WiiWare News
Interviews Ben Geisler - Jam City Rollergirls
We go all post-mortem
Cast your minds back several years to the announcement of WiiWare, and its promise to bring smaller, riskier titles to Wii owners. Over the years there's no doubt the service has seen some pretty unique games, and the latest in that line is Jam City Rollergirls, the only video game ever based on roller derby. Our Jam City...
Review Jewel Keepers: Easter Island (WiiWare)
You cannot do that!
Jewel Keepers: Easter Island owes a debt to Bejeweled, falling within the range of 'match three' games which have sprung up over the last few years. Popcap's game had been around for a while but became a huge success on ITunes and Facebook, creating scores of imitators in the process. So where does this particular imitator fall?...
Nintendo Download 4th February 2011 (Europe)
DSiWare abound
It's another clearly DSiWare-oriented week this time, with four new titles released on the service. WiiWare and Virtual Console only get one game each, along with another WiiWare demo. WiiWare: Pucca's Kisses Game (Bigben Interactive, 1000pts) – What seems to be a platformer game, based on the surprisingly popular franchise which...
News Curl Up Around this Cosy Fire on Friday, Europe
It's another fireplace simulator
WiiWare's already had log burning simulator Fireplacing, but if that wasn't enough to satiate your desire to pretend to stoke a virtual fire you're in luck, as Cosy Fire is landing on WiiWare this week. Boasting a whopping six types of fire, realistic PhysX-powered physics and "cosy fireplace sounds", the...
News This Upcoming WiiWare Game is Absolutely Pucca
Get romantic on Valentine's Day
Korean series Pucca revolves around 10-year old girl Pucca and her seemingly never-ending quest to steal a kiss from 12-year old ninja Garu. If you just thought, "that sounds like the perfect premise for a WiiWare game", you're on the same wavelength as BigBen Interactive, as Pucca's Kisses Game is on the...
Podcast NLFM Episode 15: They Might Be RPGs
FInal Fantasy makes its NLFM debut, along with a sweeping Bionic Commando remix
Gather round, children! Zip it, listen! NLFM is back and bringing the big guns, with a killer Bionic Commando remix, lurvely NES medley by way of PiCTOBiTS, and an almighty power with a huge sword chopping woodland critters. What more could you want? What more??? 1. Star...
News Behold This Boppin' BIT.TRIP FLUX Trailer
CommanderVideo's final journey is a lot like his original one
If this first trailer is anything to go by, it appears that Gaijin Games' BIT.TRIP series is coming full circle with the final entry, BIT.TRIP FLUX. Not only is it the final entry in the acclaimed series, but it looks to play exactly like show-starter BEAT. Except, you know, now playing...
Nintendo Download 31st January 2011 (North America)
Mahjong, air hockey, dolphins, diaries and tarot cards
It's North America's turn for a bit of a catch-up with Europe in this week's Nintendo Download, but there are still a few interesting titles here that might take your fancy. DSiWare: All-Star Air Hockey (Skyworks Interactive, 200pts) – A handheld version of the classic arcade pastime, this...
Review Jam City Rollergirls (WiiWare)
The revolution has now been televised
According to the Women's Flat Track Derby Association, roller derby is one of the fastest-growing sports in the US right now, and anyone that's ever been to a bout can see why: hard hits, lots of action and ladies on wheels. Ellen Page and Drew Barrymore even got in on the action in the movie Whip It. What's not...
Nintendo Download 28th January 2011 (Europe)
Back to no Virtual Console games
Every one of Capcom's announced arcade titles is out now, which means they don't have anything else coming anytime soon. Nobody else seems to have picked up their slack this week, as there's no new Virtual Console titles, but as expected that means there's a decent amount of games for the other services. WiiWare:...
Review Spot the Differences! (WiiWare)
Can you spot the fun?
Spot the Differences! is a new WiiWare entry from Sanuk Games, a developer whose focus on Nintendo consoles so far has largely been downloadable puzzlers. This release follows the same standard modus operandi as Cosmonaut's 5 Spots Party and Enjoy Gaming's Spot the Difference – look at two images side by side and identify...
Podcast NLFM Episode 14: The Past and Future, Remixed
Check out some of our favourite remixes of classic franchises coming to 3DS
We're absolutely killing 2011 with our new weekly schedule, even if we're a little late in the day from time to time. As in every episode so far. This episode we're inspired by the 3DS line-up and looking towards both the future and past by checking out some excellent...
