Retro News (Page 8)
Random The Powkiddy X51 Emulation Console Tries To Rope In Switch Fans
It looks like a Switch, but...
Powkiddy, a company known for producing retro gaming consoles, has introduced its latest effort: the Powkiddy X51. It looks pretty familiar, right? Yes, in designing the X51, Powkiddy has unashamedly tried to emulate (chortle!) the look and feel of a Nintendo Switch, right down to the neon red and blue casing. As...
"Don't expect this to come out any time soon"
Remember the absolutely stunning showcase of Super Mario 64 with ray tracing? Well, the same individual is now working on a new project that could evolve N64 emulation. Modder turned software developer Dario has just revealed 'RT64' (the path tracer behind the sm64rt project) is being transformed into a...
News Sega Has Considered Dreamcast & Saturn Mini But Is Worried About Extreme Costs
You can thank the pandemic
One of the highlights of the week was the announcement of the Mega Drive Mini 2 - Sega's next miniature console, loaded with 50 games from the Mega Drive and Mega CD libraries. It's launching this October in Japan and will include games like Sonic CD, Slipstream and Virtua Racing. As exciting as this news is, it hasn't s
Feature How The Quintessential Essence Of Pokémon Games Inspires Gen After Gen
Insight from Pokémon World Champions and Temtem’s Director
In 1998 my Canadian elementary school banned everything to do with Pokémon. The games, the trading cards, and discussions about the anime – all of it was off-limits as Pocket Monster fever swept through North America like a swarm of Rattata, distracting us from our in-class reading of...
Random The Power Glove Is An Inventive Way To Play Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit
Even more hands-on
The Power Glove wasn't great. We know it, you know it, everyone knows it. It's infamous for being one of the worst controllers ever. Yet that doesn't stop people from being fascinated with it and trying new things out with the peripheral. Further reading: Feature: Uncovering The Unlikely Story Of The World's Worst Controller In...
News 'Memory Limits' Showcases Amazing Art Created On The Game Boy
"The Game Boy becomes the medium for individual ideas, stories and visions"
The Game Boy was hugely influential in the game industry, playing its part in bringing video games into the mainstream. It's still very much loved despite its limitations, from its basic specifications that restricted the scope of its games, down to the modest screen. Those...
News Embracer Games Archive Is Striving To Preserve And Celebrate Gaming Culture
"We want to archive and save as much of the video games industry as possible"
The Embracer Group is a significant gaming company that is still somewhat under the radar in comparison to other major brands. Previously known as THQ Nordic and operating out of Sweden, it's become the parent organisation for a number of major gaming companies - familiar...
Rumour Datamine Reveals Six More Neo Geo Pocket Games Potentially Coming To Switch
Including two never-before-localised titles
Last week, we got the surprise Switch release of the Neo Geo Pocket Color's Biomotor Unitron — the system's first RPG. Biomotor Unitron joins the likes of Big Bang Pro Wrestling, SNK Gals' Fighters, and Samurai Shodown! 2 (among many others) on the system in representing the classic handheld console. And...
Soapbox Help, I Can't Stop Buying Japanese Games I Don't Understand And Will Never Play
Nintendo sixty-moarrr
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've got on their minds. Today, Gavin ponders why he's spending time and money importing Nintendo curios from the East that he's not even sure he'll play... It all started with Morita Shogi 64. If you're...
Review Rival Turf! - Jaleco's Brawler Is No Match For Final Fight, Two-Player Or Not
Two isn't always better than one
This review originally went live in 2015, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival on Switch as part of the Super NES library of games included with a Nintendo Switch Online subscription. When approaching Jaleco's Rival Turf! (known as Rushing Beat in Japan), it's important to understand...
News SNES Platforming Shooter 'Jim Power: The Lost Dimension' Returns On Switch
With multiple physical releases
In another obscure retro rerelease, publisher QUByte Interactive and developer PIKO Interactive have announced the return of the SNES platformer Jim Power: The Lost Dimension in 3-D in the form of a brand new release — Jim Power: The Lost Dimension. Released in 1993 on the Super Nintendo, Jim Power is an action...
News Playable Build Of Cancelled N64 Game 'SimCopter 64' Discovered
History takes flight
In a huge discovery for video game history, a playable version of a long-lost cancelled N64 game has been found. SimCopter 64 was meant to be a port of the Maxis and EA title on PC and was last seen at E3 in — wait for it — 1997. We were made aware of this by Twitter user and gaming history preservationist @dangentemp, who...
Random Popular Flash Game 'IndestructoTank!' To Get A Physical Release On Game Boy
Digital, too!
With the death of Adobe Flash Player on 1st January 2021, many creators have gone to great lengths to preserve the projects they created over the years. If you were around at the peak of this era, then the name Newgrounds will be familiar to you, and I'm sure everyone has something they spent hours upon hours of mouse clicking and on...
