According to our sources, the upcoming Nintendo Wii U will be getting a new name and will become available around this holiday season. The current name “Wii U” will confuse a lot of people out there that are not gamers and are planing to buy the console to a loved one. To avoid disappointments and help with sales, the folks over at Nintendo are going to rename it. This reminds me of Kinect and the Playstation Vita when they were first announced. Back then these devices had different names and eventually it was announced that their names would change.

As of now take this as a rumor, but as always keep checking with us as more details come our way.

If you ever wished that Mario from the Super Mario Bros had better abilities or the chance to do the things that other 8 bit characters did in their day? Well your prayers have been answered. Online there is a crossover game that let’s you play with Link from the Legend of Zelda, Mega man and a few other 8 bit era characters.

[Exploding Rabbit]

Nintendo’s current online gaming console service may not be as good as Sony’s PlayStation Network and Microsoft’s Xbox Live, but Nintendo is looking to change things up with its new Nintendo Network.

Revealed during a Nintendo financial briefing, and hinted earlier as a logo on Theatrhythm Final Fantasy’s box art, the Nintendo Network for the 3DS and upcoming Wii U will replace Nintendo’s current online infrastructure as it plays a more integral role compared to the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, reports VentureBeat. The new service will reportedly be similar to XBL and PSN as it offers things like paid downloadable content, Wii U personal accounts, “competitions and online communication” (i.e., presumably better online multiplayer and voice chat systems), and the possibility of downloadable full retail games.

One game that will reportedly take advantage of the Nintendo Network in some capacity is the new, upcoming Fire Emblem for the 3DS, which will offer some kind of paid DLC.

Up until now it’s been a bit unclear as to what the timeline was for The Legend of Zelda series, but thanks to an official Zelda art book, we now know.

Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary “Hyrule Historia” art book was released in Japan and in it there’s an actual diagram of the Zelda timeline. Translated by GlitterBerri, the timeline (pictured below) interestingly splits into three different paths based on if Link hypothetically wins or loses in Ocarina of Time. For example, if Link is defeated, A Link to the Past begins, but if Link is successful during his “child” and “adult” era, then Majora’s Mask and Wind Waker occur, respectively.

It should be noted that this isn’t just from an official Nintendo book, but according to GlitterBerri, Zelda developer/overseer Eiji Aonuma himself is the supervising editor of the book as well. So there you go Zelda fans: mystery solved. (Right?)

Hyrule Historia – The 100%, Official, Confirmed Zelda Timeline!! Finally! [GlitterBerri, via Gematsu]

The Nintendo 3DS has sold over four million units worldwide, reports Gematsu, citing Famitsu. From the week of Dec. 19 to Dec. 25, Nintendo’s glasses-free 3D handheld sold 510,629 units, which helped the once-flagging console reach a total worldwide sale of 4,135,739.

On another semi-related note, Super Mario 3D Land reportedly sold 1,042,511 copies while Mario Kart 7 reached 1,082,391.

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The Nintendo 3DS will be getting its first paid downloadable content with the release of the next Fire Emblem game, reports Siliconera, citing Nikkei. The DLC in question is reportedly an “extra game item” that will be sold in March.

Fire Emblem was announced earlier this year during a Nintendo press conference, and according to the game’s Japanese trailer at the time (as seen above), it will be released sometime next year.

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