Story
You follow the journey of the legendary Simon Belmont as you take your magical whip, the Vampire Killer, and set off to hunt down Dracula who’s been terrorising the land!… And that’s kinda it, you have to remember it was a simple time back then, but thankfully with modern gaming retelling the story it can give it a little more depth, but in all honesty you have to remember that from Simon’s Quest, that’s when the Castlevania games started expanding its storytelling wings, you don’t need a reason to kill Dracula do you?

Controls
This game does what all good Belmont’s should do, walk right and whip everything in sight. You do have access to a sub weapon by using the Up+B Button, it works fine with one exception, you also use the Up Button to go up stairs so if you want to use a sub weapon near a stairs you’re kinda screwed. Beyond that the game has been described has been stiff and realistic, because when you jump you can’t alter your landing, with the understanding of this in mind you quickly find out that the controls are tight, really tight. If you die, it’ll only because you’ve screwed up, your character moves slow and deliberate so you have to think about what you do, making a refreshing change from constantly going about ADHD gaming that’s forced down our throats constantly, this is a slow methodical game and the controls reflect it in a good way.

Gameplay
To describe the gameplay in Castlevania I would call it an action platformer, but more a very deliberate action platformer, with a heavy focus on studying attacks patterns of enemies, looking for an opening before attacking, rather than just running in and relying solely on quick reflexes and luck, if you do that you’ll end up dead or worse… Your primary attack method is using your trusty whip, which has two additional upgrades from your standard whip, first making it more damaging and then extending the length of your whip, I don’t know why they choose a whip, but it really became an iconic weapon, if they had just used a sword or something then it wouldn’t of stood out. In order to give a little of of variety to your arsenal you’ve got sub weapons axes, crosses, daggers and holy water, with the exception of the daggers they’re all powerful methods of dispatching the minions of Dracula, you do have limited ammo with hearts being the ammunition that power these holy weapons, even though I don’t know how. I love the axe, it’s got a bizarre arching pattern that at first is hard to plan out when attacking enemies, but when dealing with enemies that are on a different level from your character. The only negative area of the gameplay is the knock back, if you’re hit your character goes flying back, no matter what hits you and will frankly knock you back into pits causing more deaths rather than running out of energy. How over the top is the knock back? If you watch speed runs of this game, people abuse it to skip areas of the game, it’s quite entertaining.

Graphics & Art Design
Going right back to the style of the early Universal movies with a fair helping of the Hammer Horror added in for good measure, it’s a beautiful style especially with the bosses, each of them look incredible, really like their movie counterparts with the standout being Dracula’s two forms, going for the cape approach and then there’s the giant intimidating second demonic form, something that would become a welcome standard for the series. Comparing it to other NES games at the time, especially with what was new IPs, it stood graphically above the likes of Zelda and Metroid, with an outstanding level of detail in all of the animations, backgrounds and character designs, nothing was phoned in and there were no shortcuts made in order to get this as the best visual experience that the NES could offer.

Level Design
I think Dracula’s a smarter vampire than he comes across as, because there’s a lot of bottomless pits and traps keeping you between you and him. This is a linear game, but the level design is pretty nice, there’s a lot of variety in the levels, not just in terms of the traps that Dracula has set out for you, with my personal favourite challenge, the hallway before Dracula, it’s a straight path with three armoured Knights and Medusa heads flying towards you, this is what hardcore gaming is about, a fair, yet tough challenge. There’s also a lot of bottomless pits forcing you to be really, super careful, people have complained about them in the game, but it’s all part of the challenge, it wouldn’t be as fun if it was easy would it?

Difficulty & Length
I find it quite fitting that the first game I ever play and enjoy is a rock hard, certified NES hard game. This game isn’t difficulty cause it’s badly made, but difficult by design… With one exception, you can’t use the sub weapon near the stairs, thankfully there’s not many points in the game when that comes into play but is still annoying. What makes this game truly difficult is the amount of bottomless pits combined with the knock back you get when you hit, from normal enemies that’s a pain but manageable, if it wasn’t for the (the following description has been censored, because it’s too vulgar for the internet) Medusa heads, the pattern’s on them is like a wave, which is very hard to dodge as you try to make forward progress, especially since there’s constant waves of them. Beyond that it’s kind of a short game, but the length is in the difficulty.

