Retro News

February2011

  • News The Legend of Zelda is 25 Years Old Today

    Hard to believe

    25 years ago this very day, the very first Legend of Zelda game on NES hit Japan, starting one of the most-loved gaming series of all time. Recently, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata discussed the possibility of a Legend of Zelda 25th Anniversary collection, though there have been no announced plans to celebrate Link's special day in...

  • News Neo Geo Tribute is Suitably Epic, Features Lots of Sexy Hardware

    The feel of gorgeous hardware is one thing the Virtual Console can't emulate

    Thanks to the wonder of the Virtual Console, we've seen a few choice slices of Neo Geo goodness on the Wii. Titles such as Metal Slug, King of Fighters '94, Magical Drop III and Samurai Shodown II are true classics of video gaming history, and when you consider how...

  • Review Cosy Fire (WiiWare)

    Not so hot hot hot

    The WiiWare catalogue is full of surprises; Hudson's My Aquarium has sold more units than anyone could have predicted, proving there's an audience for non-games on the service. It's just this audience that is expected to enjoy Cosy Fire, the latest fire-tending simulation following Korner Entertainment's Fireplacing. Things start...

  • Review Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation (DS)

    It's about slime!

    It's certainly no secret that Nintendo made the right move in choosing to publish Dragon Quest IX outside of Japan as the game not only drew rave reviews from the gaming media, but also broke numerous sales records along the way as well. Now in an effort to keep the momentum rolling, it's decided to help Square-Enix resurrect one...

  • Review Hip Hop King: Rytmik Edition (DSiWare)

    Rapper's delight

    As the third entry in Cinemax's musical series following last year's Rytmik and Rytmik: Rock Edition, Hip Hop King: Rytmik Edition will be familiar to anyone who's dabbled with the series' previous releases; naturally, though, the soundscape here is vastly different. Where the original favoured electronic dance samples and the...

  • Review Panda Craze (DSiWare)

    At least they're endangered

    Hey, kids! If you like pandas, disorientation, horrible graphics, pressing buttons that only sometimes work, and games ported so lazily that they completely disregard the limitations of the console you're playing on, then Panda Craze is for you! Panda Craze finds you controlling Tik-Ling, a panda who must climb ladders...

  • Review Treasure Hunter X (DSiWare)

    Between a rock and a hard place

    We've seen a rash of games on the various download services take a page or two from the games of years gone by, some better than others. Treasure Hunter X attempts to capture a bit of the magic of some of the classic computer games like Boulder Dash and Lode Runner and build a unique gaming experience around it. But...

  • News Doctor Kong Trailer Reveals Hank Chien's True Motivation

    Hint: it's not a hatred of gorillas

    Plenty has been written about the ongoing action at the top of the global Donkey Kong leaderboards, but what inspired plastic surgeon Dr Hank Chien to take up the challenge? Chien, whose score of 1,068,000 is just 3,500 points above nearest rival Steve Wiebe, is the subject of a new independent documentary called...

  • Review Model Academy (DSiWare)

    Are you pretty enough?

    The life of a photogenic model is well known amongst the Nintendo Life team, and now Tivola is giving all DSi owners a chance to live the dream with Model Academy, a simulation game that sees you progress from girl in the mall to World Supermodel. The question is, does this title provide a fun experience, and can you walk the...

  • News This Zelda GameCube Controller is Awesome in an Ugly Way

    An acquired taste

    Way back when Nintendo was putting the finishing touches to Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on GameCube, there were plans for a limited edition controller to accompany the little box's swansong. While the pad never hit the shelves, photos of its prototype design and packaging have hit the net for your eyes to behold. Coming from...

  • Review Jewels of the Tropical Lost Island (DS)

    It's no gem but neither is it fool's gold

    Puzzle games are ten a penny on the DS and when it's a match-three type like the popular Bejeweled series, you have to wonder about the relevance of yet another addition to the already plentiful stock of match-three titles on the DS. Jewels of the Tropical Lost Island is City Interactive's contribution to...

  • News The Seller of this Golden GameBoy Pocket Wants $1,200

    Is crazy

    GameBoys, bless them, have been through the wars – literally, in the case of this unit displayed at Nintendo World in New York – but not this unit, which may be the rarest GameBoy of them all. A golden GameBoy Pocket to commemorate the 100th issue of Nintendo Power magazine, it's unknown exactly how many of these machines exist, but...

