Tag: Anniversaries - Page 10
Anniversary Super Mario Maker Turns 5 Years Old Today
Mamma mia!
The original Super Mario Maker is celebrating its fifth anniversary today, after originally launching for the Wii U in Japan on 10th September, 2015. Also appearing in Europe and North America on the following day, Super Mario Maker flipped the Mario platforming franchise on its head by giving players access to a full suite of level...
Finally!
After months of rumour and speculation, Nintendo has finally lifted the lid what must be the gaming industry's worst-kept secret of 2020: Super Mario's 3D adventures from the Nintendo 64, GameCube and Wii are coming to Switch in the form of Super Mario 3D All-Star
Feature Rare Turns 35 This Week - We Pick 10 Highlights From The Nintendo Years
Rare talent
Three-and-a-half decades ago this week, British developer Rare was formed. Formerly known as Ultimate Play the Game, the company was created with the express purpose of creating titles for the Nintendo Entertainment System and from the mid-1980s until the early '00s the Twycross-based team would deliver some of the finest video games on...
Soapbox 25 Years On, I Still Can't Get Into Yoshi's Island
And it's not for want of trying
On the 25th anniversary of its Japanese release, Gavin ponders why he just can't get down with one of Nintendo's most celebrated games of the 16-bit era... There's a strata of gaming classics so renowned for their quality that they become untouchable. Not liking, say, Ocarina of Time is cause for some serious...
News Nintendo Celebrates Splatoon 2's Third Anniversary With Special Art
Woomy!
Believe it or not, Splatoon 2 first launched on Nintendo Switch three years ago today on 21st July, 2017. It was a super exciting time for Nintendo fans, with a new Zelda, a (kind of) new Mario Kart and a new Splatoon game all launching within the first few months of the Switch going on sale. Naturally, Breath of the Wild took most of the...
Anniversary Pokémon Yellow Launched In Europe 20 Years Ago Today
16th June, 2000
In danger of making plenty of you - and us, we might add - feel dangerously old, today marks the 20th anniversary of Pokémon Yellow's European launch. The game celebrated its 'proper' 20th anniversary a couple of years ago, thanks to its original Japanese launch date of 12th, September 1998. Those of us in Europe had to wait a...
Anniversary EarthBound Turns 25 In The USA, And A Whole Generation Feels Old
Mother!
As time continues to march on relentlessly, it's time for another significant video game anniversary - and today's is a particularly nostalgic one. It's 25 years to the day since Shigesato Itoi's lovely EarthBound first arrived on US shores and gamers in the West got to take on Giygas with Ness and his band of young heroes on the SNES. They...
News Splatoon Players Celebrate The Series' Fifth Anniversary With Lovely Fan Art
Stay fresh!
Five years ago (well, five years and a day ago, actually) the original Splatoon inked its way onto the Wii U. It was an exciting and fresh take on the online shooter and a completely new venture for Nintendo - and boy are we happy that it was released. Splatoon and its sequel, Splatoon 2, have arguably been two of the most important...
News CD Projekt Red Celebrates 5 Years Of Witcher 3 With A Rocking Rendition Of Its Main Theme
The Switch port has some catching up to do
It feels strange to say, but The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt turned five-years-old today. No, we can't quite believe it either, and not just because it only came to a Nintendo console last year. We're still poking around its incredible world over six months on from the remarkable Switch port, but to think that...
Which racing series would you most like to ride again?
In this Soapbox feature, Gavin reminisces about the old days when Nintendo made multiple racing games... Earlier this week was the 20th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, but there's another Nintendo 64 game that debuted exactly two decades ago, albeit on the other side of the...
News Sega Celebrates 60th Anniversary With New Website, New Character And "Special Content" Tease
Exciting times ahead
Originally founded back in June 1960, Sega is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year. To kick things off, the company has opened up a brand new website, along with the reveal of a brand new promotional character. We don't know which fact makes us feel more old - that Sega has been around for so long or that 1960 was 60...
Talking Point Nintendo Switch Turns 3: Challenges Await, But What A Ride So Far
Switch is maturing like a fine wine
It's a cliché that the latest thing is often branded the greatest thing, but when it comes to video games it's a difficult notion to escape. Every piece of software and hardware builds on the foundation of what came before and, more so than in any other medium, a sequel or successor stands a very good chance of...
News WayForward Celebrates Its 30th Anniversary, Thanks Fans For Their Support
How time flies
WayForward, the independent developer and publisher perhaps best known for its very own Shantae series, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. The exact anniversary date actually came just yesterday, and the company has shared a celebratory piece of artwork. In recent times, WayForward has treated us to games like Vitamin...
