Hello from all of us on the Flipnote Hatena team. This is Aaron at Hatena's offices in Kyoto, Japan with another edition of our weekly news blog.
There were many new announcements this past week at the E3 Expo in Los Angeles, including the new Nintendo 3DS system, and we're very excited about these new technologies.
As technology for gaming becomes more complex, one thing to remember is that all video games are created by programmers and artists who are real people just like you. All new ideas start with a blank piece of paper, and come to life based on one's own effort and inspiration.
We think that Flipnotes are similar, and the sky is the limit for what you can create - all you need is a good idea and the perseverance to make that idea become something real. We hope you enjoy the Flipnotes that we have chosen to feature in the news this week, and that they can inspire you to create more great Flipnotes of your own to share with the world.
This week we plan to release the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News on the Nintendo DSi in 4 additional languages (French, German, Italian, Spanish), and hope to offer more multilingual content from now on for our users in all regions. Unfortunately, due to time constraints this week we may not be able to release the news on Friday for all languages, but promise to have everything live by Monday. Please bear with us as we get things ready, and thank you for your understanding.
If you haven't read the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News on your Nintendo DSi yet, please follow the steps below to find it:
- 1) Tap on the "Help" button from the top menu of Flipnote Hatena for Nintendo DSi.
- 2) Tap on the links for the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News found under the heading "System Additions and News"
This week's new themes
The Flipnote team has created two new Creator's Room themes that are available in the Color Star Exchange this week. Below are some screenshots and details about the new themes.
- This theme features a trio of monsters who love ice cream. (10 color stars)
- This theme features a silver cross with a precious purple stone in the center. (20 color stars)
The best of last week's topic: "Chase"
We've selected some of the best Flipnotes posted from around the world that we hope you'll enjoy.
You can see all of the Flipnotes posted about last week's topic at the URL below (be sure to set your content preference to Worldwide to see Flipnotes from all regions):
You can also see the Flipnotes for last week's topic posted from your own region by entering the command 
via "Command Search" on Flipnote Hatena for Nintendo DSi.
Hatena's favorite "Chase" Flipnotes from the Americas region
★ We really liked this Flipnote of an inner-city car chase by K (id:smashingpumpkins) with realistic sounds and well-done animation. Great work!
★ This beautifully drawn Flipnote by LunA™♪ (id:cavallo32) caught our attention, and features a mischievous cat chasing a mouse. The animation in this Flipnote is smooth, and the characters are really cute too.
★ Two cute characters chase each other in this Flipnote by PhantomCat (id:Paranormal-Kitty) with a funny ending that will make you smile. We liked the catchy soundtrack too!
★ Tacky Man (id:tackyman) created this cool Flipnote with the Nintendo DSi Camera application, and added original sounds to create an exciting car chase. This must have taken some time to create, and the end result is worth it.
★ We enjoyed this Flipnote by drakou (id:pokecat95) features a kangaroo-like creature that is chased by a flying menace from above. Drakou made the music for this Flipnote too!
★ Nymm (id:Nymm) created this original story about a policeman chasing a runaway donut. Please note that no actual donuts were harmed in the making of this Flipnote.
Hatena's favorite "Chase" Flipnotes from Japan
★ Syncotine (id:TransMetalsGP) created this unusual Flipnote about a young man in a rolling chair, trying to escape from a four-eyed monster. We really liked the weird character design, and the sound effects.
★ We liked the story and nicely done animation about a clumsy eagle who chases a rabbit in this Flipnote by Tachibana (id:tachi_tanu). You can't always get what you want...
★ Tokoroten (id:tokoroten0088) created this amazing Flipnote with the Nintendo DSi camera where some footsteps get followed from the point-of-view of a 3rd person as they walk around a room.
★ This Flipnote by IV41_ (id:IV41_N) is about a character who has his bag stolen and then chases the thief with a rocket propelled character that is contained inside of his head. Luckily the bag was empty!
★ We enjoyed this Flipnote by ZOMU7 (id:GENEN) that was created with the Nintendo DSi camera, about a stick figure trying to escape from a hand.
★ This wonderful Flipnote by A85 has a cast of several characters who are work together to try to retrieve a runaway balloon.
Hatena's favorite "Chase" Flipnotes from the Europe & Oceania region
★ Two cars animated with the Nintendo DSi Camera application chase each other and then transform into robots in this great Flipnote by →Toa Tom← (id:ToaTom)
★ Kilvan (id:Kilvan) created this amazing Flipnote about 2 spaceships chasing each other, with excellent sound effects and animation. We're looking forward to seeing more from this creator!
★ A cute character chases a butterfly in this Flipnote by Eva ツ (id:KisshuAndIchigo) that is based on an original Flipnote by Aimee-Rose (id:aimee-rose). This is a good example of the spin-off function being used as it should be.
★ Trudi (id:Trudi) created this strange and wonderful Flipnote about a character chasing a bottle of jam. Now all that the character needs is some toast to go with the jam.
★ Now that summer is here, cool snacks are in high demand. Geezer (id:geezerdk) created this funny Flipnote about a character chasing an ice cream truck.
★ We liked this Flipnote about a young girl chasing the boy she loves by ☆VampireV☆ (id:VampireV). The subtle use of sounds is also a nice addition to this Flipnote.
This week's topic: "Competition" (6/18/2010 - 6/25/2010)
This week we'd like you to create Flipnotes about competition. Sports competitions, teams working for victory over one another -- anything that you can think of that captures the spirit of competition! We're looking forward to seeing your Flipnotes, and will feature some of the best ones next week here in the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News. Post the Flipnotes you create to channel 8 from Flipnote Hatena on your Nintendo DSi.
Also, please do not use copyrighted music in your Flipnotes if you want them to be featured here. Check out some of the sites below for Creative Commons licensable and other royalty free music:
You can see all of the Flipnotes currently posted about this week's topic at the URL below (be sure to set your content preference to Worldwide to see Flipnotes from all regions):
Weekly Frog Sighting
If you are interested in having your frog photo or illustration featured in the "Weekly Frog Sighting" section of the blog please post them on Hatena Haiku and we might feature it here.
Please submit only original photos/illustrations that you have created yourself.
★ Here's a photograph of a stuffed frog in a toy store window that I took this past weekend while cycling in Kyoto. You can also see my bicycle in the reflection.
Please let us know what you think about the Flipnote Hatena Weekly News blog by posting any comments you might have in the box below. Thanks!