Personal Experience
This is patient zero for me, the beginning, my first love if you will (and forgive the cheesiness), if you were to trace my video gaming roots. I remember the first time seeing this as the first video game I ever saw, yet I can’t remember a single thing that I was taught in high school, it sadly shows were my priorities are . I could also believe that this is one of the reasons I could have fallen in love with horror media, but that could include Ghostbusters. I waited over 20+ years to complete this game and it was worth it, so worth it, hopefully I can go through the rest of the franchise too.

Pro’s
- Fiendishly difficult
- Excellent art and character designs
- Solid gameplay, a slow methodical, deliberate pace
- The tightest of tight controls
- Lots of variety in the levels
- Challenging and frustrating bosses

Con’s
- Stairs and Medusa heads… seriously, I f**king hate them
- The knock back from any damage is a bit extreme

Final Verdict
It’s a classic because it’s good, not because it came out when you were little. It’s challenging and one of the best origins of a franchise, it’s up there Super Mario, Zelda & Metroid as the most original and creative genesis of a franchise, as we prepare for Mirror Of Fate, this is the perfect place to start, it’s a NES classic that’s stood the test of time.

9/10

WHAT I LOVED:

- The simple pick-up-and-play gameplay is very addicting.

- Balloon Trip mode will keep high score chasers busy for quite a while.

- Two-player mode is surprisingly enjoyable, in the case of the Wii U download.

- The 3DS download makes for a great portable time-waster that’s very efficient to play in short bursts on the go, particularly since an autosave will suspend your progress if you need to shut off your handheld.
WHAT I DIDN’T SO MUCH:

- There’s very little depth to the gameplay, and it will likely grow repetitive pretty quickly for many players.

- You can’t properly play with two players in the 3DS download.
AND HERE’S THE FULL REVIEW:

I’m knocking off several birds with one stone for my first digital download game review of 2013. This is not only my first Wii U Virtual Console review (published before I even publish a review of a full Wii U retail game, go figure), but also my first cross-review. These will likely become more common over the next little while, and if you’re not sure what a cross-review is, allow me to explain; Recently, most commonly with the PlayStation devices, there’s been a movement in the gaming industry to unite the game experiences of consoles and dedicated gaming handhelds. What this means is, Sony especially is trying to get games that can have their player data and save data transferred between both the PS3 and the Vita for example, so you can play on the go during your daily routine with Vita, then take longer play sessions at home on your big HD television and sound system with PS3. Thus, rather than write a review on just one platform for a certain game, a cross-review will take into account both the console and handheld platform of a game at the same time, so long as the game is meant for a simultaneous release on both current-gen platforms. I’m already stretching that rule a bit with Balloon Fight, a port of a mid-80′s NES game, which is currently publicly available to download for thirty cents as part of a promotion for Wii U owners, but was made available two years previously, exclusively for 3DS Ambassadors that purchased Nintendo’s 3D handheld early at its original $250 price. Since I have both the 3DS and Wii U downloads of Balloon Fight on my playing queue, I figured I’d just review them both at the same time. Yes, once again, I am aware that the 3DS download of Balloon Fight is currently not available to the public, at least, nobody outside of Japan, where it has become a public release on the 3DS’s Virtual Console selection. Still, considering the rapid rate that Nintendo has been releasing public downloads of 3DS Ambassadors’ free catalogue of NES games, Balloon Fight can’t be that far behind, so I might as well cover it now. For those unfamiliar with the game, Balloon Fight was one of the earliest NES releases, even preceding Super Mario Bros. by several months, at least, in Japan. In North America, the game actually came out AFTER Super Mario Bros., a year later in 1986, but the original arcade release still preceded Mario’s NES breakout by a year, arriving in 1984. Yep, this game is a rare product from the ancient times of gaming, when Nintendo used to make arcade games, before kickstarting the post-game crash console business with the NES in 1985. Balloon Fight isn’t quite as well-known as Donkey Kong or the original arcade Mario Bros. as far as Nintendo’s arcade catalogue goes, and it was one of Nintendo’s last games designed for arcades (if you don’t count some select modern cabinets, like Mario Kart GP), before they shifted fully to NES development. Balloon Fight was ported to the NES in short order, and the NES release is more widely remembered than the original arcade cabinet, where it’s become something of a cult classic for longtime Nintendo gamers. The game’s widely beloved Balloon Trip theme song has been featured in not one, but TWO Super Smash Bros. games, with the game’s unnamed balloon fighter protaganist originally planned as a playable character on Super Smash Bros. Melee for the GameCube, until he was replaced by another obscure Nintendo arcade personality, the Ice Climbers. Balloon Fight certainly has a devoted following of fans, which is interesting, because BF is also something even more rare than a Nintendo arcade release; A Nintendo knock-off! Yes, Nintendo is all about uniqueness and creativity with how we play video games these days, but back in the 80′s, when copyright regulations in games were much less strict, even Nintendo was guilty of blatantly ripping off a couple of other game designs here and there. BF is almost an exact copy of another well-known arcade game from 1982, Joust, which has the exact same kind of gameplay, top to bottom, only being less cutesy and more violent, well, violent for 80′s arcade standards anyway. Interestingly, Nintendo has liberally allowed BF to continue being a part of their legacy, even kicking off their 30th Famicom anniversary celebration with it, as an early forerunner to the impending launch of the Wii U Virtual Console platform. You’d think they’d want to bury it, since it’s an obvious wholesale clone of another arcade game, but alas, BF has lived on as one of Nintendo’s most adored arcade hits, even today. Just because it’s a clone doesn’t necessarily mean it’s bad, but has BF held up in 2013? I mean, this game is older than I am! Well, you can’t argue with thirty cents if you’re a Wii U owner, at least until the game goes back up to its regular $5 asking price towards the end of February, or, free, if you’re a 3DS Ambassador. Still, BF is simple, perhaps too simple for the tastes of some demanding gamers. If you want a good time-waster though, the game is still pretty enjoyable, if you try to forget about the fact that it’s ripping off another game.

