News EU VC Releases - 7th December - Sega Week
Breaking the norm again this month, Sega only releases two games instead of the usual three. No matter though when both of them are great! Rolling Thunder 2 is one of Dazza's favourites. It borrows some elements from Shinobi and combined it with arcade action, as there's enemies coming at you from all sides. While somewhat short, the game just oozes quality every step you take, with great music, graphics and gameplay.
The other Mega Drive offering is Light Crusader, an isometric Action RPG which is somewhat similar to Landsta...
News US VC Releases - 3rd December - Eternal Champions
After last week's disaster, this week's releases are a bit more bearable. First up is Sega's answer to Street Fighter - Eternal Champions. Instead of having fighters from around the world, Eternal Champions has fighters from various time periods! This of course leads to wildly different movesets for each character. The formula has obviously been bettered nowadays, but if you like the genre it's still worthwhile to check out the game.
Hot on the heels of Eternal Champions for pick of the week is Zanac. You might be thinking -...
Review Baseball Stars 2 (Virtual Console / Neo Geo)
Lace up your cleats and step onto the diamond with the pros of Baseball Stars 2.
Are you getting sick of all the sub-par sports games on VC (excluding Kirby's Dream Course, Punch-Out!! and, to some, Ice Hockey)? Yeah? Well, here's Baseball Stars 2 - a game breaks every rule in the book and delivers a completely crazy experience filled to the top...
News Japanese Virtual Console List - December 2007
A lot of sequels in this month's Japanese VC list. A couple of surprises (Including the next N64 game) as well. Without further ado:
Japanese VC List - December: Famicom: Downtown Nekketsu Koushinkyoku: Soreyuke Daiundoukai (The Japan-only sequel to River City Ransom/Street Gangs) - December 4th Super Mario Bros. 3 Metal Slader Glory Lunar...
News EU VC Releases - 30th November - Baseball Stars 2
Two games again for Europe today. If you'd like to go through Wonder Boy in Monster World again with different music, or if you like baseball, you're right at home. Otherwise, tough luck! Baseball Stars 2 is one of the finest games ever made based on the sport, with over the top animations and gameplay. Characters fight each other, break their bats in frustration and more! It's presented in such a ridiculously cool style that everybody who plays it will get a smile on their face.
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Review Ecco Jr. (Virtual Console / Sega Mega Drive)
The aquatic adventures of Ecco come to life for a younger generation of gamers.
Ouch - what happened here? Ecco the Dolphin, suddenly transformed into a kid-friendly educational game? In this game, you play as Ecco Jr., a younger version of Ecco, or one of his two friends (Tara the baby orca or Kitnee the baby Atlantic dolphin). There is no real...
News US VC Releases - 26th November - Vegas Stakes
After last week's "big" releases for the Wii's one year anniversary, calling this week "underwhelming" would be an understatement. While it's a total of three games, we can't really seriously recommend any of them to everybody. The only good game this week is Vegas Stakes, a gambling simulation for the SNES. It's all well and good for gambling fans, but everybody else (Which is very likely a lot of people) would be better off skipping it unless they're really interested in finding out how the casino world works.
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News EU VC Releases - 23rd November - The King of Fighters '94
Only two games for Europe this week, but who cares? Both of them are fantastic games, each with their own cult following! First off, we have The King of Fighters '94, the first in a long, long SNK fighting series, which has yearly installments (It's still going!). The series combines characters and stages from various SNK series into one massive game, which provides tons and tons of entertainment. There's a reason it's loved by so much people!
Second this week, it's Taito's classic arcade game, Bubble Bobb...
News US VC Releases - 19th November - Wrecking Crew
The Wii's out a year today in the US, so to celebrate, have another Mario game! Wrecking Crew is one of the more unknown Mario games, frequently not even being mentioned in lists of his games. Despite this, the game has held up very well, and those who've played it agree that's it really fun. With 100 stages and a level editor it's more than worth the price.
Nintendo also apparently found it a good idea to release another Sonic game today. Great, right? Well, normally we'd say yes, but as it's Sonic 3D Blast we're not so happy. Download at your own risk, as it's probably the worst Gen...
Review Double Dribble (Virtual Console / NES)
Double Dribble is a 5-on-5 basketball game for the NES, based on the 1986 arcade game of the same name.
This is the first basketball game to come to VC, and unfortunately for us, it's not very good. While Double Dribble was fairly popular back in the day due to the graphics (There are some cutscenes with fairly detailed stuff, like a crowd marching...
News EU VC Releases - 16th November - Double Dribble
If you were expecting another hugely popular, great game today to coincide with the release of Super Mario Galaxy, you are, sadly, wrong. While the game (Yes, GAME) was indeed quite popular, I wouldn't quite call it good these days.
Today's ONLY new game is Double Dribble for the NES. It's another one of those games like China Warrior - The game...
News US VC Releases - 12th November - Axelay (+ Worldwide Mii Contest Channel)
Only one exciting VC game for the US today, but it doesn't matter too much - Super Mario Galaxy is out in the US today!
