Once again, Nintendo has a presented a pretty full line-up of new downloadable games. The company is probably relying on the Christmas season to help boost sales. It’s probably a good idea. I’m sure some people are taking advantage of the gift option to send WiiWare and Virtual Console games to friends.

The section with the best downloads this week is Virtual Console, as the classics Blaster Master and Earthworm Jim 2 have both been added to the store. The WiiWare section comes in second, while the DSiWare section easily takes last place with its assortment of rereleases, ports and demos.

Gamertell’s Nintendo Download picks for the week are Earthworm Jim 2 (Virtual Console) and Blaster Master (Virtual Console).

EA is also among the major companies ready to step up and support GamesCom 2009. And the company’s going to be putting on quite a show. It is bringing 42 games across all platforms to display, including the iPhone.

There are a number of highlights to check out, from the extraordinary amount of games being displayed, to a special press conference (which you can watch online via live stream), an exclusive closed door area with special games being shown, a booth set up just for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning and the demo debut of Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Let’s look at the list of games EA is bringing along, in some shape or form, in alphabetical order…

We already know that EA’s collaboration with Hasbro is paying off. The Littlest Pet Shop DS games have been very popular among its target audience. I guess then, it comes as no surprise that EA is going to be releasing a fourth DS Littest Pet Shop game. Littlest Pet Shop Spring, like the other three games, Littest Pet Shop Garden, Jungle and Winter, will features a specific theme, in-game playsets and exclusive pets. It is going to come out March 3, 2009, and will cost $29.99, just like the other games.

Littlest Pet Shop Spring is going to be a bit more special than the other three entries. For example, there will be more mini-games, so instead of 16, there will be 20. There will also be 20 new animal clothing accessories that weren’t included in the previous three games. Since Spring is set in a different environment/climate, the game will look a bit different and there will be different pets available in the game. Six new pets, if you want to get specific…

When you think of games genres or brands that tend to do incredibly well have have major sales, you probably think of series like Mario or Halo. It turns out that the EA Hasbro games aren’t anything to laugh at, because EA just announced that the recently released Littlest Pet Shop DS, PC and Wii games, Nerf N-Strike Wii game, Hasbro Family Game Night PS2 and Wii games and Monopoly PS2, PS3 and Wii games, all together, have sold 2 million copies worldwide since they were released in Fall 2008. Not too bad.

The most successful games from the EA Hasbro collaboration were the Littlest Pet Shop games. The three Littlest Pet Shop DS games were the biggest hits, but the Nerf N-Strike game was also fairly popular. The Hasbro Family Game Night game collection also received a bit of attention, due to the fact that it received a Toy Wishes 2008 All-Star Award…

Along with novelty gift cards, the other inexpensive plastic tchockies I like to scout for are kids meal toys.

As a followup to last year’s Wendy’s Wii toys, Burger King is offering this year’s Wii-related tiny toys intended for tots (but not those under the age of three, of course). The ten toys are…

Click through for the coupon codes, too!

Title: Littlest Pet ShopPrice: $39.99System(s): Wii (also available on the DS and PC)Release Date: October 14, 2008Publisher (Developer): Electronic Arts (Electronic Arts)ESRB Rating: “Everyone”Pros: A pretty good variety of pets, very simple controls for kids, kids can dress the characters up with lots of accessories and when you play a game, you actually play it with the selected pet.Cons: Overly structured in the beginning, you can’t choose which pets you want – you must unlock them in order and some of the animals really aren’t that cute.Overall Score: One thumb up, one sideways; 80/100; B-; *** out of 5

EA Casual and Hasbro have teamed up to blanket the video game market with a series of Littlest Pet Shop games based on the series of toys which have infatuated young children around the US. The Wii version of Littlest Pet Shop certainly wouldn’t be in my top 10 list of most wanted holiday games, but the target audience will likely express the same love for the game as they do for the toys.

Littlest Pet Shop is clearly geared towards the grade school set. In fact, anyone over the age of 10 may find themselves incredibly frustrated by the title’s simplicity and overprotective tutorials, not to mention the character art. Kids will likely adore it though, as the entire game is almost like the series’ toys brought to life…

The virtual pet game section in your local store is about to get a bit more crowded – Littlest Pet Shop games have been released. EA has just released five games based on the series of tiny children’s toys. Each game is a pet sim, where players can adopt three Littlest Pet Shop pets and care, play and raise them.

While the DS, PC and Wii versions of Littlest Pet Shop all have their own special touches, they all share the central pet-raising theme. You pick your first pets, then play mini-games to earn Kibble Coins. You can then buy outfits and playsets for your pets. Also, playing the mini-games will unlock new types of pets – so eventually PC and Wii players will have 32 different pet options and DS players will have 20. The DS version also allows players to have pet parties with their friends…

The creation of games aimed at girls continues – this time the Littlest Pet Shop toys are fodder for a DS, PC and Wii game. EA Games’ casual game department revealed more information on the Littlest Pet Shop game at E3. It will be the first Hasbro/EA console collaboration, and has a tentative release date of Fall 2008.

The Littlest Pet Shop game is basically a pet raising sim. There are 32 different kinds of pets in the PC and Wii versions of the game, 20 in the DS entry and four environments for the pets to play in. Players can play 16 mini-games to earn Kibble Coins, which can be used to purchase pet accessories or playsets. The DS version will have an exclusive feature which will allow players to throw parties for their pets.

Ganz just had to go and start something with their Webkinz. First one company starts an online virtual pet/real life toy combo and then everybody else has to do it too. The latest group to jump on the bandwagon is Hasbro with an extension of their Littlest Pet Shop line. On November 14, 2007, Pileated Pictures announced it has teamed with Hasbro to create Littlest Pet Shop VIPs microsite at the Littlest Pet Shop website. The VIPs part stands for Virtual Interactive Pets. Littlest Pet Shop VIPs is a browser-based pet raising game.