Review Mario Kart 64 (Virtual Console / Nintendo 64)
Mario Kart gets a 64-bit upgrade!
Review Gradius (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
Konami's classic shooter series takes off
Review R-Type III: The Third Lightning (SNES)
The Bydo Empire is back! More powerful and deadlier than ever, the Bydo are en-route to Earth.
A fun shooter in the Star Soldier tradition
News - January, 2007
Wednesday31st Jan 2007
News Sony Says Wii Are Impulsive, You Say...
If I posted an article about every dig the competition took at Nintendo, I would have no time for anything else. However, on this occasion I thought it might be interesting to see what you, our marvelous readers, think on the Wii's 'gimmick factor'.
Most Nintendo fans will remember a time when Mario & Co ruled all, a world where Playstation's...
News Majesco Brings Crosswords To The DS
Puzzle veterans rejoice as crosswords are set to make a welcome appearance on the DS, courtesy of Majesco.
From the horses mouth:"Crossword puzzle aficionados will soon have a new outlet as Majesco Entertainment Company (NASDAQ: COOL), an innovative provider of digital entertainment products and content, today announced The New York Times...
Tuesday30th Jan 2007
Sketch Turner is an artist in New York City. One day while Sketch is drawing, there is a huge thunderstorm and a bolt of lightning hits Sketch's image, bringing it to life.
Released fairly late in the life of the Megadrive/Genesis, Comix Zone didn't exactly set the world alight in terms of sales but is now rightly regarded as one of the better games...
Review Bonanza Bros (Virtual Console / Sega Mega Drive)
Grab the target items and head for the exit!
Bonanza Bros. harkens back to the early 80's arcade titles with their simple, yet addictive play control ideas. While there are obvious Keystone Kapers and Elevator Action influences throughout the game, the overall gameplay design is at least original enough to stand on its own two feet. The only problem...
Monday29th Jan 2007
News New USA Virtual Console releases for 29th January - Contra III and more!
Some great games on the US Virtual Console today. Contra III being out favourite. If your virtual wallets are still full after downloading that then Mario Kart 64 and Comix Zone also come highly recommended! Bonanza Bros is a bit of a duffer though, don't bother with that!
Mario Kart 64 - Nintendo 64 (1-4 players, 1,000 Wii Points): Put the pedal to...
Sunday28th Jan 2007
News Diddy Kong Racing Details
Possible Mario Kart beater with four all new tracks, six player online action AND a track builder.
One game has been sleeping, sleeping until now. Nintendo have finally revealed all the goods on their upcoming remake of the N64 classic Diddy Kong Racing, hitting the DS in the US next month. Fact Sheet:A bloated space pig has taken control of Diddy...
News Mario Kart Drops Onto Virtual Console
Europeans can now bag themselves Mario Kart 64 for a mere 1,000 Wii Points.
Nintendo continue to tease us with a dribble of N64 goodness, can't you release them any faster?! "Racing fans are in for an extra special treat today as Mario Kart 64, one of the greatest games in the hugely popular Mario Kart series, is available to download to...
Saturday27th Jan 2007
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...
Friday26th Jan 2007
Wii gets another new channel, this time its all in the news.
Nintendo have today announced that the free "News Channel" will be available for Wii from tommorrow. The channel using the international resources of the Associated Press gives you key stories in multiple categories from across the country and around the world. "What Wii has done for...
News 26th January - PAL VC games - Mario Kart 64 & Soldier Blade
From Nintendo's Press room:
Virtual Console Shifts Up A Gear With One Of Nintendo's Best Racing Games Of All Time 26th January 2007 - Racing fans are in for an extra special treat today as Mario Kart 64, one of the greatest games in the hugely popular Mario Kart series, is available to download to Wii's Virtual Console. Featuring tense racing action...
Tuesday23rd Jan 2007
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...
Monday22nd Jan 2007
News New USA Virtual Console releases for 22nd January - Zelda goodness!
New today on the US Wii Shop! From Nintendo's press site:
Today Nintendo adds one of the most popular games in its library of classics to the Wii video game system's Wii Shop Channel: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. Nintendo adds new games to the channel every Monday. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points to...
News DS Reaches European Sales Milestone
The Nintendo DS has become the fastest selling games console in European history, smashing the 10 million sales mark in less than two years.
"Nintendo DS topped the six million mark in September and has continued to go from strength to strength with thousands of new people being introduced to gaming through the Nintendo DS," said Laurent...
Sunday21st Jan 2007
Would you like to use a device that could lift up objects beyond your reach? Konami thought you would..
It's an interesting concept, an anti-gravity 'gun' that can lift heavy objects and throw them about the place. In Konami's first game for the Wii, you can cause havoc in a house and then start trashing the streets! In the game's world, there are...
