Timeline
Sunday29th Dec 2024
Soapbox Why I Love A Good Map, And That Time I Mapped Yoshi's Melons For Nintendo Power
Worth a thousand words
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, Nathan goes mapping the pixels... What is your greatest video game pet peeve? That one thing that, when present, ruins your experience, no matter how good the game is...
Feature "I Want You To Be Mad" - Crazy Viking Studios On The Brutality Of Volgarr The Viking II
"We didn't have any intention of ever making a sequel"
The original Volgarr The Viking might have flown under a lot of folks' radar when it launched back in 2013, but it's one of those games where if you know, you know. It garnered a solid 8/10 from us when it landed on Switch and it's cultivated a hardcore, dedicated fanbase whose members are...
Poll Box Art Brawl - Duel: Zelda II: The Adventure Of Link
Second innings
Hello everyone, and welcome back to another edition of Box Art Brawl! Last time, Capcom's SNES classic Breath of Fire II was put in the spotlight as North America and Europe joined forces against Japan. It wasn't even remotely close either, as Japan absolutely nailed it with 71% of the vote. Well done! This week, we sifted through...
News NieR:Automata Surpasses Another Sales Milestone, Plans For 2025 Teased
The 15th anniversary takes place next year
Square Enix and PlatinumGames' excellent action-adventure RPG NieR:Automata has reached another lifetime sales milestone - surpassing the nine million mark in total shipments and digital sales. This title originally launched on the PlayStation 4 in 2017 with the Switch 'The End of YoRHa Edition' following...
News Freedom Wars Remastered Japanese Switch Box Art Revealed, Here's A First Look
Update: English language support confirmed
In September, Bandai Namco surprised fans with the announcement of Freedom Wars Remastered for the Nintendo Switch. It will be arriving in January 2025 and is a remaster of Japan Studio's PlayStation Vita exclusive which is celebrating its 10th anniversary. Fans have now been given a first look at the...
News Level-5 CEO Shares Another Update About Its 2025 Switch Game Schedule
The CEO hopes 2025 will be a "breakthrough year"
In October, Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino reconfirmed the Japanese video game company would release three major titles next year. Now, in 4Gamer.net's annual "end-of-year" round up with Japanese creators, he's reassured fans that the same three titles are definitely launching in 2025. Once again, this...
News Nintendo Reveals Japan's "Top 30" Most Downloaded Switch eShop Games Of 2024
Suika Game takes out the top spot
As we approach the end of 2024, Nintendo has revealed the most downloaded Switch eShop games of the year in Japan. As you might expect, the usual titles and series are on there like Minecraft, The Legend of Zelda, Dragon Quest and Monster Hunter. There are also a few surprises, indie representatives and viral...
Saturday28th Dec 2024
Feature The Famicom Failure That Almost Bankrupted HAL, But Shaped Nintendo's Future
HAL be there
Unless you’re a dedicated Famicom collector, it’s unlikely that you’ve heard of Metal Slader Glory. Released right at the tail end of the Famicom’s life in 1991, the year after the release of the Super Famicom, Metal Slader Glory never made it out of Japan, and it proved to be a massive flop for HAL Laboratory. But the very...
Quiz How Well Do You Remember 2024? Nintendo Life's End-Of-Year Gaming Quiz
Q and Eh?
Somehow, December returned. The end of the year is finally upon us, and while we all get to grips with the passage of time, we thought it'd be only right to take a look back over the past 12 months in Nintendo land. Yes, 2024 might not have been quite as jam-packed a year as 2023, but that's not to say we haven't had our fair share of...
Feature How Lemmings, ChuChu Rocket & Nintendo Inspired Unpacking Devs' Next Game
"When you play it, you feel connected, not judged"
Developer Witch Beam isn't ready to rest on its laurels. After creating two wildly different games — the twin-stick shooter Assault Android Cactus and the BAFTA award-winning, heartfelt puzzler Unpacking — it's ready to move back to the outside and go with something even more relaxing. We were...
Feature 'POCA!' Is A Game Boy Camera Photobook Adventure & A Heartfelt Homage To 'Hip' Tanaka
"I feel like I made the book almost for him"
Sitting down to speak with Jonathan Traynor, a Glasgow-based artist and writer, about his newly-released book, POCA!, we were expecting a few things. Y'know the sort of stuff: how the Kickstarter went; where the idea for the book came from; hopes for the future; picks for the Top of the Pops Xmas #1; and...
Talking Point What Are You Playing This Weekend? (New Year Edition)
Looking forward '2' the new year
This is it, folks - our final WAYP feature for 2024. 2025 is going to be a pretty huge year for Nintendo fans, with the likes of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Pokémon Legends: Z-A, Professor Layton and the New World of Steam, and Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition all launching within the coming months. Oh, and...
