2024-06

Nintendo has announced the latest installment of the Mario Party series. Super Mario Party Jamboree is a brand-new entry in the franchise, but it’s looking as if the general thrust of play remains mostly intact, with a few notable additions. The reveal trailer shows Mario and friends descending on a small archipelago of islands that make up a massive resort. Across the many boards, players can encounter 110 different minigames. Jamboree includes five new boards – Mega Wiggler’s Tree Party, King Bowser’s Keep, Roll ‘em Raceway, Goomba Lagoon, and Rainbow Galleria – plus returning boards from earlier games, including Mario’s Rainbow Castle (From Mario Party) and Western Land (from Mario Party 2). We got to see a bit of how the board games play out in a couple of these locales. Roll ‘em Raceway includes a turbo dice item that...

For years, fans of the Legend of Zelda have clamored for the titular princess to star in her own game, but even as she's become a more prominent character in recent entries, the Zelda-led Zelda game has yet to appear on store shelves. In today's Nintendo Direct, that wish was finally granted; in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it's up to Princess Zelda to save Hyrule when Link is captured. While the game takes its art style from 2019's Link's Awakening remake, this title is not a remake of any kind, and there's no clear indication that it is connected to Link's Awakening. In this adventure, Zelda uses a new magic item called the Tri Rod to journey across Hyrule. The Tri Rod can create "echoes" of items, like tables, beds, or boxes, to climb and explore the...

For years, fans of the Legend of Zelda have clamored for the titular princess to star in her own game, but even as she's become a more prominent character in recent entries, the Zelda-led Zelda game has yet to appear on store shelves. In today's Nintendo Direct, that wish was finally granted; in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it's up to Princess Zelda to save Hyrule when Link is captured. While the game takes its art style from 2019's Link's Awakening remake, this title is not a remake of any kind, and there's no clear indication that it is connected to Link's Awakening. In this adventure, Zelda uses a new magic item called the Tri Rod to journey across Hyrule. The Tri Rod can create "echoes" of items, like tables, beds, or boxes, to climb and explore the...

We finally have a look at Metroid Prime 4 just a logo. The game is releasing in 2025 and is officially titled Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. The game has had its various tribulations since its announcement on 2017. The game was originally being developed by Bandai Namco, but was later restarted and moved over to Retro Studios, the developer behind the the first three Metroid Prime games. Finally seeing the game is action is exciting, but in a way, not surprising. The action is reminiscent of Retro's other Metroid games (which is a good thing). We see Samus land on a planet clearly in the middle of a battle in a new ship, she moves around, scans elements of the environment, attacks monsters, and turns into a Morph Ball. We all see a tease of a new enemy who...

For the uninitiated, Hello Kitty Island Adventure may not sound like a game that would garner a lot of attention outside of the Sanrio fandom, but the Apple Arcade exclusive has attracted extremely positive fan reception, even taking home the Apple Arcade Game of the Year award in 2023. During today's Nintendo Direct, we learned that Sunblink is bringing the island-building experience to consoles and PC. In Hello Kitty Island Adventure, My Melody is invited to open a gift shop at Big Adventures Park, and she invites Hello Kitty and her friends to the island. You create your own Sanrio-style character and join the getaway, but when you arrive, you learn that the park is abandoned. You must work with Hello Kitty to restore the island and theme park back to its bustling former glory.  Sunblink claims to provide...

Square Enix snuck in an additional announcement at the end of the latest trailer for Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake. Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D remakes are coming in 2025. It seems that the first two games will be delivered in one package. Series creator Yuji Horii appeared on the Direct stream to thank everyone for getting excited about the games and reminded everyone that the Erdrick trilogy is technically ordered III, I, and then II, so the games will be releasing in timeline order....

Today’s Nintendo Direct brought news of the welcome return of Donkey Kong to Switch. Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is headed for release on January 16, 2025. The new version looked great in its reveal trailer today, which showed off DK and his little buddy, Diddy Kong, making their way through a slew of jungle-themed environments, collecting bananas, popping barrels, and even riding Rambi the Rhinoceros. The new remaster is set to include 80 levels, which means it will also have all the extra levels that appeared in the 2013 3DS port. The trailer also reveals plans for two-player local cooperative play. Check our the new trailer for yourself below. ...

Disney Illusion Island was one of our favorite platformers from last year, thanks to its charming visuals, engaging combat-free design, and toe-tapping soundtrack. If you haven't checked it out yet, today is a great day to do so, thanks to the free update that adds a brand-new chapter of gameplay. Mystery In Monoth sees Mickey and friends lend a helping hand to Monoth's greatest detective, the trench coat-clad Dash Dolphin. In addition to what appears to be new levels packed with platforming challenges, players will get to experience some mystery-solving as well by collecting clues and evidence and connecting them using a classic bulletin board with thumbtacks and red string. You can return to the land of Monoth to snoop and sleuth when the Mystery In Monoth update drops later today....

During today's Nintendo Direct, developer Mistwalker announced that its popular RPG Fantasian would be making the leap to Switch later this year in an enhanced version called Fantasian Neo Dimension. The title arrived as an Apple Arcade exclusive in 2021 and currently holds an 80 out of 100 on reviews aggregate site Metacritic. It also won the award for Mobile game of the Year at the 25th Annual DICE Awards.  Mistwalker was founded in 2004 by Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, who produced Fantasian. The studio frequently collaborates with longtime Final Fantasy composer Nobuo Uematsu, who also worked on Fantasian as the composer. To date, Mistwalker has released multiple critically acclaimed games, including Blue Dragon, Lost Odyssey, and The Last Story. Fantasian uses similar turn-based design conventions as were found in many of the most classic Final Fantasy games. The...

Nintendo kicked off its June 2024 Nintendo Direct presentation with the surprise reveal of a new Mario & Luigi game. This is the first new entry (there were some remakes a few years ago) in nine years. The game is subtitled Brothership and is apparently a "seafaring adventure" that will include new evolved "Bros moves". The game is coming to Nintendo Switch November 7. A big question mark that remains is who is the developer? The series was created by and developed by AlphaDream, but the studio closed down in 2019.  ...