Ever since E3, rumours have been rife about a new Nintendo Direct. Whether it’s one for Super Smash Bros Ultimate or a general trailer reel for new Switch titles, every ‘insider’ and their dog has been going nuts over new Directs and Smash Bros trailers, claiming that a new one was just around the corner. It’s even become a running joke in the Smash Bros fandom at this point!
But now it’s finally become a reality. Yep, a New Nintendo Direct livestream has been announced by Nintendo!
And this is no ordinary one either. Oh no, it’s a Super Smash Bros Ultimate one, featuring new information about the game by director Masahiro Sakurai! Here’s their tweet announcing the Direct on Twitter:
Along with the times for the Direct in various time zones:
7:00 am PT
10:00 am ET
11:00pm JST
4:00pm CEST
3:00pm BST
It’s all pretty convenient really, given its late afternoon for European fans and early morning for American ones. That’s a nice change of pace from the usual Direct setup, which seems to be run for Japan and America first and everyone else last, with European fans having to catch up the next day for anything at all.
Heck, it means we’ll even be able to cover it live too. That’s a nice change from the norm too!
But hey, enough about the timing. What kind of announcements could we hear here?
Well, based on the fact they’ve made a specific Nintendo Direct about the whole ordeal, it’s fair to say we’re gonna get some major Super Smash Bros Ultimate reveals. A new character is virtually confirmed at this point, and to be honest, we think it’s pretty likely that new game modes or features could be in the pipeline as well. Maybe that new adventure mode might be revealed? Or perhaps something related to the game’s online play, assuming its features are a bit better than the Wii U’s one in that respect.
Is it finally his time to shine?
Either way, we’ll have a full livestream of the Direct this Wednesday, covering any reveals that may happen there. Get ready for more Super Smash Bros Ultimate info people, cause this will be epic!
However, what do you think about it? Are you happy to see a new Nintendo Direct this week? What new characters and modes will be revealed for Super Smash Bros Ultimate?
Tell us what you think here in the comments, over on Gaming Latest or via social media today!
Which is why we’re so happy to see that unused content has already been datamined from WarioWare Gold on 3DS! Yep, as posted by Ehm from the Cutting Room Floor Wiki, an early version of Penny’s intro cutscene exists in the files of WarioWare Gold. And it’s from such an early stage in development that it actually uses hand drawn sketches by the game’s character designer Ko Takeuchi in place of the artwork used in the final game!
Here’s a tweet showing off some of the frames:
Leftover test video in WarioWare Gold. It's an early version of Penny Crygor's intro cutscene, featuring super cute Ko Takeuchi sketches. I'll try to get a proper video recording of both versions online at some point, but it's just not happening right now. pic.twitter.com/2DswdtUKTW
In addition to a video showing how it works out in game:
It’s actually pretty charming really, and in many cases, actually looks quite a bit more interesting than the final cutscene does. Hell, we’d certainly check out a WarioWare game with an art style like this, even if it was just used for a single cutscene or extra souvenir.
But what do you think about it? Do you find it interesting to see this sort of content in video games, especially this soon after the game’s release?
Would you play a WarioWare game that looked like Ko Takeuchi’s sketches?
Tell us what you think either on social media or over at the Gaming Latest forums!
As you know, there haven’t exactly been a shortage of cameos in Nintendo titles. Whether it’s Mario enemies in the Zelda series, Link and Samus in Mario RPG or more obscure stuff like Dr Arewo Stein from For the Frog the Bell Tolls in Wario Land 3 and 4, the company has never been shy of including references to their other games in the various titles.
Above: This guy is actually from another Nintendo game
And with Donkey Kong Country itself featuring cameos from Mr Game & Watch, Samus’ ship and various third-party characters in the SNES titles, it’s no surprise another Metroid reference would be present in the latest title.
What is surprising though is what said cameo happens to be. Why? Because unlike before, it’s not just a piece of static imagery. No, as it turns out, it’s an actual Metroid that can be seen in the background of Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze!