  • News Show Your Sweetheart You Care, the 8-Bit Way

    Go retro this Valentine's Day with these awesome printable cards

    Nothing says "I love you" like a dose of romantically themed nostalgia. That's why shop owner Kirakards of handmade and vintage online shop Etsy has created an assortment of 8-bit themed Valentine's Day cards, ranging from a sentimental Kirby sighing "Dreamland would be...

  • Podcast NLFM Episode 17: Love Fest 2011

    Love is in the air for this Valentine's Day special

    Ho ho ho! Happy Valentine's Day, citizens of Earth! Let Nintendo Life be your love muffin this year with a very special NLFM dedicated to all things lovey-dovey-goo-goo. If the music of this episode doesn't melt your ice-cold heart even a little then we'll only be hurt just a tad. 1. Shōgo Sakai...

  • Review Kingdom Hearts Re:coded (DS)

    Some bugs in the system

    The DS is no stranger to the Kingdom Hearts series, having previously seen Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days back in 2009, which proved to be a rather enjoyable adventure. Now we have Kingdom Hearts Re:coded, a remake of Japan only mobile-phone title Kingdom Hearts Coded. Taking place after Kingdom Hearts 2, Jiminy finds a new,...

  • Interviews Catching Up with Steve Wiebe

    The former champ ain't no chump

    Not since a certain famous gorilla and plumber-to-be squared off for the coveted Pauline has there been a rivalry like that of the Kings of Kong. The film The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters brought to public attention the fight for dominance between family man Steve Wiebe and Goliath-like hot saucier Billy...

  • Review Shawn Johnson Gymnastics (DSiWare)

    Not even Shawn Johnson can save this one

    Despite nearly 350 current releases on the DSiWare service, we've seen only a handful of sports titles. Now with the release of Shawn Johnson Gymnastics, Zoo Games is looking to cash in on this lack of sports titles by offering up not only a fairly well-known name in the gymnastics world, but also the first...

  • Review S.C.A.T.: Special Cybernetic Attack Team ( / NES)

    G.O.O.D.

    Although it's now of course primarily known for its Harvest Moon games, Natsume developed quite a few unique, entertaining little titles in the past. We've already had a few rereleased on Virtual Console, and rest assured, S.C.A.T. can easily stand with the rest of them. If you're a Sega or Capcom fan, taking a glance at the game's...

  • News Club Nintendo NA has a Ball with New Prizes

    Game and Watch replica, reversible DS pouches added

    The North American branch of Club Nintendo has dabbled in its fair share of trinkets and doo-dads and has only occasionally dipped its toe into offering actual games with the odd downloadable title and a

  • Review Pucca's Kisses Game (WiiWare)

    No! Come back! Keep reading!

    For anybody who isn't aware, the eponymous character in Pucca's Kisses Game is a Disney-owned franchise. The cutesy 10-year old spends most of her many cartoon appearances running around attempting to kiss a ninja named Garu who, in turn, is pursued throughout by a ninja named Tobe and his minions. This storyline carries...

  • Review Gold Fever (DSiWare)

    Will you catch puzzle fever?

    Gold Fever is a title that has arrived on the DSiWare scene with very little known about it. Developer Tik Games LLC has only released one title on the DSi download service, Rocks 'N’ Rockets released late last year, and latest title Gold Fever is a puzzle game that borrows elements of various classics to tickle your...

  • Podcast NLFM Episode 16: Adventurous Adventures

    Zelda, Dragon Quest, Terranigma and more

    Didn’t we have some fun though? Remember when the podcast was sliding into the fire pit and I said "Goodbye" and you were like "NO WAY!" and then I was all "We pretended we were going to murder you"? That was great. 1. Sick YG — Ain't That Funny (MadWorld, Wii)2. Miyoko...

  • Review 101 Dolphin Pets (DSiWare)

    The water's fine

    Some of us are old enough to remember when all you could do with a virtual pet was feed it when it beeped, play "guess the number" and wait for it to eventually die. We've come a long way since then, arriving now at 101 Dolphin Pets, Teyon's follow-up to its more ferocious shark-based smorgasbord of 101 Shark Pets. The...

  • Review Crime Lab: Body of Evidence (DS)

    A scene worth investigating

    The DS has been a popular platform for graphic adventure games in its lifetime thanks to its touchscreen interface, seeing a number of great titles such as Hotel Dusk: Room 215 & Time Hollow. This time around we have Crime Lab: Body of Evidence, a new entry in the Art of Murder adventure series from City Interactive...

  • Review Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (DS)

    Your days are numbered

    Kingdom Hearts is a series which will need little introduction to many gamers. First seeing release in 2002 for the PS2, it centres around the adventures of Sora and his friends as they battle the Heartless across the different worlds. Highly noted for the crossover of Disney and Final Fantasy elements, mixed together into an...

