Reviews

Wii U eShop Game Reviews

  • Review The Legend of the Mystical Ninja (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    The true karate kid

    Konami's classic action title The Legend of the Mystical Ninja is a welcome addition to the Wii U's slowly expanding library of Virtual Console offerings. In an era where lighthearted, fun characters have all but been forgotten in favour of grim shooters, playing as "Kid Ninja" — or Goemon, for fans of his Nintendo 64...

  • Review Contra III: The Alien Wars (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    Lasers and missiles and heliobombs, oh my

    Just when you thought the Wii U eShop had reached a maximum capacity of irresistibly cute little creatures with the likes of Pikmin 3, Toki Tori and Kung Fu Rabbit, here comes Contra III: The Alien Wars to mow down the competition with its terrifying alien invasions, flamethrower-wielding protagonists and...

  • Review Brawl Brothers (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    Sibling rivalry

    Jaleco released a trilogy of side-scrolling fighters in Japan under the Rushing Beat banner, and while all three made their way to the west, they did so under different titles: Rival Turf, Brawl Brothers and The Peace Keepers. Inspired in no small part by the success of Capcom's Final Fight, the series never really managed to reach...

  • Review Coaster Crazy Deluxe (Wii U eShop)

    Not so crazy after all

    Hold on to your coaster cars, Nintendo fans, because with the release of Coaster Crazy Deluxe for the Wii U eShop, gaming just got a whole lot crazier….or did it? Frontier’s latest iOS port proves that despite Nintendo’s concerted efforts to simplify the process for converting indie titles to Wii U, some games are better...

  • Review The Mysterious Cities of Gold: Secret Paths (Wii U eShop)

    A breezy, scenic walk

    The history of The Mysterious Cities of Gold is pretty wild. When the French-Japanese animated series ended its first run in 1983, the Famicom hadn’t even premiered in Japan. Fast forward about 30 years, and now not only has the show picked up where it left off, it’s even following in the tried and true tradition of video...

  • Review Mega Man X2 (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    A mega effort

    Capcom has really been on the ball with the Wii U Virtual Console — in just about one year, it has managed to release every single Mega Man game that saw the light of day on the Wii Virtual Console — and more — with Mega Man X2 being the latest release. Much like the original Mega Man series before it, the X series doesn't seem...

  • Review Uncharted Waters: New Horizons (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    As deep as the ocean

    Koei released quite an arsenal of strategy titles during the 16-bit era, many of them on the Super Nintendo console. While the original Uncharted Waters laid the foundation, its sequel New Horizons picked up right where it left off and managed to add quite a few new game play ideas to the mix to form one of the most in-depth and...

  • Review EDGE (Wii U eShop)

    Simple but multi-sided

    Two Tribes, in bringing its Classics series to the Wii U eShop, is among the first to deliver inexpensive experiences — especially with launch promotional prices — that have primarily made their home on other platforms for a good period of time. The updated edition of Toki Tori is based on its PC brethren, while now we...

  • Review Toki Tori (Wii U eShop)

    Super cheap puzzle fun

    Many moons ago, when WiiWare first launched on the Wii, Two Tribes had Toki Tori ready to go as one of the very first games on the service. It was a remake of the Game Boy Color game, which in itself was also a pseudo-remake; we liked it a lot. Unfortunately for some, however, a PC version of the game was released not too...

  • Review Wario's Woods (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Kinopio's Canopy

    Wario's Woods has had quite a storied legacy over the last few decades, standing not only as the last officially licensed game released on Nintendo's legendary NES in North America in 1994, but also one of the very first titles available on the Wii's Virtual Console service. In-between those impressive milestones, it made an...

  • Review Wii Sports Club: Bowling (Wii U eShop)

    No splits here

    When it comes to the games in the original Wii Sports that felt the most realistic and compelling, Bowling would have to be a candidate as the best of the lot. Golf and Baseball may have a say, too, while Tennis and Boxing — most definitely the latter — perhaps had the greatest degree of waggle. The fact Bowling reappeared in...

  • Review Wii Sports Club: Tennis (Wii U eShop)

    What the deuce?

    Way back at E3 2011, in that Wii U reveal that rather bizarrely confused half of those watching, Nintendo showed remixes of Wii Sports events that showed the GamePad being utilised in creative ways. It's perhaps surprising that over two years after that visual demo, we're just now seeing the iconic Wii pack-in make its way to...

  • Review Baseball (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Not quite a grand slam

    Originally released alongside the launch of the Nintendo Entertainment System in the 1980s, Nintendo's Baseball is one of several simple, lean titles that, while primitive and slow by today's standards, still show a special Nintendo pedigree. Ideally these games would be released as a compilation; the content in Baseball,...

  • Review Donkey Kong 3 (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Bugging you?

    When the original Donkey Kong proved immensely popular, Nintendo decided to ride off its success and create a sequel changing the roles, making Mario the villain and Donkey Kong Jr. the hero. What is surprisingly not well known, however, is that there was a third game after that. While the next logical next might have been to allow you...

  • Review Super Castlevania IV (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    Fangs for the memories

    The Castlevania series is enjoying something of a renaissance at the moment, thanks largely to MercurySteam's commercially successful Lords of Shadow sub-series. However, as many hardcore Castlevania fans will repeatedly tell you until they are blue in the face and you are deeply, deeply bored, the God of War-style gameplay...

