January2017

  • Review Zombie Brigade: No Brain No Gain (Wii U eShop)

    Brainless

    A Miiverse post for Zombie Brigade: No Brain No Gain wrote, "Better than Meme Run." That's about the nicest thing that can be said about this horrendous title from Cypronia. An endless runner that you will want to end after about five minutes, Zombie Brigade is in the upper echelon of terrible eShop games. And to be clear, that's not a...

July2016

  • Review Rubik's Cube (3DS eShop)

    Fits in the pocket more comfortably than the original cube, at least

    The 3DS eShop has been host to some quirky releases, and a virtual portrayal of the Rubik's Cube certainly fits the bill. Cypronia aims to give you the puzzling experience on the go and at home with a dual release, no doubt hoping that nostalgia and a taste for a challenge will...

  • Review Rubik's Cube (Wii U eShop)

    The '80s are back...

    Cypronia's take on the original rage quit toy, the Rubik's Cube, is now available on both the Wii U and 3DS eShop. Does this game differ a great deal from a physical Rubik's Cube? No, not really. Like with releases such as Epic Word Search Collection 2, it's down to personal preference whether you opt to have a physical,...

June2015

  • Review Cube Life: Island Survival (Wii U eShop)

    A summer blockbuster?

    For the past few months, multiple developers have been releasing their own clones of Minecraft in an effort to provide Nintendo gamers with the closest approximation to that source material as possible. Though the concept may seem simple initially, most developers have failed to recreate it in any meaningful way, with...

April2015

  • Review My Style Studio: Notebook (Wii U eShop)

    Out of style

    Theoretically, the Wii U is a great platform for art applications and software. Art Academy: Sketchpad and its dedicated Miiverse community have created some wonderful works of art using the GamePad, with many wondering where the heavily delayed full Art Academy application is. Cypronia's My Style Studio: Notebook might be a tempting...

January2015

  • Review Cake Ninja 3: The Legend Continues (Wii U eShop)

    Legendarily mundane

    Apparently, ninjas hate cakes, and developer Cypronia has been struggling to produce a decent game based off this assumption since its first attempt on DSiWare back in 2011. With years of experience under its belt and a baked goods massacre to show for it, has the move to Wii U made for a more substantial title? Let's begin by...

November2014

  • Review Angry Bunnies: Colossal Carrot Crusade (Wii U eShop)

    Colossal Clone Catastrophe

    More and more cheap titles on the Wii U eShop are being released with amateurish production and design, and Cypronia's Angry Bunnies: Colossal Carrot Crusade is only a half-step up. A port of a 3DS Angry Birds clone, Colossal Carrot Crusade contains the exact content of its 3DS counterpart, but with added online...

  • Review My Style Studio: Hair Salon (Wii U eShop)

    Bad hair day

    In the grand scheme of things, hairdressers can seem pretty insignificant, but deep down they hold the secret, terrible capacity to utterly ruin your entire week. You put your faith into them and trust that they know what they're doing, or else just one bad haircut will stick with you for a month. If a new generation of these stylistic...

June2014

  • Review Color Zen Kids (3DS eShop)

    Childlike innocence

    If you read our review of Color Zen on 3DS earlier this month or Color Zen Kids on Wii U most recently, you're in for a familiar ride with the latter title on 3DS. The laid-back colour-matching puzzler with the sweeping electronic soundtrack is back, and this time your children can play it on the go. The objective of the...

  • Review Color Zen Kids (Wii U eShop)

    Hopping into the kiddie pool

    If you read our review of Color Zen last month, you'll know exactly what to expect from Color Zen Kids. The soothing, touch-based colour matching puzzler has gained a more kid-friendly coat of paint – the colours are all slightly brighter, the puzzles are a bit easier and shaped like cute animals, and the memorable...

  • Review Color Zen (3DS eShop)

    Nirvana on the go

    Last month we reviewed the Wii U version of Color Zen, a relaxing abstract puzzler in which you match geometric shapes with colours as a soothing electronica soundtrack plays in the background. This week the chilled-out title arrives on 3DS largely intact; it's essentially the same game, shrunk down to the small screen(s). It's the...

May2014

  • Review Color Zen (Wii U eShop)

    Passes with flying colours

    If you enjoyed Abyss earlier this month and you're thirsting for another relaxing, atmospheric Wii U eShop title with a smooth electronic soundtrack, Color Zen is exactly what you're looking for. It's a puzzle game with no time limit or scoring system: you simply match colours and unwind. The iOS/Android success-story has...

