Nintendo

Nintendo’s First Mobile Game Is Called Miitomo, Out In 2016

Today in Japan, Nintendo announced its first smartphone game. It’s a free-to-play title and called Miitomo. “Tomo” refers to “friend” in Japanese. According to The Wall Street Journal, Nintendo said that the app is ideal for players who are reluctant to reveal things about themselves or talk to others. In Miitomo, each player first makes…

Nintendo Introduces a New Account System

Say hello to what’s being called “Nintendo Account.” Today in Tokyo, Nintendo unveiled its new account system, which will connect smartphones, PCs, and Nintendo hardware. Users will be able to make accounts via Twitter, Google Plus, and Facebook, Nintendo Network ID or email. With your Nintendo Account, you’ll also get info and even freebies for…

You can stop tweeting “Direct” at Nintendo now—new CEO Tatsumi Kimishima says the company still plans to put on their video marketing presentations, with at least one Nintendo Direct to come by the end of 2015

HTC have gone and made a documentary series about pro Smash Bros. players. The first episode is pretty good!

Mario Maker Is Getting A Big New Update

Nintendo’s sending a big new patch down Mario Maker alley next week, adding checkpoints and more complicated power-ups among other features. On November 4, when the patch goes live for Nintendo’s wonderful new level creator, you’ll be able to add checkpoint flags to your level (by shaking the arrow sign in the editor). You’ll also…

The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes: The Kotaku Review

You might suspect that The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes is skippable, an inessential spinoff that is more time-killer than legendary adventure. You would be… correct. The newest Zelda, out now for 3DS, is an unnecessary, forgettable installment in a series that usually maintains way higher standards. Even compared to other weak Zeldas like…

Guy Beats Ocarina of Time While Blindfolded

Runnerguy2489 showed us already during AGDQ 2015 that he’s no stranger to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time by playing the first three dungeons with a blindfold on. Now he completed the entire game, Water Temple included, with the same method. It took him around 103 hours to beat it, but even watching the…

Fans Are Thirsty For A New Nintendo Direct

Right now, fans are taking to social media to beg Nintendo with a single word. “Direct.” It’s all over Twitter. You see it whenever Nintendo posts something new. It doesn’t matter what the subject is. From posts about Splatoon to images of the new Zelda, people are either asking about Directs, wondering about Directs, or…

A Guide To The New Zelda‘s Confusing Multiplayer Options

The multiplayer options Zelda: Tri Force Heroes, which is out today for 3DS, can be a little confusing. We’re here to help. I’ve played around ten hours of the game so far, and it’s pretty safe to say Tri Force Heroes can be fun—especially with other people—but it’s totally skippable. As you might expect from…

Mario Maker? No, This Is Zelda Maker

It’s unofficial as hell, and Nintendo are probably in the process of nuking it from space, but for now you can totally download this Legend Of Zelda maker and start making your own version of a Zelda game. Hurray! We covered this in September, when the project was in its infancy, but now it’s been…

Nintendo: “We Need To Go Deeper”

Spotted by Tiny Cartridge, from an Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer trailer that was pulled shortly after being published.

PSA: Fatal Frame Might Not Fit On Your Wii U

Since I normally play one game at a time on my Wii U, I’m used to deleting games. Investing in an external HD for my every-so-often console seems goofy. But I almost reconsidered this decision when downloading Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water, which takes up a whopping 15GB, and it’s an eShop only game.…

Losing My Mind In A Mario Maker Level Designed To Troll Me

I’ve spent four days banging my head against a Mario Maker stage called Hypercube. Full of misdirection, false pipe gods, and music notes, it’s (mostly) a clever stage. Eventually, starved of solutions, I broke my rules and used the editor to learn what was going on. What I found made me do a spit-take. Anyone…

Nintendo just showed off these five new 3DS skins due for release (in Japan at least) in November. The Animal Crossing and Super Mario Maker ones are particularly yespleasey.

This November, Nintendo is releasing “Mario hanafuda” cards in Japan. Previously, they released Super Mario character-themedhanafuda cards via Club Nintendo (R.I.P.). These latest sets are priced at 2,500 yen (US$21).

Players Are Bending And Breaking Mario Maker, And The Results Are Amazing

Mario Maker gets a bad rap: according to popular opinion, it’s just a repository of terrible Super Mario levels. This misconception, however, ignores the burgeoning scene of inventive designers who are turning Mario Maker into something that inspires awe and wonder. Honestly, some of the things people are coming up with seem like they should…

The Banned Pokémon Episode That Gave Children Seizures

On December 16, 1997, an episode of the then-unstoppable Pokémon animated series was broadcast in Japan. Barely thirty minutes later, nearly 700 children were on their way to hospital. Total Recall is a look back at the history of video games through their characters, franchises, developers and trends. The episode, called “Electric Soldier Porygon”, is…

A New World Record For Beating Super Mario Bros. As Fast As Possible

I invite you to feast your eyes on an expert playthrough of the original Super Mario Bros. Somehow, a speedrunner known as Darbian manages to blaze through the old-school classic in whopping 4:57.627. To put this into context: the last world record for the “any percentage” clearance of Super Mario Bros. was 4:57.69. That was…

Why The Latest Number One Mario Maker Course Is Such Garbage

Here, captured in a three second GIF, is the entirety of the current top-rated Mario Maker course. It’s hilariously bad. How in the world did it climb the ranks, then? The answer is in the course title, which is written in Japanese: It says “I will play the courses of everyone who likes this,” according…

World’s Best Smash Bros. Player Loses, Ending 53-Tournament Streak

Gonzalo “Zer0” Barrios, a Smash Bros. Wii U player so good that he hadn’t lost a tournament in over 50 attempts (and had a “bounty” on his head), finally lost a tournament this weekend. At the MLG Finals, Zer0 went down 3-2, 3-1 to Nairoby “Nairo” Quezada. You can see it go down below (the…