News HAL Laboratory Celebrates 40th Anniversary With New Website And Artwork
(>'-')> <('-'<) ^('-')^ v('-')v
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the creation of HAL Laboratory, a Japanese game development studio which has been closely affiliated with Nintendo for decades. The exact date for the 40th anniversary was actually just three days ago; originally founded on 21st February 1980, the studio is perhaps best known...
Anniversary Super Smash Bros. Turns 21 Today
And look how far it's come!
On 21st January 1999, the original Super Smash Bros. was released for the Nintendo 64 in Japan. Over the last 21 years, Smash has become one of the most celebrated, adored, and hype-inducing series available on Nintendo's platforms. The character selection screen in Super Smash Bros. with all characters unlocked...
Feature Nintendo's 130th Birthday Comes During A Golden Age For The Company
A look at Nintendo’s changing fortunes over the last few years
T'was Monday 23rd September in the year 1889 - a fateful day in Kyoto, Japan - when Ian Nintendo woke up and decided to form a video game company... Okay, there may be a couple of minor discrepancies in that opening statement, although the date and the founding of the company we now...
Anniversary amiibo Have Been Draining Our Bank Accounts For Five Years Now
2014 feels forever ago
It might be pretty hard to believe, but it has now been five whole years since we first got our hands on Nintendo's amiibo figures. Today sees the fifth anniversary of the launch for the first wave of figures in Japan, where characters like Link, Kirby, Donkey Kong, Star Fox, Pikachu, Mario and more all entered the scene as...
Anniversary Feel Old Everyone, Donkey Kong Country Turns 25 Today
And the birthdays keep on comin'!
Hmm. It's almost like video games themselves are conspiring to make us feel our age recently. Earlier this week Super Smash Bros. turned 20 in the PAL region, and today we posted about Pokémon Gold and Silver re
Anniversary It's Been 20 Years Since We First Glimpsed Johto In Pokémon Gold And Silver
Two decades of Gen II
November has historically been a busy month for big video game releases as companies look to get their marquee titles on shop shelves in the run-up to the holidays. Earlier this week the European version of Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 64 celebrated its 20th anniversary and today its the turn of Pokémon Gold and Silver to...
Anniversary Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo 64 Is Now 20 Years Old In Europe
Smashin' it mate
It's time for the birthday bumps! Yes, with time moving irrevocably and irritatingly forward, the original Super Smash Bros. turned 20 today - or a version of it did. Having had its Japanese launch in January 1999 and its North American debut in April, Europe finally received the N64 crossover brawler on 19th November exactly two...
News Pac-Man Turns 40 Next Year And Bandai Namco Plans To Celebrate In Style
Starting off with a theme song
Believe it or not, next year will see the 40th anniversary of gaming classic Pac-Man, and Bandai Namco is planning a year-long series of celebrations in honour of the ravenous yellow blob. Pac-Man first appeared on the scene on 22nd May 1980, rising to fame as an arcade star before shifting to games consoles, mobile...
Anniversary The Game Boy Color Turns 21 Today
They grow up so fast
Nintendo's Game Boy Color was first released in Japan 21 years ago today on 21st October 1998. A successor to the original beast that was the Game Boy, the Game Boy Color unsurprisingly featured a colour screen, giving Nintendo's handheld games a whole new lease of life. While we sadly don't have exact figures for each of the...
News Happy 130th Birthday, Nintendo!
Time flies when you're creating fun!
Today, Nintendo celebrates its 130th anniversary. The Japanese gaming giant was founded on 23rd September 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, when it originally served as a hanafuda playing card company. A fair few among you reading this will likely know the story already, but let us take a very brief trip down memory...
Anniversary The Original Super Mario Bros. Launched On NES 34 Years Ago Today
Feeling old yet?
The original Super Mario Bros., one of the most celebrated and adored video games in history, was first released 34 years ago today, on 13th September 1985. It was on this day that the game launched for Nintendo's Famicom console in Japan, a system which would soon go on to release as the NES or 'Nintendo Entertainment System'...
Feature 20 Dreamcast Games We'd Love To See On Nintendo Switch
20 games to mark 20 years
The Dreamcast turns 20 in North America today - yes, 9/9/99 was now two decades ago - and in honour of the occasion we're republishing this article from last November when the console reached the same milestone in its homeland. Enjoy! The Sega Dreamcast turns 20 today – it launched on November 27th, 1998 in Japan – and...
