Most Recent: Wii U

Bayonetta 1 + 2, Fe, Xeodrifter, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week

Posted on February 15, 2018 by John Scalzo

Nintendo and its third-party publishing partners will add 17 new Switch games to the Nintendo eShop over the next seven days. While the sheer quantity is impressive, the list also includes some of this Winter’s most highly-anticipated games.

Nintendo themselves lead the way with the Switch re-release of Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2. Starting this Friday, players will be able to take Platinum’s pair of action games on the go for the first time. Also available to download tomorrow is Fe, a “wordless platformer” from Zoink and Electronic Arts.

Elsewhere on the Switch storefront, Atooi will make a return to the platform with the launch of Xeodrifter, a retro-styled side-scroller that was originally released for the 3DS in 2014. And Bloober Team will bring the horrific Layers of Fear: Legacy to the Switch on Wednesday. Layers of Fear: Legacy is being touted as the definitive version of the game with its inclusion of the Inheritance expansion, touchscreen controls, and HD Rumble support.

You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, Switch, Wii U | Tagged , , ,

Owlboy, Dragon Quest Builders, Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week

Posted on February 8, 2018 by John Scalzo

It’s Thursday, and Nintendo has offered up yet another hefty eShop update for the Switch.

This coming Tuesday, February 13, Switch owners will be able to download Owlboy, a side-scrolling platformer from D-Pad Studio. The Longest Five Minutes, a new RPG from NIS America, will also be available on the same day.

Both of those games rely on retro aesthetics to pull in players, and Square Enix will use a similar trick in its next game for the Switch. Dragon Quest Builders, a Minecraft-like experience based on the first game in the RPG series, will be available to download for the Switch beginning tomorrow. In addition to the main game, Dragon Quest Builders on the Switch will also include a variety of exclusive content.

Finally, 3DS owners will be able to download Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology early next week. Atlus originally released Radiant Historia for the DS in 2011, and Perfect Chronology is a re-release that includes new story content, upgraded graphics, and “new ways to experience the adventure.”

You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, Switch, Wii U | Tagged , ,

Horizon, PUBG, Nier: Automata, Zelda: BOTW, Super Mario Odyssey will compete for “Game of the Year” at 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards

Posted on February 5, 2018 by John Scalzo

The nominees for the 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards have been announced, and for once, there doesn’t appear to be a clear-cut favorite in any of the categories.

Six games are currently leading the pack after receiving a total of six nominations apiece. Horizon: Zero Dawn, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Nier: Automata, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild all pulled off the double hat trick, and each game also secured a nomination for “Video Game of the Year.” Cuphead and Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice were shut out of the “Video Game of the Year” category, but both games also managed to earn six total nominations.

Rounding out the “Video Game of the Year” field is Super Mario Odyssey, which earned five total nominations.

As in years past, fans are invited to vote for their favorites at IGN.com. The winners in each category will ultimately be decided by a 50/50 vote between the public and the SXSW Gaming Advisory Board.

The 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards will be held on Saturday, March 17, and the full list of nominees in all categories can be found after the break. (more…)

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Night in the Woods, Crypt of the NecroDancer, SteamWorld Dig, more coming to Nintendo eShop this week

Posted on February 1, 2018 by John Scalzo

It’s another big update for the Nintendo eShop, and several highly-acclaimed games from years past will make their way to the Switch’s online storefront this week.

Leading the way to the Switch is Night in the Woods, Infinite Fall’s exploration game focused on the “strange and amazing and terrible things” of young adult life. Also available to download for the Switch today is Crypt of the NecroDancer, a hardcore rhythm-based dungeon-crawler. And finally today, Image & Form will bring their intergalactic MetroidVania, SteamWorld Dig, to the Switch.

