Hori is preparing a 3DS wheel peripheral for the upcoming release of Mario Kart 7. A listing on Amazon states that it will provide users the feeling of using a real steering wheel. It comes with large L/R buttons and its form factor will offer a comfortable grip.

As of now, this is a Japan-only product. I wouldn’t be surprised if it made it to North America/Europe, however.

The “Mario Kart 7 Steering Wheel For Nintendo 3DS” launches in Japan on December 1 for 1,280 yen.

Nintendo has announced that the Lavender Pink Nintendo 3DS console is coming to Australia. The Lavender Pink 3DS will launch on November 17th. Nintendo has not announced when we will see the pink 3DS in the West.

The U.S. version of Nintendo's reward program, Club Nintendo, never seems to have quite the same caliber of awesome schwag as the original Japanese version. Items like the Wiimote TV remote that was never available here, and now this pixelated 8-bit Super Mario throw cushion.

Platinum members in Japan will have their choice of three new premiums including a 2012 calendar, a couple of game soundtracks from a handful of titles and this amazing Dot Mario Cushion featuring a pixelated version of the hero plumber from his old school Famicom days. Now given Mayan predictions, that 2012 calendar could be a real collector's item if the Earth does come to an end next year. But I'd take my chances with the cushion instead, ensuring my last days on the planet were at least comfy. The premiums are also available to members who cash in 400 points, so if you want all three and can afford it, I'd still say just get three pillows.

Video recording

- Video camera icon will be added to the camera app after you update
- At least three shooting modes
- Interval: leave a space between shooting
- Frame Shooting (not official English name): make stop motion movies
- Good Spot Shooting (not official English name): choose when to shoot and stop shooting
- 10 minutes of recording confirmed
- No mention of YouTube support
- Nikkei may have indicated that you can upload videos to YouTube after you transfer them to your PC

StreetPass Mii Plaza

- Will be able to see the origin of your StreetPass counterparts on a map
- When you encounter someone from a new part of the country, that person’s region will be colored on the map
- Iwata said players might be interested in covering the full map
- New panels for Puzzle Swap mini-game
- StreetPass Quest 2 includes forking maps

General

- Improved eShop interface
- Transfer software to other 3DS systems

Nintendo Direct is an initiative from Nintendo to deliver news directly to their fans. Satoru Iwata hosted a live stream to kick it off, and Reggie Fils-Aime has launched the official website for North America with the first of what should be many video updates. You can click here to check it out, or watch the video below.

Nintendo has confirmed that there’s a new StreetPass game coming to the Nintendo 3DS with the latest Nintendo 3DS firmware update which is due in November. StreetPass Mii Plaza will get new puzzles and also a revised StreetPass Quest. The new StreetPass game allows gamers to make parties with another Mii and hit slimes with combination attacks.

Nintendo UK has announced that Kirby’s Adventure will be coming the eShop as a 3D Classic. Here’s the announcement:

3D Classics Kirby’s Adventure: one of the NES’ greatest treasures returns as part of the 3D Classics series. Be there when Dream Land awakes for the first time in stunning 3D. Available 17th November 2011 for €6.

This was announced soon after we heard that the original Kid Icarus would be released as a 3D Classic.

Nintendo has announced that Hulu Plus is coming to the 3DS and the Wii and will be available before the end of this year. This will allow Hulu Plus members to stream television shows straight to either console. The full description of the service can be found after the break. Hulu is only available within the United States.

With Hulu Plus, Wii and Nintendo 3DS users will be able to instantly stream thousands of TV episodes – including the entire current season of popular shows like Modern Family, Glee, Dancing with the Stars, The Biggest Loser, House and Grey’s Anatomy – from premium content partners like ABC, Comedy Central, FOX, NBC, MTV and many more. Hulu Plus also offers access to classic TV favorites like Lost, Battlestar Galactica, The Hills and hundreds of popular and award-winning movies. Hulu Plus is available through a separate subscription fee of $7.99 per month with limited advertising.

Nintendo has announced that Club Nintendo Japan will be holding a special campaign for gamers who purchase two Nintendo 3DS games between October 1st and January 15th. Those picked will be eligible to win one of these three special Nintendo 3DS systems.

There is a ‘Community’ feature within Mario Kart 7 that hasn’t been explained with an amazing amount of clarity so far, but Nintendo has provided the following explanation:

The new Community feature allows players to create groups with other Mario Kart fans while setting up specific rules to make customized racing environments. Easy setup allows players to quickly create a community and share with others via the StreetPass™ feature. Community leaderboards will also show the most up-to-date information from recent races.

They’ve provided much clearer details though about the StreetPass functionality:

Walking by other Mario Kart 7 players in real life with StreetPass enabled allows gamers to exchange racing scores, win/loss records, number of collected coins and other game data. With SpotPass enabled, players will be able to receive ghost data to race against. Up to seven ghosts can be downloaded at the same time, allowing for a full eight-player race.

This was already a game worth being excited for, but it’s really becoming something special.