Retro - Timeline
Wednesday8th Jul 2020
Feature Every Nintendo Switch Online SNES Game Ranked
All the SNES games, ranked by you
Update: Now includes Super Mario All-Stars, in addition to Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest, Mario's Super Picross and The Peace Keepers — the latter trio are coming to Nintendo Switch Online
Feature Every Nintendo Switch Online NES Game Ranked
All the NES games, ranked by you
Update: Now includes S.C.A.T.: Special Cybernetic Attack Team which comes to the service on 23rd September 2020. Remember, this list evolves as users rate the games within, so head to the game's profile and rate it out of 10 if you'd like to see a particular game climb the rankings below. Carry on! The collection...
Tuesday7th Jul 2020
Hardware Review Should You Ditch Your GameCube Discs For The GC Loader?
We go hands-on with the system's ODE option
Back when cartridges were the main means of distributing video games on home consoles, the prospect of optical media was a technological revolution of sorts; these shiny discs promised greater storage at a cheaper cost (not that the consumer always saw the latter benefit), and carts were considered to be...
News Polymega Will Launch For Real This November - Or Earlier, If We're Lucky
Famicom carts could get support, too
We've been keeping our eyes on the Polymega for what feels like forever; the console aims to be the only retro gaming device you'll need, offering support for a wide range of systems, including NES, SNES, Mega Drive, Neo Geo CD and even Sony PlayStation. The project has hit a few delays over the past few years,...
Monday6th Jul 2020
Deals The Sega Genesis Mini Is Now On Sale For Just $40
Go! Go! Go!
If you've been holding out on buying the Sega Genesis Mini (or the Mega Drive Mini as we'd call it here in the UK), you'll be pleased to know that there's never been a better time to jump in and grab one. At the time of writing, Amazon is selling the console at a whopping 50% off the regular asking price, meaning you can now snap one up...
Sunday5th Jul 2020
Poll Box Art Brawl #50 - ActRaiser 2
Raise your act
Welcome back to Box Art Brawl, the weekly contest between box art variants from around the globe to find out which is the best, better than all the rest. Last week Puzzle Bobble, or Bust-a-Move as it's known in North America, graced us with its presence. It wasn't a contest, really - Japan absolutely stormed it with over two thirds...
Thursday2nd Jul 2020
News GC Loader Ditches The GameCube's DVD Drive So You Can Run Games From An SD Card
DVD drive playing up? This might be what you're after...
A short while back, we reported on a new optical drive emulator option for the Sega Saturn and Sega Dreamcast, and we've since been made aware of another product which does very much the same thing – but for the Nintendo GameCube. The GC Loader is GameCube DVD drive replacement that allows...
News The Super Mario 64 PC Port Just Got A 60fps Patch
Smoother than before
The Super Mario 64 PC mod - that Nintendo tried to take legal action against - has certainly come a long way since its unofficial release in May. When it first arrived it included 4K and ultra-widescreen support and in the following month, modders added in a modern Mario model and some imp
Tuesday30th Jun 2020
Random Turns Out NBA Jam Has Been Cheating The Chicago Bulls All This Time
"Make sure you pick the Pistons over the Bulls"
If you're a Netflix subscriber, you'll no doubt have seen the excellent basketball documentary series, The Last Dance. It charts the incredible story of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls during one of the most exciting periods in the history of the sport. It also spends a bit of time covering the...
Update: Available for pre-order now
Update: You can pre-order The Oliver Twins Collection and Xeno Crisis / Tanglewood double-pack now using the links below: <products id="12611"> <products id="12612"> Original Story [Wed 10th Jun, 2020 12:00 BST]: A brand new collection of games has been revealed for the Evercade retro system today,...
Monday29th Jun 2020
News Fan Turns Broken SNES Into A Working Switch Dock
Even the eject button (kind of) works
If you fancy a new project to take on while you're stuck at home, or if you happen to have a broken SNES already lying around, perhaps it's time to turn one into a custom, fully-working Switch dock? Remember last month when we shared Reddit user IMOKRUOK's work on a broken NES, which transformed the faulty...
Sunday28th Jun 2020
Poll Box Art Brawl #49 - Bust-A-Move / Puzzle Bobble
Bust-a-Bobble
Welcome once again to Box Art Brawl, our weekly poll to discover which of three regional box art variants sits at the top of the tree. Last week we scrutinised Natsume's Wild Guns on Super NES. Following a classic Western-style gunfight, North America emerged from the smoke victorious, growling at second place Japan and third place...
Saturday27th Jun 2020
Feature The Unsung Genius Who Tempted Nintendo's President To Pick Up A Joypad
"He could see the Promised Land, but wasn't allowed to enter it"
The world of video games, like any other, is full of seemingly inconsequential moments which cause ripples that become shockwaves that can determine not just the course of a single company, but the entire industry. With Nintendo, there are numerous moments like this; Gunpei Yokoi's...
News Someone Created A Hand-Drawn Guide For The Original Zelda And It's Breathtaking
Puts Navi to shame!
Back in the 1980s, the original Legend of Zelda for the NES was a massive success. People all over the world were journeying into the land of Hyrule for the very first time, figuring out its puzzles and spilling its secrets on the playground, in the breakroom, at the pub, you name it. Many of its riddles were extremely cryptic...
Friday26th Jun 2020
Feature Creating The Ultimate Game Boy
"I don't like anything less than perfect and I am always striving for that"
Nintendo's Game Boy family of consoles has, in total, sold around 200 million units during its lifespan, which stretched from the release of the original monochrome system in 1989 all the way up to 2005's Game Boy Micro, the final console to showcase the name. While...
Thursday25th Jun 2020
News The RK2020 Is Another Chinese Handheld Which Aims To Play Absolutely Everything
NES! SNES! GBA! Dreamcast!