Yep, as found by Shane Marchis on Twitter, a keen Tropical Freeze player can actually see one of the titular creatures appearing in the background of Amiss Abyss, though it’s not visible at first glance.
Instead, you have to go forward past a certain point in the stage, then return past a damaging underwater obstacle to get a glimpse of the creature, which then appears rather clearly in the background of the stage.
Here’s his Tweet showing it in the game:
Found the elusive Metroid cameo in Tropical Freeze! Players have been searching for four years and I got to it first! #Nintendopic.twitter.com/HKdwz9NlPo
It’s pretty out of the way, and it’s not surprising no one else found this creature in Amiss Abyss prior to this.
But hey, it’s a pretty neat easter egg none the less, and one that just makes you wonder what other stuff developers have hidden in the backgrounds of their games. Maybe Tropical Freeze has more Metroid references than this! Or maybe other Mario games have neat background details you can spot, who knows.
Guess we’ll have to wait and see!
Still, what do you think? Do you like the cameo here? What other similar easter eggs have you found in Nintendo games?
Tell us what you think in the comments below or on social media today!
Given its huge level of popularity at the moment, it’s no surprise Fortnite is getting released on Android later this year. After all, the game’s done hugely well in the last year or so, with 125 million players having experienced on across the various platforms it’s been released on, and the title became a household name virtually overnight as a result.
Having it available for the world’s most popular smartphone OS only seems like the next logical move here.
Above: Presumably it’ll look like the iOS version shown here
Except here’s the thing:
Fortnite is not being released on Google Play. Nope.
Instead, anyone who wants to play it from Android has to download the installer from Epic Games’ website, then add it to their phone from here. It’s nothing too complicated here (just a generic APK file that you run like any other ‘unofficial’ Android app), but it’s an interesting set up none the less.
This is because (according to Epic Games), Google’s 30% cut of the Play Store profits is too high for what they actually do, meaning it makes more business sense to distribute it independently and cut out the middle man.
It’s an interesting decision by the company, and one we’ve generally not seen app developers make before. But is it a good one?
Well to be honest, we’re not that sure. Firstly, how many people actually download apps from websites rather than stores nowadays?
We’d hazard a guess and say ‘very few’. Indeed, as a rule of thumb, most people tend to stick the app stores where apps for smartphones are concerned, with only a small percentage using unofficial app stores or sideloaded apps on their phones.
Well, it’s finally here! After 5 years of no Wario games and a whole handheld console generation without one in sight, WarioWare Gold has finally been released for the 3DS. And with over 300 microgames, numerous extras and unlockables celebrating every part of the franchise’s history, it’s clear Nintendo is aiming for WarioWare Gold to be every Wario fan’s dream WarioWare title.
But does it live up to the hype? Is it the gold standard for the WarioWare series, or is it another disappointment like WarioWare Snapped and Game & Wario before it?
Let’s find out, in our all new review of WarioWare Gold for the 3DS!
Graphics
Starting with the visuals of the game. How appealing does WarioWare Gold look in general?
Well to be honest, about as appealing as every other WarioWare game does. It’s a series that’s never exactly been a graphics powerhouse, and it’s one that doesn’t need much beyond appealing cartoony visuals to do its job.
And in that sense? WarioWare Gold does its job perfectly. The cutscenes are nice enough and look charming, the microgames retain the quirky mix of visual styles the series is known for and everything looks as polished as can be for this sort of title. It’s not gonna compete with something like Luigi’s Mansion 2 or Mario Kart 7 or the Mario & Luigi series’ pixel art, but it looks great regardless, and does exactly what you need it to do.
So, all’s fine on the graphics front. Let’s move on to…
Sound/Music
To the sound department, where things actually get a bit more interesting than the past titles. Why? Because unlike said titles, WarioWare Gold has full voice acting for all major characters and cutscenes. What’s more, it’s not even the ‘couple of treehouse members’ style cheap voice acting from previous titles either, with the voice acting actually being done by professionals with experience in the industry. In that sense, it’s quite the step up.
