relaunched the Nintendo DS Lite.

The media briefing was presented by RJ van Spaandonk, the executive director of Core Group. RJ outlined the upcoming Wii releases, detailed the Nintendo DS Lite relaunch information and discussed the success that the Nintendo Wii has enjoyed in South Africa since its launch here in October 2007.

Join the party and step into space

Chances are that you have heard of the popular Wii titles, Mario Party 8 and Super Mario Galaxy. Well, the good news is that these two great games are now available and will retail at R499 each.

To bring you up to speed, Mario Party 8 is filled with fun mini-games that the whole family can enjoy thanks to its pick-up-and-play qualities.

Super Mario Galaxy has received nothing but praise the world over since it was released, which is hardly surprising since it was voted as not only the number one Wii release of 2007 but also the number 1 Wii release of all time. In fact Mario’s latest intergalactic adventure has also been awarded the title of the second best release of all time according to Gamerankings.com, a site which tallies up reviews of games from across the internet. Described by RJ as ‘the coolest adventure game out there,’ Super Mario Galaxy is the first game to really push the limits of the Wii, utilizing the technological features of the Wii, the Wii Remote and Nunchuk to the max.

The upcoming game releases for the Wii were also outlined including Big Brain Academy and Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, both set to be released this month, while Mario Strikers Charged Football and Endless Ocean are scheduled to hit shelves in March. The two big titles for the Wii, Mario Kart and Super Paper Mario, will be released in May and June respectively.

DS Lite relaunched

Turning to the handheld side of things, the Nintendo DS Lite was relaunched in South Africa and will soon be available in stores. It will retail at R1 799 and is available in four colours: black, white, silver and pink.

The DS Lite has taken the gaming world by storm since it was launched in 2004, selling a total of roughly 65 million units wordwide (DS and DS Lite combined). Currently the world’s best selling game console, it features dual screens, one of which is an innovative touch screen, as well as the ability to play games wirelessly using Nintendo’s Wi-Fi connectivity.

Four popular DS titles will be available at the time of launch. New Super Mario Bros, Nintendogs and Mario Kart will be available for R449 each while Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training: How Old is Your Brain? will be available for R349.

SA to follow Nintendo’s European release schedule, Wii Shop Channel coming soon!

After the press briefing, we managed to catch up with RJ to bring you these golden nuggets we know you have been waiting to hear.

First and foremost, RJ confirmed that from April Nintendo of South Africa will be aligned with the European release schedule. This will include highly anticipated titles such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario Kart Wii and Wii Fit. This is a major victory for South African gamers as they will be able to get their game titles at the same time as Europe. Historically South Africa has lagged behind Europe’s release schedule with some titles never making a local appearance.

More great news in on the cards for retro gamers who can look forward to the Wii Shop Channel launching in South Africa soon. The Wii Shop Channel allows you to download Virtual Console titles via the internet to your Wii, which consists of some of the best selling Nintendo titles of the past. More news to follow once we have confirmation on a launch date.

For those new Wii owners who still have not registered for their free Wii Remote Jackets, please note that they are now available. The Wii Remote Jackets are designed to enhance grip and cushioning and you can order yours from Nintendo.co.za today.