January2008
Review 1080° Snowboarding (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)
Thrills and chills
1080° Snowboarding is a title that divided gamers when it was first released. Here was a game that mixed Nintendo's usual penchant for killer gameplay with a more serious subject matter than the company was used to dealing with. It got lazily compared to fellow N64 stable mate Wave Race and came out looking worse, because it was...
November2007
Review Link's Crossbow Training (Wii)
After Twilight Princess fades away Link is back in training and he needs your help!
Our hero Link returns to the Wii rather sooner than expected in the form of Link's Crossbow Training, a shooting game set in the world of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The game has been created by Nintendo to demonstrate the use of the Wii Zapper, the...
Review The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (DS)
Join Link on his first DS adventure
No doubt many of you have already seen the many positive reviews for The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass dotted all over the Internet. We realize we're a bit late with our own critique of this highly anticipated videogame, but with a series like Zelda you simply have to take your time. It wouldn't be wise to...
Review Super Mario Galaxy (Wii)
Simply out of this galaxy
Ah, Mario. It's been a while... believe it or not it's been five years since Mario's last personal outing; Super Mario Sunshine on the Gamecube. Our hero has returned for his first Wii outing, in the form of Super Mario Galaxy. Let's get something clear from the start: Galaxy is definitely not a straight forward successor...
Review The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (GCN)
The Legend of Zelda is one of Nintendo's epic franchises. Can the Wind Waker do the legend justice?
Ten years ago, "The Ocarina of Time" raised the bar of gaming standards to a new, unprecedented height - Its unique battle system, innovative "Z-Targeting" system, and utterly captivating storyline stunned gamers worldwide. Millions waited for another...
Review Super Mario Bros. 3 (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
The Mario Bros get even more super
Back in 1990 when this was released in the USA, Mario fever was at an all time high. A few months earlier, there had even been a movie released called ‘The Wizard’ with that kid from the Wonder Years, which was essentially a commercial for this game. If you never played Super Mario Bros. 3 when it was first...
September2007
Review Yoshi's Story (Wii Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)
Not Yoshi's finest hour
Remember Yoshi's Island on the Super NES? That awesome platformer that swapped the roles and made Yoshi the main hero with (Baby) Mario being the sidekick? It's become iconic, but this is perhaps the first "real" Yoshi game (Mario isn't in the name and he's barely seen in the game) and it does things a bit differently. The...
Review Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels (Virtual Console / NES)
For the first time outside of Japan – experience the original sequel to the best-selling video game of all time!
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels is a bit of an oddity. "The Lost Levels" isn't even it's real title - This is actually the real version of Super Mario Bros. 2. Japan got this game (As SMB2), but when Nintendo realized...
August2007
Review Wave Race 64 (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)
Splash wave
Given that Wave Race 64 was a launch title for the N64, and that it has now been over 10 years since that launch, it is all the more baffling to play it today. Comparison with modern games tends to put the graphical and physics achievements of older titles into stark relief, but Wave Race is the exception to the rule. In the years since,...
May2007
Review Super Mario Bros. 2 (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
A strange, but entertaining dream
It should be no secret by now, so let's get it out of the way first - Yes, the Super Mario Bros. 2 that most of us know, that is, this one, is technically not really a Mario game. Originally released in Japan as Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic (Dream Factory: Heart-Pounding Panic), it was designed by Shigeru Miyamoto,...
April2007
Review Star Fox 64 (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)
Do a barrel roll.
The original Star Fox (or ‘Starwing’ if you're a Euro gamer) introduced a whole generation of Nintendo fans to the wonder of 3D visuals. The game was nothing short of a miracle and thanks to the revolutionary Super FX chip it produced graphics that were comparable to the primitive 3D arcade releases of the era. However, when...
February2007
Review The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - Close To Perfection, And An Absolute Must-Play
Just in time
This review originally went live in 2007, and we're republishing it to mark the arrival of N64 games on Nintendo Switch Online. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time did for the Zelda series what Super Mario 64 did for the Super Mario Bros. series. It successfully brought one of the most beloved game series in video game history into...
