Tag: Talking Point - Page 22

  • Talking Point The Realities of Wii U System Memory Have Become Clear

    The fridge will fill up quickly

    Today's unexpected Japanese Nintendo Direct broadcast gave us various details to frantically decipher and translate, ranging from confirmation that the Wii U GamePad won't have backward compatibility with WiiWare or Wii Virtual Console games, to some less intriguing information about parental controls. Another section...

  • Talking Point Life Without Wii U Achievements

    Nintendo sticks to its guns

    Nintendo isn't at all keen on mandatory, system-integrated achievements or trophies. The idea was ignored for Wii, while gamers with an Xbox 360 got used to notifications re-affirming their awesomeness for acts as simple as starting a new game, with their Gamerscore continually getting bigger with each accomplishment...

  • Reaction Wii U's Social Potential Takes Shape

    A bold new direction for Nintendo

    With just 11 days until Wii U arrives in North America — at the time of writing — it's perhaps surprising that substantial details on Nintendo's online services have taken so long to emerge. That said, it's not unprecedented, as Nintendo often likes to keep its cards close to its chest, withholding details and...

  • Talking Point Wii U and the Importance of Backward Compatibility

    Long live the Wii

    In future years, maybe even in a matter of weeks, there's likely to be plenty written about Wii and its lifespan, with judgements made on its strengths and weaknesses. The list of negatives is fairly predictable: it was underpowered, with motion controls that brought an unrelenting wave of sub-par games, it struggled for major...

  • Talking Point Games That Need Wii U - World of Warcraft

    Or maybe this one's a game that Wii U needs?

    We’ve highlighted the importance of having well-established franchises on Wii U. We’ve also indicated how vital it is for Wii U to be open to new ideas and intellectual properties. This time, we’re saying that in order for Wii U to keep in-line with the competition, exceed it in fact, then it needs...

  • Talking Point The Challenges When Writing About Games

    Harder than it sounds

    Various members of the Nintendo Life writing team will have seen one major issue clogging up their Twitter timelines in the past 24 hours, and it revolved around questions at the forefront of what we do: writing about video games. Video game writers often debate the whole practice of what you see on this site and many others,...

  • Talking Point Affordable Consoles Come at a Cost

    There are no easy answers

    Earlier this week we reported on the news that Foxconn, manufacturer for many of the world’s biggest technology companies, employed under-age interns to work on Wii U manufacturing. Foxconn admitted that it had employed 14-16 year old school attendees and stated that it had “apologized to each of the students for our...

  • Talking Point Games That Need Wii U - Dishonored

    Choose how you play

    Wii U owners will know what it means to be an assassin after Ubisoft introduces us to Connor in Assassin’s Creed III later this year. However, while this native American is more adept with Tomahawks and muskets, Arkane Studios has other plans. Doing his work in a Steampunk inspired Victorian London, this particular assassin...

  • Talking Point Games That Need Wii U - Resident Evil 6

    A much needed second chance

    As great as Nintendo’s first-party efforts are, Wii U is going to have a reliance on its third-party support. Nintendo certainly recognises that and has already drawn franchises like FIFA, Call of Duty, Mass Effect and Assassin’s Creed to its cause. However, as encouraging as that is, it’s still not enough. The...

  • Talking Point Nintendo Takes One Step Forward, One Back With Retail Downloads

    It's not quite right, yet

    During last week's Nintendo Direct broadcast in Europe, one eShop announcement that received relatively little fanfare was confirmation that a number of additional first-party titles were being made available on the platform. These titles stretch back to the earliest months of the system: now available on the European eShop...

  • Talking Point Nintendo's Focus on the 3DS eShop

    Gaming on a budget

    This week’s European Nintendo Direct prompted the usual range of predictions before the event, ranging from optimistic but unlikely hopes to pessimism and predictability. What Nintendo of Europe boss Satoru Shibata gave us, surprisingly, was a broadcast heavy with eShop exclusives, some new and surprising and others with...

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue Seven

    It's back

    Earlier this week, in a peculiar moment of a united group consciousness, the Nintendo Life team exclaimed as one: "hey, what happened to the weekend gaming features?" What did happen? Nintendo and video games happened, with enough Wii U madness — including a little bit of 3DS — and expos to distract us from our fortnightly duties of...

