Ace Attorney Art

It's that time again, North America, for a whole load of download goodies to arrive on Wii U and 3DS. This week brings a high profile Capcom arrival and some promising options on the 3DS, while free-to-play appears (sort of) on the Wii U; both Virtual Console platforms get a game, too, while Activision is partying like it's 2011 with some of its retail eShop releases. Let's get to it.

Missed the European Nintendo Download Update this week? Don't panic! The details are right here.

Wii U eShop

Lucadian Chronicles — (Dark Roast Entertainment, free or $7.99 unlock) — This is a virtual card game which also promises online play, so it could certainly fill a gap on the eShop. It'll be available as a free download (with limits to how much can be played and how often) or fully unlocked for a one-off fee of $7.99 — we'll put our game face on and bring you a review.

Wii U Virtual Console

Crash 'n the Boys: Street Challenge (Aksys Games, $4.99) — A spin-off from the River City Ransom world, this twists established sports into quirky and violent street events. While it can be fun playing this with others, its shortcomings meant it picked up 5/10 in our review.

Wii U Retail Downloads

Angry Birds Star Wars (Activision, $49.99)

Angry Birds Trilogy (Activision, $49.99)

Wii U eShop Temporary Discounts

Another World: 20th Anniversary Edition (Digital Lounge, more than 50% off from 12th December until 24th December, normally $7.99)

How to Train Your Dragon 2 (Little Orbit, discounted from 16th December until 14th January)

Disney Planes: Fire and Rescue (Little Orbit, discounted from 16th December until 14th January)

BLOK DROP U (RCMADIAX, $0.99 until 7th January, normally $1.99)

POKER DICE SOLITAIRE FUTURE (RCMADIAX, $0.69 until 7th January, normally $0.99)

SHUT THE BOX (RCMADIAX, $0.69 until 7th January, normally $0.99)

SPIKEY WALLS (RCMADIAX, $0.69 until 7th January, normally $0.99)

3DS eShop

Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy (Capcom, $29.99) — In a year of high-quality remakes and remasters, Capcom is now weighing in with this original trilogy of Ace Attorney games, which is download-only in the West following a retail release in Japan. The Game Boy Advance / DS entries have had their visuals remastered, which should help with investigation scenes and add some extra intensity to court proceedings. We certainly enjoyed these games when first released, and will see whether this remastered download release is innocent or guilty in our review.

Xeodrifter (Renegade Kid, $9.99) — The latest pixel-based title from Renegade Kid on 3DS, this is an exploration adventure title in which you explore four different planets in a bid to grab resources that'll repair your ship's warp core. There's a clear Metroidvania inspiration and some varied gameplay that promises much; we'll let you know what we think in a review.

Hazumi (Gamelion, $3.99) — A colourful puzzle action game, of sorts, you manoeuvre a ball to take out blocks, activate switches and move into portals. It looks rather fun and includes a level editor, but we'll put it to the test in a review.

My First Songs 2 (Ringzero Games, $4.99) — The series of nursery rhymes accompanied by cute visuals continues, with this likely to follow its predecessor in providing a rhythm-based experience as opposed to the karaoke found on Wii U. It includes 14 songs, and we'll bring you a review on its merits.

Talking Phrasebook - 7 Languages (Sanuk Games, $4.99) — This is an offline resource for learning important phrases in English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch. As a travelling tool this is rather accomplished, and we awarded it 8/10 in our review.

3DS Virtual Console

Harvest Moon 3 (Natsume, $4.99) — The third entry in the farm-sim series has now arrived, as you move on from your grandfather's farm to take up a friend's invitation to boost their fortunes on a remote island. We expect a slightly evolved but largely similar experience to its predecessors, but we'll dig in for a review.

3DS Retail Downloads

Angry Birds Star Wars (Activision, $49.99)

Angry Birds Trilogy (Activision, $29.99)

Moshi Monsters Katsuma Unleashed (Activision, $29.99)

Moshi Monsters: Moshling's Theme Park (Activision, $29.99)

Transformers: Dark of the Moon Stealth Force Edition (Activision, $39.99)

Wipeout 2 (Activision, $29.99)

I Love My Little Boy (Treva Entertainment, $24.99)

I Love My Little Girl (Treva Entertainment, $24.99)

3DS Demo

I Love My Little Boy (Treva Entertainment, free)

I Love My Little Girl (Treva Entertainment, free)

I Love My Horse (Treva Entertainment, free)

3DS eShop Temporary Discounts

Another World: 20th Anniversary Edition (Digital Lounge, more than 50% off from 12th December until 24th December, normally $7.99)

How to Train Your Dragon 2 (Little Orbit, discounted from 16th December until 14th January)

Disney Planes: Fire and Rescue (Little Orbit, discounted from 16th December until 14th January)

Woah Dave! (Choice Provisions, $0.99 from 15th December to 2nd January, normally $4.99)

Rage of the Gladiator (Gamelion, discounted until 8th January)

Monster Shooter (Gamelion, discounted until 8th January)

Steel Empire (Starfish SD, $15.99 until 15th January, normally $29.99)

Darts Up 3D (Enjoy Gaming, discounted until 8th January)

Soccer Up 3D (Enjoy Gaming, discounted until 8th January)


That's the lot for downloads in North America this week; let us know what you're planning to download in the poll and comments below.

What will you be downloading first this week? (256 votes)

  1. Lucadian Chronicles (Wii U eShop)7%
  2. Crash 'n the Boys: Street Challenge (Wii U Virtual Console)1%
  3. Angry Birds Trilogy (Wii U retail download)  0%
  4. Angry Birds Star Wars (Wii U retail download)  0%
  5. One of the Wii U eShop discounts4%
  6. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy (3DS eShop)25%
  7. Xeodrifter (3DS eShop)17%
  8. Hazumi (3DS eShop)  0.4%
  9. My First Songs 2 (3DS eShop)  0%
  10. Talking Phrasebook - 7 Languages (3DS eShop)1%
  11. Harvest Moon 3 (3DS Virtual Console)2%
  12. Angry Birds Star Wars (3DS retail download)  0%
  13. Angry Birds Trilogy (3DS retail download)  0%
  14. Moshi Monsters Katsuma Unleashed (3DS retail download)  0%
  15. Moshi Monsters: Moshling's Theme Park (3DS retail download)  0%
  16. Transformers: Dark of the Moon Stealth Force Edition (3DS retail download)  0%
  17. Wipeout (3DS retail download)  0%
  18. I Love My Little Boy (3DS retail download)2%
  19. I Love My Little Girl (3DS retail download)  0.8%
  20. One of the 3DS demos2%
  21. One of the 3DS eShop discounts8%
  22. Nothing for me this week30%

Please login to vote in this poll.