News Article

Welcome to the New Look Nintendo Life!

Posted Wed, 01 Apr 2009 by Damien McFerran

A new dawn for all things Nintendo

A new dawn for all things Nintendo

Times they are a-changin'

In the history of mankind there have been many great moments. The discovery of fire. The invention of the wheel. The harnessing of electricity. Now we can add yet another achievement to that list - the creation of the new-look Nintendo Life!

Yes indeed, what you now gaze upon is the culmination of months of hard work and torment. The old order has been swept away; Virtual Console Reviews and WiiWare World are no more. They have fused with Nintendo Life to create an unstoppable monster of a website that will consume all in its path, and then politely request seconds afterwards.

However, we're well aware that many of you fear change, so we've compiled this handy FAQ which should hopefully answer all your most pressing questions.

Q: WTF? What have you done with my beloved WiiWare World and Virtual Console Reviews?

A: Don’t panic. The sites have simply been merged under the Nintendo Life banner, creating the ultimate one-stop resource for all things Nintendo. All of the content, reviews and news have been moved across, and as you can see at the top of the screen, everything is nearly divided up into different sections.

Q: Why in the name of Mario's underpants has this been done?

A: This move will ultimately make the combined sites stronger, better and easier to navigate. We found that it was getting to the point where it didn’t make sense to have three different sites – all focusing on Nintendo – running separately. By fusing them together we will create a strong base from which to expand even further. It will also help us when it comes to scoring exclusive interviews and obtaining early reviews, all of which benefits you, the reader.

Q: Will I have to re-register to join the Nintendo Life community?

A: Nope! Your log-in details from WWW/VCR will work here too! Great, eh?

Q: What happens to the staff of WiiWare World and VC Reviews? Will they be retired?

A: Not at all. All of our staff have been retained and we’ve even added new, talented writers to the mix. Again, all of this means you’ll be getting even better Nintendo coverage.

Q: I'm not interested in all things Nintendo and just want WiiWare / Virtual Console news. How do I get that?

A: Simple! Just click the relevant tab at the top of the screen and you'll be presented with information that relates solely to that section. However, the main Nintendo Life page will stream news from ALL sections, so we'd advise you bookmark that; you might miss out on something of interest otherwise.

Q: I hate this change! Why have you ruined my favourite site?

A: Sorry you feel that way, but sometimes change has to happen for things to get better. Stick with us and we’re sure you’ll change your mind over time!

Q: Can I curl up into the fetal position and suck my thumb until I awaken from this bad dream?

A: Feel free to, but think of all the wonderful new features you'll be missing out on. Not to mention the fact that there's no telling where that thumb of yours has been.

Q: What happens to my subscribed RSS feeds?

A: Fear not! You should be redirected to the appropriate channel on Nintendo Life. For example, if you previously subscribed to the Virtual Console Reviews feed, you will be directed to that part of the new site.

Q: Can you change something?

A: Yes, give us your feedback in our support forum and it will all help us improve the site, we're open to your ideas and we'll build new exciting features over time.

Q: I've spotted a bug!

Nasty! Head over to our help forum and report it, if you please!

Q: Speaking of forums, what has happened to the old one? Have you deleted all of the posts, you heartless monsters?

A: Nope. VC-Forums still exists and all of the posts are still there. VC-Forums was never actually 'part' of Virtual Console Reviews - it was established by a fan and we merely linked to it because we lacked our own dedicated forum. However, now the sites are fused we no longer link to VC-Forums.

Q: OK guys, very funny. This is an April Fool's joke, right?

You wish! :P

Tags: Announcements, WiiWare, Virtual Console, DSiWare.

User Comments

Dazza

1. Dazza United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 10:48 BST

It's the end of an era! :-p

Corbie

2. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 10:49 BST

...and the beginning of a new one! :D

Damo

3. Damo United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 10:59 BST

Exactly Corbie! Ignore Daz, he's always been the negative type ;)

Dazza

4. Dazza United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:13 BST

Shut it or I'll shove that Virtual Boy where the sun don't shine! lol

KeeperBvK

5. KeeperBvK Germany 01 Apr 2009, 11:15 BST

"Q: I hate this change! Why have you ruined my favourite site?"

Taken the words right out of my mouth.

Corbie

6. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:16 BST

People fear change, but change is inevitable. :)

Sean Aaron

7. Sean Aaron United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:21 BST

I'm pleased. Now I only need one bookmark!

Dazza

8. Dazza United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:22 BST

Some people fear changing their underwear...

Damo

9. Damo United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:22 BST

KeeperBvK - sorry you feel that way, but if you look under the surface you'll see that this is essentially the same site as WWW/VCR, just with a slightly different interface and even more content.

Stick with us - you won't be disappointed.

Corbie

10. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:23 BST

I don't wear underwear, so that's not a problem for me! :P

Damo

11. Damo United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:26 BST

Thanks for that horrible mental image, Corbie!

Wiiloveit

12. Wiiloveit United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:39 BST

I hate this change! Why have you ruined my favourite site?

Oh, right. You already said why.
The 'site looks pretty snazzy, but it'll just take some getting used to.
RIP WiiWareWorld

One more question: what does this mean for the YouTube channels? Is WiiWareWorld officially dead?

Corbie

13. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:41 BST

RIP WiiWareWorld

I second that. Oh and RIP VC-Reviews as well.

starmud

14. starmud United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:42 BST

i like this :o the tab system is really nice and visually appealing D:

PopeReal

15. PopeReal United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:42 BST

Makes sense. Now to get rid of a couple bookmarks :P

Vertigo

16. Vertigo United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:46 BST

Oh well, that's a shame, another decent site (www) merged and turned into the corporate ugly, rounded-edges blog look. Was hoping the date is relevant to this article but somehow doubt it.

ALDAWGZ

17. ALDAWGZ United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:47 BST

looks great and more efficent i 4 1 welcome the change

Corbie

18. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:49 BST

Oh well, that's a shame, another decent site (www) merged and turned into the corporate ugly, rounded-edges blog look.

We've got to pay for our Ferraris and Penthouse apartments, now don't we? :P

WiiRevolution1

19. WiiRevolution1 United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:50 BST

Looks great! Like the new site.

Eva

20. Eva United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:51 BST

Not sure about the design but I never liked when Wii-ware split off from VC reviews, so sticking everything back together is a good idea.

timp29

21. timp29 Australia 01 Apr 2009, 11:54 BST

Nice work guys! It really makes so much more sense to do it this way. Looking forward to being able to waste my time better with more content :D

Wiiloveit

22. Wiiloveit United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 11:57 BST

The one thing I don't like is the coming soon and out now lists, which take up a lot more space than before.

One question though guys: what is the exact difference between the Retro and Virtual Console sections?

Corbie

23. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:58 BST

Retro will include all classic Nintendo systems and games, regardless of whether or not they've been released on the Virtual Console or not. You might have noticed that the Banjo Kazooie review just went live a short while ago. :)

Plus we have some other retro goodies coming soon as well. :)

Turkey Brutus

24. Turkey Brutus United States 01 Apr 2009, 11:59 BST

Hey dudes, I'm new here. What's this site about?

Wiiloveit

25. Wiiloveit United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 12:03 BST

@Corbie: I did notice it, but I thought I'd better check. Is the retro page the new space for your own Retro Rated 'site, or is it something completely different? Also: the Banjo review is also posted in the Virtual Console section, despite not being out yet on the system. Silly you.

@Chicken Brutus: Don't you work for these guys xD - anyways: try looking here.

Bendover83

26. Bendover83 United States 01 Apr 2009, 12:03 BST

VC/WWW mesh into this NL is a nice combo. A little fancy lookin but not bad. O, in coming soon and out now list doesn't have a filter for US/EU. Unless I overlooked it. I like to see what we don't have and EU does and vica versa.