News Japanese Game Creators Reveal Their "Top 20" Video Games Of 2024
Here's the full list
It's the end of the year and as we round up the best games and all sorts of other interesting facts and figures, Weekly Famitsu's latest issue (released on 26th December 2024) has revealed the "most popular games played in 2024" according to 181 industry figures and "game loving celebrities" in Japan. As explained by Persona...
News Night Slashers: Remake Is Getting A Physical Switch Release In 2025
Japan only, but English language support is included
Following the release of the beat 'em up Night Slashers: Remake in September, a physical release has now been confirmed. The catch is it's Japan only for now. Fortunately, it does include English language support. It's around the $30 USD mark (or your regional equivalent) on sites like Play-Asia...
News Guilty Gear Strive’s Next DLC Character Will Be A Free Update On Switch
Joining Season 4
Back in September, Arc System Works shared a “first in-game look” at Guilty Gear Strive’s next DLC fighter Queen Dizzy. This fighter will be added to the Switch version of the game as part of a “free content” update. Arc System Works confirmed this on social media alongside the news this update is scheduled to arrive on...
News Here's Another Look At Sonic's DC Crossover Comic Series
The Sonic characters become famous superheroes
Update [Tue 24th Sep, 2024 17:45 BST]: Sega and DC Comics have elaborated on their upcoming "partnership" and it involves monthly crossover comics between DC and the Blue Blur. From March 2025, comics penned by Archie Comics writer Ian Flynn will be published all the way through to 2026. These will...
News Final Fantasy Team Wants To Hear Your Thoughts About The Series
Fill out the Final Fantasy questionnaire
The role-playing series Final Fantasy has been going strong for almost 40 years now and with this in mind, Square Enix wants to know how fans feel about the series. To find this out, it's released a “10-15 minute” questionnaire – covering all things Final Fantasy. It’s the usual type of questions...
Friday27th Dec 2024
Soapbox The Trauma Of Giygas & Growing Up In EarthBound
EarthBound turns "adults into kids, and kids into adults"
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, Nile celebrates the innocence of youth, the pain of growing up, and the magic of a cult classic SNES RPG, which celebrates its 30th...
Feature Nintendo Life's Alternative Game Awards 2024
Biggest surprise! Most long-winded title! Crappiest Switch publisher!
The end of 2024 is nigh, but before we get there it's time to look back on what has been a surprisingly chonky year for Switch, software-wise, in the eighth year since we first got our hands on the thing. We've listed our personal Switch GOTYs, you've ranked yours - now it's time...
Nintendo Download 27th December (North America)
It's a quiet one!
The latest Nintendo Download update for North America has arrived (a day later, as many of us at NL were enjoying our Boxing Day leftovers) and it's bringing a handful of new games to the eShop in your region. And, uhhh... it really is a handful. But hey! There's plenty of games on sale in both North America and Europe, so tuck...
Feature Meet Four Developers Making Brand-New Game Boy Titles In 2024
35 years and stronger than ever
The Game Boy turned 35 years old on 21st April 2024. Today, George speaks with four talented individuals keeping the candle burning for the DMG-001 in the 21st century... The humble Game Boy may be turning 35, but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing new to look forward to. Far from it, in fact – the homebrew...
Feature How Can Switch 2 'Fix' The eShop? Devs Share Their Storefront Stories
"It's feast or famine, really"
If you are the proud owner of a Nintendo Switch (and if you're reading this, we'd wager that you are), then it will come as no surprise when we say that the eShop is a wild place in 2024. While gaming may have never been better, Nintendo's storefront has never been worse. Discoverability is a thing of the past with...
News Antonblast Receives Update On Switch With Performance Boost To 60fps
Better late than never
One of our biggest gripes with Antonblast on the Switch was its performance at launch. In our review, we noted that slowdown during more chaotic moments of gameplay can "cheapen the experience enough to be disappointing", which isn't really ideal for a 2D platformer in which speed is a key factor. Thankfully, a new update has...
Japanese Charts What Successor? Switch Hardware Sales Top 100,000
Spare a thought for PS5 and Xbox
Nintendo's gamble to save its 'Switch 2' announcement for the New Year has seemingly paid off - at least in Japan, anyway. Starting with software, Super Mario Party Jamboree has once again topped the boxed charts, selling a further 133,542 copies and inching ever closer to a total of 1 million lifetime sales. Dragon...
