Category: Nintendo News

Yesterday, Nicalis announced the platform / RPG crossover Save me Mr Tako: Tasukete Tako-San would be released on the Switch eShop on 30th October. In a recent interview with GoNintendo, the game’s developer Christophe Galati spoke about the possibility of a physical release:

There’s always hope! Personally, it would be a dream come true, but it’s not something I can decide myself. If lots of people play and enjoy the digital version after it releases, I suppose anything is possible!

He also spoke about the title’s unique Game Boy-like aesthetics and how he respected the limitations of the classic system:

The game mimics a Game Boy experience, but it respects some of the limitations too. For example, there’s the classic four-color palette, there is no sprite scaling or rotation and the music in the game was made on a tracker. But, the resolution is bigger than the original Game Boy (you can choose between playing in 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratio), there are more sprites displayed on the screen and the fourth audio channel doesn’t stop when playing sound effects. I chose to modernize some of the aspects in the game so that it would provide an enjoyable experience for new players, not just those who grew up with the Game Boy.

For many designers, pixel art is an aesthetic in itself and the Game Boy look is all about the four-color palette. But, it’s not only about the colors; you can still have an artistic direction with those constraints and make your game stand out and be noticed amongst other games that have the same limitations. I spent months trying to finalize my own art direction, which is reminiscent of the symbols, shapes and animations of the sprite works of this era, but I also wanted the look to feel fresh and new. To achieve the right mood, I also had to try to think like the developers from the Game Boy era in all aspects of the design.

Are you looking forward to Save me Mr Tako: Tasukute Tako-San? Would you like to see a physical release? Will you be supporting the eShop version for this reason? Tell us in the comments.

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• by Liam Doolan
• 8 hours ago

At the end of September, a listing on Nintendo’s website popped up, revealing the all-new team battle game Johnny Turbo’s Arcade: Heavy Burger would be arriving on the Switch eShop in early October.

The originally scheduled date for the game’s launch has since passed and there’s no sign of Johnny’s latest title. Flying Tiger Entertainment has now released a trailer and tweet confirming the multiplayer game – where you blast your way through an array of 1980’s Data East arcade machines – is coming soon.

If the game’s Steam release on 18th October is anything to go by, the Switch release should be at some point later this month as well. Below are the full details about the title:

1-4 Players can battle against time-honored characters in a nostalgia-inducing collage of retro set-pieces from BurgerTime, Karate Champ, Lock ‘N Chase, Heavy Barrel, Side Pocket, and Bad Dudes!

Play as Peter Pepper, the burger-boppin’ hero of Burger Time! He’s not your classic little chef anymore. Wield shotguns, laser rifles, pistols, and machine guns as you lay waste to your opponents in a desperate tug-of-war to THE BANK! Snag the prized MONEY BAG as you release hoards of prisoners while leaping over bottomless pits in the Heavy Burger arena.

Battle the grenade-tossing Green Men from Heavy Barrel as they blast through reinforced steel onto the cliffside fortress. Dodge over hundreds of rounds as tanks and turrets pepper the battlefield.

Shoot explosive pool balls at your friends in a level inspired by Side Pocket. Sink ‘em all for an extra dose of chaos!

Crush your enemies under the enormous weight of falling burger pieces while blasting Pickles, Eggs, and Hot Dogs in the BurgerTime arena.

Navigate a procedurally-generated and fully destructible maze while running from cops, dodging explosive cars, and collecting major coin in the Lock ‘N Chase level.

Dodge mad charging bulls, high flying kicks, and a discerning judge’s eye in the Karate Champ arena. Watch the crowd roar as you pummel your opponents.

Skirt through heavy traffic, roundhouse kicks, and flaming ninjas as you speed boost to your final destination, THE BANK, in the Bad Dudes arena. Deposit that coin with the help of President bank manager Ronnie himself. Take a free ride in his chopper and bask in the glory of HEAVY BURGER MADNESS on the White House lawn.

Have you been waiting for Heavy Burger to arrive on the Switch eShop? Do you like the look of it based on the trailer above? Tell us below.

As the next part of its Prescription for Sleep: Game Music Lullabies series, Scarlet Moon Records has revealed ‘Prescription for Sleep: Celeste’ – an album of lullaby-style renditions based on the game’s soundtrack. To celebrate, we’re happy to exclusively share a preview of one of the album’s tracks, ‘Madeline and Theo’.

