Latest Nintendo game reviews
The Atari VCS - formerly Ataribox - has had a relatively rocky ride since it was announced last year. A delay to its crowd funding phase, let alone launch, brought the cynics out of the woodwork. Even though they, like everyone else outside of the development... Read more
Zany, wacky, crazy, mind-boggling, pointless, bizarre, very Japanese. I don't get it.These are just some of the words and phrases that we've heard from others when talking about Nintendo's latest gaming concept: Nintendo Labo.But do any of the above really... Read more
After the relative failure of the Wii U, and in the era of Ultra-HD gaming from PS4 Pro and Xbox One X, some were beginning to think that the days of a console with 'Nintendo' slapped across its front may have reached their last. Nintendo Switch vs PS4... Read more
The Nintendo Switch couldn't have had a better start, with a game as scintillating as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and sales figures the Wii U could only have dreamt about. After its spring launch, however, things went quiet.We've had other... Read more
As soon as the NES Classic Mini was released last year we set our hearts on a follow-up, after all, the Super Nintendo was a better console and the first that really set our hearts a'flutter.That's why the announcement of the Nintendo Classic Mini: Super... Read more
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle created a stir when it was unveiled at the E3 Show in June. After all, any original Mario-related game is bound to be big news.Back then it sounded like a rather strange proposition though. Developed by Ubisoft, and a cross-pollination... Read more
There’s no doubt that the future of Nintendo looks rosy or, at least, rosier than it did a couple of years ago.The Switch has proven a tremendous success, the decision to recreate former console glories in miniature form has also gone down rather well,... Read more
The Wii U may have been an unmitigated flop, but at least one good game came out of it: Splatoon. The clever, third-person ink-shooting platformer seemed to emerge fully formed, and somehow managed to establish itself as a sort of starter e-sport, even... Read more
In 2017 Mario seems to be on something of a departure from his norm. Maybe it's a midlife crisis. First, there's Mario Odyssey on Switch, a game in which our intrepid plumber has ended up in not only familiar lands, such as Sand Kingdom, but also closer-to-reality... Read more
When Nintendo finally unveiled the Switch at a showcase just prior to its launch, Arms was one of the games that left everyone convinced that the Japanese giant had recovered its mojo, and that the Switch – cue sighs of relief – wasn't going to be... Read more
If you seek evidence that Nintendo learned some major lessons from the Wii U's humiliating failure, you need look no further than Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.Its arrival so soon after that of the Switch console demonstrates that Nintendo has well and truly... Read more
When Nintendo announced that it was to move into the smartphone app arena, Mario was the star we wanted to see the most. We didn't expect Super Mario Run specifically, but the Japanese gaming giant was always going to bring its biggest franchise to mobile... Read more
It might be early to be thinking such things but there’s every chance there won’t be another game as good as the latest Zelda this year. Yes, we have Mass Effect: Andromeda, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Super Mario Odyssey still to come in 2017, and... Read more
As classic multiplayer games go, few can match the might of Bomberman. Way back when it was the ultimate way to get your mates around and strategically blast them into oblivion. In, you know, a fun and friendly kind of way.The premise of any Bomberman... Read more
Nintendo has had its problems of late, especially when it comes to home consoles, but things are looking up.The forthcoming Switch is intriguing, full of potential and could turn the tide for the Japanese gaming giant when it releases in March 2017. The... Read more
The Wii U may have been a roaring flop, but the precious few who own one know that it isn't a bad console – just a misunderstood one. Its arcane design indisputably throws up opportunities for new forms of gameplay, but it floundered on the twin rocks... Read more
The phenomenal success of Minecraft shows that, in this day and age, just playing games isn't necessarily enough: it's even better if you can build them as you're going along.Therein lies the genius of Super Mario Maker: it marries the oldest of old-skool... Read more
In the hierarchy of Nintendo characters, Yoshi – the green, egg-laying dinosaur with a lizard-like tongue – may lack the superstar status of Mario, but he has always been irresistibly cute.Never more so than in his latest starring vehicle, Yoshi's... Read more
As much as the Wii U has received its fair share of abuse, it houses some of Nintendo’s finest titles that are scientifically proven to be impossible to dislike*. Ok, so we made up the scientific part, but with Star Fox making its return we reserve... Read more
One of the more quirky Wii U titles trailed during the E3 special edition of Nintendo Direct was Super Mario Maker. Not just a game, it allows you to build and then play your own Mario Bros levels and, presumably, then share them with a community of other... Read more
It is with great pleasure that we no longer talk about the Wii U as Nintendo's big mistake. Instead, it is now firmly ensconced as everybody's favourite second console, even some gamers' first. And titles like Splatoon are prime examples as to why.Conversations... Read more
Nintendo indisputably makes some of the world's favourite games franchises, but Mario Party has never really caught the public imagination in the manner of, say, the Mario or Zelda games. Is Mario Party 10 the title to do it?Admittedly, the Mario Party... Read more
When Nintendo first announced its new versions of the 3DS and 3DS XL handhelds there were more than a few eyebrows raised. Yes, the 3D functionality of its handheld games consoles could be improved but surely we're at the end of the portable gaming boom?... Read more
It's tricky to characterise the story the Nintendo Wii U as anything but a sad one, at least if you're a Nintendo fan. There's nothing wrong with the console per se, but it has taken an age for the Japanese company to provide it with a credible library... Read more