News The Neo Geo Pocket Color's First RPG, Biomotor Unitron, Launches On Switch Tomorrow
Surprise!
In a surprise announcement, SNK has announced the next game in its Neo Geo Pocket Color Selection series, Biomotor Unitron. Released on the handheld back in 1999, this was the very first RPG for the system. The game mixes sci-fi elements with dungeon crawling. You control a robot through these dungeons — which are semi-random a selected...
News Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection II Launches On Switch This September
Japan only, for now...
Remember back in March when Edia announced it had plans to release a second collection of Valis titles on the Nintendo Switch? Well, it's now locked in a release date...at least for Japan, confirming this three-in-one classic collection will be released on 22nd September. This second collection, known officially as Valis: The...
News Rare Footage From Nintendo's 1976 16mm Film Arcade Game 'Sky Hawk' Emerges
A blast from the past
Nintendo's fascinating history continues to be unearthed by fans across the world. Just last year, 16mm film from Nintendo's Wild Gunman — originally a 1974 arcade cabinet before jumping onto the NES in the '80s — was discovered. 16mm film games use film reels and projectors to project photos and footage onto the screen...
Review Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards - Kirby's First Brush With 3D Is Still A Charmer
Kirby Sixty-phwoar
Like many of Nintendo's properties during the transition from the SNES to the N64, Kirby underwent a shift from a flat 2D sprite to a fully rendered polygon rendition of himself. Rather than taking Kirby down the route of Mario and Link, however, the pink mascot stuck closer to his origins — mechanically, Kirby 64: The Crystal...
News Ys And Trails Developer Plans To Release More Retro Titles On Switch
Update: Other Trails ports are being looked at
Update [Thu 19th May, 2022 10:00 BST] RPG Site has fully translated the Switch port questions from the Famitsu interview from yesterday. Kondo's answers clearly highlight that the company not only want to bring retro titles to the system, but also future titles. The interview focused on the upcoming The...
Random 2021 NES Game 'Slow Mole' Is Getting A Bizarre Claymation Movie
And there's a trailer
Last year didn't bring us the Switch 2, but it certainly brought us something very interesting and unexpected. 2021 saw the release of, not Breath of the Wild 2, but a brand new NES game called Slow Mole. Slow Mole is known for anything but slowness, as the game has garnered a reputation among the speedrunning community for...
News SEGA Launches New Streets Of Rage Merch In Europe
Streets of Range
While all the trendy kids talk about Streets of Rage 4 and (accurately) discuss how awesome it is, those of us that prefer the soft glow of nostalgia look back to the original. In truth it doesn't hold up as well as its outstanding sequel, but it's an iconic game among retro enthusiasts and some of us that had our young minds blown...
News This Important Piece Of Star Fox History Was Almost Thrown Away
I can't let you do that, Fox
Star Fox might not be one of Nintendo's biggest-selling franchises, but it certainly has a passionate following; the first SNES game was revolutionary in that it harnessed the Super FX chip to create a convincing 3D world, while subsequent titles both refined the format and took it in new directions. However, since...
Video We Take A Look At Limited Run Games' Brand New Store
Update: The full video is out now!
Update [Tue 17th May, 2022 20:00 BST] Well, the update came a lot sooner than we expected! Zion's full trip to Limited Run Games' physical game store — and it's here to stay. Featuring merchandise, cut-outs, playable games, and neon lighting, it's a glorious nostalgia trip. The video is a 26-minute love letter...
News Newly-Translated Article Reveals Sega And Nintendo's Worries Of A '90s Atari-Style Crash
“It’s almost like a return of the 1982 Atari Shock"
Many of us think of the '90s as the golden age of video games. The Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis / Mega Drive were brimming with a huge variety of games. But when Sony's PlayStation hit in 1995, it was an indication of another huge shake-up in the video game industry — though even then,...
Random Sorry GameCube, LeBron James Likes The Nintendo 64 More
The King has spoken
King James, otherwise known as the Los Angeles Lakers' player LeBron James, recently held a Q&A on Twitter, and unsurprisingly there were a number of video game questions thrown at the basketball superstar. One, in particular, that's already received quite a bit of attention on social media is a question from the technology...
News You Can Play Mario Kart 64 In Glorious HD Thanks To This Fan-Made Texture Pack
Yippee!
The Nintendo 64 fan scene has been pretty darn busy lately, with the Zelda: Ocarina of Time PC port finally launching — and getting a shed-load of fun and unusual mods — and even more games rumoured to be made available through reverse engineering. Next on the list, however, is a very smooth and shiny update to a pa
Random Indie Horror Dev Launches Kickstarter To Create A Game For Pokémon Mini
Pokémon Silver Falls
Hands up — who had a Pokémon Mini back in the day? The microconsole launched in 2001 in Japan and North America — right before the GameCube came out — and the following year in Europe. it came in three colours, had ten games released for it (only 4 made it to America, with an additional game coming to Europe), and is...