Nintendo Download 24th January 2011 (North America)
Action on land, sea and air
There's a definite airborne theme to this week's downloads, with rockets, meteors, fighter planes and passenger aircraft all featured across the three download channels. Let's take a look at what's available. WiiWare: Jam City Rollergirls (Frozen Codebase, 1000pts) – An arcade action take on the growing sport of roller...
Nintendo Download 21st January 2011 (Europe)
More Capcom classics
Virtual Console is the clear winner this week with two new Capcom arcade games, but that's not to say the rest should be ignored outright. Although WiiWare only gets one new download, DSiWare gets four of them, so hopefully there's something for everyone. WiiWare: Spot the Differences! (Sanuk Games, 500pts) – Another...
News Liight Approved for WiiWare
Finally, there will be a Liight in the darkness of everybody's life [Updated with trailer]
A while back, we showed you Liight, a puzzler from Studio Walljump that involves illuminating targets of various colours using the base elements of red, green and blue light in various combinations. It looked quite exciting, but we hadn't heard anything about...
News Feel the G-Force With New FAST - Racing League Screenshots
Shin'en Multimedia pushing the capabilities of WiiWare once again
Last September, we brought you word on Shin'en Multimedia's upcoming racing title FAST - Racing League, and with the German developer's track record of producing visually-compelling titles, this racing game doesn't seem to deviate from that reputation at all. The game's website has...
Review Doc Clock: The Toasted Sandwich of Time (WiiWare)
Shark sandwich
In November of 2009, Stickmen Studios brought us Dragon Master Spell Caster, and we figured, at least, that its next game couldn't get any worse. In May of 2010, it released Kung Fu Funk for the sole purpose of proving us wrong. But that was the distant past. We're older now. Wiser. Could Doc Clock and the Toasted Sandwich of Time...
News MotoHeroz Trailer Unleashed
First footage of WiiWare racer
RedLynx already announced their upcoming game MotoHeroz a few months ago, but only gave us two screenshots to look at. Now, they've released a trailer. The developer might not mean much to Nintendo-only gamers, but people with multiple systems might recognize them as the creators of the Trials games on Xbox Live Arcade...
Podcast NLFM Episode 13: Yep, Still Weekly
Storms can't hold this podcast back
Your eyes doth not deceive you: NLFM is back with another episode a mere week after the last one. And man, did we almost not make it thanks to an impending snowstorm and travel arrangements. But lo and behold, here is a delicious ear scoop for you. We couldn't bail on our weekly promise one week after making it,...
News Plain Sight to Show its Self-Destructive Side on WiiWare
Suicidal robots aren't something you see very often
When characters die in video games it usually evokes a negative reaction, but Beatnik Games has other ideas. In its upcoming WiiWare version of Plain Sight, players will be required to kill themselves if they want to rack up the points needed to progress. Don't worry, it's not as morbid as you...
Nintendo Download 17th January 2011 (North America)
Puzzles, pugilists and more puzzles
Another varied array of titles this week, with time-travelling toasted sandwiches, boxing animals, tactical defending and more. Let's get right to it. WiiWare: Doc Clock: The Toasted Sandwich of Time (Stickmen Studios, 1000pts) – Hopefully this game has more than just a fantastic title to offer, but considering...
Are you ready for this jelly?
Ports can be a tricky business. Change too much about beloved game and fans of the title will likely gripe, while not adding any new content earns the moniker “lazy port.” Still, lots of games on WiiWare have managed to straddle this fence successfully, like Lilt Line and Crystal Defenders, while others like Space...
Nintendo Download 14th January 2011 (Europe)
3 new DSiWare titles, but the other services aren't completely ignored
Europe mostly plays catch-up again this week, with three of the five new downloads already being available in North America. DSiWare makes up the bulk of this week's releases, with the other two services only getting one game each, and it's also the only one of the services to...
News Look Out Fireplacing, You've Got Competition
Let the flaming commence
Still recovering from all the thrills and spills of maintaining a virtual fire in Fireplacing on WiiWare? Well you might be in for a second thrilling instalment of fireplace action, as the ESRB has rated a new title: Cozy Fire. In this non-stop action adventure you must tend to virtual fireplaces and, in a first on the...
This tractor's a little bit rusty
Nordcurrent don't have a great record when it comes to WiiWare, having brought us the some stinkers such as Robin Hood: The Return Of Richard and 5 Arcade Gems. Now we have Urbanix, where you play as a tractor who is simply trying to build a town on an empty field, while cloning the gameplay of arcade classic Qix...
