Retro - News
August2018
Video Exploring The Process Behind Mickey Mania's 'Into-The-Screen' Chase
A gaming first
If you cast your minds back to 1994, or allow yourself to simply imagine that time if you weren't born yet, you may remember Mickey Mania on the SNES. Developed by Traveller's Tales, this platformer also arrived on Sega Genesis and Sega CD, with one noteworthy element being its 3D, 'into-the-screen' chase - seemingly a first in...
"It's not worth it for us to risk potentially disastrous consequences"
Recently, we heard the news that Nintendo had filed a lawsuit in the US state of Arizona, calling out two ROM and emulator websites for unfair competition and copyright and trademark infringement. It appears that this has helped spark a new level of fear among such...
Feature What Does Nintendo's Shutdown Of ROM-Sharing Sites Mean For Video Game Preservation?
Is gaming history in danger of being lost?
The recent news that Nintendo is taking legal action against two sites which illegally distributed ROMs has been met with an overwhelmingly positive response, and rightly so. The individuals sharing these files online care little for the intellectual property rights of the developers who slave away to make...
News Meet The Nintendo Snack Pack, A Fan-Made Portable TV With Built-In Retro Games
NES, SNES and Sega titles
For most of us, having dreams of creating an ideal gaming setup is easy - you can probably picture how it would look, and even the various items you'd need - but the dream ends right there and then. There's no way you could actually make it happen, right? Well, that's not the case for everyone as you're about to find out...
Gallery Unboxing Retro-Bit's Incredible R-Type And Holy Diver Limited Editions
Limited to 2,900 copies each
Retro-Bit is doing an excellent job when it comes to keeping the past alive, and has already released a couple of welcome compilations for the NES and SNES. However, the company has really outdone itself with its latest project, which features limited edition versions of Irem's R-Type and Holy Diver, for the SNES and...
Feature Take A Peek Behind The Curtain At Rare With This New Exhibit
"That’s what gaming has gone through to get to where it is now"
You're probably sick to death of us mentioning Rare on Nintendo Life – especially since the company has long since parted ways with Nintendo itself and is now firmly ensconced as a Microsoft studio. Still, we have our reasons – Nintendo Life Towers is located in the English...
News These Are The Most Insanely Gorgeous NES Cartridges You'll Ever See
Hand-made goodness, and they actually work!
Remember Mega Cat Studios? Well, they've joined forces with another major name working in the 'new-retro' biz - Rose Colored Gaming - to create some pretty unique NES cartridges which will no doubt have hardcore collectors reaching for their wallets (or mulling the sale of a kidney). Carts emblazoned with...
Hardware Review Does The SNK Neo Geo Mini Outclass Nintendo's Classic Editions?
The Rolls Royce of micro-consoles is here
Nintendo may not have been the first company to come up with the ingenious idea of leveraging the unbridled nostalgia of your average gamer to sell bucketloads of ROM-filled micro-consoles, but the arrival of the NES Classic a few years ago certainly gave this previously niche sector of the market a swift...
News NES Classic Mini Outsold Modern Video Game Hardware In The Month Of June
Retro power
The idea of Nintendo selling miniaturised versions of its classic gaming hardware is still too good to be true. While there’s been plenty of discussion in recent times about how there should be better support for digital retro libraries on modern devices, clearly there is a huge demand for standalone legacy systems. According to the...
July2018
Gallery This Super Mario Board Game From China Looks Too Good To Be True
Because it’s fake
Nintendo struck a deal with Nvidia recently to release its games in China. While this is yet another step in the right direction within the growing market, local operations haven’t always been quite as upfront. As publicised by Chinese Nintendo, back in the day there were unlicensed Mario board games available featuring art...
Feature Meet The Man Who Gave Nintendo Tetris And Got Hiroshi Yamauchi Gaming
"Let me put it this way: we were banned from a Nagoya hotel"
Everyone will know Henk Rogers as the businessman who brokered the Tetris deal for the Nintendo Game Boy. But what you may not realise is how he helped define the RPG genre in Japan; gave a start to Squaresoft's president; battled against sabotage by Koei; fought piracy and smashed...
Random Mexican Speedrunner Completes Turbo Tunnel In Battletoads With Bag Over His Head
Superhuman
The NES classic, Battletoads, is notorious for being a tough game. Despite this, that hasn’t stopped Piotr Delgado “The Mexican Runner” Kusielczuk from becoming an expert at it. He’s previously completed the game with one hand, and for this particular run, his goal was to complete the legendary turbo tunnel with a bag over his...
Hardware Classics Uncovering The Tragic Tale Of The Philips CD-i
Jack of all trades, master of none?
