Features News - Page 9 of 48

A touch of class

When Nintendo announced, in Spring 2012, that it was taking on the role of providing the interactive museum guides at the Louvre in Paris, it seemed slightly odd. The prospect of visitors wandering around the famous site with a 3DS around their necks seemed peculiar, but there it was in undeniable reality. We learned that it had...

The new Ray Gun, a Zelda train, Bowser schooling Sonic and more

Monday is here again, so it's time to enjoy our regular dose of new screens for Super Smash Bros.; they arrive, as always, courtesy of Masahiro Sakurai on the Super Smash Bros. Director's Room Miiverse community board. We know how hard he's working on these games, so we're always...

Will Nintendo's platform and games succeed this December?

We're now approaching — or in some places have reached — the end of the madness of the Black Friday shopping weekend, an annual fixture in North America and to a lesser extent elsewhere. Of course, the Holiday shopping gig isn't up, and as we enter December we kick off a vital few weeks...

"Child of Light has many unique and distinctive features"

Upcoming Wii U eShop releases that catch the eye are often from small, independent developers, with a sense that it's these small teams that have freedom to express new ideas or conventionally niche approaches. For multi-national, multi-million dollar publishers the focus can be different,...

So long teens, hello more awesome games

It's finally happened, the WGAYPTW series has left its teens, and the emotional crisis it prompted led to it missing its normal schedule — that's right, it was nothing to do with the features editor forgetting to organise it, no way. But it's fine, this little series of game-related tittle-tattle is ready...

Consoles, games, and random stuff that must be owned

Farewell, stable bank balances. Prepare yourselves, credit cards. The Holiday season is upon us, with Black Friday — which is really Black Friday Week now — already kicking into gear in the U.S. and plenty of other places besides. It's the season to be jolly and generous to others, while...

An unboxing of epic proportions

How time flies. It only seems like yesterday that we reported that Prima Games — famed for its detailed strategy guides — would be releasing a collectable box set containing strategy guides for several recent Zelda titles, including Twilight Princess,

Mario, Link, Pikmin and lots of lovely art

Back in August Nintendo released Art Academy: SketchPad on the Wii U eShop, a budget-priced drawing tool that utilises the GamePad touch screen and allows full colour image posts to Miiverse. For artistically minded Wii U owners it's certainly a terrific option that can deliver impressive results; not long...

"It’s a hobby that just kind of escalated"

Just last week we published the first part of our chat with Nifflas, in which the game designer — full name Nicklas Nygren — outlined many of the ideas that form upcoming Wii U eShop title Knytt Underground. We learnt a great deal about the complexity and depth that the title is striving for, in the...

Mario in space, a sleepy Marth, celebrating 3D World and more

It's another Monday, the nights are drawing in and the festive season — with its associated shopping madness — approaches. Yet some things remain constant and reliable, such as new screens for Super Smash Bros. being posted by Masahiro Sakurai on the Super Smash Bros. Director's Room...

Strong concept or pricey issue?

We're stepping into a vital period on the market for the Wii U. It's certainly far too early to say it's the definitive moment for the system, as releases such as Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. will also be maximised by Nintendo to achieve notable sales and momentum. With that in mind, it should still be...

Damien McFerran on how Nintendo's new 3DS Zelda has created a vital bond

More than two decades ago, an excitable 12 year-old boy huddled down in front of his Super Nintendo console armed with a copy of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Having witnessed the critical acclaim directed towards this new action RPG the youth expectantly flicked...

"I would say it’s a beautiful, slow-paced experience, very ambient."

We've emphasized in recent times that there are a good number of intriguing download-only titles coming to the Wii U eShop, bringing a variety of experiences to the fore. One that could be particularly involving and complex for players to tackle may be Knytt Underground, a...

Will an overwhelmingly positive critical response and buzz deliver success?

Something slightly surprising, to me at least, happened yesterday. Super Mario 3D World had a wonderful series of reviews that went live, on any major outlet you'd care to name, bang on the embargo. I'm not talking about the scores — which were excellent — but the...

Marth's sword, The Villager's net, a MARIO GALAXY STAGE and more

We hope you agree that Mondays are made a little better with more Super Smash Bros. screens, with this 13th entry in our series being unlucky for absolutely no-one; Masahiro Sakurai has been busy, as always, on the Super Smash Bros. Director's Room Miiverse community board. Last week's...

It ain't about 'next-gen' any more

So can everyone stop talking about 'next gen" now, or do we have to wait for the One to complete the Triforce of systems? No doubt there'll still be talk of "next gen" experiences and bickering over resolutions and framerates, all while Mario casually says hi with 3D World. There's arguably a sense that the more...

There's still some distance to go

Since the Wii U launched with its shiny new Nintendo Network ID system, we've been both pleased and frustrated with its implementation. The fact it's tied to the home console hardware has led us to be critical, on occasion, to the point where we once rather cruelly equated it to the abomination of its equivalent...

Andy Robertson reveals how Zelda has inspired his son's artistic side

The biggest challenge in a family is the different perception of video games. While the gamers understand these experiences to be some of the most endearing, creative and life-giving encounters they experience, non-gamers consider them dry, solitary and mechanical affairs. Over...

Big news for 3DS and a whole load of release dates and details

So, another Nintendo Direct broadcast has come and gone. The reaction online seemed to be, as is now standard, rather mixed. Some have expressed disappointment, while others (such as this writer) thought the broadcasts did a rather good job. Primarily announced as providing details on...

As the critics attack, Satoru Iwata simply looks ahead

It's been, overall, a tough couple of weeks for the Wii U's image in the online land of gaming enthusiasts. The focused attention of many outlets is, unsurprisingly and quite correctly, on the upcoming launches of the PS4 and the Xbox One, with Super Mario 3D World just about grabbing some...

Marth, gardening tips, a spaceship-shaped bomb and more

With the start of another week we have our trusty round-up of screens from Super Smash Bros., courtesy of Masahiro Sakurai on the Super Smash Bros. Director's Room Miiverse community board. Last week delivered another character announcement, with Marth confirmed as the latest challenge

Rob Burgess explains how a country with 40 million people has been missed

Earlier this year we posted an article based on a Nintendo fan's blog, which explained how difficult it was to buy a Wii U in Poland, a large European country. Rob Burgess, the author of that blog, has since written a follow up article in which he explains in a little more...

"We’re making an interesting hybrid of some of our favourite games"

While the Wii U eShop has a fair number of download-only projects on the way, it's a relatively modest number that are exclusive to the platform. That's unsurprising, as development tool such as Unity — combined with supportive low cost-of-entry platforms — allow smaller...

Wii Sports Club keeps it local, unless you're in a PAL territory

Nintendo can work in mysterious ways at times, especially when it comes to online modes. Some will feel that the company doesn't actually deliver enough online gaming — with many titles committed to local multiplayer only — while we have others serving up regional online play...