  • Talking Point The Possibilities of New Super Mario Bros. 2 DLC

    More Mario per system

    We’re well aware that some of you may read the headline and tagline for this article and immediately think that we’re losing our minds, foolishly allowing ourselves to be suckered into paying more and more for our Mario fix. That’s a danger of course, which we’ll come to, but with this week’s first batch of New Super...

  • Talking Point Five Reasons to Buy a Wii U

    If you need them

    We don't always say why we write certain features, or what prompts them, but in this case we'll make an exception. As anyone based in the UK is likely to already know, tabloid newspaper The Sun published a list of five reasons not to buy a Wii U. Of course it's perfectly reasonable to go that way when weighing up the pros and cons...

  • Talking Point Are Wii U Games Going To Be Too Expensive?

    At $60 a pop, can the Wii U really provide value for money?

    In an age where many gamers are getting their entertainment for free via either 'freemium' smartphone titles or free-to-play web services, it should hardly be a massive shock to learn that there are some individuals out there that believe big-budget home console releases are a dying breed;...

  • Talking Point The Future of Professor Layton

    A puzzle yet to be solved

    Thanks to its unique control interface and dual-screens, the DS generation has paved the way for some of the most diverse games ever committed to cartridge, perhaps none more so than the Professor Layton series. Ask a number of people ten years ago whether they would be interested in playing a game that tasks you with...

  • Talking Point The Importance of the Wii U Press Event

    Battle for the limelight

    This Thursday’s Wii U press event is a big deal for Nintendo. Well, let’s assume it is, as a loose teaser for future reveals may cause too much fan anguish to control: we’re talking mass hysteria and riots on the streets. Joking aside, we’re 99% confident that Nintendo’s going to hit us with at least two big pieces...

  • Talking Point Wii U and the Next Generation of Consoles

    Getting there first

    Wii U is getting ever closer, with a press conference scheduled for this week that’s expected to include details such as the system's price and a launch date. It’s possible to argue that Nintendo has been playing it too slowly in terms of building hype for Wii U, but that’s the company’s style in recent years when...

  • Talking Point Miiverse and Social Networking

    Bringing gamers together

    In the past week, two particular news items and events have made us think about the future role of Miiverse on Wii U, and why it could be vitally important to the system. On the one hand, Satoru Iwata spoke to Kotaku to explain that Miiverse will be a ”social graph” for gamers, highlighting that the service will aim to...

  • Talking Point The Rules for Violence in Video Games

    Are there rules?

    Just yesterday we reported that Outdoors Unleashed: Africa 3D arrives in the North American eShop this week, an arcade shooter where the targets are assorted wildlife from the plains of the African continent. We also wrote the following: While your opinions on the merits of game hunting in Africa undoubtedly vary, we're slightly...

  • Talking Point Challenges for the Future of Nintendo Gaming

    Evolving with the industry

    Recently we attended the Turing technology festival in Edinburgh, and in particular an event called Gaming@Turing. You know why we attended that one, of course. The focus of the event was to look at the future of gaming from a number of different perspectives, put forward by five experienced speakers from within the...

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue Six

    It's all golden

    Despite initially calling this issue number five in this series, when it's clearly number six, we return with another update to share our weekend gaming plans with you. In the past we've quipped about topical sporting events, but there's nothing interesting enough this time around. That's just as well, as rather than sit in our...

  • Reaction Nintendo's Steady Start in Retail Downloads

    It’s only half of the picture

    Earlier today we reported that Satoru Iwata had given loose figures for retail downloads in Japan, which started alongside the launch of 3DS XL on 28th July. Speaking to Wall Street Journal, Iwata-san stated that New Super Mario Bros. 2 retail downloads account for 5% of sales in Nintendo’s homeland, but provided...

  • Talking Point The Long Suffering Luigi

    Green with envy

    This week brought some disappointing news for fans of the other mascot brother, the one who wears green and can often be found sitting in the corner, twiddling his thumbs and waiting to get involved. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon was spooked into 2013 in North America, while European release news is still up in the air. Also in the...

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue Five

    We've had enough of sport

    The last time we ran this feature, hype and excitement about the London 2012 Olympics was reaching fever pitch. Now that the Games are finishing for another four years, we've got over how much fun it is to watch athletes do everything we can't and got back to some serious gaming. It's another giddy mix of titles being...

