Retro - Timeline
Thursday12th Oct 2023
Anniversary Happy Birthday To Nintendo's Ugliest, Most Indestructible Console
Slated
It's that time of year when video game anniversary enthusiasts can enjoy the birthday of a significant game or console nearly every day of the week. It's the turn of Pokémon X & Y which turns 10 today (look out for a feature on that coming up a little later), but it's also a decade since one of Nintendo's lowest-key console launches...
Monday2nd Oct 2023
Random Super Mario Bros. Wonder Gets Fan-Made NES Commercial, And It's Brilliant
Now you're playing with wonder
Super Mario Bros. Wonder definitely isn't coming out on the NES, but this excellent fan-made commercial almost convinced us that it was. YouTuber LUIZ do Comercial has created various "fake commercials" for video games, and his latest creation is a work of 8-bit art. Luiz has taken the over-the-top style of '80s...
Friday29th Sep 2023
Random Unused Mario Sprites Spotted In Classic Behind-The-Scenes Footage Of Nintendo
A time of big ideas (and even bigger phones)
There is a lot of retro goodness to be found in looking back on classic Nintendo coverage, and the above 1980s behind-the-scenes peek at Nintendo's Famicom development has it all. Recently featured in a report by the Yomiuro Telecasting Corporation News Channel, this classic coverage has it all: a look...
Review Kirby & The Amazing Mirror - Messy With Metroid Influences, Better With Buddies
Oh, Kirby, you blowhard...
This review, penned by Philip J Reed — our much-missed friend and Nintendo Life contributor — was originally published in January 2012. We're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival in the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack GBA library. We have to hand this much to
Wednesday27th Sep 2023
News 'Hidden Gems: Volume One' Brings Four Classic Commodore 64 Games To Switch Tomorrow
The return of N.O.M.A.D., Gilligan’s Gold, Mutant Monty and Horace Goes Skiing
Publisher Pixel Games has announced that four Commodore 64 classics will be making their way to Switch as Hidden Gems: Volume One lands on the eShop tomorrow (28th September). Developed by Imagine Software Ltd, this collection will see the return of some downhill...
Thursday21st Sep 2023
News The Famicom Just Won An Award At The Tokyo Game Awards 2023
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak wins Game of the Year
At this year's annual Tokyo Game Awards, which are held during the Tokyo Game Show, the Family Computer — known as the Famicom or NES (to us) — won the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Award (thanks VGC). That's a rather long title for an award that recognises someone or something that...
Wednesday20th Sep 2023
News Lost Pokémon Browser Game Has Been Archived And Is Fully Playable
Who remembers Pokémon 2000 Adventure, then?
In a big win for preservation, a lost Pokémon browser game has been restored and is now fully playable online, thanks to DidYouKnowGaming. Pokémon 2000 Adventure was developed by Cyberworld International Corporation, which was a client of Warner Bros., and was released to tie in with the movie Pokémon...
Monday18th Sep 2023
News Jurassic Park: Classic Games Collection Adds Two Sega Genesis Titles
Video games, uh, find a way
Limited Run Games has revealed that two more titles are being added to the Jurassic Park: Classic Games Collection — Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park: Rampage Edition. Previously, the collection included the NES, Game Boy, and SNES versions (where applicable) of Jurassic Park, and Jurassic Park 2: The Chaos Continues...
Tuesday12th Sep 2023
Talking Point Which Classic Cartoons Deserve The Shredder's Revenge Treatment?
By the power of Grayskull!
We have been back on something of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge kick recently thanks to the release of the excellent Dimension Shellshock DLC. The heroes in a half shell are firmly back in our hearts thanks to developer Tribute Games and, after a recent interview from Xbox Expansion Pass with the...
News This Blockbuster VHS Switch Game Case Will Give You A Lovely Dose Of Nostalgia
"Please remember to rewind!"
A Blockbuster Switch game case wasn't on our 2023 bingo card, but Retro Fighters thought the world needed one anyway. And now that we've seen it, we couldn't agree more. The family-based video game accessory developer teased this brand new Switch game case, which is officially licensed by the video rental store, last...