  • Review All-Star Air Hockey (DSiWare)

    Floaty puck action for one

    What's the most endearing aspect of Air Hockey? Is it the rapid pace? The frantic mix of offence and defence? The unique floatiness of the puck? The smell of Chuck-E-Cheese pizza baking in the background? No; like most pseudo-sports found in arcades and questionable bars, the magic of Air Hockey lies in the spirit of...

  • Review Jewel Keepers: Easter Island (WiiWare)

    You cannot do that!

    Jewel Keepers: Easter Island owes a debt to Bejeweled, falling within the range of 'match three' games which have sprung up over the last few years. Popcap's game had been around for a while but became a huge success on ITunes and Facebook, creating scores of imitators in the process. So where does this particular imitator fall?...

  • Review Boom Boom Squaries (DSiWare)

    All the right angles?

    Pitched as a spin-off title from WiiWare platformer Furry Legends, DSiWare puzzler Boom Boom Squaries is very similar to Flash and iOS game Chain Reaction: you tap the touchscreen to cause a small explosion that detonates any enemies it touches, causing a chain reaction. Boom Boom Squaries has a few variations on this theme,...

  • Review Puzzle to Go Baby Animals (DSiWare)

    A puzzle best left unsolved

    It's been almost ten months since the last time we received a Puzzle to Go game. We've clearly stated our complaints about the previous two games in our past reviews, but have the developers taken the time to improve this latest outing? When you first start you'll notice that the menus look, expectedly, exactly the same...

  • Review Ferryman Puzzle (DSiWare)

    Is this ferry on choppy waters?

    Ferryman Puzzle is the latest release from Engine Software, a developer that, aside from the Just Sing! games, has focused on DSiWare in the form of basic titles with a budget price point. The concept here will be familiar to those who have stumbled across it in Professor Layton games: you are a ferryman tasked with...

  • Podcast NLFM Episode 15: They Might Be RPGs

    FInal Fantasy makes its NLFM debut, along with a sweeping Bionic Commando remix

    Gather round, children! Zip it, listen! NLFM is back and bringing the big guns, with a killer Bionic Commando remix, lurvely NES medley by way of PiCTOBiTS, and an almighty power with a huge sword chopping woodland critters. What more could you want? What more??? 1. Star...

January2011

  • News Will We See a Zelda 25th Anniversary Collection this Year?

    Link reaches a quarter-century old

    Last year, Nintendo's tubby mascot celebrated his 25th anniversary in the form of Super Mario All-Stars 25th Anniversary Edition, a collection that disappointed some in its paucity of interesting content. This year Nintendo will get a chance to wipe the slate clean and try harder, as its other ageless hero – Link...

  • Review Digger Dan & Kaboom (DSiWare)

    Dig it

    Digger Dan & Kaboom, right off the bat, has a lot going against it. For one thing, its title sounds like the name of some rejected Disney Channel cartoon trying to channel the success of Bob the Builder, and its awful CG concept art isn't doing much to combat that notion, either. Combine that with the fact that this game came completely...

  • Review Jam City Rollergirls (WiiWare)

    The revolution has now been televised

    According to the Women's Flat Track Derby Association, roller derby is one of the fastest-growing sports in the US right now, and anyone that's ever been to a bout can see why: hard hits, lots of action and ladies on wheels. Ellen Page and Drew Barrymore even got in on the action in the movie Whip It. What's not...

  • Review 1942 (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    A relic best left forgotten

    Capcom's 19XX series is quite fondly remembered, for offering some unique and very solid gameplay over the five installments it has had so far. At least, that mostly counts for the later four, but not so much for the first. Although not as bland as Exed Exes, 1942 does not really offer too many novelties other than its...

  • Competition Design the Official T-Shirt for Team Chien!

    Hank needs your help

    If you've ever been one of a legion of fans, you know that the best way to show your pride and look cool doing it is with the power of the t-shirt. Team Wiebe's in the lead with a snazzy design even if their leader no longer holds the record. Now, current champ Hank Chien is looking for YOUR help to remind him who's the boss...

  • Review Mario Sports Mix (Wii)

    Square Enix mixes it up with Mario, but is it any good?

    Mario is one of those annoying people who seems to be good at whatever he turns his hand to: not satisfied with merely being a tennis champion, golf champion, kart racing champion and constant saviour of the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario is trying out four new sports in Mario Sports Mix for Wii and...