Podcast NLFM Episode 12: Ch-ch-changes
New year, new podcast
Changes are a-brewin' with NLFM this year as the show enters its second season. First of all, we're shrinking and growing at the same time. Is your mind blown yet? Tell the rest of the goo in your skull to stay calm, as what this means is that while the average episode will shrink in length, we're ditching the whole monthly...
Nintendo Download 10th January 2011 (North America)
A scoop of fun with a dash of soul-crushing
WiiWare: JellyCar 2 (Disney Interactive Studios, 500 Points) - The sequel to the popular iOS game hits WiiWare, promising even more driving platforming fun(ing). We'll give this one a proper whirl and let you know if it's a joyride or if it melts in the sun. Soccer Bashi (Icon Games, 500 Points) - A...
Features Nintendo Life Reader's Choice Awards 2010
The top Wii and DS games of the year, as voted by you
We showed you ours, now it's time for you to show your favorite games of 2010. The categories may have been limited, but your response wasn't. Here are the Wii (including WiiWare), DS (including DSiWare) and overall Reader Games of the Year. Reader Wii Game of the Year: Winner: Super Mario Galaxy...
Review Magic Destiny - Astrological Games (WiiWare)
Reach for the stars
Astrology has been around for a very long time now. With records of its existence dating all the way back to 5,000 years ago, it comprises a group of methods and systems examining the relative positions of astronomical objects to provide information about an individual's personality as well as make predictions about their future...
Nintendo Download 7th January 2011 (Europe)
More Capcom arcade classics, plus a bunch of catch-up titles
Capcom is continuing their Virtual Console Arcade support with another two games, both of which were of course announced some time ago. At this rate they'll run out of games before we hit February! They're accompanied by a mixture of completely new games and games North America already...
Bustin' makes us feel meh
Ghost Mania is the WiiWare reincarnation of an iPhone game called Spooky Spirits: Puzzle Drop!! This new version of the game features updated graphics and sound in addition to redesigned levels and an additional multiplayer mode, but was it worth exhuming those old bones? Is there life in this one yet, or is it an...
Features Vote For Nintendo Life Reader's Choice Award 2010
Make sure your favorite game of the year gets the acclaim you feel it deserves
It wouldn't be too much of an understatement to say that Nintendo platforms had a mammoth year in 2010 with regards to excellent software. But we play by Thunderdome rules here at Nintendo Life around award season, and we're handing over a cache of weapons to you. Which...
Nintendo Download 3rd January 2011 (North America)
Kick off with the first download of the year
The first Nintendo Download of the year isn't a classic, but it brings some notable titles to DSiWare and a new WiiWare demo as well. Let's get this show on the road. WiiWare: Sneezies (Chillingo, 500pts) - A cutesy puzzler that began life on the iPhone, Sneezies is a decent enough title but doesn't do...
Nintendo Download 31st December 2010 (Europe)
Catch-up titles, art and astrology, plus a BIT.TRIP demo
If you plan on ringing in the new year with downloadable titles, you've got more than your fair share of options in this Nintendo Download update. Whether you want to adventure through the stars or read them to predict your future, play a sequel to Bejeweled or Nintendo's own take on the...
News BIT.TRIP FLUX Gameplay Revealed, More or Less
ESRB description is less cryptic than Alex Neuse's clues
Until now, we've only had a set of screenshots and a mysterious statement from Gaijin Games's Alex Neuse to help us figure out what BIT.TRIP FLUX, the sixth and final title in the musical WiiWare series, is all about. The game has just received an ESRB rating, however, and the board describes...
Review Around the World (WiiWare)
Tourist trap
Modern education generally reduces geography to simple memorisation, divorcing the subject from a sense of physicality and instead having students label countries along political boundaries and identify their capitals. Around the World takes a step in an alternative direction by challenging players to locate different things on an...
Nintendo Download 27th December 2010 (North America)
Catch-up titles and more
There are plenty of ways to ring in the new year in this Nintendo Download update, including a quality WiiWare demo, a couple of NeoGeo titles for virtual console, a portable slot machine and the newest entry in the G.G Series. Will you spend your holiday cash on any of these titles? Virtual Console: Fighter's History...