VGP

27. VGP United States 01 Apr 2009, 12:07 BST

LOVE IT I mean wii,dsi,wiiware,dsiware,virtual console,retro and maybe dsi vc if it comes.this is gotta be the coolest video game website ever. R.I.P VC reviews and WIIWARE world I'LL always remember you

Corbie

28. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 12:08 BST

Well for the time being, Retro is as close as we'll get to Retro-Rated. That's been put on hold as we've been working on this new site fusion. Who knows what will become of it someday. But don't you worry, we'll be putting plenty of new content up in the Retro section that should keep you plenty busy in the meantime. :)

PALgamer

29. PALgamer Spain 01 Apr 2009, 12:09 BST

I don't like the name of the site much, but I come here for the content so having it all merged up is great! Designs are bigger and fill my screen more. Although I miss the blue, white from WWW, change is always healthy.

LinkGalaxy

30. LinkGalaxy Greece 01 Apr 2009, 12:11 BST

It has became a really awesome site! @_@

That Guy from Faxanadu

31. That Guy from Faxanadu Sweden 01 Apr 2009, 12:25 BST

In general, I don´t mind the new design.

But Banjo Kazooie had me confused. Why is the review posted in the Virtuual Console section when the game has not been released (and probably never will be) on VC? I suppose it should belong to the retro- part of the site instead.

As long as you don´t lose focus on the VC / WiiWare coverage I´m pleased with the redesign :)

Draygone

32. Draygone United States 01 Apr 2009, 12:28 BST

Q: OK guys, very funny. This is an April Fool's joke, right?

You wish! :P

If it were, it'd be the most elaborate AF joke I've ever seen.

pHaT-aNt_

33. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 12:33 BST

@That Guy from Faxanadu, that was a day 1 glitch, it's fixed now :)

Objection_Blaster

34. Objection_Blaster United States 01 Apr 2009, 12:44 BST

Q: OK guys, very funny. This is an April Fool's joke, right?

You wish!
I was actualy going to ask this. WHy did you choose to do it today of all days then? I thought it was gonna go up when the DSi cam out in Europe? Or is that today? (Or IS IT? The most elaborate AF joke ever-Europe doesn't really get the DSi before the US!)

Wiiloveit

35. Wiiloveit United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 12:46 BST

@That Guy from Faxanadu: I said that. Stop copying me.

Mayhem

36. Mayhem United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 12:46 BST

Yeah, was gonna ask exactly the same thing OB... people might think it was a joke heh...

Chipmunk777

37. Chipmunk777 United States 01 Apr 2009, 12:46 BST

what a poor choice of days to unveil the new design though!

I thought at first that it had to be an april fool's joke, but clicking around the site with the new layout and everything, there's no way you guys made all that new content and stuff just for an april fool's joke :P but if you did, you certainly will have tricked us all.

but anyway, I rather like the new layout. although I will miss the old vc reviews layout :[

mrPlow

38. mrPlow Finland 01 Apr 2009, 12:48 BST

Nice layout, also that search bar at the top of the page is excellent with suggests and mini-images (Is that some kind of AJAX technology or perhaps magic :) ) Anyway it works great. Keep up the good work!

chunky_droid

39. chunky_droid Australia 01 Apr 2009, 12:48 BST

Awesome, now I only have to go to one page, you guys did well!

Dazza

40. Dazza United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 12:52 BST

@Objection_Blaster WHy did you choose to do it today of all days then?

Well the DSi launches in Australia tomorrow. We didn't want WiiWare World to get too swamped with DSiWare reviews. The timing just goes to show our warped sense of humour here! lol

Also it is my baby girls birthday- 1 year old today!

Toddr

41. Toddr Canada 01 Apr 2009, 12:55 BST

So will all the comments still be here?

Wiiloveit

42. Wiiloveit United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 12:57 BST

@mrPlow: I believe they call it the ancient art of wizardry - not "magic". And that was featured on all three of the sites before anyway.

@Dazza: Good thinking - if you'd have put the new site up tomorrow, people would've been too busy fretting over the fact that everything's different instead of looking at the new reviews. Will there even be any new games for Australia tomorrow anyway? I'd have thought that games would still get released on the Friday, like the rest of Europe, but I suppose that it's anyones guess really.
Also, your baby is a joke... right?

@Toddr: Yarp.

Corbie

43. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 12:57 BST

Happy Birthday Emma! And yes, all comments are still here.

Toddr

44. Toddr Canada 01 Apr 2009, 12:57 BST

@ BahamutZERO

So, I guess you were wrong about how they were going to do this. :P

reekon

45. reekon Philippines 01 Apr 2009, 12:58 BST

I guess I'm the conservative type, as I'm also "shocked" by the changes. I hate change when the old ways were so good and happy.
But let me give it to you guys, it makes total sense for this to happen, and in the end, it does make everything easier and better.
Give me a few days, and I should be fine too. ;-)

Nanaki

46. Nanaki United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 13:02 BST

Great work on the new site Bossman! Give yourself a biscuit, or two!

@reekon Yeah, all new interfaces will take a little while to get used to, but NL has been evolving for over 3 years now and it's a format that works well IMHO.

Also, don't forget to hook up the old RSS so the news and reviews come to you... although the comment RSS will have gone crazy when I am home tomorrow!

Nintendo-Naut

47. Nintendo-Naut United States 01 Apr 2009, 13:05 BST

Not so sure about this...

Pikamander2

48. Pikamander2 United States 01 Apr 2009, 13:06 BST

You've got to love the two ads at the top of the page.

Vertigo

49. Vertigo United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 13:14 BST

Corbie: "We've got to pay for our Ferraris and Penthouse apartments, now don't we?"
True, true, I mean whatever works really, I'm just not a fan of that whole Windows XP rounded edges look really. Still the same content, perhaps even better, so whatever. And tbh I wasn't even aware there was a sister DS site anyway, so that's good, although I have zero interest in DSi but the VC bit interests me.

Jockolantern

50. Jockolantern United States 01 Apr 2009, 13:22 BST

Provided a portion of this whole redesign doesn't turn into some elaborate April Fool's Joke (I trust not a single website on this day for anything, albeit this update would turn out to be quite the extravagant joke)... I like it. It's a solid redesign and the tab system works very nicely. Well done. _

Damo

51. Damo United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 13:26 BST

Say happy birthday to Emma from me Daz!

Digiki

52. Digiki Canada 01 Apr 2009, 13:27 BST

Aww, the VC-R aesthetic was so much better cries

Ouazegaga

53. Ouazegaga France 01 Apr 2009, 13:28 BST

Congrats for the new skin, it's really clear and has a lot of appeal.

But I can't retain a tear for "the not perfect presentation" Wiiware World. This made its value as it were. ;)

King is dead, long life to the King!

Olimar_91

54. Olimar_91 United States 01 Apr 2009, 13:31 BST

Looks amazing. :D

Dazza

55. Dazza United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 13:39 BST

@Wiiloveit - Also, your baby is a joke... right?

Erm no... here's baby Emma enjoying her 1st birthday pressie. I suppose I should jazz it up to look like a Mario Kart! :-p

Luigi La Bouncy

56. Luigi La Bouncy United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 13:40 BST

It all looks too generic for my liking and for that reason alone I think you'll turn off future internet surfers. To be honest I'd might as well just go to ign or one of the countless others now. You've lost the simple charm that you had before.

thewiirocks

57. thewiirocks United States 01 Apr 2009, 13:41 BST

WTF? What have you done with my beloved WiiWare World and Virtual Console Reviews?!?

