Retro News (Page 8)
Review Pokémon Puzzle League - A Thrilling Puzzler And A Heavy Nostalgia Hit
Panel de Pokémon
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. For those who have dabbled with Puzzle League, this is obvious information, but please bear with us. Tetris Attack, the SNES game, was a westernized version of...
News Namco Shmup Dragon Saber Is This Week's Arcade Archives Game
Dragon flight
If you love a good vertical shoot 'em up - Hamster's Arcade Archives collection has you got covered this week. The latest release for this library on the Switch is the 1990 Namco title, Dragon Saber. It's a sequel to Dragon Spirit, released in arcades back in 1987. In this game, the Huey and Siria, who have been transformed into...
News SEGA Genesis Mini 2 Confirmed For North American Release This October
Blasting to the West with SEGA CD games
Sega has announced that it's bringing the Genesis Mini 2 mini console to North America on 27th October. The mini console — which follows the original Mega Drive Mini and includes more Genesis titles and SEGA CD games to boot — was previously confirmed only for Japan, but we'll be enjoying the 50+ games it...
Random Voice Of Zelda In CD-i Games Would Love To Return To The Role
She's currently working on a homage to the CD-i series
The Legend of Zelda CD-i games might not have had much going for them, but one thing that was arguably impressive was the voice acting. Bonnie Jean Wilbur was the original Princess Zelda in the series - providing the voice for the character in the 1993 Philips CD-i releases Link: The Faces of...
Poll What's The Best Mario Kart Game?
Rate them Rainbow Roads
Some of us here at Nintendo Life Towers are convinced that your favourite Mario Kart game is simply the one you played first with three other players in the same room — or just one other player if you were there at the very beginning with Super Mario Kart on Super NES. We tend to think this because while we can all agree...
Random We Need To Play This Gorgeous Fan-Made Super Mario RPG Remake Now
A thing of beauty
Back in the '90s, whoever thought that Nintendo would team up with JRPG giants Square Enix (then known as Square or Squaresoft) to create a Mario RPG starring the Italian plumber, Princess Peach, and Bowser? Not us! But they did, and we're forever grateful for the existence of Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars. Despite...
Random This Fan-Made Mini TV With A Built-In Super NES Is Totally Adorable
Bite-sized classic gaming with a TV to match
One of our favourite console peripherals is the Joytech GameCube screen, a little attachable screen for the little box-shaped console that turned it into a portable console of sorts. Lots of mods for other consoles have been inspired by this little add-on, but today, we have something extra dinky that...
Review Zero Tolerance Collection (Switch) - A Significant 16-Bit FPS That's Hard To Take These Days
Virtual neutrality
Thanks to ray casting, an early form of graphics processing that allowed the rendering of a 2D map as a pseudo-3D environment, Zero Tolerance, a true First-Person Shooter, arrived on Sega’s Mega Drive in 1994. What makes Zero Tolerance Collection significant — particularly for fans of the original — is its boast of...
News Creator Of Philips CD-i Game 'Hotel Mario' Talks Getting Approval From Nintendo
"They were pleased as far as I knew"
The Philips CD-i is one of the rare consoles that has the distinction of having played host to a few officially licensed Nintendo games. And not just any old Nintendo licenses, either, but Zelda and Mario. The latter of the two only got one game on the system — Hotel Mario, which is often considered one of the...
News Microsoft Renews Trademark For Rare's Classic N64 Game Blast Corps
Viva Piñata, too
Video game trademark renewals are always happening, and while they don't necessarily mean something is on the horizon, they do tend to create some excitement whenever it's a classic game or series we haven't heard about for some time. The latest ones, as highlighted by Game Rant, are tied to iconic British developer Rare - owned...
Random Witness The Star Trek DS9 Intro In Glorious 64-Bit, Zelda: Ocarina Of Time Style
It is not linear
A little while ago we covered the incredible work of @SpinaSanctuary and their Zelda 64-inspired, low-poly Star Trek creations. The last batch focused on the crew of the USS Enterprise from Star Trek: The Next Generation, rendering them in brilliantly blocky 64-bit form with a variety of instruments — Data with his violin, Riker...
Random This Incredible Super NES Manual Archive Will Get You All Nostalgic
All 844 English language manuals
We really miss physical game manuals. There was always a particular kind of joy that came from opening the box of a brand new video game and flicking through the pages of a manual to find out what the game was going to be like. Some of our favourites would get dog-eared, and torn up, but they were always well-loved...
