3DS Game Reviews
Review Paper Mario: Sticker Star (3DS)
Stuck on you
If there's one thing we can learn from its 3DS catalogue so far, it's that Nintendo is great at the safe sequel. Sure, there are out-there exceptions like Kid Icarus: Uprising, but by and large we've seen a whole lot of remakes or new entries in fan-favourite franchises that are more interested in paddling along leisurely than rocking...
Review Style Savvy: Trendsetters (3DS)
They see me stylin', they hatin'
What's the hottest new fashion trend this fall season? Nintendo's hoping it won't be cobalt leg-warmers or autumn florals, but rather their newly released 3DS fashion sim, Style Savvy: Trendsetters. With engaging collection and customization-based gameplay and classy production values, they've certainly got a good...
A code worth cracking
For a while now, hack-and-slash has been significantly undermined as a legitimate genre in video gaming, but Code of Princess doesn't care about any of that. Code of Princess spits in the face of modern 3D gaming and says “I can do things better,” and then goes out and does it. Being touted as a spiritual successor to Sega...
Review Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask (3DS)
It's Layton, so you probably know the answer
While gamers in Japan are eagerly awaiting the final part of the Professor Layton prequel trilogy, those of us in the West are relieved to finally get our hands on what was a Japanese 3DS launch title, Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask — originally known as Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle...
A few cross words
The 3DS is no stranger to puzzle games, with Japanese developer Nikoli being responsible for most of the puzzle games on the market. While games like Sudoku, Hitori and Kakuro have provided us with enough numbers to last a lifetime, there’s a distinct lack of wordplay on Nintendo’s newest handheld. Enter Crosswords Plus, the...
Review Boulder Dash-XL 3D (3DS)
Rockford reborn
Every system has little-known titles — packed with content and well-constructed gameplay — that fail to fly off shelves or, in some cases, even get into high street stores in the first place. If Boulder Dash-XL 3D suffers that fate it'll be a pity, because it takes its subject matter and goes beyond the basic requirements,...
Review Disney Princess: My Fairytale Adventure (3DS)
A royal pain
Disney has a long history of using video games to place its familiar characters into unfamiliar contexts, often mixing several disparate worlds together for the sake of effect. The best part? It quite often works. From Mickey Mouscapade to the Kingdom Hearts series to the upcoming Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion, it's usually great fun...
Review Angry Birds Trilogy (3DS)
Fowl play
Something of a cultural phenomenon by now, Rovio's Angry Birds franchise is one of the few in gaming to capture the general public's eye, time, wallet and wardrobe, becoming the poster child for "the future" of the industry. It has been called quite a few things in its meteoric rise: Herald of the death of dedicated gaming handhelds...
Review Hotel Transylvania (3DS)
Stab it with your steely knives
Released as an obvious tie-in with the movie of the same name, Hotel Transylvania aims to provide an experience evocative of some classic Castlevania titles, particularly the DS games and that influential masterpiece Symphony of the Night. That's the good news. The bad news is that, as with many movie tie-ins, Hotel...
Review New Super Mario Bros. 2 (3DS)
Going for gold
At the time of writing, the 2012 London Olympics are in full swing. A global expression of unparalleled sporting excellence, the Games feature hordes of top-class athletes attempting to grab gold glory by taking part in events which are steeped in history and tradition; ultimately, the objective isn’t to be innovative in your...
Subscribe to Nintendo Life on YouTube764k Watch on YouTube A flawed masterpiece
New Art Academy’s arrival on 3DS comes as no surprise, as the original DSiWare titles and the retail compilation on DS further boosted the handheld’s appeal, particularly to those who wanted more from a gaming machine. As part of a group of ‘bridge’ titles from Nintendo, designed to attract new audiences, it served its...
Review Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive! (3DS)
Get your freak on
When it was released on eShop, Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive! was a thoroughly charming and cheerful creature creation tool, tailored to entertain kids and big kids alike. Its positive sales on the digital platform were clearly enough to convince Nintendo to expand the package, with Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive!...
Review Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance (3DS)
Like a dream, or just plain heartless?
This is a good month for Square Enix fans. First rhythm-action masterpiece Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy came storming into our midst and now it's Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance’s turn to hold the spotlight. Kingdom Hearts 3D may be one of the best looking games on the 3DS, yet like many previous Kingdom...
Review Harvest Moon 3D: The Tale of Two Towns (3DS)
Come a cropper
Marvelous, Natsume and Rising Star Games certainly feel like they're onto a high-yield crop with Harvest Moon; Harvest Moon 3D: The Tale of Two Towns might be the first 3DS entry but it's the eighth HM game in five years. Any concerns that the creative well is running dry are understandable — after all, it's only farming — but...
Review The Amazing Spider-Man (3DS)
Hyperbole, True Believers!
You've got to hand it to Beenox for its stewardship of Spider-Man's games. While each entry has had its share of problems, the studio has pushed the webslinger in fun and genuinely interesting new directions by tapping into the character's rich diversity and exploring comic book universes largely ignored in video games,...
