The fourth quarter of 2006 will herald a new era for Nintendo with the launch of its remarkable new Wii home video game system. But that’s not what this news item is about! How could that be, you ask? Perhaps the secret to the launch information for Wii is somehow encoded in the text of this news item. You might want to pore over it for a few hours before staying up all night to debate phraseology and comma placement with your friends online. Or maybe it’s all just a scam to get you to read the other games we have launching this fall. One of the two.

As the weather cools down, the Nintendo portable game offerings heat up. Final Fantasy V Advance makes its way to Game Boy Advance SP on Nov. 6. As series go, Final Fantasy is to video games what James Bond is to movies. Final Fantasy loyalists will enjoy an opportunity to debate which installment was best.

Nintendo DS owners are the big winners. Every week or so, another huge DS title hits, from the Touch Generations title Clubhouse Games to fan favorites like Elite Beat Agents and Yoshi’s Island 2. Clearly a gamer’s idea of paradise, here is Nintendo’s upcoming DS lineup:

Oct. 9: Clubhouse Games
Oct. 16: Nintendogs (Dalmatian)
Oct. 23: Magical Starsign
Oct. 30: Pokemon Ranger
Oct. 30: Children of Mana
Nov. 6: Elite Beat Agents
Nov. 13: Yoshi’s Island 2
Dec. 4: Custom Robo Arena
Dec. 4: Kirby Squeak Squad

And, for Nintendo GameCube owners, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess will be available for you this fall. An enhanced version also will be a launch title for Wii. That will all happen on… Oh look, we’re out of space.

For more information about all of Nintendo’s upcoming titles, please visit the official Web site.

Tags: nintendo, gamecube, game boy, ds, twilight princess, zelda