Amusement News, Amusement Features

Murray Walker would be proud

Mario Kart 8 is shaping up to be something pretty special, with its amazing visuals, upside-down track design and trademark killer gameplay. However, the following video — produced in conjunction with our friends at Family Gamer TV and Team VVV — illustrates that there's always room for improvement. What Nintendo...

The standard of acting is vastly improved, for one thing

We're not movie critics here at Nintendo Life, but we think it's safe to say that the Fast and Furious series is coming dangerously close to outstaying its welcome. But just how do you reinvent such an established franchise? You add Mario, of course. Created by Taiwanese firm NMA TV — which...

It's funny what crops up on YouTube. Packed among the videos of funny cats and "Fail" compilations you'll find hidden gems like Super Mario & Three Russian Bogaturs, a short animated film which stars Nintendo's famous mascot and three bumbling bogaturs (best described as Slavic knights). Check out the crazy video below and let us know what...

But they have no idea who he is

One of the many advantages of being a video game voice actor is that you can walk down the street without anyone giving you so much as a second look. However, when you're the voice actor of one of the most iconic characters in gaming, it's a different story altogether - which is why we were very surprised to see...

Who knew that the former governor could influence so many games?

Back in the '80s and early '90s, video game box art was a very different beast to that which we know today. CGI renders were the stuff of a madman's dreams and hand-drawn covers were commonplace. When you consider how many console and arcade titles were released on a yearly basis,...

Semi-scientific evidence now available

As portable systems become more powerful it's almost a given that battery life has to suffer as a result. We all fondly remember getting hours and hours of use out of our old monochrome Game Boys and Game Boy Advance MK1 consoles, but just how much more stamina do these retro relics offer when compared to the...

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...

Tactical Mushroom Action

The advent of YouTube and the emergence of affordable video creation and editing tools has given game fans the world over the opportunity to parody the living daylights out of pretty much anything they like. Beat Down Boogie are masters of this craft, having already scored a sizable satirical hit with Modern War Sear Solid...

Bride and groom go head-to-head

Sure, you all thought that Donkey Kong music video we posted the other day was about as cool as moving images could get, but we've unearthed an absolute gem of a video from the mists of time which beats it hands down - heck, it even features a cameo from the great ape himself. The story goes like this: developer Gregg Tavares got wind that one of his pals was getting..

Run the gamut of emotions

A slice of Zelda humour that doesn't play on the well-trodden "it's dangerous to go alone" joke is worth a hundred Rupees, so this series of paper animations that portray Link as an unruly creep is worth about ten times that amount. From smashing up a man's house to exacting his revenge on Navi at last, Link's adventures in 2D are well worth watching right..

Now five years old, the DS is looking a bit crusty

In the world of cuisine, the first bite is supposedly via the presentation. Following that rule of thumb, the creator of this "DS toast" has obviously gone for a flavour that Nintendo fans will enjoy. Presumably created by a fan rather than a famous chef, the crunchy console takes its form from the DSi, possibly even resembling the DSi XL..

"It's-a me Mr Video" just doesn't have the same ring to it

Legend has it that Super Mario was named after the landlord of Nintendo's North American offices back when the company first started, but in the new 'Iwata Asks' feature it was revealed that our lovable tubby plumber was also going to be called 'Mr Video' at one stage. Shigeru Miyamoto said that he planned to use him in every game he made,..

Nintendo's latest Q&A session reveals an amusing tid-bit

Nintendo's regular "Iwata Asks" Q&A sessions have thrown up some interesting points and the latest one - featuring Shigeru Miyamoto - is no exception. Miyamoto: After Mario Bros., there were a fair few jumping-style games released by various companies and I felt that this kind of jumping game had been our idea. Iwata: Donkey..

Company blog wants you to submit your dream crossover idea

Tatsunoko vs. Capcom is just around the corner for Western fighting fans but Capcom is already thinking about future instalments in its insanely popular "Versus" series. Posting on the Capcom Unity blog, team member Snow has asked fans to submit their own ideas for the next crossover title. Here are his words, repeated for your..

Valuable domain name is nabbed from under Sony's nose

The practice of 'cyber-squatting' - which basically means buying a domain name in the hope that it will one day become valuable - has been commonplace for a while now, but this is one of the more amusing episodes we've witnessed. An industrious Chinese person has registered the domain name www.pspgo.co.uk, probably thinking that Sony will open..

Playing WarioWare Snapped! - 500 Points; Watching Iwata play WarioWare Snapped! - Priceless

If you've played WarioWare Snapped!, then you know by now that it will make you do things that you ordinarily would never be caught on camera doing. But WarioWare Snapped! changes all that, by taking pictures of you while you play through the various mini-games that utilize the DSi's built-in camera..

We select our favourite Nintendo-related pranks from the big day

April 1st is a day feared by regular inhabitants of the internet. It’s the one day of the year when you can practically ignore all amazing and outlandish news stories as rival sites attempt to out-do each other with their attempts at humour. However, putting aside the more pathetic jokes for one moment (anyone here still think the..

Gears of War 2 on the humble NES? You wish

Imagine if video game console technology stopped at the NES and never progressed to the 3D powerhouses we have today. A scary thought, perhaps? Not for the people at video game comedy site the-minusworld (yes, that is how it’s spelt); they’ve posted up some fake box art for some seriously cool ‘modern NES classics’ such as Dead Space, KillZone 2..

Marvelous covers up its latest RPG

Since seeing it in action, we’ve been keeping a keen eye on Marvelous Interactive’s upcoming Wii RPG Arc Rise Fantasia. With the talents of director Hiroyuki Kanemaru and composer Yasunori Mitsuda, this Wii-exclusive title is shaping up to be a fine role-player. However, putting the impressive staff roster aside for one moment, we have to admit that one of the..