  • Talking Point 3DS eShop Deserves Big Franchises

    Boosting digital downloads

    For many Nintendo gamers, we suspect, the release of New Super Mario Bros. 2 looms large as the highlight of the next gaming month. Even if the game doesn’t innovate the plumber’s series in any major way, the purchasing options do just that. For 3DS owners it’ll no longer be a case of simply picking up a boxed game...

  • Talking Point Another Look at the News - 3rd August

    We're on our soapbox

    It's been a relatively busy week of Nintendo news, culminating in the EA Summer Showcase that was more of a polite presentation, in terms of Wii U at least. Once again we take a look at some of the news of the past week and give a personal spin, ranging from optimism to shouting from on top of our soapbox, depending on the...

  • Talking Point What Do You Think of 3DS XL?

    Is bigger better?

    3DS XL landed on European and Japanese shelves over the weekend. It seems to have had a good start; in the UK it outsold the original 3DS model at a rate of around 2:1 and bumped up the software sales of Mario Kart 7, Super Mario 3D Land and Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games — thoug

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue Four

    On your marks...

    Today brings us the opening ceremony of some sporty-thing in London; it starts with an O and involves lots of very athletic people doing silly things for medals. Frankly, unless any of them have unlocked all of the StreetPass Plaza achievements we refuse to be impressed, and we'll be far too busy playing video games to pay any...

  • Talking Point Nintendo's Digital Pricing

    Is it persuasive enough?

    This week we’ve been given a glimpse of Nintendo’s plans for retail download pricing and incentives, both for Japan and North America. It all begins with New Super Mario Bros. 2 and Demon Training in Japan on 28th July, with North America and Europe joining in with Mario’s title on 19th and 17th August respectively...

  • Talking Point Another Look at the News - 20th July

    Sonic, retail downloads and a certain analyst

    It's that time again, when a few members of the Nintendo Life team look at recent news and decide that they simply have to give their opinion on it. Last time out things were very serious, with topics such as Nintendo's online services, the number of 'new IPs' on Wii and the continued madness that is...

  • Talking Point Music and Rhythm Games Are Coming Back

    No plastic guitars needed

    There was a time, in the not too distant past, when Harmonix and Activision were locked in a gaming battle of the plastic bands, with the Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchises facing off in the charts. It was a phenomenon, capitalising on the rise of a new generation of gamers, that allowed us to live out fantasies of being...

  • Talking Point 3DS XL's Media Potential

    Look ma, no glasses!

    One of the biggest shifts of the last generation has been the evolution of games consoles into entertainment centres, allowing almost all forms of media to be played back through your TV. It’s a far cry from the old cartridge systems when gaming ruled supreme, but thanks to their knowledge outside of video games both Microsoft...

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue Three

    Now it's officially a trilogy

    It's time, once again, for the Nintendo Life team to share their weekend gaming plans with you in their own lovely, lovely words. You may have noticed that this entry has been slightly delayed, as yesterday our esteemed editor James Newton completed his last day by sharing his favourite Nintendo Life moments; he now...

  • Talking Point Another Look at the News - 6th July

    Telling it like it is

    A couple of weeks ago we published the first of this new series, where members of the team share their personal views on news stories of the week. Last time around James, Tom and Mike wrote about the only story in town, 3DS XL. Now we start the real business of team members sounding off about different articles, giving their...

  • Feature Sharing Some Hits at a StreetPass Event

    Go for that green light

    Did you leave the house today? If you did hit the streets to go to the shops, work or school, then we have two more questions for you. Did you take your 3DS with you, and did you get any StreetPass hits? It’s easy to forget that, when 3DS was launched, Nintendo placed a fair bit of emphasis on the idea of taking the...

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue Two

    Summer gaming

    Here in the sunny UK — by which we mean heavy rain and flooding — we're well into summer, a time of year when the rain has a distinctly warmer feel on the skin. We're sure that some of you live in far more temperate climes than this, but for those that don't there's always an answer — playing video games. That's what many of our...

  • Talking Point 3DS XL - Why Now?