You can learn more about all of this week’s additions to the Nintendo eShop after the break. (more…)

Posted in 3DS, News, Switch, Wii U | Tagged ,

Nintendo Switch has officially outsold the Wii U after ten months on the market

Posted on January 31, 2018 by John Scalzo

It’s official. After launching in March and being available to consumers for just under ten months, the Nintendo Switch has officially surpassed the Wii U in total sales. According to Nintendo’s internal tracking, they’ve sold 14.86 million Switch consoles as of December 31. This milestone easily leapfrogs the Wii U, which sold just 13.56 million consoles before it was discontinued in January 2017.

Nintendo also shared some software sales figures for the Switch’s first year, and leading the way is Super Mario Odyssey with 9.07 million copies sold. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is second place with 7.33 million copies sold, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was close behind with 6.7 million copies sold on the Switch.

Other million-sellers for the Switch include Splatoon 2 (4.91 million), 1-2-Switch (1.88 million), Arms (1.61 million), and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (1.06 million).

Nintendo will announce full-year sales figures for the Switch in April, and it’ll be interesting to see what these numbers look like then.

Posted in News, Switch, Wii U | Tagged , , , , , ,

The Video Game Canon: 2018’s “Version 2.0” Update

Posted on January 31, 2018 by John Scalzo

The Video Game Canon is a statistical meta-ranking of dozens of “Best Video Games of All Time” lists that began in 2017 with Version 1.0, and the ranking has been updated several times since then. Which game is #1? There’s only one way to find out…

The Video Game Canon has been upgraded to “Version 2.0” thanks to the addition of four new lists that were published throughout the last year. Edge Magazine’s “100 Greatest Videogames” issue, Jeux Video’s “Top 100 Best Games of All Time,” Polygon’s massive “500 Best Games of All Time,” and Stuff UK’s “50 Greatest Games of All Time” have reshuffled the ranking in a big way.

Let’s take a look…

Visit VideoGameCanon.com for all future updates to this project and to explore the complete Top 1000.

Posted in 3DS, DS, Features, Mobile, PC, PS2, PS3, PS4, PSP, Retro, Switch, Top Story, Video Game Canon, Vita, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Tagged

Call of Duty: WWII repeats as the best-selling game of December 2017

Posted on January 19, 2018 by John Scalzo

Activision’s Call of Duty: WWII has reenlisted for a second tour of duty as the best-selling game of the month. According to The NPD Group (via GamesIndustry.biz), the shooter was the best-selling game in December 2017, besting Star Wars: Battlefront II (#2) and Super Mario Odyssey (#3).

The holiday season dominated last month’s list, as several games that were tailor-made for gift-giving ranked high in the Top 20 including NBA 2K18 (#4), Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (#5), Madden NFL 18 (#6), and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (#9). But perhaps most surprisingly, the Xbox One debut of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds landed at #7 after just a few weeks on sale (PC sales weren’t included in the NPD Group’s calculations).

You can find The NPD Group’s complete list for the Top 20 best-selling games from December 2017 after the break. (more…)

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2018 DICE Awards nominees announced and Horizon: Zero Dawn leads the way with ten

Posted on January 13, 2018 by John Scalzo

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences has announced the nominees for this year’s DICE Awards, and Horizon: Zero Dawn leads the pack with ten.

The action-adventure game from Guerrilla will compete for “Game of the Year,” as well as… deep breath… “Adventure Game of the Year,” “Outstanding Achievement in Character” (for Aloy), “Outstanding Achievement in Game Design,” “Outstanding Achievement in Game Direction,” “Outstanding Achievement in Original Music Composition,” “Outstanding Achievement in Story,” “Outstanding Technical Achievement,” “Outstanding Achievement in Animation,” and “Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction.”

Whew.

Other games nominated for “Game of the Year” include Studio MDHR’s Cuphead, PUBG Corporation’s PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, and Nintendo’s Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

The 2018 DICE Awards will be handed out in a ceremony at the conclusion of this year’s DICE Summit on February 22. A complete list of this year’s nominees can be found after the break. (more…)

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