Compared to the relatively conservative video game hardware market of the modern era, the '90s seems like a wasteland of failed systems and also-rans. The 3DO, Atari Jaguar, Commodore CD32, NEC PC-FX and Sega 32X were all pieces of hardware which, at launch, found themselves positioned as the next big thing in...
Random Return To The '90s With This Super Mario All-Stars VHS Released By Nintendo UK
Old school cool
In 1993, Nintendo UK gave out a Super Mario All-Stars promotional video in the form of a VHS. Despite how odd this might sound by modern standards, at the time it was a relatively normal way of marketing video games and various other forms of entertainment to younger audiences. The low-budget and incredibly '90s...
News Drugs, Military Coups And Reshoots: The Amazing Story Of Street Fighter: The Movie
"How can you see that movie and think it’s funny by accident?"
The 1994 Hollywood adaptation of Capcom's million-selling Street Fighter series has gone down as something of a cult classic, which is movie code for saying "it was terrible". Released to almost universally scathing reviews, it nevertheless turned a profit and today is viewed with...
News Nintendo’s Virtual Boy Gets A Revival Thanks To Emulator For Oculus Rift VR Headset
The wonders of today
The Virtual Boy has been predominantly inaccessible to the majority of Nintendo fans since its original release. It was hardware arguably ahead of its time, but also technology that was unable to compete with modern standards of the era. The Nintendo 64 was after all released a year later in 1996 and blew the console industry...
Hardware Review The Shōnen Jump 50th Anniversary Famicom Classic Mini Is Gorgeous, But Pointless
Nintendo loves gold, only gold
Nintendo may have fixed the supply issues which plagued the launches of the NES and SNES Classic Editions, but many will still be haunted by the devilish degree of difficulty they exper
Feature This Unreleased SNES Super FX Racer Could Be Getting A Physical Rebirth
Elite's PowerSlide might be coming back from the dead
1994 was the year that 3D gaming truly came of age in the console arena. While both Nintendo and Sega had dabbled in the three-dimensional realm prior to this – with titles such as Star Fox and Virtua Racing – '94 marked the point where real-time 3D visuals were the expected norm, rather than...
Random Admit It, You Need This Sega Pop-Up Book In Your Life
Hang-On! Space Harrier! After Burner! Cardboard!
Sega's classic '80s arcade machines are works of art; they were designed to attract your attention and tempt you to part with your spare change, and as a result were brightly-coloured, exotic creations that even today possess an undeniable aesthetic charm. Sadly, unless you're like Nintendo Life...
News Super Battletoads Is A Cancelled Game Boy Game That Was 100% Finished And Ready To Go
The game that never was
Hearing the name 'Rare' likely makes you instinctively jump towards nostalgic thoughts of games like Banjo-Kazooie, GoldenEye 007, and Donkey Kong 64; the studio's partnership with Nintendo throughout the '90s generated some truly classic titles that are still adored today. Another iconic franchise from this era is...
News How Sharp Accidentally Copyright Trolled Nintendo Almost 40 Years Ago
Famicom Wars
First, let us kick off this article by saying happy birthday to the Family Computer! Released in July 1983, (July 15th, to be exact) the 8-bit warhorse is turning 35 years old this year. That's quite a milestone for even long forgotten hardware, but Famicom/NES games still live on today, either as part of the Classic Mini line or as...
Video How Ingenious British Teens Helped Nintendo Fly With Star Fox
The dawn of the Lylat Wars
The story of how a group of ambitious young British programmers gave Nintendo the courage to enter the 3D arena is hardly new; we've covered it on this very site, for example. However, the tale behind the development of Star Fox is one that bears repeating, making this new video from People Make Games well worth a...
Random Remember That Time Sega Almost Put Mario In One Of Its Games?
We're talking pre-Olympic Games here, too
Sega and Nintendo may be firm friends these days, but once upon a time they were the bitterest of enemies, fighting tooth and nail for dominance of the burgeoning home console market. In the 8-bit era it was the NES which achieved the most success globally, but Sega's rival Master System - with its...
News Kickstarter For The Sega Master System Visual Compendium Is Now Live
And it's got Sega's blessing, too
Our pals over at Bitmap Books are at it again, this time focusing their attention on the Sega Master System, the 8-bit console that took on the NES and failed (unless you were in Brazil or Europe, in which case it emerged victorious). The latest entry in the popular Visual Compendium series - which has already...
June2018
Rumour Was Monster Games Working On A Sequel To Diddy Kong Racing?
Even in 2018, the rumour persists
Diddy Kong Racing remains one of the most beloved kart racers of all time - no mean feat considering it shared a platform with Mario Kart 64 - so there's always been rumours and unfounded whispers that the title has a long-gestating sequel in development. One of the most infamous has only just come to our attention...
