Features News - Page 2 of 6

Micro Marvel

For more than a decade, the name "Game Boy" was as synonymous with handheld gaming as "iPod" is with portable music playback today. Following the launch of the original monochrome Game Boy console in the late '80s, Nintendo ruled the market with total dominance thanks to an incredibly popular line of million-selling systems. When the...

A gaming work of art

In the first of a new series of features, we'll be taking a look at some seriously beautiful and collectible gaming items - all of which are certain to get hardcore Nintendo fans seriously excited. First up is the Limited Edition Tezuka Osamu World Shop Game Boy Light, a super-rare Japanese exclusive which is emblazoned with...

An exclusive behind the scenes look at one of Rare’s most maligned outings

Although it’s hard to believe now, when Star Fox Adventures launched in 2002 it gained largely positive reviews and shifted 200,000 copies in Japan, making it one of the system’s early smash hits in its native region. However, history hasn’t been kind to the game;...

Lots and lots of Mega Man

We've already brought you our first part of a feature looking at the confusing world of Mega Man spin-offs, and now we're diving into some lesser known adventures from the Blue Bomber's universe. If you've played all of these then we can say one thing with confidence — you're a big fan of the franchise. Without further...

Stay with us

We've already talked about the ten numbered console games in the Classic Mega Man series, but as you are no doubt aware that barely scratches the surface when it comes to Capcom's classic franchise. We could spend several weeks spotlighting all of the titles released across all platforms — and, believe us, we'd love to — but we...

Back to the future

Yesterday we brought you part one of our Mega Man retrospective, where we looked at the first five main entries in the iconic series. It's all in honour of the Blue Bomber's 25th Anniversary, with this segment spanning the NES to Wii eras of Nintendo systems, with some non-Nintendo systems making a brief appearance. Mega Man 6...

25 years young

Twenty-five years ago today, the world was introduced to a super fighting robot — the Blue Bomber himself — Mega Man. Known as Rock Man in his native Japan, Mega Man earned global fame and popularity, introducing gamers to a unique and challenging franchise that, unsurprisingly, became a piece of classic gaming history. Looking...

It's comeback time

Despite often being criticized for a perceived lack of new franchises, Nintendo’s back catalogue offers a wealth of unique games which have each carved out their own place in the company’s legacy. From Mario to Link to lesser known characters such as Ness and the Ice Climbers, it is clear that Nintendo has a diverse range of...

We check out the Mega Drive epic which could be making its way to Wii U soon

WaterMelon's 16-bit RPG Pier Solar is proof that old gaming hardware can enjoy a fresh existence years or even decades after its original production lifespan. What began as a homebrew project in 2004 has turned into a indie gaming success story; Pier Solar has had...

To mark the launch of the PC classic on 3DS, we speak to one half of the Miller brothers about its creation

Few video games have the ability to polarise opinion quite as sharply as Myst. When it hit shop shelves back in 1993 many critics scoffed at the sedate gameplay and predicted that few people would want to sit through a game that was little...

We speak to former TTI Vice President and General Manager about the PC Engine's ill-fated trip to the US

The NEC PC Engine turned 25 this week, and to celebrate the life of this remarkable system we've already taken a comprehensive look at its history. If that didn't satisfy your hunger for NEC-related knowledge, then allow us to offer up this...

With NEC's machine turning 25, we take a look back at the history of the Famicom's biggest rival

Western gamers tend to consider Nintendo and Sega as the two major players in the 16-bit war. On European and American soil this was certainly the case - the Super Nintendo and Mega Drive (Genesis to North American players) battled it out for...

A trip down memory lane

With the first UK showing of the Wii U TV commercial causing quite a stir online, we thought it would be fun to take a look back at Nintendo's history of launch commercials, right back to the days of the 8-bit NES — possibly an era when many of the readers of this site weren't even born. Sit back and soak up the ambiance...

Snap and Dream Radar change the perspective

Trading cards and anime episodes aside, the Pokémon series is known for a long-lasting line of handheld RPGs. You've almost certainly played one or two of them — and we suspect that quite a few of you are already getting into Pokémon Black & White 2 — most likely followed by an obsessed state of...

We speak to one of Nintendo of America's first employees

Howard Phillips joined Nintendo in the early '80s with the intention of helping transport a few new-fangled arcade cabinets, but he ended up becoming the spokesperson for one of the fastest-growing entertainment companies in the US. He recently began a Kickstarter campaign for his first...

Worth a scare

Whenever we look back at a console’s lifespan, the first thing we nearly always do is remember the good stuff. We remember the Marios, the Zeldas, the hordes of Pokémon, and maybe even the odd Kirby game depending on your level of pink puff-ball persuasion. But we’re often so caught up in remembering what’s great that we very...

We speak exclusively to the guys that changed the face of racing games forever

Following the recent closure of Studio Liverpool, we decided the time was ripe to investigate the story behind one of the most famous franchises to emerge from the developer: WipEout. One of the first PlayStation titles to really show off the raw 3D muscle of the...

Unravelling the mystery behind Star Fox, Starwing and Lylat Wars

It's funny what you take for granted. When we posted a photo of the N64 game Lylat Wars on our Nintendo Life Instagram account, we never thought for a second it would result in confused replies from our followers: "I've never seen this....what kinda badassness is in that cartridge?"...

Koji ‘IGA’ Igarashi reveals the history behind the gothic classic

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night marked a major turning point for the Castlevania series. With the exception of the free-roaming Simon’s Quest on the NES, over a decade’s worth of instalments had displayed an unwavering commitment to the fairly straightforward ‘platform...

What happened when a legend of British comedy and Nintendo collided

Nintendo Life readers over the age of 25 and based in the United Kingdom will no doubt be familar with the comedic talents of Richard Michael "Rik" Mayall. One of the pioneers of 'alternative' British comedy in the '80s, he starred in a whole host of popular TV shows, including The...

You can call me Stu

Welcome to a new regular feature on Nintendo Life: the "Ninterview". Once a month we'll be taking the time to talk to someone who has a special affinity to Nintendo, and our first subject is Stu Brett - who also goes by the moniker Super Famicom Guy. Stu, a 33 year old designer from Scotland, is such a huge fan of Super Famicom...

How the time, and kart, flies

Today is yet another Nintendo anniversary, in this case the 20th anniversary of Super Mario Kart's release in Japan. That's 20 years of powering around tracks and making other mascot's driving lives miserable, while infuriating their masters in multiplayer. It's a series with enduring appeal that has evolved into one...

Do or don't look back into the sun

Ten years ago today, on 26th August 2002, GameCube title Super Mario Sunshine was released in North America to an abundance of critical acclaim, with relatively muted murmuring that it was an unworthy follow-up to Super Mario 64. Gradually over the past decade opinions have grown more divided and gamers have...

Conglaturations for reading this

Earlier this week there was a great deal of chortling at a minor grammatical error in New Super Mario Bros. 2, with the initial Coin Rush notification being the offending screen; many of us actually missed it in our eagerness to play the mode itself. There's also a bit of a grammatical slip-up in the North American...