News - August, 2016

Wednesday31st Aug 2016

Tuesday30th Aug 2016

Monday29th Aug 2016

  • News Reggie Fils-Aime Reveals 'New Galaxy Style' New Nintendo 3DS XL, Out in North America This Week

    "An out of this world look", because why not?

    It's almost tempting to mark this one as 'Random', but to be fair it is actual news. In a short video Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime has introduced the 'New Galaxy Style New Nintendo 3DS XL', which is a fresh design for the portable. It's coming out this week and should start popping up...

  • Feature A Close Look at New Super Mario Bros. Wii Coin World

    Taking a unique Mario game for a spin

    Think you've played every Mario game out there? There may be just one that's off your radar and you may have missed, but now you can take a look at it in detail. New Super Mario Bros. Wii Coin World was a special arcade collaboration between Nintendo and Capcom from back in 2011. With a name like New Super Mario...

  • News Renegade Kid Closes as Co-Founders Launch Separate Studios

    IPs split between "2D" and "3D" brands

    Renegade Kid has been one of the most recognisable names on the Nintendo download scene in this generation, and before that was notable for jumping into the retail space on DS. Its biggest hits have included the likes of Mutant Mudds and Dementium: The Ward, earning a loyal group of fans through its releases on...

  • Nintendo Download 1st September (Europe)

    Metroid Prime: Federation Force! Axiom Verge! Tetraminos! More!

    It's the start of another week, so we get a look once more at the download treats on the way to Europe; the information is later than normal due to a bank holiday in the UK, so at this point we only have the prices in Euros (a huge thanks to Daan Koopman for sharing his translation of...

  • Feature The Reasons for Renegade Kid's Closure and What's Next For Its Co-Founders

    Atooi plans Treasurenauts for 2017, Infitizmo has "a new mystery project"

    Earlier today Renegade Kid announced that it has closed down, with its co-founders going separate ways with their own studios. Jools Watsham is taking control of Renegade Kid's 2D IPs with Atooi, while Gregg Hargrove is taking on the 3D IPs with Infitizmo. Over the last decade...

  • Review Pixel Paint (3DS eShop)

    Painting a decent picture

    It's interesting to see how retro video game art is still so popular — you rarely see filmmakers presenting an entire movie in black and white just because that's how films used to be made. Perhaps due to nostalgia and the ease of creating game assets, pixel art continues to be popular in the indie game scene. If you're...

  • Review Shadow Archer (Wii U eShop)

    Follow the arrow

    So many games today are focused on being jam-packed with content that it can sometimes feel like a chore just to play through one. When you feel overwhelmed by big games, a classic pick-up-and-play retro arcade experience is the perfect antidote. Shadow Archer is the latest eShop title that aims to bring you back to that arcade...

  • News Hot Wheels Rolling Out Fresh Range Of Super Mario Toys

    Move fast to get these

    Hot Wheels and Nintendo have worked together in the past to create some cool Super Mario-themed cars, and the pair are teaming up once more for a fresh line of toys. Mario, Luigi, Toad, Bowser and Peach are all getting fresh cars, and they all look pretty neat, as you can see. They're exclusive to Walmart in North America...

  • Random You Can Now Fly A Drone Using Your Game Boy, If You So Wish

    Pocket power

    Not so long ago we reported that one industrious individual had turned the Nintendo Power Glove into a device which could control a drone. Now, Gautier Hattenberger has gone one better by turning his dusty old Game Boy into a remote control for his Parrot AR.Drone 2.0. Hattenberger - who is Assistant Professor of Flight Mechanics and...

Sunday28th Aug 2016

Saturday27th Aug 2016

Friday26th Aug 2016

Thursday25th Aug 2016

Wednesday24th Aug 2016

Tuesday23rd Aug 2016

  • News Niantic Pushes Out a New Pokémon GO Update

    Pokémon Appraisal is the big new feature

    A while back, Niantic promised Pokémon GO players that trading would be the next big feature they'd be working on implementing. While this still has yet to materialise, Niantic has just pushed out a new update with a feature that seems to be a pretty sizable addition to ease the process of raising Pokémon...

  • News The Nintendo 3DS Is Getting A New RPG Maker Game

    85 percent complete, online features promised

    Famitsu has revealed that the popular RPG Maker series is finally coming to the Nintendo 3DS. RPG Maker Festival is apparently 85 percent complete and should see release later this year in Japan. The series can chart its history all the way back to the late '80s, and has appeared on a wide range of...