Gameplay: 7/10- BF puts you in control of an unnamed ‘Balloon Fighter’, giving you three options to play the game with. You can play the standard gameplay solo, play it with a friend, or play the survival-style Balloon Trip mode. Let’s start with the standard gameplay. The standard gameplay is broken into numerous stages, which presumably loop after a certain point. Being an arcade-style game, it’s not a game that you try and ‘beat’, but is instead about trying to get the highest score possible before you’re eliminated. Within each stage are a bunch of obstacles, along with rival balloon fighters that you need to eliminate by popping their balloons, and then knocking them off the area. To pop a balloon, you have to simply touch it, but obviously the reverse holds true, and the opposing fighters can pop your balloons if they touch them as well. You can proceed to the next stage after eliminating every opposing balloon fighter, but you lose a life if you get all of your balloons popped. When all your lives are lost, it’s Game Over, and you’re kicked back to the title menu. You also have to avoid falling into the water, getting eaten by fish that pop up if you’re too close to the water’s surface, or getting zapped by a lightning ball, which will immediately cause you to lose a life in all cases, even if you still have both balloons. So, how do you move around this crazy game then? Well, you have to flap your arms by either mashing the A button, which flaps once, or holding the B button, which has your balloon fighter flap continuously. It’s tricky to navigate around obstacles while simultaneously avoiding enemy fighters that will pop your balloons, but that’s what makes BF easy to learn, and hard to master. The game is very simple, and it never gets more complex than this, but it’s also surprisingly addictive too. The 3DS download is particularly tantalizing this way, since the game makes for a great portable time killer while you’re sitting in a waiting room or awaiting the arrival of a date or something. You can still get hooked on chasing high scores with the Wii U download, but BF feels especially at home on the go, compared to at home. To compensate however, you can bring a friend along for the fun on Wii U, thanks to BF’s two-player mode. The two-player mode is still listed in the 3DS download, but as you can imagine, it’s broken. There’s currently no way to navigate a second player on 3DS, since both players play simultaneously. Needless to say, that wouldn’t be a very comfortable use of your 3DS, trying to have two players play on it at the same time! The two-player mode can be treated as either a co-operative mode or a competitive mode, since players can still attack each other, along with the opposing balloon fighters, or work together to eliminate the opposing fighters and have a better chance at making it to later stages. You can also stand somewhere in the middle and try to see who can get the higher score before both players are eliminated. Playing with a friend to chase high scores is probably the main draw of the Wii U download, at least, if we’re assuming that the temporary thirty-cent price has lapsed, and the game is back up to a five-dollar price. The Wii U download does allow you to play the game on the Wii U Gamepad’s screen simultaneously though, so if somebody else needs the TV, you don’t have to interrupt your game at all. You can even use the Wii U Gamepad as a miniature TV screen in that case, if you’re playing the game with a Wii U Pro Controller, a Wii Remote, or a Classic Controller instead, and that’s kind of neat. Really though, BF never gets more complex than trying to survive as long as possible, and get a high score. Later stages start throwing in things like bumpers, which knock you around if you touch them, and are recognizable from their revival as a support item in the Super Smash Bros. games, but even then, it’s always about a high score. There’s also bonus stages after every three stages or so, where you have to pop as many balloons as you can as they fly out of pipes (man, what was Nintendo’s fascination with pipes back in the 80′s??), but again, it’s only about getting points. You can however try for a different kind of challenge by playing Balloon Trip mode, which is single-player only, and changes up the game a little bit. Balloon Trip causes the screen to scroll left (yes, left, not right as per usual in NES games, but I digress), tasking the player with carefully flying around a bunch of lightning balls while they try to pop as many balloons as possible, which increases their points multiplier. Their score continually creeps upward as long as they survive, and that’s the sole objective of Balloon Trip; Survive the ‘trip’ for as long as possible. It’s kind of disappointing that you can’t play Balloon Trip with a second player (again, assuming that it’s the Wii U download we’re talking about here), but they would probably just get in the way anyhow. Once again, it’s just all about points. This is unsurprising, considering that BF was released back when Nintendo was in its arcade infancy as a game company, but on 3DS especially, BF still holds up as a pretty competent time-waster, so long as you’re not demanding depth from the game.

