Wii U eShop
Star Wars Pinball (Zen Studios, €9.99 / £7.99) — It's taken a good while to arrive, and ultimately never came as DLC for Zen Pinball 2, but the tables based on the iconic franchise finally make their way to Wii U. This is the standalone title that includes XP, a dynamic front end depending on the side you choose and leaderboards that reflect the community's sides of the force. We'll trust our instincts and bring you a review.
Wii U Virtual Console NES (Famicom) Promotion
Donkey Kong (Nintendo, €0.30 / £0.30) — The latest cheaper than chips Famicom promotion game introduces us to DK the villain and the heroic Jumpman, though of course much has changed since then. This is the U.S. version of the iconic NES title — itself a port from the arcade — and you can check out our Wii Virtual Console Donkey Kong review to see how it stacked up on the original VC; this will be available from 15th July.
Wii U Virtual Console
Metroid (Nintendo, €4.99 / £3.49) — The NES title that started it all, confusing gamers in its maze of a world before revealing that the hero was a heroine, ahead of its "rescue the Princess" time, arguably. The series hit its 2D heights with Super Metroid, but the groundwork was laid down in this 8-bit debut. We still think it holds up pretty well in our 3DS Virtual Console Metroid review.
Kid Icarus (Nintendo, €4.99 / £3.49) — Another iconic debut, though this series hasn't appeared as often as Metroid, to put it lightly. That catchy music was heard for the first time — before being enjoyed again in the 3D Classics release — and it's also a game capable of driving seasoned gamers to distraction with its difficulty; yet it teases us along to play more, regardless. We'll tackle those tough vertical levels again, but in the meantime you can check out our Wii Virtual Console Kid Icarus review.
Wii U Virtual Console Promotion
Metroid (Nintendo, €2.49 / £1.74 until 25th July if you've already bought Kid Icarus on the Wii U eShop, normally €4.99 / £3.49)
Kid Icarus (Nintendo, €2.49 / £1.74 until 25th July if you've already bought Metroid on the Wii U eShop, normally €4.99 / £3.49)
3DS eShop
Kokuga (G.Rev, €14.99 / £13.49) — As the latest game from legendary shmup developer Hiroshi Iuchi, this comes with a bit of pressure to accompany its unique design ideas; you can only have one bullet on screen at any time, though you can use various cards for special abilities and buffs at key moments. While extremely challenging, this one nails it in our view, becoming tough to ignore for fans of the genre — check out our Kokuga review for the full lowdown.
Murder on the Titanic (Joindots, €14.99 / £14.99) — This one makes bold promises of a mysterious murder on the famous ship, puzzles to solve and plenty of hidden object finding to keep you occupied. While not getting anything horribly wrong, this is somewhat linear in design, while the puzzles aren't particularly varied or enticing. Still not a bad game and worth considering if you're a fan of the genre, as our Murder on the Titanic review explains.
Football Up 3D (EnjoyUp Games, €4.89 / £4.19 until 25th July, normally €6.99 / £5.99) — Known as Soccer Up 3D in North America, this 3DS entry of the light-hearted football title finally arrives in Europe, bringing with it substantial Download Play multiplayer support and Mii integration, among other things. Unfortunately issues and glitches stopped this one from scoring a wonder goal in our Football Up 3D review.
My Farm 3D(Big Ben, €7.99 / £6.99) — As the title suggests you take over a farm of your own, caring for the animals and then selling produce at the markets. This sounds quite cute and cuddly, as you can earn new colours for your animals; this is a smaller version of a title previously released at retail, with six animals and ten unlockable bonuses. We'll fire up the combine harvester and bring you a review.[/url]
3DS Retail Download
Mario & Luigi: Dream Team Bros. (Nintendo, €39.99 / £34.99) — The fourth entry in this particular series from AlphaDream (it's even called Mario & Luigi RPG 4 in Japan), this 3DS debut for the series gives Luigi a starring role and sees the brothers jumping between the real and the dream world of Pi'illo Island. As you'd expect from AlphaDream, this isn't short of creativity or humour, and arrives in Europe on 12th July. Our review will awaken from its slumber very soon.
3DS eShop Video
Shaun the Sheep - Episode 1-5 (Nintendo, €2.99 / £2.69) — Five episodes (1-5) of Shaun the Sheep in 3D: The Picnic, Penalty!, Babysitting Timmy, Bitzer Over Easy, The Art Class.
Shaun the Sheep - Episode 6-10 - (Nintendo, €2.99 / £2.69) — Five episodes (6-10) of Shaun the Sheep in 3D: Sprout-Shooters, Members Only, Down the Loo, Story Time, Kite.
Shaun the Sheep - Episode 11-15 (Nintendo, €2.99 / £2.69) — Five episodes (11-15) of Shaun the Sheep in 3D: Shaun Goes Old School, Shaun's Bale Out, Sheep Shoot Hoops, Beware! Sheep Crossing, Lamb Salsa.
Shaun the Sheep - Episode 1-15 (Nintendo, €6.99 / £6.29) — All episodes (1-15) of Shaun the Sheep in 3D plus the "Making of": The Picnic, Penalty!, Babysitting Timmy, Bitzer Over Easy, The Art Class, Sprout-Shooters, Members Only, Down the Loo, Story Time, Kite, Shaun Goes Old School, Shaun's Bale Out, Sheep Shoot Hoops, Beware! Sheep Crossing, Lamb Salsa + Making of.
DSiWare
Lost Treasures of Alexandria (MSL, 500 Nintendo Points) — A surprise arrival this week, and one that seems to be a DSiWare port of a match-3 PC puzzle game. We'll delve into the mystery to bring your our review.
OFFICIAL TOPIC
