Latest Features
Talking Point Cloud Gaming On Switch – The Pros And Cons Of The Cloud
Cloudy with a chance of frame drops
In the years since Switch first launched, we've seen some remarkable ports of games we really didn't expect to see running on the handheld's mobile chipset, let alone running well. Getting cutting-edge cross-platform games on Switch requires hard work and real skill, and with exceptional examples like Witcher 3,...
Feature Evercade's Latest Cart Is Offering A Vital Connection To Nintendo History
You're making me Dizzy, my head is spinning
We've covered the Evercade console a few times on this site, mainly because we love the idea of a brand-new handheld system which uses old-school cartridges. This pocket-friendly device doesn't have the backing of a Nintendo or Sony-sized company behind it, yet the team involved have managed to not only...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (October 24th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
Here we are at the end of another week, which this time brought us a seriously hot take on Nintendo's business practices, a Super Mario Bros. 35 bombshell, and the announcement of an iconic
Feature We've Had Tetris 99 And Mario 35... So, What's The Next Nintendo Battle Royale?
99 Links drop onto an Eventide Island...
The recent arrival of Super Mario Bros. 35 as the second Battle Royale-inspired online multiplayer experience to come following the excellent Tetris 99 poses the question of what other classic Nintendo franchises could be given similar treatment. As enticements to sign up for the Nintendo Switch Online...
Hands On Immortals: Fenyx Rising Could Be The Switch Adventure You Need This Holiday
A Greek Mythological take on the Breath of the Wild formula
Last year at E3, the world was given the first look at a brand new, animated adventure from Ubisoft named Gods & Monsters, and after a year's worth of radio silence, we were finally treated to our first look at gameplay, along with a new take-it-or-leave it name, Immortals: Fenyx...
Poll What Was The Best Switch Launch Game (That Wasn't Zelda: Breath Of The Wild)?
No Link option
As great as the Wii U was (and there's a good reason why the majority of its library has reappeared on its successor), it was never a 'cool' console. Nintendo's mixed messaging and marketing did little to endear it to anybody who wasn't a total devotee to all things Mario — something the company remedied with its next hardware...
Feature Nintendo And Velan Studios On Bringing Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit Into The (Real) World
"This is perhaps the most technologically complex and riskiest project I've worked on"
Following its announcement back in September, Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit recently sped into homes across the land, and no doubt many of you have been crafting intricate circuits around your home, pulling off daring manoeuvres between chair legs, leaving tyre...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (October 17th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
The air's getting colder and the days are getting darker, but this week has been just as busy as ever in the world of Nintendo. The company has been dishing out legal hammer blows against a fan-made Zelda project and a popular TikTok star, Minecraft's Steve arrived in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – along with...
Exclusive Torchlight III Character Class Guide - Best Builds And Tips, Straight From The Devs
Our beginner's guide to classes, Relics, Forts and more
Torchlight III arrives on Switch on 22nd October, just a week and change after its full launch on consoles and PC (it spent several months this year in Early Access on PC). This second sequel to the beloved original from Runic Games switched form during development from a free-to-play title to...
Soapbox 10 Years On, Kirby's Epic Yarn Is Still The Pink Puffball's Finest Outing
Fluff and nonsense
It's time for a Nintendo Life Soapbox confession. Ready? While the majority of the gaming world takes Masahiro Sakurai's most cherished child heartily to their collective bosom (squeezing his squidgy body in their embrace, no doubt), I've always found Kirby a bit... what's the word? Oh yes: rubbish. I'm not talking about how he...
First Impressions Jurassic World Evolution: Complete Edition On Switch
Our thoughts on a hands-off demo with developer Frontier
It's rare that a game launches these days without a dreary, ill-defined subtitle hanging off the end, and that's doubly true of Switch ports. 'Definitive', 'Enhanced' and 'Special' Editions are ten-a-penny, and it generally takes some digging to find exactly what makes them so. Frontier's...