Innovation: N/A- BF is a game that originally hit the arcades in 1984, so needless to say, it’s from a very different, and mostly obselete method of gaming. Even then, the game was a complete knock-off of another arcade game, and had almost nothing original about it, even when it was ported to NES. Yes, Joust was also ported to NES, a couple years AFTER BF was released on Nintendo’s debut console, which is even stranger. I suppose BF stands as one of the only examples of Nintendo copying a whole other idea wholesale back in the arcade era, but there’s very little separating this one from the rest, if you’re wondering.
Controls:
On 3DS: 8/10- The 3DS controls are functional, but they’re clearly not the kind of platform that BF had in mind either. The NES port was designed for a straight horizontal scheme of buttons, which is how the buttons on the NES controller were laid out. On 3DS however, the buttons and Control Pad are not at all aligned, with the buttons now being laid out diagonally from one another, and the Control Pad placed in the lower left corner of the handheld. Considering this, playing BF on 3DS takes some getting used to, and can be a little strange. The controls work fine, but the 3DS’s tiny and corner-squished Control Pad might occasionally be hard on your thumb during extended play. The A and B buttons respond fine though, and you’ll never use any other button, unless you want to pause the game with the Start button, or go to the 3DS’s Home Menu or something. Once your thumbs get used to the button layout on 3DS, you’ll never have any issue with the very simple controls, but it’s nothing like playing the game on NES either. Beyond that, the in-game controls are about the same. It takes a little bit of practice to master the difference in speed and accuracy by either mashing A or holding B, depending on the situation, since the controls are surprisingly weighty and realistic, considering BF’s surreal premise. If you mash A especially, you’ll actually feel the strain of your character as he flaps around trying to survive, and the well-captured floatiness of the balloons takes some practice to master. You can also move with the Circle Pad if you wish, but that’s even less ideal, since the strict movement isn’t very compatible with the flexible Circle Pad at all! Once you do get a handle on all of the movement physics though, the controls are fine, even if they take more getting used to on 3DS.
On Wii U: 9/10- BF definitely responds better and generally feels easier to control on Wii U, where your character feels slightly less stiff, since the button layouts on the various compatible controllers tend to be a little friendlier. You can play the game with the default Wii U Gamepad, though if you so wish, you can also use a Wii U Pro Controller, a sideways-held Wii Remote, or a Wii Classic Controller. This effectively gives you not only Wii U control options, but also any control option available to you in the previous Wii Shop download as well, with the exception of GameCube Controllers, since the Wii U doesn’t support them. Anyway, playing on the Wii U Gamepad is functional, but like the 3DS button scheme, it’s not ideal. The fact that your hands are so far apart when playing with the Gamepad can be a problem, especially if you prefer to mash the A button over holding the B button during gameplay. The Control Pad is at least much bigger on Wii U than it is on 3DS though, and again, you have the option of alternate movement, in this case, with the Left Control Stick, but it’s REALLY not ideal here! Trust me, stick with the Control Pad! The controls are generally a little more manageable to play on the Wii U Gamepad if you’re actually playing on the Gamepad’s screen, assuming somebody else is currently using the TV, since your thumbs are actually in view when playing, much like on 3DS. Even if you’d rather use a different controller though, you can still treat the Wii U Gamepad as a miniature TV and use another controller to play, since the gameplay image is simultaneously shared between both the TV and Gamepad screen at all times. Playing with the Wii U Pro Controller is pretty satisfying, especially since it also has a larger Control Pad and nicely propped-out face buttons, so if you own one, it’s a very solid alternate method of play if you don’t care for playing with the Wii U Gamepad controls. As I said, you do still have the option of the Wii download’s control methods as well, sans GameCube Controller, and both of those options work great too. The sideways-held Wii Remote comes closest to mimicking the classic NES control scheme, so BF purists who loved the original NES release will probably prefer this control method, even on Wii U. The Classic Controller is also not bad, but I’d only use that if you don’t own a Wii U Pro Controller, since the Pro Controller is generally more comfortable and intuitive than the Wii Classic Controller. Anyway, the game’s surprisingly realistic sense of floaty physics is a little easier to get used to when playing with a controller, which is a big advantage with the Wii U download, even if you lose portability with that one.