  • Review Pinball (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Ball out?

    Back in 1985, when Nintendo launched the NES in North America, there were a slew of games released with to-the-point titles like Baseball, Golf, and the game of the hour, Pinball. At the time, inviting these simple, accessible games into your home was almost life changing, and we have great memories bouncing around our heads of how they...

  • Review Urban Champion (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Won't somebody think of the children?

    Urban Champion is back, and is a menace to society. It's a danger to young gamers for two reasons. If you're the type of gamer that thinks brutality and violence has no place in a title played by children, this tale of brawling 8-bit thugs bringing mayhem to the streets is a primitive but potent example of those...

  • Review Clu Clu Land (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Clu Clu Bland

    Back in the NES days, Nintendo had a lot of experimental, arcade-like games, many of which never quite made it into the big leagues in order to get sequels and the like. Perhaps one of the most often forgotten of these games is Clu Clu Land. Similarly to Kuru Kuru Kururin, you need to know a bit of Japanese in order to understand the...

  • Review Mighty Switch Force! 2 (Wii U eShop)

    Watered down or a sequel on fire?

    WayForward’s puzzle-platforming series first debuted on the Wii U eShop back in November of 2012, when the developer gave the original Mighty Switch Force! an HD facelift and deemed it the Hyper Drive Edition. This time, the sequel — which released for download back in June on the 3DS — has been ported to...

  • Review GOLF (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Sub-par

    Before the hyper-realistic, face-deforming technology of modern Tiger Woods games was conceived in the deepest dreams of Electronic Arts (a company busy with Marble Madness at the time), there was Golf for the Nintendo Entertainment System. The game wears its no-nonsense attitude on its sleeve, focusing on simulating the time-honoured sport...

  • Review Tennis (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Net-net, a loss

    Tennis — the NES game, not the actual sport — hails from an age when the most rudimentary of virtual simulations could be entertaining and notable simply by existing, perhaps causing a passing family member to comment on how it looks just like the real thing. Although a genuine novelty in the 80s, this dull-as-toast recreation of...

  • Review Final Fight 3 (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    Third time lucky?

    Following the enjoyable-but-flawed SNES conversion of the original Final Fight and its disappointing sequel, Final Fight 3 can be viewed as Capcom's attempt to atone for its previous sins and give fans a domestic exclusive worthy of the name. Released relatively late in the lifespan of Nintendo 16-bit's console, this third entry is...

  • Review Final Fight 2 (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    The Sophomore Slump

    The SNES port of the original Final Fight may have successfully translated the gameplay from arcade to home console, but it was missing some key elements: the third character Guy, an entire level and — most important of all — the vital two-player co-op mode. Capcom sought to rectify these shortcomings in the SNES-exclusive...

  • Review Final Fight (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    Because the world needs more wrestling mayors

    Back in the late '80s and early '90s — when arcades were still the biggest draw for dedicated gamers — Capcom was the company to beat when it came to coin-op success. It produced a string of classics around this time, most of which saw conversions on the popular home consoles of the period. While...

  • Review Gradius (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Just keeps shooting

    To say that the original Gradius was influential on the evolution of the side-scrolling shoot 'em up would be a gross understatement. When it hit arcades in 1985 it was lauded for its amazing level designs and simple, yet wildly playable, power-up system. This NES release was one of the first home ports of the game and has become...

  • Review Breath of Fire II (Wii U eShop / SNES)

    Understandably lacking in freshness

    The Super NES was home to what are still considered by many to be a some of the finest RPG experiences ever produced. It's a predictable lineup of big names, and Breath of Fire II doesn't often get a mention. If it was overshadowed in the past it perhaps has an early opportunity to earn new fans on the young Wii U...

  • Review TNT Racers - Nitro Machines Edition (Wii U eShop)

    An explosive racer with a twist

    TNT Racers: Nitro Machines Edition may feature vehicles, courses and chequered flags, but it’s not your typical racing game. Instead of getting to the finish line first, this one is all about getting to the finish line full stop, as you focus on pummelling your opponents out of the race while staying alive yourself...

  • Review Super Mario Bros. (Wii U eShop / NES)

    Forever running to the right

    Mario. Say it loud and there's music playing. Say it soft, and it's almost like praying. Super Mario Bros. was, is, and will always be one of gaming's great masterpieces, and its availability on any additional format is a good thing. It's come to the Wii and 3DS Virtual Consoles before, and now jumps onto the Wii U...

  • Review Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara (Wii U eShop)

    Worth the wait?

    After several delays and well publicised development issues, Capcom's Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara has finally launched on Wii U; while it’s not without issues, the wait was worth it. Developed by Iron Galaxy Games, Chronicles of Mystara is a HD remastering of Capcom’s arcade brawlers Dungeons & Dragons:...

  • Review Spot the Differences: Party! (Wii U eShop)

    Spot a different party

    Spot the Differences: Party! will hand you photo after photo, politely asking you to identify the inconsistencies between their lookalikes until you either pass out from unrelenting boredom or stare at each and every one of the 300+ pictures on display. Go it alone or rope a friend or three into the monotony, but unless...