hyrule warriors
Latest
The Nintendo Switch just had its best quarter yet
The extra units mean the Switch has now surpassed the Nintendo 3DS and 2DS family, which currently stand at 75.94 million units. If the Switch has a normal spring quarter — selling at least 2.5 million consoles — it will pass the Game Boy Advance, which managed 81.51 million sales. After that, the Switch only has three pieces of Nintendo hardware to overcome: the Wii, Game Boy and DS family.
'Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity' is a hack-and-slash 'Breath of the Wild' prequel
'Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity' is set 100 years before 'Breath of the Wild' and will tell the story of the Great Calamity.
'Hyrule Warriors' and a new 'Metroid' are coming to Nintendo 3DS
Nintendo's 2015 E3 Direct has just kicked off with great news for 3DS owners: Hyrule Warriors Legends and a new Metroid are on the way. We'd already seen leaks indicating the Koei Tecmo-published Hyrule Warriors would be ported to Nintendo's dual-screen console, but now we have a release date -- first quarter 2016 -- and word that additional content from The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker will be included. That latter content will take the form of new characters (like Tetra) and stages pulled from the GameCube title. As for that new Metroid, well, it's not quite the Prime reboot we were all hoping for, but it does appear to carry on the legacy. Metroid Prime: Federation Force, developed by Next Level Games, incorporates a four-player co-op mode and should be headed to the 3DS at some point in 2016. The other bit of curious news accompanying Federation Force is the bundling of a separate "sci-fi sports battle" title called Metroid Prime: Blast Ball. Details on both titles were thin, so we'll have sit tight and wait for Nintendo to share more.
Hyrule Warriors ships a million, celebrates with wallpaper party
Hyrule Warriors shipped a million units worldwide since it launched last fall, which equates to many, many millions of enemies taken out in the army-mashing crossover. Famitsu reported the milestone today, which we've confirmed with a Koei Tecmo Europe representative. Koei Tecmo is celebrating like cray by publishing a set of new wallpapers based on the Wii U brawler, and they're not bad desktop bling, it has to be said. Also, there's still plenty of steam in the game's DLC train; Majora's Mask content is due to arrive next week. And yes, the DLC features Tingle. Like absolutely everything should. [Image: Tecmo Koei]
Hyrule Warriors getting Majora's Mask pack next month [Update]
Hyrule Warriors will receive a new piece of downloadable content themed after The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask on February 5, Nintendo revealed during its Nintendo Direct livestream this morning. The DLC will include Tingle and the game's youthful Link as playable characters, the former giving his enemies a kiss of death and whipping them with bags of rupees. The pack will also include three as-yet-unknown character skins. Update: Nintendo says the DLC will cost $7.99 and will also feature a new Adventure Mode map. [Image: Nintendo]
Best of the Rest: Thomas' picks of 2014
ATTENTION: The year 2014 has concluded its temporal self-destruct sequence. If you are among the escapees, please join us in salvaging and preserving the best games from the irradiated chrono-debris. Disney Fantasia: Music Evolved I love listening to music alone. When no one's looking, I'm free to tap out drum beats, put on emotional lip-synchs and flail in synch with a song's swelling heights. Playing Disney Fantasia: Music Evolved is a lot like those solo jam sessions in the way it grants a free pass to completely lose myself in a song's components. Sure, I look ridiculous, but I have to! Matching notes with halfhearted swipes and restrained punches just leads to broken combos, as if the Kinect is the all-knowing gaze of an instructor ready to belittle a cold, tired performance. Substituting instruments and creating remixes adds a welcome element of experimentation to Fantasia, but it's the core focus of moving with music that brings me back each week. It's increasingly difficult to ignore life's noise while playing a game as I grow older, but Fantasia's peak moments tune out every distraction, leaving me with an uninhibited excuse to enjoy twisted, endearing remixes of songs that I love.