Interviews Curve Studios - Fluidity / Hydroventure
Developers spill about Fluidity
Fluidity was recently released on WiiWare in North America and we were very impressed with the game's unique approach and fluid execution. With the game making its debut today on the European WiiWare service under its new moniker Hydroventure , we thought it might be a good time to sit down with developer Curve...
News WiiWare Super Meat Boy Gets Canned
You might want to sit down for this one
It seems Team Meat has decided that WiiWare is not a good fit for Super Meat Boy and have officially cancelled the game's development for the service. They've also let it be known that a Wii retail release is also looking grim, which pretty much lays to rest any semblance of hope that we'll see the boy of meat...
News Brian Provinciano Addresses Retro City Rampage WiiWare Delay
Stresses that it will be the "entire game" in spite of XBLA additions
With the recent announcement that the once WiiWare-exclusive Retro City Rampage will now be launching on the Xbox Live Arcade service first, the WiiWare version following several months later, developer Brian Provinciano wants gamers to know that he apologises for the delay...
Nintendo Download 24th December 2010 (Europe)
A mix of old and new
This week offers yet more catchup titles, consisting of games released in North America within the past few weeks, as well as the last few months. There's also two new games, however, both of which are for DSiWare and both of which are new instalments in two series which have been going for a while now. WiiWare: Hydroventure...
News Documentary About Muscle March's Creator Explains So Much
Learn about his inspirations
Muscle March is still probably the oddest game on WiiWare, to the extent you probably wouldn't want to meet its creator in a dark alley. But a short documentary? Sure, that's harmless enough. Shinya Satake, the game's producer, and Keita Takahashi of Katamari fame both feature in this short documentary called Electric...
Review Violin Paradise (WiiWare)
Oy vey Maria
Hey, kids! Have you ever dreamed of being a professional violinist? Of feeling the stagnant air of a concert hall in your hair as you perform selections from Swan Lake with a string quartet composed entirely of your closest friends? Of screeching your way thanklessly through Ave Maria before an audience of nearly a dozen, most of...
News Heavy Fire: Special Operations Targeting Europe on New Year's Eve
Teyon deploys series debut for 500 points
Teyon's first instalment in the Heavy Fire series might not have done much to convince us that it's a compelling on-rails shooter, but if you're brave enough to lay down the points for it, you'll be glad to know that it launches in Europe on 31st December. Heavy Fire: Special Operations will be available to...
These tubes are fit to be tied
Tower defense games have enough in common that one pretty much knows how much he will or won't enjoy the game before he even plays it. The core concept is addictive and appealing to a certain subset of gamers, and a complete turnoff to others. This is not a bad thing; in fact, it saves both parties a lot of time...
It's dy-no-mite!
It's been a fairly long wait for Fugazo's first WiiWare offering – the game was announced over a year and a half ago – and while Frobot initially looked extremely simplistic and basic, it's now evolved into quite a polished and well-designed release for the service. Craftily combining both shooting and puzzle-solving elements,...
Nintendo Download 20th December 2010 (North America)
Mario gets the party started!
It's the week before Christmas and plenty is stirring in the Wii Shop Channel, with everything from Virtual Console party games to WiiWare games about killer robots with afros. DSiWare doesn't do without though, with more Christmas carols, dragon's lairs and more. Virtual Console: Mario Party 2 (Nintendo 64, 1000pts)...
News Cross Shanblue's Palms With Silver for a WiiWare Astrology Game
Discover your Magic Destiny on December 31st
My Starry Night has already educated WiiWare owners about the wonders of astronomy, but Shanblue's upcoming Magic Destiny wants to teach you about the very different celestial practice of astrology. There'll of course be the obligatory minigames, as well as a glossary for those who don't know their tarot...
News Heavy Fire: Black Arms Invades with New Trailer
Pow pow pow
Teyon has just released a new trailer for its upcoming WiiWare title Heavy Fire: Black Arms, a light-gun shooter that puts you in the jungles of South America where you'll take on the illegal arms trade. It follows the previous release Heavy Fire: Special Operations, which debuted in North America last July. You can rock out to the...
Nintendo Download 17th December 2010 (Europe)
Lots and lots of catchup titles
This week is almost exclusively made up of catchup titles, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, especially when it means that there's so many releases. Maybe there's something you'd like in the bunch. WiiWare: My Fireplace (Korner, 500pts) – Secretly the recently released in North America Fireplacing, for some...
News First BIT.TRIP FLUX Screenshots
Check out the game in action!
