Wii Virtual Console - Timeline
Sunday30th Mar 2014
News Star Parodier Removed From the Wii Virtual Console in North America
An import classic that will be missed
If you've yet to play Hudson Soft's adorable Turbografx cute-em up Star Parodier, you are unfortunately out of luck as the title has been removed from the North American Wii Virtual Console. It joins some other titles in the past year and more that have been removed from the service, with issues such as...
Monday24th Mar 2014
Review Ice Hockey (Wii U eShop / NES)
Not that cool any more
Nintendo released a number of sports titles in the NES era, a reflection of a simpler time when having a fancy home console was enough of a novelty that a game simply called Ice Hockey would seem like an awesome prospect. You like Ice Hockey? You've got Nintendo? Get Ice Hockey, which is Ice Hockey on your Nintendo! That...
Wednesday12th Mar 2014
Talking Point Important Steps to Bring the 3DS and Wii U Closer Together
Do cross the streams
The Wii U is struggling. It’s a lovely looking console with some great games, but large developers whose names don’t start with “Nin” and end with “Tendo” are hardly queuing up to make software for the system, and there's little publicly visible to change that situation; the download-only scene is, thankfully, much...
Tuesday28th Jan 2014
Review Mario Bros. (3DS eShop / NES)
Subpar Mario
Mario and Luigi’s adventures have been nothing short of fantastical over the years, to the point where you could be forgiven for questioning their occupations as plumbers. But despite the brothers’ incredibly varied employment history as doctors, sportsmen and racing drivers — in which they’ve rarely called upon their supposed...
Friday17th Jan 2014
News Ninja Gaiden III Is Slashing Its Way To The European 3DS eShop Next Week
Jumping the ship of doom
Nintendo UK has confirmed that Ninja Gaiden III: The Ancient Ship of Doom is coming to the European 3DS eShop next week — the 23rd of January, to be precise. The third game in the NES-based trilogy from Tecmo, Ninja Gaiden III is seen by many fans as the best of the three. "Ninja Gaiden III does a great job of being true...
Thursday16th Jan 2014
News Final Fantasy VI On Android Is Pricey and Looks Rather Peculiar
One alternative is the Wii Virtual Console...
Square Enix is a publisher that's made a significant push on smart devices, often standing apart due to its willingness to release some of its biggest franchises at premium prices, clearly resisting the ongoing race to the bottom. The latest case in point is Final Fantasy VI — commonly known on the...
Sunday12th Jan 2014
Review Double Dragon (3DS eShop / NES)
Dragon us down
From the moment protagonist Billy Lee’s sweetheart is sucker-punched in the opening sequence, Double Dragon establishes itself as an action-packed, thrilling battle through hordes of enemy combatants in an attempt to reclaim the captured damsel. As soon as gameplay begins, however, this façade is quickly stripped away to reveal an...
Review Life Force (3DS eShop / NES)
A force to be reckoned with
The space shooter is a genre that has somewhat faded into obscurity in recent years, both due to advances in technology rendering their limited scope obsolete and their typically gruelling difficulty proving unpalatable to some gamers. The NES port of Life Force, (or Salamander, as it was originally known on Eastern...
Sunday29th Dec 2013
Matters Of Import Welcome To The Bizarre World Of Namco's Numan Athletics
'80s popstar Gary Numan sadly not involved
Nintendo’s Virtual Console service has been a constant treasure trove of classic gaming for many years now, covering hundreds of titles across some of the greatest systems to ever exist. It’s thrown up more than a few unexpected surprises along the way too – including this Japan-only port of the...
Friday6th Dec 2013
Weirdness Donkey Kong And Other NES Classics Can Now Be Played On Your Wedding Cake
Perfect for a gorilla-suited groom
If you've ever dreamed of smothering the face of your brand new spouse with a giant slice of virtual dirt from the game Dig Dug, now is your chance. An entertainment company out of New Jersey, USA named POSH Entertainment has figured out how to make you lose even more of your hard earned coins by getting married,...