March2014

  • Review Bubble Pop World (3DS eShop)

    Burst in line

    The hardest part of starting Bubble Pop World might be remembering where you left the “?” box AR card you’ll need to play it. Precious few 3DS games have taken advantage of the system’s augmented reality feature, with the majority employing it just for an amusing little extra. Developer Cypronia, however, has fully dived into...

December2013

  • Review My Style Studio: Hair Salon (3DS eShop)

    Crimped style

    Remember that toy where you used a magnetic wand to move iron filings over a drawing of a guy’s head, creating hair, moustaches, and eyebrows? My Style Studio: Hair Salon feels a bit like that, except with less personality and sense of joy. The Hair Salon does offer you more options, in certain ways. There are five “customers”...

November2013

  • Review Angry Bunnies (3DS eShop)

    Rotten egg

    Whenever a new game, franchise or genre becomes mega-successful, countless similar titles and rip-offs are bound to emerge. Rovio's now-iconic Angry Birds series is one of the most successful mobile franchises of all time, and for good reason — the simple, physics-based gameplay is quick and addictive, the birds and pigs have...

July2013

  • Review Fishdom H2O: Hidden Odyssey (3DS eShop)

    Submerged in familiarity

    If you’ve never been exposed to a hidden object game before, the concept is as simple to understand as a youthful game of I spy or finding Waldo hidden within the pages of a Where’s Waldo? book. Imagine your bedroom is contained in a snow globe. Someone takes it, shakes it for a minute or two, sets it down, and at that...

May2013

  • Review California Super Sports (DSiWare)

    A bad sport

    To understand what California Super Sports is, start with Wii Sports. Do you have the handful of mini-games fixed in your mind, complete with simple rules and bobble-headed athletes? Good; now trade in your Wii Remote for a DS stylus. Next, systemically break every intuitive gameplay system and control scheme in sight. Then sabotage the...

March2013

  • Review Forgotten Legions (DSiWare)

    Tower offence

    Forgotten Legions tells the story of a character named Merkhovious, who is apparently a wizard or some other type of magic user. He started using dark magic and was quickly banished from the town of Riverkeep, because the higher-ups there frown upon that sort of thing. Now Merkhovious is back, and he’s brought an army of undead...

December2012

  • Review Cake Ninja XMAS (DSiWare)

    Christmas is cancelled

    Long time readers of Nintendo Life will be acutely aware of the fact that we’re not the biggest fans of Cypronia’s Cake Ninja series. The two titles released so far have both received scathing critiques from our staff, which is why we approached this festive edition with a fair degree of trepidation. As the title plainly...

November2012

  • Review Cake Ninja 2 (DSiWare)

    Unjust desserts

    Almost one year ago, the DSiWare service was graced with the appearance of Cake Ninja, an unrepentant clone of mobile craze Fruit Ninja. However, its lifeless approach to the formula, lack of addictiveness and total dearth of variety doomed it to receive a mere 2/10 in our review. Now we have Cake Ninja 2, which seeks to atone for...

May2012

  • Review Curling Super Championship (DSiWare)

    Bowls on ice

    DSiWare has been home to some interesting concepts and ideas, developing a diverse library of different experiences of varying standards. Despite this, Curling Super Championship is one of the more unique entries, taking a relatively minor winter sport and turning it into a video game. While some may feel the need to dismiss it off...

December2011

  • Review Cake Ninja (DSiWare)

    Maybe it’s a fruit cake

    Nintendo’s handheld consoles face the ever-growing prominence of smartphones, particularly in terms of the games on these devices. Cake Ninja is undoubtedly influenced by a thoroughly popular game on Android and iOS that involves slicing fruit: this ninja, however, has lost his way. The gameplay within this title...

July2011

  • Review Jagged Alliance (DSiWare)

    Watch out for sharp edges

    On paper, Jagged Alliance looks like a must-have for fans of tactical role-playing games. A mid 90s PC classic that was originally distributed as a DS retail release in 2009, now available at a significantly lower price of 500 Nintendo Points – it’s a win-win, right? Well, two areas that hit the mark are storyline and...

  • Review Make Up & Style (DSiWare)

    Shaky foundation

    Looking good is hard work. For those who want to learn or just enjoy playing around with lipstick and powder comes Make Up & Style, attempting a fun and informative take on facial beautification. But is this title good enough to make you blush, or is it only the eye-shadow of a good game? While Beauty Academy went for a...

June2011

  • Review Crazy Cheebo: Puzzle Party (DSiWare)

    Just crazy enough to work

    If there’s one thing that can certainly be said about DSiWare games, it’s this: no matter how ridiculous the name of your game is, it can be made. Proving this point with much gusto is Crazy Cheebo: Puzzle Party, the latest addition to the countless puzzle games already available on the service. But, beyond the title,...