Thanks to those who've completed Level 17 of Mission in Snowdriftland, we now have some of the first ever screenshots of Gaijin Games' upcoming BIT.TRIP finale BIT.TRIP FLUX in action. You can check out the gallery of eight screenshots below and we'll have more information about the game coming soon. Special thanks to...
Meet Commander Video's less-confident little brother
There's a reason Gaijin Games, as young as it is as a developer, already has a strong and devoted following, having taken addictively throbbing beats and married them to some of the most intense gameplay we've ever seen. It takes periodic trips to a sunnier, much simpler era of gaming, and...
News Mix Superstar Will Be a European Christmas Present
US release gets DLC too
WiiWare scratch 'em up Mix Superstar is heading to Europe and Australasia on Christmas Eve for 500 Points, and the next round of downloadable content will release in North America on Saturday. The DLC will feature R'n'B-style samples to help you craft your latest hit, and will set you back 300 Points. You can read our Mix...
Toilet paper edition
A pen and a sheet of paper. Are there any two instruments on the face of the planet more conducive to unrestrained creativity? Think about it. Take a moment to consider all of the things you can do with either one. Think about the worlds that you can sketch out, or write about; think of the games you can play, think about...
Podcast NLFM Episode 11: A Holiday Season in FLUX
Take a sneak peek at the final BIT.TRIP, sigh at simians, sneak along with a secret agent and get into the spirit of the season
We look to the future here at Nintendo Life. Why, take this episode of NLFM, the little ol' chip and game music podcast we've got going: it's got an exclusive first listen of the soundtrack to Gaijin Games' upcoming...
News La-Mulana Falls Back to 2011, Developer Apologises
Time warp
WiiWare adventure La-Mulana has had a tricky year of it so far, with the biggest blow when it failed Nintendo's lotcheck last month. Now developer Nigoro has admitted the game will not be out in 2010, with its most sincere of apologies. As a result, we come to the conclusion we abandoned to release it in 2010.Because, it’s better to...
Nintendo Download 13th December 2010 (North America)
lilting, shooting, Riding and more
There's a definite musical theme to this week's downloads, with a dubstep racer/puzzler, DSiWare singing, another portable music studio and a violin game (yes, really), as well as plenty of other non-melodic goodies. WiiWare: lilt line (Gaijin Games, 500pts) – It's that rarest of occurrences: an iPhone-to-WiiWare...
A tidal wave of fun
WiiWare is no stranger to quirky, innovative games, with the platform delivering such wonderful titles as World of Goo, Lost Winds and the BIT.TRIP series. These titles all take full advantage of the Wii Remote, pairing novel gameplay concepts with smooth, accessible motion controls. Yet such stellar releases don't come along all...
News Help WiiWare Demos Get a Time Extension and Win BIT.TRIP FATE
Do your BIT (updated)
Broken Rules and Gaijin Games have teamed up to offer one generous gamer a free copy of BIT.TRIP FATE. How does one go about earning this prize? By letting other users know how great And Yet It Moves and FATE are. We'll let Broken Rules explain: As you know, both And Yet it Moves and BIT.TRIP FATE have demos available on the...
Something to sneeze at
iPhone ports are happening so often these days that they should barely come as a surprise anymore. Sneezies is yet another one of these titles, and like many other games, we can't say the transition has really been all that useful. Sneezies is pretty much yet another arcade-esque highscore game. There are four different game...
News Nintendo Download - 10th December 2010 (Europe)
The wait is over, Cave Story is here!
It's been way too long of a wait, but one of WiiWare's greatest games has finally managed to cross over to Europe this week. It's accompanied by a handful of titles for the other services, including yet another VC game. WiiWare: Cave Story (Nicalis, 1000pts) – Does anything really still need to be said about...
News Final List of Indie Games Advent Calendar Titles is a WiiWare Who's Who
Who's behind the doors?
Mission in Snowdriftland's list of indie games participants just grew a little bigger, now standing at a sizeable 17 studios bringing exclusive content to the advent calendar. Yesterday Gaijin Games released a BIT.TRIP FLUX teaser image through the advent calendar, so WiiWare and DSiWare fans would be well advised to keep...
News Make What You Will of this BIT.TRIP FLUX Teaser Image
The excitement is building
You could fit the entire known information about BIT.TRIP FLUX onto the head of an 8-bit-styled pin, and Gaijin Games has thrown fans a bone with the release of this teaser image to promote the game. Last month Gaijin released a textual teaser which, when read along with the image, makes things rather clearer. See what you...
