Nintendo

The Designer Of The NES Dishes The Dirt On Nintendo’s Early Days

When discussing Nintendo’s rise as a digital dreamsmith in the ‘80s, game designers like Shigeru Miyamoto and Gunpei Yokoi get most of the limelight. But it was the hardware designed by Masayuki Uemura that served up their fantasies to millions around the globe. I spent 2019 criss-crossing Japan researching my book Pure Invention: How Japan’s…

Buggy Switch Game Pulled After Using Zelda Music Without Permission

On July 2, open-world game Final Sword was released on the Japanese Nintendo eShop. Players soon noticed something familiar. The background music sounded like “Zelda’s Lullaby.” Have a listen for yourself. Compare to “Zelda’s Lullaby.” According to Automaton, Final Sword has been removed from the eShop after using Zelda music without permission.  HUP Games, Final…

We Are Now Entering The “Animal Crossing Buttplug” Stage Of 2020

A lot of people around the world, especially in the US, are still stuck at home, away from friends and loved ones. Out of this isolation new ways of keeping in touch have emerged, including…buttplugs and vibrators that can sync with Animal Crossing and vibrate whenever the player swings a shovel. As Vice report, Kyle…

Cicadas And Beetles Invade Animal Crossing: New Horizons Today

Today is the beginning of July, when swarms of cicadas, bunches of big beetles, and schools of new fish start showing up on Northern Hemisphere islands in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Nets up, people. Growing up, cicadas were one of the sure signs of summer. The massive bastards would start showing up on trees around…

The Real-Life Go-Karting Company Nintendo Sued Didn’t Meet Crowdfunding Goal

A crowdfunding site was launched in Japan to support the karting company Nintendo sued for intellectual property infringement. The global pandemic has significantly affected the Japanese tourism industry, impacting the rental kart company, which was previously called Maricar. Earlier this year, the company was ordered to pay Nintendo 50 million yen ($458,000) for violating the…

Min Min Kicks Off Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s Second DLC Pass With A Helluva Punch

Min Min ruined my Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and I’m completely fine with it. Before yesterday, my character selection screen was the picture of perfect symmetry—a six-row rectangle featuring mustachioed plumbers, space-faring canines, and one question mark, but mostly just Fire Emblem characters. Now, the screen looks like this: It’s a total affront to the…

Nintendo President Apologizes For Joy-Con Trouble

During a recent financial Q&A, Nintendo finally apologized for issues caused by Joy-Cons but will not comment further due to the current class-action lawsuit. Players have been dealing with what’s called Joy-Con drift as Kotaku previously reported, stating how it was becoming a real problem. Last year, a class-action lawsuit was filed with Nintendo accused of…

If One Nintendo Switch Cooling Fan Isn’t Enough, Here Are Two

Earlier this year, Kotaku introduced a USB-connected fan to help chill things down during Japan’s notoriously hot summers. Now, here’s a USD peripheral is not one, but two fans. How cool is that? This reikyaku (“cooling”) charging grip from Japan’s Thanko. Unlike the single USB-fan, the Switch is housed in a cradle and can recharge…

Universal Studios Japan’s Super Nintendo World Delayed Due To Covid-19

This summer, Universal Studios Japan’s Super Nintendo World was slated to open. As Kotaku has previously reported, the park is coming along nicely. However, due to the novel coronavirus, the Mario-themed area will not open. The state of emergency has been lifted in Japan, and USJ re-opened on June 8. Visitors, however, have been restricted,…

Shakedown: Hawaii Is Being Released On The Wii And Wii U This Summer

The original Nintendo Wii was launched all the way back in 2006. And now, 14 years later, indie developer Vblank Entertainment is releasing Shakedown: Hawaii on the old console and also bringing the game to the WiiU too. The Wii port of Shakedown: Hawaii is being released only in Europe while the Wii U port…

Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ Summer Update Will Let You Go Swimming

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is getting a free summer update on July 3 that will add swimming, diving, and a bunch of new furniture to transform your house into a mermaid grotto. Nintendo revealed the update in a trailer this morning that shows the player diving for treasure and chatting with another villager they find…

Here’s a first look at The War of Genesis: Remnants of Gray, a remake for the first War of Genesis games, for the Nintendo Switch. Developed by ReG Studio, it will be released in South Korea in 2022. No word yet on an international release! (Thanks Sang, for the tip!)

Pokémon Café Mix Is Nothing New, But It Sure Is Cute

I’ve played many free mobile games that function almost exactly like Pokémon Café Mix, but none that prominently feature a super-adorable Charmander who I would follow anywhere and give my life to defend. Available now on Switch, Google Play, and iTunes, Pokémon Café Mix is a Disney Tsum Tsum or Yo-Kai Watch Wibble Wobble style…

Fans Just Gave Super Smash Bros. Melee Cutting-Edge Online Multiplayer

Super Smash Bros. Melee refuses to die. Over 18 years after it first arrived on GameCube, it continues to draw massive crowds at tournaments across the globe and enthrall both newcomers and veterans with its lightning-fast, execution-heavy gameplay. Thanks to a new fan project, this popular fighting game finally has what it was always missing:…

Let’s Check Out Masahiro Sakurai’s Living Room!

With more people working from home due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, we have gotten a window into all sorts of folks’ homes. This time, it’s Masahiro Sakurai! Yesterday, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate director Masahiro Sakurai revealed that Min Min from ARMS was joining the fray. This time, though, Sakurai filmed the announcement himself from…

Smash Bros. Ultimate Is Getting A Small Crossover With Fallout

Vault Boy is coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, but not as a fighter. On June 29, the Fallout mascot will become available as a Mii Fighter costume for $0.75. Vault Boy is classified as a Gunner, meaning he’s slower than his Brawler and Swordfighter counterparts but a bit more versatile. Most of his attacks…

Min Min From Arms Will Be The Next Smash Bros. Fighter

We knew the next Super Smash Bros. Ultimate fighter would be a character from ARMS. We just didn’t know who. Today, while broadcasting from his home, Masahiro Sakurai announced the new fighter for Nintendo’s crowd-pleasing crossover fighting game: Min Min. True to her source material, Min Min isn’t a great close-combat fighter. Her standard attacks…

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate’s next fighter will be revealed in a 35-minute video that Nintendo will post online at 10 a.m. ET on Monday morning, the company announced this morning We know the character will be from Nintendo’s fighting game Arms, but we don’t know which one.

I’m Loving Pokémon Sword And Shield’s First Expansion So Far

Just a few hours in, I’m already enjoying Pokémon Sword and Shield’s Isle of Armor DLC more than the base game. While much smaller in size, it feels more free flowing and open ended. There’s a lot to explore, and plenty more Pokémon to catch, including a bunch of my favorites that didn’t make the…

Pokémon Gets A New Puzzle Game And A Toothbrushing App

In non-Pokémon Snap news, this morning’s YouTube presentation from The Pokémon Company also revealed free-to-start puzzle game Pokémon Café Mix and Pokémon Smile, a mobile app meant to help children brush their teeth. Launching on June 23 on Switch, iOS, and Android, Pokémon Café Mixis a match puzzle game in which players complete orders in…