We first met Nintendo of America's VP of Corporate Affairs Denise Kaigler at a Super Smash Bros. Brawl tournament in Worcester, Massachusetts, shortly after she accepted the job with the company. At the time, she had just left Reebok and was a little defensive (probably because she didn't really know all the details yet) of her role at the house of Mario. Our initial impression of Kaigler was that she was a little different, there was something we couldn't quite pin down at the time. Here we are now, a year later, and she certainly is comfortable in her role. Sitting in a big comfy armchair -- barefoot, mind you -- in a San Francisco hotel during GDC, we spoke with the executive about Nintendo's relationship with the core audience, its plans with the two DS models and its relationship with third-party publishers. Reading our transcription of this interview, it can be interpreted that there was some hostility in our conversation; however, it's worth noting, that in context, it was a mixture of sass and smiles. She certainly is a different type of executive than the other public figures we've gotten used to in this industry.So, is the SD storage solution a sign that Nintendo is paying attention to the core gamers? Was that development part of feedback? How did that happen?Kaigler: We have never stopped listening and caring about the core gamer. Ever. As you know, a year ago when I got to the job and reading your site, reading some of the other sites, and reading most of all the message boards -- what folks are saying about it. And they are saying, you know, Nintendo doesn't care. It's never been about that, right. So what I think - I am going to answer your question in a second - but how I like to explain it: So, there is the core, who have been so faithful to Nintendo for so many years and we absolutely appreciate it and recognize that. ... You guys are still right there dead center, we've just brought in more gamers. We've shared the fun that you guys (the core) have had to yourselves and enjoyed for so long. We are sharing it with many, many more people. So our focus has never gone off the core, we have expanded our focus to include others. So I want to first say that.

Continue reading GDC09: Joystiq interviews Nintendo's Denise Kaigler about Nintendo and 'the core,' DS coexistence

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Beginning this Sunday, Target is having a great promotion on Nintendo Wii titles. Customers who buy two Wii titles (priced at $49.99 or more) can pick up a third title (priced at equal or lesser value, at a max of $49.99) for free.The catch? The offer is only available in stores! That means you online shoppers must first acquire pants, get into your car, drive to the store ... man, this sounds like a lot of work! But with over 80 games available in the offer, it might be worth the effort.Also, if you plan on picking up Animal Crossing ... be prepared to answer a few questions.(Click image to view the full ad)Permalink | Email this | Comments

In Touch Ruminations, former DS and Wii Fanboy Lead David Hinkle talks about whatever he feels like. He's a jerk like that. This week, he talks about the Nintendo DSi and its compares its DSi Shop to WiiWare. The opinions expressed here belong to the author and don't necessarily reflect those of Joystiq, Weblogs Inc. or its affiliates.Have you had ample time to recover from Iwata's keynote? I have, and thinking about the DSi (I can't help it, I wants it), I believe that the DSi Shop is easily the most exciting and important feature of the new handheld. And I think it's a service that could be more important than WiiWare.

Continue reading Touch Ruminations: DSi Shop (and how it could be more important than WiiWare)

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Dates have been set. Lines have been drawn. The war rages on. Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo have all scheduled media briefing dates and times for E3 2009. As usual, Microsoft jumps in first, kicking the affair off on June 1 (the day before E3) at 10:30AM PDT. On June 2, Nintendo waggles to stage at 9:00AM PDT, followed by Sony at 11:00AM PDT. With E3 reverting to the days of yore, we expect blinding lasers and fist-pumping anthems along with all the megaton announcements. Think of an excuse now, because between June 1 and June 4 you're not going to want to be at work, school or with significant others. You're going to be at your computer, frantically hitting refresh for all of our in-depth coverage. You know, like you are right now.
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