  • Review 505 Tangram (DSiWare)

    Believe in angles

    There's a wealth of puzzle games on DSiWare, but 505 Tangrams is the first tangram-based title to hit the shop so it's got the genre all to itself. How high does it set the bar for future tangram titles to match, though? If you're not sure what a tangram is, allow us to enlighten you. You're given a silhouette, here in one of five...

  • Interviews Dr. Hank Chien, the Current King of Kong

    Doctor Kong tells all

    We recently live blogged former King of Kong Steve Wiebe's attempt to take back the Donkey Kong record, but before last March, we weren't even aware that a new champ was out there. We recently sat down with the New York plastic surgeon to get his thoughts on his rise to fame, competitive playing and more as well as get some...

  • Review Airport Mania: Non-Stop Flights (DSiWare)

    Economy class

    In November, Nintendo Life received an unexpected – and quite pleasant – shock from a little game called Airport Mania: First Flight. It was a release that flew in from totally off the radar, and immediately became one of our favorite games on the WiiWare service. It was a deceptively deep, engaging game of time- and...

  • Review Ante Up: Texas Hold'em (DSiWare)

    Sometimes less is more

    Since we've already seen a host of Texas Hold'em games released on the WiiWare and DSiWare services, it would be quite easy to dismiss this fourth entry, Ante Up: Texas Hold'em, as just another attempt to cash in on the game's popularity. But even with the game's minimalistic visual approach, it's difficult not to be impressed...

  • Review Spot the Differences! (WiiWare)

    Can you spot the fun?

    Spot the Differences! is a new WiiWare entry from Sanuk Games, a developer whose focus on Nintendo consoles so far has largely been downloadable puzzlers. This release follows the same standard modus operandi as Cosmonaut's 5 Spots Party and Enjoy Gaming's Spot the Difference – look at two images side by side and identify...

  • Review R-Type (Game Boy)

    R-Lite: cut-down, but still a cracker

    Following its original 1987 arcade release, Irem's highly regarded R-Type was ported to numerous home systems, with this Game Boy version appearing in 1991. For those not in the know (estimates range from 2-5 people living under a rock) the aim of the game is to take your space fighter and blast your way through...

  • Review Glory Days - Tactical Defense (DSiWare)

    Glorious

    odenis studio has built a good track record on DSiWare, with its capture-the-flag-on-wheels adventure Pop Island and its follow-up, Pop Island: Paperfield. Before that, however, it was responsible for the combat strategy Glory Days titles, and now it's drastically altered and miniaturised the formula into a downloadable top-down...

  • Review The Seller (DSiWare)

    Sell it

    Quick! What's the most convoluted and fun-deprived card game on the DSiWare service? Wrong: it's The Seller, an unnecessarily complicated and almost completely unstimulating card game that probably won't even keep you awake long enough to irritate the Hell out of you. Now, let's get one thing clear: The Seller isn't broken. It's (almost) a...

  • Podcast NLFM Episode 14: The Past and Future, Remixed

    Check out some of our favourite remixes of classic franchises coming to 3DS

    We're absolutely killing 2011 with our new weekly schedule, even if we're a little late in the day from time to time. As in every episode so far. This episode we're inspired by the 3DS line-up and looking towards both the future and past by checking out some excellent...

  • Review Black Tiger (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    Ghosts 'n Goblins 'n Gimmicks

    In 1985, Capcom released the infamous Ghosts 'n Goblins upon the world. Still regarded as one of the most challenging games ever made, it was a smash hit and cost many players many, many quarters as they died again and again. Although it would get a sequel eventually, after two years, Capcom decided to make a similar...

  • Review Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective (DS)

    Trick or treat?

    When Shu Takumi broke away from the Ace Attorney series to create a new game for the Nintendo DS, there were many who wondered whether anything else could ever live up to a certain Phoenix Wright and his long succession of adventures. Fans of his work and point-and-click adventures have no need to worry as Ghost Trick is a...

  • Review Missy Mila: Twisted Tales (DSiWare)

    Child's play

    Virtual books aren't really anything new on the DS, having seen full retail releases such as 100 Classic Books Collection containing classic literature such as Around The World In 80 Days to the DSiWare series of Flips. This time around, we have Missy Mila – Twisted Tales, a small collection of five original children's stories (Baba...

  • Review Animal Boxing (DSiWare)

    Not just cruelty to animals, unfortunately

    For those who don't know, Animal Boxing was originally released as a DS retail title two years ago to little fanfare. In fact, even though the game has just been recently released on DSiWare, most people don't even know it was originally a retail release. Perhaps this might explain the reason the game's...