Graphics:
On 3DS: 6/10- BF has pretty modest, simplistic visuals as far as NES games go, which is unsurprising, considering that it’s one of Nintendo’s earliest efforts on the console, not to mention arcades. The visual resolution is much more tiny and compressed on 3DS, which is unsurprising, since it needs to be accomodated to the system’s 3D Screen. Obviously, the game is only playable in 2D, regardless of where your 3D Slider currently sits, but it looks and runs about as smoothly as the NES game ever did. The colour scheme is simple, the environments are mostly black, and all in all, it’s a pretty modest game in terms of 8-bit visuals. Even with the compressed screen resolution necessary to render the game on 3DS though, it still perfectly captures the NES graphics of old, even going as far as making those slight early 8-bit blemishes a bit more difficult to notice on that smaller screen.
On Wii U: 6/10- There’s really no difference in the 8-bit visuals on Wii U, beyond the fact that the resolution is more blown-up for the TV screen, and feels more along the lines of the original NES game’s aspect ratio. This obviously means that the Wii U download feels more convincing as an emulation of the NES game, but that’s unsurprising. The bigger resolution means more stray pixels and other such visual blemishes from the NES release, which would be too tiny to notice on 3DS, but again, it’s a more convincing emulation of the original BF release on NES all the same. The game is pretty well indistinguishable from the original NES game when played on your TV, even if it’s a very nice top-of-the-line HDTV. The visuals are pretty much entirely unchanged on the Wii U Gamepad’s screen as well, with even the colour definition and animation levels remaining entirely consistent, streamed simultaneously with the TV screen at all times. If someone else takes the TV and you play on the Gamepad, you really don’t lose anything in terms of the graphics, beyond the resolution shrinking a tad. The emulation does feel a tad more polished on Wii U than it does on 3DS, since visual tweaks obviously had to be made for the smaller screen with the 3DS download, but again, considering how modest and mostly unimpressive BF’s graphics are, it’s barely noticeable.
Presentation: 6/10- The vintage NES presentation style of black screens, basic black title menus and nothing but high score and extra life markers for a HUD are all present and accounted for with BF. Like many of Nintendo’s earliest arcade-style offerings, the presentation never gets more complex than that. It does the job and never aims higher.
Sound:
On 3DS: 8/10- The music is basic, but it suits the game well. The sound definition isn’t quite as well-pronounced on 3DS, which is unsurprising, but like the graphics, the differences between handheld and console are barely noticeable. The fun and catchy Balloon Trip theme is the highlight of the sound, but the rest of the sound effects actually aren’t bad. Yes, there’s still a lot of primitive arcade-style bleeps and bloops, but I was pleasantly surprised by the audio, even on 3DS, since the tunes are so upbeat and well-suited to the game. Things like balloons bursting sound surprisingly believable, as do the buzzing of lightning balls that are bouncing around the area. All in all, this is one of Nintendo’s more impressive arcade-era audio jobs, and the 3DS does do a pretty good job of rendering it without much in the way of compromise.
On Wii U: 8/10- Again, the Wii U download has a slight leg up over its 3DS sibling, since it has more sound memory to work with, which means some of those finer notes are better captured out of one’s TV speakers, or even the surprisingly potent Wii U Gamepad speakers, than they are out of the 3DS speakers. There’s no easily noticeable difference in the music on Wii U, but it does feel a little more pronounced, especially if you plug some headphones in when playing on the Wii U Gamepad, which renders the sound a bit better than plugging in the same pair of headphones on 3DS. Again, the difference is barely noticeable though, and the surprisingly solid sound effects paired with the surprisingly catchy music are no more or less enjoyable on Wii U than they are on 3DS.
Story: N/A- There’s no backstory, premise, plotline or anything of the sort in BF. This is a game from a time when video games didn’t have to make sense. You just take for granted that a bunch of random guys are flying around on balloons and trying to drop each other to their deaths. Fair enough.