Random Here's A Look At Masahiro Sakurai's Retro Video Game Collection
That's some neat filing
If you're looking for new ways to organise your retro video game collection, you might want to read on. Masahiro Sakurai, the creator of Kirby and director of the Smash Bros. series, recently shared an image on social media of his impressive library of retro games. As you can see he's got draws stacked with cartridges like...
Random This Browser-Based Version Of Mario Paint Composer Will Entertain For Hours
Face the music
What's the best part of Mario Paint? No, not the painting! The Composer mode! Who didn't spend hours on Mario Paint making tunes with fire flowers, mushrooms, coins, and boos? Mario Paint Composer has become something of an online hit in the years since the SNES game's release, with many budding musicians picking up their SNES mouse...
Movie Review GoldenEra - A Celebratory Examination Of GoldenEye 007's Creation And Impact
Worth its weight in gold
"A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad." Ah, yes. The classic quote that may or may not have been uttered by Shigeru Miyamoto. With the gaming industry (understandably) experiencing an unusually high number of delays in recent years, the proclamation has been the subject of memes to the point...
Feature Remembering Klonoa's Dreamy GBA Platformers - Empires, Champions, And Puzzles
It's not only a phantasy
The ‘90s and 2000s were a totally different era. I can’t tell you how many times I sat down playing the same demo discs over and over or replaying the same handful of games as a kid. Bandai Namco’s old mascot Klonoa — soon to return in the upcoming Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series — is the first-ever video game...
News Edia Crowdfunding Cosmic Fantasy Collection For Nintendo Switch
Campaign goal has already been met
Edia - the developer behind the recent Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection - has launched a crowdfunding campaign on the website Makuake for a special double-pack Nintendo Switch release. It's asking for 3 million yen (around $22,285 USD) to release Cosmic Fantasy: Adventure Boy Yuu and Cosmic Fantasy 2:...
Memory Pak After 20 Years, Eternal Darkness Really Deserves A Second Life
Being stuck on one system is pure insanity
Picture the setting. You’re walking around a grand mansion, testing out keys on locked doors, investigating every nook and cranny, and simply trying your best to figure out where you need to go and what you need to do. The rooms are well-lit and the furniture neatly positioned together. By all accounts,...
Review Pokémon Snap - Photo Fun That's Over Too Soon
Candid Camera + Pocket Monster
This review originally went live in 2016, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival on Switch as part of the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. There are moments during Pokémon Snap where — upon finding a hidden path — the game ditches the first-person perspective to show your...
News Boss Fight Announces New Documentary Book Focused On GoldenEye 007
Based on "exclusive interviews with the developers"
Boss Fight Books are known as the publisher of multiple in-depth deep-dives of beloved video games, from Metal Gear Solid to The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, each one written by mega-fan authors, writers, and developers, often with interviews from the people who made the games. And Boss Fight...
News The Sega Genesis Is Getting A New 6-Button Controller, And It Will Work With Switch
Say hello to the 'Big6'
Back when the Sega Mega Drive / Genesis was first released, it came with a 3-button pad which – in 1988 – felt like the future. It wasn't square and boxy like the NES and Master System controllers but had a rounded, ergonomic shape which was more comfortable to hold, and it had one extra action button. Bliss! However, by...
News Never-Before-Seen Famicom Port Of Taito Arcade Game 'The Fairyland Story' Discovered
A fairytale of game preservation
Forest of Illusion, Hard4Games, and Gaming Alexandria have uncovered a pretty huge find in the world of retro arcade ports. Once upon a time, Taito's 1985 arcade predecessor to Bubble Bobble — The Fairyland Story — was due to get a Famicom port back in 1986. This version of the game was only ever spotted in
Feature Need More Turtles After Shredder's Revenge? You Should Check Out These Underrated TMNT Gems
Heroes in a handheld
Hopefully you’re all enjoying the absolutely tremendous Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, the latest addition to the TMNT video gaming canon from Dotemu and Tribute games. We know we are. It’s another blistering action game in the tradition of Konami’s NES and SNES beat-’em-ups. And that’s great — we...
Random F1 Star Lewis Hamilton Couldn't Find Mario Kart, So He Bought Super Monaco GP II Instead
"I went to get Mario Kart but they didn’t have it"
Seven-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton has revealed that he's digging back into the past to let off steam during what is proving to be a demanding season. Hamilton was infamously beaten to the title last season by Max Verstappen in controversial circumstances, but rule changes this year have...
Hands On WaterField 'CitySlicker' Analogue Pocket Case
Your dream case?