Anniversary Game Boy Turns 30 Years Old In North America
Three decades of playing with portable power
Back in April we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the one handheld to rule them all - the humble Nintendo Game Boy. We ran a series of features on the all-conquering lump of grey plastic and had fun reminiscing about green screens, AA batteries and some incredible games. Well, that was in celebration...
Anniversary Pokémon GO Turns Three Years Old Today
Time flies when you're walking literally everywhere
Three years ago today, Niantic and The Pokémon Company changed the world of mobile gaming by introducing the augmented reality-focused Pokémon GO. On 6th July 2016, the app released in the US, Australia and New Zealand. Technical difficulties which came as a result of higher-than-expected early...
Anniversary Minecraft Turns 10 Years Old Today, New Pokémon GO-Like Mobile Game Revealed
Where has the time gone?
Today, the global phenomenon that is Minecraft is celebrating its 10th anniversary and we dread to think how many blocks have been lovingly crafted in that time around the world. On 17th May 2009, Minecraft saw its first public release. The build wasn't quite the same as the beast players enjoy today, but it steadily grew...
Anniversary Nintendo 3DS Launched 8 Years Ago Today In Europe
And what an eight years it's been
Eight years ago today, on 25th March 2011, the Nintendo 3DS was released in Europe. Just two days later it arrived in North America, too, with Australia following suit on 31st March of the same year. We still vividly remember picking up our 3DS consoles for the first time, excitedly watching things popping out of...
Anniversary Pokémon Snap Turns 20 Years Old Today
And we still don't have a sequel
Twenty years ago today, on 21st March 1999, Pokémon Snap was first released in Japan. A Nintendo 64 exclusive, Pokémon Snap follows the adventures of Todd Snap, a Pokémon photographer who is tasked with taking perfect shots of the adorable critters and showing them to Professor Oak for inspection. It features 63...
Anniversary Nintendo Switch Launched Two Years Ago Today
Happy birthday!
Two years ago today, the Nintendo Switch was first released into the world. And what a ride it's been so far. Yes, 3rd March 2017 saw Nintendo's latest console hit store shelves, a home-handheld hybrid launching alongside games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Snipperclips, Just Dance 2017, Fast RMX, and more.
News The Sega Mega Drive Turns 30 Today
Three decades of doing what Nintendon't
30 years ago today, Sega launched what would turn out to be its most successful piece of home gaming hardware, the Mega Drive (Genesis if you're in North America). It was pushed onto Japanese store shelves on October 29th, 1988, alongside Space Harrier II and Super Thunder Blade. The system got off to a slow...
Anniversary Super Mario Bros. 3 Turns 30 Years Old Today
Feel old yet?
Thirty years ago today, on 23rd October 1988, Super Mario Bros. 3 launched in Japan. Following the traditions already put in place by previous Mario games, Super Mario Bros. 3 had players controlling either Mario or Luigi as they went on a quest to save Princess Toadstool from the dastardly claws of Bowser. There were enemies to stomp...
Anniversary Retro Studios Celebrates 20 Years In Gaming
Now let's have some Switch games, please
We imagine Retro Studios is one company that needs absolutely no introduction on these pages, but we're about to provide one anyway as the developer is today celebrating 20 years in the world of gaming. Yes, back in 1998, Retro Studios was born as a game development studio with Nintendo acting as a parent...
Anniversary Pokémon Yellow Turns 20 Years Old Today
Oh, the memories
Twenty years ago today, on 12th September 1998, Pokémon Yellow launched in Japan. Technically called 'Pokémon Yellow Version: Special Pikachu Edition', this game arrived on the Game Boy Color as an enhanced version of Pokémon Red and Green (known in the west as Pokémon Red and Blue). While many features of the game were...
Video Every Single Switch Game Released in Year One
No game left behind
The Switch, as it stands, is an unmitigated success both commercially and critically. Developers are flocking to release their games on the system as soon as they can, but just how many games have been released in the first year of this console's life? Short answer, 404 in Western territories. That's over 100 more than the N64...
Feature Nintendo Switch Year One: A Review
As Switch turns one, we look back at an incredible year
The Nintendo Switch, eh? Inaugural years don’t come much better than this. Not since the debut year of PlayStation 4 has a modern console enjoyed such a meteoric rise on all fronts. Ever increasing sales; exclusives that are both critical and commercial successes; the new wave of...
Anniversary It's Been 25 Years Since Star Fox Barrel Rolled Onto Super Nintendo
"Doesn't time FLY when you're having fun making games!"
