Nintendo R&D1 Game Reviews
Review Wrecking Crew (Wii U eShop / NES)
It's wrecking time!
Mario's claim to fame has often been jumping; a simple skill, but unfailingly entertaining. It can be tough to remember a time when he traded high-flying acrobatics for a hammer and an insatiable appetite for destruction, but that's exactly the case in Wrecking Crew. Smashing things to bits is the straightforward goal, but...
Review Mario Bros. (Wii U eShop / NES)
Definitely not super
If you've ever been curious about Mario and Luigi's actual credibility as plumbers, you'll want to look all the way back to 1983's Mario Bros., the game which established pipe-cleaning as their true vocation and served as something of a bridge between arcade sensation Donkey Kong and early platforming masterpiece Super Mario...
Review Super Metroid (Wii U eShop / SNES)
Superior Metroid
It’s undeniable that 1994 was an extremely memorable year of videogame releases. Sonic 3, Earthworm Jim, Doom II, and the original Donkey Kong Country were just a few of the critically acclaimed games that had us chatting profusely on the playground. However, there was one game in particular that terrified and mesmerized us so...
Review Balloon Fight (3DS eShop / NES)
Balloons don't float forever
In Balloon Fight you manipulate a little fellow who can flutter through the skies thanks to a pair of balloons strapped to his back and vigorous arm flapping. The world is a dangerous place for the intrepid defier of gravity, particularly when it comes to jealous birds — also illogically equipped with balloons — who...
Review Donkey Kong Jr. (Wii U eShop / NES)
Son of a Kong
We recently reported that a Mr. Mike Kasper set the new world record with his high score on an original Donkey Kong Jr. arcade cabinet. Now, all thanks to the recent official Wii U Virtual Console going live, Wii U owners can save their quarters and work on their Donkey Kong Jr. high scores right from the comfort of their own homes in...
Review Ice Climber (Wii U eShop / NES)
Slippery controls are on thin ice
Ice Climber, despite the self-explanatory title, is more complex than a cursory glance would suggest. Popo the parka-toting lad (and identical twin Nana in the multiplayer mode) must scale thirty-two vertically scrolling mountains to rescue a large number of delicious eggplants, using only wits and indestructible...
Review Wrecking Crew (3DS eShop / NES)
I'm gonna wreck it!
It’s common knowledge for most gamers that Mario has been in countless games over the years, in which he has taken on a bevy of different roles and occupations. From race-car driver to boxing referee, Mario has done it all. Curiously enough, just about the only job Mario hasn’t performed in a video game is that of a plumber,...
Review Ice Climber (3DS eShop / NES)
Cold Mountain
What makes a video game a classic? Is it enjoyable gameplay that never feels old? Is it an engaging storyline that draws players into its universe? Or is it simply the inclusion of some characters and stages in the latest Super Smash Bros. title? Ice Climber is the latest “classic” NES game to hit the 3DS Virtual Console, but if it...
Review Balloon Fight (Wii U eShop / NES)
Float on
To mark the arrival of the Virtual Console on the Wii U, Nintendo has launched a very generous promotion to mark the 30th anniversary of the Famicom (the Japanese version of the NES, in case you were wondering). What this promotion entails is the release of seven classic Nintendo games on the Wii U over a period of seven months for the...
Review Wario Land 3 (3DS eShop / GBC)
Warioid
Nintendo loves to experiment with the Wario Land series. The second game diverted from the first in that it was more of a puzzler than a platformer, as Wario was invincible, and the third game continues that trend by offering yet another twist: an almost Metroid-like exploration system. This time, Wario finds a mysterious music box in the...
Review Donkey Kong Jr. (3DS eShop / NES)
Defeat the villainous Mario!
Donkey Kong Jr. was the inevitable sequel to the massively popular arcade smash Donkey Kong. Surprisingly — and rewardingly — it inverted the formula, casting Mario as the villain to be defeated, and Donkey Kong's diaper-clad son as the avenging hero. Is there any wonder Nintendo released this one just in time for...
Review Dr. Mario (3DS eShop / GB)
The doctor’s out
If there’s one thing the 3DS eShop has plenty of, it’s puzzle games. It’s a genre that's always been commonplace on Nintendo handhelds, with Tetris probably the best known example. It’s hardly surprising that Nintendo’s mascot extraordinaire, Mario, invaded Game Boy with his own puzzle title, Dr. Mario. Does it make us...
Review Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters (3DS eShop / GB)
Heavenly
When the original Kid Icarus hit the NES, many gamers weren't sure exactly what to think of it. For starters the game's protagonist was a cute little winged angel (at least we thought so) who ran around shooting tiny arrows at mythological enemies. Of course it didn't help matters that the game was released around the same time Nintendo's...
Review Metroid (3DS eShop / NES)
The classic that inspired so many still holds up today
The NES section of the 3DS's Virtual Console expands by another notch with the addition of Metroid, regarded by many as one of the best entries that amazing series has to offer. The great news is that it's every bit as wonderful as you remember; the bad news is that it's no more interested in...
Review Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 (3DS eShop / GB)
Third time’s a charm?
While Nintendo kept things fairly standard with the first two Super Mario Land releases, it obviously decided to make some changes when it got ready to create this third title in the series on Game Boy. Instead of featuring Mario, it decided to give players a chance to shake things up and take on the role of its newest bad...