Don’t panic.

Don't tell me not to panic! I'm panicking! I'm panicking! huff huff wheeze I hate this change! Why have you ruined my favourite site?

Sorry you feel that way, but sometimes change has to happen for things to get better.

Stop reading my mind! I don'ts likes it! I don'ts likes it! I'm going to curl up into the fetal position and suck my thumb until I awaken from this bad dream!

There's no telling where that thumb of yours has been.

Stop it!

/me runs off screaming...

(Congrats on the upgrade! Jerks. You've had your fun. Now change it back! Change it back! Arrrggghhh!! :P)

Nanaki

58. Nanaki United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 13:57 BST

@Luigi La Bouncy, Well, we've still got the by the gamers for the gamers vibe that IGN don't have, and the sites a lot clearer than the IGN mess. I love the integration; it means more opportunity to natter on about geeky things!

Smileoscar

59. Smileoscar Sweden 01 Apr 2009, 14:11 BST

Awesome site guys!

jangonov

60. jangonov United States 01 Apr 2009, 14:14 BST

I actually like the change. I've been visiting nintendo life for a while now. I dont see what the problem is

jangonov

61. jangonov United States 01 Apr 2009, 14:21 BST

EXCEPT for the annoying ads "her IQ is 105 can you beat that?"
.......who cares?!?!? I understand that advertising on websites is important, but please have some intelligent ads. Ads for more games or something relevant to the site. I don't think many gamers care if they are smarter than Brittany Spears.

Ian Daemon

62. Ian Daemon United States 01 Apr 2009, 14:26 BST

"...it didn’t make sense to have three different sites - all focusing on Nintendo - running separately. By fusing them together we will create a strong base from which to expand even further..."

So you think putting all your eggs in one basket is a stronger approach?

Atlantis1982

63. Atlantis1982 United States 01 Apr 2009, 14:26 BST

...I approve the change. A bit startled for a second, but I approve. :)

longtimegamer

64. longtimegamer United States 01 Apr 2009, 14:29 BST

Whoa. Way to confuse me guy! Never mess with a guys head when he just gets up.

I loved some of the questions in the article...Funny stuff.:)

Well I guess I've got to go explore this place.

@Dazza - Happybirthday to Emma. :)

Edited-The Featured reviews title box has it's words mixed together. Anyone eles see this? I'm using my Wii to view this.

kokernutz

65. kokernutz United States 01 Apr 2009, 14:40 BST

I love it - looks great!

KnucklesSonic8

66. KnucklesSonic8 Canada 01 Apr 2009, 14:45 BST

Awesome. I had a feeling you guys would do this and I must say it was well worth waiting for.

seanehawk

67. seanehawk United States 01 Apr 2009, 14:56 BST

Looked odd at first sight, but i'm starting to like it :)

BF-Medic

68. BF-Medic Norway 01 Apr 2009, 15:00 BST

Good work!

This makes it so much easier to stay updated on both VC & WiiWare news :) Especially when thinking about all the upcoming stuff on DSiWare!

Changes my Home-page settings

Nanaki

69. Nanaki United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 15:00 BST

@jangonov, sometimes the advertising doesn't always fit in with what each individual is looking for - I find that from time to time. But it is what funds the site and keeps up moving onwards.

@Ian Daemon, I certainly think so: risk and reward. By pooling our resources together we are no longer a disjointed hodgepodge of staff members, we have become a well-oiled (in the non greek sense) machine. I can't really see any dissadvantages to bringing the sites together.

SmaMan

70. SmaMan United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:05 BST

So that's why my RSS feeds went crazy with 20 new updates. Well it'll be nice to converge it into one. I like the change! At least I'm not alone in thinking this was this was an April Fools Joke.

pHaT-aNt_

71. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 15:05 BST

@jangonov, yeah.. you'll actually see different ads because your in the US to our EU users, we're working with our US partner to try and improve the quality of the ads, we'd much prefer to only have gaming ones too!

Popyman

72. Popyman United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:07 BST

This is a lot better than the crap the Fanboy sites turned into. I still don't like the name "Nintendo Life" though...

WarioFan63

73. WarioFan63 United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:12 BST

I have to say I like how VC-R and WWW are now just a TAB away.

Nanaki

74. Nanaki United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 15:12 BST

@Popyman, it grows on you, like something that grows really well

Chipmunk777

75. Chipmunk777 United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:14 BST

I do like it better, although it doesn't really affect me that much since I mostly just use RSS feeds to keep up with VC/wiiware stuff anyway :P

which reminds me, I have to change the rss feeds on my other computer...

wanderlustwarrior

76. wanderlustwarrior United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:17 BST

I always liked the WWW colors, but i was starting to shift over to NL anyway. i welcome the change and the ease of navigation

Edit: if this was an April Fool's joke, it would have been great

vherub

77. vherub United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:24 BST

I had to retype the address into the browser a couple times, thinking I had gone to a different site.
The redesign and merger looks great to me.

Bensei

78. Bensei Austria 01 Apr 2009, 15:29 BST

Sweet!

thewiirocks

79. thewiirocks United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:30 BST

@jangonov - <pedantic>Doesn't it claim that Brenda Song's IQ is over 120 or something? 105 would be easy for most visitors to beat.</pedantic><cynical>Of course, it's a scam ad anyway, so it really doesn't matter what it says.</cynical><evil>Not that anything should stop you from clicking on it. If they want to give money to the website-formerly-known-as-WiiWare-World so you can laugh at their site, more power to 'em! ;)</evil>

Relevant Latty

80. Relevant Latty United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 15:33 BST

Glad everythings unified and both of the site's cast survived. Wouldn't be the same without them :D. The only thing I don't like is the fact I still can't use my hotmail account on here! :P.

Now I hope this ain't an April Fools prank but I doubt it since you guys are all here to enjoy this miraculous change! :)

pikmin95

81. pikmin95 United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:37 BST

I'm not that big of a fan of this new look. Give me VCR and WWW back!

Tragickingdom

82. Tragickingdom United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:39 BST

Man I hate change....seems like every time I go to my favorite web sites they have changed something....if it is not broke......

MaxPlastic

83. MaxPlastic United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:41 BST

Hrmmm...

MaxPlastic

84. MaxPlastic United States 01 Apr 2009, 15:47 BST

It's also weird to see WWW and VC-R people together... Some of us just stuck to one site or the other...
~ Come on, people now... Smile on your brother, everybody get together, try to love one another right now... ~

pHaT-aNt_

85. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 15:50 BST

@Relevant Latty, we might have an update on that soon, hopefully.

@pikmin95, haha we feel your pain - how about we give you a VCR and WWW skin to choose from? ;)

MarkyVigoroth

86. MarkyVigoroth Puerto Rico 01 Apr 2009, 16:03 BST

The first two comments in this article reminded me of the Death Arcana... :P

Anyways, I actually like this! There is no more need for a DSi Ware/Virtual Handheld World!

anthonyb

87. anthonyb United States 01 Apr 2009, 16:05 BST

This better not be an April 1st joke! This is AWESOME! And there's a forum! I feel like a kid with a brand-new playground!

Nintendophile

88. Nintendophile United States 01 Apr 2009, 16:12 BST

Ohhhh, I really did think it was an April Fool's Day joke when I typed in my favorite web site's address and was greeted with a splash of new colors! It's going to take me a bit to get used to the new design, but it's already starting to grow on me. Good job guys! _

greyelephant

89. greyelephant United States 01 Apr 2009, 16:12 BST

I really like this new design. Thanks to everyone for their hard work to make this happen. This will really open us all up to an even bigger crowd for even better topics and responses. I do have a question. Who are all the moderators? Is there a place to find all the names of who does what? Thanks again.

karnage13

90. karnage13 United States 01 Apr 2009, 16:13 BST

This does look pretty slick. I like it so far.

