Mario’s Face is the name of a DS tech demo that was shown at E3 2004, to let people to try some of the features of the new console. This tech demo was played a bit like the intro of Mario 64, in which you can deform Mario’s head to various shapes. Wario’s head was also selectable in this tech demo.
Thanks to wingedkoopa67 for the contribution!
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Yoshi Touch & Go is a platform / puzzle game developed and published in 2005 by Nintendo for the DS. According to Nintendo assistants Hiroyuki Kimura and Keizo Ohta, Yoshi Touch & Go was originally planned to be designed for the Nintendo GameCube as “Balloon Trip”. A demo of the game, already ported to the DS, was first exhibited during the E2 of 2004 and gained positive response. Thereupon, the executives of Nintendo green lighted the final project. [Info from Wikipedia]
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Super Princess Peach is a platform game developed by Nintendo SPD and TOSE and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS in 2005 / 2006. In the gallery below you can see an early version of the Princess Peach, when it almost looked like a GBA game. It’s possible that the project started on the GBA, but it was later ported to the “new” console.
The Koopalings were originally going to be in the game, but were taken out for unknown reasons. All of the Koopalings’ lost sprites have been discovered by now. Oddly enough, Morton’s sprites were spread around the internet long before those of his siblings. Also, Roy was given a green shell instead of a pink shell. This may have been either a design change or a mistake.
Lost sprites of Glad and Calm Goombas have also recently been discovered. In the game, only Mad and Sad variants appeared. The Glad Goomba (which was a bronze or yellow color), based on its sprite, could be able to bounce or dance around (as the glossary says most Glad Enemies do), and the Calm one (which was green and rather sickly-looking), based on the Calm Enemies, it would probably be sleeping and act like a normal Goomba when Peach is too fast.
A very early screenshot shows the “Peach’s face” screen, which ended up on the bottom screen, to be on the top screen and totally devoid of Heart Panels and also having a bright green, solid background and a different design for Peach. The fact that the Heart Panels, which were used to change Vibes in the final game, are lacking from this screenshot suggests that Super Princess Peach was once planned to not use Vibes and be a more average side-scroller. [Info from Mario Wiki]
Ragey from RandomHooHaas.com managed to make a cheat to warp to some test levels, but it would only work using an emulator with Cheat Engine, an external hacking program, attached to it. Goomther managed to get there using the same method, and even provided video footage of the levels in action.
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Nintendogs is a real-time pet simulation video game developed and published in 2005 by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS. Nintendogs began as a technical demo on the Nintendo GameCube long before it was considered for the DS. It made its way to the handheld when the DS was still in development. Shigeru Miyamoto originally came up with the idea for the game when he and his family bought a dog, which inspired him to create the project.
The game’s producer, Hideki Konno, looking for a game to take full advantage of all of the Nintendo DS’s features, decided on a dog simulation game. Nintendogs, first called Puppy Times, was originally designed to have 15 different versions, one for each breed of dog. Satoru Iwata suggested this to convey the feel that the player was choosing a dog from a kennel.
However, the debugging process for each version would have been too time consuming to be feasible. After going back and forth between numbers of versions, they eventually settled for three, with six dogs each and the rest available after completing in-game goals. [Info from Wikipedia]
In the screens below, you can notice an early version of the game, with different HUD and commands.
[Contribute by Matt Gander from www.gamesasylum.com]
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Black & White: Creatures is a cancelled DS game that was based on the original Black & White, a PC game developed by Lionhead Studios and published by Electronic Arts and Feral Interactive in 2001. The original game was a “God Simulation”, which included elements of artificial life, strategy, and fighting games, but we are not sure about the gameplay of this unreleased DS port.
It seems that Black & White DS was going to be more like a “Pet Simulator”, in which to raise your creature to make it to fight against other creatures. Here’s the original press release:
* Numerous game play modes: Single Player, Creature Quest, Creature Pen, Creature Battle Multiplayer and a Creature Dance mini-game where you can teach your creature to get down!
* 10 different species of creatures with several new, never-before-seen breeds
* Specific DS touch screen features include custom tattoo design and ‘God’s Hand’ stylus control to punish or reward your creature via specific stylus movements
* Revolutionary creature AI adds a deeper training simulation and strategy game play experience
* Huge array of animations, personalities and actions bring your creature to life
* Pit your creature against your friend’s creatures via the Nintendo DS wireless link
* Use the Nintendo DS microphone to verbally berate or encourage your creature during training
* 8 different island environments ranging from arid deserts to frozen tundras
* Hundreds of awards and items to collect and unlock
* Based on the award winning franchise from Lionhead Studios
After some months / year of development by Full-Fat studio, Black & White Creatures vanished without any official statment.
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