Review Theatrhythm: Final Fantasy (3DS)
You spoony bard!
This is how you celebrate the 25th anniversary of a beloved game franchise. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, a rhythm game celebrating a quarter-century of some of the most iconic music in video games, is a fantastic title. Every facet radiates care and polish, with the accessible and addictive rhythm mechanics framed by a gorgeous...
An heroic effort
If Heroes of Ruin was judged purely on the level of ambition and functionality on display, it would be hailed as the finest title on 3DS. It takes the capabilities of the handheld and attempts to deliver a fully flavoured action RPG, with all of the online play and functionality that gamers could conceivably demand of a home console...
Limbless, but not limp
Rayman Origins has had a long trip to reach 3DS; it was supposed to be released in March, and while it's out now in Europe it won't make it to North America until November. Europeans can enjoy it in 3D for the first time, but if you've already played it on one of the myriad other platforms you might want to think twice before...
Review Mario Tennis Open (3DS)
Open season
Camelot's revered Mario Tennis series has a split legacy: on home consoles as a primarily multiplayer-focused insane-o-thon, and on portables as a more solo-oriented sports RPG. Mario Tennis Open falls somewhere in between, trying to capture the best of both worlds in the most accessible way possible. In many ways Camelot succeeds in its...
Less was more
In 2008, a Flash-based platformer/puzzle game called Shift was released online. Its gameplay was a model of brilliant simplicity: levels were constructed from black and white blocks, and the Shift key would flip the room upside down, turn background objects solid and push previously solid objects into the background. It was a premise...
Review Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir (3DS)
The ghost of a much better game
There's something magical within Spirit Camera: The Cursed Memoir. Really, there is. You wouldn't know it by playing it, because the execution is downright terrible, but at heart, somewhere, deep inside this absolute mess is the germ of a great idea; that's the nicest thing we can say about it. Spirit Camera is an...
Review Rhythm Thief & the Emperor's Treasure (3DS)
It’s got the rhythm
The early part of 2012 has brought us some blockbuster titles on 3DS that, in their own way, involve plenty of tension and shooting enemies. Perhaps it’s time to sit back and indulge in something a little more off the wall and unexpected, and Rhythm Thief & the Emperor’s Treasure certainly fits the bill. Despite the...
Review Kid Icarus: Uprising (3DS)
Pit’s flying high
When Nintendo unveiled the 3DS in 2010 it also teased Kid Icarus: Uprising, a return of a franchise that, a few cameos aside, had long remained dormant. While the original NES title was a conventional 2D action platformer, Masahiro Sakurai, most famous for his Super Smash Bros. series, has given Pit new life in an arcade action...
Tiny ship, big adventure
There's a new threat to civilization, and this time it's something we can't see: the Nanostray virus, which is deadly enough to serve as an immediate threat to humanity as we know it. The solution? Well, as anyone who's seen Fantastic Voyage (or, erm...Innerspace) knows, it's time to shrink a spacecraft down to microscopic...
Review Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D (3DS)
Not for honor, but for 3DS
Every so often a game comes along that makes you appreciate just how clever it is, a feat that creator Hideo Kojima pulls off every time he steps up to direct an entry in his Metal Gear Solid series. From fourth-wall-shattering boss battles to hiding key information in plain sight, they tend to raise the question of why...
Review Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games (3DS)
Must train harder
2007's Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games on Wii marked the two once arch-nemeses' – in the eyes of us children of the nineties, anyway – first side-by-side appearance that didn't involve them attempting to wallop seven shades of snot out of each other. It was a solid sports offering that exemplified the minigame collection...
Review Tekken 3D Prime Edition (3DS)
A prime fighting machine
Tekken 3D Prime Edition is only the second Nintendo appearance for the King of Iron Fist tournament, the last being 2002's dodgy Tekken Advance on Game Boy Advance. With fighting games enjoying a resurgence on 3DS, does Namco Bandai's second hit strike a knockout blow? It's up against stiff competition: Dead or Alive:...
Review One Piece Unlimited Cruise SP (3DS)
Half an adventure, unlimited boredom
Tremendously revered in Japan, yet – like the vast majority of animé — enjoying more of a cult following in the West, One Piece follows the story of Monkey D. Luffy and the Straw Hat Pirates in their tumultuous quest to locate the titular treasure. After a lengthy history of translation to video games, the...
Review Need for Speed: The Run (3DS)
Enough speed to make your eyes bleed
The high pitched sound of the engines roar assures us that we’re quickly approaching top speeds, but it’s barely noticeable from the techno jams blasting through the speakers. As each corner pushes us closer to the edge of losing control and the infectious music fuels our aggressive driving habits, one thing...
Review Winter Sports 2012: Feel the Spirit (3DS)
Take to the snow... on the go!
Winter Sports 2012: Feel the Spirit on Wii is, to put it bluntly, catastrophically bad; so bad, in fact, that we “awarded” it a measly 2/10, so there’s obviously absolutely no reason you should be rushing out to pick that travesty up. There is, however, a glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel for Nintendo fans...