Tuesday26th Nov 2013
News M2: Bringing Space Harrier To 3DS Was "Almost Impossible", But It's "The Definitive Version"
Who would have thought porting old arcade games could be this hard?
This week the 3DS eShop will finally be blessed with 3D classics from SEGA — including arcade classic Space Harrier — but getting these titles to run as perfectly as they do on 3DS was no easy task, as the developers have explained in a recent interview. Naoki Horii, President...
Thursday14th Nov 2013
Review Wario's Woods (Wii U eShop / NES)
Kinopio's Canopy
Wario's Woods has had quite a storied legacy over the last few decades, standing not only as the last officially licensed game released on Nintendo's legendary NES in North America in 1994, but also one of the very first titles available on the Wii's Virtual Console service. In-between those impressive milestones, it made an...
Monday4th Nov 2013
News Nintendo Updates Available Club Nintendo Reward Games in North America
Better start counting those coins
Update: WiiWare title Art Style: Cubello is also available as a reward until 8th December, at a cost of 150 coins. Original Article: Nintendo has updated its North American Club Nintendo Rewards service with three new games to download. From now until the 8th December 2013, users who have enough Club Nintendo...
Thursday31st Oct 2013
Review Wario's Woods (3DS eShop / NES)
It's back like you wooden believe
Originally released in 1994, Wario's Woods holds the prestigious honour of being the last officially licensed game to release for the NES in North America; that's a remarkably long time after the console itself launched in the mid-eighties. Yet while it's impressive that the legendary system received a first-party...
Thursday17th Oct 2013
News Capcom Issues Update On Game Boy Mega Man Titles Heading To 3DS Virtual Console
They're on the way, Mega Man X2 could also be possible
Capcom is celebrating a lot this year, with the company itself reaching its 30th anniversary and Mega Man hitting his 25th birthday. While the Blue Bomber hasn't had a new game to celebrate the occasion, he is to be a playable character in the upcoming Super Smash Bros. on Wii U and 3DS and...
Wednesday16th Oct 2013
Review GOLF (Wii U eShop / NES)
Sub-par
Before the hyper-realistic, face-deforming technology of modern Tiger Woods games was conceived in the deepest dreams of Electronic Arts (a company busy with Marble Madness at the time), there was Golf for the Nintendo Entertainment System. The game wears its no-nonsense attitude on its sleeve, focusing on simulating the time-honoured sport...
Review Tennis (Wii U eShop / NES)
Net-net, a loss
Tennis — the NES game, not the actual sport — hails from an age when the most rudimentary of virtual simulations could be entertaining and notable simply by existing, perhaps causing a passing family member to comment on how it looks just like the real thing. Although a genuine novelty in the 80s, this dull-as-toast recreation of...
Wednesday9th Oct 2013
News Yoshi's Cookie to Be Removed From European Wii Shop Channel
Oh how the cookie crumbles
Nintendo has updated the Wii Shop Channel with a new message stating that Yoshi's Cookie will be no longer available for sale as of 11th October. The surprise announcement doesn't provide any details as to why the NES game is being removed. It was originally developed by Bullet-Proof Software, with Nintendo acting as...
Friday4th Oct 2013
Review Milon's Secret Castle (3DS eShop / NES)
A secret best kept hidden
Hudson had many classics in its NES library - Adventure Island, Faxanadu and Bomberman are just a few of the great titles it gave us all back then. Milon's Secret Castle probably shouldn't be counted among those. As the title might reveal, you play as Milon, who has to make his way through a castle filled to the brim with...
Monday23rd Sep 2013
News Four Turbografx-16 Games Return to the Wii Virtual Console in PAL Territories
A rather pleasant surprise
The Wii Virtual Console was not only the first of its kind on Nintendo hardware, but it had terrific diversity in the platforms and games that it offered; we'll have to see how far the Wii U Virtual Console progresses on those terms. One of the platforms that was supported, giving excellent opportunities to those that...