Random Portal 64 Demake Shows Portal Running On "Real N64 Hardware"
GLaDOS would be pleased
Valve's Portal: Companion Collection will see the release of Portal and Portal 2 on a Nintendo system for the first time ever, but have you ever wondered what the original 2007 game might have looked like if it got a release during the N64 era? Well, there's now a 'Portal 64' demake in the works. It's still in development,...
News Lawsuit Brought Against Game Grading Firm, WATA, Alleging Market Manipulation
Class-action also alleges false statements and false advertising
In August last year WATA generated plenty of headlines, as criticism started to mount over the boom of retro game prices amid allegations of wrongdoing from the game grading firm. Claims surfaced alleging that the company was artificially driving high prices, along with claims of...
Random Here's Why Wolfenstein 3D On SNES Replaced Dogs With Rats
"You can't shoot dogs!"
We love a good documentary here at Nintendo Life, and CREATORVC's upcoming film, First Person Shooter, looks like it will fill a big gap in our lives. Shooting for a Q4 2022 release, this 3+ hour documentary is all about the genre's rise. Ahead of its release later this year, CREATORVC has shared a six-minute snippet with IGN...
News Alwa's Awakening Gets A NES Physical Release And Unique 'Digical' Version
Update: We unbox the NES version
Update: Retro-Bit has been kind enough to send us samples of Alwa's Awakening physical NES release and its 'Digical' version, so feast your eyes on them below: Original Story [Wed 15th Sep, 2021 16:30 BST]: Retro-Bit is producing a physical version of Elden Pixels' Alwa's Awakening and will be making the game...
News David Ward, Co-Founder Of UK Game Developer Ocean Software, Has Passed Away
A "legend of the UK games industry"
Co-founder of Ocean Software, David Ward, has sadly passed away. A titan of the UK games industry, Ward's Ocean Software was one of the biggest European game developers and publishers in the '80s and '90s. This news was revealed by Just Flight founder Andy Payne on Twitter, and there has been an outpouring of...
News After The Game Boy-Like GameShell, Clockwork Pi's Next Trick Is A Computer You Build Yourself
1983 called, and it wants its consumer tech back
Remember the Clockwork Pi GameShell? We covered this open source DIY handheld in 2018, mainly because it resembled a Game Boy and could run MAME, Game Boy Advance and NES titles. It raised $290,429 on Kickstarter and we really enjoyed tinkering around with it – so the news that
Soapbox Please, Please, Please Release Sonic Advance Trilogy On Nintendo Switch Online
Don't make us blue
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've got on their minds. Today, Stuart pleads with the powers that be to get a certain trilogy on Nintendo Switch Online... Game Boy Advance is coming to Switch Online! Maybe! Almost certainly, anyway!...
News Fans Have Created Their Own Metroid 64, And It Looks Incredible
What could have been
The Metroid series famously skipped the Nintendo 64 back in the '90s. The "lost game" Metroid 64 was never in development, with Super Metroid director Yoshio Sakamoto saying that he "couldn't imagine" how Samus would move around a 3D environment with the N64 controller. We only ever got to see and play as Samus in the very first...
News Kickstarter DIY Kit Transforms GBA Into Console-Like HDMI System
No soldering required
A new Kickstarter campaign by IntecGaming aims to convert the Game Boy Advance into a console-like experience. Its 'GBA HDMI Kit' has so far raised just over $10,000 USD (with a goal of $49,697) and promises to be highly portable, easy to operate and a fun DIY device. It also comes with built-in Bluetooth receiver, allowing it...
Talking Point WATA And The Grey Areas Of Game Preservation - Is There Any Better Way?
WATAAARGH
The game industry is youthful compared to other areas of entertainment and recorded culture - younger than film and TV, and of course a baby compared to printed works. Yet we're now decades into the history of gaming, especially if you go back to the systems of the 1970s, perhaps even a little earlier. Even if you choose to focus on the...
Rumour Here Are The Supposed GBA Games "Tested" For Switch Online So Far
Take a look
In case you missed it, the Nintendo Switch could possibly be adding Game Boy titles to its online service in the near future. Following on from the initial "leak", a list of games apparently tested for the service has now been shared online by Twitter user and dataminer MondoMega. The games highlighted in yellow in the list below have...
News It Looks Like Nintendo's Game Boy Emulator For Switch Online Just Leaked
Announcement incoming?