  • News Dark Horse Unveils The Legend of Zelda: Art & Artifacts, Another Extravagant Hardback Book

    Just look at it

    Do you remember the gorgeous hardback book that prompted timeline debates to reach new heights - The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia? A gorgeous publication, it provided lots of fascinating information and artwork on the franchise; now, there's a follow-up on the way. With the series in its 30th Anniversary year, Dark Horse has...

  • Review Armikrog (Wii U eShop)

    In Space Nobody Can Hear You Point-and-Click

    With the introduction of Telltale's The Walking Dead a few years back, the long dormant adventure genre came back with aplomb. Telltale took a curiosity of yesteryear and brought it back with the necessary accoutrements to make it more palatable for a broad range of modern day gamers. It worked out so...

  • Review Gunslugs (3DS eShop)

    Pulse Pounding Prequel

    There's a scene in the film The Expendables 2 in which main character Barney Ross - portrayed by perennial badass Sylvester Stallone - revs up a motorcycle to send it careening unmanned up a ramp and through the windshield of a helicopter. This is the vibe that Gunslugs wants to convey. As far as 8-bit run-and-gun shooters go,...

  • News Here's The Machine Sega's Artists Used To Bring Some Of Its Best Games To Life

    It's the Sega Digitizer System!

    3D visuals have largely become the industry standard these days, supported by a host of special tools and engines which aid their creation and streamline the design process. However, back in the '80s the landscape was a lot different. 2D pixel artwork was the dominant style, but studios often had to create their own...

  • News Eidos Montreal "Never Thought About The NX" For Deus Ex: Mankind Divided

    "Right now there's nothing new to announce there"

    Deus Ex: Mankind Divided launches this week, but there's no Nintendo version to speak of. While this might sound like stating the bloomin' obvious, it's important to remember that Deus Ex: Human Revolution got a Wii U release when most third-party publishers had abandoned the console. It's also...

  • News Nintendo eShop Selects Games Go Up for Pre-Order on the Official UK Store

    Printed premium

    Back in late July it was confirmed that Nintendo of Europe would be releasing both FAST Racing NEO and the SteamWorld Collection as Wii U disc games under the 'Nintendo eShop Selects' banner, both due on 30th September. It's certainly an exciting development for Shin'en Multimedia and Image & Form, seeing their eShop games...

  • Weirdness Pokémon GO Triggers Massive Trainer Stampedes In Taiwan

    Lots of people, all trying to be the very best

    While the latest data suggests that Pokémon GO has peaked in terms of popularity, it's still one of the most-played games on the planet right now - as these chaotic scenes from Taiwan attest. Various sightings in the country have triggered massive stampedes as people rush to catch rare monsters. On...

  • News The Next Shin'en Game Will Be on Nintendo Platforms

    What'll it be?

    Shin'en Multimedia has had a great relationship with Nintendo, consistently releasing games that both look and play great. While it's released the vast majority of its games for Nintendo platforms (all the way back to the Game Boy Color!), the company has recently ported a few games to the PS4, making some question whether or not it...

  • Anniversary The Super Nintendo Is 25 Years Old Today

    Happy birthday, you boxy thing

    25 years ago, the Super Nintendo - or Super NES (or even SNES, if you're in a rush) - arrived in North America to critical acclaim and great fanfare. Following on from a successful launch in Japan - where it was named the Super Famicom - the console recieved a rather drastic facelift for its North American debut,...

  • Guide How to Locate Any PokéStop or Gym in Pokémon GO

    One simple site

    Pokémon GO has had a veritable smorgasbord of apps and websites dedicated to providing additional information for the budding Pokémaniac, sometimes not always for wholly positive reasons in the eyes on Niantic. Thankfully the site featured in the video above is built with the best intentions of providing users with a conclusive...

  • News Recent Data Highlights Gradual Decline in Pokémon GO Users and Engagement

    It's still doing rather well, though

    Pokémon GO had a staggering launch, even when its roll-out was rather slow and steady. It set new records in revenues and was even threatening the likes of Google Maps in terms of daily users, a rather extraordinary state of affairs. Those levels were never going to last, naturally, and though gradual updates...

  • Random Love is a Just a Game Thanks to This Charming StreetPass Proposal

    "So, what do you say?"