Outfit your Hyrule Warriors with costume DLC, now available
If you missed out on pre-ordering Hyrule Warriors to snag retailer-exclusive costumes inspired by Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and Ocarina of Time (or wanted more than one set of said costumes), there's good news waiting for you in the eShop, as four costume packs are now available for $0.99 each. Note: While the full game can be purchased via Nintendo's website, the DLC waits in the wings of the Wii U eShop. The Twilight Princess, Skyward Sword and Ocarina of Time costume packs each provide Link and Zelda with costumes inspired by the respective game. A fourth pack, called the Demon King Costume Set, provides two new costumes for Ganondorf - one inspired by his appearance in Ocarina of Time and one inspired by Twilight Princess. All of the costume packs now for sale are the same as those given to customers who pre-ordered (or in the case of the Ganondorf costumes, those in Club Nintendo) so be careful not to make a double purchase. [Image: Nintendo]
Hyrule Warriors takes Twili Midna for a twirl next week
Hyrule Warriors' next DLC delves into the Legend of Zelda's past and retrieves one of the series' most memorable companions as a playable character. Reprized in her True "Twili" form as seen at the end of Link's GameCube and Wii adventure, the Twilight Princess pack brings Midna and her wiles to the Wii U hack-and-slash on November 27. Zelda series producer Eiji Anouma explained on Miiverse why the Twilight Princess returns in Hyrule Warriors as Twili Midna rather than her more familiar form. "When I was developing Twilight Princess," Anouma wrote, "I thought it was such a waste to let a beautiful princess like her only appear in the ending. Now Koei Tecmo Games has made my wish to see more of her come true."
Nintendo clarifies Hyrule Warriors Amiibo functionality
While it is true that all Amiibo figures are compatible with the Legend of Zelda-themed musou brawler known as Hyrule Warriors, certain Amiibos will have added functionality, according to Nintendo. As you'd expect, the Amiibos that add the most to Hyrule Warriors are the game's stars, Hylian hero Link and Princess Zelda. When connected to the game, the Link Amiibo grants players access to the Spinner weapon first seen in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. The rewards granted by the Zelda Amiibo are less specific, but Nintendo claims that players can link the figure to the game as frequently as once a day to unlock a random weapon of three-star quality or better. All other Amiibo figures can be linked to Hyrule Warriors once a day to unlock a rupee bonus, crafting materials or a weapon below three-star quality. The first wave of Amiibo figures will roll out alongside Super Smash Bros. Wii U on November 21, while Nintendo plans to launch a software update to enable Amiibo functionality in Hyrule Warriors in "late November 2014." [Image: Nintendo]
All Amiibo figures compatible with Hyrule Warriors
Nintendo revealed that all of its upcoming Amiibo figures are compatible with the Wii U brawler Hyrule Warriors, giving them added features beyond their previously announced Super Smash Bros. for Wii U functionality. Hyrule Warriors players who scan the Link Amiibo will receive the Spinner, a weapon originally featured in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Other scanned figures will unlock randomly chosen weapons, materials, or rupee caches. Amiibo functionality was also announced for Mario Kart 8 and Kirby and the Rainbow Curse. The first wave of Amiibo figures will roll out alongside the launch of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U later this month.