Jogurt the Yogurt

91. Jogurt the Yogurt Canada 01 Apr 2009, 16:17 BST

LOL, "new talented writers" — by merging with one of the most poorly written sites on the 'net. This is a great prank idea guys. :)

Ricardo91

92. Ricardo91 United States 01 Apr 2009, 16:28 BST

Sniff goodbye Wiiware World and VC-Reviews... :(

Actually, after getting over the shock of the changes and sucking my thumb for a little while, I'm actually starting to think this is better than the old site(s). I no longer have to flip between 3 sites repeatedly all the time, and don't have to see 3 related sites at the top of my Firefox search history all the time.

It also looks a lot more professional than VC-Reviews. I hope it's actually real. :)
But if it's is in fact an April Fool's joke, that just confirms that you guys have far too much time on your hands. :P

@Dazza. She's adorable! Tell her I said happy birthday! :)

Bass X0

93. Bass X0 United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 16:28 BST

How do we read the most recent messages of news, reviews and games like before?

ReZon

94. ReZon United States 01 Apr 2009, 16:42 BST

Thumbs up on the change!

Nanaki

95. Nanaki United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 16:48 BST

@greyelephant, check the About Us page for a bit of information on who the mods are (essentailly, it's all us writers).

@Jogurt the Yogurt, Criticism is good to hear, if it's constructive.

@Bass X0, Our RSS feeds can be used to view the latest content.

pHaT-aNt_

96. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 16:59 BST

@BassX0/Nanaki, I think Bass X0 is referring to the comments feeds pages we had before, they should still be on /comments but we've not fully tested them yet - we'll be doing that shortly!

Terranigma

97. Terranigma United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 16:59 BST

I am liking the new site design. At first, i thought it was an april fools joke but i'm glad it's not. It works quite well

Fleeman

98. Fleeman Canada 01 Apr 2009, 17:16 BST

i had to make sure i was in the right place i click back to google to make sure i had clicked on the right thing

Shortay

99. Shortay United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 17:26 BST

Great job guys, the new site looks great! :)

Cashman3000

100. Cashman3000 United States 01 Apr 2009, 17:31 BST

Best summed up as:
"I know that there is pain. But you hold on for one more day and break free the chains. Yeah I know that there is pain but you hold on for one more day and you break free, break from the chains..."

Zaphod Beeblebrox

101. Zaphod Beeblebrox United States 01 Apr 2009, 17:34 BST

I am very happy this means WiiWare and DSi are now separate (ironically, by merging).

Outrunner

102. Outrunner United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 17:47 BST

I like the new site too. You's obviously worked hard on it and it's appreciated. Thumbs up!

Razoredge17

103. Razoredge17 United States 01 Apr 2009, 18:14 BST

I love the combined site, the navigation is a lot easier and it looks really nice. Good job guys, though I will miss the stand alone sites too.

Shadx

104. Shadx Canada 01 Apr 2009, 18:58 BST

Never thought you'd actually combine all 3 sites. I clicked on WiiWare World in my favs and it came up here and I thought I accidentally clicked NintendoLife XD

It's great. Just better not be an april fools joke. Just kidding, this is alot of work to go through just to trick your loyal fans .... right?

Ren

105. Ren United States 01 Apr 2009, 19:06 BST

I'd caution those that are all broken up and cynical about the new look. It's easy to assume that there was some towering skyscraper with a Nintendolife logo on top where top executives in suits bought up the tiny struggling sites of WWW and VC Reviews run by guys in their basements and forced them and their families into submission, but it's really a lot simpler than that as far as I know and I think Damien was pretty clear about it. The sites had already been working together and no one is getting rich at anyones' expense. Knowing this and seeing how clean and easy it all is to use is exciting. I think it looks fantastic and I'm glad it's done. (sure I have a place in my heart for the old WWW, too, but it was a pretty simple website folks, lets keep our pants on about it). Thanks everyone, I love it here. Now I'll never get anything done.

Will

106. Will Ireland 01 Apr 2009, 19:15 BST

Hey, nice job ya did there. Place looks good.

VGP

107. VGP United States 01 Apr 2009, 19:17 BST

has anyone heard of ign showing a video clip from japan about nintendo's ultra gory add-on for smash bros brawl,It's awesome but it smells like an April fool's joke,just like the zelda movie trailer last year.

theberrage

108. theberrage United States 01 Apr 2009, 19:18 BST

2 thumbs up. I couldn't care less about the DS and now I don't have to sift through it to find wiiware info. good job

Viral

109. Viral United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 19:25 BST

I am fairly impressed with the web design of this site. I'm looking forward to reading more various Nintendo news. Now, any news on Zombies Ate My Neighbors? Because they're acting weird lately...

Jogurt the Yogurt

110. Jogurt the Yogurt Canada 01 Apr 2009, 19:42 BST

@Nanaki: Yeah, I've provided detailed constructive criticism to the staff of VCR and WWW in the past. I kept the responses they sent me.

But as for the retained NintendoLife content, if I have any constructive criticism, it's simply that I'd like to see news blog posts and reviews be proofread before they're posted.

Sorry if my first comment came off as rude. I legitimately thought this merger was a joke.

slambert215

111. slambert215 United States 01 Apr 2009, 19:43 BST

I think its a great idea. No more website flipping!

LucBernard

112. LucBernard France 01 Apr 2009, 19:46 BST

takes some getting used to but it works

Luigi La Bouncy

113. Luigi La Bouncy United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 19:47 BST

As far as I know, this all started from VC-reviews; a place where you could find out what games were good on the Virtual Console and which were best avoided, wriiten by independent gamers.

Now it has come to this. And I'm sad :-(

LucBernard

114. LucBernard France 01 Apr 2009, 19:47 BST

why is the DSiware section pink btw lol

Corbie

115. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 19:48 BST

Because pink is pretty! :P

pHaT-aNt_

116. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 19:52 BST

@Luc, that's the official DSiWare logo, so we used that hot pink to good effect!

Turkey Brutus

117. Turkey Brutus United States 01 Apr 2009, 19:52 BST

Despite the fact that I'll mainly be posting in the DSiWare section, I'd like to point out that I did NOT choose the color scheme. ;)

Crazynoodle

118. Crazynoodle United States 01 Apr 2009, 19:52 BST

doesnt make much of a differance 2 me, i still get 2 keep this pepper image :) and now the forums are easier 2 get 2, and there is only one site!

Terranigma

119. Terranigma United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 19:56 BST

I do like the colour schemes in the different sections, especially the DS one as Green's my favourite colour

@Chicken Brutus
It's ok, No one's judging you (In my house anyway)

"pink is pretty!"
Reminds me of a song i've heard before.

Pocketim

120. Pocketim New Zealand 01 Apr 2009, 20:03 BST

This is an April Fools trick isn't it? >_>

still has his guard up after last year

Corbie

121. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 20:08 BST

Don't listen to Chicken Brutus. He pushed the hardest for the pink. In fact, he wanted it to have little white polka dots all over it but we managed to talk him out of it.

Turkey Brutus

122. Turkey Brutus United States 01 Apr 2009, 20:09 BST

It loses so much without the white polka dots. I threatened to quit!

Bahamut ZERO

123. Bahamut ZERO United States 01 Apr 2009, 20:28 BST

Great, now that its one site I have like 50000 comments to read. I liked WWW better.

Plus, I thought you said this would never happen due to traffic stares at Chicken

Next, Dazza got a MadWorld avatar! Perhaps I shall change mine for the new change :)

And good ol' Corbie skeletons back :)

Also, Im with Chicken. PINK FTW!!!