Review Kirby's Block Ball (3DS eShop / GB)
Ball breaker
Outside of the popular platformers for which he was first known, Nintendo is always more than happy to take advantage of Kirby’s robust, rotund appearance for spin-offs. In the past the happy little chap has been flipped and lobbed about in Kirby’s Pinball Land and abused with golf clubs in Kirby’s Dream Course. It was never a...
Review Wario Land 4 (3DS eShop / GBA)
A treasure
Wario is pretty good, for a bad guy. To look at him you wouldn’t think he’d have a heroic streak at all; he’s got the squiggly moustache of a pantomime villain and a nose that would put any alcoholic to shame. Despite all this he’s secretly a sweetheart: considering that the rotund treasure hunter started life as an antagonist to...
Review Metroid Fusion (3DS eShop / GBA)
Like cold fusion, only cooler
Metroid Fusion slipped out of the airlock between two behemoths, simultaneously having to live up to the legacy of its predecessor Super Metroid, which is a big Power Suit to fill, and keep the advancing Metroid Prime at arm cannon's length. It would have been easy for Fusion to have become lost in the vacuum created by...
Review Metroid II: Return of Samus (3DS eShop / GB)
Exploring colourless lands
When Metroid was first released it was a unique game: with a lot of exploring to do across a giant map and with plenty of hidden items and paths, those willing to spend the time to find everything were well rewarded. The original title has aged fairly poorly though — the game lacks many things we take for granted...
Review Balloon Kid (3DS eShop / GB)
Somewhat deflated
Balloon Kid is the Game Boy sequel to the NES original Balloon Fight. That game is remembered by some as a stone-cold classic of addictive action, and by others as a pointless, repetitive chore. In our Balloon Fight review we fell somewhere in the middle. And so it's quite fitting that we also find ourselves there for the sequel...
Review Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (3DS eShop / GB)
Monochrome Mario is back in style
Nintendo managed to squeeze quite a bit of the Super Mario experience into the original Super Mario Land, but many gamers felt like the game was a bit too scaled down to feel like a true adventure from the series. Nintendo obviously sensed this when they sat down to create Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, as this...
Review Game & Watch Gallery (3DS eShop / GB)
More than a fresh coat of paint
Most fans of the Game & Watch series likely enjoy it for its simplicity. The nature of the original devices meant that certain allowances had to be made for the primitive visuals, sounds and rigid controls. All three of these things are charming in their own right, but what really made people fall in love was the...
Review Baseball (3DS eShop / GB)
The Babe Ruth of bad games
Hey, kids! How would you like to revisit a game from the Game Boy's early years that wasn't very good to begin with and, in addition, has aged horribly? Sounds exciting, we know, but it gets better: the only marginally redeeming feature of the game – the ability to play it with your friends – has been disabled,...
Review Radar Mission (3DS eShop / GB)
Sonar, so good?
Miyamoto's latest pet-project, Steel Diver, released to mixed critical reception; some found its slow-paced, strategic gameplay fun and refreshing, while others found it...well, boring. Suffice it to say that if you fall into the latter camp, you likely won't get a whole lot of enjoyment out of Nintendo's 1990 Gameboy title, Radar...
Review Tennis (3DS eShop / GB)
8-bit balls
Remember Tennis on the NES? Well, it's back, and this time it's in portable format! The Game Boy version of Tennis is pretty much a remake of the NES game: it's got the same extremely basic setup, but it has been polished it up slightly. Just like with its predecessor, there's not really much on offer here aside from essentially playing...
Review Alleyway (3DS eShop / GB)
The poor man's Arkanoid
The most well-known block-breaking game, Arkanoid, became quite popular after its release in arcades in 1986. Many companies have created clones, and even to this day new low-budget ones show up all the time. Even Nintendo tried their hand at a clone with Alleyway for the Game Boy. Alleyway keeps things to the bare basics. No...
Review Super Mario Land (3DS eShop / GB)
Mario's first Game Boy adventure is short, but sweet.
Given the popularity of the Super Mario Bros. series at the time of the Game Boy's release, it came as no real surprise that Nintendo would release a Super Mario title for its brand new portable game system. Now the 3DS eShop is available, it makes just as much sense for Super Mario Land to be...
Review Mario Clash (Virtual Boy)
Is this overlooked title worthy of a second chance?
Many reasons have been given for why the Virtual Boy failed so badly when it was released in the mid '90s. One of the more convincing arguments is that the lack of a 'proper' Mario game meant that hardcore Nintendo fans ignored the console; while it's hard to accept that this is the only reason, it...
Review Teleroboxer (Virtual Boy)
Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots
Teleroboxer is a boxing game that puts you in control of a giant fighting machine as you face a series of weird and wonderful opponents in a bid to become the champion. The game uses a first person perspective with your fists visible on screen. The left d-pad and L control your left fist and the right d-pad and R control...
Review Virtual Boy Wario Land (Virtual Boy)
The Virtual Boy's best game?
It's hard to talk about the Virtual Boy without mentioning Virtual Boy Wario Land; the ill-fated system only experienced 22 games throughout its short lifespan and this lack of software has resulted in some VB games getting a better reputation than they deserve purely because there's so little else to play on the...