Thursday7th Sep 2023
News Disney's Gargoyles Remastered Brings Sega Genesis Classic To Switch This October
The age of Gargoyles returns
Disney has announced that the remaster of the 16-bit favourite Gargoyles will be launching on Switch on 19th October. Gargoyles Remastered, developed by Empty Clip Studios, was announced last September and we've heard nothing about it until now. But a brand new trailer confirmed that the game is coming very soon —...
Saturday2nd Sep 2023
Feature Harvest Moon 64’s Relationship With Alcohol, The "Magic Liquid" Of Flowerbud Village
Surviving the censors
Alcohol takes on an almost spiritual quality in Harvest Moon 64 Update: Of course, three months after this article went live, Nintendo expanded its roster of N64 games on Nintendo Switch Online to include this one. Cheers! Nintendo games are usually all-ages affairs, but every once in a while a game breaks the...
Wednesday30th Aug 2023
Review Excitebike 64 - An Underrated Racer That Deserves To Ride With Its N64 Stablemates
Hold onto your handlebars
This review originally went live in 2016, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival on Switch as part of the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack. Of the sports games in the N64 era, Excitebike 64 feels left out of conversation more often than siblings such as Wave Race 64 and 1080° Snowboarding...
Tuesday29th Aug 2023
News Prototype For Unreleased GameCube Platformer 'Pickles' Has Been Discovered
"The game about monkeys riding unicycles"
A Nintendo collector and YouTuber has discovered a lost prototype for an unreleased game developed by Santa Cruz Games for the GameCube. cake bought a dev GameCube but inside he discovered a disc for a unreleased GameCube game. Testing out the prototype, he discovered it was for Pickles, a...
Sunday27th Aug 2023
News Sunsoft's Game Boy Platformer Trip World Launches On Switch eShop Next Week
As a remastered DX release
Following a physical announcement back in April, it's now been discovered Trip World DX for the Switch eShop will be arriving on 31st August. If you missed the initial announcement, this is a remaster of the 8-bit Sunsoft Game Boy title that was original
Friday25th Aug 2023
News Don't Panic, The Making Of Karateka Will Arrive On Switch This Month After All
In North America, at least
Update [Fri 25th Aug 10:00 BST]: Digital Eclipse has now confirmed that The Making of Karateka will arrive on the Switch eShop on August 29th, 2023 in North America. In Europe and Australia, meanwhile, it'll be made available on September 5th, 2023. The company also confirmed that a physical release will be made...
Thursday24th Aug 2023
News Edia Crowdfunding Cosmic Fantasy Collection 2 For Nintendo Switch
Here's what's included
After a number of successful crowdfunding campaigns, publisher Edia has now announced a new one - Cosmic Fantasy Collection 2. This latest crowdfunded effort for Switch will be handled via another Makuake campaign. This latest one is seeking three million Yen (about $20k USD). At the time of writing, it's almost reached the...
Monday21st Aug 2023
Mini Review Xtreme Sports - A Switch Return For Some Gnarly But Limited GBC Minigames
California dreaming
2D sports titles have had their place since Konami’s Track & Field rattled arcade screws loose with its fiercely competitive button rapping. WayForward’s Xtreme Sports draws influence from California Games, a summery seaside boardwalk of hip events and addictive tap-a-thons. You have two characters to choose from, dude or...
Wednesday16th Aug 2023
Talking Point The Games We Got Rid Of - What Were We Thinking?
Give it away, give it away now
We've all done it. Whether through necessity to fund a new purchase or streamlining our collection during a spring clean, we've all sold, traded, donated, or just given away a game or console at some point and then wished we hadn’t. Sometimes cold hard cash was required, other times we were just in a different...
Monday14th Aug 2023
Review 'The Art Of The Box' Celebrates A Time When Cover Art Could Sell A Game
Judge a book by its cover?