Bahamut ZERO

124. Bahamut ZERO United States 01 Apr 2009, 20:31 BST

Awww, my avatar didnt change :(

Why? It was epic ;(

Dazza

125. Dazza United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 20:42 BST

CTRL + F5 to see your new avatar... naughty browsing caching :D

Bahamut ZERO

126. Bahamut ZERO United States 01 Apr 2009, 20:52 BST

@Dazza: Thanks. How do you like my new avatar :)

Objection_Blaster

127. Objection_Blaster United States 01 Apr 2009, 21:14 BST

Wikipedia will be annoyed since they quoted wiiware-world article a bunch. Will they have to change all that? lol.
Anyway, a late happy birthday to Emma!

WolfRamHeart

128. WolfRamHeart United States 01 Apr 2009, 21:15 BST

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
What have you done?! JK! Thats what I get for waking up late on April Fools day. I'm wondering what surprises await us next week since we got the SD card play/Arcade console update last week and a new and improved Nintendo Life website this week. Time for Earthbound!:) Combining these sites together into one all powerful entity makes Nintendo Life the ultimate site for all things Nintendo!:)

ATRUEZELDAFAN

129. ATRUEZELDAFAN United States 01 Apr 2009, 21:19 BST

Good idea. i like it all on one website!

TwilightV

130. TwilightV United States 01 Apr 2009, 21:36 BST

Oi, can't you get a better default icon? :(

SupermarketZombies

131. SupermarketZombies United States 01 Apr 2009, 21:44 BST

Just yesterday I was wondering, "Why don't vc-reviews, wiiware-world, and nintendo life merge? Wouldn't that make more sense than having 3 sites?" and bam here we are today. Very cool. Thanks. :)

darkmagi_82

132. darkmagi_82 United States 01 Apr 2009, 21:45 BST

Please tell me this is some kind of elaborate April Fools' joke.

Tides of Chaos

133. Tides of Chaos United States 01 Apr 2009, 21:53 BST

Change it back. Now.

(I really hope this is an April Fool's Day joke, and if it isn't....WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TO CHANGE TODAY? STOP MESSING WITH MY MIND!)

Luigi La Bouncy

134. Luigi La Bouncy United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 22:05 BST

Thats a good point actually. WiiWare World and Corbie got plugged in the Official Nintendo Magazine by 2d Boy. And now people won't even be able to find WiiWare World cos it doesn't exist anymore.

Kevin

135. Kevin United States 01 Apr 2009, 22:08 BST

I copy that Tides. I want my good ol' vc-reviews back. And this BETTER be an April Fools Joke.

Corbie

136. Corbie United States 01 Apr 2009, 22:13 BST

While we did put the site up to totally blow your minds today, it is NOT an April Fools Joke, I assure you.

Aenaida

137. Aenaida Canada 01 Apr 2009, 22:29 BST

Normally I'm not fond of change, but this I don't mind. :) Better start refamiliarizing myself with the site.

Ricardo91

138. Ricardo91 United States 01 Apr 2009, 22:34 BST

"People won't be able to find Wiiware World cos it doesn't exist anymore."

Click on that tab at the top of the page that says "Wiiware". :P

And also, the entire staff and all the virtual console news remains intact, with some new members coming, so there's really nothing to worry about.

@Corbie. Finally got sick of that 'ol witch hat, huh?

Zenman

139. Zenman United States 01 Apr 2009, 22:38 BST

at least i can see the hot forum topics again :D

Damo

140. Damo United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 22:44 BST

@Luigi La Bouncy - WiiWare World still links to here, it links to our WiiWare section. So it's not like it doesn't exist.

Nero

141. Nero Sweden 01 Apr 2009, 22:51 BST

Relax guys, when we wake up tomorrow we will see that everything is back like it used to be, they're messing with our heads.. O_o

Anyway, like all changes it takes a while to get used to but I come here for the content and as it hasn't changed this is a good thing.

Nanaki

142. Nanaki United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 22:51 BST

@Jogurt the Yogurt,
Yeah, duly taken there. Proof reading is something that essential (and efforts are being made on that front). No worries about things taken as offense - I honestly do appreciate feeddback, and to know where things go wrong in the reviews is vitally important for making improvements.

Jeez, I go to a rugby match and another 50 posts have passed by ><'

WolfRamHeart

143. WolfRamHeart United States 01 Apr 2009, 22:53 BST

Glad to see that the entire staff is still intact. Last thing I wanted to see is them pull an EGM/1UP.com on the staff here. Now that would have been a terrible April Fools gag. I like the reviews here because they're honest and unbiased so I will continue to support Nintendo Life for as long as they are around!:)

Kevin

144. Kevin United States 01 Apr 2009, 22:55 BST

That sucks. I'm gonna miss vc-reviews.com. At least vc-forums is still alive.

Cryo

145. Cryo Canada 01 Apr 2009, 22:57 BST

I used to be a member of vc reviews and Wiiware world a while back but I forgot my login stuff. Oh well I still continued to go there, this place looks nice to me.

Ghouls 'n Ghosts

146. Ghouls 'n Ghosts United States 01 Apr 2009, 23:00 BST

Looks good. Good job, guys.

ILoveWii

147. ILoveWii United Kingdom 01 Apr 2009, 23:01 BST

This website looks so sleek and well designed! :D Thanks for the improvements!

HOT-ROD

148. HOT-ROD United States 01 Apr 2009, 23:06 BST

Great job. It's nice to only have one bookmark lol.
It also feels good to see the sites evolve from the beginning.
I accidentally found VC Reviews a couple years ago, and then I was with WWW since the beginning of that. Love them both as simple sites, and it's kinda nice to see the evolution into something new. Thanks guys, and keep up the great work.

Charco

149. Charco Ireland 01 Apr 2009, 23:14 BST

My beloved VCR has been taken over by IGN. Oh well.

Bendover83

150. Bendover83 United States 01 Apr 2009, 23:25 BST

I still see Air Zonk for Corbie. I've been on here for awhile I might finally get an avatar soon to go with the change. I was also wondering about the star thing too when new releases are out or coming. Also, Europe needs a Hanabi Festival, so hopefully tomarrow or Friday it will happen.

Drizzt

151. Drizzt Canada 01 Apr 2009, 23:44 BST

Wicked change, guys!

XD375

152. XD375 Canada 01 Apr 2009, 23:59 BST

Hi guys. Couldn't find an introduction thread, so I'll post here:

I'm a LONG time reader of Virtual Console Reviews (and I mean a LONG time - long before The Virtual Console Archive had its name changed), reader of WiiWare World since its launch, a reader of Nintendo Life ever since sometime last year when I noticed the name at the bottom of the VC-Reviews page. :P

My name is XD375 and I'm a fan of retro gaming and the like.

I've communicated with the staff through email a couple times about news and stuff, and I always wanted to join this community. I recognize all the regulars as I always read the news comments as well as many threads, so I already have respect for [most of] you. -_^

Anyway, this change is as good a time as ever to jump into the mix. There's been plenty of times when I've wanted to comment and I'm glad I'll become part of one of my favourite communities on the 'net.

I'm a major dweeb (look at my display pic, I'm wearing safety goggles and eating a GoldenEye cartridge) but I love it.

I always wondered why all three sites didn't act as one - it makes sense and I don't have to view three different sites, and I happen to get on this site at least once every two minutes (more realistically, every half hour to an hour) as the Virtual Console is my favourite part of next-gen gaming.

Anyway, I hope to be able to hang out with you guys and stuff, as you are among the coolest on the 'net.