Hyrule Warriors to Link up with Amiibo figure
An Amiibo figure slated to launch alongside Super Smash Bros. for Wii U next month will also be compatible with the recently released Wii U brawler Hyrule Warriors, Nintendo of America announced today. Players who purchase Super Smash Bros. for Wii U's Link figure can register the Hylian hero with Hyrule Warriors, presumably after a software update. No further details regarding Hyrule Warriors' Amiibo functionality have been announced, but Nintendo notes that more information will be available as Super Smash Bros. for Wii U approaches its North American launch on November 21. [Image: Nintendo]
Epona is the weaponized horse you always wanted in Hyrule Warriors
Link's horse, Epona, is a new weapon in the first DLC pack for Hyrule Warriors, supervisor Eiji Aonuma says in a blog post. Everyone wants a pony, right? Epona is a new weapon in the Master Quest DLC pack due out on October 16 in the Americas. "Some of you may be surprised to hear that Epona is a 'weapon,' but in Hyrule Warriors, she can team up with Link to attack enemies!" Aonuma writes. "I already had a chance to try out Epona in the game. By riding Epona, I was able to blow herds of enemies away and gallop swiftly through the fields, and I had a lot of fun trying out this re-imagined version of her in Hyrule Warriors." Hyrule Warriors gets four pieces of planned, paid DLC, available in a season pass bundle for $20, which also nets players a special Dark Link costume. The DLC packs include new weapons, characters, maps and costumes. See the Hyrule Warriors launch trailer below, and check out our four-star review here. [Image: Nintendo]
New Nintendo eShop releases: Hyrule Warriors, Mario Golf: Advance Tour
Nintendo and Omega Force's The Legend of Zelda-inspired brawler Hyrule Warriors launches in the eShop today, letting Wii U owners slash their way through endless hordes of Moblins and other familiar critters as they quest to save Hyrule. Wii U players can also look forward to a Virtual Console version of Mario Golf: Advance Tour this week, along with other downloadable offerings like Angry Bunnies: Colossal Carrot Crusade, Darts Up, and a demo of Spin the Bottle: Bumpie's Party. The Nintendo 3DS, meanwhile, hosts its very first Yu-Gi-Oh! game with today's launch of Yu-Gi-Oh! ZEXAL World Duel Carnival. Both platforms see a round of discounts as part of Nintendo's ongoing Super Smash Bros-themed sale, as this week spotlights a number of games starring Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Kirby, and other franchise characters. Nintendo partially revealed its October lineup as well, announcing that Konami's Castlevania: Dracula X (likely the SNES version) and Game Boy Advance launch title Castlevania: Circle of the Moon will stalk the eShop in the weeks leading up to Halloween. Hit the break below for a full list of all games hitting the Wii U and 3DS eShop this week. [Image: Nintendo]
Destiny retains UK No.1 against Disney Infinity 2.0, Hyrule Warriors
Destiny "comfortably" held on to top spot in the UK, says data compilers Chart Track, despite new releases Disney Infinity 2.0 and Hyrule Warriors charging into second and third. Sales of the space-roaming shooter had a typical second week dip, going down by 78 percent, but it was enough for Bungie's guardians of the galaxy to see off Marvel's guardians of the toy box. While it didn't take top spot, Disney Infinity 2.0 sold 32 percent better than the first entry did in its debut week in the UK. Similarly Hyrule Warriors, Nintendo's link to the Dynasty Warriors, notched one of the best UK charts debuts for a Wii U game, only bested by the likes of Mario Kart 8 and Pikmin 3. In other Nintenews, 3DS nostalgia-fest Theatrhythm Final Fantasy Curtain Call fell short of the top ten, placing 17th in its first week. For the full UK top ten (and customary music video), head below the break.
Joystiq Weekly: Sony financials, Destiny review, Minecraft sale and more
Welcome to Joystiq Weekly, a "too long; didn't read" of each week's biggest stories, reviews and original content. Each category's top story is introduced with a reactionary gif, because moving pictures aren't just for The Daily Prophet. What would you do with $2.5 billion? Sure, Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson isn't pocketing the entire sum from Microsoft's acquisition of Mojang, but something tells us he'll uh, be okay for a few years. Unless you're keen on buying small nations and playing a real-world game of Risk, it's tough to imagine spending your share of a massive buyout like that. There was loads more to this week than business deals involving yacht-sized bags of money, though. There's hope for a playable taste of Final Fantasy 15 in 2015, reviews for Destiny, Hyrule Warriors, Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call, a full timeline of Minecraft's progress from day one and loads more, all awaiting you after the break!
