Almia.jpg

It's that time, once again, for the North American Nintendo Download Update. This week brings another retro Pokémon game to the Wii U Virtual Console, while there are some new download games to consider on both the home console and 3DS. Throw in a couple of demos and some discounts and you have this week's offering, so let's get to it.

Missed the European Nintendo Download Update details earlier in the week? Turn that frown upside down, the information you need is still right here.

Wii U eShop

Dragon Skills (Joindots, $7.99 / CAD$9.99) - A title that takes its inspiration from the classic Brick Breaker formula, in this case you paddle a ball back and forth that has an ever-growing tail, with bonuses piling up the longer you survive. Though it has its merits, we considered this to have a few notable flaws in our Dragon Skills review.

Overworld Defender Remix (Stereo Chromatic LLC, $5.99) - Described as an arcade shooter on its game page, this also supports co-op with the use of both the GamePad and a Wii Remote. We know little else due to a dearth of videos and information online, though we suspect it will draw comparisons to Asteroids. We'll check it out in a review.

Wii U Virtual Console

Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia (Nintendo, $9.99) - Sales figures suggest that many who enjoy the main series 'mon games don't jump into the various spin-offs. Pokémon Ranger likely falls into this category; though players in North America have been able to try the original for a little while on Wii U, now we have a follow-up which we regard as a '1.5' entry. You use the stylus to befriend and battle Pokémon as the main hook, and we gave it a modest recommendation in our review.

Wii U eShop Demo

Just Dance 2017 (Ubisoft, free)

Wii U eShop Temporary Discounts

Beatbuddy (Threaks, $3.99 until 8th August, normally $8.99)

Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures ($4.99 until 9th August, normally $9.99)

Ascent of Kings (Nostatic Software, $1.49 from 5th to 15th August, normally $1.99)

Star Wars Pinball (Zen Studios, $4.99 until 18th August, normally $9.99)

Midnight 2 (Petite Games, $1.59 until 25th August, normally $1.99)

Jones on Fire (Joindots, on discount until 18th August)

SDK Paint (HullBreach Studios, on discount until 10th August)

Defense Dome (HullBreach Studios, on discount until 10th August)

Steel Rivals (nuGAME, $4.99 until 25th August, normally $6.99)

3DS eShop

Stickman Super Athletics (CoderChild, $2.49 / CAD$3.19) - Well timed to tap into the upcoming Rio Olympics, this looks like a rather simplistic take on familiar events like the 100m sprint, cycling and swimming; we'll see whether it's worthy of a podium place in a review.

3DS Demo

Style Savvy: Fashion Forward (Nintendo, free)

3DS eShop Temporary Discounts

Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures ($4.99 until 9th August, normally $9.99)

ASH (CIRCLE Entertainment, $2.79 until 25th August, normally $3.99)

Gardenscapes (Joindots, on discount until 18th August)

My Pets (Neopica, $9.99 until 9th September, normally $24.99)

3DS HOME Themes

Toy Story

Monsters, Inc.

Winnie the Pooh

Disney Princess

Tangled

Pokémon: Pokémon-Amie Substitute

Pokémon: Pair Art Set


That's everything for the North American Nintendo Download Update this week - let us know what you're planning to download in the poll and comments below.

What will you be downloading this week?

(You can select up to 9 answers)