Feature Articles
Monday2nd Jan 2023
Soapbox After 10 Years I Finally Got A Wii U, Here’s What I Thought
The good, the bad, and the ugly
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, following up on his piece from a few weeks back, Jim delivers his verdict on the ten-year-old console and how it holds up in 2022 ... Picture the scene. The year...
Saturday5th Nov 2022
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (November 5th)
Bonfire Night gaming
Remember, remember the 5th November, gunpowder, treason and gaming. It's something along those lines, right? While we can't really comment on the first two of these, we have had a week filled with the third here at Nintendo Life. The week kicked off with Halloween, and we got into the spirit by chatting about the gaming moments...
Saturday29th Oct 2022
Feature The Spookiest Levels In Non-Spooky Games
Melloween
Aside from costumes, big bowls of sweets and the impending fear that I'm A Celebrity will soon dominate TV again, if there is one thing that you can bank on over Halloween, it's lots, and lots of scary video games. The spooky season has an annoying habit of seeking out those of us — this writer included — who are not the best with...
Saturday17th Mar 2018
Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend
Here are our picks, but what are yours?
This weekend, Team Nintendo Life are giving their respective Nintendo consoles a good workout with all manner of virtual gems. We've got plenty of Neo Geo action; some 'Nindies' for good measure; the occasional shooter; and lots and lots of a certain game involving Inklings (can you guess which one?). As...
Saturday20th May 2017
Video The Complete History Of Mario Kart
From SNES to Switch in 25 years
In light of the recent launch of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, we at Nintendo Life have been reminiscing about the celebrated history of the Mario Kart series. From the SNES to the new Nintendo Switch, Mario Kart has provided players around the globe with countless hours of shell-tossing entertainment. In this...
Thursday3rd Nov 2016
Talking Point Ports vs. Sequels On The Nintendo Switch
A unique switchuation...
In this Talking Point, Arjun gives his perspective on the ports vs. sequels considerations for the Nintendo Switch. The Nintendo NX - erm, Switch - has finally been unveiled, and it's arguably the lion's roar that the big N needed after troubles with its last home system. The Wii U has suffered a similar fate to that of the...
Monday8th Aug 2016
Feature Ten Ideal Launch Year Nintendo NX Games
In one writer's humble opinion, at least
Just recently we ran a poll asking you which Nintendo games / franchises you'd like to see in the NX launch window, assuming that to be a period of around six months. Plenty of you pitched in, with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and a 3D Mario title being the leaders, with a new Metroid Prime title...
Wednesday3rd Aug 2016
Hosted at The Centre for Computing History, Cambridge
We had such a blast meeting you lovely people at the inaugural Nintendo Life Gaming Night last year, that it was a no-brainer to team up again with our chums at the Centre for Computing History in Cambridge, England and do another event. Thanks to everyone who joined us on Saturday 30th July 2016...
Wednesday30th Dec 2015
Feature How Mario Kart Brought Two Soul Mates Together
The road to true love is littered with red shells
From now until the start of the new year we're going to be republishing some of what we feel are our best features of 2015. Hopefully this will offer the chance for newer readers to catch up on content they might have missed and allow long-time fans to reacquaint themselves with features they enjoyed...
Wednesday4th Nov 2015
Talking Point Super Mario Maker's Update Continues Nintendo's Focus on Major Games as Services
Going beyond day one
Super Mario Maker is on the cusp - at the time of writing - of receiving its first major update. It solves one of the most notable quibbles that fans have had by adding level checkpoints, in addition to features such as dedicated areas for official Nintendo courses and 'event' courses contributed by companies such as Facebook...
Sunday13th Sep 2015
Mario History Mario Kart 8 - 2014
Taking racing to a new level
In this series of articles we'll write about one or more Mario games per day (apart from when we miss a day), each representing a different year as part of our Super Mario 30th Anniversary celebrations. Despite its ups and downs the Wii U has delivered a relatively small but distinguished library of excellent...