Feature Pepper Grinder's Solo Dev Digs Into Scope, Smash Bros. & "Crunchy Feedback"
"I just made a game I always wanted to play"
It might feel like a long time since Pepper Grinder was unearthed for Switch at the November 2022 Indie World Showcase, but it has been even longer for Riv Hester, the game's solo developer at studio Ahr Ech, who first dug up the idea seven years ago. This is Sonic the Hedgehog meets Drill Dozer (by way...
News Sonic X Shadow Generations Full Soundtrack Now Available, Here's Every Song Included
Send out the year of Shadow with a bang
Sonic X Shadow Generations is arguably one of Sonic's best outings ever and if you enjoyed the soundtrack in Shadow's new campaign as much as we did, you might be interested to know Sega has now officially released the entire album on all "major" digital services. This includes sites (and apps) like Spotify,...
News Switch Online's 'Missions And Rewards' Brings Back Previous 2024 Icons
Available for a limited time
Nintendo has released all sorts of icon designs for Switch Online subscribers throughout 2024 and now to wrap things up it's bringing back select designs you might have missed. Like last year, you'll be able to redeem icons for a limited time - with the event running until 14th January 2025. Some of the icons up for...
News Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita's Rewind First Major Update Now Live On Switch
The "online" patch has also been submitted to Nintendo
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita's Rewind made its debut on the Switch last week and it's gone down relatively well so far with critics and fans alike. In saying this, not everything is available on every platform (like online play), but the developers are working on it and have now rolled...
Random Sonic 3's Movie Writers Would Love To Adapt Zelda: Wind Waker To The Big Screen
"We're putting it out there in the world"
There's already a live-action Zelda movie in the works, but beyond this, it's not clear how else this legendary Nintendo series could be adapted to the big screen going forward. Enter Sonic 3 movie writers Pat Casey and Josh Miller - who revealed to IGN in the same interview recently the video games they...
Reminder New Mario Kart And Animal Crossing Lego Sets Launch Next Month
Here's another look
Earlier this year, LEGO announced it was extending its Nintendo range with the addition of a new Mario Kart line and more Animal Crossing sets. Nintendo's Japanese website has now issued a reminder that three new Animal Crossing sets and six new Mario Kart sets will be launching on 1st January 2025. The six Mario Kart sets...
Thursday26th Dec 2024
Feature Can We Track Down Every Cart In Our Top 50 Game Boy List In One Week?
Collection Quest GB
The Game Boy turned 35 years old on 21st April 2024. Today, George goes on an epic quest to see if he can acquire the 50 finest GB games — as ranked by you — in physical form with just 100 pounds sterling in his pocket... I’ve been enjoying something of a love affair with the Game Boy recently – or more specifically,...
Feature Meet The Three Brothers Making Their Dream 'Secret Of Mana'-Inspired RPG
"We want to make one of the most accessible and playable RPGs of all time"
Couch co-op and JRPG are two genres you don't often see together. Secret of Mana is one of the earliest examples of the genre, with most of the Tales of series also allowing fans to play together while sitting side-by-side. But outside of those examples, playing JRPGs with...
Feature "It's Fun, So It's Okay!" - Celebrating Takashi Tezuka's Astonishing 40-Year Nintendo Career
A look back at a glittering catalogue
Takashi Tezuka seems like a good laugh, the kind of chap who knows how to have fun. Despite all the Master-Sword-waving and PR-related hijinx from fellow Nintendo luminary Shigeru Miyamoto over the years, you still get the impression he's merciless in the workplace — an exacting, intimidating,...
Feature Open Your Drawers - An Ode To Rummaging Through Houses In RPGs
Tea leaf!
Strolling down the road in a brand new, unfamiliar town, taking in the sights, you stop in front of a pleasant-looking house. Lovely big oak door, ruby red slate tiles, stone brickwork stained by sunlight and mud. It's quaint and cosy, the idyllic village house, perhaps home to a young mother who's just returned home from the local item...
Feature Evolving With Pokémon: How The Games Helped Me Navigate A Confused Childhood
This coping mechanism was super effective!
The Game Boy turned 35 years old on 21st April 2024. Today, Tim thinks back on how Pocket Monsters came to his aid in his formative years, and how the series that started on Nintendo's iconic portable would stay beside him in the years that followed. Pokémon is a clockwork franchise. Its cyclical...
Feature The Best Hidden Gems And Underrated Switch Games Of 2024
Some shinies that may have slipped through your fingers
2024. It was a bit of an odd one for Switch, with the impending announcement of Nintendo's follow-up console. It never materialised, but its shadow has been looming over the entire year. Still, if there hasn't been an absolute avalanche of games to dig into! Nintendo had many first-party...
Feature Why Play Final Fantasy VII Remake When You Could Play FFVII 'Demake'?
