Earlier this week when Nintendo was counting down the days until the release of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on the Switch, it revealed a previously unpublished augmented reality card for the 2012 3DS release, Kid Icarus: Uprising.
If it got you wondering about a potential comeback, think again. During an interview with Edge Magazine (as transcribed by Nintendo Everything), the game’s creator Masahiro Sakurai touched on the revival of this classic Nintendo series and said a modern port of the 3DS entry would likely not be possible:
“As a game in general, it’s rich in content and enjoyable, and people have even asked for a modern port. However I don’t think this will be possible.”
Sakurai reflected on the development cycle of the 3DS title, explaining how difficult he found the entire experience to be:
“I could say that this was close to becoming the most difficult project in my entire career, both in terms of the team and the hardware. The team I had gathered differed greatly in culture and ways of thinking, so there was always confrontation. In addition, back when we were developing the game, we still couldn’t make full use of the power of Nintendo 3DS. Some improvements in aspects such as the middleware were made later on, but since the game was being made in the initial stages of Nintendo 3DS development, we had a really hard time doing what we wanted to.”
Way back in 2012, a few months after the release of Uprising on the 3DS, Sakurai ruled out a sequel to this game. When IGN asked if the now disbanded Project Sora had created a “lasting universe” the team could return to, the creator of the Super Smash Bros. series replied with the following comment:
“If by ‘lasting universe’ you mean to ask if there’s a sequel, the answer is no.”
The reason behind this was because Sakurai felt the novelty of the experience would likely “grow thin” in future entries. This was his final thought:
“For now, my thought is that perhaps we’ll see someone else besides me make another Kid Icarus in another 25 years.”
Are you disappointed to hear Uprising likely won’t be revived for the modern hardware generation? Would you like to see a future entry in the Kid Icarus series? Did you enjoy Sakurai’s 3DS revival? Tell us below.
As regular readers will know, every weekend we post a write-up of the games Team Nintendo Life will be playing in our spare time. As you’ll also likely know, this week saw the release of a pretty major Nintendo game, and you can probably guess where this week’s entries are headed. So, please accept our apologies for the incredibly obvious games we’ve picked this time around, and feel free to join in with our poll and comment sections below. Enjoy!
Jon Cousins, Japan correspondent
All gathered ’round the TV, a brisk winter evening. Tournaments. brackets. You all know the setup. Choose your character, strength and weakness. No do-overs, second chances and definitely no Johns. Snatching victory from the jaws of defeat, last-second heroics or one silly mistake. The victor, the spoils, the should have, could have, or would have been. On the outside its all for fun but deep down we yearn, crave and long for glory. There’s no use hiding it. This weekend I will be playing… Wii Sports Tennis.
Ryan Craddock, staff writer
This weekend – as I’m sure we’ll all agree – is an utterly glorious one, and one that I’ll be using to finally scratch an itch I’ve had for the last few months. As gaming fans, most of us will be familiar with that excited feeling of waiting for the post to arrive, or that moment when cash exchanges hands at the store checkout, and you can finally hold that precious game you’ve been waiting for.
From its incredible collection of characters to its gorgeous design, and from its multiplayer perfection to its amazing amiibo implementation, this game really has it all and I can’t wait to get stuck in. That’s right folks, the game I’ll be playing all weekend – and for weeks to come, I’m sure – is Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival.
Gavin Lane, contributing writer
With so many fantastic options, picking what to play should be a toughie, but this weekend there’s really no competition. The mere whisper of the title is sure to evoke strong emotions and unforgettable memories in any loyal Nintendo fan. The multiplayer fun it’s given gamers over the years is incalculable; it’s one of those rare games that absolutely anyone can pick up and play, and it’s been an internet favourite ever since that E3 reveal set tongues wagging. Yep, apologies to be ‘Captain Obvious’ but this weekend I’ll be firing up an absolute doozy – you guessed it! – Wii Music. Whaddagame!
Austin Voigt, contributing writer
This weekend, I’ll be getting my Nintendo Versus gaming ON with one of the Switch’s biggest crossovers! The only other version of this game that I’ve experienced was on 3DS, so I am pumped to get back into this series with HD graphics & new stages to battle it out on. The most exciting thing I’m looking forward to is the competitive multiplayer action, so I can knock all of my friends around a bit as well. The improved graphics and technical performance are just icing on the cake. I honestly don’t think I’ll need any other games on the Switch, ever. This one completes me. Well, see ya on the Aqua Moto Racing Utopia leaderboards, suckers!
