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Nintendo Europe has revealed the features of the upcoming NES and GBA games that will be given to existing 3DS owners as part of the Ambassador Programme.
The ten NES games, which will be available on the eShop from September 1, will have the following features:
- A basic electronic manual giving only the controls
- Alternating multiplayer (taking turns) on one system in games that support it, like Super Mario Bros.
- VC Suspend function (saves the game where you left off when you press the Home button, like on the Wii)
At a later date (how much later is currently unknown), the games will arrive on the eShop as official releases. Once ‘official’, these games will be treated to extra features, but Ambassadors will be able to update their version of the games for free. The updated features will include:
- A full electronic manual detailing all gameplay features and modes
- Simultaneous multiplayer on multiple systems in games that support it (like Ice Climbers)
- Restore Point function (as used in Game Boy VC games just now, it lets you create a save point as you play the game and come back to it if you mess up)
The line-up of NES games includes the original Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda and Donky Kong Jr., as well as Ice Climber and Balloon Fight.
The ten GBA titles, released later in the year, will only be available to Ambassadors. They will come with full electronic manuals, but won’t feature Suspend or Restore Point functionality, though any game with a game save feature will work as normal. If you close your 3DS, it won’t go into Sleep mode, either.
GBA titles in the offer will include Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Metroid Fusion, Mario vs Donkey Kong and the first game in the WarioWare series, Minigame Mania.
Nintendo will also be releasing a firmware update later in the year which allows the transfer of both NES and GBA games to a different 3DS system – much like the DSi to 3DS software transfer method.
