Shantae

It's the morning after the late night watching the Super Bowl, or just a normal Monday depending on your preferences, but nevertheless Nintendo of Europe's been so kind as to issue its Download Update details. It's an enticing week, with WayForward's third Shantae game finally hitting the region, more classic Mega Man, the eShop demo of a major Capcom title and much more besides. Let's get to it.


Wii U eShop

Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (WayForward, €16.99 / £15.99) — The third entry in this popular series finally arrives, bringing with it more colourful Metroidvania adventure and action. This entry sees Shantae team-up with former nemesis Risky Boots to tackle a pirate foe, with exploration taking in a number of diverse islands: we gave this a hearty 9/10 recommendation in our Shantae and the Pirate's Curse review, and on Wii U this title boasts some relatively subtle HD improvements.

Alphadia Genesis (Natsume, €14.99 / £11.99) — An RPG that's already available on smartphones, this typically has a tale of two kingdoms with saving the world also part of the deal. It promises intense battles and dynamic camera angles among its features, but we found this somewhat generic when giving it a reasonable recommendation in our Alphadia Genesis review.

Frenchy Bird (Carbon Fire Studio, €1.99 / £1.79) - Another title inspired by the Flappy Bird craze of mid-2014, this is set in Paris with a semi-3D isometric perspective, while also throwing in leaderboards and Miiverse stamps. We'll see whether this soars or not in our review.

Wii U Virtual Console

Mega Man Zero 2 (Capcom, €6.99 / £6.29) - Picking up on events one year after its Game Boy Advance predecessor, this intriguing action spin-off learns some key lessons to improve on the original while maintaining plenty of the qualities that helped it stand out. We'll bring you a review soon.

Curve Studios Wii U Promotion

The following extra discount prices - above standard discounts - are available if you already own a Curve Studios game on the same Wii U - these are Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones, Lone Survivor: The Director's Cut, The Swapper and Thomas Was Alone.

Stealth Inc 2: A Game of Clones (€9.99 / £9.49 or €8.99 / £7.99 if you own another Curve Studios game, valid until 19th February, normally €13.99 / £12.99)

Lone Survivor: The Director's Cut (€8.99 / £7.49 or €7.49 / £6.49 if you own another Curve Studios game, valid until 19th February, normally €11.99 / £9.99)

The Swapper (€10.99 / £8.99 or €9.49 / £7.49 if you own another Curve Studios game, valid until 19th February, normally €14.99 / £11.99)

Thomas Was Alone (€5.99 / £4.99 or €4.99 / £4.49 if you own another Curve Studios game, valid until 19th February, normally €7.99 / £6.99)

Wii U eShop Temporary Discount

Darts Up (EnjoyUp Games, €1.49 / £1.34 until 26th February, normally €2.49 / £2.29)

3DS eShop

Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (WayForward, €16.99 / £15.99) - The original format for this release, in this case showing off accomplished stereoscopic 3D. Aside from that it's the same fantastic game as on Wii U.

Best of Board Games - Mahjong (Bigben Interactive, €9.99 / £8.99) - More Mahjong for the 3DS, no doubt of the tile-matching Shanghai variety. That's not necessarily a bad thing, of course, with this particular entry promising 60 boards in its 'Adventure Mode'. We'll see how it matches up to the competition in our review.

Best of Arcade Games - Brick Breaker (Bigben Interactive, €9.99 / £8.99) - Exactly as the title suggests, this aims to recreate the simple but fun arcade action of breaking bricks. There'll be 50 levels and little twist that allows you to control the ball directly in the final few seconds of a stage, but we'll see how this shapes up in a review.

3DS eShop Temporary Discounts

Football Up Online (EnjoyUp Games, €2.99 / £2.69 until 26th February, normally €3.99 / £3.59)

Darts Up 3D (EnjoyUp Games, €0.99 / £0.89 until 26th February, normally €2.99 / £2.69)

Football Up 3D (EnjoyUp Games, €1.99 / £1.57 until 26th February, normally €2.99 / £2.36)

3DS Demo

Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (Capcom, free)

WayForward Promotion

Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (WayForward, €8.49 / £7.99 on the second format if you've already downloaded the game on your Wii U or 3DS)

3DS HOME Themes

NES Sword-swinging Link (Nintendo, €1.99 / £1.79)

NES Samus Aran (Nintendo, €1.99 / £1.79)


That's the full line-up for this week in Europe. Let us know what you'll be downloading in the poll and comments below.

What will you be downloading first this week? (222 votes)

  1. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (Wii U eShop)18%
  2. Alphadia Genesis (Wii U eShop)1%
  3. Frenchy Bird (Wii U eShop)2%
  4. Mega Man Zero 2 (Wii U eShop)5%
  5. One or more of the Curve Studios discounts9%
  6. Darts Up (Wii U eShop temporary discount)  0%
  7. Shantae and the Pirate's Curse (3DS eShop)12%
  8. Best of Board Games - Mahjong (3DS eShop)  0%
  9. Best of Arcade Games - Brick Breaker  0%
  10. Football Up Online (3DS eShop temporary discount)  0%
  11. Darts Up 3D (3DS eShop temporary discount)  0%
  12. Football Up 3D (3DS eShop temporary discount)  0%
  13. Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate (3DS demo)11%
  14. NES Sword-swinging Link (3DS HOME Theme)1%
  15. NES Samus Aran (3DS HOME Theme)3%
  16. Nothing for me this week37%

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