Nintendo

Nintendo’s Satoru Iwata said there’s no new hardware for 2013. Instead, they will work at making amazing software.

How GameStop’s 500,000-Strong Wii U Wait List Number Became 320,000 Sales

Back in mid-November, just before the Wii U was released, mega gaming chain GameStop said they had some 500,000 people on a waiting list to get the Wii U. That sounded great. Last week, GameStop told investors that, through November and December, the mega chain sold 320,000 Wii U’s. Readers don’t need us to inform…

The Miiverse: A Place For Weird Questions, Weirder Answers.

The Miiverse is a place for amazing art and devoted fandom. It’s also an outlet for off-topic questions nobody has thought to ask, and bizarre topics nobody had thought to bring up elsewhere. Today’s Miiverse Moment is a look at some of the weirder off-topic and random statements that get thrown around on Nintendo’s social…

The 480th Argument Against Locking Content in Video Games

Many years ago, someone decided that games would be more fun if you couldn’t play all of them right away. Want to race on all the tracks of a racing game? Beat the easy ones to unlock the cooler ones. Want to fight as every fighter in a fighting game? Play a while and unlock…

This Pokémon Nerd Hero Is Way Good at Drawing

One of my favorite things is watching people draw. I’m not very good at drawing, but there’s something relaxing about watching people who are. Late last year, Japanese celeb Shoko Nakagawa appeared on a variety program and was able to show off how talented she is at art (and how other celebrities aren’t!). Nakagawa, who…

Nintendo Power Is Gone, But Nintendo Magazines Live On

Nintendo Power magazine may have released its final issue late last year, but the spirit of the publication lives on with Nintendo Force, a very shiny, very new magazine that’s hoping to take its place. Featuring writers from sites like 1UP, IGN and Destructoid, it’s got a very nice cover (note the subtle NES cartridge…

How a Phony Pikachu Trolled Japanese Twitter Users

Shortly after Nintendo revealed the newest Pokémon, Pocket Monsters X/Y, the above image started circulating on Twitter. “This seems to be an image of the evolved Pikachu from the new Pokémon,” the tweet read. Another image of this evolved Pikachu, which was apparently named “Kaenchu” (カエンチュ), also started making its way around the internet in…

This Nerdy Explanation for Pokémon X/Y Might Blow Your Mind [Update]

At first look, the titles for the new Pokémon, Pocket Monsters X and Pocket Monsters Y, sound like its creators are out of ideas. They sound like a joke—no wonder why they were perhaps suggested as such in 2008. But dig a little deeper (way deeper!), and things get interesting What if X and Y…

It’s Too Bad This Awesome Fire Emblem-Themed 3DS Isn’t An XL

On one hand, this Fire Emblem-themed 3DS (already out in Japan, and coming to North America soon) is gorgeous and classy as hell. On the other hand, there’s a significantly better model available Seriously, if this baby was a 3DS XL, I’d pre-order it right now. Come on, Nintendo!

Of Course The Internet Is Awash with Pokémon X/Y Fan Art

Newly announced Pokémon X/Y isn’t even a week old. Heck, it’s not even half a week old. But the internet makes it seem like the game is a thousand years old. Sites like DeviantArt as well as numerous Tumblr blogs are awash with Pokémon X/Y fan art. Here’s a very small sampling of what’s out…

If There Was a Pokémon Game On The Wii U, It Might Look Like This

There’s never been a proper Pokémon game on a home console. For reasons Nintendo have long stuck to. But hey, it’s the internet, let’s imagine that they broke with tradition, and announced a massive new Pokémon adventure for the Wii U. What could it look like? Maybe something like this. Environment artist Evan Liaw (who…

Tell Us Your Favorite Zelda Music

Few video game series have music as iconic as The Legend of Zelda. Over sixteen years and more than a dozen games, Koji Kondo’s memorable themes have been transposed, re-arranged, and re-imagined countless times. Each game in the series has its own musical identity, and each player has his or her own favorite song. What’s…

Cats Live Like Humans and Dinosaurs Make Great Pets in This Week’s Nintendo Download

You like to live on the edge of urban animal husbandry. No domesticated felines or canines for you. It’s all ferrets, dingoes and boa constrictors in your often-raided abode. But even those species of barely tame fauna aren’t enough. You want to laugh in extinction’s face. You need… dinosaurs. One of the weirder games in…

The Titles Pokémon X/Y Were Predicted in 2008. Maybe as a Joke.

Think back to 2008. That September, Pokémon Platinum, an enhanced version of Pokémon Diamond/Pearl, hit shops in Japan. Yet, people online made one sort of accurate prediction—and one very accurate prediction. People? Sorry, I meant soothsayers. On Yahoo! Japan’s questions section, someone asked what people thought the next Pocket Monster installment would be titled. Then,…

Work for Nintendo and People Will Want To Marry You (Apparently!)

A new Japanese poll of 500 men and women between 20 and 39 years old revealed that the most desirable company a prospective partner could work for was Nintendo. According to website Business Media, Japanese airline ANA came in at second place. Third was (very successful) scale maker Tanita, followed by Google and Apple. Those…

Those Two New Legendary Pokémon Have Names, You Know

Spied at the end of the announcement trailer yesterday, two new Pokémon in the upcoming Pokémon X and Y have been confirmed as the game’s Legendary Pokémon and named. The Pokémon company has included a handy pronunciation guide. The one at left above is Xerneas. Say its name like this: “ZURR-nee-us.” The one at right?…

To Train This Charizard Action Figure, You Don’t Need Badges. You Need Money.

While you might come up short with badges to train Charizard, you probably have enough cashola to do that. Slated for an April release, the fully poseable action figure is priced at ¥3,990 (US$46)—though, I’ve seen it priced at around $30 online in Japan. The Charizard figure is part of Bandai’s D-Arts line of action…

Well, Excuse Me, Princess Zelda Cosplay

Zelda is more than a damsel in distress. She’s more the namesake of The Legend of Zelda games. For fans, the magic-wielding princess is one of the most iconic Nintendo characters. Hence, all this cosplay! Above is a sample of some—not all—of the best Zelda cosplay from the bowels of internet. The above gallery focuses…

Why The First Truly “New” Pokémon Game In Ages Is On 3DS, And Not Wii U

A Pokémon game that looks new? Amazing. If you’re wondering why the company chose to release a 3D Pokémon adventure on a handheld, though, and not the Wii U, there’s a simple answer. Well, a simple answer that’s different from “because we’ve only ever released main Pokémon games on a handheld”. In an interview with…

Watch 15 Years Of Pokémon Graphics Evolve, Slowly But Surely

The Pokémon games gradually become more lovely to look at year by year and system by system, at about the rate that mighty rivers turn into Grand Canyons. But graphical improvements do occur! Here are the six main Pokémon games. See how they’ve evolved… (But, before you do, click and drag the slider on the…