Nintendo Direct news round-up: Fire Emblem, Brain Age, HarmoKnight, and more!

Nintendo took a step away from the busy holiday sales rush on Wednesday to shed some light on upcoming 3DS games due out in 2013.

Many of the games announced in the event were titles we've heard of before - and have been following for some time - but there were a few surprises and firm release dates thrown in to keep things interesting.

Announced after Nintendo's E3 presentation this year, the latest installment in Fire Emblem's strategy RPG series will arrive in North America on February 4 and will come to Europe in April of 2013.

Fire Emblem: Awakening will continue the Support Relationship system that was made popular in Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones. These relationships allow you to unlock character backstories and other bits of content as you strengthen the bonds of friendship with your allies.

Relying on the usual strategy/tactics gameplay that the series is known for, the plot and character relationships in Fire Emblem: Awakening will unfold in 3D full-motion videos, standard text box dialog, and cutscenes with full voice acting.

Having the ability to check our emails, social media updates, and web forums on demand is taking a toll on our attention spans, and Nintendo is looking to help our battered brains with Brain Age: Concentration Training.

Aimed at addressing the problem of "information addiction", this puzzler aims to train your working memory and will - theoretically - improve your ability to concentrate and focus.

Brain Age: Concentration Challenge will launch in the US on February 10th and will come to Europe on March 8th.

While Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate was not mentioned in the US Nintendo Direct presentation, it received a release window of March 2013 for Europe. Similarly, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is due in the Spring of 2013.

Also dated for March 2013 in Europe is HarmoKnight, a rhythmic combat game by Pokemon creators GameFreak that will be available for download via the eShop. No specific date was mentioned for a North American release of HarmoKnight, but should be available "soon".

Finally, Picross e2 is due out in European eShop "shortly", as is Hydroventue Spin Cycle (December 13th).

For those looking for more immediate eShop gratification, Wario Land 3 finally made its way over to the European eShop and is available for download now.