News New Trademarks Suggest Nintendo Has GameCube On The Brain
GameCube Mini, anyone?
Ah, the humble trademark. Few things get the brain buzzing as fast as a company registering a name or title linked to your favourite game or console. Of course, when it's tied to the GameCube - a console that's very much back in vogue thanks to the arrival of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in December and the announcement that GC...
News This Metroid Space Pirate Cosplay Takes a Different, Retro Approach
*Those noises Space Pirates make in Metroid Prime*
We love a good cosplay here at NL Towers, but it's rare any one cosplay will make us say 'phwoar' in written form. This cosplay of a Space Pirate from Metroid by Dan Cattell shows that you can take a costume idea in any direction you see fit. We're not sure how it all looks from the front, but...
Feature A Look Back At the SG-1000, Sega's First Ever Home Console
Console War I
A red letter date is fast approaching! 15th July, 1983 basically marks the beginning of the established order of gaming. That was the day that Nintendo released the Family Computer. Soon after, it was the clear market leader in its homeland; every trace of competition that come before, like the Epoch Cassette Vision, was...
News August Sees Triple Flavoured Kunio Super Famicom Release
Baseball, dodgeball and puzzle variety on a single cartridge
Great news if you're a fan of Kunio and happen to be looking to expand your Super Famicom cartridge collection. A recent Amazon Japan listing has revealed what can be roughly translated as 'Kunio's Triple Play Replica Package', a complete Super Famicom boxed cartridge that brings...
Hands On Exploring The Future Of Retro Gaming With Polymega
Hello, lovely
If you’ve been keeping your eyes on these pages, you know that we’re keenly interested in Polymega, the new retro console by Playmaji, Inc. We tracked down Bryan, the company’s founder on the E3 show floor last week to talk about, and more importantly, actually play the thing. The Polymega is a sight to behold in the flesh; it...
News Atari Comes Under Fire For Seemingly Knowing Very Little About Its Crowdfunded VCS Console
"We've got a lot of work to do"
Atari - not the Atari of your dad's generation but the new Atari which is basically a company that owns the brand - has been in the press a lot of late. The 'new' company is doing everything it can to profit from the cachet which surrounds gaming's first major player, from licencing the logo for
Random This 'Joy Boy' Hardware Concept Could Be The Virtual Console Solution We Need
Shame it's just an idea at the moment
Nintendo has been very clear that the concept of the Virtual Console is a relic of the past; on Switch, it seems that the company has other ideas about how to distribute retro games on its latest console. However, that hasn't stopped Nintendo fan and indie developer JayH from dreaming up this
Feature What Makes A Person Sell Their Entire Retro Games Collection?
"I'm just hoarding and not even appreciating them"
Even if you're a digital-only gamer and seek to reduce clutter in your household at every available opportunity, it's easy to see the appeal of retro game collecting. The intrinsic allure of physical items continues to drive sales on modern systems with a seemingly endless procession of collector's...
Feature Freedom Fighter: Paul Cuisset On The Making Of Flashback
As the 16-bit classic comes to Switch, its director reflects
This month sees some potentially special games come out for the Nintendo Switch. From Wolfenstein II to Lumines Remastered via the arcade sports action of Mario Tennis Aces, the console’s not wanting for attractive offerings. Yet perhaps the most interesting of the month’s new releases...
Video Sit Back And Enjoy The Complete History Of F-Zero
A deep look back through the series
F-Zero is one of those poor franchises that can sometimes feel forgotten about; alongside the likes of Star Fox, Wave Race, and Earthbound, fans are left desperately screaming for a return to the series every time a new console is announced. Sometimes dreams are answered - her
Feature The Past, Present And Future of Geek Chic with iam8bit
"It's about making beautiful things"
Stemming from a love of art, video games and popular culture, Californian video games merchandising company iam8bit are continually collaborating with artists and developers to produce items that are beyond just physical software releases. Embracing both legacy titles in cartridge form - such as Mega Man and...
News Splatoon Producer Reveals How The Art Style In Yoshi’s Island Was Conceived
“It took quite a bit of time”
Not every game has aged as gracefully as the 1995 Super Nintendo title, Yoshi’s Island. Even by modern standards, the distinctive hand-drawn aesthetics present from start to finish within this release have withstood the test of time. So, how exactly did the art style for one of Yoshi’s earliest outings come...
News The Next Johnny Turbo Game Is Wizard Fire, And You Can Pre-Order It Now
A multiplayer RPG from yesteryear
FTE Games has unveiled the next game coming through its Johnny Turbo's Arcade revival line - the multiplayer action-RPG, Wizard Fire. The sequel to 1990's Gate of Doom - which also received the Switch revival treatment earlier this year - Wizard Fire follows the same formula as its predecessor with all manner of...
