Nintendo - Page 522 of 696

So What Was One Inspiration for Star Fox?

Well, there was a fox temple Star Fox developer Dylan Cuthbert told Kotaku about. But that’s not all. The game was also inspired by British television. In a recent Nintendo interview, both company president Satoru Iwata and Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto professed their love for 1960s British puppet show Thunderbirds Miyamoto admitted that licensing Thunderbirds…

By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2011

The Far Cry Games We Never Got

Far Cry 2 is a high-powered shooter for the PS3, Xbox 360, and PC. That’s not all, apparently! According to the resume of Ubisoft’s Philippe Baude, there was a version of Far Cry 2 in the works for the PSP and the Wii in late 2006 and early 2007, but the games were cancelled. Far…

By Brian Ashcraft Published August 3, 2011

CultureTotal Recall

This Is the Coolest Stuff Nintendo Has Ever Made

You can say a lot of nice things about Nintendo games. Nintendo hardware, too. Wildly successful, iconic and timeless are just three of them. But how often can you say something Nintendo made was genuinely cool? Not very often. Unless you go back to the 1960’s, to a time before Nintendo was making video games.…

By Luke Plunkett Published August 3, 2011

Metroid‘s Samus and the Exploded Suit

Artist Justin Currie, admittedly an inexperienced Metroid player, gorgeously illustrates the disintegrating armor of Nintendo icon and bounty hunter Samus Aran, a moment before it fully forms around her (or disintegrates, depending on your point of view). “I’ve never really played any of the Metroid games, but the Samus character has always intrigued me,” writes…

By Michael McWhertor Published August 2, 2011

Nintendo’s President Addresses 3DS Owners Who May Feel ‘Betrayed’ by Sudden Price Drop

After dismal sales of the Nintendo 3DS (and declining sales of the Wii and Nintendo DS), Nintendo issued a massive, uncharacterisitc price cut for its newest handheld. It plans on compensating early adopters, but what of the 3DS owner personally wounded by Nintendo’s cutting? Nintendo president Satoru Iwata colored the announcement of the 3DS price…

By Michael McWhertor Published August 2, 2011

Not All Yoshi are Created Equal

There are some colorful dinosaur creatures you just don’t feel comfortable handing over a baby to. Dorkly gets it. I get it. Inbred Yoshi doesn’t get it. Go figure. You can contact Michael Fahey, the author of this post, at [email protected]. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.

By Mike Fahey Published August 2, 2011

Sony’s Vita Can Do Some of What Nintendo’s Wii U Does

We learned back in June that the PS Vita could play nice with the PS3, but how much can the two systems do together? Apparently about as much as the Wii U. Sony Europe R&D manager Phil Rogers said at the Develop Conference 2011 that the “PS3 can send data down to Vita and Vita…

By Sam Winstrom Published August 2, 2011

Call It the Mintend 3DS

The 3DS’s recent price cut was surprising. The handheld is still new, and a drastic slash like that whiffs of desperation. But don’t worry, the 3DS isn’t dead, by any stretch. Maybe one of Japan’s most successful manga artists can work his magic. While appearing on variety show SMAPxSMAP, famed manga artist Osamu Akimoto drew…

By Brian Ashcraft Published August 2, 2011

Is This a Pikachu Ripoff?

One of the Japanese media’s favorite topics is how China copies everything, whether that be giant Gundams or toys. But Japan is no stranger to ripping off the creative work of others. This is “Eco-chan”, the mascot for an environmental community center in Japan’s Yamaguchi Prefecture. Let’s not screw around, Eco-chan sure as snot looks…

By Brian Ashcraft Published August 2, 2011

Rhythm Heaven is Where Idols Go to Press Buttons

This week, the biggest game in Japan is Rhythm Heaven. It was created by a man who was at one time the biggest record producer in the country: Tsunku. The Osaka native produces tracks and makes music for a variety of artists, such as Morning Musume (vintage pic above), who were the most popular idol…

By Brian Ashcraft Published August 2, 2011

Are Gaming’s Biggest Portables Becoming Its Smallest Niche?

