With a brand new Nintendo Direct under our belts, and one that the Big N was careful to emphasize was NOT an April Fool’s prank, we now know a bit more about Nintendo’s strategy moving forward:

• Mewtwo has been dated and priced for Smash
• Lucas is coming to Smash
• Nintendo wants us to vote on the next Smash character
• The new Fire Emblem is going to be radically different
• Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem is still a thing and it looks…interesting
• Splatoon is looking pretty darn good
• Amiibos! Yarn Amiibos! Packs of Amiibos! Card Amiibos!
• Microtransactions!
• Mario Kart 8 just got a lot faster

So, with those high points in mind, lets see what the staff thinks.

Digmbot

First off, I was excited to get a date for Mewtwo. I own Smash on Wii U and 3DS, so I get him for free. As for Lucas, I couldn’t care less. He was broken in Brawl, and since he IS broken, we all know they won’t balance him right in this game either. Plus, he’s a Ness clone, so this is an easy move for Nintendo. Reskin Ness and his animations, add the few unique ones for Lucas and BAM! DLC character. I was excited about Fire Emblem until the reports that if you want to play both sides of the story, you have to buy two games. If that’s the case, this is one SRPG I won’t be playing. Keeping the Fire Emblem train rolling, Shin Megami has never been my cup of tea, so I don’t have much interest here. At least they haven’t forgotten about it after they teased everyone in 2013. I’m still hyped about Splatoon, and now I need to make Lone get a Wii U so I can demolish him 1v1. You hear that Lone? 1V1 ME BRO!

I’ll take the Amiibos and microtransactions together. Yarn Yoshi amiibos sound awesome, although they won’t be as adorable as the Yoshis Scarlet Dragon could make. The Splatoon pack seems cool. And card Amiibos will be nice for people on the go. On the other hand…I can’t afford all these Amiibos. Nobody can. Nintendo, we are not made of money. Stahp. And stop adding microtransactions to everything. For the last few years, I’ve been so happy that you don’t nickle and dime us to death (not sure what the UK version of that saying is), and now you’re starting down a slippery slope. Yeah, the Pokémon Rumble game will probably be cool. But I’m not giving you real money for Poke Diamonds. I know you’re getting into phone games, and this probably makes sense there. But I already paid good money for my consoles. So stop it.

And finally, Mario Kart 8. More DLC is good. And 200CC seems fun. But….instead of making Mario Kart 8 faster, why don’t you just GIVE ME F-ZERO ALREADY!

*Drops mic, flips table, storms out*

PredictedCyborg

This Direct had something for everyone, with a lot of Nintendo’s most long running franchises making some appearance, from Mario Kart 8 updates to some Animal Crossing content that I don’t think a lot of us were expecting to see. Personally I was was glad to see some of this Nintendo Direct’s time taken up with talking about indie games.

Out of the big three console companies, Nintendo has always been the one who seems most open to trying new things. With Code Name S.T.E.A.M being spoken about with tournaments coming soon and the news that two well-known and loved indie games are coming to Nintendo console – Octodad: Dadliest Catch and Don’t Starve Giant Edition – I’d say that Nintendo still is. I hope that they port over well.

The other big thing that excited me was that a number of DS and N64 games were coming to virtual console. An N64 was one of the first consoles I had as a child and my beloved DS served me well for many years. It’s nice to see a little focus on the retro and the fondly remembered games of yesteryear. 🙂

Lonesamurai

Ok, I watched the Nintendo Direct early this morning and I must admit, there wasn’t really much new there.  One thing I did notice that worries me is the quickly increasing amount of paid add ons/DLC

I get that this is the market, but I expect more from Nintendo.

Also, Yoshi’s new game makes me itch to watch it, but then I am allergic to wool… so I’ll skip that one too 😛

Its fair to say Don’t Starve has been a success on PC. Now, the “definitive version” of the survival game is coming to Wii u in the form of Don’t Starve: Giant Edition. Nintendo have announced that it will have a fedw Wii U exclusive features- chief among them being off-TV play using the GamePad.  Interestingly, the Wii U version is split into two parts. The regular console version of Don’t Starve will be available with the option to get the Reign of Giants DLC at a later date. No price point has been announced yet.

Are you ready to not starve on Wii U? Does off-TV play excite you? Or are you stuffing yourself on Starbound and Minecraft?

Yacht Club Games announced today the release of their first Shovel Knight Expansion. Plague of Shadows has you playing as one of the baddies from the main game, Plague Knight, who is in a quest to become the head of the Order of No Quarter. Plague Knight will have his own his own skill set including being able to craft loot into new equipment and power-ups. The expansion will also bring new objectives and bosses, and more.

Shovel Knight: Plague of Shadows is due to release in Spring 2015.