Last year there were whispers that Nintendo was planning to bring Game Boy games to its Nintendo Switch Online subscription service to join the existing libraries of NES and SNES titles, plus the Nintendo 64 and Sega Genesis catalogues available as part of the Expansion pack subscription tier. Now, a leak seems
Feature How Limited Run's New Engine Respects The Legacy Of Classic Games
"If we’re going to make a change that sweeping, the original needs to be there as well"
The world of physical media in brick-and-mortar stores has dwindled in recent years due to the proliferation of digital storefronts readily and conveniently available on modern platforms. While some would never think to pay the same (or more) on a digital game...
Review Mario Golf - Strait-Laced Fun On The Fairway
Mario hits the links
This review originally went live in 2008, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival on Switch as part of the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. After Mario's forays into non-platforming genres — you know, the Karting, the Picross-ing, the Dr. Mario...ing — Nintendo realised something: put Mario...
Random Here's Why Nintendo Doesn’t Want You Using The Word "Nintendo" To Describe Video Games
"There's no such thing as a Nintendo"
If you’ve trundled around the internet for as long as we have, you may have come across a 1990 store poster from Nintendo, correcting its users on how to use the word "Nintendo". While this ad may come across as Mario lecturing your grandmother with a lesson in grammar, when this image first hit the internets...
Random You Can Play SNES Games On A Toaster With This DIY Kit
ToastBound
When we think of custom consoles, the first thing that comes to mind is custom plates, portable versions of home consoles - like this portable GameCube, which, in the absence of GameCube games on the Switch, we need. Yes, need. We're going a bit beyond these examples today, though! Japanese manufacturer Columbus Circle, who creates parts...
Feature Nintendo Reigns Supreme At The Science Museum's 'Power UP' Exhibition
Play some of gaming's most iconic consoles and games
Walking into the Basement Gallery of the London Science Museum, you're greeted by an uncomfortable warmth that often comes with gaming events, but this is soon forgotten when you cast your eyes over the sea of consoles lying in wait. We're all so used to seeing old gaming systems locked away...
Video Check Out This Japan-Only Club Nintendo Game You Likely Never Heard Of
Reclaim Mario's hat in 'Nintendoji'
We Nintendo fans often pride ourselves on our vast and intimate knowledge of the company's back catalogue. Even when a piece of hardware or software isn't released in our territory, we'll either import it or sit there poring over details and videos of obscure releases we'll never get our hands on. Knowledge is...
Gallery This Incredible Axelay Art Proves We Need A Modern Remake
Created by Housemarque's Tomi Väisänen
While the end credits of Konami's stunning SNES shmup Axelay promised a sequel, we sadly never got one – and the game remains a true one-of-a-kind thanks to its gorgeous visuals, fantastic level design and brilliant music. Someone else who is clearly a huge fan is Housemarque's Tomi Väisänen. When he's...
News As 'Power Instinct' Approaches 30, The Chances Of A Re-Release Seem Slim
Character designs not "politically correct"
While it might not be quite as well-known as Street Fighter or King of Fighters, Atlus' zany Power Instinct (Gōketsuji Ichizoku in Japan) still has many fans – and those same fans might be expecting some kind of celebration to mark the series' 30th birthday in 2023. However, according to one source in...
News You Can Get Lost In This Hand-Drawn Zelda Map From 1986
"Never-seen-in-full-online before"
When the original Zelda launched in 1986, it captivated players with its massive, sprawling map and an incredible level of detail. While subsequent Zelda games have improved on this foundation dramatically, it's still easy to appreciate the level of complexity present in the NES original – and nothing captures...
Random Metal Gear 35th Anniversary Site Confirmed As A Fan Joke, Now 'Konami Memorial NFT'
"We are currently considering how to deal with this site" - Konami
Update [Mon 4th Apr, 2022 09:40 BST]: Konami has confirmed to TechRadar that the metalgear35th site that appeared just before April Fools' Day is indeed a fake. In fact, it has now been transformed into the 'Konami Memorial NFT' site with an explanation posted by the site's creator...
News We're Getting A Second Valis Collection On Switch
Includes three classic games from the series
Edia has announced that it plans to release a second collection of Valis titles on the Switch. Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection arrived last year, and included the PC Engine (AKA: TurboGrafx-16) versions of Valis: The Fantasm Soldier, Valis II, and Valis III. The second collection – which doesn't...
News SNK Has Released Another Neo Geo Pocket Color Game On Switch eShop
The return of Big Bang Pro Wrestling
Well, here's a surprise - the Neo Geo Pocket Color title Big Bang Pro Wrestling is now available on the Switch eShop. This title was originally released in 2000 exclusively in Japan. Here's the rundown, courtesy of SNK's official website: It's about to pop off! Muscle-bound wrestlers take the stage for a...