Liam Doolan, news reporter
My main for many years now has been Link. Out of all the Nintendo characters, in my opinion, he’s always been the most all-round fighter there is. That trademark spin-attack, the unlimited bombs he has at his disposal and his trusty bow and arrows always deliver the final blow – not to mention the fact he’s saved the land of Hyrule on multiple occasions over the past few decades. How could you not be impressed? That’s why this weekend, I’ll be defeating evil in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Link’s grandest adventure yet. He’s my hero of all-time and always will be.
Steve Bowling, US editor
What am I playing? Same thing as everyone else, obviously! I’ll be grabbing some friends, gathering around the screen for the same intense, pulse-pounding experience as the rest of you. My heart races just thinking of the crazy, chaotic rounds I’ll be running this weekend. I’ve been waiting so long for this moment. I just hope nobody snags my main since I’m a little possessive. I can’t wait to take it to the competition with Bishnu in Astro Bears Party!
…What?
Gonçalo Lopes, contributing writer
Since there are no major Switch game releases this week (ahem) I have decided to put mine away and hook up my trusty Nintendo 64 instead. I’ve had this craving for some smashing action for a while now so I dug up one of my all-time favourite fighting games on the system. That’s right, you probably have already guessed which game I’m talking about since there weren’t that many to begin with: Flying Dragon!
Developed by Culture Brain and part of the Hiryū no Ken series, this little gem was rightfully described by N64 Magazine as “our very own Tekken”. It was no easy feat to keep the charming nature of the super-deformed 2D sprites but they pulled it off. And if someone is giving you lip because the SD characters look too immature, just switch to ‘Virtual’ mode and the roster turns into realistically proportioned humans. It has aged rather well and this is how I will blissfully be spending this weekend.
Alan Lopez, contributing writer
When I originally read that they were adding even more models to an already robust lineup, I had to stop and ask myself how any one video game could ever get this big. Honestly, how do they fit it all inside that cartridge?
I mean, sure, the Pasaat line is a given, and the Jettas were a strong likelihood, but the attention to detail to surprise announce both the Scirocco and Golf Mk lines of Volkswagens displays such a love for fan sentiment, there’s no doubt in my mind Beetle Adventure Racing! is the greatest franchise-based video game ever made. Finding all the branching paths and crashing into each crate will definitely be taking up my entire weekend. There’s no guarantees the weekend after that is safe either.
And did I mention my friend let me borrow his rumble pack? I’m stoked. “Das Auto” is now DAS game.
Which games are you playing this weekend? (110 votes)
As always, thanks for reading! Normal Talking Point service will resume next weekend – we hope you enjoyed our silly ramblings for this one-off special!
Make sure to leave a vote in the poll above and a comment below with your gaming choices over the next few days…
Nintendo’s free-to-play mobile release Fire Emblem Heroes has experienced a significant slump in player spending last month. According to Sensor Tower Store Intelligence data, the game only reached around 66 percent of its average monthly earnings in November. Since arriving on mobile platforms in February 2017, Heroes has raked in $21 million per month, whereas this November was down to $13.8 million worldwide. That’s a decrease of roughly 19 percent year-over-year.
Sensor Tower links this decline in player spending to the release of Dragalia Lost, which was launched in September. Nintendo’s new free-to-play mobile release, developed by Cygames, has manged to outperform Fire Emblem in both October and November. Just recently it surpassed $50 million in player spending after 70 days. It’s quite an impressive feat for a game that is currently only available in five select territories compared to one that has been released in 43 locations.
The revenue for Fire Emblem Heroes in November predominantly came from Japan – which accounted for close to 60 percent in terms of player spending. 28 percent of this spending came from the US. To date, the game is estimated to have grossed $465 million worldwide across the App Store and Google Play.
Did you spend any money on Fire Emblem Heroes in the month of November? Have you played or downloaded Dragalia Lost? Tell us below.
Annapurna Interactive is bringing Ben Esposito’s Donut County to the Nintendo Switch on 18th December.