Difficulty: 7/10- BF’s challenge can ramp up pretty quicky. That’s generally the case with console ports of arcade games, since many of the console ports maintain the gameplay elements that made the arcade games quarter-guzzlers. BF is generally pretty reasonable, especially since this is one of those games where you can move to one end of the screen and come out the other, but there are some stages where it seems like the developers intentionally made it as difficult as possible to avoid obstacles and opposing fighters. This is a game that takes a fair bit of practice to get good at, particularly with Balloon Trip. The obstacle navigation in Balloon Trip can sometimes feel unfair, since there’s so many lightning balls thrown at you, forcing you to really master BF’s particular sense of play control. Still, even if you die continually, you’ll likely get a little further every few tries, which will convince high score chasers to keep trying until they get as many points as they can possibly earn!

Replay Value: 9/10- The game is especially replayable on 3DS, since it can be taken on the go and used as an efficient portable time killer, but even on Wii U, it’s a game that’s easy to come back to and enjoy whenever you just want an undemanding way to unwind and chase high scores. The Wii U download does have the slight advantage of allowing you to play with a buddy though, and the two-player gameplay is more enjoyable than you may think, if both players can appreciate a solid arcade-style retro game experience. In any case, BF is an effective quick fix game for the Nintendo library, if you just want something you can pick up and play for those wait times in life.

Extras: N/A- BF is a simple arcade-style experience that obviously doesn’t have anything in the way of extras. You just play whenever you feel like it, trying for gradually higher scores. The Wii U download feels a bit more fully-featured as far as a retro re-release goes, since that one allows you to play on the Wii U Gamepad screen if you wish, as well as allowing you to make a single manual save wherever you like, as well as the autosave that’s automatically made whenever you deactivate the game and/or the system, with the autosave being done on both 3DS and Wii U. The 3DS download doesn’t allow you to make manual saves, but that’s no big loss, since BF is a very simple arcade-style game, and unless you have some sort of insane high score run going on, you shouldn’t need to make a manual save anyhow.

