Nintendo

New Super Mario Bros. 2‘s New, Free* Levels Are Re-Makes Of Old Ones

The new Nintendo Direct Mini isn’t about the Wii Mini. It’s about new/old New Super Mario Bros. 2 levels that are temporarily free on the Nintendo 3DS. Not too confusing, right? Skip to 3:50 to see the levels. They may ring some bells. Nintendo Direct Mini — November 27, 2012 [YouTube. Thanks, Philip!]] UPDATE: So……

Ian Bogost’s appraisal of the Wii U looks at the new console and Nintendo’s long, twisting history in shifting contexts.

The Today Show Fails at the Wii U

Yesterday morning’s Today Show featured the Wii U, the hot new Nintendo console that’s like a tablet merged with a game console. Should be great for live TV, right? Not quite, as you can see above. At least no one has thrown a Wii U GamePad through a TV screen yet. Remember that stuff? Let’s…

The Wii Mini Looks Glorious, Lacks Internet and GameCube Games [Update: Canada Exclusive]

Earlier tonight, a teeny-tiny image of the Wii Mini’s box appeared online. Here’s a better look at the console itself. And hot damn, it’s lovely looking. Smaller than the regular console, the Wii Mini has a red casing and a rough, matte finish with a Wii logo dead in the middle. It appears to be…

Erotic Game Company Parodies Nintendo Honcho

“Iwata Asks” is a regular online feature in which Nintendo president Satoru Iwata interviews developers. Some of the game creators are in-house and some work for outside companies. All of their games appear on Nintendo hardware. None of them feature hardcore pornography. Instead of “Iwata Asks”, Osaka-based erotic PC game company SoftPal launched a “Shacho…

There’s a New Wii Console, The Wii Mini

While it’s yet to be officially announced by Nintendo, Canada’s Best Buy website has revealed the Wii Mini, a smaller, sleeker version of Nintendo’s console. There’s no price information yet (or larger image), but it’ll be out on December 7, and appears to boast a square form factor, a black & red colour scheme and…

Just a friendly reminder! In Japan, Nintendo said its TVii streaming service hits December 8.

Nintendo Is Charging People to Change TV Channels (No, Really)

With Nintendo TVii, the Kyoto-based game maker is bringing streaming video to the GamePad. Starting on December 8 in Japan, gamers can watch the pictures as they fly through the air via the comfort of the Wii U GamePad. But if you want easy channel changing, you must barf up extra cash. On December 8,…

Something Tells Me These Wii U Auctions Aren’t Real

Call it a hunch. Call it a journalist’s instinct. There’s just something about these Wii U consoles that seems rather flimsy: Clearly people are hoping to cash in on the Wii U cardboard boom eBay

First Came The Interview About This Unusual Wii U Indie Game, Then Came The Drama

This morning, I saw someone tweet an article called “Gaming Journalism versus Nintendo.” Catchy enough headline. I had to check that one out. The article, written for the website Not Enough Shaders by a writer named Emily Rogers, levied a number of accusations at a large gaming website that was not named. (The article has…

There Are Now as Many as 400,000 Wii U Owners In North America

It’s been just over a week since Nintendo ushered in the next-generation of home console hardware with the launch of the Wii U. In that time, the new device has sold 400,000 units. CNET reports that the Wii U just edged out the Wii, which sold 300,000 units in the same time frame. When the…

All The Wii U Specs You Could Dream Of, Except The Ones You Really Want To Know

Way back when the Wii U first came out, lo in the day of the 18th of November in the year 2012, Nintendo’s console included the most curious thing: a virtual instruction manual that included within it an option called “product specifications.” By pressing the Wii U controller’s home button and then clicking on “manual”,…

Parents, Please Don’t Name Your Kid “Pikachu”

For decades, no, centuries, Japanese parents were happy giving their kids regular Japanese names. Sure, there have been trends, but the latest one is producing some kids with peculiar names—and even worries about bullying. Japanese names are slightly different from English ones. Traditionally, first names were selected based on the number of brush strokes in…

Yes, the Wii U Also Works on Japanese Bullet Trains

For those worried that the Wii U doesn’t work on outside, say on Japanese high speed rail, take heart. Apparently, it does. And here’s the photo proof. Kuzo from Japanese site Rocket News recently boarded the Nozomi bullet train—the N700 series Nozomi, to be exact, which is outfitted with electric sockets and WiFi. Besides being…

Wii U Marks ‘the End of an Era,’ Says Pong‘s Creator

Nolan Bushnell, the man behind Pong and Atari’s first home video game console, says he doesn’t get the attraction of the Wii U. “I actually am baffled by it,” he told The New York Times for a weekend feature. “I don’t think it’s going to be a big success.” What’s more, Bushnell doesn’t think the…

Space Harrier Going 3D and Coming to Nintendo eShop

If Space Harrier is coming to the Nintendo 3DS, strangely enough, that won’t be the first ever 3D treatment the Sega classic has gotten. Gamer, a Japanese publication, reports that Space Harrier is going 3D and will come to Nintendo’s eShop. A release date overseas was not specified, nor were any western release plans. Its…

The Wii U’s First Week: The Highs, The Lows, The Massive Downloads

It’s been an interesting week for the Wii U. Nintendo’s—well, anyone’s—first new home console in six years has been met with a curious mixture of joy, bewilderment and even disdain by early adopters and critics alike. Let’s look back, then, on the week that was for the Wii U. Below you’ll find the biggest, most…

Animal Crossing: New Leaf Doesn’t Seem Like Digital Heroin. But It Is.

Animal Crossing: New Leaf is currently one of the most popular 3DS games in Japan. It hit the shelves on November 8th, and as of the 18th, the game has sold 893,344 copies (not including the download version) and is well on its way to being a million seller hit. The game sells itself as…

You Can Download the Sequels to Zelda and Pushmo to a 3DS Today

Here in America, it’s Thanksgiving. It’s a day to be be thankful, a day for eating turkey and cranberry sauce and a day for ignoring the normal Nintendo download update. Cutting to the chase, the sequel to Pushmo my favorite 3DS game is out today. The new one is called Crashmo. In the old game…

You can now take a look at the Wii U’s UK/Europe launch lineup, via VG247. The console debuts overseas on the 30th.