The album has been co-produced by Celeste composer Lena Raine, featuring a stellar lineup of composers from the gaming world in support. Violinist Maiko has joined GENTLE LOVE – a duo comprised of Metal Gear Solid/Bayonetta series composer Norihiko Hibino on saxophone and Etrian Odyssey/Persona Q pianist AYAKI, performing music from the game in a “jazzy lullaby style” to let you relax and drift off to sleep.

Without further ado, let’s share the exclusive look at ‘Madeline and Theo’. Check out this preview video below.

The album is available to pre-order right now from Bandcamp as a digital release, and you can also find a limited edition physical CD including foil print, comics, and stickers from the very same store page. If you want to learn more about this series of albums – which features works dedicated to Secret of Mana and Undertale, a compilation of battle themes turned into lullabies, and even a charity EP in honour of late Nintendo President Satoru Iwata – you can find more information on the official website.

Before you go, though, make sure to let us know what you think of the track preview, and whether or not you might treat yourself to a copy of the album in the comments below.

With Super Mario Party finally gracing our Switch consoles after its release last week, we imagine there are countless parties and gatherings taking place around the world with friends and family getting together to play minigames, squabble over character selections, and shout at each other for the entire evening.

If this happens to be you, you might want to take advantage of these My Nintendo reward offerings. The North American version of the site has listed printable party hats and Super Mario Party dice to dot around your home for your party hosting endeavours. The hats can be obtained by trading in 30 of your Platinum Points (which can instantly be found by accessing the website) and the dice is completely free.

You can find each item via the links below.

If you live in a different region but still want to get your hands on the items, simply create a North American Nintendo account with a new, separate email address to your normal account. This way, you can access the North American rewards.

Will you be spicing things up with a decorative Mario party? Let us know with a comment below.

Wherever you look, and whichever current gaming platform you own, there’s a wealth of retro Sega content to sink your teeth into at the click of a button. From the recent launch of the Sega AGES line on Switch and the Sega Mega Drive Classics collection on all major consoles (Switch coming soon), to the Sega Forever service on iOS and Android and the upcoming Sega Mega Drive Mini, players are spoilt for choice when it comes to their favourite nostalgic hits.

With so many options available – which, let’s face it, is in complete contrast to Nintendo’s current lack of Virtual Console on Switch – it’s easy to wonder what goes on in the minds of those pulling the strings at the house of the blue blur. Is it all an elaborate plan to dominate every system available, or is it simply a case of experimenting to see where sales can be found?

Speaking to GamesIndustry.biz, responding to questions about the company’s retro strategies, Sega Europe SVP of commercial publishing John Clark reveals that it’s actually a bit of both.

“It’s looking for viable routes to service the community and really trying to figure out the best way to bring the right content at the right time on the right platform. “There is a thought process that goes behind it. At times, it can be opportunistic as well as strategic. Sometimes it’s joined up and sometimes it’s less joined up.”

Clark goes on to note that Sega is a “diverse and open” organisation, supporting initiatives that may come from a local level as well as grand initiatives on a much more, traditionally business-minded strategic level.

“When you see the patterns, the different variety of ways our retro content is released, it’s as much a grand strategy as it is localised initiatives. It’s incredible working with an organization that supports both.”

For any Sega fans in the room, have you been happy with how the company’s legacy content has been handled in recent years? Would you like to see anything different from Sega going forward? Feel free to share your thoughts below.

• 
• by Ryan Craddock
• 18 hours ago

Nintendo has revealed the Nintendo Labo contest winners for Australia and New Zealand. Three entrants won, and due to the exceptionally high quality of the finalists in the teens/adult category, there was an “unprecedented” first-place tie between the Toy-Con Marionette and the life-size Master Cycle Zero modelled on the bike from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Below are the winners’ video entries:

Elephant Marble Game – Category: Kids

Jamie, New Zealand

Entrant’s description: “I created my own Toy-Con, get all five marbles in the hoop to win.”

Developers’ comment: “You’ve done an excellent job inventing this marble game with Toy-Con! The elephant was a great idea and makes the game really appealing to look at! You’ve done a great job using the different Joy-Con features: the IR sensor to detect whether the marbles went into the elephant, and HD Rumble to first release the marbles from the dispenser. Your idea to throw marbles into the back of the elephant is novel and we’d love to try it out ourselves!”

Toy-Con Marionette – Category: Teens / Adults

Nathan, Australia

Entrant’s description: “I am submitting a Toy-Con creation I’m calling the “Toy-Con Marionette”. This Toy-Con works as a puppet you manipulate with wires with a Joy-Con in each of the puppet’s hand to detect hand movement, and a Joy-Con R inside its head to detect when its mouth moves. It is painted to look like everyone’s favourite moustachioed mascot because I couldn’t resist the pun. To demonstrate the functionality of the Toy-Con Marionette, I created a simple dancing game and singing game in Toy-Con Garage. To play the dancing game, you move each of the hands to match one of three positions that is generated pseudo-randomly. The singing game uses the position of the puppet’s right hand to control the pitch and the movement of its mouth flap to control the volume.”

Developers’ comment: “Combining a marionette with Joy-Con to create an entirely new controller is a novel idea and looks incredibly fun! You haven’t just made a game that detects the movements of the Mario-nette, you’ve even made a second one that detects the opening & closing of the mouth too, to create not one, but two games where you match the movements to what’s on screen. It’s fantastic! You’ve made superb use of the IR sensors and produced a masterpiece that truly captures the spirit of Nintendo LABO. We’re also really taken with your naming sense too!”

Master Cycle Zero – Category: Teens / Adults

Jordan, Australia

Entrant’s description: “I am submitting a custom decorated Motorbike Joy-Con. The Toy-Con is a 1:1 replica of the Master Cycle Zero from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The player can sit on the bike and play Mario Kart 8 Deluxe using the base functionality of the Motorbike Toy-Con. I was inspired to build it when I saw both the Master Cycle Zero and Labo Support added to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Thanks to the sturdy frame, the Toy-Con can be ridden, and the player can play Mario Kart 8 in Labo mode. In order to get the scale of the bike right, I took screenshots from my Switch and blew them up to a 1:1 scale. From there I cut out pieces and used them as reference art, similarly to how real 3D models are made for games. The whole process took over 100 hours to build, and I loved every second of it.”

Developers’ comment: “We were completely blown away by the sheer scale, complexity, and faithfulness of this life-size reproduction of the Master Cycle Zero. If that wasn’t enough, it has a headlight, and even includes a customised Toy-Con Motorbike, so you can ride exactly the same motorbike in-game too! We’d love to take it for a spin!!”

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Developers’ comment regarding the tie in the Teens/Adults category: “We were very impressed with a number of the finalists and the quality of their entries in the Teens/Adults category for Nintendo Labo Creators Contest AUNZ, and spent a long time determining an overall winner. It was so much fun to go through all of them, but quite tough to decide on the winner. After careful consideration however, we decided the first prize winner in this category to be a draw between the Toy-Con Marionette and Master Cycle Zero.”

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Congratulations to all of the winners, with each one taking home a special Nintendo Labo themed Switch. Tell us in the comments what you think about these amazing creations.

Last year, Californian publisher Nicalis announced the platform / RPG crossover Save me Mr Tako: Tasukete Tako-San was headed to the Nintendo Switch. The title channeling old-school releases started development way back in 2014 and was designed as a tribute to the original Game Boy. Nicalis has now revealed the eShop version will arrive on 30th October.

The game is about a world at war that is occupied by humans and octopi. Mr Tako is a helpful octopus who is one day given special powers after a heroic act – allowing him to survive on land. It’s now his duty to resolve the ongoing conflict between humans and octopi. To achieve this, Mr Tako will have to solve puzzles, explore dungeons and fight tough bosses.

Here’s a bit more about the game courtesy of Gematsu:

• Six worlds to explore.
• 50 different hats that Mr Tako can acquire and wear to gain special abilities.
• Extensive character dialogue with many unique and memorable NPCs.
• Side quests, puzzles, mini-games and 16 different dungeons to explore.
• Multiple player-selectable palettes to change the game’s color scheme.

Are you excited to hear this Game Boy-inspired title is finally on the way? Will you be picking it up on release? Tell us below.