  • Review Oscar in Toyland 2 (DSiWare)

    Oscar in Average Land 2: Mediocre Harder

    In September 2009 we got Oscar in Toyland on DSiWare, and almost a year ago we saw its follow-up, Oscar in Movieland, come to the service. Both of them were secretly slightly redone ports of Amiga platformers, which, in a weird way, meant that there were actually some Virtual Console games available on the...

  • Review Alien Puzzle Adventure (DSiWare)

    Connect three puzzle action returns to DSiWare.... again

    Puzzlers are a dime a dozen on DSiWare. They range from connect three games like A Little Bit Of... Puzzle League to simple bubble-popping in Pop Plus: Solo. Now we have Alien Puzzle Adventure, Mastertronic's second title for the service. Does it do enough to stand out from the crowd? Not...

  • Review Doc Clock: The Toasted Sandwich of Time (WiiWare)

    Shark sandwich

    In November of 2009, Stickmen Studios brought us Dragon Master Spell Caster, and we figured, at least, that its next game couldn't get any worse. In May of 2010, it released Kung Fu Funk for the sole purpose of proving us wrong. But that was the distant past. We're older now. Wiser. Could Doc Clock and the Toasted Sandwich of Time...

  • Podcast NLFM Episode 13: Yep, Still Weekly

    Storms can't hold this podcast back

    Your eyes doth not deceive you: NLFM is back with another episode a mere week after the last one. And man, did we almost not make it thanks to an impending snowstorm and travel arrangements. But lo and behold, here is a delicious ear scoop for you. We couldn't bail on our weekly promise one week after making it,...

  • News Pac-Man Returns to Our TV Screens Via Unscripted Series

    Game show tie-in, come on down!

    Remember all those old TV shows based on your favourite video game franchises? Whatever happened to those? Oh, wait. They disappeared into the mist of time either because they were instantly forgettable, or television networks grew tired of them. In conjunction with the 30th anniversary of one of video gaming's most...

  • Live Text Steve Wiebe Attempts to Re-Claim Donkey Kong World Record

    It's on!

    Today at 3:30 PM CST, we'll be bringing you live text updates below of Steve Wiebe's Donkey conquest to take back the title from Dr. Hank Chien. We'll be live at Chicago, IL's Logan Hardware bringing you to-the-second updates on the schoolteacher's climbing score. Will he reach a kill screen? Will he top Dr. Chien's 1,068,000 points? Will...

  • Review Puzzle Expedition (DS)

    Worth the climb

    Few would argue that the DS lacks a robust library of puzzlers, and fewer still would suggest that in separating the wheat from the chaff, a PC port that retails for under 20 dollars and carried the label "Premium Casual Games" in its original incarnation would belong to the former. The unassuming Puzzle Expedition,...

  • Review Exed Exes (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    Extremely excruciating

    We've seen a metric tonne of shoot 'em ups made available on Virtual Console already. With well-known classic games like the Gradius and Star Soldier series as well as lesser-known greats like Cho Aniki and MUSHA among them, there's more than enough good stuff available to satiate the desires of any fan of the genre. Because...

  • Review Despicable Me: The Game - Minion Mayhem (DS)

    Forgettable game

    Like its home console counterpart, Despicable Me: The Game – Minion Mayhem refreshingly constructs an original experience around elements from a film rather than rigidly attempting to follow the source material and fit it to a game framework for which it was never intended. Unfortunately, beyond that it shares the status of subpar...

  • Review JellyCar 2 (WiiWare)

    Are you ready for this jelly?

    Ports can be a tricky business. Change too much about beloved game and fans of the title will likely gripe, while not adding any new content earns the moniker “lazy port.” Still, lots of games on WiiWare have managed to straddle this fence successfully, like Lilt Line and Crystal Defenders, while others like Space...

  • Review Deca Sports 3 (Wii)

    Steeeeeeerrrrrike three!

    Say what you will about Hudson's Deca Sports series... it at least keeps trying to get things right. Each release makes at least some small attempt at forging the way forward, whether it's something as simple as a refined gaming experience or a complete reimagining on a totally different platform. We've had two prior...

  • Review Urbanix (WiiWare)

    This tractor's a little bit rusty

    Nordcurrent don't have a great record when it comes to WiiWare, having brought us the some stinkers such as Robin Hood: The Return Of Richard and 5 Arcade Gems. Now we have Urbanix, where you play as a tractor who is simply trying to build a town on an empty field, while cloning the gameplay of arcade classic Qix...