This week's great game is Axelay. One of the SNES's finest shmups (And one of the most loved ones of all time!). It has very unique 3D-esque effects which give it a unique style almost no other game has copied. This one's worth...
News EU VC Releases - 9th November - Super Mario Bros 3
Thankfully, Europe didn't have to wait long to get Super Mario Bros. 3 after America got it earlier this week. This game needs no introduction. It's easily one of the best games ever made (And according to many, THE best game ever made). If you haven't ever played it, you honestly have no idea what you're missing. Shame on you!
The other two games...
News Check Mii Out Channel to hit on Sunday
Get ready to make some more free space this coming Sunday, because a new Channel will hit the Wii Shop in America (Possibly also other regions, unknown for now though). It's the Check Mii Out Channel, which was announced a few months ago.
Despite it coming so soon, there are still no official videos or screenshots yet. There are however a few videos...
News EU VC Releases - 2nd November - Sega Week
Less Sega games than normal in this month's Sega week - only two, instead of three. But one of them is fantastic, and there's two other games as well, so there's no reason to complain! Or is there?
The top pick is Treasure's awesome run 'n gun game for the Mega Drive, Alien Soldier. It's a bit like the also available Gunstar Heroes, but ever so...
Review Samurai Ghost (Virtual Console / TurboGrafx-16)
This action platformer features a samurai ghost from the depths of the underworld.
The ghost of a samurai? Surely this must be awesome! Unfortunately, the truth is far from it. You play the ghost of a samurai who has returned to avenge himself. Thankfully the game information tells us this, as the main character looks nothing like a samurai. Your...
News US VC Releases - 29th October - Magician Lord
Two sequels and a standalone game today, the highlight of the bunch being the standalone one - Magician Lord. This is a great arcade-style platformer (And thus also the first non-fighter Neo Geo game) which features some pretty tough challenges. It's certainly not for the less skilled players! One could argue that it is currently the most arcady game on VC, so if you want that quarter-munching feeling of the good old days, this is for you.
To tie in with Halloween this week, the US gets the approp...
News TMNT increases in price for Europe
A strange development recently (We are unsure when), as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles now also costs 600 Wii Points in Europe (And Australia) instead of 500, just like America.
Not that this really matters, as the game's not very good. We sincerely hope that you don't download it now, why would you buy a stinker for an increased price!? Save your Wii...
News Japanese Virtual Console list - November 2007
Japan's Virtual Console list for November has been published, and it has some surprises - including a fan-favourite SNES puzzler. Yup, it's none other than Nintendo's strange take on Tetris (Well, that's what they want you to believe anyway), Tetris Attack! Alongside it are a few more small surprises, including the first Square game that was originally released outside Japan. Here's the full list:
First off, next tuesday (October 30), Japan will get: NES: Hanjuku HeroN64: Yoshi's StoryMD: Target E...
News EU VC Releases - 26th October - Magician Lord
Instead of the third Neo Geo fighting game, Europe's in for a treat today - You can now download the great platformer action game, Magician Lord! This great game features a fantastic soundtrack, great visuals and fun gameplay, including the ability to shapeshift into different forms.
Second today is what is perhaps the first not so great Nintendo 64...
News US VC Releases - 22nd October - Ninja JaJaMaru-kun
Nothing too grand for the US today - two average games and one that leans slightly towards the bad side. Still, you should check them out, as one of the games, Ninja JaJaMaru-kun, is a previously Japan-only game. It's a strange little arcadey platformer, in which you take out ever-stronger enemies through an infinite number of rounds in order to rescue your love, the princess Sakura, from the evil Lord Namazu Dayuu. As with all other import games, it comes at an increased price - 600 Wii Points.
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Yet another developer hops on the WiiWare bandwagon. Developer Nnooo has announced they're working on a game called Pop. In the game, the objective is to pop bubbles for as long as you can without running out of time (You can also obtain time extensions, etc.). You can read some more information on Nnooo's official Pop site.
Now, commence the bad...
Review Castlevania II: Simon's Quest (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
Simon's flawed quest
Castlevania was a smash hit. Despite the difficulty of the game and its lack of quality in some areas it was loved worldwide and proved very popular. It was a no-brainer for Konami to create a sequel. Perhaps borrowing ideas from Nintendo (Super Mario Bros. 2, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, etc.) the game is very different...
News EU VC Releases - 19th October - Castlevania II
A diverse selection for Europe today, as besides a shoot 'em up and a fighter, we get the strange sequel to the original Castlevania, Castlevania II: Simon's Quest. The game is a lot different from the original game, though the influence is still very obvious. Instead of fighting your way through linear levels, you've instead got a large overworld to explore, complete with dungeons and secrets! The game's been criticized a lot over the years, and has even been called "most disappointing sequel of all time", but this is honestly not doing it any justice, as it's a pretty good game. Just don't expect anything similar to the original!
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