News Shoji Mizuno, The Character Artist For Bomberman's Classic Look, Has Passed Away
He was a longtime staffer at Hudson Soft
According to a number of reports, Shoji Mizuno - the man who gave Bomberman the iconic look he sports today - has died. One such report is a blog post written by former Hudson Soft executive and frontman Toshiyuki Takahashi, which memorialises Mizuno's contribution to the company. Mizuno has a decades-long...
News SNK’s Official Neo Geo Mini Pad Will Be Available In Black And White
Inspired by a classic
SNK’s Neo Geo Mini online presentation has finally provided a glimpse of the official controller for the system. Available in black and white, the Neo Geo Mini Pad recreates the classic design of the Neo Geo CD, featuring the same button layout as the Neo Geo Mini system, and a modified stick design. Connecting it...
News These Are The Games Included In SNK’s Neo Geo Mini And Neo Geo Mini International
That’s quite the collection
If you’ve managed to refrain from purchasing classic SNK titles on the Nintendo Switch, your decision may have been a wise one if you plan on picking up the Neo Geo Mini or Neo Geo Mini International. Included are series like King of Fighters, Samurai Showdown, Metal Slug and The Last Blade as well as plenty of...
Video Let's Revel in Nintendo's Best E3 Moments from History
It's mostly 2004, we're not going to lie
Nintendo has had a mixed bag of E3 moments. High and low points are to be expected, and as we've already looked at some of the more embarrassing instances, we thought in the run up to E3 2018 it was time to take a more positive look at things, to bring balance to the universe in an arguably more constructive...
There’s no strict policy in place
When Masato Maegawa departed Konami in 1993, he co-founded Treasure – a Japanese company that became known for its classic action-style and shoot ‘em up games. Starting out with Gunstar Heroes and eventually moving onto projects like Sin and Punishment years later, the newest arrival is the re-release of...
News Modern Mega Drive Platformer Tanglewood Has Finally Gone Gold
We're one step close to the cartridge-based throwback
We're big fans of modern Mega Drive/Genesis title Tanglewood - in fact, we went hands-on with a preview build at the Revival Retro convention in Birmingham a couple of weeks ago and we were really impressed with how it's coming together - so we're pleased to hear the game has finally gone gold...
News SNK's Legacy Lives On With A Special Neo Geo Mini Presentation On 9th June
Retro revival
E3 2018 is only a few days away, and every developer and publisher worth its salt is attempting to get eyes on its respective wares before all the big announcements start crippling the internet. SNK is following a similar train of thought, with an online presentation planned for its upcoming Neo Geo Mini retro console on 9th June at...
Random Rebalance The Universe With This Super Mario 64 Infinity Gauntlet Mod
It's a me, a Thanos
As you know, we're partial to a good mod here at Nintendo Life, just take the recent Link re-skin for Breath of the Wild that makes the Hyrulian hero look like none other than Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy VII. So when we heard someone had modded an infinity gauntlet into Super Mario 64, well, we just had
News Polymega's 'Element Modules' Will Come With Wired Classic Controllers
NES! Genesis! TurboGrafx! SNES!
Polymega - the console formerly known as RetroBlox - is one of the most exciting pieces of retro hardware on the horizon. Unlike other examples, it uses special modules which enable it to play a wide range of vintage games. The catch is that each of these modules has to be purchased separately, but the selection...
May2018
News Never-Before-Seen Pokémon Designs Show How Gold And Silver Could Have Been Very Different
Different starters, babies and more
The Pokémon hype is wild and overflowing at the moment with the recent reveals of Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, but forgive us for just a moment as we take a quick look back to Pokémon Gold and Silver - and how they could have been very different. Fans at The
Deals Nintendo UK Store Offer Another Chance To Pick Up a NES Mini
Avoid the scalpers!
The NES Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System (or NES Mini to it's closest friends) was quite the treat when it launched in November 2016. We loved it in our hardware review, with 30 classic games on board rendered in pixel perfect HD, what's not to like? Well, maybe the controller cord length if we are nitpicking! One...
News Two Classic Super Famicom Games Are Set For A Special Reprint In Japan
SNES who?
There's been a spate of retro re-releases as of late in Japan, with publishers reissuing classic titles (and a few obscure gems) on their original platform. Japanese firm Tommo is the latest publisher to leap aboard the bandwagon, with two Super Famicom titles getting a reprint. It's been confirmed that Shodai Nekketsu Kpuha Kunio-kun...