Last week’s drastic, surprising price drop for Nintendo’s 3DS gaming portable brought turmoil not just to the last major dedicated gaming hardware company in the world, but also the notion of portable gaming. While fans of Nintendo worry what impact the nearly one-third price drop on such a new piece of hardware will have on…

By Brian Crecente Published August 1, 2011

Can Nintendo Dominate Digital?

Face it. Nintendo’s never been a powerhouse in digital entertainment, like Sony or Microsoft. That could change. “Regarding if there’s anything we can do from now on that we aren’t currently doing for the 3DS and the upcoming Wii U, of course, whether that means there something we can do for in the digital business…

By Brian Ashcraft Published August 1, 2011

Mario Is on an Unreal Engine Killing Spree

This is the decidedly 8-bit World 1-1 from Super Mario Bros. rendered using the Unreal Engine, most commonly seen in games like Gears of War If it looks a little rough, that’s because it was an 8-week project, not a polished game release. You can see more clips at 525Leomas‘s YouTube page. What happens when…

By Luke Plunkett Published August 1, 2011

How to Collect Your 20 Free 3DS Games (And Maybe a Little Cash On the Side)

Own a Nintendo 3DS or plan on getting one in the next couple of weeks? Congratulations you’re now a Nintendo 3DS Ambassador and that means you get 20 free games. Right? Maybe. Nintendo’s 3DS Ambassador program isn’t exactly clear cut, so we hit up Nintendo to walk us through the intricacies of the program. Earlier…

By Brian Crecente Published July 29, 2011

But What if You Don’t Have Internet? Can You Get Twenty Free Games?

I have internet. If you’re reading this, you probably have internet. But not everyone in Japan has internet. China and the European Union have the most internet users, followed by the United States, India, and Japan (via Wii). So there are lots of internet users in Japan, but not everyone has WiFi access, and many…

By Brian Ashcraft Published July 29, 2011

Nintendo President Takes Blame for 3DS, Getting 50 Percent Pay Cut

Today in Tokyo, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata addressed shareholders regarding the Nintendo 3DS. For Nintendo, things have been better. At Today’s meeting, Iwata said the goal was to address questions why Nintendo cut the 3DS’s price. In an official release from Nintendo detailing the meeting, Iwata acknowledged that the price reduction does help retailers plan…

By Brian Ashcraft Published July 29, 2011

Sorry, America, Still No Xenoblade Chronicles for You

Not that this will be too big a surprise for suffering American Wii owners, but in Nintendo’s latest release schedule (out today), there’s still no mention of Xenoblade Chronicles being due for North America. It’s still scheduled for release in Europe, however, on August 19. The game has been the subject of an ongoing campaign…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 29, 2011

3DS Rocks Japanese Retail

Yesterday’s 3DS price-drop was sudden. It caught many off guard, including some Japanese game retailers. One Japanese shop posted a notice that until August 11, when the price drops ¥10,000 (US$129), it will refrain from selling the 3DS. This is leading to speculation that retailers are being burdened with heavy inventories and might take a…

By Brian Ashcraft Published July 29, 2011

Nintendo’s Former President Just Lost Half a Billion Dollars

A disastrous last quarter in terms of sales has sent Nintendo’s share prices through the floor. If you own Nintendo shares, sorry! But hey, even if you do, it could be worse; spare a thought for former president Hiroshi Yamauchi. He just lost $500,000,000 in one day It’s not like he’ll be out on the…

By Luke Plunkett Published July 29, 2011

It’s Lexicon Like Donkey Kong

Having nothing better to do, evidently, Denver’s Westword set out to chart the comprehensive history of “It’s On Like Donkey Kong,” and found that Ice Cube has much to do with the social currency of the phrase, whether a call to celebrate or a challenge to fight. It was copyrighted by Nintendo last year. The…

By Owen Good Published July 28, 2011