Nintendo EAD Game Reviews
Review F-Zero (Wii U eShop / SNES)
The race of a lifetime
Looking at it today, it’s genuinely hard to believe that F-Zero was a SNES launch title. For a game that is now over two decades old, it remains remarkably impressive from a purely visual standpoint. The Mode 7 rotational and scaling effects — which were relatively new to console players back in 1990 — still look...
Review Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels (3DS eShop / NES)
Lost levels = lost sanity
It's a story so well known now that we'll just summarise it for you: what is now known as Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels was actually released in Japan as the sequel to enduring classic Super Mario Bros. Western gamers instead received the subconscious vegetable buffet that we more traditionally think of as Super Mario...
This Land is your land
Nintendo Land has a lot to live up to. Not only does its name invoke a fantastic, imaginary kingdom many of us would happily sail to sight-unseen, it's also the game poised to provide proof of the Wii U's concept, as Wii Sports did for the Wii back in 2006. And like Wii Sports before it, if you've picked up a Deluxe Wii U it's...
Review New Super Mario Bros. U (Wii U)
High definition hijinks
New Super Mario Bros. U marks the first time that a brand new Mario game has accompanied a Nintendo hardware launch since the days of the N64, and consequently places an inordinate amount of pressure and expectation on its high-definition shoulders. It’s perhaps not what hardcore fans wanted; following so closely on the...
Review Zelda II: The Adventure of Link (3DS eShop / NES)
The underdog of the Zelda series returns
Back in the early days of several franchises, the second game in a series tended to be radically different from the first, because developers had not quite pinned down what they wanted the series to become - take a look at Castlevania II or the western Super Mario Bros. 2 for example. Zelda II is another big...
Review New Super Mario Bros. 2 (3DS)
Going for gold
At the time of writing, the 2012 London Olympics are in full swing. A global expression of unparalleled sporting excellence, the Games feature hordes of top-class athletes attempting to grab gold glory by taking part in events which are steeped in history and tradition; ultimately, the objective isn’t to be innovative in your...
Review Mole Mania (3DS eShop / GB)
Dig in
Poor Muddy Mole has returned home to find his family kidnapped by the evil farmer Jinbe. That's the entire plot, and we're happy about that. After all, Mole Mania isn't about storytelling; it's about a massive gauntlet of clever puzzles, and that's exactly why we like it. Divided into eight very large levels, Muddy's adventure finds him...
Review The Legend of Zelda (3DS eShop / NES)
Rough around the edges, but an unforgettable adventure
When The Legend of Zelda was released in 1986, it was at least as much an eye-opening experience for gamers as Super Mario Bros. had been. Whereas that game expanded and solidified the left-to-right nature of platformers for generations to come, The Legend of Zelda opened sprawling worlds before...
Review Super Mario Bros. (3DS eShop / NES)
Yet another way to experience a masterpiece
Mario. Say it loud and there's music playing. Say it soft, and it's almost like praying. Super Mario Bros. was, is, and will always be one of gaming's great masterpieces, and its availability on any additional format is a good thing. Now it's come to the 3DS Virtual Console, and we couldn't be happier. For...
Seventh heaven
It's hard to believe that it's been almost two decades since Nintendo first unleashed the original Super Mario Kart on gamers back in 1992. Since then, we've seen a Mario Kart release on just about every game system Nintendo has released. Mario Kart 7 marks the debut of the series on Nintendo 3DS and while there are a host of new...
Review The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
A legend redefined
In a way The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword has very little riding on it: the Wii has already enjoyed huge success, with a library of critically acclaimed Nintendo games selling millions around the world. Its motion controls — dubbed a 'revolution' back in 2005 — have arguably inspired competitor formats to adopt their own...
Review Super Mario 3D Land (3DS)
Tanooki time
Super Mario has been a staple of Nintendo systems since the original NES over 26 years ago, and while the series has evolved to a great degree over time, one immutable fact remains: Mario games sell systems. That's why it comes as no real surprise that the plumber's first foray onto 3DS has been about as hyped as any game in recent...
Too little, too late
What do Arzest, ChunSoft, Good-Feel Co, Mitchell Corporation, Prope, Skip Ltd, Vanpool, NdCUBE and Nintendo have in common? They all worked as developers on Wii Play: Motion, which acts as a companion to the Wii Remote Plus. It also serves as a sequel to Wii Play, a compilation largely criticised for its mediocre mix of...
Review The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX (3DS eShop / GBC)
A Game Boy classic
You wake up on an island; your boat shattered, your sword swept away by the storm that caused the crash. And at first, it almost doesn't seem like a bad thing. The islanders are kind enough (one girl in particular has caught your eye) and Mabe Village is one of the cozier little towns you've visited. The cozy feeling doesn't last...
Review Super Mario All-Stars 25th Anniversary Edition (Wii)
With exclusive bonus item: Dissatisfaction
Nintendo has a lot to be proud of. Its heritage and stature in the video game industry is unrivalled, and the firm has presided over some truly significant moments in the relatively short lifespan of the medium. It goes without saying that the video gaming landscape would be near-unrecognisable were it not...