Random Childish Gambino Sampled Donkey Kong Country And David Wise Definitely Approves
Aquatic Ambiance is still relevant
Childish Gambino's latest track might have captured the zeitgeist in 2018, but back in 2012 the man otherwise known as Donald Glover took inspiration from a very different source. Much to the delight of veteran VGM composer David Wise, who recently discovered the track 'Eat your Vegetables' uses a looped sample...
Video Relive The Amazing Story Behind One Of Sonic's Most Beloved Outings
Gotta recap fast
The release of Sonic the Hedgehog in the early '90s was one of the key moments in the famous 'console war' between Sega and Nintendo, and would enable the former to challenge the latter's dominance of the global games market. Given the success of that first game, you would have imagined that a sequel was put into production without...
Soapbox Why A Nintendo 64 Classic Edition Might Not Be Such A Good Idea
Not so 'Ultra' this time round?
Soapbox features enable our individual writers to voice their own opinions on hot topics, opinions that may not necessarily be the voice of the site. In this piece, our 'Man in Japan' Jon explains why Nintendo continuing the ‘classic mini’ line of retro consoles with the N64 may be one step too far... First...
News Nintendo Applies For New N64 Trademark - Is Another Classic Edition On The Way?
It's only a matter of time, right?
With the NES and SNES Classic Editions proving to be commercially successful, it's almost inevitable that Nintendo will produce another 'recooked' version of one of its vintage platforms. Given that Nintendo Co., Ltd. has just applied for an N64 trademark in Japan, one might assume that the 64-bit console...
Feature How One Man Is Turning Dead DS Lites Into Gorgeous Game Boy Advance Systems
Say hello to the Neon Advance
Humanity has been troubled by many great questions during its time on Earth. Why are we here? What is the meaning of life? Where do all those bloody odd socks go? However, none of these perplexing quandaries is more troubling than the ultimate question: which is the best Nintendo handheld for playing Game Boy Advance...
Feature Some Mario Games Just Can't Be Played Properly Anymore
At least five, anyway
Video games are a funny medium; one's released, and about a year afterwards you're not likely to be able to buy a brand new copy of it unless you're very lucky or it gets a second run. As such they age, and in a time of online patches and internet servers being so integral it's likely only going to get harder to play games...
News See The Origins Of The Pokémon You Know (And Some You Don't) In A New Manga
Gotta sketch 'em all
In a series of tweets yesterday, Game Freak employee James Turner revealed a sneak preview of a new educational manga recently released in Japan, detailing the history of Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri, and information from the early days at Game Freak. The book, called 'Satoshi Tajiri: The Man Who Created Pokémon', was...
Exclusive The Artist Behind Troubled Sega Mega Drive Fighter Paprium Speaks Out
"I have been upset for some time"
Remember Paprium? An incredible-looking Sega Genesis / Mega Drive scrolling fighter from the team behind the Wii U eShop RPG Pier Solar (which, incidentally, also began life on Sega's 16-bit system), it was announced over a y
News Yuji Naka Wanted To Join Nintendo After He Finished Working For Sega
"I had this faint hope that I’d be getting a call… but it never came"
Ever wondered what would have happened if Yuju Naka - former head of Sonic Team and one of the driving forces behind the success of the iconic blue speedster - had made the move over to Nintendo? Well, turns out that could have easily been reality. In a recent interview,...
News The NES Classic Edition Will Return To Store Shelves This June
Confirmed for both North America and Europe
We've known that the NES Classic Edition was making a comeback for a while now, but Nintendo has finally confirmed exactly when that will be. The company has revealed that both North America and Europe will be getting fresh stock of the micro-console on June 29th. The NES Classic was an instant...
News Fancy Some SNES Classic On Your Nintendo Switch? There's A Hack For That
A real 'virtual' console
Nintendo's plans for retro games on Switch don't seem to include the Virtual Console, and at the time of writing the company is going to focus on 8-bit titles when its online subscription service launches this September. However, one hacker has decided that they can't wait for SNES games to appear on their Switch and has...
Random A Formula 1 Fan Takes Game Boy Camera To Grand Prix With Amazing Results
Monochrome madness
It's hard to remember life before sophisticated digital cameras were bundled into a small slab of very thin microchips we carry around with us at all times, but it definitely happened. Back in 1998 most of us were taking photos on good old fashioned 35mm film and just hoping for the best when we took them to get dunked in...
News Devolver Digital Is Releasing A New SNES Game, And It's For A Worthy Cause
Buy a game, prevent mental illness
Devolver Digital and Megacat Studios are teaming up to create a brand-new SNES game which aims to raise awareness of mental health issues within the game development industry. Fork Parker’s Crunch Out was announced at the Game Developer Conference today, and is available to preorder...