Good old Dylan Cuthbert. He's gone on to bring so many video game delights to the world with Q-Games, but whenever he gets a chance to tweet about the original Super Nintendo Star Fox - a game he was the lead coder of - he jumps on it. It's hard to believe it's been a quarter...
Video The First 30 Years of Mega Man
You can’t stop the rock!
17th December is a big day for Capcom, as one of its top series and characters - Mega Man - celebrates its 30th birthday! The company started the party a bit early by announcing Mega Man 11, coming next year! But, it all began thirty years ago, when Capcom put forth a plan to create its first non-arcade port for the...
Anniversary The Super Famicom Is Now 27 Years Old
It's got a mortgage and two kids as well
To many retro gamers it doesn't get much better than the Super Nintendo, otherwise known as the Super Famicom in its native Japan. This year Nintendo celebrated this 16-bit wonder with the release of the SNES Classic Mini, which was a timely reminder of how great the console was. It was on this console that...
Anniversary It's Been 10 Years Since Super Mario Galaxy Landed On The Wii
But do you prefer it to Super Mario Odyssey?
Time flies when you're having fun, and we're certainly having a lot of fun with the recently released Super Mario Odyssey on Switch. Of course, it is unlikely that we would have had the delights of Odyssey without the groundwork laid out before in Super Mario Galaxy which - funnily enough -...
Anniversary It's One Year Since Nintendo Showed Us The Switch
NX level stuff
Incredibly, it's now one year since Nintendo lifted the lid on the Switch - and Nintendo Karen. Leaked many months ahead of the official reveal, the hybrid nature of the Switch - then known as "NX" - left some unconvinced. Even the announcement video itself - which focused on the system's ability to t
News Nicalis Unveils Snazzy Website to Celebrate Its 10 Year Anniversary
Promises "some very cool announcements" in the coming months
Nicalis was a familiar name to Nintendo gamers in the Wii, Wii U and 3DS eras, but it's risen to prominence in the short lifespan of the Switch. It's been active in bringing out budget retail titles in particular, with the physical editions for the likes of Cave Story+ and The Binding of...
Video Celebrate Kirby's 25th Anniversary With This Special Trailer
Including a reminder of the 2018 Switch release
As we've seen over recent weeks with themed discounts and promotions, Nintendo's been celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Kirby. Nintendo of Europe, for its part, has now published a rather nice trailer celebrating the landmark. It works through 25 years of Kirby games, ending with a few snippets of...
News Nintendo's Been In The Video Game Business For 40 Years This Month
Humble beginnings
Time flies when you're having fun, and it's crazy to think that it's been 40 years since Nintendo started making video games. It feels like there is a anniversary for something every other day at the moment, but this is a big one. According to Nintendo's own records, the Color TV Game 6 and Color TV Game 15 in July 1977 in Japan...
News Congratulations Nintendo 64, You're A Proper Grown-Up Now
The classic system turns 21 today
It's a day of anniversaries today it seems, not only does Sonic The Hedgehog turn 26, but it is also a whopping 21 years since the Nintendo 64 was released in its native territory of Japan. Launched on 23rd June 1996, the N64 served as a landmark moment in Nintendo's history as a video game manufacturer, mainly...
News Sonic The Hedgehog Turns 26 Today
Happy Birthday, Blue Blur
Sonic the Hedgehog made his Mega Drive debut 26 years ago today. On June 23rd 1991, Sega's answer to Super Mario arrived on North American store shelves, with the Japanese and European releases following in July. With its incredible visuals and astonishing speed, the game was hailed as an instant classic, and went on to...
News The 3DS is Six Years Old in the Americas, How Time Flies
It's still going, too
There was a period, in the Summer of 2011, when 'Nintendoomed' was a theme as plummeting sales for the 3DS were interpreted as the end times. As always there was a lot of exaggeration, but there were valid problems too. At the time the Wii was losing steam, and following the phenomenal success of the DS family of systems the...
News The Nintendo 64 Is 20 Years Old Today In Europe And Australia
That's right, you're old
Here's another anniversary to make you feel older - the much-loved Nintendo 64 is celebrating its 20th birthday today in Europe and Australia. Released in June 1996 in Japan and September 1996 in North America, eager Euro gamers would have to exercise patience once again as the N64 launched on 1st March, 1997 in Europe...
Video Happy Birthday Pit! - The 30th Anniversary of Kid Icarus
Another NES classic marks three decades
Mark your calendars, because on Monday, 19th December, another classic NES game has an anniversary. In 2016 there have been a long list of games that turned 30, including the likes of The Legend of Zelda, Dragon Quest and
