Review /
Review /
Review /
Do you download?
In moving from the Wii Shop and DSi Shop to the Wii U eShop and 3DS eShop, Nintendo has shown a desire to compete head on with the Xbox, PlayStation and Steam online marketplaces and offer full retail downloads. It's amazing to think that downloads from the Wii Shop were limited to a meagre maximum of 40MB, yet now we can download...
Room for no more
We're all more than a little familiar with video game droughts by now. Until a few years ago, it was tradition to suffer a lack of software in the summer, surviving only on the ever-faithful backlog and the revitalising elixir provided by E3 info dumps. It's common in the months following a console launch too: we're sure you...
Oh baby, it's cold outside
First of all, we should apologise for using a tagline specific to those of us in parts of the world enduring a long Winter — a lot of the NL crew can see snow outside their windows right now, when they should see flowers in bloom and overly-chatty birds that won't stop tweeting (as birds do naturally, not on the social...
Nintendo's digital strategy continues to evolve
This week it was confirmed that a sale on Ubisoft's retail Wii U downloads, which arrived in North America in mid-February, will hit Europe this week. It's the latest small landmark in what's become a regular series of subtle evolutions in Nintendo's download platform strategies, and one that...
The classic catch-22
So, it looks like Deus Ex: Human Revolution Director's Cut is coming to Wii U, with a ratings board classification and the common knowledge that Australia-based studio Straight Right has been working on a high profile Square Enix franchise for Nintendo's new system. Although still in rumour territory until announced at PAX...
We discuss the casual dismissal of Wii U in some quarters
In a regular series of features, we're going to take a rather strong statement or opinion expressed about Nintendo, and give our own take. These opinions aren't those of the site as a whole, but rather of a collection of your humble Nintendo Life writers. This time around we're looking at a...
Sell, sell, sell, say the retailers
Earlier this week we saw a bit of a Wii U price war break out, in the UK at least, with Amazon UK joining Asda in slashing the price of both Wii U models by £50. At the same time, a number of US retailers are being rather creative with their offerings, not necessarily going for a full-blown price reduction but...
Just how important are review scores?
Last week we published our Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate review; we liked it, despite some flaws that we outlined, and gave it a strong recommendation with a score of 8/10, which counts as "very good" in our review scoring policy. Such was the reaction to the review here, elsewhere and to the...
History and pedigree in the industry are vital weapons
This week brought some interesting and, perhaps, unexpected news. Nintendo's stock jumped a little over 7% on the Osaka Stock Exchange, a boost attributed to factors such as a weakening Yen being a benefit against trade in the U.S., while positive economic news from the big N's most valuable...
Because that's what weekends are for
The weekend is upon us, so it's time to break out the good-stuff — by which we main games, obviously. There are always more games to play, even if none of them happen to be new; if you haven't bought anything this week just play something you already have, unless it's a recently released online-only single...
The features that time forgot
Remember the augmented reality (AR) games on 3DS? Go on, check your handheld, they're still there, quietly sitting on the home screen waiting to be enjoyed. Built into the system for all to experience whenever they like, taking an established technology and adding a hefty dose of Nintendo whimsy and charm. They were...
It’s not all about the LA expo
Nintendo has often been one of the most secretive companies in the world, and while that prevents any unwanted information being leaked ahead of schedule, it means that at times it’s infuriating to follow as a fan. Up until a few years ago, the only chance we got to look inside the hallowed grounds of Nintendo HQ...
Stepping away from blaming games
We live in a world where blame is often too easily shifted and personal responsibility too easily avoided. Excuse-making has arguably become the fad of our time; as the laundry-list of blame-accepting environmental influences grows larger, the courage to accept and improve our own faults seemingly becomes more...
Where will it all end?
We recently shared some news from an investor briefing, in which EA's chief financial officer, Blake J. Jorgensen, outlined EA's plans for a future with micro-transactions in all of its games. It seems pertinent to own up to the fact that the tone of that news article wasn't exactly delighted with the idea — while...
Introducing bits and pixels to a new generation
The upcoming release of Retro City Rampage on WiiWare arguably represents two important trends for the service — it could be the last notable release on the platform, and it's also yet another "retro" themed release. We'll consider the possible swansong and end of WiiWare in the near future, but...
A festive dust up
If you live somewhere with no internet access or connection to the outside world, it may be news to you that Sony unveiled its PlayStation 4 console in New York on 20th February. Over the course of two hours it confirmed a Holiday 2013 release, showed off the system's user interface and social functions, a new version of the...
From 60Hz retro releases in Europe, to freebies and localisations
It seems that in the modern era of social networks, free online news and consumers with greater choice than ever before, there is always something to get thousands of online commentators hot, bothered and outraged. On many occasions there are justifications and genuine reasons...
Stepping out from a big shadow
The most recent round of Nintendo Direct broadcasts opened, whether you were watching in Europe or North America, with Nintendo President Satoru Iwata telling us all about The Year of Luigi. After a solid 18 months when, arguably, Mario was the go-to figure accounting for a healthy portion of Nintendo's release...
Blasting away some kinks
While Europeans have endured a rather frustrating trend of late, waiting for various games to arrive that have already graced North America, the region has enjoyed first dibs on the Wii U eShop's dalliances with free-to-play download models. We're referring to Zen Pinball 2 and today's arrival, a downloadable tweaked...
If in doubt, go with what you know
As the weeks pass of Wii U's early days, and the 3DS campaigns to prove that gaming handhelds still have a major role to play, there are some signs that Nintendo's being forced to adjust its strategies when preparing new games. With the previous week's debates about third party content — both multi-platform and...