If you're lucky enough to own an Analogue Pocket then you might be somewhat intimidated by the sheer range of storage options available right now. Analogue has its own hard-shell plastic case, but WaterField Designs now has three different choices on offer: the Pack, the
News You Can Now Hang Nintendo's Biggest-Selling Console On Your Wall
Don't feel bad, there are 154 million other ones out there
While old-school Nintendo gamers might feel the NES, SNES or Game Boy marked the zenith of the company's commercial powers, it's actually the Nintendo DS which holds the position of the Kyoto firm's most successful hardware release. The entire DS family has sold a staggering 154 million...
News Game Freak Had Plans For 65,535 Versions Of The Original Pokémon Game
But Shigeru Miyamoto didn't think it was the best idea
Pokémon has always had two different versions, but before the original games were released on Game Boy in 1996, Game Freak had plans for something else. In new translations of old Japanese interviews (via the YouTube channel Did You Know Gaming), it's revealed how Game Freak wanted 65,535...
News Unreleased Quake Prototype For Game Boy Advance Discovered
From the programmer of DOOM SNES
A bit like DOOM, id Software's first-person shooter Quake has been ported officially (and unofficially) to just about every platform under the sun that's capable of running 3D natively. Did you know though there was also a version in development for Nintendo's 32-bit handheld the Game Boy Advance? In 2002, Randy...
News Hang Iconic Gaming Moments On Your Wall With These Officially-Licenced 'Pixel Frames'
"Snapshots that perfectly convey your love for retro gaming"
There are some moments in gaming that are so memorable that they deserve to be celebrated in some meaningful way, and that's exactly what Pixel Frames is offering. The company produces officially-licenced shadow boxes that are "snapshots that perfectly convey your love for retro gaming"...
Random These All-In-One SNES And Famicom Consoles Are True Works Of Art
We'll take two!
We've seen our fair share of custom designs for retro consoles over the years, but we reckon this one takes the cake. Swedish audio-visual artist Love Hultén has created all-in-one devices for the Famicom system and the SNES, combining the genuine consoles with a 9" Sony Trinitron PVM-9042QM display monitor. The result is not only...
News "50 Years Of Text Games" Celebrates Interactive Fiction, Fully Funded On Kickstarter
For Zork dorks
If Zork means more to you than Fortnite ever will, if you know exactly which items to take with you in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy in order to escape your about-to-be-bulldozed house, or if you have ever typed the words "SOUTH" and "HELP" into a white-on-black text box, then you may be interested in this book by writer and game...
News Glover Gets The Limited Run Games Treatment With A Surprise N64 Rerelease
And it's still not on Switch
You might remember earlier this year that N64 platformer Glover got a rerelease on Steam — but not on Switch oddly enough. And while that Switch port still hasn't been announced, retro game collectors can at least get a little bit excited for what's coming up for the white glove-starring game. Limited Run Games...
News Party On, Dudes! Two Bill & Ted Games Are Getting A Physical Bundle On Switch
Yes way!
No, this isn’t a bogus announcement. Two retro Bill & Ted games are getting a physical bundle on the Nintendo Switch courtesy of Limited Run Games. Aptly titled Bill & Ted's Excellent Retro Collection, the package contains two LJN titles – the 1991 NES game Bill & Ted's Excellent Video Game Adventure, and Bill & Ted's...
News Rendering Ranger: R2 Is Officially Making Its Way To Switch And SNES
1995 SHMUP was previously one of the rarest games in existence
Update - Tue 7th Jun, 2022 13:00 BST: Rendering Ranger: R2 has been announced for western release by Limited Run Games, officially ending its absurd scarcity since its initial Japan SNES launch in 1995. No release date has been set at the time of writing, however a physical edition of...
Round Up Every Physical Game From Limited Run's Summer Showcase Coming To Switch
There are even some 3DS, N64 and SNES releases
Limited Run Games earlier today aired its LRG3 Summer Showcase. As usual, there were a lot of Switch announcements. There were also some other Nintendo-related announcements for platforms like the 3DS, Nintendo 64 and Super Nintendo. We've included a full video recap of the show (above) if you would...
News 30 Years On, The Fan-Made 'Final Fight Ultimate' Is Set To Reignite The 16-bit Console War
Punching up
Final Fight is one of the definitive games of the side-scrolling beat 'em up genre, no doubt about it. Released in arcades in 1989, the game was ported to the SNES the following year, with multiple things missing such as Level 4, an entire character, and no two-player mode. Despite being something of a flawed conversion, the fact that...
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...