News NES Classic Edition Is Getting A Golden Re-Release In Japan With A New List Of Games
A Jump 50th Anniversary addition, no less
Hot on the heels of SNK announcing the Neo Geo Mini really is a thing, the miniature console that set that original bandwagon rolling is getting a re-release. Yes, the NES Classic Edition - or Nintendo Classic Mini: Family Computer as its known in the East - is getting a special re-release in Japan on...
News Nintendo Was "Kind Of Liberal" When It Came To Creating The Super Mario Cartoons
"There was no pushback"
Those of you who were alive during the late '80s and early '90s may well have fond memories of the Super Mario Bros. Super Show, a cartoon production which dominated kid's TV during the early days of the Sega and Nintendo console war. Eurogamer has been speaking to people associated not only with this and the other Super...
News The Man Behind The Wonder Boy: Dragon's Trap Remake Would Love To Tackle Zelda II
"It's a game that could have been better"
Lizardcube's remake of Sega's sublime Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap was one of the very early eShop highlights on Switch. The work of programmer Omar Cornut and artist Ben Fiquet, this reimagining of an 8-bit classic took the Master System version and gave it gorgeous HD visuals while tinkering behind the...
News The Virtual Console Isn't Coming To Switch, Nintendo Confirms
RIP
Nintendo thrilled Switch owners today with hard details about its new Switch Online service, which includes NES games that can be played for free and feature modern elements, such as online play and voice chat. We've known that retro games would form some part of the mooted online package for a while, but many were hopeful that the Virtual...
Rumour The SNK Neo Geo Mini Is A Tiny Arcade Cabinet With 40 Built-In Games
A retro treasure trove
Last month SNK confirmed it was working on a 'Neo Geo Classic Edition' to mark its 40th anniversary, but bar an image showing 'something' draped mysteriously beneath a cloth we were left to wonder what such a throwback machine could be. YouTuber Spawn Wave may have potentially lifted the lid on these hotly-anticipated project,...
News Mega Man 2 And X Are Getting Limited Edition Cartridges And We Want Them All
They'll work with your NES and SNES, too
With the Mega Man 30th anniversary now upon us, Capcom is pulling out all the stops to celebrate. Not only have we got Mega Man 11 coming alongside the two Legacy Collections, we've also got these limited edition cartridges for Mega Man 2 and Mega Man X. They even work on your old NTSC NES/SNES! Both...
News Zerodiv Will Be Bringing The 2D Scrolling Action Of Gunbird 2 To Switch
And it's due later this month
It was only back in December last year that we got to experience the high-octane action of the first Gunbird, recalibrated for flight on Nintendo Switch, and now we're getting its equally bombastic sequel. That's right, Zerodiv is at it again, with plans to bring Gunbird 2 to the Switch eShop later this month. The game...
April2018
News Jin Fujisawa, The Director Of Dragon Quest IX, Leaves Square Enix
He's now working for a different, undisclosed firm
One of the Dragon Quest franchise's most influential developers has parted ways with the publisher. Jin Fujisawa, who worked on nine entries on the series (from Dragon Quest VII on PS1 to Dragon Quest X Online) has moved onto pastures new and is now working with a different company on an...
News The SNES Classic Edition Has Sold 5.28 Million Units Worldwide
Mini marvel
Nintendo has revealed that the SNES Classic Edition has sold an impressive 5.28 million units worldwide. The micro-console - which launched in September last year - comes pre-loaded with 21 SNES titles - including the previously unreleased Star Fox 2 - and is the sequel to the equally-successful NES Classic Edition. The NES
Feature The History And Evolution of Donkey Kong
37 years in the making
Few gaming characters have hung around as long as Donkey Kong, and over the years we at NL towers have garnered a healthy respect for the giant, tie-wearing ape. That's why we decided to throw together a short audio-visual retrospective to take a look at how DK managed to get where he is today. What's your favourite entry...
Video Polymega Gears Up For Marketing Blitz With Footage Of PCB Creation
More news coming this year
Polymega - which began life as RetroBlox - is a name we haven't heard much of over the past few months. The modular system aims to offer support for several key vintage gaming formats using removable sections which house the interface for each console's media and controllers. It's a really interesti
Feature The Making Of Night Trap, The World's Most Famous Video Game Nasty
"I thought the whole witch hunt was ridiculous"
Nintendo of America's Howard Lincoln makes an example out of Night Trap during the 1993 Senate Hearings on Video Game Violence Ever since its inception, the video game industry and controversy have gone hand in hand. Custer’s Revenge, Death Race, Grand Theft Auto, Sam Fox’s Strip Poker… these...