    The timing is both predictable and strange

    The upcoming release of 3DS XL, the sizeable update to the original model, is hardly a surprise. Nintendo has constantly iterated its handhelds in an effort to attract more consumers and, to put it bluntly, make a lot of money: we can’t even argue that the XL is arriving earlier than expected, as the gap...

  • Talking Point The Pros and Cons of 3DS XL

    Weighing it all up

    The latest Nintendo Direct had its usual mix of game trailers and release details, but they were a distant priority behind the big opening act on each regional broadcast: announcement of 3DS XL. A remodelled 3DS had been rumoured and debated almost from the moment that the original hit stores, simply because Nintendo has a long...

  • Talking Point Another Look at the News - 22nd June

    Topic hint: it's big

    It's Friday, but we're not going to share our weekend gaming plans with you today, remember that's every two weeks. Today we're starting a new feature series where members of staff pick a piece of Nintendo news from the week and give their own opinions, sometimes irreverent, on the story. Normally that would mean that each...

  • Talking Point Wii U Bundles Need to Suit Us All

    One size does not fit all

    After the fun and games of Wii U noise over E3, now we probably have to wait until the next Nintendo Direct broadcast for another hit. We learned a great deal about Wii U at E3, with game reveals and system demonstrations giving a broader idea of what the console will offer. Much was left to our imagination, however, such...

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue One

    We could be heroes

    Before E3 we posted a few features where members of our team listed their gaming plans for the weekend with some witty prose, and you did the same in the comments below. As we all like talking about games and weekends together, we're going to make this a regular feature every two weeks. Same time, same place. We have plenty of...

  • Talking Point Are E3 Conferences a Dying Breed?

    E3 is changing

    9am PDT, Tuesday, E3 week. For Nintendo fans, this time and date is akin to New Year's Day, ringing in the next big batch of games Nintendo has to offer and beginning a week-long celebration of all things gaming. Nintendo’s E3 press conference has created some magical moments over the years, from the reveal of The Legend of Zelda:...

  • Talking Point The Good and Bad Sides of Moderating Miiverse

    Big Mario is watching

    As we were bombarded with announcements and details about Wii U in the past week, perhaps one feature stood out as something distinctly new in the world of Nintendo: Miiverse. After enduring the lacking online options on Wii for the past six years, Nintendo gamers can look ahead to potential levels of social interaction unknown...

  • Talking Point Reviewing Nintendo's E3 Press Conference

    7/10?

    The dust has settled on Nintendo's E3 2012 press conference. Here in the Nintendo Life offices the pizza boxes have been pushed to one side and we've taken a few minutes to collect our thoughts and summarise how we think it went. James Newton, editor: I wouldn't say this was a classic show for Nintendo — a lot of the right components were...

  • Talking Point Why Gaming Needs E3

    A spectacle like no other

    It’s the final weekend before E3 2012, and thousands of members of the gaming industry and mainstream press are descending on Los Angeles to attend. It’s amazing that a single convention has risen to such prominence in the gaming calendar, but that’s the status that E3 has earned: while there may be a number of other...

  • Talking Point Should Zelda Go Episodic?

    "Next time on The Legend of Zelda..."

    For more than 25 years, The Legend of Zelda series has grapple-hooked the hearts of gamers across the globe. Thanks to the consistent quality of its library of titles, the Zelda brand has generated a worldwide recognition that few games achieve and has become the standard by which all other action-adventure...

  • Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend?

    Last one before E3

    It's that time again, the weekend is upon us. It's been a busy week here at Nintendo Life, so naturally we're planning to unwind for a couple of days with some quality gaming. This will be the last of these features for a few weeks, however, as we'll be busy bringing you all of the content you could ever want for that gaming...

  • Talking Point DS Games Deserve Digital Distribution on 3DS

    Too good to ignore

    Not long ago, we brought you a feature on Bargain Bin DS Games, detailing some excellent games available for relatively little money. The response to the article highlighted how many little-known or under-appreciated gems the DS library has, as it seems to have been a platform that encouraged a lot of creativity from developers...

  • Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend?

    Time for another round

    It's Friday, so there's a temptation to quote the lyrics from the worst pop song ever, but instead we're going to get ourselves ready for another gaming weekend. After we first shared our weekend plans with you a few weeks ago, we thought that more members of the team should share the most intimate details of their gaming...