~Shane :]

Koto

153. Koto United States 02 Apr 2009, 00:12 BST

YAY now i won't have to open 3 tabs everyday to see my Nintendo news

pHaT-aNt_

154. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 00:13 BST

@XD375, Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts on the situation, it's always great to hear from you guys that really appreciate what we're trying to do here, we hope you stay and enjoy the site for many more years to come!

TRON

155. TRON United States 02 Apr 2009, 00:34 BST

Wow, the site looks awesome! Good job!

classicmike

156. classicmike United States 02 Apr 2009, 02:21 BST

Nice job on the new site guys!
I was lucky to find this, since I usually type in vc-reviews to seeing any info about the VC, but having multiple fraternities under one roof isn't bad (usually).

Corbie

157. Corbie United States 02 Apr 2009, 02:33 BST

Well we certainly want to return the thanks to all of the readers who've supported the sites over the years. You guys make it all worthwhile and then some. We hope everyone will continue to be a part of the site for years to come. It should be an interesting trip. :)

SilentJ

158. SilentJ United States 02 Apr 2009, 02:42 BST

Whoah! I love the new site! It's awesome having everything all in one place and it looks great. I'll miss the old sites but I think the real April Fool's joke would be if you only merged the sites for one day.

Nintendork

159. Nintendork United States 02 Apr 2009, 02:43 BST

I was wondering if you guys would do this. This is now the biggest Nintendo site I care about ( so that throws IGN of right there. :P ). Nice work guys. :)

WolfLink22

160. WolfLink22 United States 02 Apr 2009, 04:12 BST

I may get use to this but VCR was better.If you are going to change things and merge others then fine.But make a different layout please don't make it anything like IGN or bigger media sites.Make the look and that stuff different.

As for me i won't be missing anything big from Nintendo i have Press Room access on Nintendo's Press Room and can get Non VC Stuff when i need it.

But hearing what Europe and Japan gets on the VC on different days is another story as they'd say in Sandlot and Sandlot 2 as the case maybe.

Twilight Crow

161. Twilight Crow Mexico 02 Apr 2009, 04:21 BST

Not bad... but I'm really gonna miss the old sites :'(, still I'm happy that I don't need to look all over the Dsiware news to get to a single wiiware new :P.
What I really don't like about this new site is that the text doesn't fit perfectly on my wii any more, so now I have zoom out and get closer to my tv, or zoom in and constantly move the page left and right with the pad, what can I say, I'm a lazy person :P, but really keep the site as wii friendly as you can, pleaaaase.
All and all, it looks like a cool new site, keep on the good reviews, information and articles and all the sites together will be as great as ever. ;)

XCWarrior

162. XCWarrior United States 02 Apr 2009, 05:19 BST

I liked the old sites and all, but this looks like a nice new Web site.

I approve. Good thing too, otherwise you would have been forced to change it back. ;)

Mike

163. Mike United States 02 Apr 2009, 05:36 BST

I wish they didn't change the site to nintendolife. The redesign is nice but now I can't go on vc-reviews anymore at work because the name nintendo is in the sites name. All the other sites like gamefaqs and ign are banned, but vc-reviews was so obscure that it never was banned.

MickEiA

164. MickEiA Australia 02 Apr 2009, 06:51 BST

well this sucks

y2josh

165. y2josh United States 02 Apr 2009, 08:17 BST

WOO HOO I love this new site and lay out and such. I look forward to checking out this site 20 times a day for years to come. VC-R and WWW will be missed, but I'm sure everyone will grow to love this site who dont like the new layout and such. I know I don't post much, but seeing as everyone is in an avatar changing frenzy I may change mine as well for all the comment readers to enjoy... hehe. I love the site folks, keep up the good work!

Omega

166. Omega Germany 02 Apr 2009, 08:57 BST

I like the design of the new website. It's all clearly arranged.

But there is still one thing I have to criticize. When going to:
WiiWare => Media => Videos
all Videos are displayed, including Nintendo DS and Wii, and not only those related to WiiWare. So I quickly had to shut my eyes. Can you put a filter on it?

pHaT-aNt_

167. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 09:29 BST

@Omega, yep, we're working on it mate... it should only be WiiWare videos in that section..

Hyperfludd

168. Hyperfludd United States 02 Apr 2009, 12:25 BST

loving the the new site

Objection_Blaster

169. Objection_Blaster United States 02 Apr 2009, 12:27 BST

You know what this site is still missing? Me as a reviewer! (Wink wink)

Bass X0

170. Bass X0 United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 12:28 BST

You know what this site is still missing?

The simple design that attracted people when the site originally started?

Luigi La Bouncy

171. Luigi La Bouncy United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 12:50 BST

I've just been checking out your Wii games section and no offence guys but I don't think you've rated the games too well. I mean 9 out of 10 for games like Mercury Meltdown and Trauma Centre. I think most people would agree these games are no better than above average.

I don't plan to rely on your Wii game reviews as I do for your WiiWare reviews.

Nanaki

172. Nanaki United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 13:02 BST

@Luigi La Bouncy, reviews are all subjective to opinion, which means that's not always something everyone agrees with. Personally, I say read the content of a review and see what the author has to say - then you can formulate your views on something a bit more substantial than score.

But if you just look at the bottom line, sneak a peek at the metacritic links on the side of the page to see what the general average press opinion is (in the two examples you provided, we didn't actually give it a far-off-the-mark score - certainly not an outlier in terms of the mean score). As I said, it all boils down to opinion, which is why we have comments - to invite discussions where people can articulate why they don't agree.

Also, the WiiWare reviewers do Wii reviews too ;)

Luigi La Bouncy

173. Luigi La Bouncy United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 13:06 BST

@Nanaki. So the score only represents the personal opinion of the reviewer, it does not reflect a consensus opinion of all you guys? Is this true for all reviews?

Dazza

174. Dazza United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 13:09 BST

We certainly sanity check each others reviews, but ultimately the score given is determined by the reviewer.

Luigi La Bouncy

175. Luigi La Bouncy United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 13:13 BST

Ok, because I imagined that final scores would be run past the 'lords that be' before being posted. That would rule out the possibility of us fans being misled by extreme opinions and so on.

Also is there a way of checking latest comments for all games? Because I really liked this tool on WWW and VCR

Dazza

176. Dazza United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 13:26 BST

No no, we're not that autocratic! In very few instances have we every felt the need to kick back to the reviewer and ask them if they were smoking something! :-p

We'll link the comments thing into the nav soon:
http://www.nintendolife.com/comments

You'll also be able to see comments filtered by channel soon also.

Nanaki

177. Nanaki United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 13:34 BST

@Luigi La Bouncy: In the ideal world that would be the case, but we do always make sure to play the games before doing the reviews so that our scores are justified and thought-out. We generally try to get the reviews out in close proximity to their release, and this means that most of the staff haven't played the game and are thus unable to contribute to the review – there’s simply too many games about for us all to play them.

Dazza is right though; there are sanity checks to make sure scores have not been given overzealously. We get beaten if we don't meet his standards :(

longtimegamer

178. longtimegamer United States 02 Apr 2009, 13:51 BST

@XD375 - Welcome to Wiiware wor....um... Nintindo Life.:)

Bass X0

179. Bass X0 United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 14:07 BST

We get beaten if we don't meet his standards

Like if a game doesn't get 7/10?

pHaT-aNt_

180. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 14:20 BST

I think I'll rate your comments as 7/10 :)

Bass X0

181. Bass X0 United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 14:22 BST

Whoo. Thats better than average.

Dazza

182. Dazza United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 14:26 BST

What? Doesn't 7 = average? LOL

Nanaki

183. Nanaki United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 14:37 BST

Oh no, now you've gone and angered him!