We are now within a week of Nintendo launching not only the next entry in the Mario vs. Donkey Kong series, Tipping Stars, on the Nintendo eShop; but with it, the first ever cross-buy promotion – with Nintendo offering to give free download codes for the Wii U version of the game to anyone who downloads the 3DS version – and vice versa! However, if you live in a territory served by the American version of Nintendo’s eStore and can’t wait to get your next fix of Donkey Kong action – and you’re one of the handful of people who DIDN’T already get Donkey Kong Country Returns or its sequel when they first released on Wii and Wii U respectively – Nintendo have you covered.

In a deal that so far seems restricted exclusively for American eShop Users – i.e. Nintendo gamers using Nintendo 3DS or Wii U consoles registered as being in America, Mexico or Canada – starting today and lasting until 8:59am Pacific Time on March 3rd, Nintendo are offering 30% off Nintendo eShop purchases of either Donkey Kong Country™: Tropical Freeze (Wii U) or Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D (Nintendo 3DS), when you purchase one or more of six qualifying Donkey Kong Virtual Console titles. These are any of the three Donkey Kong Land titles from the 3DS Virtual Console (priced at $3.99 each at time of writing); or any of the original three Donkey Kong Country titles from the Wii U Virtual Console ($7.99 each at time of writing).

The usual catches apply, of course: The same Nintendo Network ID must be linked to your Wii U and Nintendo 3DS systems as well as your eShop account prior to purchase in order to be eligible for discount; and all of the games must be purchased before offer’s closing. For those of you serviced by the Nintendo eShop in other regions – sorry to disappoint. But if a similar offer comes your way, we’ll be sure to update this as soon as we hear it!

If you’ve ever wanted proof that some games are timeless, look no further than Titan Attacks! Originally published for Playstation 3/4 and Vita and now Nintendo 3DS, Titan Attacks is an unabashed throwback to the early arcade classic Space Invaders. But before you write it off as a quick cash in, you should know that Curve Digital and developer Puppygames have thrown a few new wrinkles into the formla. The game isn’t as nail bitingly difficult as Space Invaders, but its still a score based run that will keep you chasing the highscore. Unlike the original, those scores are now shared around the world thanks to online leaderboards, instead of being visible only to those who take the time to peruse the grimy arcade cabinet in the local pizza shop.

Titan Attacks has a decidedly retro look to it. the simple graphics make it easy to separate enemy types from the background- a not so minor concern later on in the game. Clean lines, explosions that pop and unique enemy designs create a great aesthetic for the game as you play through it’s various levels and backdrops. unfortunately, the soundtrack and effects don’t quite hold up to the same level. They get the job done, but you won’t be blown away. To be fair, I spent a fair amount of my time playing the game while watching a stream on my PC, so the sound certainly isn’t a deal breaker.

Playing Titan Attacks is a simple matter. Your ship is on the bottom of the 3DS’ top screen and you move it left and right with either the slide pad or D-pad. A simple tap of the A button fires your gun at the waves of steadily descending aliens overhead. Gameplay doesn’t advance from there. Enemies arrive in waves, and you ushoot them with A, occasionally pressing B to utilize a screen clearing Smart Bomb purchased from the shop with your hard won cash.

But therein lies the strength of Titan Attacks. It’s a simple core mechanic executed well. The added layers Puppygames has added only enhance the experience. Of course, they may make it to easy, but I’ll touch on that in just a moment. After each wave is cleared you are taken to a shop. There you can buy a variety of upgrades for your ship, ranging from increased gun power, shield recharges, the aforementioned smart bomb and even more bullets or addons for your ship.  These come in handy in later levels as, unlike Space Invaders, Titan Attacks isn’t slow. This is a fast paced version of the classic arcade shooting. Enemies move quickly, challenging you to lead each shot effectively, Some enemies dive at the ground, others pepper the area with scattered bursts of bullets. Keeping up with it all is a daunting task.

Fortunately, Titan Attacks rewards your skill. As you demolish your foes and avoid hits, you build a multiplier that carries across levels. Pickups rain from the sky, providing you with extra money, increased firing speed and a temporary invincibility shield. Pulling off a perfect set of waves as you advance from the Earth to the Moon and beyond is a satisfying feeling, and its easy to see your own skill growing as you more easily demolish weaker waves of foes.

Unfortunately, once you gain enough upgrades, your ship becomes an unstoppable juggernaut that is all but impossible to kill aside from the occasional ill timed dodge directly into a plummeting enemy ship. These upgrades can also hurt your performance in another unexpected way. Every so often, a destroyed ship will erupt into flaming wreckage and plummet towards the earth. If you destroy the ship, you get extra money. The pilot may also eject from his ship, and if you capture him, you get another bonus. Unless you shoot him. Once you have a massively upgraded ship, firing veritable storms of bullets upwards, it becomes impossible to reliably stop your fire in time to catch these plummeting aliens. In effect, the upgrade system can nullify a very interesting quirk in the game mechanics.

Despite the few negatives, Titan Attacks is a fun game. A great time waster, especially for those who like to grind for highscores and bragging rights amongst there friends, or for those who want a more turbo charged take on the classic Space Invaders gameplay.

Titan Attacks: 7.5/10