Star Fox Zero Announced for Wii U

It’s been a long time coming.  With the Star Fox series being utterly devoid of new games ever since the disappointing Command on DS, many had pretty much given up all possible hope in the series ever getting any sort of revival.

Now though, it seems their prayers have finally been answered.  Behold Star Fox Zero, a new Star Fox title by Nintendo and PlatinumGames (the makers of the Bayonetta series and Wonderful 101):

But what makes this game even more interesting are the new features and additions it has.  For example, the Arwing can now become both a drone type plane called a Gyrowing and a walker/mech, meaning that more kinds of combat are now possible.

And with classic characters, a simple and intuitive control scheme (analog controls instead of gimmicky motion ones) as well as plenty of side missions to attempt in your runs through the story, it seems this might well be the type of Star Fox games the fans were hoping for.  Not to mention Platinum’s involvement, given how every single game they’ve ever made is a hardcore gamer favourite with a hard as nails level of difficulty and nary an annoying gimmick or stupid plot twist to be found.

Here’s some more media of the game:

And what will be the official box art when the game’s released:

But what do you think about Star Fox Zero?  Can Platinum Games do the series justice and provide a Star Fox game that Nintendo fans can be proud of? Or will this be another misfire like Command was?

Super Mario Maker; New Info and Screenshots!

It’s been only a day or so since Mario Maker was rebranded Super Mario Maker and used in the Nintendo World Championships, yet now they’re already showing off even more of the game at E3!

And boy, what an improvement it seems to be from the last version.  Remember how previously, you could select maybe five enemies, not really use warp pipes and have little in the way of gimmicks or bosses to use?

Well Super Mario Maker has gotten a bit better now, to the point it may actually give Lunar Magic some competition for once.  So what’s new?  This:

Multiple playable characters, through Amiibos and challenge mode.  Yes, this means you can actually use Link or Samus in your Mario levels.  Or Wario probably, if you’re like us and really love the Wario Land series.

Rideable clown cars

Bowser and Bowser Jr as bosses that can be combined with any other enemies, including Hammer Bros.

Pipes and warps to make multiple part levels with different rooms.

Boos, Monty Moles, Firebars, Podoboos, Grinders and other neat enemies.

Oh, and you can also share your levels online.  So that’s a thing too.

Here are some pictures and videos showing the game in action:

Want to see more?  You’ll have to click the read more link we’re afraid.  Nintendos supplied so many resources for Super Mario Maker that actually showing them on the home page would probably kill 99.99% of visitors’ web browsers due to the sheer amount of bandwidth used.  So if you want the rest of this game’s resources, click read more and you’ll get it…

(more…)

Hyrule Warriors Legends Announced for 3DS…

Yeah, we knew this was coming.  In fact, we’re pretty much sure most people knew this one was coming, since a trailer for the 3DS version of Hyrule Warriors was leaked online some time before E3.  Here was our original post on the subject:

Hyrule Warriors Announced for the 3DS – Gaming Reinvented

That said, thanks to E3 we do have a few new things.  Like a fancy new name; Hyrule Warriors Legends.  And some nice screenshots and artwork showing both Tetra and the King of Hyrule fighting through Ganon’s forces.

So here’s the media stuff:

And we’ve already posted the trailer before, so we won’t be uploading it again.  But in case you missed it, here it is:

So that’s the 3DS Hyrule Warriors game.  Is it a good idea?  Is it something there’s a lot of demand for?  Well, we’ll have to wait and see in that respect.  But what does everyone else think of this game?

Mario & Luigi Paper Jam

It’s a crossover that no one dreamed possible!

Yes, Mario & Luigi Paper Jam is a full blown crossover between the Mario & Luigi series and the Paper Mario series.

With Paper Mario jumping of a book into the world of the Mario & Luigi series, Mario & Luigi have to team up with Mario’s paper counterpart to take down a two Bowser villain team and save both worlds.

The gameplay seems to be a pretty good mix of both titles too, with Paper Mario’s abilities involving his plane and boat transformations from Thousand Year Door and normal Mario/Luigi having traditional Bros Attacks and abilities.  There’s also the 3D style chase sequences from Dream Team, as well as a weird giant battle type scenario where the Marios ride a giant papercraft version of Mario and square off against equally large papery monsters from Bowser’s evil army!

Here are some pieces of artwork for the game:

As well as some screenshots nicked from the fact sheet:

And a trailer:

So what do we think of the game?  Well, we’re optimistic.  The idea’s great, Bowser’s personality seems to be back from the original Paper Mario series and there are tons and tons of opportunities to make this game absolutely amazing. And the battle systems do look incredible, which is a definite step up from the horrible system that was the battles in Sticker Star.

The only worries we have are that it’s a bit too generic so far.  Lots of Bowser minions and characters from typical Mario games instead of those from the RPGs we all know and love.  Hopefully this doesn’t follow Sticker Star’s lead of making the world too ‘NSMB’ like and remembers to introduce all kinds of interesting new faces from both RPG franchises.  Massif Bros and Rawk Hawk together?  Please?

What do you think of Mario & Luigi Paper Jam?

The Legend of Zelda Triforce Heroes Announced

In a move sure to surprise even the most dedicated Zelda fans, Nintendo have announced a whole new game in the much acclaimed series!

Named The Legend of Zelda Triforce Heroes and destined to be released in Autumn this year, the game plays out much like the Four Swords series did on the GBA and Gamecube, with three Links teaming up to conquer creative new dungeons and bring down the forces of evil.

So what new features are there this time?

Well, there seems to be a new ‘totem’ ability, where the Links can stack on top of each other to reach new heights and solve puzzles.  There’s also this weird ‘costume’ thing going on where loot can be used to get new outfits to dress the characters in.  Quite literally too, you can actually make Link wear Zelda’s dress as an item…

Other interesting things to note in this game are:

• The whole three players thing.  We can understand having four player co-op, but why just three?  Seems rather like an arbitary number intended just to be ‘different’.
• The game’s art style is based on A Link Between Worlds.  A very good choice indeed if you ask us, certainly a pleasant change from either more cel shading or another Minish Cap style aesthetic.
• The paper dolls as partners gimmick in single player mode is like the AI Link you go with in the Anniversary Edition Four Swords game.
• Players having a shared lifebar… this could be awkward.  If you’re playing with a bunch of complete idiots, your lifebar will probably go in about 30 seconds.

And that’s the game, at least as much as we know about it.  Here’s some media of it…

Screenshots:

Artwork

Trailer:

What do you think about The Legend of Zelda Triforce Heroes for the 3DS?  Are you a fan of the Four Swords style gameplay, or would you have preferred a more traditional single player Zelda experience?

Metroid Prime Federation Force Announced for 3DS!

Nintendo’s E3 presentation has just finished.  And as per the last however many years of the event, there have been a LOT of great looking games announced for the year or two ahead.

So first up, let’s look at one of their more interesting 3DS offerings.  Namely a new Metroid game called Metroid Prime Federation Force!

Developed by Next Level Games (who you may remember from their work on Luigi’s Mansion Dark Moon), Metroid Prime Federation Force is an co-op multiplayer game set in the Metroid universe where up to four players can team up and take on a variety of missions.

Clear out enemy infested bases as a team! Take on enemies using a blaster and various sub weapons (of which a few may not have been seen in the series before)! Aim using the 3DS gyroscope (okay, this might not be a good thing)!

You can play the game either with people nearby or via online multiplayer. It also comes with a sub mode called ‘Blast Ball’, a 3 vs 3 scifi sport where players have to shoot a ball in the opponent team’s goal to score. So basically, football with a Metroid theme.

Here are some screenshots: