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SNES Classic Edition review: Worth it for the games alone
The success of last year's NES Classic Edition clearly took Nintendo by surprise. The company was completely incapable of meeting demand, leaving many people unable to buy what became the must-have gift of the holiday season. Now Nintendo has given its SNES the Classic Edition treatment and promises it's going to build way more than it did last year. Having grown up with the SNES (OK, we had a Sega Genesis and my best friend had SNES), it's easy to assume that everyone knows what it is and why people are so excited that it's back. After dominating the 8-bit era with the NES, Nintendo came late to the party with its sequel. The SNES launched in '90 in Japan, '91 in the US and '92 in the UK. The Genesis had a two-year head start in almost every country, but Nintendo's second-generation home console was worth the wait. The SNES arrived with Super Mario World and F-Zero, among other titles. The former is regarded as one of the greatest games of all time while the latter had faux-3D graphics with fluidity and speed unseen on a console before. For the next five years or so, some special games graced the system: The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Donkey Kong Country, Super Mario Kart, Metroid, Final Fantasy III, Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG, Star Fox. I could go on, but essentially, short of Sonic and a few other Sega exclusives, Nintendo destroyed the competition in terms of quality, with dozens of games that have stood the test of time. That puts the SNES Classic in different territory than its predecessor, which, nostalgia aside, featured many games that, for obvious reasons, aren't up to modern standards. While I utterly adore Metroid, trying to introduce someone to the original today is tough. But nearly all the games Nintendo has included in its latest console are as enjoyable today as they were when they were first released.
'Indivisible' is a hand-drawn JRPG that needs your help
The folks behind Skullgirls are at it again, and this time they're taking to crowdfunding platform IndieGoGo for a hand in creating a gorgeous hand-drawn role-playing game, Indivisible. As BoingBoing points out, perhaps one of the more interesting aspects of the whole deal here is how it's being funded. The game's total budget is $3.5 million, and if the IndieGoGo campaign reaches its $1.5 million goal, publisher 505 Games (Adr1ft, Abzu) will kick in the balance. If you're hesitant about throwing money down, there's a demo prototype available that you can download for Windows.
The VC Advantage: Kinda like a pirate
The internet has made it easy to find cheats for games, but we miss the tips pages from game magazines, when the discovery of a new code could inspire you to go back to an old game. These codes aren't exactly new, but oldness is the essence of the Virtual Console! We're bringing back the classic codes every week on The VC Advantage.There is a notable lack of pirate-themed games on the Virtual Console. It's not that there aren't enough swashbuckling games on supported systems-- there's everything from the good (Uncharted Waters) to Sküljagger (Sküljagger). It makes it hard for us to do our job, which is writing a thematically-appropriate VC Advantage on Talk Like a Pirate Day. So, in the absence of real high-seas adventure, here are cheats for a couple of vaguely pirate-esque games. Just go with it.Bonanza Bros. (GEN):Invincibility Glitch: Bonanza Bros. is a game about two burglars-- the pirates of the land. In order to flout even the game's laws and take advantage of a glitch, just step on a rake right before you're about to be hit by a bullet. You'll turn invincible until your next item pickup.Super Metroid (SNES): Refill Energy Tanks: Everybody knows about this one already, and it's not much of a cheat, but more of a secret. But Super Metroid is rife with Space Pirates-- the pirates of space-- and thus fits perfectly in today's VC Advantage. To refill your energy tanks, you can use the "Crystal Flash" technique, which requires at least 10 Missiles, 10 Super Missiles, and 11 Power Bombs. It also requires that you have less than 49 Energy. Select Power Bombs and activate the Morph Ball. Hold L, R, Shoot, and down. You'll detonate a whole bunch of stuff and regain energy.[Codes via GameFAQs]
More Japanese VC updates: Fatal Fury, Thursday bonuses
Fatal Fury was released on the Japanese Virtual Console yesterday-- the release wasn't shown at the time we were writing the VC Tuesday update, so we missed it. We thought we'd give it a mention because it's the first Neo Geo game on the Virtual Console! In addition to stuff that already came out that we didn't get to write about, Japan gets some bonus VC material tomorrow of the highest caliber. Super Metroid and Sin and Punishment are being released tomorrow, both of which should make up nicely for Super Thunder Blade.Say, now that PAL regions have their Hanabi Festival and Japan has surprise Thursday games, you know what would be great? Some VC bonus stuff in America.[Thanks for pointing out Fatal Fury, Almadi!]
Wii Warm Up: Happy Metroid Month
Possibly the best thing about Metroid Prime 3: Corruption is that it's inspiring Nintendo to release Metroid and Super Metroid on the Virtual Console. The Metroid series has pretty much been masterpiece after masterpiece (and also Hunters). We probably won't be indulging in the VC releases, since we own the NES, GBA, and Gamecube releases of Metroid and a well-loved SNES Super Metroid cartridge, but any time one of the classic games is made available for a new generation of gamers, it's great news.What's your favorite Metroid game? We play through Super Metroid at least once a year, but nothing beats the original for pure, immersive atmosphere. But maybe you prefer one of the first-person games?
Rumor: Metroid goodness coming soon to VC
Using a Firefox browser workaround, intrepid Virtual Console fans can occasionally get a peek into the future of Nintendo's retro gaming plans (and the dripping irony is not lost on us). Aiming their black-hatted crystal ball at Nintendo's U.S. VC servers, their recent exploits have today turned up images of the start screens for both the original Metroid (already available in Europe) as well as Super Metroid. Could Nintendo be priming these titles to coincide with its release of Metroid Prime 3: Corruption later this month? Don't you know it! [Via GoNintendo]
The awesome just keeps on coming: more Virtual Console games [update 1]
Because the eight we just posted weren't good enough, we've got another ESRB confirmation ... this time for thirteen. We'll let the list do the talking for us:NES: Excitebike Ice Climber Dr. Mario Mario Brothers Ice Hockey Soccer Super Nintendo: Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars Kirby's Super Star Super Metroid Kirby's Dream Land 3 Nintendo 64: Mario Kart 64 Starfox 64 Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time "Mario Brothers", which is technically the name of the arcade title already coming to the VC at launch, is presumably the actual Super Mario Bros., which failed to make it across the Pacific in time for November 19th. The biggest name on this list is certainly Mario RPG, a collaborative effort between Nintendo and Squaresoft USA (now known as Square-Enix). Besides being an absolutely excellent game, it shows that Square-Enix is committed to bringing some of the very best of its SNES golden-era RPGs to the Virtual Console. We don't want to say it, we shouldn't, really ... but dammit, we need to ... Chrono Trigger?[Thanks, Cian C.!][Update 1: Dammit, we can't count.]