Hyrule Warriors DLC lineup has Dark Link, free villains
Free Hyrule Warriors DLC launching on October 16 in Europe adds three playable villains to players' rosters: Cia, Volga and Wizzro. This DLC is also coming to Japan, but there's no word on a North American launch for the free content. European, Japanese and North American Hyrule Warriors players can expect four pieces of paid DLC, and buying them all in a Season Pass for $20 throws in a Dark Link costume. As collected by NeoGAF from the Koei Tecmo TGS livestream, the four packs include mixes of new characters, weapons, maps and costumes. The Hyrule Warriors Master Quest DLC is due out on October 16, Twilight Princess is November, Majora's Mask is January and the Ganon Pack is February. Hyrule Warriors is out in Japan and it's scheduled to launch in Europe tomorrow. It hits North America on September 26. Our review is full of praise, concluding, "Not only is Hyrule Warriors the best entry point to Koei Tecmo's other musou games, it's also a solid Legend of Zelda entry in its own right." [Image: Nintendo]
Joystiq Streams: Hey, Hyrule Warriors! Come out to plaayyayy
*Clink* *Clink* *Clink* Joystiq Streams is playing Hyrule Warriors live at 4:00PM EST on Joystiq.com/Twitch. CAN YOU DIG IT?! Yes, it's going to be a non-stop cavalcade of Link, Impa, and Midna action. We'll slice up some Moblins and than a bunch of Gorons, just to put the Wii U through its paces. Anthony John Agnello (@ajohnagnello) is playing, Earnest Cavalli (@ecavalli) will discuss his review, and Richard Mitchell (@TheRichardM) will hang in the chat wondering why Nintendo didn't include Tingle in this game. That's Joystiq.com/Twitch at 4:00PM EST, just how we do it every Tuesday and Thursday. Enjoy the streams? Follow us on Twitch to catch us whenever we go live. [Images: Nintendo]
Hyrule Warriors review: Moblin warfare
Though The Legend of Zelda series includes some of the most beloved games of all time, Hyrulean protagonist Link has seen some less than stellar adventures in the hands of developers not named Nintendo. Capcom's Oracle of Seasons and Oracle of Ages Game Boy games were excellent, but both relied on gameplay elements and graphics borrowed from Nintendo's own The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening. More notorious are the three CD-i games which transplanted Link into a wholly new gameplay style that's best described as a hybrid of the sidescrolling stages of the second Legend of Zelda game and an unending litany of poor design decisions. The less said about the games' baffling take on Nintendo character design, the better. Despite this disappointing history, Nintendo has now granted Koei Tecmo – more specifically, its most notable developers, Omega Force and Team Ninja – the rights to craft their own Legend of Zelda entry, a melee-focused Wii U spin-off dubbed Hyrule Warriors. It would be difficult to match the depressing legacy left by the CD-i entries, but it seems an even more daunting task to match Nintendo's pedigree of sterling high-fantasy adventures. Fortunately for fans of both The Legend of Zelda and Koei Tecmo's flagship musou brawlers, Hyrule Warriors is successful on nearly every level.
Day-one patch adding Challenge Mode to Hyrule Warriors
Hyrule Warriors who are looking for a test of skills that goes beyond the game's Adventure Mode will be glad to hear that, as reported by Nintendo World Report, developer Koei Tecmo will be releasing a day-one patch that adds Challenge Mode to the game when it releases in North America on September 26. So just what is Challenge Mode? According to members of a Nintendo Treehouse stream made earlier this week, it's basically "Adventure Mode on steroids." So ... it's tougher and angrier, but also has some acne problems and premature balding? Whatever you say, Nintendo. Obviously that's a joke, but the truth of the matter is we won't know what Challenge Mode has in store for us until later this month. Remember warriors, patience is a virtue. [Image: Nintendo/Koei Tecmo]
Fantasy Life, Captain Toad to feature in Nintendo's livestream
While more than half of Nintendo upcoming "gameplay" live-stream is just for the 3DS Super Smash Bros, the company's also giving some lower-profile games their time in the limelight. The eight-hour broadcast starts at 10AM PT (1PM ET) tomorrow, with Smash 3DS going on the air at 1PM PT (4PM ET). The games starring in the first three hours include Bayonetta 2 and Hyrule Warriors, a duo Nintendo's already provided individual Directs for, but also three less high-profile games in Fantasy Life, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker and Ultimate NES Remix.