While it's certainly true that Nintendo rules the roost as far as dedicated handheld games consoles are concerned, the past few years have given us a host of pocket-sized consoles that rely mainly on emulation to grab your hard-earned cash. Over a decade ago we had the Gamepark GP32, then there was the GP2X, Wiz, Pandora...
Monday22nd Jun 2020
News Supercade Returns With A Visual History Of Console Gaming's "Golden Age"
From the NES to the Xbox
Fans of video game art books may well be aware of the name Supercade; written by Van Burnham (Wired, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Official US PlayStation Magazine, Retro Gamer), the first volume charted the period between 1971-1984, when arcade gaming drove video games into popular culture. Packed with written history,...
Sunday21st Jun 2020
Poll Box Art Brawl #48 - Wild Guns
Wild world
Welcome to Box Art Brawl, our weekly dust-up to find out which of three regional box art variants is the best. Last week it was Shadowrun's turn to battle itself. Japanese Shadowrun obliterated the competition with over 70% of your approval, leaving second-place North America and third-place Europe to mop up the remainder. This week...
Sunday14th Jun 2020
News The Super Game Boy Is Now 26 Years Old
Only for Super Nintendo
If you're as old as some of us here are at Nintendo Life, you might have fond memories of the Super Game Boy. It was an adapter cartridge for the Super Nintendo that allowed you to play Game Boy and dual-mode Game Boy Color cartridges on the big screen - aka your television. Some games, like the Pokémon titles, even had...
Poll Box Art Brawl #47 - Shadowrun
What we do in the shadows
Welcome back to the Box Art Brawl, our weekly poll to find out which regional box art variant of an old video game is best. Last week we looked at the three main cover variants for Sonic the Hedgehog 3. The North American Genesis version won out in the end, with Japan not too far behind and Europe trailing in third place...
Tuesday9th Jun 2020
News WayForward Says It's Open To A Remake Of The Original Shantae Game
Yes, please!
The half-genie hero Shantae recently celebrated her 18th Birthday with the release of Shantae and the Seven Sirens on the Nintendo Switch eShop. That obviously means her original outing on the Game Boy Color is now also 18 years old. So, when are we getting a remake or remaster of sorts? Siliconera asking a similar question during a...
Monday8th Jun 2020
News M2's Pac-Man Championship Edition Demake Was Originally Intended For The 3DS
"We’ve been working on this for around nearly five years"
Bandai Namco is about the release Namcot Collection in Japan, which is available either as a complete physical release or as downloadable content, with players given the option to pick and choose which titles they want to buy at 300 yen apiece. As a bonus for downloading all 10 games...
Sunday7th Jun 2020
Poll Box Art Brawl #46 - Sonic The Hedgehog 3
2's company
Welcome to Week 46 of Box Art Brawl, the poll to find out your favourite box art from a selection of three regional variants. Last week we looked at SNES shmup Phalanx. Surprisingly, the infamous North American cover picked up over 50% of the vote for an easy victory. Japan came in second and Europe trailed in a distant third pl
Wednesday3rd Jun 2020
Poll Rate Your Favourite Nintendo Switch Online SNES Games
Help us rank the 29 SNES games on Nintendo's online sub service
They might have taken a while to arrive, but the library of 29 SNES games available as part of Nintendo's Switch Online subscription service adds considerable value to Switch's online offering for many retro gaming fans. Throw in authentic-feeling wireless controllers that mimic the...
Hardware Classics Sega Game Gear - The System Which Spawned The Game Gear Micro
Getting into Gear
With the announcement of the Game Gear Micro, we thought you might like to revisit our Hardware Classics feature – originally published in 2016 – on the real deal. Enjoy! It's easy to see the thinking behind the Game Gear, the machine Sega positioned as a Game Boy-beater in the early '90s. The firm's
News Sega's Game Gear Micro Was Originally Going To Be Even More Stingy
So be thankful, we guess?
If you've already been checking out our home page this morning, you'll have seen that Sega has revealed a series of Game Gear Micro consoles. Four (very tiny) systems are set to be available in total, each coming with four games. At ¥4,980 a pop - roughly $50 / €50 - a mini console with just four games on it sounds...
News Sega Celebrates Its 60th Anniversary With A Micro Version Of The Game Gear
Four colours with four games each
Sega has just announced the Game Gear Micro. As the name suggests, this is a micro version of its original 1990 handheld. This smaller system will launch in Japan on 6th October for ¥4,980 - which is expected to equate to about $50 / €50 locally. It will be available in black, blue, yellow and red, and each...
Tuesday2nd Jun 2020
Feature How RoboCop's Epic Game Boy Theme Tune Lives On, 30 Years Later
"If you'd have told me it would still be around in 30 years, I wouldn't have believed you"
While video game music has become more and more popular as the years have rolled by, there once was a time when it was seen as an afterthought; the tunes that accompanied the titles we played on our home computers and consoles were often there simply to avoid...
News Lost NES Game Based On A Tom Cruise Movie Has Just Been Recovered From 21 Floppy Discs
Every floppy counts
When developer Chris Oberth passed away in 2012 at the tragically young age of 59, he left behind a considerable legacy, with titles such as Phasor Zap, Anteater, Ardy the Aardvark and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom listed amongst his credits. He also left behind a massive selection of floppy discs, hard drives and CD-Rs,...
News Legal Crackdown On Mario 64 PC Port Not Enough To Stop Modders From Improving It
And download links are still circulating online
Despite Nintendo's crackdown last month on the Super Mario 64 PC port, it's reportedly not been enough to stop the project from being improved upon. According to VGC, the modding community is still continuing to enhance the visual elements of the not-so-original release - even though many of the...