Monday7th Sep 2015
Mario Memories Mario Kart 8 and Discovering the Joys of Online Multiplayer
6th Place Forever
In this series of articles celebrating the upcoming 30th Anniversary of Super Mario, various members of the Nintendo Life extended family will share their memories and thoughts on the iconic franchise. This time we have our delightful reviewer Narelle Ho Sang. Some of my favourite memories of Mario are the ones I'm still making...
Tuesday4th Aug 2015
Talking Point Nintendo's Game Updates and DLC Are Fantastic, Albeit Starved of Attention
Key Wii U titles have evolved a great deal
It's easy to be a little blasé and spoilt as gamers, but it's been striking once again that, with a combination of economic savvy and a clear love for its products, Nintendo is making the most of key releases on the Wii U. Three of the system's biggest games have transformed since launch with a mix of new...
Monday25th May 2015
Feature Go Fast - An Ode To The Glorious Chaos Of F-Zero
Gonçalo Lopes explains why he will be hoping for a new F-Zero at E3 2015
Colours. Music. The Captain. Speed. Very, very fast speed. Those are the things that race to my mind when anyone mentions "F-Zero". I am also quite certain my eyes widen and sparkle a bit. Is it just a series of games? Not to me. Off to the starting grid… Knight League:...
Tuesday28th Apr 2015
Poll With Races Won and Cups Collected, How Do You Rate Mario Kart 8's DLC Pack 2?
And 200cc, for that matter
It's clear that Nintendo's approach to DLC has moved on a great deal when extras begin to take on the status of a brand new release. With April being generally low on enticing new releases, the big N successfully got plenty of current Wii U and 3DS gamers excited with DLC for existing evergreen blockbusters. In the case of...
Friday24th Apr 2015
Talking Point Mario Kart 8 DLC is a Winning Formula for Nintendo, But It Can Go Further
A real Battle Mode, Challenges and more
We suspect that the online multiplayer servers for Mario Kart 8 saw a handsome spike this week, with the launch of DLC Pack 2 and an update that includes the 200cc race class. It's a title that just keeps growing, and as we argued recently the arrival of non-Mario franchises points to a potential future for...
Sunday19th Apr 2015
Bringing more gaming with less releases
Let's kick off this article with some current-day realities - not negative as such, but perhaps uncomfortable. At the moment, especially with the Wii U, Nintendo is responsible for producing the bulk of high-quality retail releases. There are partners or second-party studios producing some key efforts - like...
Saturday18th Apr 2015
Poll Would You Like Mario Kart 8 and Super Smash Bros. DLC to Expand for a Whole Generation?
Platforms within platforms
This week Super Smash Bros. on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS had its first DLC in the form of Mii character outfits, while on 23rd April we'll get to enjoy the Mario Kart 8 DLC Pack 2. We know there's more to come in Super Smash Bros. in the form of purchasable characters - Mewtwo (already available to eligible Club Nintendo...
Wednesday15th Apr 2015
Poll What Are You Most Excited About in the Mario Kart 8 DLC Pack 2?
Tracks, characters, vehicles, amiibo suits and free 200cc all coming
Earlier today Nintendo finally unveiled its full line-up for the Mario Kart 8 DLC Pack 2, with a whole host of lovely videos joining the announcement. We've also had a chance to go hands on with everything the DLC has to offer, including 200cc mode, to share our views on how its...
Hands On Hitting the Tracks in Mario Kart 8 DLC Pack 2 and 200cc Mode
It just keeps getting better...
When Nintendo announced that the second Mario Kart 8 DLC pack was coming earlier than promised, we were appropriately excited. Now that we've had a chance to get to grips with everything this extra content has to offer, suffice to say we're not disappointed. In this early look at the full DLC pack we check out the...
Monday26th Jan 2015
Poll Which Current Generation Nintendo Soundtracks Would You Buy?