Feature It's Time For Former Tetris Champion Steve Wozniak To Reclaim His Throne
The best there is, the best there Woz, and the best there ever will be
There’s been a lot of news as of late about some famous high scores and the shaky stories behind them. While we're on the topic, we thought it might be a good idea to take the headwinds and revisit another famous video game record, perhaps the most famous Nintendo-related...
Weirdness Watch In Horror As A Game Boy Gets Tortured In The Name Of Music
Warning: Some Game Boys were harmed in the making of this video
The humble Game Boy has long been used as a musical instrument by chiptune enthusiasts, but this latest audio "hack" really doesn't just take the biscuit - it steals the entire jar and gobbles them all down in one go. YouTuber LOOK MUM NO COMPUTER - who does loa
News SNK Is Releasing A "Neo Geo Classic Edition" To Mark Its 40th Anniversary
More competition for Nintendo's micro-consoles?
SNK has announced today that it will be jumping on the "Classic Edition" bandwagon with its own new system, which will come pre-loaded with beloved Neo Geo titles. For those who don't know, the Neo Geo was SNK's high-end home system from the '90s, which delivered arcade-quality gaming at eye-watering...
Video Here's What Happened To The Grinder, A Wii Horror Shooter Lost To Development Hell
Left for dead
Back in the mid to late '00s, some third-party developers were doing their best to put the under-powered Wii through its paces. The Conduit developer High Voltage Software was one of those studios, which doubled down on its console exclusivity with Left 4 Dead-esque horror shooter, The Grinder. It became one of the most...
News Alex Kidd And Gain Ground Join Sega's AGES Line-Up On Switch, Saturn And Dreamcast Games Coming
Janken!
Last week, Sega caused quite a stir when it announced it would be bringing a series of classic titles to Switch under the "AGES" banner. The first three confirmed titles are Sonic, Thunder Force IV and Phantasy Star. However, it hasn't taken long for Sega to reveal two more games in the range:
News AtGames Confirms It's Making The Mega Drive Mini, Then Deletes Tweet
The plot thickens...
Yesterday, it was revealed that Sega is bringing its own "classic edition" system to market in the form of the Mega Drive Mini. A micro-console pre-loaded with classic titles, the system was shown off during an event in Japan, instantly triggering speculation that AtGames - a US firm which has been making officially-licensed...
News Sega Announces AGES For Nintendo Switch, Mega Drive Mini Console
AtGames confirms it's making the mini console
During a live Twitch presentation in Tokyo this morning, Sega announced that a download-only selection of 15 titles under the name SEGA AGES will be making their way to Switch in the summer. These include company mascot platformer Sonic the Hedgehog, Thunder Force 4, Phantasy Star and more to be...
News Super Famicom Megami Tensei Spin-Off Last Bible III Gets Translated Into English
Now import friendlier
Jolly news for Megami Tensei fans today as Tom and DDSTrans have announced the release of a complete English translation patch for Super Famicom 1995 exclusive Last Bible III. This was the first entry in the series released on a home console, with the previous two games having graced the humble Game Boy Colour also...
Random Retro Games Collector Finds Drugs Smuggled Inside NES Cartridges
Contra-band
Imagine heading out to a market, picking up some copies of classic retro games to add to your growing collection, and accidentally coming home with a small stash of illegal drugs at the same time. It seems almost unimaginable, yet this was a recent reality for one unlucky gentleman. Retro game collector Julian Turner recently uploaded a...
Random The Legendary Sonic Formula One Trophy Won By Ayrton Senna Still Exists
It's sitting in McLaren's storeroom
Not so long ago, we ran a little piece on the 1993 Formula One European Grand Prix, or - as it was also known - the XXXVIII Sega European Grand Prix. Held on a rainy day in the UK, this event in the F1 calendar was notable for many reasons - one of which was that Nintendo's rival Sega went all-out...
Hardware Classics Unpacking The 32X, Sega's Most Catastrophic Console Failure
"It was like watching the death of the Hindenburg in slow motion"
How do you take half a decade’s worth of critical and commercial success and flush it down the toilet? Easy – you release a device like the Sega 32X. At the start of the 1990s Sega was arguably at the height of its powers; the dawn of the decade saw the western launch of the...
Feature The 26 Best Nintendo Game Boy Games Of All Time
Limited to four colours per cartridge
Every system has its gems, but the original Game Boy was something else. Despite some weak hardware compared to its rivals at the time, it managed to dominate the handheld market and last for years longer than it arguably had any right to, largely thanks to a certain yellow electric mouse. So today we're going...
News Treasure Teases Both Ikaruga And Nintendo Switch Fans
Will this GameCube classic ever come to Switch?