What’s more, it actually works out pretty well for the most part. Wario is still voiced by Charles Martinet and still sounds as good as ever, whereas the other characters get new voice actors who generally hit the mark in the sound department. Have a listen to some examples if you don’t believe us there:
As you can tell, they generally do a pretty good job for the most part. This ain’t no Mario Sunshine esque deal where Bowser sounds like Cookie Monster, this is actually decent voice acting that compliments the game’s cutscenes perfectly.
Well, for the most part that is. Because unfortunately, while most of the voicework here is indeed top notch (with 18-Volt, Dribble and Ashley being some sort of the standouts), some of the others is perhaps a little less so. Like how Jimmy T sounds less like a suave disco dancer and more like a generic everyman, or how 9-Volt sounds just a bit too much like an average kid. Don’t get me wrong here, they don’t sound bad or anything, just not ideal for their roles in the game.
Still, even if the voice acting isn’t perfect, you certainly can’t fault the music or other sound effects in this game one bit. That’s because WarioWare Gold has quite literally the best soundtrack in the series bar none.
And that’s because in this title, every classic WarioWare tune you can think of returns. Ashley’s theme? Check. Mona Pizza? Check. Tomorrow Hill and Four Seasons? Check.
The records section for the title is a literal museum for classic WarioWare music, with basically every memorable tune you can think of making a comeback here. It’s amazing really.
What’s more, it gets even more incredible when you realise something else about said songs too. Namely, they’re now completely uncompressed and can be listened to at their original level of quality. No more hard to pick out voices or GBA soundchip level graininess here, every tune in WarioWare Gold is as crystal clear as you can get:
But don’t think WarioWare Gold is a mere nostalgia trip. Oh no, the game has quite a few new tracks you can listen to and unlock too. These include a new rap song starring 18-Volt, various mini game tracks (including a few based-on Ashley’s theme) and a catchy Mexican dance song for the final boss game. All of which are as catchy as can be, and all of which suit their place in the game perfectly:
The microgame background tunes and cutscene songs are neat too, though neither are played long enough to leave much of a lasting impression due to the gameplay style. Either way, it’s a good soundtrack, and it’s the best one in the series bar none.
However, as neat as it may be, that alone won’t make WarioWare Gold a good game. A good game needs good gameplay as well as music and visuals, and fortunately, that’s one area where WarioWare Gold succeeds with flying colours…
Gameplay
Since WarioWare Gold is basically the best bits of the WarioWare series in one game, with all the modes, control schemes and mechanics to match. As ever, the aim to complete all the random microgames thrown at you in the story, with the game speeding up after every four or so are completed and getting more difficult after a longer boss game.
And also as ever, this means doing whatever random things the game throw at you, since you have no idea what style of gameplay will come up next. You might be dodging traffic, keeping a cat from getting wet via an umbrella or picking a giant nose, it’s all there and hilarious in its sheer absurdity.
Above: For example, this microgame has Wario trying to keep a solicitor out of his house by holding the front door shut
But WarioWare Gold goes further still with the randomness. That’s because as mentioned before, all control schemes from past games return in this one. That means at any one time you could be mashing buttons, tilting the console, touching the screen or even blowing into the microphone, all while not knowing what control scheme may pop up next.
Well okay, maybe not for the first part of the game. In that one, the microgames are all sorted by control scheme and each row’s sets are based around a single control scheme (buttons, gyro and touch respectively).
But the point still stands, since later on things get mixed up, and your concentration will become a definite necessity if you want to stand a chance.
Yet the insanity doesn’t stop there either. Oh no. That’s because beating WarioWare Gold unlocks a new challenge menu, which comes with a new set of special challenges to take on.
These take the already wacky microgame format and add another twist to the setup in the form of outside mechanics you have to be careful with as well. There’s Sneaky Gamer, which returns from Game & Wario and has you basically playing Five Nights at Freddy’s and WarioWare at the same time:
