Category: Nintendo News

It’s the final North American Nintendo Download Update of 2017, but with most businesses still enjoying the Holidays it’s a much quieter line-up than we’ve seen in recent times. That’s not to say there aren’t some extremely tempting options, with the Switch doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Let’s get to it.

Switch eShop

SteamWorld Heist: Ultimate Edition (Image & Form, $19.99USD) – A fantastic title that previously graced the 3DS and Wii U, it offers a twist for the series with turn-based strategy that’s combined with manual shooting and skillshots. It’s unique and an excellent game all around, with this Switch version including all of the previous DLC; we sang its praises in our SteamWorld Heist: Ultimate Edition review.

Arcade Archives VS. Super Mario Bros. (HAMSTER, $7.99USD) – The latest ‘Arcade Archives’ Nintendo release, this brings the arcade spin of the NES classic into our homes. Fewer Warp Pipes means you can’t warp your way to the end as easily as in the original, there are also less power-up blocks and more enemy placements. In addition you’ll find six new levels that were unique to the arcade before later being reused in Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels. We enjoyed this in our VS. Super Mario Bros. review.

Guns, Gore & Cannoli (Crazy Monkey, $9.99USD) – Ideal for ‘shooting zombie freaks on the go’, this run and gun title is set in a comedic and highly stylished take on 1920s America. You play as mobster wise guys and shoot everything in sight; it’s fun if a little repetitive, as we explain in our Guns, Gore & Cannoli review.

Woodle Tree Adventures (ChubbyPixel, $4.99USD) – Described as an ‘old school platform game’ with eight worlds to take on, it goes for a bright and cheery look for its 3D platforming. We’ll see whether it’s worth picking up in a review.

The King of Fighters ’96 (HAMSTER, $7.99USD) – The third entry in SNK’s lead fighting series saw some major improvements, namely the ability to fake smaller jumps, a perfect way to trick your opponents and avoid committing your fighter to a precarious situation. You can also charge up your POW bar and execute dodge rolls, nice touches and quite different for the time; naturally this ACA release will have the usual extra options and goodies, too.

Switch eShop Demo

Mighty Gunvolt Burst (Inti Creates, free)

3DS eShop

Style Savvy: Styling Star (Nintendo, $39.99USD) – For fans of fashion, modelling or just cutely stylised games about clothes, this series is often hard to resist. This latest entry has some new tricks and styles to show off, and we loved it in our review. 

3DS eShop Demo

Mighty Gunvolt Burst (Inti Creates, free)

As always Nintendo of America wants you to browse the eShop and check out the official sales and deals website for discount details.

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That’s it for this week – let us know what you’ll be downloading in the poll and comments below.

Way back in September, some rather nosy hackers discovered a treasure hidden in Switch’s base code – an emulation of Golf, an old NES sports sim – leading many to assume it was a quiet tribute to the late, great Ninty president Satoru Iwata. Considering Iwata himself helped code the game back in the ’80s, and that it could only be accessed on 11 July (the day he sadly passed away), it always seemed odd that Nintendo never officially confirmed what was plainly obvious to everyone else.

Well, looks like the big N has just as quietly removed the game – codenamed FLOG – from Switch’s hardware. A group of hackers ran a recent check and it looks like the emulation was wiped following the latest firmware update (4.0.0).

So sad faces all round. It also puts a slight damper on hopes that the presence of FLOG could signal plans for a rollout of NES titles on Switch, much like Virtual Console’s presence elsewhere.

Did you manage to play FLOG before it was nixed? Do you think Ninty will ever bring NES titles to Switch, and if so which ones would you love to see? Drop your thoughts below…  

Lots of noise has been made by fans over the years about the “official” Zelda timeline. It seems that each game release is accompanied by a lengthy and meandering discussion over where it sits in the bigger picture, and some of the games are rather hard to pin down. The matter isn’t helped by the fact that the timeline has three individual branches, which adds even more confusion and chaos to it all. The most recent release, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, sometimes seems like it was almost made to screw up the timeline; several references to other games are made, but the details don’t really line up.

In an interview about this with Gamesradar, Hideomaro Fujibayashi shared his opinion on the timeline, saying this:

I wouldn’t say that we’re not concerned with the timeline. It’s obviously something that we know is very important to people, and they do a lot of research on. But I think at this point, we’re not really at the stage where we want to talk about where Breath of the Wild is in the timeline. I think, as with the pixelated food, it’s something that at this point we want to leave up to people’s imaginations.

Following up with similar thoughts was Eiji Aonuma, who had this to say:

We published a book with the timeline, but we definitely got comments from users saying, ‘Is this really accurate? I think this should be this way. It’s different.’ And history is always kind of imaginative. It’s left to the person who writes the book. So that’s how we approach it as well. It’s not necessarily that we come up with a game and think, ‘Oh, this is where it fits in the timeline.’ Honestly, lately, we’re kind of scared to say exactly where things are in the timeline for that reason. But we like to leave things to the imagination most of the time.

What do you think? Do you care about the Zelda timeline? Where do you think Breath of the Wild fits in? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

One of the better eShop releases of this past summer was Mighty Gunvolt Burst, the follow up to a popular tie-in game for the original release of Azure Striker Gunvolt. At the time, Mega Man 11 hadn’t been announced yet, and Mighty Gunvolt Burst stood as a worthy heir to the Blue Bomber’s legacy. At launch, the game was already fantastic, but it only improved in the months following with some DLC additions.

Inti Creates will be releasing three new DLC characters tomorrow, following on from the Ekoro DLC that came this summer. Ray from Mighty No. 9, Copen from Azure Striker Gunvolt, and Kurona from Gal*Gun 2 will be added in, each costing $1.99. Check out the official trailer below:

What do you think? Will you be getting any of these characters? What did you think of Mighty Gunvolt Burst? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

The Nintendo Switch has, overall, had a wonderfully successful 2017. Like any new device on the market, however, there have been some issues of varying scopes, one of which has been the ‘Switch tax’, in which some retail games on the system carry higher price tags.

It’s a topic we explored in detail, learning that part of the issue is around the costs of proprietary cartridges used in the Switch. Publishers have to order them from Nintendo, and at present cartridges up to 32GB are available – however, the more capacity they have the higher the price, so in some cases publishers get smaller cartridges and force mandatory downloads on consumers. One example is L.A. Noire, published by Rockstar – the game is 27.4GB on the eShop, and if you buy the retail version there’s a mandatory 13.1GB download (on our EU copy), so logic suggests (give or take some space for practical concerns) the publisher opted for a batch of 16GB carts from Nintendo in order to maximise the profit off each sale.

Beyond that, however, some publishers willing to spend more on the highest capacity Switch media may still find 32GB isn’t enough, especially in this era of enormous game downloads on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. There’ll be disappointment, then, if a report by The Wall Street Journal (paywall) is accurate.

The report cites “people familiar with the matter” to say that Nintendo has pushed back the roll-out of bigger 64GB capacity cartridges. Originally planned for the second half of 2018, Nintendo has apparently informed major partners that they’ll now arrive in 2019, as it aims to resolve technical issues and ensure high levels of quality in the final media.

How much will this affect Nintendo? It may prompt some publishers with particularly sizeable games (in terms of file size) to reconsider release windows, but due to the nature of the hardware we’d suggest it’ll be a minority of games that require that size of card. As various examples have also shown, publishers aren’t shy of buying smaller capacity media and forcing gamers to download the rest, in any case.

Time will tell on whether this delay, if the report is indeed accurate, has much of an impact on any third-party releases on the Switch.

In this series of features Nintendo Life contributors will share thoughts on their most memorable games of 2017. This entry by upcoming site editor Dom Roseigh-Lincoln focuses on the high profile port of DOOM to Nintendo Switch. 

If you’d have sidled up to me six months ago and whispered in my ear that one of my favourite games of 2017 would be a port of a 2016 shooter I’d have recoiled at that blatant invasion of my personal space, then cracked a wry smile at your fictitious hot take. DOOM? On Switch? In a port that isn’t just good, but great? You’re having a laugh, mate.

Well, let’s just say I’ve put on about a stone of weight with the amount of humble pie I’ve eaten in the last month because Bethesda and Panic Button did something seemingly impossible with that id Software reboot. Not only did they get the entirety of DOOM’s gloriously violent single-player campaign on Switch, they made it look disturbingly good, too. Sure, it’s not going to give PS4 or Xbox One any sleepless nights in the visuals department, but bar a few simplified textures and less dynamic lighting its an impressive feat of developmental alchemy.

It’s hardly been gutted either. Every level, in its full glory, can be enjoyed on Switch, so you snap demon necks and stomp on their heads as Doomguy just as it was originally intended. Sure, not having the map editor does take some of the sheen off an otherwise impressive package, but retaining its two cores modes – including the latter’s full online functionality – cements Switch as a fine place for any shooter to call home.

Then there’s the multiplayer. Oh, the multiplayer! It’s this mode that takes the biggest hit when it comes to graphics, but we knew this would be the case so it’s hardly a killing blow. Much like the classic, sprint-fast days of Unreal Tournament and Quake III Arena, DOOM’s online deathmatches move at such breakneck speeds that there’s no way Switch’s hardware is going to be able to load textures as fast as you’re running and blowing other players into gore with a Super Shotgun.

But here’s the thing: it doesn’t matter. With only the occasional amount of slowdown, that sacrifice is ultimately worth it. Being able to leap into TDM, Warpath or any of its other familiar yet addictive modes from the comfort of your sofa, bed or toilet is a unit-shifting selling point in itself. It’s proof positive that twitch-style shooters can work on Switch without relying on bucket loads of paint and skater boi fashion choices.

Add in a new challenge system for unlocking new armour for your death-dealing avatar – a setup far superior to the one in place on other platforms – and you’ve got one of the best ways to mooch about online in Switch’s current lineup of games. Even if you’re terrible at shooters, you’re still not going to struggle for long. This isn’t about precision – part of DOOM’s grisly charm is its run, gun and run again formula that turns every firefight into a bullet-trading joust.

So yeah, I love this damnable thing a lot, that much is obvious, but I guarantee you’ll only need to spend a few minutes in its mad-eyed company to realise you love it too. As a vanguard for the future of FPS on Switch, DOOM is the perfect candidate for the job. Bold, brutal and baptised in buckets of blood. And on a Nintendo console, no less.