Feature Skyforge Developer On Bringing The Fantasy Sci-Fi MMORPG To Switch
"Switch porting became one of the first big tasks done entirely remotely due to Covid"
A Switch release for fantasy sci-fi MMORPG Skyforge was announced by MY.GAMES and developer Allods Team recently with a 'Fall 2020' launch date. While the exact release date hasn't been announced, this is coming from the same team that dropped F2P tactical team...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (October 10th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
With another week done and dusted – bringing us a Nintendo Treehouse: Live presentation, the tease of the upcoming Smash Bros. Ultimate update, and even a fan-made look at how Breath of the Wild 2 could look running in
Hands On Pikmin 3 Deluxe - This Wii U Classic Is Shaping Up Well On Switch
I'll send Olimar loving to you
As the Switch continues to receive ports of Wii U games, the number of true exclusives on Nintendo's previous console is starting to dwindle. Pikmin 3 is the latest game to be given the Switch treatment, and while the majority of its improvements are minor, so far it looks like they're all positive ones. For those not...
Feature Nintendo Life eShop Selects - September 2020
September's best Switch eShop games!
The number of amazing indies releasing on Switch seems to be showing no signs of slowing down, and last month had a truly wonderful selection of delights to explore. These awards aim to celebrate the best of Nintendo's digital store, giving some love and attention to the games that could so easily be missed in...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (October 3rd)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
We've finally reached the end of a week which has brought us a brand new Super Smash Bros. character, a brand new Animal Crossing update, and some understandably upset Pokémon GO fans, but
First Impressions Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit
Don't get RC about it, you might like it
You probably don't need us to tell you that Mario Kart is one of Nintendo's crown jewels; the series has sold a staggering 150 million copies to date, with 35 million of those attributable to the most recent mainline instalment, Mario Kart 8 – which, in a rather unique twist, is currently the best-selling...
Guide Super Mario Bros. 35 - How To Win And Top Tips For Mario's Switch Battle Royale
Be the last Mario standing
Super Mario Bros. 35 is now available for free on the Nintendo Switch eShop, transforming Mario's classic platforming gameplay into a 35-player battle royale competition. It sounds pretty hectic on paper, and just like Tetris 99, it really is hectic when you reach the final stages. If you're wondering how to win a round...
Feature Rogue Company Goes Free-To-Play - We Speak To The Devs About The Latest Update
F2P launch brings Custom Matches, Masteries and more
Team-based online shooter Rogue Company has reached the end of its paid Early Access period and is now available to play for free on Switch eShop. While some players will have picked up one of the various Founder's Packs when the game launched back in July, there will likely be a huge influx of...
The "WayForward" is clear...
Back in July, at the end of a special Paper Mario-themed Treehouse event, Nintendo teased a special announcement from WayForward, the developers of the Shantae series and tons of retro-inspired titles like Contra 4, DuckTales: Remastered and many more well-loved games. This had fans cooking up ideas and theories of what...
Hands On Is Genshin Impact The Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Clone Fans Thought It Was?
It's out now, so we had a look
There’s been a lot of buzz surrounding a game called Genshin Impact ever since it was revealed back in June 2019, and not because it looks fantastically original; quite to opposite in fact. It didn’t take long for fans to see similarities between Genshin Impact and the latest mainline entry in the popular Zelda...
Do Luna, Stadia and Project xCloud mean the end of unique gaming experiences?
This week, Amazon, the world’s biggest online company, launched a new cloud-based gaming service called Luna. For $5.99 a month (to begin with, at least), anyone will be able to play over 100 popular video games streamed directly from an app you can install on your...
Hands On Blue Fire's Platforming And Zelda-Style Dungeon Combat Shows Promise
Blue Fire walk with me
Over the past few months we've seen an influx of incredible games from smaller studios on Switch and Nintendo's platform feels like a perfect fit for them. We here at Nintendo Life highlighted a bunch of titles in our recent Nintendo Life Indie Spotlight, and the platform holder's Indie World Showcase broadcasts regularly...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 26th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
With more NES and SNES games to tuck into on Switch, lots of excitement around Super Mario 3D All-Stars and yet another Nintendo lawsuit to tuck into, this week's been another busy affair. Thankfully, then, it's time to sit down and discuss our weekend gamin
Talking Point Does Nintendo Have A Refund Problem?
All digital purchases are final, but should they be?
A mainstream shift towards digital distribution and media consumption has been in motion for years now, but the events of 2020 have arguably accelerated the adoption and acceptance of digital purchases. Lockdown measures throughout the year have prevented trips to your local game emporiums, and...