Own goal
Icon Games haven't had a good track record with WiiWare games so far, with poor attempts in the form of Stunt Cars and Arcade Sports. This time around, they've attempted to combine one of the world's biggest sports, football (or soccer), with the classic brick-breaking arcade game Breakout, resulting in Soccer Bashi. So is this third time...
News Frobot Funks Up WiiWare on December 20th
1000 Points of smooth funk
Who's the shiny metal dude who makes all the ladies scream? Frobot! You're damn right. He's also coming to WiiWare on December 20th after a long period of polishing, priced at 1,000 Nintendo Points. We played it back in April and since then Fugazo has been hard at work making important tweaks and changes that should...
IT BURNS!
At last, the do-nothing, poorly-constructed, mindless fireplace simulator of your dreams has come to WiiWare. The only explanation: we've all been very bad boys and girls this year, and Santa's relying on digital download services to distribute his coal. Let's face facts: if you're reading this review, you already know full well whether...
Nintendo Download 6th December 2010 (North America)
Water, fire and much, much more
Never let it be said that the Nintendo Download lacks variety. On the same day that Nintendo launches new water-based puzzle game Fluidity, Korner Entertainment conquers completely the opposite end of the scale with virtual fireplace simulator Fireplacing. DSiWare is equally varied, with portable music studio Rytmik:...
News It's Ice to See this New Fluidity Trailer
Snow more puns, we promise
Fluidity wets WiiWare's appetite today, so there's no better time to show off this new trailer from Nintendo revealing more about the multiple forms you'll be able to use in the game. That's right: it's not just liquid entertainment, you're able to change states between ice, water and steam to conquer the game's puzzles...
News Fireplacing Gets WiiWare Hot, Hot, Hot from Tomorrow
Burn notice
My Aquarium regularly floats around the top of the WiiWare download charts, but if you'd rather turn your TV into something a little warmer then your luck is about to come in. Fireplacing – which we suspect isn't a real word – sets WiiWare alight tomorrow for 500 Points. It is, as you may expect, a virtual fireplace without the...
News lilt line Dubsteps to WiiWare on December 13th
Lower case title important
Gaijin Games' lilt line is almost ready for a WiiWare release, with the company just having announced a date of December 13th for the unique musical experience. Your mission is to guide a line of light through a series of tunnels to a catchy dubstep soundtrack, but only those with superb Wii Remote skills and excellent...
Review HB Arcade Disc Golf (WiiWare)
A discontenting discappointment
The sport of "disc golf" (so named here to subtract the more well known trademark, “Frisbee”) is perhaps played more often on the Wii than in real life. Even so, the sport itself is an obvious good fit for Wii owners as the entire sport essentially boils down to players standing in place and taking turns...
Review Airport Mania: First Flight (WiiWare)
First class, or terminal illness?
Air travel is well known for many things: overbooking, lost luggage, expensive food, cramped quarters and, most recently, a choice between having your crotch grabbed or letting airport security take naked pictures of you. It's not really the sort of experience that you'd expect to lend itself to a positive gaming...
News Thought BIT.TRIP RUNNER Was Over the Finish Line? Think Again
Gaijin Games working on something "right now"
If you think all that's left in the BIT.TRIP series is BIT.TRIP FLUX, you might want to take a second guess. In true Gaijin Games style, programmer Chris Osborn teases us with some rather intriguing tidbits. Speaking to Destructoid, Osborn reveals that he is working on BIT.TRIP RUNNER in some form or...
News Mission in Snowdriftland Opens for Christmas Business
With a host of treats to come
Online advent calendar Mission in Snowdriftland just opened its first door, playable online now as a Flash game, but it's the calendar's team-ups with indie developers that will bring the most cheer to hearts this Christmas. Top WiiWare and DSiWare developers have all collaborated on the project, with exclusive...
Nintendo Download 3rd December 2010 (Europe)
Tetris, soccer and a VC double whammy!
Brace yourself for a truly rare week: Virtual Console receives two games today, putting it level-pegging with WiiWare and DSiWare for the first time in ages. What's occurring this week? Read on and find out. Virtual Console: Magical Drop II (NeoGeo, 900pts) – A cutesy colour-coded puzzler from way back, this...
News Gaijin Games Releases BIT.TRIP Teaser
Can you figure it all out?
