Nintendo

Netflix Hits the 3DS Today, 3D Movies On the Way

Starting today, Nintendo 3DS owners across the United States and Canada can download a free application that allows Netflix members to watch TV episodes and movies streaming from Netflix with an Internet connection. The 3DS will also also soon have access to “an additional library of select movies” that can be viewed in 3D, Nintendo…

By Brian Crecente Published July 14, 2011

Lady Goes Bananas over Zelda Commercial Appearance

Robin Williams and his daughter are in a commercial for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D. They both were probably pretty stoked, but did they go mental? Like this? This is nerd heroine and Pokémon queen Shoko Nakagawa, who previously freaked out on her blog when she bought Ocarina of Time 3D. Now…

By Brian Ashcraft Published July 14, 2011

It’s Minecraft, (Sort of) Running On the Nintendo DS

A DS homebrew developer by the name of smealum is taking indie smash Minecraft and bringing it to Nintendo’s portable system. Unofficially, of course. At this stage there’s not much running but the world itself and the ability to smash blocks around, but it’s a start! Hopefully he can get some other stuff, like random…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 14, 2011

The Horror of Mario’s Enemies

It’s a good thing the early Mario games were so low-fi. If they’d shown your enemies in as high a resolution as they appear here, we’d have all been crapping our childhood pants. These, uh, interpretations of some of Mario’s foes were drawn by Mike Puncekar. Some of them, like Lakitu, are just cool. But…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 14, 2011

Mario Robs Banks, Waves the Union Jack for Proper English

I thought I knew Mario, but I was wrong. Apparently Mario robs banks, dresses up like a cowboy and crushes koopas while waving the Union Jack. But why would Mario do such things? To teach English of course. Super Mario: Super Englisch is an officially licensed Mario themed German to English dictionary published in 1993…

By Sam Winstrom Published July 13, 2011

Nintendo Video for the 3DS Looks Like This

Today in Japan, Nintendo’s latest video service, Nintendo Video, went live on the 3DS. If you were wondering what the programming looked like, well, have a gander. Exploding ballons!

By Brian Ashcraft Published July 13, 2011

Nintendo Fans, This is Way Sexier Than a Petition or Letter

Hey, Nintendo. If you won’t take heed of polite letters and emails from fans asking for Japanese games to be localised, maybe listen to this guy instead. I’m a big supporter of Operation Rainfall. But even if I weren’t, I’d still listen to this. Hell, I’d pay to listen to this guy read the phone…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 13, 2011

There Are Unexpected Problems Bringing Old Games to the 3DS

Nintendo has a “3D Classics” range on its 3DS, where it takes old games and gives them a 3D makeover. Sounds great in theory, but in execution, the company is having some problems. “In the original version, the game unfolds on a flat surface” says Nintendo’s Takao Nakano, speaking about the attempts to bring Xevious…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 13, 2011

The New Zelda Didn’t Make Me Angry, Not a Bit

It has come to my attention that people get angry about Zelda video games. This should have been obvious. People can be angry about anything, and I do recall some anger when the bad-ass Zelda game shown by Nintendo in 2000 turned into a Zelda that looked like a children’s cartoon. (And was excellent, by…

By Stephen Totilo Published July 12, 2011

These Are the Very Best Pokémon Trainers in the United States

/> After two straight days of fierce competition, 24 Pokémon trainers have been chosen to represent the United States in the 2011 Pokémon Video Game World Championships. Behold our best hope for 2011 Pokémon domination! It all went down at the 2011 Pokémon Video Game U.S. National Championships in Indianapolis, Indiana this weekend. The top…

By Mike Fahey Published July 12, 2011

Remembering the Little Game Boy That Could, But Only Just

Commenter GiantBoyDetective seems like an off person to be picking up the tiny little Game Boy Advance Nintendo completely killed with the release of the DS, but he’s pretty huge, so we’ll let him have his say in today’s Speak Up on Kotaku. Let’s suggest some GBA games! Looking back I realize that the Game…

By Mike Fahey Published July 12, 2011

The Wii’s Last Great RPG Gets an Early Mark

Wii RPG Xenoblade Chronicles, originally not due out in Europe until September, is having its release slid up not by a few days, but by a few weeks. It’ll now be out on August 19. Developed by Monolith, Xenoblade Chronicles was released in Japan last year. There are currently no plans for a North American…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 12, 2011

Don’t Expect the Latest BioShock on Wii U Anytime Soon

Despite appearing on stage at E3 to talk up the Wii U, BioShock designer Ken Levine has now told IGN this about the console: “Just to be clear, there are no plans. I’m not saying it can’t happen, but we have no plans to do any games for that platform.” Oh. [IGN]

By Brian Ashcraft Published July 12, 2011

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Portal Gun

Proving once again that everything plays better when you add Portal, the folks at Dorkly arm Zelda’s hero with a little cutting-edge tech, courtesy of Aperture Science. The ensuing madness knocks the pig right out of Ganon.

By Mike Fahey Published July 11, 2011

The Pea Shooters and Samurai of the Wii’s Rhythm Heaven

We checked out the upcoming Wii version of music-infused Rhythm Heaven at E3, but we weren’t able to let you listen to it because it’s was so loud. This time around we’re in the relative quiet of Nintendo’s New York offices, where Stephen Totilo tried his hand at stabbing peas with a fork and slicing…

By Brian Crecente Published July 11, 2011

Nintendo Actually Delivers on European 3DS Video Service

Nintendo’s 3D video service for the 3DS goes live in Europe on July 13 joining Japan with region specific content. Meanwhile, there is still no solid release date for America, though it is scheduled for this summer.

By Sam Winstrom Published July 11, 2011

What Happens When a Stupid Person Burns a DS Lite?

We’ve already seen some idiots deep fry a PSP and then try to eat it. Now, let’s look at photos taken by—I assume—a less stupid person. Less stupid, only because he doesn’t try to actually eat the burnt DS Lite, but still pretty stupid! Burning electronics is never a good idea, considering the toxins released…

By Brian Ashcraft Published July 11, 2011

CultureTotal Recall

In 1983, Donkey Kong Nearly Died

As we celebrate what’s (probably? maybe?) Donkey Kong’s 30th birthday, let’s today take a look at the 1983 court case which nearly brought a premature end to Nintendo’s big ape. Our story begins in 1982, with the first of many idiotic decisions made by Universal Studios. The studio’s president at the time, Sid Sheinberg, had…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 11, 2011

Donkey Kong Turned 30 Yesterday—or Did He?

Researching the exact birthday for a tribute to the 30th birthday of Donkey Kong, Patrick Scott Patterson of the Arcade Examiner came up with conflicting information. Absent official word from Nintendo, he thinks the big ape—and therefore Mario (né Jumpan)—turned 30 yesterday, July 9. “Some sources specifically state the date as July 9, 1981,” Patterson…

By Owen Good Published July 10, 2011