  • Review EJ Puzzles: Hooked (DSiWare)

    Crab your enthusiasm

    When last we heard from Electron Jump games...erm...uhhh...well, you know where we're going with this. Suffice it to say we weren't quite thrilled about wading through such questionable waters a second time. But a strange and unexpected thing happened with their most recent release, EJ Puzzles: Hooked. It turned out to be a...

  • Review Surfacer+ (DSiWare)

    A+

    The year may be young (really, really young) but we've already seen two must-have games hit the DSiWare Shop. The first was Alt-Play: Jason Rohrer Anthology, a collection of some of the most beautifully realised artistic statements gaming has to offer. The second is Surfacer+, a wonderfully unique action-puzzler that came out of nowhere and...

  • News Steve Wiebe Attempting to Reclaim Toppled Donkey Kong Record This Saturday

    Join us as we bring you live coverage

    Round and round the high score wheel goes, and yesterday it stopped once more on New York plastic surgeon Dr. Hank Chien with a barrel-blasting 1,068,000 points, besting Wiebe's September record by a cool 4,000. However, this Saturday Wiebe will attempt to take it back again, and you can tune in to Nintendo Life...

  • Podcast NLFM Episode 12: Ch-ch-changes

    New year, new podcast

    Changes are a-brewin' with NLFM this year as the show enters its second season. First of all, we're shrinking and growing at the same time. Is your mind blown yet? Tell the rest of the goo in your skull to stay calm, as what this means is that while the average episode will shrink in length, we're ditching the whole monthly...

  • Review Word Searcher 2 (DSiWare)

    Legend of the seeker

    In late 2009 and early 2010, Digital Leisure released versions of Word Searcher on both WiiWare and DSiWare respectively. Finally, after nearly a year of waiting, fans of the original adventures can quit holding their breaths and take in the fresh air of Word Searcher 2, available now as a brand new addition to the DSiWare...

  • Review Ghosts 'n Goblins (Virtual Console / Virtual Console Arcade)

    The original quarter-eating monster returns

    Over two years ago, before Nintendo introduced the Virtual Console Arcade, Capcom released the NES port of Ghosts 'n Goblins on Virtual Console. Arguably the most well-known version of the game out there, it's infamous for being an incredibly challenging and, frequently, totally unfair game. While it would...

  • Review Alt-Play: Jason Rohrer Anthology (DSiWare)

    Real art style

    Jason Rohrer has made a name for himself in the art game sphere with numerous small and thought-provoking PC games. To kick off their Alt-Play compilation series, Sabarasa has pulled together a collection of three of his most notable releases so far in the Jason Rohrer Anthology: Passage, Gravitation and Between. While DSiWare patrons...

  • Interview Geek Prints - Retro Video Game Clothing

    Being a nerd has never looked so fashionable

    There are many ways to show your appreciation for gaming's illustrious past. One is obviously re-living classic titles via Nintendo's popular Virtual Console service, while another is seeking out original hardware and software for that authentic experience. However, here at Nintendo Life HQ we've been...

  • Review Magic Destiny - Astrological Games (WiiWare)

    Reach for the stars

    Astrology has been around for a very long time now. With records of its existence dating all the way back to 5,000 years ago, it comprises a group of methods and systems examining the relative positions of astronomical objects to provide information about an individual's personality as well as make predictions about their future...

  • News Iwata Asks About 3D Gaming on the Famicom Disk System

    Early 3D experiments under the microscope

    Nintendo's history with 3D goes back years before the 3DS was ever announced: the GameCube was 3D-compatible with an LCD accessory, Satoru Iwata still has a 3D GameBoy Advance in his sock drawer and of course there was the much-maligned Virtual Boy. But the love affair goes back still further, as discussed...

  • Review Music On: Drums (DSiWare)

    Hard to beat

    Abylight's been putting out music games on DSiWare for a while, so you'd expect the Spanish studio to have it down to a fine art by now, but it's had a few bumps along the way. Thankfully Music On: Drums is a better outing than previous series entry Music On: Playing Piano, as it plays out more like an electronic drum sequencer than a...

  • Review Midnight Mysteries: The Edgar Allan Poe Conspiracy (DS)

    Hint: The heart is beneath the floorboards

    What we know about the death of Edgar Allan Poe is as cryptic and tragic as some of his written tales. After a more than imperfect romantic life, he was reunited with his love of long before, Elmira Royster Shelton, and the two were engaged to be married. On a trip that took place soon thereafter, Poe fell...