In Donut County, you take control of a hole in the ground that won’t stop growing. This is a story-based physics puzzle-game where you meet cute characters, steal their trash and then throw them into a hole. Here’s the story behind the hole:
Raccoons have taken over Donut County with remote-controlled trash-stealing holes. You play as BK, a hole-driving raccoon who swallows up his friends and their homes to earn idiotic prizes. When BK falls into one of his own holes, he’s confronted by his best friend Mira and the residents of Donut County, who are all stuck 999 feet underground… and they demand answers!
In this game you can explore every character’s home, catapult things back out of the hole, devour everything in sight, and combine objects for crazy effects. Take a look at the above trailer to see what this game is all about.
Will you be downloading this one on release? Tell us below.
US software developer Niantic launched Ingress Prime in November – a rework of its original augmented reality mobile game. At the time, the company said it was hoping the newer features in the game could eventually carry across to Pokémon GO. One feature in particular was the new prestige system, allowing players to roll back to level one and gain unique benefits.
Since its chat with Eurogamer, Niantic has been interviewed by German press about the future plans for GO. Once again, the question about raising the cap beyond level 40 was raised. On this occasion, the developer said it currently had no plans to adjust or raise the current level cap, despite the fact more and more players were reaching this in-game milestone by the day. Hopefully a system similar to the prestige one is added at some point in the near future.
Would you like to see the level cap in GO raised? Are you still playing this game? Have you revisited it since the release of Let’s Go? Tell us below.
You may have noticed over the past few weeks that to celebrate the launch of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on Nintendo Switch we’re hosting a live tournament dubbed “Smash Battles Live” from the Loading Bar in London.
Don’t you hate it when you are just minding your own business and then a huge angry mole kidnaps your sweetheart? This is the dilemma that Diggerman finds himself in, and his solution, of course, is to dig.
Forever Entertainment will be bringing this arcade-style game to the Switch just in time for Christmas, it lands on 24th December, and while we have no news on pricing yet, but we expect it to be quite affordable.
Here is more information about the game:
Diggerman is an ultimate digging experience introducing brand new arcade mechanics.
The world was beautiful some time ago. We lived together in our lovely cottage digging some mud every day. Suddenly everything has changed. HUGE ANGRY MOLE has come and kidnapped my beautiful sweetheart.
Will you support me? Will you dig with me and help me save my beloved?
Watch out for rolling stones, spikes, spider nets, TNTs, lava, and bats!
Let’s dig together, let’s find some treasures, let’s put them on the ground and make some money!
Let us know if you fancy a bit of Diggerman action later this month with a comment below.
It is the year 2087, and hostile forces are causing chaos all over the galaxy, but that’s where the Galaxy Warriors come in, a mech-piloting team of five with a variety of weapons at their disposal. The plan? “I would suggest flying to the right and blowing up everything” comments one character. Stardust Galaxy Warriors: Stellar Climax is not a game that takes itself too seriously and other conversations will include the cost of a fourth wall and how “the most experimental” battle mech is probably the one that has been stolen because, well, that’s just what tends to happen.
This is all good fun, but luckily the game has more to offer than an awareness of its own ridiculousness. It’s a solid shooter with plenty of options for tackling your quest due to its levelling system and a range of abilities. There’s no online play, but it does offer four-player local co-op. As well as the main quest, there are a few different game modes and achievements to aim for, should you wish.
There are ten missions in the game, each divided into three levels. While these aren’t jaw-droppingly impressive in a visual sense, there are some good details and a selection of sights on offer. The space-based missions manage to look distinct from each other, due to asteroids or glowing colour, while one sees you in a planet’s orbit. You’ll also be visiting planets and here you find blue waters (proceeding an underwater mission) and an alien landscape comprised of claw-like rocks and huge mushroom shapes. The streaky “Hyperspace” stage is a simple but effective environment, while the 3D backdrops to other stages have a good sense of depth to them.
You have primary and secondary weapons, a sword (useful for overhead enemies) and a special ability, plus another useful attack that charges up over time. Slashing swords, whooshing rockets, lasers and a variety of other attacks come from the player characters, whilst the enemies chip in with moves of their own. Amongst other things, bullets of different colours rain and spiral across the screen, making for a quite hypnotic kaleidoscope of action that remarkably remains easy to follow thanks to distinct designs and a good use of colour. This is organised chaos.