The Nintendo Wii U has been called a lot of things since its launch at the tail-end of 2012. Most of them far from positive. But two years on, and in the wake of the Sony PlayStation 4 and Xbox One launches, Nintendo's underdog is on the up; it's a console... Read more
There's a line in The Who's Won't Get Fooled Again that could apply to Super Smash Bros for the Wii U: "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss." Fans of the N64 original, plus Melee and Brawl, will find that they are on very familiar ground with the... Read more
You can trust Nintendo to pull some mad cap games out of the bag during E3 each more, perhaps more so than its major rivals. However, once we saw Sunset Overdrive on Xbox One we thought Insomniac and Microsoft had stolen the thunder on the bonkers front.That... Read more
Much has been said and written about the struggles of Nintendo's Wii U console to sell in significant numbers, some, ourselves included, have even mulled over the possibility that the machine is in its death throes.Try telling that to Nintendo though,... Read more
There is something wonderfully familiar about Mario Kart 8. It's a game that will satisfy fans of any generation of the franchise, yet it still manages to add enough new elements to make it a real step up for kart games in general, let alone those featuring... Read more
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is proof positive that 2D platformers still have a place in modern gaming. It is, quite simply, a superb platform title and a much needed one for the Wii U.The return of Donkey Kong might not necessarily reinvigorate... Read more
To the avid - and aged - gamer, slotting Zelda: A Link Between Worlds into a 3DS is a bit like getting into a time machine and spinning the clock back 20 years. Because, on the face of it, the latest Zelda feels exactly like the early 90s Zelda title... Read more
Super Mario 3D World was released on the same day as the PlayStation 4 made its bow in the UK - but the famous Italian plumber is no less significant to the arena of gaming because of it. Indeed the release marks the day the Wii U became more than "that... Read more
Nintendo is making moves to remain relevant in the shifting landscape of handheld gaming. That is, to some degree, what the Nintendo 2DS handheld console is all about.Because this handheld is something of an oddity. Why? The clue's in the number of the... Read more
Just like that, Nintendo announced the Nintendo 2DS, a 2D version of its 3D hand-held console that it launched in March 2011. Pocket-lint played with the new console ahead of the official release in the UK on 12 October to see what all the fuss is about.It's... Read more
There's something fundamentally familiar about New Super Luigi U. And that's no accident: the side-scrolling platform game ultimately is - to give it its music biz terminology - a remix of New Super Mario Bros U. Pocket-lint got to play Luigi U at the... Read more
Bayonetta 2 is one of those fast-paced arcade games that's borderline bonkers. The now Nintendo-only sequel to the original arcade smasher is set for launch on Wii U in 2014. Good job, as Ninty needs some of those grittier titles to grace its flagging... Read more
For whatever reason we've got the 90s advert for Penguin chocolate bars running through our heads. "P-p-p-pick up a Pikmin," we think to ourselves - mental Freudian slip in full effect - as we pluck flower-topped, carrot-like characters out of the ground... Read more
Mario in 3D has been missing from the Wii U since the console's launch and fans have been pining for his return. Back when Mario 64 launched alongside the N64 all those years ago, our Italian plumber friend acquired a new status - busting out of the restrictive... Read more
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze is another of a slew of titles that Nintendo has announced at this year's E3 convention in a bid to get the fans on board with the Wii U console.You'd be forgiven for mistaking Tropical Freeze as "Returns 2" as the... Read more
There's something charming about Mario Kart. It's one of those games that always puts a smile on people's faces. And Mario Kart 8 for Wii U is no different.Mario Kart 8 had to be shown off at this year's E3 expo in Los Angeles California. Nintendo is... Read more
That loveable plumber is back, this time in high definition. New Super Mario Bros. U - to give its title the whole mouth-full-of-cake, full stop an' all dues - is a Nintendo Wii U launch title with a lot resting on it.Mario has history; he's the symbol... Read more
Look carefully at the picture above. What do you see? Sure, it's FIFA 13 on the Nintendo Wii U, but look a little closer and you'll notice an aiming reticule on the Wii U's GamePad, just one of the clever features that's coming to FIFA 13 on Nintendo's... Read more
When we reviewed the original Nintendo 3DS in March 2011 we thought that the lack of decent launch titles and limited battery life were its two biggest woes. But its believable, glasses-free 3D display - well, for some viewers, but not all - was an interesting... Read more
A super-sized version of the Nintendo 3DS was touted just before the start of E3 in June, but the Japanese videogames firm clearly decided to let the Wii U be its star turn at that particular show. Instead, it waited almost a month before confirming that... Read more
We managed to get our hands on the Wii U last E3, but a fair bit has changed for Nintendo's new console in a year. Not only has the controller, sorry, Wii U GamePad, been redesigned a tad, but there are actual games available to play now, so the concept... Read more
Moshi Monsters has been a massive success story since Mind Candy unleashed the online social network for kids aged 7 -12. So much so, that it's almost bonkers to think it only launched for real in 2008.There are now over 50 million worldwide users registered... Read more
Mario is back, and back in 3D. That was the big Nintendo news for Mario fans at this year after everyone’s favourite plumber missing the launch of the Nintendo 3DS earlier in the year.But is he going to be fashionably late, or just one of those guests... Read more
The problem with remastered classics is that they so rarely live up to their status, or indeed your own memories. What was once revolutionary now seems antiquated. Visuals that once evoked awe now evoke nothing more than pity. Developers face a choice... Read more
Nintendo's equivalent of the App Store, its eShop has finally made it to the 3DS in the UK this week, two-and-a-half months after the handheld console was released, and many will be wondering if it was worth the wait.It does offer access to some new video... Read more