Steve's three-and-a-half years with Nintendo Life saw him covering games with news, reviews, interviews, guides, and more. His past work can also be found on IGN and Kotaku, and in 2020 he co-founded Good Vibes Gaming.
Review Joe's Diner (Wii U eShop)
Scary bad
Joe's Diner sounds compelling on paper: you're a new employee at a lonely diner on an abandoned stretch of highway. The diner is set atop an Indian burial ground and is rife with other-worldly activity; your goal is to survive through the night and by keeping the spirits at rest. Unfortunately, ideas don't always come out the way one might...
Review Space Hulk (Wii U eShop)
Table(top) for two
Space Hulk is a relatively straightforward game. If you like more mature, dark themes in your titles, it may be for you. The same could be said if you're the type of gamer who wishes the Wii U had more thrillers. If you're a fan who mostly enjoys more colourful, first-party-style fare, this may not be for you. If you're the type...
Review The Perplexing Orb (Wii U eShop)
Perplexing, indeed
The Perplexing Orb is a short, not particularly pretty game. Like many downloads we've reviewed it values gameplay over narrative or presentation; that's not a bad thing, but it isn't without flaws. The concept of The Perplexing Orb is simple: take control of the titular orb and guide it through a series of puzzles to a goal, in...
Review The Delusions of Von Sottendorff and his Square Mind (3DS eShop)
He's no square
The Delusions of Von Sottendorff and his Square Mind is one of the weirdest - and consequently, one of the most interesting - 3DS titles we've encountered. It has just a single play mode, in which the titular baron must escape the confines of his own home. The trick, however, is that the baron is insane and believes himself to be...
Review FAST Racing NEO (Wii U eShop)
Christmas comes early for race fans
FAST Racing NEO is a game that seeks to fill the F-Zero-sized hole in every Nintendo fan's heart. Shin'en's racer is quite different from Nintendo's classic franchise, but it still does a great job at giving that high speed racing fix that some Wii U owners are desiring the most. The first thing we should note...
Review Test Your Mind (Wii U eShop)
Better stick to Brain Age
Brain teasers and Nintendo consoles have long enjoyed a fruitful partnership; the Brain Age series proved that games could give a great mental workout while still being fun. Unfortunately, Test Your Mind doesn't fare as well. Test Your Mind is a simple title with three single-player modes and one multiplayer mode. The...
Review Human Resource Machine (Wii U eShop)
Conundrums for coders
If you thought Human Resource Machine would be about a robot who hires and fires people, nobody would blame you, but you'd be wrong. Instead, you're put in the shoes of a drone at a mega corporation, helping to sort their mail using the unlikeliest of methods: computer programming. Human Resource Machine features a single...
A magical concoction
What do you get when you cross Cooking Mama with a match-three puzzle game? Something arguably more fun than either of those, actually. Wizdom is the latest title from publisher Moving Player, and it benefits from a similar presentational charm its last title - Rakoo and Friends - is known for. The premise of Wizdom is simple:...
Review Ninja Strike: Dangerous Dash (Wii U eShop)
These ninjas should stay hidden
Ninja Strike: Dangerous Dash is a perfect example of what sounds like a great idea being held back by poor execution. Published by Natsume, Ninja Strike: Dangerous Dash is a formulaic endless runner; in it you initially take control of Blue Shadow, a blue-clad Ninja with a red scarf. The art style is simple but...
Review Rakoo & Friends (Wii U eShop)
Love is in the air
Rakoo & Friends is a strong case for the allure of beautiful presentation. From a gameplay standpoint there's nothing really special about this one, but the fact that it's a joy to watch adds greatly to the overall package. Rakoo & Friends tells the story of the eponymous critter and his quest to find true love. The game...
Review Perpetual Blast (Wii U eShop)
A shot in the dark
Perpetual Blast is an endless shooter. Similar to the concept of the popular endless runner genre on mobile devices, Perpetual Blast focuses on doing one thing and one thing only. Sadly, myriad execution errors keep it from being an enjoyable experience. The idea of Perpetual Blast is simple: find and destroy 100 boxes as fast as...
Review Chronus Arc (3DS eShop)
Could have used more time
Chronus Arc hearkens back to the JRPGs of the Super Nintendo era, or at least it tries to. Kemco's 3DS port of its 2013 RPG has some interesting ideas but, sadly, they don't fit the overall experience particularly well. The story of Chronus Arc starts off interestingly enough: as the Time Rewinding approaches, a ritual...
Review Extreme Exorcism (Wii U eShop)
A hauntingly good time
Extreme Exorcism is a simple, fun indie title that embraces one of Nintendo's core values: getting people together to play. From its aesthetics to its modes, this game is dripping with retro charm. If you haven't seen or heard of it before, it's a 2D pixel-art shooter that focuses on platforming and run-and-gun mechanics. It...
Mario Memories The Summer of Super Mario
"Super Mario 64 is the game that defined my love of the series"
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 dashing reviewer Steve Bowling. Back in June of 1996, there...
Review Gotcha Racing (3DS eShop)
A delight at every turn
Gotcha Racing is about as simple as racing games come, but it's far more addictive than most. The concept is derived from Japan's Gachapon capsule toys — small, highly collectible toys that usually go for about 100 yen apiece. It's this concept that drives the heart of the game. When you first start Gotcha Racing you'll be...
Review Crab Cakes Rescue (Wii U eShop)
This cake is a lie
The Wii U's library is bursting with quirky, innovative, fun games. Crab Cakes Rescue is not one of them. From the moment you start up Crab Cakes Rescue, its lack of polish is readily apparent. For starters, it runs in a 4:3 aspect ratio, leaving unsightly black bars on either side of the screen. The title is lifted directly from...
Review The Bridge (Wii U eShop)
Turning the tables with M.C. Escher
The Bridge is a colourless, drab, bleak affair. It's also engaging, addictive and fantastic. If you haven't heard of The Bridge before, don't worry; it's a puzzle-platformer that was quietly released on Steam in 2013, then later ported to Xbox 360 that same year. The game opens on the nameless main character...
Review DK: Jungle Climber (Wii U eShop / DS)
Aping the King of Swing
What do you get when you throw away an established series' playbook and try for something new? You get DK: Jungle Climber. Unlike previous entries in the venerable Donkey Kong franchise, DK: Jungle Climber takes a fresh look at the series by focusing on swinging and timing more than precise platforming. The problem? It gets...