Occasionally, missiles and projectiles from the drones you can collect look similar to those from the current crop of enemies. Potentially this can lead to damage from a missile that, contrary to your initial impression, wasn’t actually one of yours. Still, the game runs smoothly for the most part, with exceptions being some of the larger bosses where there is a small, but noticeable pause when they arrive on the scene.
Some boss and sub-boss encounters are wacky affairs, with one “blast from the past” bunch providing a neat spin on Space Invaders. Another features a revenge subplot, while others are large constructions requiring plenty of hits to destroy and also requiring you to dart about the screen avoiding the multitude of dangers fired in your direction.
The audio impresses with a bunch of zings, pops and roaring flames from the weapons as well as explosions and the impact sounds when attacked; these are crunchier when they get through your shields. Backing the action is an electronic soundtrack that offers quite a range of tracks, one seeming using Street Fighter II as a jumping-off point, another the classic rock band Queen. Sometimes mysterious, other times intense, part space adventure, part night out at a rave, these tracks work very well with the on-screen action.
Said on-screen action consists of blasting (or maybe slashing) a number of different enemy types into oblivion. There are various ship designs and sizes. Some of the smaller ones are quite nippy, while others will turn to decrease their hit-box size. The larger craft (which can be much larger) are harder to miss, but naturally, take a greater number of hits to dispose of. You have a regenerating shield, but so do some of the enemies that can cause trouble if you don’t break down that protection quickly. As well as ships, you’ll be battling bug and snake-like creatures and contending with laser beams, sometimes just a barrier, other times rotating and in both instances threatening to shred your mech to pieces.
Prior to each mission, you get to pick your character. There’s five on offer and as well as visual differences, each possesses a couple of unique abilities. Their special moves (available at any time) include a dash move that also doubles as a useful evasion technique, a melee attack that can restore your own armour and an absorbing ability to draw in enemy fire which can then be repurposed to unleash a charged blast.
In addition to this, each character has “Distortion tech” that charges up as you play. Some characters can then unleash another weapon attack such as a bomb blast or a missile barrage, but one character can briefly slow down time, whilst another can make all players temporarily invulnerable. There are options for your standard weapons too, with seven primary weapons including the likes of rapid-fire, shotgun-like and triple shot. The secondary weapon is more of a missile attack and again, there are seven options including homing missiles and a devastating, but less accurate attack.
With all these different attacks, armour and auto-recharging shields, you might expect the game to be a pushover, but you can easily be overwhelmed by enemies should you fail to use the right technique at the right time. Additionally, larger groups and more powerful attackers increase in number the further you get into the game.
Off-setting this somewhat is the game’s levelling system. After each of the first two levels, you get to choose an attribute to level-up. There are three to choose from, offering various weapon and defence buffs, with the specific options varying each time. After the third level of the missions, you are approached by a junk merchant who will sell you further upgrades using the credit accrued during gameplay. There’s a greater range available (although these too rotate) and this includes some additional items, like the one which will increase your armour at the expense of a speed nerf.
How you choose to upgrade is up to you, so you could level everything relatively equally, but if you avoid bullets like big companies avoid tax, maybe you could ignore defensive upgrades in favour of beefing up your destructive firepower.
Finding an upgrade strategy that works for you is useful, but it doesn’t remove the challenge from the game. You however can. This is a game that can be tough, but it is one that developer Dreamloop Games is keen for players to experience all the way through. Consequently, there are two difficulties below the default: “cadet” and “Sunday stroll” to make it a bit easier by lowering enemy health and fire rate. You can also create your own custom settings if you’re still struggling, adjusting bullet speeds, hitboxes, respawn rates and much more. You can, of course, also use this to increase the difficulty or craft your own challenges, with the game including a few presets of its own for you to try out.
Whether playing through for the first time, tackling it with friends or replaying to try things a different way and/or hunt for achievements, it’s a lot of fun, but there’s also some other modes to sink your teeth in to. “Gauntlet” and “Strike” are both endless survival modes of increasing difficulty (the latter offers upgrades) where you simply hope to survive as long as possible and rack up a high score. This offers great replay value, although sadly there’s no online leaderboard.