    We've seen successful and doomed romances through Nintendo apps in the past, from marriage proposals made via Swapnote to a love that died too soon on Miiverse. Just recently, though, a rather charming example has emerged through StreetPass, as the big question was asked from one 3DS owner to another. Shared by Nint

  • Video Catch the Second Episode of the Paper Mario: Color Splash 'Rescue V' Series

    Poor old purple

    Not all long-term fans are necessarily delighted at the prominence of Toad characters in Paper Mario: Color Splash, yet the little Fungi could nevertheless be entertaining companions. We'll see in good time, but Nintendo's certainly keen to put the cast of coloured Toads front and centre in early marketing ahead of the 7th October...

  • News VVVVVV Returns To The North American 3DS eShop

    All patched up

    Terry Cavanagh's punishing platformer VVVVVV has returned to the North American 3DS eShop after a prolonged absence. The game was removed from the store back in May following the discovery of an exploit which allowed users to run unsigned code on their 3DS consoles. If you've not picked it up yet, VVVVVV is on sale at $4.75 for a...

Monday22nd Aug 2016

Sunday21st Aug 2016

  • Review Poncho (Wii U eShop)

    Can one robot bring humanity back to life?

    Poncho is a puzzle platform game by Delve Interactive (published by Rising Star Games) that explores what life would be like without the existence of humanity. Players take on the role of Poncho, a robot wearing a poncho (naturally), who wakes up to discover humanity has been extinct for several centuries...

  • Japan Weekly Famitsu Reveals the Ultra-Kawaii Puyo Puyo Chronicle

    Metroid Prime: Federation Force earns praise

    Last week, the Japanese Buddhist holiday of Obon interrupted Famitsu's regular schedule, so this week is a special combined issue to make up for it. As a result, this issue is packed full of guides, previews and reviews. As usual with Famitsu, some content lagged behind internet reveals, but the reveal of...

  • Watch The Final Day of the 2016 Pokémon World Championships - Live!

    Champions will be crowned

    After two days of battles, particularly of the Trading Card and video game variety, the best Pokémon players in the world will go head to head for World Championship titles. Now it's serious. There's going to be a full day of live coverage for the Trading Card Game and Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire. You can catch...

Saturday20th Aug 2016

Friday19th Aug 2016

Thursday18th Aug 2016

Wednesday17th Aug 2016

Tuesday16th Aug 2016

Monday15th Aug 2016

Sunday14th Aug 2016

Saturday13th Aug 2016

Friday12th Aug 2016

  • Review Metroid Prime: Blast Ball (3DS)

    Dropping the ball

    Ever since its initial announcement, Metroid Prime: Federation Force has been fighting an uphill battle. After a hiatus for the Metroid series, some fans were expecting something a bit more back-to-basics than a co-op shooter with a chibi artstyle set in the Metroid Prime universe. While there's still a week left at the time of...

  • News Fresh Nintendo Patents Reinforce Concept of NX Featuring Detachable Controllers

    Gesture recognition patents also get more details

    It seems that as Nintendo gets closer to revealing the NX more clues surface, and a few freshly released patents - filed in January this year and now visible to the public - appear to reinforce aspects of notable recent reports on the system. NeoGAF poster Disorientator has picked up on these...

  • Review Vektor Wars (Wii U eShop)

    Explosive robot annihilating fun

    When you hear word that a game is retro-inspired, what's the first thing that comes to mind? Pixelated homages to platformers long past? The type of title that takes stalwart mechanics and filters them through decades of proven formulas to make them palatable to today's gamer? Something that straddles the line...

  • News Niantic CEO Talks Sponsorship Deals with Pokémon GO

    More sponsorships means less in app purchases

    Now that Pokémon GO has been out for a bit, conversations are beginning to turn towards whether or not the game will remain relevant in the coming months and years. Though Pokémon GO had an undisputedly successful launch, it's natural that the playerbase will level off in time. Niantic makes plenty of...

  • Review Power Disc Slam (3DS eShop)

    Sluggish slams and dodgy discs

    First, there was Pong, and lo the people deemed it to be worthy. Since then it has been immortalised as a test of skill for two players, two gladiators going head to head and shooting for goals and glory. Next, the early nineties would reveal the natural evolution of this classic challenge - Windjammers. A competition...