Monday2nd Sep 2013
Nintendo Download 5th September (Europe)
Explosive racing, a legendary titan, cheaper Mickey and more
Monday mornings are, perhaps strangely, relatively happy times for some Nintendo gamers in Europe. The download delights due this week have been revealed, and this time around there are two new Wii U download-only games, a long awaited 3DS RPG and much more. Let's get right to the details,...
Thursday22nd Aug 2013
Review Romance of the Three Kingdoms IV (Wii U eShop / SNES)
Depth incarnate
If there's one thing that you could pretty much be assured of when it came to a Koei game back in the day, it was getting a lot of depth to your gameplay experience. Not only were you generally treated to a very high production value visual experience, but the attention to detail and historical accuracy was always of high quality...
Sunday18th Aug 2013
Review Donkey Kong (3DS eShop / NES)
It's on like Donkey Kong
This year marked the 30th anniversary of the initial Japanese launch of the Nintendo Family Computer, more popularly known around the world as the Famicom. Among the landmark console’s launch titles was Donkey Kong, a port of the arcade hit that began Nintendo’s launch into video game history. Now, in the year of the...
Friday16th Aug 2013
Review Galaga (Wii U eShop / NES)
That man is playing Galaga!
Galaga is old. It may well state 1988 on Galaga’s NES title screen, but that refers to its European and US release date, the Japanese Famicom conversion was released early in 1985 and they are all based on a port of Namco’s 1981 coin-op. This means that with any Wii U Virtual Console purchase you must consider if you...
Monday12th Aug 2013
Nintendo Download 15th August (Europe)
DuckTales returns, 'mon rumble, extreme bike riding and much more
It's time for the European Nintendo Download news to wipe away our Monday morning blues, and this week is one of the most packed line-ups in recent memory. There are two heavy-hitting Wii U releases, and plenty of others spread throughout the 3DS, DSi and Wii. There are some discounts...
Wednesday7th Aug 2013
Review Harvest Moon (Wii U eShop / SNES)
Barnstorming
Early wake ups, extensive hours, back-breaking labour and ever-vulnerable to unpredictable weather patterns – farming doesn't sound like the most tantalising profession on paper. Way back when, however, developer Natsume clearly caught a glimpse of the positive aspects of the job and was inspired to create one of gaming's most beloved...
Monday29th Jul 2013
Review Kid Icarus (Wii U eShop / NES)
A demonic angel
The popularity of Pit, even before his triumphant return in Kid Icarus: Uprising, was focused around nostalgia for his first two appearances on NES and Game Boy, with the home console original setting the tone with catchy music, quirky mythological enemies and lashings of creativity. This was impressive in the days of the early 8-bit...
Wednesday24th Jul 2013
Review Shantae (3DS eShop / GBC)
Whip ya hair
Just over 11 years since its original release in 2002, Shantae has finally made it onto the 3DS Virtual Console – and it's the first time that it's been available in Europe too. Despite the long wait, WayForward's tricky 2D platformer is sprinkled with enough genie-magic to keep it fresh and interesting for a modern audience. Shantae...
Monday22nd Jul 2013
Nintendo Download 25th July (Europe)
Pikmin 3 at last, lots of retro, BASIC programming and more
It's another Monday morning, but it's also another Nintendo Download update for Europe. The star of this week's show is undoubtedly an eagerly anticipated Wii U retail release, but we also have a variety of titles — old and new — covering every Nintendo platform. Without further ado,...
Friday19th Jul 2013
Interview WayForward on Shantae's Past, Present and Future
Some "pretty big surprises" in store for Pirate's Curse this Fall
With the release of Shantae (originally a Game Boy Color title) this week we touched base with WayForward's Creative Director and founding member, Matt Bozon, and he kindly agreed to a quick-fire interview before he jetted off to Comic-Con. This is a series that, despite being just...