“Challenge” meanwhile has five multi-level pre-designed challenges (no adjustable difficulty) that can feature a focus on evasion or speed. Naturally, there’s a Boss challenge, while the “Battle Square Challenge” is an eight-stage affair that throws in a random handicap with each round, such as reducing your shields or slowing down your movement.
We reviewed the original BittBoy some time ago and found it to be a perfectly likeable – if legally questionable – handheld system. Now, the company behind it is releasing a successor, and while it retains the same basic design, there are a few extra features worth noting (and no, it’s no less dubious from a legal perspective).
This time around, the New BittBoy (for that is its name) supports MicroSD cards, which presumably means you can load up more (ahem) ‘games’. The console can play NES, Game Boy and Game Boy Color titles, and even has save state functionality.
Fashioned from ABS plastic and boasting measurements of 6.8×9.9×1.3cm, the BittBoy has a 2.4-inch IPS screen and a 3.5mm headphone socket. It’s all powered by a rechargeable 700mAh battery and for those times when you fancy the big-screen experience, there’s a TV-out option.
You can pre-order one of these right now for $39.99, which is a $20 saving on the typical price. Orders are expected to ship between the 15th and 20th December, so you’d better get in quick if you want one; once Soulja Boy hears about it, he’ll no doubt buy up all the stock and rechristen it the ‘SouljaBoy’.
PvP is finally coming to Pokémon GO, a feature fans have been desperate for since it launched back in 2016. When it launches later this month, you’ll be able to challenge friends and strangers alike to see who has the most powerful Pokémon. Do so and you’ll earn a bunch of new rewards and probably have a bunch of fun in the process.
In this guide, we’re going to explain how PvP works in Pokémon GO and what you can get for doing it. We’ll also provide a few tips and tricks here and there to help you have a much better time.
How to Challenge Someone to a PvP Battle in Pokémon GO
It’s actually surprisingly easy to initiate a battle against a nearby opponent. All you have to do is hit the button on the bottom right of your map screen (the one beneath the research tasks button) and choose the ‘Battle’ tab.
You’ll then see the nearby players that you can battle. To initiate one, simply get your opponent to scan your QR code and you’re good to go.
If you’re either Ultra or Best Friends with your opponent, you don’t even have to be near them. That’s just one of the many perks of having friends, we guess!
Feeling shy? You can get some practice in against the leaders of Team Valor, Mystic, and Instinct instead. That way you can try out strategies before you test your skills against a real player.
How PvP battles work in Pokémon GO
PvP battles are quite different from the gym and raid battles you’ve experienced so far in Pokémon GO. You pick three Pokémon, rather than the traditional six, and you can swap between them mid-battle at any point.
Battles remain rooted in real time though, which is good news, and you still hammer the screen to attack, unleashing your charge move when it’s, erm, charged. Speaking of charge moves, you now have two of them, opening up a lot more options in attack.
You have to unlock this second charge move on a Pokémon, when it will be selected from the pool of available moves. It costs Candy to do so, but not a lot. This feature will eventually roll out to gym and raid battles, too.
However, the big new change is Protect Shields, which you can deploy at any moment to temporarily defend against the most powerful Pokémon or attacks. You only have a limited number of these though, so you can’t just spam them and walk away with a victory.
PvP battles take place in a variety of different leagues too, including the Great, Ultra, and Master leagues. Aside from the Master, each league has a CP cap so you can’t just use your most powerful Pokémon and wipe the floor with everyone. Instead, you have to be smart and pick a Pokémon that you think will dominate the league with that CP cap in mind.
Finally, battles are timed, with the winner being the trainer with the most Pokémon left at the beginning of the battle if neither loses all Pokémon during the battle. If the number is equal, the trainer with the most HP left will win the battle instead.
What Rewards do you get for Participating in PvP in Pokémon GO?
Whether you win or lose, participate in a PvP battle in Pokémon GO and you’ll earn some Stardust and get a chance at an evolution item or Sinnoh Stone.
You can only get these rewards three times per day from PvP though, and only once if played against one of the AI team leaders. Of course, you’ll also make progress in the Ace Trainer medal track.
Have you been enjoying PvP battles in Pokémon GO? What’s your favourite feature? Do you have any requests for future features? Let us know in the comments section below.