Review Super Mario Galaxy 2 (Wii)
Absolutely spectacular!
Where do you begin when talking about the Super Mario franchise and what it's brought to video gaming over the years? The series has single-handedly defined Nintendo and its consoles over the past 25 years and is showing no signs of slowing down at this point. The original Super Mario Galaxy introduced so many new gameplay...
Review Super Mario Sunshine (GCN)
Water, water everywhere so let's all have a drink!
Mario made his 3D platforming debut on the N64 way back in 1996 in one of the greatest and most influential pieces of gaming ever. Fast forward the clock six years and you'll find Nintendo's attempt to beat the near unbeatable in Mario's next adventure, but in order to top its predecessor a hefty...
A modern masterpiece, marred
When the GameBoy Advance launched back in 2002, it landed with a port of Super Mario Bros. 2, not exactly the most fondly-remembered of plumber outings but one that still hit the mark by fitting the platform to a tee. Come 2005, Nintendo hit on the idea of launching the DS with a revamped Super Mario 64, showing off all...
Review The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (DS)
On the right track or running out of steam?
Link's last outing, 2007's Phantom Hourglass, was a piece of portable paradise, showcasing all the DS's features with some wildly imaginative puzzles and unforgettable moments, and still remains one of the console's best titles. The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks takes all that was good about Phantom...
Review Stunt Race FX (Super Nintendo)
Racing: Super FX style!
In 1993 the Super FX-enhanced Star Fox brought 3D visuals to the SNES with great effect, so it was a no-brainer that further games would follow. The second game to use the wonder chip came a year later in the form of Stunt Race FX, a cutesy 3D racer from Nintendo that featured a variety of tracks with slopes and bumps across...
Review Super Mario Kart (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)
Back to the good old days before the blue shell from hell
Less than a year after the Super Nintendo was launched, our pals at Nintendo had the bright idea of taking the Super Mario World universe and squeezing it into a kart-racing game. It sounded like a crazy idea at the time, but they managed to pull it off with style and create an almost...
Review New Super Mario Bros. Wii (Wii)
The Super Mario Bros. experience long-time fans have been waiting for
Nintendo has been making Super Mario Bros. games for as long as they've been making game consoles, and after the mammoth success of New Super Mario Bros. on DS, it comes as no real surprise to see them continuing that tradition on the Wii. And while Nintendo have made it clear...
A worthwhile upgrade or just Nintendo milking its new cash cow?
Wii Fit's runaway success seemed to take even Nintendo by surprise given the number of times Satoru Iwata has publicly stated he never thought he could sell millions of bathroom scales as a new kind of fitness product. It's probably not much of a surprise to see them testing whether not...
A bit of a mental lightweight
There's something intrinsically addictive about the whole genre of 'brain training' games. Implicitly we all want to better ourselves to a greater or lesser degree. By being told just how much a success or a failure we are at intelligence-related tests, there is definitely a major hook in this whole genre of games that...
Review Star Fox (Super Nintendo)
Pretty Foxy stuff...
In 1993 the Mega Drive / Genesis was selling well and 2D was the bread and butter of console gaming. "Emergency, emergency… emergency, emergency! Incoming fighters prepare for launch", hailed the 16-bit Nintendo counter attack. For Sega and NEC it was too late: the swooping Nintendo Arwing squadron hammered the early ‘90s...
Review Pilotwings (Wii Virtual Console / Super Nintendo)
Soar like an eagle
Sometimes games deserve second chances. Let us tell you a story... A long time ago in a television studio far, far away, a member of our team took part in an episode of Games World, Hewland's Gamesmaster clone shown on Sky 1 in the UK. Everything was going great until the semi-final, when the skydiving stage from Pilotwings came...
Review The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Game Boy)
A treasured classic and the absolute pinnacle of Game Boy gaming.
There were initially some concerns that the gameplay experiences on the Game Boy system might end up being a bit too shallow. Fortunately, that notion was put to rest early on with some of the outstanding releases for the system. Of course no title would shatter that misconception...
Review Flipnote Studio (DSiWare)
A DSiWare application that you'll definitely flip over!
It's no secret that Flipnote Studio has been one of the most anticipated DSiWare releases to date. The application has been described as like having your own portable animation studio right in the palm of your hands. Not only can you draw sketches and import photos, but you can then use the...
Review Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Super Nintendo)
Perhaps the greatest platformer of all-time.
When remembering the great games of the past, our thoughts tend to drift towards the revolutionary titles; the literal game-changers. And any gamer worth a darn knows that the indisputable king of these wonderful permutations is Shigeru Miyamoto. The man's M.O. is completely altering the landscape of...
Review Wii Sports Resort (Wii)
Is Wii Sports Resort the worthy sequel fans of the original have been waiting for?
When Nintendo needed a showpiece for the unique motion control system of their upcoming Wii console, their developers came up with the original Wii Sports title that was eventually packed in with the system. Needless to say, it's become one of the most beloved titles...