Dazza

184. Dazza United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 15:00 BST

Oh no, now you've gone and angered him!

Jack's gonna do some chainsawing!!

/Puts Bass X0 on a spike :-p

Quimby

185. Quimby Australia 02 Apr 2009, 15:30 BST

Its strange... I agree with all these new changes and it makes total total sense to me (enough to type it twice), But I just cant get used to it. :-(
Better change it back just in case... :-)
Ian Daemon was right (way way up there before I got bored of reading comments) you really are putting all your eggs in one basket. You know thats the quickest way to get an omlette... Luckily I love omlettes :-) (nobody correct my speeling of omlette, Im too tired)

Bass X0

186. Bass X0 United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 16:07 BST

Omelette du fromage!!

gameking23

187. gameking23 United States 02 Apr 2009, 16:41 BST

The changes are nice I guess... but I liked the old one better. :( Then again I've never been one for change. It would have been nice to have been warned about these changes ahead of time.

pHaT-aNt_

188. pHaT-aNt_ United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 17:53 BST

@gameking23, if you read between the lines of alot of the comments posted by staff over the past month you probably would of worked it out... if we'd of officially warned everyone it was happening I think we would of had a major fire of questions, anxiety and suspicion on our hands! :)

Corbie

189. Corbie United States 02 Apr 2009, 19:35 BST

Heck I gave out plenty of hints, even put the Nintendo Life Virtual Console logo on the four arcade VC release videos I made and no one caught that. :D

Kirk

190. Kirk United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 20:50 BST

I LOVE IT.

Bass X0

191. Bass X0 United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 20:55 BST

I don't believe its the fact that there's been a merge or a name change that people are bothered about - its that the appearance of the site doesn't look as good as VC-Reviews or Wiiware World did.

If you changed everything you did but left the appearance as it was, nobody or very few people would have a problem. The new banner looks nasty and dull compared to the fun and colorful artwork from VC-Reviews.

You went with dark grey over a variety of color...

Objection_Blaster

192. Objection_Blaster United States 02 Apr 2009, 20:56 BST

There were so many hints. BTW, Luigi, how can you not like the Trauma Center series?!

Corbie

193. Corbie United States 02 Apr 2009, 21:01 BST

One of the main reason to integrate these sites was to have a common appearance and layout. That way everything remains consistent across all the various sections of the site now. Not only will that ultimately prove easier for the readers, it will also be easier for us to maintain that consistency as we add items to the site without having to constantly adapt to whatever section we're working on.

Metal Slugger

194. Metal Slugger United States 02 Apr 2009, 21:09 BST

It looks great, but less ads please. LOL

rbtransformed

195. rbtransformed United States 02 Apr 2009, 21:21 BST

Wow! The site looks really good! I used to only check vc-reviews once a week, because Nintendo only updates the vc library once a week, but I'll have to come back more often now.

  • a pleased fan

Damo

196. Damo United Kingdom 02 Apr 2009, 22:29 BST

@Bass - I was tempted to bite my tongue but I can't. I honestly don't know how you can say that WWW and VCR looked better than this site does now. Ant has done a fantastic job and I think Nlife looks totally gorgeous.

Don't get me wrong - WWW and VCR were all very well and I'm glad you liked them - but they were dated, simplistic and lacked any kind of visual punch. Heck, VCR was based on my Mean Machines site template which was created almost half a decade ago.

The time was ripe for change and I think the vast majority of people agree that it looks about a million times better.

Corbie

197. Corbie United States 02 Apr 2009, 22:45 BST

^ What he said! :D

brooks83

198. brooks83 United States 02 Apr 2009, 22:57 BST

I have to agree with bass, I just don't like the look of this site compared to VCR.

Also, I think combining VCR and WWW would have been ok, as they are both about Nintendo downloads, but I'm not sure I like the idea of NintendoLife being mixed in. Virtual Console Reviews just had a better ring to the name I guess...

VirtualConsoleGuest

199. VirtualConsoleGuest United States 02 Apr 2009, 23:08 BST

Hi there,

I will just say good job on what I’m sure was hard work; even more so because I would never change ‘what is’ like you have done myself, even if greater opportunities could be acquired.

For my part, I am not extremely sad, nor extremely happy at this news, only disappointed in fact. I am obviously not sure about what you went through or what you weighed to come to this decision, but to let go of a thought: I would have been happy enough with a humbler status, even if expanding made it easier to grasp at greater chances nearby. I agree somewhat with the “Luigi La Bouncy” user, albeit in a less acute sense. That clean simplicity is now unduly done away with. It may be too early to say this, but my firm belief is that things are becoming too big budget, and come across as “cold” (partly as a result of this), rather than small/reserved and “warm”. I cannot quite think of another way to put it.

Please do not become like other game websites, with their ‘up market’ reporting (journalism, I suppose), seemingly vast arrays of yucky commentators, and bamboozling boat-loads of bothersome ADVERTISEMENTS (a number that I’ve seen here already have nothing to do with games, unlike VirtualConsole Reviews).

I don’t know how much you can change now, but can you differentiate the Virtual Console from the rest of this website? Such as making a background/tab style option (just one example: I liked the original website’s random banners – Super Mario Kart, F-Zero, Megaman, Mario, etc.) to replicate VirtualConsole Reviews; and perhaps even offering other ‘retro’ backgrounds for members.

I’m sure that I am not the only one that feels what I’ve written, but since you are fixed on this change, I really hope that there could be compromises. For me, (and possible those who visit for the first time) the site, while NOT all bad, it does come across moreso as another busy, murky videogame website. Virtual Console Reviews was different, and as such, for my part, it drew me and helped me actually want to keep visiting.

And so I have chosen to speak up like this. If this isn’t the right place to put this, or no one sees (I hope I didn’t post it up too late..), I could write it again somewhere else, but I hope that the right folks see it either way. I apologize if I came across as impatient or ungrateful – and I am not naturally pessimistic – as I didn’t intend to be so.

P.S. Most of the capitalized words I used because I couldn't use italics.

Ricardo91

200. Ricardo91 United States 02 Apr 2009, 23:09 BST

I'd have to agree with Damo on this one. This site looks a lot more sleeker and more professional than the old VC-R. The old VC-R was minimalist and dated-looking.Though the old one felt a little more independent than the new one, and the Mean Machines artwork was pretty nice...

Omelette du Fromage!

lol, love the reference! :D

carson

201. carson United States 02 Apr 2009, 23:15 BST

eh, my favorite part is the extra Advertisement. sell outs......well, we have to live with the new design. I liked the simplicity of the old version. oh well. It must hurt the creators feelings because they claim to have worked so so hard for months, and then to recieve more negative feedback than expected.

carson

202. carson United States 02 Apr 2009, 23:21 BST

p.s.

The name is so lame.

@ charco - messege # 150
"my beloved VCR has been taken over by IGN."

hahaha, i thought the same thing.