Saturday20th Jan 2007
Review Contra III: The Alien Wars (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)
Run 'n gun
Konami really went all out with this title, the third instalment to the Contra series (or Probotector to gamers in the PAL regions). The development team at the time must have relished the challenge of developing on the Super Nintendo as this is one of the more impressive games on the system; the experience is a good deal bigger and...
Friday19th Jan 2007
News 19th January - PAL UK Virtual Console releases
Today's new releases for the PAL Virtual Console are:
SNES (800 Wii Points):Street Fighter II: The World Warrior (1-2 players)Super Probotector: Alien Rebels (1-2 players) When we have more news about the 50Hz optimisation issues we'll be sure to let you know! These are 2 of the finest titles that ever came out on the SNES. However playing Street...
Wednesday17th Jan 2007
EA have released the cover art for their upcoming snowboarding sequel SSX Blur.
It seems more and more likely that SSX Blur will actually get a spring release over here in Europe, currently the game is scheduled for a March 16th release date. "SSX Blur is everything you expect from the franchise, delivered in a totally unexpected way...
Tuesday16th Jan 2007
Review R-Type III: The Third Lightning (SNES)
The Bydo Empire is back! More powerful and deadlier than ever, the Bydo are en-route to Earth.
R-Type III is an interesting title in many ways. Firstly, it was a console exclusive, which generated quite a stir when it was first published. Secondly it takes advantage of the Super NES 'Mode 7' graphics to bring rotating backgrounds into play. Thirdly,...
News Half-Life Creator Likes Wii, Hates PS3
Gabe Newell describes the PS3 as a "total disaster on so many levels" but likes everything Nintendo are doing.
DigitalBattle.com have reported on an interview between Game Informer and PC games legend Gabe Newell whom was willing to share his views on the current gen console market. For those unaware of who Gabe is, he's one of the main guys at...
Monday15th Jan 2007
The lounge lizard coming to a Nintendo console near you? No, but wouldn't it be funny!
BBspot published a pretty interesting idea for another Wii game last month, we missed it but here's what they came up with. "Sierra will release what they think will be the most innovative use of the new "Wiimote" used on the immensely popular Wii...
News New USA Virtual Console releases for 15th January
Three news games for those of you with American Wii consoles. Taken from Nintendo's press site:
Xevious (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Players control their Solvalou ship and destroy the XEVIOUS forces. Fire the zapper missiles against air-based enemies and drop the blaster bombs down upon ground-based targets. Destroy Andor Genesis to earn...
Sunday14th Jan 2007
Review Trauma Center: Second Opinion (Wii)
Doctor, vitals are dropping. Its time to dissect Atlus' new medical drama, lets start the operation..
Only in Japan. Trauma Center: Second Opinion is something you wouldn't expect, over the past 20 years the majority of video games have been about killing things, Trauma Center is one of the many few that is all about saving things, saving peoples...
Can there really be a more time consuming game than this?
The Sims is a franchise renowned for its cross-gender popularity and appeal to a large portion of gamers- many care for their Sims more than themselves! When it comes to console versions, the series have always struggled to entertain the masses to the extent that the PC titles have. The past...
News Nintendo Controller Wins Emmy Award
No, not the Wii but the NES controller! Nintendo's "D-Pad" shaped a next generation of games.
Nintendo has been awarded an Emmy for the original D-Pad on its Nintendo Entertainment System which debeted over 22 years ago in 1985. "The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences has awarded Nintendo an Emmy® Award for its invention of the...
News 60Hz for PAL Wii Virtual Console online petition
Spence a friend of the Virtual Console Archive has taken the time to set up a online petition with the hope of getting Nintendo to change their stance on forcing gamers in the PAL regions to only have the choice of the shoddy 50Hz conversions. We think it is worth spending 2 minutes to sign:
Sign the petition to get riddy of shoddy 50Hz PAL Virtual...
News Shoe Your Love For Nintendo
You aint got style till you've got Nintendo shoes, no, we're serious - Nintendo shoes!
Nintendo fanboys rejoice as Kotaku discover a new product hits the shelves. "Ok, I'm right on the line with these. I love the shoes, can't get enough of the gaming shoes, but the baby blue color and hardcore Nintendo fanboyism of these sneaks leave me a...
Shredding it
EA released another video of its upcoming Snowboarding title SSX Blur, set to be the 5th game in the series.. Here's a treat for the weekend, another video from EA demoing the control scheme of the latest SSX game, interestingly it looks like you'll be steering the board with your left hand rather than your right. We've also heard...
News Nintendo Attracts Indy Developers
Small time start up developers such as "Twelve Interactive" are flocking over to Wii.