Feature Jankenteam On Reviving Alex Kidd For A Whole New Generation Of Players
"He's my little son"
The first new Alex Kidd title since 1990's Alex Kidd in Shinobi World is coming to the Switch in 2021, and it's a fresh coat of paint for a franchise-defining Sega classic, in the form of Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX. Remaking a game as widely-played and beloved as Miracle World raises all manner of challenges; how will it...
Talking Point Could Monster Hunter Rise Hint At New Switch Hardware On The Horizon?
All just a little bit of history repeating?
Friday 26th March 2021. The date that Monster Hunter Rise, a brand-new and bespoke entry in Capcom's beast-battling series, will be arriving on Nintendo Switch. It's not the only game to land that day — Balan Wonderworld is scheduled to drop on the last Friday in March, too — but Capcom's game is the...
Feature The Story Of Virtual Tank, A Lost Virtual Boy Successor To Atari's Battlezone
"We were really surprised at the speed that the platform died"
We've pleased to present a chapter from Bitmap Books' excellent The Games That Weren't, which looks at an unreleased Virtual Boy title that aimed to emulate the success of Atari's Battlezone – but sadly never saw the light of day. Nintendo helped rejuvenate the games industry after...
Feature Behind The Music Of Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition
We speak to the people behind this wonderous soundtrack
A little while ago Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition arrived on Switch and took many of us on a nostalgia trip to the beloved GameCube original from 2003. While the launch of the remaster perhaps wasn't as smooth as you might hope, one area where it really excelled was the...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 19th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
What a busy week we've had! With a Nintendo Direct, our very own Nintendo Life Indie Spotlight presentation, and plenty of exciting goings-on in the world of Nintendo, we're all feeling pretty exhausted. What better time, then, to sit back and chat about what we'll be playing over the w
Exclusive TENS! Marks The Return Of Codemasters' Co-Founder To The World Of Nintendo
"The overwhelming majority of our team members are avid Switch players"
Kwalee might not be a studio that is instantly familiar to many console players, but the name of the man who founded it should ring a bell. David Darling, along with his brother Richard, established Codemasters in the '80s to create software for home computers like the ZX...
Feature Video Game Vocab To Spark Forum Wars - Ten Of Gaming's Trickiest Terms
Them's fighting words!
As with any medium or specialised field, the world of video games has created a vast list of jargon that may not mean much to people unacquainted with the medium and its making. Try describing the latest anime roguelike MOBA with turn-based SRPG trappings to non-gamers and you'll be met with blank faces. Video game...
Feature Hyrule Warriors: Age Of Calamity Gives Our Beloved Champions A Second Chance
How Breath Of The Wild’s prequel can finally do justice for our four heroes
Nintendo knows a thing or two about pulling off surprises and few could’ve expected that recent Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity reveal. With no real rumours or leaks foreshadowing it, we suddenly had a brand-new Legend of Zelda game to look forward to. Fans hoping for...
Feature From Virtual Boy To Mario Kart Live - Nintendo's History In Mixed Realities
Mario Kart Live was a surprise, but far from unprecedented
It's been six years since we first experienced the wonderful Mario Kart 8 on Wii U, becoming the troubled console’s best-selling title and up until last week, fans had been wondering where the next entry was. Sure, Deluxe arrived in 2017 with expanded content and mobile users have enjoyed
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 12th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
It's been another crazy week in Nintendo Land, with the announcement of a brand new Zelda game on Switch and more rumours of Nintendo diving into the world of 4K, but enough about that – let's talk about our weekend gaming plans. Members of Nintendo Life have done just that below, and we'
Hardware That Animal Crossing Pad That Looks Like Tom Nook's Face? It's Pretty Good
"I'll be there with bells on!"
Peripheral maker Stoga has released a series of Animal Crossing: New Horizons-inspired wireless controllers for the Nintendo Switch. These aren't the first Animal Crossing-style pads we've seen – PowerA has
Poll How Do You Feel About 'Limited-Time' Games From Nintendo?
Sneaky tactics or totally legit?
Last week, cheers of jubilation went around the internet as Nintendo finally announced that the long-rumoured collection of classic 3D Mario games, coming on 18th September. However, spirits were dampened for some when they noticed an odd detail about Super Mario 3D All-Stars: it will be a limited-time release...
Talking Point Can Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit Possibly Be As Good As It Looks?
