Classical Pro

Good news, everyone! Nintendo of America finally decided that they felt the Classic Controller Pro should be available to non-importers. In a press release early (like, early) today, they announced that the controller would finally be available throughout America in April -- despite it being available in Japan and Europe since August and . It will come in both black and white, and will release for $19.99, the same price as the older iteration. The PR doesn't mention the original Classic Controller at all, so they definitely intend on retiring it. Given the favorable impressions of the new controller, they're doing consumers a favor.

But that's not all: That press release was sent from both Nintendo and Capcom, announcing that the controller would also be available in a special bundle with Monster Hunter 3: Tri, which also releases in April. The controller that will be packaged with the game will be black, just like the Japanese counterpart. The bundle will be $59.99, a mere $10 more than the standalone game. This should help the game's sales, since the Monster Hunter games have the unfortunate habit of only selling especially well in Japan. You could call this the Dragon Quest Syndrome.

So I think it would be a good idea to promote it using the ad that helped push it in Japan. I also think it would be good to market it with the product behind them. Of course, I'm talking about...no, not the HDTV. Or the guitar. I mean the black Wii, which has still yet to make an appearance in America. I think NoA likes to tick off their fanbase every now and then for the sake of it. (

Word among various third-party developers (some of which are being discussed here) distressed about underwhelming software sales is that the hardcore base has abandoned the platform for the supposedly greener pastures of the 360 and PS3. With something like a black Wii and Monster Hunter 3, they could stand a good chance at reigniting the core gamer fanbase. That, along with a marketing campaign, which I'm sure Capcom is doing anyway since they're even giving one to Tatsunoko vs. Capcom: Ultimate All Stars (out tomorrow!). Time will tell if Nintendo is really serious about this.