  • Review Ghost Mania (WiiWare)

    Bustin' makes us feel meh

    Ghost Mania is the WiiWare reincarnation of an iPhone game called Spooky Spirits: Puzzle Drop!! This new version of the game features updated graphics and sound in addition to redesigned levels and an additional multiplayer mode, but was it worth exhuming those old bones? Is there life in this one yet, or is it an...

  • News Super Mario 64 is a 5-Minute Adventure With the Right Tools

    The rotund plumber is faster than he looks thanks to an emulator-assisted speedrun

    Video games are a wonderful way to show off best times and high scores after spending countless hours in attempting to achieve them, but when orthodox methods aren't enough to impress, gamers (and obsessives) must think outside of the box. A group of speedrunners have...

December2010

  • Review G.G Series: Z-ONE (DSiWare)

    Ride into the danger zone

    As the variety of shoot-‘em-up games on the DSiWare service continues to expand, it’s expected that some titles are going to stand out better than others. With releases such as Metal Torrent and Paul’s Shooting Adventure already available and rated highly, being a new contender is no easy feat. The G.G Series of...

  • Review GO Series: Dark Spirits (DSiWare)

    In good spirits

    The latest in Gamebridge's line-up of localised Japanese budget titles is GO Series: Dark Spirits, a horizontal shoot 'em up again courtesy of developer Suzak. It's not exactly a bullet hell shooter like Metal Torrent, but the difficulty can still get pretty high. You play the game as some sort of wizard who can only fire one rather...

  • Review Magical Drop III (Virtual Console / Neo Geo)

    The pinnacle of the series

    With the recent release of Magical Drop II on the Virtual Console, Wii owners got the chance to experience one of the more enjoyable puzzlers available for the Neo Geo system and a game that's become quite popular among fans of the console over the years. Now SNK-Playmore has decided to up the ante and release the game's...

  • Review Fantasy Slots: Adventure Slots and Games (DSiWare)

    500 Point bandit

    Gambling is fun. It must be. Millions of grandmothers and potential homeless people can't be wrong. But what, exactly, is fun about it? Is it the glitz of the casino? The pulsing energy of the crowd around you? The free drinks? The wandering magicians and entertainers? The risk? The rush of joy that comes with winning a particularly...

  • News Man Steals Game Boy from Casket at Funeral, Turns Himself In

    An all-around tragedy

    Last Saturday, on the morning of Christmas Day, Bradley David-McCombs, Jr.,17, was killed when he lost control of his sports utility vehicle on Route 553 in Cherryhill Township, Indiana County, Pennsylvania. During the public viewing on the following Monday night at the Rairigh Funeral Home in Montgomery Township, Jody Lynn...

  • Review I SPY Spooky Mansion (Wii)

    A mansion any youngster would enjoy haunting

    Seek-and-find video games have become commonplace these days, arriving in every form from the kid-focused Adventure on Lost Island: Hidden Object Game to the dark but educational Real Crimes: Jack the Ripper. These probably got their start, however, when an unknown group of bored friends decided to pass...

  • Review Around the World (WiiWare)

    Tourist trap

    Modern education generally reduces geography to simple memorisation, divorcing the subject from a sense of physicality and instead having students label countries along political boundaries and identify their capitals. Around the World takes a step in an alternative direction by challenging players to locate different things on an...

  • Review Cosmo Fighters (DSiWare)

    Decent multiplayer fun

    If the DSiWare service is lacking one thing, it's a compelling multiplayer experience. And if it's missing two things, it's a compelling multiplayer experience and a solid fighter. Cosmo Fighters, the latest from developer Abylight, hopes to kill both those birds with one downloadable stone, and, although it's seriously...

  • Review Raving Rabbids Travel in Time (Wii)

    An historic event for the Raving Rabbids, or time to put them down?

    Whatever happened to poor old Rayman? The armless wonder was there to hold the Rabbids' hands on their Wii launch debut, Rayman Raving Rabbids, way back in 2006. Since then, Ubisoft’s onetime mascot has joined his arms and legs in just fading away, leaving the Rabbids to spread...

  • Review Mario Party 2 (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)

    It's party time!

    The Mario Party series has become quite successful for Nintendo and has brought many gamers and their families together over the years. Nintendo, obviously still concerned over the taxing controls of the original Mario Party which caused more than a few blisters and hand cramps among players, have decided to skip straight to Mario...

  • Features NES Characters, Then and Now: Part One

    See how some of your favourite characters have evolved over the past 25 years

    The Nintendo Entertainment System was a system that stimulated the imaginations of designers and gamers alike. Whether it was the smiling, dream-like wonderland of the Mushroom Kingdom, the sprawling fantasy world of Hyrule or the atmospheric depths of planet Zebes, the...

