Nintendo Direct round-up

3DS XL, Mario, Pokemon and more.

Nintendo made quite a splash last night when they unveiled the new 3DS XL. With a 90% larger screen and improved battery life, Nintendo are looking to consolidate their lead in the handheld war with Sony's PS Vita.

But it wasn't just an evening of hardware demonstrations, there were plenty of announcements and release dates revealed.

Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask will arrive in October, and a new puzzle will be made available for the game every day (for 150 days).

Pokemon featured heavily in the presentation, Pokemon Black and White 2 and Pokemon Dream Radar are due out in Q3. Pokemon Typing Adventure will come complete with a Bluetooth keyboard.

As reported earlier, New Super Mario Bros 2 is due out on August 17 and will feature paid DLC.

New Art Academy will arrive with the launch of the 3DS XL, but Fire Emblem and Animal Crossing have been pushed back to 2013.

We've got trailers for many of the games featured at Nintendo Direct. You can see most of them here.

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