  • News SEGA 3D Classics Collection is Heading to Europe on 4th November

    Physical and digital releases

    Earlier in the week SEGA Europe teased the announcement of the region's release date for SEGA 3D Classics Collection, an excellent 3DS title that combines nine (10 with a fun bonus) games from the series. Four of those titles are new to the West, while the remainder have previously had eShop releases. To start with the...

  • News Nordic Games Rebrands With a Touch of THQ and Talks Up Future Projects

    Majority of new games "former THQ owned IPs and franchises"

    Nordic Games has been around for quite a while, and was previously associated with pleasant but rather low-budget games on systems like Wii - long-term Nintendo Life readers will recall multiple We Sing games. Yet when THQ hit hard times Nordic Games was a surprise buyer (along with various...

  • Video Learn More About the Rich History of Shin Megami Tensei

    Even the Virtual Boy gets a mention

    Shin Megami Tensei is a series familiar to DS and 3DS owners that keep a good eye on the output of Atlus, with Shin Megami Tensei IV: Apocalypse due in North America on 20th September. With various new entries and remasters / re-releases in recent years, it's an IP that's popped up a lot on these pages. Plenty of...

  • Gallery Get to Know the Cast of River City: Tokyo Rumble

    Get ready to rumble

    In the earlier days of gaming, sidescrolling beat 'em ups were far more common than nowadays, with classics such as Double Dragon and River City Ransom regularly lighting up TV screens. Though this genre has since become fairly niche, it's certainly not dead, as evidenced by the upcoming River City: Tokyo Rumble. We loved what...

  • News US Online Retailers Enjoy a Pokémon Merchandise Sales Spike During GO Craze

    "It feels like the ’90s all over again"

    Since Pokémon GO arrived and went viral in early July plenty of businesses have benefitted. Nintendo saw its shares spike and, despite a drop-off, still settle at a higher point than before the app's release. McDonald's in Japan has seen increased revenues with help from a GO tie-in, and even smaller...

  • News 2016 Pokémon World Championships Only Open to Competitors and Guests

    Extensive online streams available, as always

    The Pokémon World Championships are, naturally, the pinnacle of competitive Pokémon gaming in terms of the current-generation main games, the Pokémon Trading Card Game and now Pokkén Tournament. Often a hugely popular event for the public to attend, too, this year venue limitations seem to have...

  • News YouGov Estimates That Over a Million UK Players of Pokémon GO Have Bought In-App Purchases

    With plenty going beyond a retail game price

    Polls and related data can be inaccurate at times, with multiple recent elections in the UK doing the opposite of what polling suggested would happen - but they can still provide some interesting insight. YouGov has put its data gathering apparatus at work to learn more about Pokémon GO players in the...

Thursday11th Aug 2016

Wednesday10th Aug 2016

Tuesday9th Aug 2016

Monday8th Aug 2016

Sunday7th Aug 2016

  • News Celebrate 30 Years of Metroid With The Fan-Made "AM2R"

    Fan Does What Nintendon’t

    It seems like it was only yesterday we where scratching our heads trying to figure out the correct moment to switch sides on our Famicom Disk System "Metroid" copy, released in Japan on 6th August 1986. We gladly suffer trough the loading times in exchange for better music thanks to the extra hardware on the FDS unit; of...

  • News Metroid is 30 Years Old Today

    Happy birthday, Samus

    Despite the sad reality that Metroid has fallen on hard times recently, the series has been a tentpole Nintendo franchise for nearly as long as the company has been in the gaming business. Many Metroid games still stand as some of the best available on Nintendo platforms, which makes it that much more of a sting that the series...

  • Fun Fact The Celtic Origins of Epona's Name in The Legend of Zelda

    That's Celtic with a hard C, not the football team...

    In the first of a potential series, Tom Whitehead shares a surprising bit of trivia he discovered at a major museum exhibition. I've been playing quite a lot of Dark Souls 3 recently, and what's often struck me in my time with it is how heavily influential European history is on the game's...

  • Japan Weekly Level-5 Ensures This Week's Famitsu is a Memorable One

    Lady Layton and The Snack World impress in previews

    This week Level-5 did what it does best and made us excited for upcoming Japanese-made games. While there wasn't exactly a lot of information on the two Nintendo 3DS titles, Lady Layton and The Snack World, we got just enough of a glimpse of both to make owning a 3DS a sound investment well into...