  • Review Scooby-Doo! and the Spooky Swamp (DS)

    Decent but a bit murky

    Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! premiered over 40 years ago, introducing television audiences to the lovable Mystery Inc. team and its unique line-up of distinct characters, each charming in their own way. It followed them as they took on spooky yet ridiculous case after case, and over time the show firmly embedded the phrase...

  • Talking Point Your Favourite Nintendo Christmas Memories

    Gather round, gather round

    For many gamers, Nintendo is as big a part of Christmas as tinsel, turkey and too-tight trousers, the company's magic helping to make the festive season just a little more joyful. With that in mind, we want to hear from you, our beloved Nintendo Life readers, about your favourite Nintendo Christmas memories. Perhaps it was...

  • Review Scooby-Doo! and the Spooky Swamp (Wii)

    A Scooby Snack's worth of fun

    The latest game based on the hit animated franchise now creeping into its fifth decade, Scooby-Doo! and the Spooky Swamp, is a platformer that should feel familiar to fans – as a licensed game, it taps into the huge built-in audience of the show that has, over the years, demonstrated a very high tolerance for...

  • Review Biorhythm (DSiWare)

    Does it measure up?

    Cinemax releases have proven to be a rather mixed bag when it comes to DSiWare, from below average attempts such as Sokomania to the some of the best music applications available on the system, most notably Rytmik and Rytmik: Rock Edition. This time around, the company has provided a program for calculating biorhythms, which...

  • Review Paul's Monster Adventure (DSiWare)

    Not quite The King of Carrot Flowers

    Last month in Paul’s Shooting Adventure, Paul was an infant who could fly through the air, shoot energy blasts, and transform into various creatures. Things are a bit different these days in Paul’s Monster Adventure in which we see our protagonist as a young teenager who seems to lack any extraordinary...

  • Review Violin Paradise (WiiWare)

    Oy vey Maria

    Hey, kids! Have you ever dreamed of being a professional violinist? Of feeling the stagnant air of a concert hall in your hair as you perform selections from Swan Lake with a string quartet composed entirely of your closest friends? Of screeching your way thanklessly through Ave Maria before an audience of nearly a dozen, most of...

  • Review Dragon's Lair II: Time Warp (DSiWare)

    A trip back to the days of the LaserDisc

    Few series divide players – including our own writers – as sharply as Dragon's Lair. Originally intended for the LaserDisc format, its titles are more interactive movies than traditional video games, tasking you with pressing the correct button quickly enough every few seconds. If our hero, Dirk, has to...

  • Review Family Feud Decades (Wii)

    Middling child

    Family Feud's been on the air since 1976, and it's especially unique from other trivia shows as it challenges contestants not to give the correct answer but what they believe others would guess is the correct answer, ranking the choices by how many out of a surveyed group picked them. Both this and its longevity make it uniquely...

  • Review Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (DS)

    Ga'Hoo would torture themselves with this?

    TV and movie tie-in games are relatively synonymous with tedious, uninspired titles rushed to release to fool the poorly informed. Rather than clever game design, effort goes toward getting the game onto store shelves in time for box office hype to drive sales. Still, some of us try to remain optimistic,...

  • Review Inkub (WiiWare)

    These tubes are fit to be tied

    Tower defense games have enough in common that one pretty much knows how much he will or won't enjoy the game before he even plays it. The core concept is addictive and appealing to a certain subset of gamers, and a complete turnoff to others. This is not a bad thing; in fact, it saves both parties a lot of time...

  • Review Super Mario All-Stars 25th Anniversary Edition (Wii)

    With exclusive bonus item: Dissatisfaction

    Nintendo has a lot to be proud of. Its heritage and stature in the video game industry is unrivalled, and the firm has presided over some truly significant moments in the relatively short lifespan of the medium. It goes without saying that the video gaming landscape would be near-unrecognisable were it not...

  • Review Frobot (WiiWare)

    It's dy-no-mite!

    It's been a fairly long wait for Fugazo's first WiiWare offering – the game was announced over a year and a half ago – and while Frobot initially looked extremely simplistic and basic, it's now evolved into quite a polished and well-designed release for the service. Craftily combining both shooting and puzzle-solving elements,...

  • Review Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem! (DS)

    Little Mario, big fun

    For fans of the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, the good news is that Mini-Land Mayhem! is another truly stellar entry in the series. For those who are not yet fans, the good news is that Mini-Land Mayhem! is an excellent place to start. Mario's latest business venture (seriously, when does he ever find time to do any actual...

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