Four score and many PAX Easts ago…

This is my tenth PAX East. 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022.

My first was, as you see in that lede, a decade ago (recap here). I was 17, still in high school, and had been on staff at Nintendo World Report for a few months. 10 years later, I’m a legacy staffer who spends most of his time working in a career that this very site prepared me for. I’m buying a house and getting married. My back hurts (haha).

Poké Fan Alex offers his take on Pokemon Legends: Arceus and the Gen 4 remakes.

In celebrating Pokemon’s 25th anniversary, The Pokemon Company announced two new core titles set to release on Nintendo Switch in the next year or so.

The first was a pair of remakes: Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Pokemon Shining Pearl. They’re remakes of 2006’s DS titles Diamond and... Read more...

Alex breaks down some of the more interesting games he saw at this year's PAX East.

This year marked my eighth PAX East with Nintendo World Report, and my third hosting a panel (this year’s was on Animal Crossing!), so it’s safe to say that this time around, I know what I’m getting into. PAX East is a place where you play cool indie games, stand in long lines, and people-watch all the people in cool cosplay.

Thoughts on the Switch from a guy who played it.

Let me apologize for that title immediately. The phrase “a mixed bag” has long been considered the laziest phrase a reviewer can use when talking about a video game, but man, is it accurate here. The Nintendo Switch is the most mixed bag that ever did mix.

I say this as someone who played... Read more...

Home Studiwoah.

Art Academy is a Nintendo franchise that never necessarily felt like “one of the gang” to me. In a literal sense, it absolutely is, just as much as any other Nintendo game. But from the outside looking in, Art Academy came across as a tool provided by Nintendo more than a game within Nintendo’s... Read more...

This time, the games are going to be named after theoretical constructs.

As I write this, we’re about a month out from E3 and no Pokémon game of any kind has been announced for 2015 yet. If one is coming, it is (almost) unquestionably going to be announced at or right around the show. It could be announced beforehand (Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire were announced on... Read more...

With the New 3DS, the old 3DS, and the Circle Pad Pro, what ways do we prefer our Monster Hunter?

Controls in Monster Hunter on the 3DS have always been a bone of contention. Hell, the Circle Pad Pro essentially exists because for the series. As such, Monster Hunter is one of the few games that makes use of the Circle Pad Pro and the New 3DS's new C-stick. After messing around with different control schemes, Neal and Alex have figured out how they prefer to control the series' latest entry Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate.

Detective Alex is on the case to ask: Why aren't these games on 3DS yet?

We’re almost four years into the system’s life, and most major Nintendo franchises have shown up on 3DS. We have two Pokémon games, two Mario games, three Zelda games (counting the remakes), soon-to-be two Fire Emblem games, Animal Crossing, Kid Icarus, and more. Even otherwise console-exclusive games like Luigi’s Mansion, Paper Mario, and Super Smash Bros. have found a handheld home in 3DS. So the question remains: what’s left?

The brave and the bold...and Metroid.

To the surprise of no one and excitement of everyone, a new Nintendo Direct is happening this Wednesday morning, January 14. Some things are pretty much a lock – we’re going to get Majora’s Mask 3D and we’re going to get New 3DS talk for sure. But what about the rest of the announcements? That’s where I come in.

After playing Ultimate NES Remix, Alex reviews the young series and offers his thoughts for the future.

Ultimate NES Remix is a unique package because it allows us to see the very best of what a series has to offer – a type of compilation usually exclusive to television and music. It includes challenges and remixes of the 16 most notable NES games out of 28 represented in the two NES Remix games on... Read more...

That Japenese commercial looks mighty fishy!

If you go on NeoGAF, /v/, or pretty much any online community centered around video games, there’s a decent chance you’ve seen this commercial making the rounds, posted a few days ago on Nintendo’s Japanese YouTube channel:

Around the 0:07 mark, pause and look at the man’s hands. You will see this image:

Where are my trumpets?

As an addendum to my other article about why Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire are both great and not-so-great Pokémon games, I’ve decided to specify six things that I think could have made the 3DS remakes even better. What would you have liked to see in the new Pokémon games that didn’t end up getting in? Sound off below.

NES games, 8-player visits, and more!

It feels like the Wii U version of Animal Crossing is due for an announcement. Thanks to Miyamoto’s recent Amiibo statements, in which he directly suggested implementation into a future Animal Crossing game, there’s very little doubt that the Wii U Animal Crossing is being developed right now.... Read more...

What will Pokemon be like in 2019? We have the answer.

If you haven’t noticed, Pokémon has more or less become an annual franchise. In North America at least, a main series Pokémon game (or set of main series games) has come out every year since 2009.

2009: Platinum

2010: HeartGold and SoulSilver

2011: Black and White

2012: Black 2 and White 2

With the Wii U version on the way, does the first handheld Smash Bros. have enough content to stay relevant?

Before writing this, I wasn’t sure how to approach the topic, or what to base the measure of “enough” on. Should I make my evaluation based on the Wii U version, on the series as a whole, or solely the 3DS version without giving consideration to the rest of the series? For the sake of fairness, I’m going to attempt to do all three.

Bold colors and dope soundtrack and free movement, oh my!

The demo for Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire is now available in most territories and finally, yes, I have played it. The demo isn’t that crazy because it just features a bit of exploration and a handful of battles, but I still managed to glean some observations from our first taste of the upcoming Pokémon experience. Here are the five things that stuck out the most.

I don't even know if I like playing as them but I can't stop playing as them.

Every time I play as the extremely fascinating Duck Hunt duo, I learn another quirk about the character, have one new question, or gain a new observation. In lieu of proper prose with a main point, I figured it would make more sense to cut to the chase and point out some of the numerous things I’ve wondered or noticed about these two.

After you take away the HD, what does this game actually have left?

Mario Kart 8 is on its way to Wii U, and there is a lot of hope on this game turning the console around. While I absolutely disagree with that line of thinking, my focus today is much smaller in scale, discussing why I am personally less excited for this game than some of you might be. Please understand... Read more...

At least they didn't end it by ruining Mario again.

As a Nintendo fan who is often extremely critical of Nintendo, I had pretty low expectations for this monthly Direct (at least, they seem to be monthly now). I expected the big Nintendo Wii U Direct to come in January, I expected no more than one announcement, and I expected Mario Golf and Kirby to... Read more...

They ruined you, Mario.

Well, let's not beat around the bush. Nintendo promised a Nintendo Direct today and we sure got one. There were plenty of okay announcements, a couple of great ones, one really awful one, and plenty in-between. Let's take the next few minutes to talk about what I personally deem to be the good, the bad, and the ugly of this presentation (there were other announcements besides these, but those belong in a special “indifferent” category):