Moving beyond occasional Club Nintendo giveaways
Earlier today Nintendo Europe added The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds soundtrack to Club Nintendo, which is jolly for those in the region with a load of stars to spend, but disappointing for anyone else. It continues Nintendo's slightly odd policy of creating some of the greatest soundtracks...
Friday26th Dec 2014
Poll Which is the Best Mario Kart Game?
Will you go retro, HD or portable?
It's a time of year in which plenty of time is spent with friends, family and fellow web gamers debating all manner of topics. Is Kirby Nintendo's cutest mascot? Has Mario's moustache become bushier in the HD era? Will F-Zero ever return? It's a time of opinions, and having checked out the Game of the Year results...
Wednesday3rd Dec 2014
Parent Trap amiibo Packs a Hidden Family Payload
More than meets the eye
Toys and video games used to compete for family spending power at supermarket check-outs. The recent trend in toy-video-game crossovers does away with this rivalry, but for families makes purchasing decisions all the more confusing. With amiibo joining the likes Skylanders and Disney Infinity (not to mention more niche...
Thursday27th Nov 2014
Feature Five Nintendo Games Perfect For Multiplayer Fun and Thanksgiving
Gather around, dear friends
It's Thanksgiving in the US, a major celebration in which families and friends gather to spend quality time together; naturally entertainment will be high on the agenda. For those that enjoy gaming, meanwhile, it's a chance to break out all those excess controllers and get into the spirit of the occasion with party and...
Saturday15th Nov 2014
Feature Our Predictions For The Animal Crossing x Mario Kart 8 DLC Pack 2
Vehicles and tracks up for grabs
Earlier this week, ahead of the launch of the first Mario Kart 8 DLC Pack, we let our imaginations — and hopes — run free in creating more DLC packs that we want to see. It was certainly fun for us, though a common complaint was that they weren't realistic. Forgetting the fact that predicting Zelda DLC a year ago...
Friday14th Nov 2014
Poll Who'll Be Your Main amiibo Buddy?
For Smash Bros. training, more games and picnics
Nothing says it's Friday like some nice, relaxing polls, so we thought we'd take one of the big topics of the week — amiibo — and gauge how you'll be enjoying — or not as the case may be — the upcoming range of toys. It's all very well looking at the attention Nintendo's directing towards the...
Wednesday12th Nov 2014
Feature These Are The Mario Kart 8 DLC Packs We Want To See
This is just the beginning
At the time of writing the first DLC pack for Mario Kart 8 — The Legend of Zelda x Mario Kart 8 — is just hours away. It won't stop there, either, as next May will bring a second pack to the successful Wii U racer. Yet as we eagerly anticipate blasting around Mute City while playing as Link on the Master Cycle —...
Tuesday11th Nov 2014
Talking Point The amiibo Range Grows, Yet Key Questions Remain
Its ambition is both a strength and a curse
Back in August we outlined amiibo pros and cons, mainly within the context that Nintendo had revealed little about the figures over the course of the summer months. Many questions have since been answered in terms of how the figures will be used in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, in addition to their minor...
Sunday9th Nov 2014
Preview Power Sliding Around The Legend of Zelda x Mario Kart 8 DLC
The great just got even greater!
Recently we were invited to Nintendo's UK headquarters to have a go at The Legend of Zelda x Mario Kart 8 DLC that's arriving on 13th November, and naturally we just had to tell you what we thought of it. This is the first time a Mario Kart game has had DLC, so Nintendo has to make an impact to convince buyers to...
Monday6th Oct 2014
Video Check Out Our Second EGX 2014 YouTube Mario Kart 8 Challenge
Twelve more YouTube gamers race to the finish line
EGX 2014 may be a fading memory for some, but here at Nintendo Life we're committed to making sure everyone remembers how truly amazing it all was. With that in mind, we bring you not one but two new videos from the EGX weekend, both of which focus on the live events we held which showcased the...