Corbie

203. Corbie United States 02 Apr 2009, 23:41 BST

Actually we've received a LOT less negative feedback than expected. In fact the response has been overwhelmingly positive. And the advertisements are a necessary evil as it takes money to run these sites. Quite a bit of money in fact, when all things are considered. But if you'd like to send us a hefty donation each month, we'll be happy to remove all advertisements immediately. :P

We hope everyone will at least give the new site a chance, as it's here to stay. :D

Party On Dude

204. Party On Dude United States 03 Apr 2009, 00:25 BST

I click in my internet favorites on VC reviews... & after rubbing my eyes in dissbelief, I click it again to see this is real after all?! Why I never liked or visited NintendoLife before... because I always liked VC Reviews & WiiWare World being sperate sites!!!
It's not that you ruinined it for me... I just think everything is soo mushed together now!!! It may be cool, & it'll probably grow on me... but things won't be the same!! :(

And OH MY FREAKING GOD... OVER 200 COMMENTS... people people people... you have to go crazy over at most everything don't you; why not stop it for once!!! :(

brooks83

205. brooks83 United States 03 Apr 2009, 01:06 BST

I really don't mean to whine, but I now know why I don't like the new site. First off, I loved VCR because it specialized in Virtual Console news and reviews. For regular game news, I could go to IGN or Gamespot. I hate to sound mean, but this site just seems like a lower quality knock off of IGN. R.I.P. VC-Reviews

Corbie

206. Corbie United States 03 Apr 2009, 02:20 BST

The Virtual Console section of the site still functions pretty much the same way VC-Reviews did and still specializes in VC news and reviews. You don't have to visit the other sections if you don't want to. Just bookmark the VC section.

StarDust

207. StarDust United States 03 Apr 2009, 05:32 BST

Good thing you waited till April 2nd to post this update, LOL! I for one, actually think this is a good positive change, for three reasons:

#1: Hardly anyone from VC-reviews or Wiiware-World was even looking at the articles on Nintendo Life, judging by the relative lack of comments.

#2: DsiWare would have added yet another site for me to have to enter my login details whenever I use a public access computer terminal.

#3: They have now added a dedicated "Retro" thread ;-)

The only con to me, is that this whole time, I'd believed that VC-Forums was a subset of the VC-Reviews network??? I will still continue using VC-Forums.com regardless...

@Corbie: Whew! My fears are relieved - The ""Purple Dinosaur" avatar was just an April Fool's Joke :D

Corbie

208. Corbie United States 03 Apr 2009, 07:34 BST

You mean you didn't like Barney??? I could always bring him back if you'd like. :P

Captain_Konami

209. Captain_Konami United States 03 Apr 2009, 08:18 BST

Hrm.....

I'm going to have to opinionate on the side of what Bass X0 said in #192. I was hooked on VC Reviews pretty readily due to the look of the site and the group active there. The group may largely remain, but the death of the warm fuzzies I had for the VC Review site design took a little bit of my joy with it. It was a pleasant smaller site that still covered it's material well. I think I'll have to proceed to suck my thumb for a while longer. ;)

@ Damo "I honestly don't know how you can say that WWW and VCR looked better than this site does now.":

Easy.............WWW and VCR looked better than this site does now. I can even say it three times fast. :P
Although not entirely sincerely, since I thought the VCR look was golden and the WWW was a bit cold. Alas, the Nintendo Life look feels even colder. I think professionality is in the quality, not the look. Even if the combo needed to happen (whether out of preference or necessity), you needn't adopt a sharp cold inhuman style to earn you cred as an elite/professional site. The content will attend to defining that.
(And don't knock a half decade old genius design there Damo, not if it's a crowd pleaser)

Oh well.......I'll sulk for a bit and peruse here and there. And then decide if too much of the beauty is gone. :)

And @Corbie #6's inevitible comment about the inevitability of change:
Indeed, change is inevitable..........we all gotta go sometime, but in some cases we can at least choose when (bad quote choice I suppose, since the follow up line is "Nobody chooses when...." :) ).

Change is neither bad nor good, it just happens. But people like what they like.
And when what they like becomes something else, people shouldn't be surprised if they find less to like. (Heh, channeling the Yogi there for a moment......)

The jury's still out to lunch.

Damo

210. Damo United Kingdom 03 Apr 2009, 09:21 BST

As Corbie so correctly states, the vast majority of comments we've had have been positive. We've also been getting additional comments via email saying equally positive things (many coming from within the industry).

We've already explained our position several times but for WWW and VCR to move forward this really was the only option. Running a site that gets modest traffic is a costly process, something I think some people here aren't aware of.

Yes, this is an age where anyone can run a blog for free, but sadly a blog doesn't offer the same functionality as a site like Nlife. Building a site like Nlife - not to mention hosting it and ensuring that it can deal with the insane amounts of traffic that hits it on a daily basis - costs money. So sorry, but the ads are here to stay. Not that it should be a problem - we're using the same ad companies that we used for VCR/WWW, so the ads you all see will effectively be the same.

As for the question of design, I'm humbled that some of you think my five year old, cobbled-together VCR design is better to this professionally-created one we have now (Ant does this thing for a living, in case you hadn't noticed) but most people seem to agree the new look is superior. I don't quite get why people instantly equate 'clean and professional' with 'corporate sell-out' - but rest assured, if I happen to wake up to find a shiny new Ferrari on my driveway then you'll be the first to know.

I can understand that people don't like change but nothing here has really changed all that much; if you only want VC or WW stuff then you just bookmark those two channels. The content is the same, the staff are the same and all of the reviews, interviews and features are still here.

Sometimes, to keep going things have to change; we wouldn't do this if we thought it was going to harm the site.

Surely you'd rather have a combined Nlife than no sites at all? Food for thought, possibly?

Corbie

211. Corbie United States 03 Apr 2009, 09:25 BST

If you do wake up and find a Ferrari in your driveway, can I at least take it out on weekends? :D

Neomega

212. Neomega United States 03 Apr 2009, 21:28 BST

Omlette du fromage!
Dexter Reference FTW!

But I welcome the change, while others (gunshots heard in the background) preferred the old layout

Bass X0

213. Bass X0 United Kingdom 03 Apr 2009, 21:45 BST

No, don't get me wrong - the layout and everything is much better than it was before. I'm just fond of the old color scheme and banners over the new ones. You know whats funny - I actually don't mind the new banner for the other sections -- that cover the new games. But such a modern day look for such a retro minded section just seems odd to me. Maybe I'll get used to it, eh?

DjinnFighter

214. DjinnFighter Canada 04 Apr 2009, 01:06 BST

I don't like the new layout... i prefered the simplicity of VC-reviews

motang

215. motang United States 04 Apr 2009, 02:37 BST

Good job on merging the sites, I love it. Now I don't have to go to three different sites now and I can just go to one site! :D

Oh love the additions of DSiware and retro as well!

Jayenkai

216. Jayenkai United Kingdom 05 Apr 2009, 15:47 BST

Oh, goody.. Another super-overly-complex website to cause my Celeron to overheat a little bit more.

Wootsocks!

63 degrees!!!

kaya122

217. kaya122 United States 06 Apr 2009, 19:20 BST

Sweet! Im really loving the new site and i think its a great improvement!

Mix

218. Mix Canada 07 Apr 2009, 05:48 BST

I had WiiWare World bookmarked as my main site for info on WiiWare games. I have to say I LOVE that it's become part of the network.

I love this website and it has an awesome design!

Prosody

219. Prosody United Kingdom 08 Apr 2009, 17:12 BST

Just read almost every single comment, and thanks to everyone who posted feedback of any kind. Among the many things I wanted to say that I've now forgotten (hey, there were a lot of comments!) was in response to the "corporate sell-outs" claim.

Nobody who works on any of these sites earns a single penny from it. We work on them because we enjoy them, not for money. We just prefer to do it on a nice-looking site!

carson

220. carson United States 09 Apr 2009, 01:20 BST

im getting too frustrated. im pulling the plug on my VCR life support

BananaJane

221. BananaJane Canada 16 Apr 2009, 17:39 BST

Why can't we rate games anymore?
That was the reason I joined this site >.<

briunj04

222. briunj04 United States 17 Apr 2009, 18:32 BST

well, i gotta say. the wiiware section is the best

Corbie

223. Corbie United States 07 Jul 2009, 08:41 BST

Reader Ratings will be making a return.

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