Alex Neuse and the guys over at Gaijin Games have always enjoyed toying with their fans when it comes to their BIT.TRIP series and it seems this time will be no different. We've already seen the name BIT.TRIP FLUX pop up on various sites as the probable name for the sixth and final entry in the series and when we contacted...
News Cave Story Finally Burrows to Europe Next Friday
December 10th for WiiWare release
Fed up of waiting for Cave Story to reach Europe? Well, your wait is nearly over: the game is Europe-bound on Friday, December 10th. The game's also set to be a little cheaper than its North American counterpart, launching at 1,000 Nintendo Points rather than the original 1,200 price, and will see a simultaneous...
Nintendo Download 29th November 2010 (North America)
Cave Story DSiWare is here
A little delayed but still delicious, it's this week's Nintendo Download for North America and a cracking week it is too. Let's get on with it. DSiWare: Cave Story (Nicalis, 1000pts) – The portable version of WiiWare's top notch Cave Story, this can hopefully live up to the standard of its home console predecessor whilst...
News Ghost Mania Coming To Haunt WiiWare Soon
Yet another puzzle game to download
To date, Legendo has been bringing a different genre to the table with every WiiWare title it has released. First there was the 2009 platformer The Three Musketeers: One For All!, and then a year later, there was the episodic debut of World War II shooter Pearl Harbor Trilogy - 1941: Red Sun Rising. Well, things...
Review Snowpack Park (WiiWare)
An ice game or a total flake-out? You get the drift.
A massive snowstorm has struck Snowpack Park, blocking off roads, causing damage and isolating the poor, poor penguins from each other. Only one person can bring them back: you! Or your Mum! Or Dr. Zoidberg, any Mii stored on your Wii. But, still, you get the idea. Snowpack Park is a game of...
News Cricket Challenge, Rated and Spinning Towards WiiWare Service
A gentleman's game
GameShastra is India's largest games services company (apparently) and has had its upcoming cricket game rated by the Pan European Game Information ratings board, bowling its way to a WiiWare release. Formerly announced as Balle Baaz, Cricket Challenge will be the first cricket game to launch on the download service. The...
Nintendo Download 26th November 2010 (Europe)
Bloody beaches, dying dodos and Faxanadu
As Advent draws near, it's truly the season of giving, with Nintendo joining in the festive spirit by giving Nintendo download fans 50% price cuts on two WiiWare titles finally making their way across from North America. Elsewhere, fans of NES side-scrolling RPGs are well catered for, and DSiWare gets the...
Reward this hound or send it to the pound?
For all of those gamers out there who are looking for a shallow, average dog racing simulator, Derby Dogs is the WiiWare game for you. Stripped down to the bare minimum, this game will allow you to train your dog to be the top racer, but that’s about all that’s offered here. Disguising itself as a pet...
Nintendo Download 22nd November 2010 (North America)
Demos, penguins, portable Tetris and VC
Getting in there early to beat the cold weather, here's this week's Nintendo Download complete with list of downloadable demos at long last. WiiWare: Snowpack Park (Nintendo, 800pts) – Befriend penguins in this left-field release from Nintendo. A cross between the pet and adventure genres, Snowpack Park sees...
Review Triple Running Sports (WiiWare)
Run! No, seriously. RUN.
Every once in a great while, an already great series gets a new entry that not only renews the enthusiasm of fans worldwide, it reinvents and reinvigorates a classic formula. It raises the bar not only for its own series, but for gaming in general. It's the sort of event that has even non-gamers talking, nodding in...
News Flowerworks Comes to Europe Next Week at Half Price
Better late than never
It's been a long old wait for European gamers to get their green fingers on Flowerworks as it's been out in North America for nearly a year, but publisher Nocturnal has just let us know the wait is nearly over, with the game sprouting up next week. In even better news, the game will launch in European and Australasian...
Nintendo Download 19th November 2010 (Europe)
One more demo
This week's download arrives with four new titles and one more demo available to download. There's no Virtual Console game, but with one practically confirmed for next week and another confirmed for the week after, there's not too much reason to complain. This week you can get... WiiWare: BIT.TRIP FATE (Aksys Games, 800pts) – The...
News North America Gets In On WiiWare Demo Action Next Week
Four games lined up for initial offering
Had your eye on a few WiiWare games but have been hesitant to take the plunge? Want to try before you buy? If you live in Europe then you've probably been enjoying the new demo service for WiiWare. Anywhere else? Not so much. Next week is a different story though, as Nintendo of America has announced that the...