Our inner six-year-olds are losing it right now
Last week, after many months of rumour and speculation, we were finally treated to the 35th Anniversary Super Mario announcements we'd been waiting for. As well as the expected remasters in the form of Super Mario 3D All-Stars and a Switch port of Super Mario 3D World (
Feature What's The Deal With Super Mario 64's "Shindou Pak Taiou" Version, Anyway?
Mario 64's obscure update you may not be familiar with
By now, we’ve surely all seen the news that Super Mario 64 is finally arriving on Switch as part of Super Mario 3D All-Stars, joining Super Mario Sunshine and Super Mario Galaxy in a limited-time bundle.
"The biggest thing that hasn't really changed is that it's always changing"
The long-awaited release of Kingdom Hearts III on other console platforms last year brought a conclusion, of sorts, to a storied saga which began way back in 2002 on PS2. We say 'of sorts' because the notoriously unwieldy narrative of this series will naturally continue in...
Feature Nintendo Life eShop Selects - August 2020
August's best Switch eShop games!
With August now but a distant memory thanks to the deluge of Super Mario announcements last week, it's time to take a look back some of the great games that launched on Switch over the previous month in the latest edition of Nintendo Life eShop Selects. These awards aim to celebrate the best of Nintendo's digital...
Feature Bounty Battle Dev On Building A Smash-Style Brawler With Indie Game Heroes
"There are 23 characters from other games ... that involved contracts and a lot of emails!"
When you look at the behemoth that is Super Smash Bros. these days, game developers with an idea for all-star brawler could be forgiven for thinking 'what's the point?'. Nintendo's series has grown to become the byword when it comes to frantic fighters, and...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 5th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
Another week has flown by with strange new trademarks, Mario sneakers and a revelation of the most painfully generic vidya game title Ubisoft's marketing team could produce (and there was
Feature Nintendo Fans, This Video Game Database Needs Your Help
Can you aid Family Gamer TV's Andy Robertson?
Long-time friend of the site Andy Robertson is working on a new project which seeks to benefit families and those seeking accessibility options within games, and you can help. There are many ways to find out about video games online. Some of these aim to provide vital information to help you make...
Soapbox Nintendogs Prepared Me For Life As A Dog Owner, And Now I Want A Switch Version
Doggy stylus
Nintendo's cute canine sim first came bounding onto Nintendo DS just over 15 years ago in the US, way back in August 2005. In this Soapbox article, Rebecca remembers how the original game took over her life and ponders where the series has wandered off to... When I was eight years old, all I wanted was a pooch of my own to love and...
Talking Point Are Shiny Pokémon Too Common These Days?
One Corviknight in shining armor too many?
Shiny Pokémon are a staple of the Pokémon franchise, but as time has progressed, things have shifted and the ways to get them have become more plentiful. Here, we’re taking a look at Shiny Pokémon, their history, how things have changed and asking the question: are they too common now? What are Shiny...
Feature How Savvy Innovators Are Plugging Gaps In Animal Crossing: New Horizons
"This wouldn’t be the first time fans have made a tool to complement the game"
In a recent Instagram post, Nicole Cuddihy told her audience that creating more inclusive patterns for Animal Crossing: New Horizons characters has helped her accept her own skin, including “spots, blemishes and stretch marks.” Cuddihy is a New Horizons pattern...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (August 29th)
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
Another busy week has flown by with new reports of an upcoming Switch console revision and that surprise Nintendo Direct Mini, but now it's time to take a breather and chat about our weekend gaming plans. Members of Nintendo Life have done just that below, and we'd love for you to join in via o
Feature The History Of World Of Tanks Blitz, Wargaming's Military Action MMO Now On Nintendo Switch
Tanks for the memories
Today, Wargaming has announced that it's bringing the World of Tanks franchise to a Nintendo console for the very first time; World of Tanks Blitz has Switch in its sights, and it's advancing on your position imminently. If you’re not familiar with Wargaming (the company), you’re more than likely familiar with one of the...
Book Review Flicking Through The Vibrant World Of Yooka-Laylee And The Kracklestone
Over a hundred pagies long
The spiritual successor to the legendary bear and bird besties, Yooka-Laylee, nearly shook the earth when they were revealed through a Kickstarter project by Playtonic Games, the brand new studio made up of ex-Rare developers. Since the original reveal back in 2015, the team has managed to put out not just one, but two...