Features News - Page 13 of 32

Cleaner and better

We recently had the chance to sit down with a more recent demo of Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon. With three stages to sweep clean rather than the single one on offer when we played it last year, we got to see just how much work Next Level Games has put into the game since then. The three mansions that we were able to pick this...

Get a comfortable seat

We've already unveiled our favourite Super Mario games, but it's a series with plenty of talking points. We're in the middle of the busiest spell of new Super Mario games in the history of the franchise, with two 'New Super Mario Bros.' titles arriving this year, which will mean that three new entries will have arrived...

The impossible list

With New Super Mario Bros. 2 about to hit stores, it's prompted a lot of debate about the Super Mario series as a whole. We decided that we'd take on the list that cannot win, and declare Nintendo Life's favourite Super Mario games. In total, 16 members of staff rated their top 10 Super Mario titles from a list of 14. Only games...

Boosting digital downloads

For many Nintendo gamers, we suspect, the release of New Super Mario Bros. 2 looms large as the highlight of the next gaming month. Even if the game doesn’t innovate the plumber’s series in any major way, the purchasing options do just that. For 3DS owners it’ll no longer be a case of simply picking up a boxed game...

Welcome back to the stage of history

Any avid reader of Nintendo Life will know that for the past couple of years we had James Newton installed as editor, which came to an end earlier this month as he swanned off to Nintendo. Starting today we have a new man who will be taking on the role full-time; the undisputed, heavy-weight, retro gamer of the...

Insanity X Nintendo

As strange crossovers go, Pokémon and Nobunaga's Ambition is right up there. Reactions at Pokémon Conquest's announcement ranged from confused mutterings to gasps of wonder at the possibilities. Yet for all the weirdness, it actually turned out brilliantly – whoever came up with the idea of mixing up an old school strategy...

We're on our soapbox

It's been a relatively busy week of Nintendo news, culminating in the EA Summer Showcase that was more of a polite presentation, in terms of Wii U at least. Once again we take a look at some of the news of the past week and give a personal spin, ranging from optimism to shouting from on top of our soapbox, depending on the...

Doing a lot with BASIC

Petit Computer arrived on North American DSiWare in mid-July, and since that time a number of enthusiastic programmers have no doubt been getting accustomed to the BASIC coding language. The app has already had a positive impact in Japan, with an enthusiastic community that has been producing and sharing innovative games on...

A lost town, solitaire and reduced Mario

This week's North American update has relatively slim pickings, with Wii missing out entirely. There's one title each for eShop and DSiWare, a reduced Mario classic and a couple of videos, so let's look at what we have. eShop: 3D Solitaire (Zen Studios, $2.99) — The title tells you almost everything you...

PEGI takes over and makes under-age selling illegal

It may come as a surprise to those who assumed it was the case, but until 30th July there was no unified, legally binding age rating system for video games in the UK. Unlike so many other products available to buy, the guidelines and ratings in place did not automatically lead to prosecution for...

Is bigger better?

3DS XL landed on European and Japanese shelves over the weekend. It seems to have had a good start; in the UK it outsold the original 3DS model at a rate of around 2:1 and bumped up the software sales of Mario Kart 7, Super Mario 3D Land and Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games — thoug

Button mashing for gold

If you’ve been living in a cave and isolated from the world for the past couple of weeks, then you may not have been bombarded with coverage of the London 2012 Olympic Games. It’s now well under way, and thousands of athletes are running, cycling, swimming and more in the name of winning a shiny gold medal. None of the...

Kung fu, Toki Tori, edutainment and retro fighting

Once again we have news of this week's download delights in Europe, with something on offer for every system you own. Let's get started. 3DS Download Software: Jonny Kung Fu (UFO Interactive, £5.40/€6) — On paper this sounds full of promise, being an old-school side-scrolling action game with...

Freak'n you

Most people have imagined up a character at some point, right? Whether it's your own fantasy Pokémon, an odd person or a bizarre monster, grabbing a pen and paper and drawing whatever comes into your mind is a lot of fun. Thankfully we're not the only ones who think so, as evidenced by games such as Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive!,...

Master of coin

New Super Mario Bros. 2 feels like any of the other games in the New sub-series. The look of it, the audio, the themes of the worlds – they're all safe, familiar comfort blankets that hit the same beats as the rest of the family. That is, until you encounter the central focus that Nintendo is betting its coin on: this time, Mario...

Because art is beauty

Ever since Nintendo introduced the touch screen on the original DS, it was clear to artists that there was plenty of potential to produce art without the need to dig out a canvas and materials. The Art Academy series was a high-profile example on DSi that scratched that itch, as well as being titles that helped to attract yet...

On your marks...

Today brings us the opening ceremony of some sporty-thing in London; it starts with an O and involves lots of very athletic people doing silly things for medals. Frankly, unless any of them have unlocked all of the StreetPass Plaza achievements we refuse to be impressed, and we'll be far too busy playing video games to pay any...

Burning down the house

When some of the folks behind WiiWare wonder World of Goo and the creator of DS darling Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure team up for a project, well, you best sit down and pay attention. Tomorrow Corporation is hoping to light up Wii U when their debut title Little Inferno hits this winter. We caught up with the...

We're back!

You might remember that last year Nintendo Life got its very own eShop shelf, and we directed your attention to a variety of DSiWare and 3DS Download gems. It was such a success that Nintendo has decided that we're awesome enough for a second run, so we're back in the store with our recommendations of the hottest games to get you...

Planet crashing, Wario, moles and more

This week we have all three Nintendo consoles catered for, including a long awaited platformer on the 3DS Virtual Console, the latest from Renegade Kid and much more. Let's get right to it. 3DS Virtual Console: Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 (Game Boy, Nintendo, $3.99) — This has no doubt been on a number...

Those Pikmin have a lot of heavy lifting

With 3DS XL hitting Europe and Japan on 28th July, there'll be a number of 3DS owners that decide to take the plunge. With that in mind you'll need to make sure that you transfer your system account and data, otherwise a lot of saves and costly downloads will disappear — and no-one wants that. Before we...

Is it persuasive enough?

This week we’ve been given a glimpse of Nintendo’s plans for retail download pricing and incentives, both for Japan and North America. It all begins with New Super Mario Bros. 2 and Demon Training in Japan on 28th July, with North America and Europe joining in with Mario’s title on 19th and 17th August respectively...

Crashing, pinball, candles and athletics

It's another Monday, so let's cheer ourselves up in Europe with news of what downloads are coming this week. This week almost every platform is catered for, so let's get to it. 3DS Download Software: Planet Crashers (Ignition, £9/€10) — Planet Crashers is the latest title developed by Renegade Kid, of...

Blazing a trail

Nintendo has been known to dip into its past when looking for the future. The 3DS is a good example: while the handheld may be the first glasses-free 3D video game system, it's hardly the company's first foray into the third dimension. The forgotten Famicom 3D System brought pop-out graphics to Nintendo's original home console in...