3DS sees 40% sales increase in Japan

As if it wasn’t doing well enough already, Nintendo’s 3DS has seen a 40% sales increase in Japan last week following the release of Kid Icarus: Uprising.
Unit sales rose 40 per cent from 64,017 to 94,011 during the week ending March 25th. New console bundles including Super Mario Land 3D and Monster Hunter Tri-G are also to thank for the increase.
PS3 and PSP also had another healthy week, with sales of 25,750 and 19,875 respectively.
Given that this time last year people were announcing the death of the 3DS, it’s amazing to see how quickly Nintendo has turned its fortunes around.

Trine 2 half-off, Hardcore Mode out

Another weekend sale to take advantage of; Frozenbyte has cut the price of Trine 2 by 50 percent on Steam.
To make taking the plunge even sweeter, the developer has released a fresh patch that adds a new Hardcore Mode and “several other improvements.” Just one of said improvements is described though: the “self-levitation” trick can now be disabled.
“The Hardcore Mode is our thanks to our most hardcore fans, and a throwback to the good old days,” Frozenbyte CEO Lauri Hyvärinen says.
“This is for the fans who thought the Tower of Sarek level in the first game was just right in its pre-patches state, for those who really want an extra challenge from the game. The Hardcore Mode adds a big value to replayability, especially in online and offline co-op, and really means you have to work together or face game over.”
The sale lasts until Monday, 10 AM PST. It applies to the Mac App Store as well.

Worms Revolution announced; new engine, out in Q3

A new Worms game is coming, Team 17 has announced. The little squirmy buggers will next do battle in Worms Revolution, which has been developed from scratch and comes complete with a new game engine, the studio says.
It’s also said that “exciting new features and challenges have been introduced whilst old favourites such as the Super Sheep and Holy Hand Grenade remain to thrill fans.” Brilliant!
Have your first look the game in the short trailer below. It’ll be out in the year’s third quarter, on PC and (unspecified) consoles.

 to streamline, cancelling projects, cutting jobs

Sonic publisher Sega has announced its intentions to streamline its business in the US and EU. In the long term that could mean better quality releases, but in the short term it sadly means game cancellations and job cutbacks. The company is said to be facing “extraordinary loss” for fiscal 2012, which ends tomorrow.
A statement from the publisher read: ”The Consumer Business centered on Sega Corporation is expected to post operating loss in the year ending March 2012, due to the challenging economic climate and significant changes in the home video game software market environment in the US and Europe.
“Given this circumstance, the companies determined that in order to actualise earnings recovery of the Consumer Business in the following period and after and return to a growth path, it is essential to streamline organisations in the field of home video game software in the US and European markets, while shifting to a structure that corresponds to change in environment, including strengthening development in the field of digital content.”
Parent company Sega Sammy said of the situation: “We conducted detailed reviews of earnings projections for titles targeted toward the US and European markets and decided to narrow down sales titles from the following period and after to strong IPs, such as Sonic the Hedgehog, Football Manager, Total War and Aliens, which are expected to continue posting solid earnings.
“In accordance with this, we are cancelling the development of some game software titles.”
Let’s hope the losses aren’t too huge; we’d hate to see one of the industry’s best publishers scale back on its presence. At least promising titles like Aliens: Colonial Marines are seemingly safe for now.

THQ’s Warhammer MMO no longer an MMO, 100+ let go

THQ’s Warhammer 40,000: Dark Millennium MMO is no longer an MMO. The troubled publisher has announced that it’s decided to turn this one into a single- and multiplayer game instead.

As a result, 118 have been let go from its Vigil and Relic studios.

Vigil is said to continue work on the project, alongside the upcoming Darksiders II, while Relic will set its sights on Company of Heroes and Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War.

“As previously announced, we have been actively looking for a business partner for the game as an MMO,” says THQ CEO Brian Farrell of Dark Millennium.

“However, based on changing market dynamics and the additional investment required to complete the game as an MMO, we believe the right direction for us is to shift the title from an MMO to a premium experience with single and multiplayer gameplay, robust digital content and community features.”

The platforms and release timing will be announced at a later date.

“Because we believe strongly in the high-quality and vast creative work that is in production,” Farrell adds, “this is the right decision for both our portfolio and for gamers devoted to this powerful property.”

Video: What is a Witcher?

Everyone must have heard of the Witcher series by now. But if you haven't yet played a Witcher game, you may wonder: what exactly is a Witcher? Developer CD Project gives an answer in this rather beautifully made new video.

Joe Danger: SE 50% off on XBLA

For those who don’t already own it, or the original PSN version, a steep discount of XBLA’s Joe Danger: Special Edition may be of interest.

Gold subs can pick up the Hello Games trickster for 600 MS Points right now. That’s half off, then. A nice a warm-up for next month’s Trials: Evolution — latest trailer here — maybe?
Prefer other types of motorized transport? Sega Rally Online Arcade and Daytona USA currently carry lower-than-usual prices as well. They’ re available for 400 MS Points each.