Saturday6th Aug 2016

Friday5th Aug 2016

Thursday4th Aug 2016

Wednesday3rd Aug 2016

Tuesday2nd Aug 2016

  • Feature Unboxing the Super Famicom New Nintendo 3DS XL

    Units shipping from Nintendo in Japan right now

    Its been a long wait for those who were fortunate enough to snag a pre-order of the awesome-looking Super Famicom New 3DS XL in Japan, which was first shown off in a Nintendo Direct in March of this year. The unit comes decked out with the hardware design of the Japanese Super Famicom on the back,...

  • Rumour Concept Art Reveals the Final Evolutions of the Alola Starters

    Spoilers ahoy!

    The Pokémon Company revealed plenty of interesting new information today, with new Pokémon, Z-moves, Island Trials, and more being brought to light for Pokémon Sun and Moon. It seems like Game Freak is going to be trying several new things with Generation 7, and it'll be interesting to see how some of the changes play out with the...

  • News Niantic Addresses Pokémon GO's Removal of 3-step Display and Third-Party App Access

    "We hear the frustration from folks"

    With great success comes significant pressure, and in recent days that's started to weigh a little on Pokémon GO. A double-whammy of an unpopular update - which removed rather than fixed the '3-step' display - and the closing down of third-party apps caused a bit of a storm online. We considered some of the...

  • News The Pokémon Sun and Moon Z-Move Toys Look Like Money-Spinners

    Those chunky plastic Yo-kai Watch toys likely provided inspiration

    This week's info dump on Pokémon Sun and Moon was possibly the most substantial yet, packed with information on new Pokémon, gameplay aspects and areas to explore - this gallery has lots of the information in one place. One new feature is 'Z-Moves', which are supercharged attacks...

  • Retro Bask in Nostalgia With The Nintendo Power Archive

    Now you're browsing with power

    When you consider iconic imagery from Nintendo's earlier days in North America, in particular, there's a good chance that Nintendo Power magazine will spring to mind. From memorable covers to quirky features, to cut-out crafts and posters, it was a key part of many young gamer's regular routine; in the pre-internet...

  • Reminder Points Can't Be Added to the DSi Shop After 30th September

    Wake me up when September ends

    A few months ago, it was announced that Nintendo would at last be pulling the plug on its Nintendo DSi Shop. Considering that NX is mere months away from release, this is something that didn't come as much of a surprise, but it's no doubt still disappointing news for many. There's still time to continue using the shop...

  • News SNES PlayStation Prototype Set to Feature At Game On Expo

    Gaze upon the system that would have changed gaming history

    As the video game industry continues to evolve in unexpected ways, its increasingly lengthy history continues to be a relevant and intriguing topic for many. Across 40-50 years of mainstream video gaming there's plenty to learn about, and for Nintendo aficionados the so-called 'SNES...

  • Review Dragon Skills (Wii U eShop)

    A brick break game like no other?

    Brick break games aren't all that common nowadays. One of the modern standouts with a fantastic twist is PopCap Games' long-running Peggle series, which is exceptionally addictive and sets a considerably high standard for the classic genre. Like Peggle, Dragon Skills draws on arcade gameplay inspired by well-known...

  • News Just Dance 2017 Demo Set for the eShop With Bieber's "Sorry" Track

    Interesting song choice...

    Just Dance 2017 will be a unique title in at least one way, as it's going to span three generations of Nintendo hardware. It'll land on the Wii U and Wii in October (likely missing some features on the latter) and is also coming to the NX. If you like to dance and happen to have Nintendo systems, you're in luck. Ubisoft...

  • News Pokémon GO Credited With Boosting Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire Sales in Japan

    Similar increases have also been evident in the UK

    In the past couple of weeks we've seen all four current-gen main Pokémon titles on the 3DS return to the UK top 40, evidently riding the Pokémon GO wave and perhaps benefitting further from the Summer school holidays. This GO effect is now being acknowledged in Japan, too, even if the app is...

  • Video Catch Up On Battles and Classes in Dragon Quest VII

    Still featuring THAT music

    It's easy to overlook the fact that Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past is getting rather close to release in the West, arriving on 16th September. The 3DS title could keep fans of the series busy for weeks and months, with this being a notoriously lengthy entry in the franchise. As it has with complex...

Monday1st Aug 2016