Review Excitebike (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
This bike still excites
Excitebike will no doubt be remembered fondly by older gamers. After all, it was one of the original launch titles for the NES way back in 1985. Some might be dubious and question if a game this old is worth purchasing for the Virtual Console, but worry not — this classic game has somehow managed to retain its appeal...
Review Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
The black sheep of the family?
Zelda II: The Adventure of Link is often referred to as the black sheep of the Zelda family. Unlike the original Zelda games, the top-down perspective is replaced in favour of side-scrolling platform action, similar to that found in Castlevania. Perhaps more significantly than that, it is the only Zelda game to offer...
Review Super Mario World (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)
Simply superb
It was hailed as the greatest videogame of all time when it was released, and even after all these years it still has a pretty solid claim to that title. Super Mario World is without a shadow of a doubt one of our favourite Mario games, and when SNES was released some members of our staff played very little else until they'd discovered...
January2007
Review Mario Kart 64 (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)
Mario Kart gets a 64-bit upgrade!
To say that the original Super Mario Kart was a huge hit for the Super Nintendo console would be a mammoth understatement. The game caught gamers by storm and kicked off a series that's still producing new titles some 17 years later. So when Nintendo released their Nintendo 64 console, gamers knew that it was only a...
Review The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)
A Link to a Classic
To put it simply, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is one of the finest RPGs in existence. Everything is perfect - the bold lines and subtle pastel-tones of the graphics, the triumphant rendition of the Zelda theme, the excellent yet simple combat system, the brilliantly conceived logic puzzles. Nintendo left nothing to...
December2006
The game that exists so exclusively to introduce you to the Wii Remote, it even gives you one free
Wii Play is developed by Nintendo and its main purpose is to introduce players who have never used a Wii Remote before to the device. It even says so on the back of the box. Yes you can learn the basics by playing any other game until you get the hang...
Review Ice Hockey (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
Ice to see you again
The earlier titles in the NES sports series are probably not remembered by many for being great games, but Nintendo’s Ice Hockey — a latecomer to the series in 1988 — certainly bucks that trend. It is fondly remembered as a semi-faithful translation of the sport which was fiendishly addictive to play and hard to put down...
November2006
Nintendo's first pack-in title in nearly over a decade is a lot of fun. Period.
A great launch title for the Nintendo Wii has proven to be Wii Sports, not only because it's fun even among non-gamers, but it comes free packaged with the Wii (except in Japan). Wii Sports isn't the most complex game, but it isn't meant to be the detailed, highly...
Review F-Zero (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)
From zero to Mode 7 hero
Before WipEout, there was F-Zero. Nintendo's futuristic racer was one of the first SNES releases, but shows very little sign of aging — in fact, it feels just as fresh and fun today as it did all those years ago. Graphically, the Mode 7 effects have obviously lost some of their edge when viewed today but the visuals are...
Review The Legend of Zelda (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
The brave Link begins his hazardous journey in the fantastic world of Hyrule.
Where it all began - it's amazing how playable and fresh this games feels, even after all these years! Although the visuals and sound are hardly going to turn heads these days, the core Zelda gameplay is all present and correct. The Legend of Zelda is a famous series...
The famous simulation in which one takes the role of a mayor and must help a new city thrive and become a megalopolis.
Before ‘The Sims’ there was SimCity. This game was on most home computer systems at the time but the SNES port with its exclusive features and additional scenarios ranks as one of the better versions. The SimCity series has...
July2006
Touching is good!
Yoshi Touch & Go was an early title for the DS. The game centres on getting the highest score possible, making it feel like an arcade game. With other excellent selections for the DS with much more depth though, this game has been overlooked by many. However, it isn't all that bad. The game starts out with you controlling baby...
Review New Super Mario Bros. (DS)
New and improved?
Just a little over 20 years ago, Nintendo released their Nintendo Entertainment System onto the US gaming market and packaged with it, a game that would forever change the landscape of video games. This game was the original Super Mario Bros. and it single-handedly sold millions of NES systems. Over the next five years Nintendo...