"more than just pirate versions"
You’re probably aware of Square Enix’s lengthy and somewhat lavish efforts to remake the 1997 game Final Fantasy VII. The second instalment of this ambitious remake, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, was released just recently, and we’re still likely to be years away from any sort of conclusion. But you might not be...
Soapbox 20 Years On, Pikmin 2's Waterwraith Remains Nintendo's Scariest Moment
H2Oh no
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, Jim is reliving a childhood trauma to mark Pikmin 2's 20th anniversary... To the casual observer, Pikmin must seem like a pretty relaxed experience. Everything is colourful. The characters...
Wednesday25th Dec 2024
The sweat, the tears, the evil babies
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of Mario Kart 8, George enlisted a troupe of willing racers (at least that's what he told us) to tackle every single track in the upgraded, DLC-laden Deluxe version in a local four-player blowout to end them all. What follows is a twisting tale of glory and grief, friendship...
Soapbox Vanillaware's Most Underrated Game Is More Than Just A Pretty Picture
Deserving of a Rebirth
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, Alana is talking about a Vanillaware oldie — Muramasa: The Demon Blade, a Wii title that is celebrating its 15th anniversary. And, in the wake of 13 Sentinels and Unicorn...
Feature Meet Morphcat Games, The New-Gen NES Devs Pushing The 8-Bit Envelope
"No one has come close to exhausting its full capabilities"
Four decades after it became an international sales phenomenon and dominated a crowded games market, the Nintendo Entertainment System – the 8-bit box that gave birth to some of the medium’s biggest enduring franchises – today finds itself playing host to something else entirely: new...
"Tackle life with as much energy as Goku! I'll try to do the same!"
It's impossible to overstate the impact of Akira Toriyama, the legendary manga artist and character designer who has been working in the manga industry since 1978. His death at 68 years old has thousands around the world mourning his loss. Toriyama was, to me, comfort on sick days...
Mailbox Festive Wishes, Remaster Hype, DSi Love - Nintendo Life Letters (Holiday Edition)
Issue #19 - December 2024
Ho ho holy moly, it's Christmas already!? Welcome, welcome - come on in and take the weight off! Grab a mug of warm cocoa, pull up a chair, and join us as we open up the Nintendo Life Mailbox for the holidays. Got something you want to get off your chest? We're ready and waiting to read about your game-related ponderings,...
Retro revival
For many younger gamers, the idea that Atari was once the undisputed king of console gaming might seem somewhat farfetched. Yet in the late '70s and early '80s, the gaming giant dominated the market with the Atari 2600, introducing audiences to the likes of Adventure, Yars' Revenge, and Haunted House. However, after a wave of...
Guide Best Nintendo Switch Games Of 2024
The finest Switch games of 2024
Despite its advancing years, Nintendo's hybrid handheld showed that it wasn't going quietly into that good night in 2024, at least where great games were concerned. Nintendo's first-party output was mainly helmed by partner studios in 2024. with plenty of HD remakes and remasters in the mix. However, Switch did play...
Talking Point As A Nintendo Fan, Do You Really Need To Play The Virtual Boy?
Oh boy
It’s Christmas morning, and amidst the thick haze of food already cooking for lunch and the soothing laughter of our children enjoying their new toys, my wife approaches me with a small, square package. I hadn’t seen this under the tree. “That’s your last one,” she says. I instinctively go to shake it – she knows me well enough to...
Editorial Merry Christmas And Happy Holidays From All Of Us At Nintendo Life
Put your arms around the world, it's Switchmas time
Season's Greetings to one and all! The 25th of December has crept up on us once more with its promise of sugary treats, hot and cold meats, papery hats and glittery tat... and, of course, video games. It's been a slow but steady year for Nintendo lovers as Switch winds down and everyone eyes The...
Tuesday24th Dec 2024
"At the initial idea stage, we collected over 1,000 ideas"
While the Super Mario series can get quite weird with its lore, world design, and general concepts, nothing comes close to the sheer absurdity of the WarioWare franchise. How many games out there let you pick someone's nose, perform dental work, and have a back-scratching competition with...
Soapbox Tricks Of The Trade-In - Chronicles Of An Ex-GAME Employee
Skylanders, disc burns, and lethal charity boxes
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, Ollie reflects on just some of the eventful episodes from his days working in video game retail... When news hit that GAME, the UK’s last...
Opinion Nightdive Studios Had Its Best, Most Prolific Year Yet In 2024
And it can only get better
For the younger readers amongst you, I suspect that many 3D games from the ‘90s and ‘00s seem rather quaint at best and downright unplayable at worst. It was a period in which the medium was geting to grips with a completely new third dimension; couple this with the limited graphical capabilities of the PlayStation and...