Hardly a day goes by at Nintendo Life Towers when we don't daydream about Ikagura one day appearing on Nintendo Switch. Smooth 60fps in both docked and portable mode? Check. Optional TATE mode for both modes? Double check. We do like to daydream around here, but looks like we might not be the only...
News The Debug Code Has Been Found For Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
It only took 13 years!
In the modern age of data mining, its not uncommon for nearly every game or patch’s secrets to be outed within weeks of release. Back before the internet was quite so prevalent, secrets in games remained just that for sometimes years before the knowledge would enter the public consciousness, and many games from that time no...
Feature Game Bar Space Station - Osaka's Gaming Paradise
Cocktails and controllers to cater for all tastes
While Tokyo may be the first stop on many gamers' lists due to its numerous arcades and the famous Akihabara area, other parts of Japan also have their own little pockets of gaming heaven for locals and tourists alike. Located in Amemura - just a few minutes walk from the Dotonbori river and...
News No, Sega Is Not Returning To The Home Console Arena
It's a lot less exciting than that
In a recent interview with Yahoo! Japan, Sega Games COO Kenji Matsubara got chins wagging by pointing out that the Japanese giant is considering releasing a new console in Japan - but it's not quite what you think, or what some other sites have reported, either. Matsubara is in fact talking about importing the...
Random Here's What Donkey Kong Country Would Have Looked Like With Classic Kong
Alternate timeline monkey business
When Rare was given the chance to work with one of Nintendo's most famous intellectual properties, it created one of the SNES' truly classic 2D platformers. However, Donkey Kong Country not only gave Kong a new lease of life; it gave him an entirely new look which has become the accepted template ever since. What,...
News Save Your Loose Change With SNK 40th Anniversary Collection On Switch
Coming this fall
We're getting a handsome helping of arcade classics later this year thanks to SNK, which is celebrating its 40th birthday with a bumper compendium of its most famous coin-op games. Here's some PR: To celebrate the 40th anniversary of legendary studio SNK, a variety of classic arcade games from SNK's golden age comes back together...
Awesome Hand-Drawn Guide To Contra Proves The Pen Is Mightier Than The Keyboard
Tips to live by
If you grew up in the 8 and 16-bit eras then you'll no doubt be familiar with the concept of writing down notes and drawing maps to help you beat tricky games. In the days before the internet and readily-available guidebooks, players had to make their own luck - and that usually involved putting pen to paper and creating your...
Hardware Review GameCube HDMI Adapter - GC Video Plug 'n Play 3.0
So long, component cable
You might think that when Nintendo started offering games from classic systems on its various Virtual Console platforms that interest in original hardware might fall away. However, over a decade later we're instead seeing a strong reassurance of new products supporting ageing original hardware, often aimed at getting the...
News Super Famicom Exclusives 'G.O.D.' And 'Ranma ½: Chougi Ranbu Hen' Translated to English
Double Easter treat from Dynamc-Designs
Dynamic Designs picked April first for a double Super Famicom games translation release, but no need to worry, this is no April's fool. Add one of the last great JRPGs plus one anime fan favourite brawler to the club of fan translated Super Famicom games. Originally released by Infinity/Imaginer in...
Hardware Review Terraonion Super SD System 3 Unlocks The Entire PC Engine Library
The ultimate engine upgrade?
It's almost impossible to not fall in love with the NEC PC Engine. In its original Japanese form it remains an engineering masterpiece; it's the tiny console that could. Even after all these years it's easy to see why the system took Japan by a storm and gained legions of fans among "grey importers" in the west – not...
Random Nintendo's SNES-Era Troubleshooting Phone Line Still Works, Troubleshooting Still Given
Support through the decades
Nintendo is unusual in that it offers much better after sales service than most of its rivals and, in the past, has supported systems for many, many years after they stopped being sold in stores. When one fan recently found his SNES was unresponsive, he decided to see if the troubleshooting telephone line printed on the...
March2018
Feature A Tour Of Game Bar A Button, Tokyo's Treasure Trove Of Gaming Kitch
A tiny museum of Nintendo and nostalgia, hidden out of sight
Discovering Tokyo's secrets relies on a mixture of research, recommendations, and - should you have the time - luck. What is important to note is that Tokyo simply can not be digested as one giant whole. The greater area is home to some 33 million people, with 12 million of those in the...
Random Super Mario World Kickstarter Aims To Bring The Lost Chapter To Switch
UPDATE: Campaign is cancelled
Update: Well, that didn't take long. Despite apparently having the permission of Nintendo to run this campaign, the team behind it has now cancelled the Kickstarter. Does this mean legal pressure was applied, or are they simply re-grouping with a different approach? If we hear anything, we'll update this...
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