News WiiWare Developers Take On WarioWare: DIY
Big and little names lined up
If you've hit a plateau with your game-making inspiration in WarioWare: DIY for DS, Nintendo's next series of downloadable minigames might put the spark back into your ideas. A string of WiiWare developers will be bringing their ideas to life in the coming weeks, kicking off on Friday with a game from Max and the Magic...
Podcast NLFM Episode 10: Fear Your Tears
From Kirby to 80's synthpop chip covers, this month's episode is all encompassing
Variety is the spice of life, and thanks to the insane variety of this 10th episode of our chip and game music podcast NLFM you'll be feeling that spice for hours after consumption. It's so spicy that we think we've got flavor for every mood, whether you're in the...
Nintendo Download 15th November 2010 (North America)
Need for Speed Nitro-X, puppies and cards
EA's high-octane racer Need for Speed: Nitro-X should have seen the light of day back in September according to an early release schedule, but delay caused it to burn rubber in November instead. It's easily the highlight of this week's release, which seem to show WiiWare and DSiWare have gone to the dogs...
Competition Winners chick chick BOOM (PAL)
Were you one of the lucky ones?
We recently ran a competition for 10 lucky winners to receive a free copy of WiiWare strategy title chick chick BOOM, with the top prize being a piece of personalised artwork drawn by the development team. We've just performed the draw so let's reveal the lucky winners! The following Twitter users below received a...
Review Mix Superstar (WiiWare)
SCRATCH-ficky-ficky....Wii-mix!
Lately the DSiWare service has received several musical creation tools: Music On series has provided us with a means to play musical instruments on the go, and the excellent Rytmik titles have shown exactly how awesome creating tunes on your DSi can be. Well, now it's WiiWare's turn in the form of Mix Superstar. If...
News Multiplayer in Angry Birds Will Resemble "Old School Worms"
So don't lose your temper, the game is still migrating to WiiWare
An ESRB rating back in August revealed that Chillingo was in the process of bringing Angry Birds from the iOS App Store to the Wii Shop Channel, and speaking at the Virtual Goods Summit in London, Rovio CEO Peter Vesterbacka has reaffirmed that the WiiWare instalment is being worked...
News Fluidity Flows to North America on December 6th
Wet your appetite
Whilst Europeans can experience Hydroventure on Christmas Eve, WiiWare fans in North America get a small headstart, as the game will be released on December 6th under the name Fluidity. Priced at 1200 Points, the game is a physics-based platformer based on the three states of water: steam, liquid and ice. Players have to master...
Nintendo Download 12th November 2010 (Europe)
A little bit more for every service, plus a new demo
With five new games and a demo on offer this week, you'd think that it would be pretty good overall. Unfortunately, only the Virtual Console game and the demo make up most of this week's goodness - The other four are all games North America already got, and none of them were very good. WiiWare:...
News Hydroventure Guarantees a Wet Christmas for Europe
Lands on Christmas Eve
Fluidity, known as Hydroventure in Europe, is set to make a splash on the European WiiWare servers on December 24th, priced at 1200 Points, with a free demo dropping in on the same day. Developed and published by Nintendo, Hydroventure is one of the most anticipated WiiWare releases of the next few months. Essentially the game...
News Chrono Twins DX Joins the Demo Ranks on Friday
One more for the pile
The return of WiiWare demos to Europe is truly a reason to be cheerful, but even more so when it receives new trials like this Friday. Accompanying the update this week is a playable demo of Chronos Twins DX from EnjoyUp. We gave the game a thorough shake and came up with our Chronos Twins DX review, but if you've missed the...
News Europe's FATE is Dated for November 19th
That's a week on Friday, folks
The latest entry in the BIT.TRIP series, BIT.TRIP FATE, is blasting its way to WiiWare next Friday, November 19th. The first out-and-out shooter in the series, FATE still revels in the customary retro aesthetics for which Gaijin Games is now famous. You can read our BIT.TRIP FATE review to get geared up for this one.
News La-Mulana Fails Nintendo Approval Process
Unlikely to make it this year
When we heard that La-Mulana was finished, submitted and out this year we did a little jump for joy at the prospect of playing the underground adventure before 2011 rolls around. Now that seems unlikely, as the game has failed Nintendo's submission process. LA-MULANA was said “No good” by Nintendo, then it has...