When you're looking to make a video game purchase these days, chances are there are many factors which contribute to your ultimate decision. Pre-release hype and online opinion will almost certainly influence your choice, but the image on the cover on the box is unlikely to carry quite as much weight. We're not saying that...
Friday11th Aug 2023
Video The 'Fake Game Boy' That Costs $10 And Contains 200 Games
The bargain bin
Pre-loaded consoles are a dime a dozen, and it's easy to get caught out by the many "fake" versions of consoles. The Nanica Smitch is one such example — a Switch-looking device with 800 games pre-loaded onto it. Today, we're looking at a pre-loaded console that will set you back just under $10 — Merkury Inventions Arcade Fun...
Random Former Rare Dev Shares First-Ever Drawing Of Conker
No, he still doesn't have a neck
Former developer at Rare Chris Seavor has been sharing video game history on Twitter. And today's little tidbit is a pretty fun one — Seavor has found the first-ever drawing of Conker the Squirrel. Seavor teased his followers earlier today about "some 'curious' old scribbles" that he found, and as promised, he...
Tuesday8th Aug 2023
Review Pokémon Stadium 2 - A Sequel Of Gold (& Silver) Standard
Second gen magic
This review originally went live in 2016, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival in the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack N64 library. After all the groundbreaking success that Pokémon's first generation had, it would've only been wise for the powers that be to capitalise on the franchise. How was...
Review Pokémon Trading Card Game - A Cracking Adaptation That Still Holds Up
A rare source of fun or just an uncommon?
This review originally went live in 2014, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival in the Nintendo Switch Online Game Boy / Game Boy Color library. It’s almost surreal nowadays to think that there was ever a time when portable gaming didn’t have Pokémon. When Red and Blue...
Tuesday1st Aug 2023
Talking Point How Do You Store Your Games Collection?
Shoebox showcase
Call us sentimental, call us paranoid, call us what you will, but around these parts we still love the physical article when it comes to our media, especially video games. While many of us have gone at least part-digital for the sake of saving space and sheer convenience, especially with the portable Switch, even the eShop-only...
Friday28th Jul 2023
Review The Legend Of Zelda: Oracle Of Ages - An Engrossing Tale And True Series Classic
A song for the ages
This review originally went live in 2013, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival in the Nintendo Switch Online Game Boy / Game Boy Color library. Ever since The Legend of Zelda released on the NES, Nintendo has played the franchise relatively close to its chest. Series creator Shigeru Miyamoto has had...
Review The Legend Of Zelda: Oracle Of Seasons - An Underappreciated Old-School Adventure
Battle seasoned
This review originally went live in 2013, and we're updating and republishing it to mark the game's arrival in the Nintendo Switch Online Game Boy / Game Boy Color library. The combat of The Legend of Zelda series has seen several iterations over the decades. The classic top-down gameplay of the original was morphed into a faster,...
Wednesday26th Jul 2023
News Final Fantasy Developers Reminisce On IV, V, And VI In Anniversary Chat
The Super Famicom trilogy
The second part of the Final Fantasy 35th Anniversary Special Interview has been shared today on the official Final Fantasy YouTube, and this nostalgia-filled interview focuses on the Super Famicom / SNES trilogy that was recently rereleased in the Pixel Remaster series on Switch — Final Fantasy IV, V, and VI. Hosted...
Random Fan Reimagines Resident Evil 4 As A 2D Side-Scroller
2Demake
We have seen Resident Evil 4 reimagined in a variety of ways over the years. Aside from the recent swanky remake, fans of the series have regularly taken the 2005 GameCube game in new and creative directions, but now we have seen it in a new dimension too (thanks, PCGamesN). Yes, one fan by the name of DooMero is working on a complete...
Sunday23rd Jul 2023
Soapbox Catching Legendary Pokémon The Old-Fashioned Way Was So Much Better
Mewsings
Soapbox features enable our individual writers and contributors to voice their opinions on hot topics and random stuff they've been chewing over. Today, Kevin remembers a time when getting your hands on a legendary involved going on a real-life journey... The '90s were a fun time, weren’t they? AOL was brand new, The Simpsons was still...