Although it might be safe for Sony and Microsoft to attract the multi-million dollar developments, it seems Nintendo's simpler and more innovative system is attracting the smaller developers, who often create something new. "Leading Italian game developer,...
Saturday13th Jan 2007
Review Xevious (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
Golden oldie
Following its success with Pac-Man and Galaga in the arcades, it seemed that Namco was unstoppable. The release of Xevious only helped to cement this idea: it was first one of the earliest examples of a vertical scrolling shooter and innovative for its time. The action in Xevious takes place on two parallel plains; your spacecraft gets...
Friday12th Jan 2007
News 12th January - PAL UK Virtual Console release - Xevious
Only one Virtual Console release today - and it's the rather average Namco top-down shooter Xevious. People tend to bang on about how great this game is and for a shooter from 1982 it's pretty decent, but by the time it was released on the NES (which is the version available for download - the PC Engine version is actually closer to the arcade original - God knows why they didn't offer that instead) it was dated, and today it's old enough to get a free bus pass.
Only really worth do...
Tuesday9th Jan 2007
Review Gradius (Wii Virtual Console / NES)
Konami's classic shooter series takes off
It's so hard to review a game like Gradius. This is a near-legendary title and has inspired a franchise that has sold millions, not to mention the spin-off series Parodius and countless other clones. But when reviewing classic retro titles, you have to judge if this game is still worth playing today...
A fun shooter in the Star Soldier tradition
One thing that can be said for sure is that if you owned a TurboGrafx console you would never be in short supply of shoot-em-up games! For anyone who is a big fan of the genre it is great news that Hudson has brought one of the most respected games of the genre to the Virtual Console. Soldier Blade is a...
Monday8th Jan 2007
News You Say Elebits, I Say Eledees
A mysterious name change for the Konami game.
Elebits has been available in the US and Japan for a while now and has had many positive reviews. It has settled in under the moniker of Elebits very comfortably but now as it comes to Europe in February it will come with a new name; 'Eledees'. The reason behind the change has not been told nor can the...
News New USA Virtual Console releases for 8th January
Nintendo adds three new classic games to the Wii Shop Channel today. The games will be available from 9am US Pacific time (5pm UK time).
Three high quality titles here. It's good to see Nintendo's commitment to getting Shoot-em-up favourites of old onto the Wii. Dungeon Explorer of course is more than welcome too! This week's new games are: Gradius...
News New Sega Megadrive games for the Virtual Console
Some great news in a recent press release from Sega regarding the next series of games to be released on the Virtual Console. Yeah we'll have a piece of this action! Keep em coming in Sega!
Here's the Q1 2007 Line Up: Streets of Rage - This city was once a happy, peaceful, place.... until one day, a powerful secret criminal organization took over...
Saturday6th Jan 2007
The action in this racing game is viewed from above and features rotational controls.
Every once in awhile you come across a game that just makes you scratch your head and wonder what someone was thinking when they let a game like this actually get released. After the success of RC Pro-Am and Micro Machines on the NES, overhead racers began to gain...
Tuesday2nd Jan 2007
News Japan Virtual Console Gets Mario Kart 64
Nintendo set to release another classic onto the Virtual Console, only in Japan for now though.
IGN.com have reported on some new releases appearing on the Japanese Virtual Console this month and they are right to be annoyed! "The Japanese Virtual Console lineup has the American and European ones squarely beaten, and it keeps on getting better!...
Nintendo Europe reveal a bumper release list of games appearing in the early part of 2007.
Just when you thought you had alot of Wii games to buy, more and more DS games will be hitting the shelves this coming year, your gonna need another credit card to keep up! Owners of Nintendo DS have a magnitude of titles to excite and inspire them in 2007...
Nintendo Europe outline release dates for Q1 2007 for the ever popular Wii.
For those lucky enough to have a PAL Wii console this holiday season, you better save your Christmas money as theres a whole host of new Wii titles on the way over the next few months. "Mini-game fanatics will be delighted by Wario Ware: Smooth Moves (Nintendo), a zany...
News Wii Sales Continue To Surge Into The New Year
Japan sees increased sales of the Wii, easily the "console of the moment".
With stocks being replenished the Japanese market has had fantastic sales over the past week with 280,000 units sold in the last 7 days in Japan alone. "With the latest figures, Nintendo sits on the cusp of selling its millionth Wii console in Japan. To Dec. 24, a total...
News Mario Kart 64 to join Virtual Console in January
OK so the title is a little misleading! Mario Kart 64 will be joining the JAPANESE Virtual Console in January along with other classics such as Fire Emblem as confirmed by IGN here.
I'm not meaning to sound ungrateful Nintendo, I'm really not but don't you think you could announce some dates for when the US and UK regions will be getting some top...