Conclusion- BF is a functional time waster of an arcade game, one that still has that simple pick-up-and-play appeal even on its latest re-issue for both 3DS and Wii U. The 3DS download may currently only be available to 3DS Ambassadors (though that’s likely to change soon), but for the next couple of weeks at the time of this writing, you can snatch up the Wii U download for a mere thirty cents. After that, and whenever the game is made available to the general public of 3DS owners, it goes for the standard NES re-issue price point of $5. $5 seems like a bit much for a game this simple and, at its most negative, unremarkable, considering that it’s a rare Nintendo knock-off effort of another arcade game from the 80′s. Wii U owners certainly won’t be able to argue with the thirty-cent price point, so if you own a Wii U, I’d download the game regardless to show your Nintendo spirit for the Famicom anniversary celebration, especially if you’ve never played BF before. Assuming that we’re looking at the eventual $5-priced download for either 3DS or Wii U, the same price point that downloading BF demands on the last-gen Wii’s Virtual Console, you basically have to ask yourself how much you’re willing to pay for a game mainly meant to kill time. In this respect, the game is a bit of a better proposition on 3DS, since it’s a friendly game to take on the go and play whenever you’re stuck needing to kill some time during your daily routine, but if you find yourself needing short burst play sessions at home on Wii U, it’s exactly the same game there too. The fact that you no longer need to go into Wii Mode and pull the game off of the Wii Shop to play it on Nintendo’s next-gen console isn’t such a bad deal either, especially since you can easily play the game on either the TV or the Gamepad, depending on your preference at the time, plus you can now play with the excellent Wii U Pro Controller as well. When it comes down to it though, there’s not really a lot of depth to BF, so even in the case of the 3DS, if you’re more inclined to spend your time-killing sessions playing something bigger like Super Mario Bros. or The Legend of Zelda, BF is unlikely to tear you away from bigger and better selections like that. It’s a nice little piece of Nintendo history, but that’s what it best offers on both download platforms, assuming you’re not a score chaser or just wanting to play a game in short little bursts. Considering the miniscule package, which is pretty well untouched from the arcade era on both 3DS and Wii U, beyond being able to play on the Gamepad and make manual saves on Wii U, the eventual $5 asking price might be too steep for some, especially when they can pay the same price and get a larger and more fully-featured game like the two NES blockbusters I just mentioned. Hell, bigger and more ambitious NES games like that are much more readily available on 3DS right now, even if you’re not a 3DS Ambassador, and while the Wii U Virtual Console hasn’t properly launched yet, with BF currently being its only offering, that’s no doubt going to change in short order. This leaves BF functional, but probably too unremarkable to properly stand against many larger and more noteworthy NES classics. Again, if you already own a Wii U, then go ahead and pay the thirty cents to download this game, because you really don’t lose anything by doing so. You might as well, especially if you’re a passionate Nintendo gamer who can appreciate the company’s incredible and lengthy heritage. 3DS Ambassadors would have had access to BF ages ago, but if you adopted a 3DS later on and are wondering if the eventual Virtual Console download is worth the price, I’d say only if you’re really curious, or enjoy the idea of chasing high scores and killing time that way. BF is one of the better arcade-style Nintendo games you could be playing in that respect, since it has just slightly more depth and inherent replayability than something like Donkey Kong or Ice Climber that way, but not a whole lot more. Again, BF is a functional arcade-style 8-bit Nintendo game, but it’s overshadowed by so many other bigger NES releases that are already available to the public on the 3DS’s Virtual Console platform, and are no doubt not far behind on the Wii U’s. So, on 3DS, the portability is well-suited to a time killer game like BF, but that’s where its potential value ends, especially since platforms like the App Store on iPhone and iPad offer much more in-depth and cheaper games of the same variety to take on the go with you. As for Wii U, thirty cents is certainly a bargain, but for $5, this game is a much tougher sell if you don’t have nostalgia goggles on for it, especially with portability taken out of the mix. Any unique little features the Wii U download of BF has will be present in any future Virtual Console offering for Wii U when it arrives, so it seems like something to grab while it’s on sale, and leave alone in favour of other bigger, better games otherwise. BF is an interesting relic of a bygone era, but it also goes to show you that Nintendo stopped knocking off other games for a reason; They exclusively own many, many bigger and better intellectual gaming properties that they can offer gamers instead.

 
FINAL SCORE:
3DS: 71% “GOOD”

WII U: 73% “GOOD”
FINAL VERDICT: “Balloon Fight is a functional time waster, and can be pretty addictive for score-chasing Nintendo gamers, but its simplicity and miniscule package make it difficult to recommend over bigger and more in-depth NES classics, which are already readily available on 3DS at the same price, and likely won’t take long to arrive for Wii U, again, at the same price. As a temporary thirty-cent download for Wii U owners, Balloon Fight is definitely a bargain, but for five dollars, only serious score chasers will find it more tantalizing than the NES’s more compelling classics, which can be just as easily downloaded on Nintendo’s current platforms.”

Story
You’re kidding right? It’s a 2D platform Mario game. Princess. Kidnap. Bowser. Castles. You feel bad for Princess Peach, she’s expecting to be rescued by a Knight in shining armour, not a plumber covered in poo.

Controls
A makes you jump, hold B to run and shoot fireballs (when Fire Mario), with the tightest D-Pad controls you’ll ever experience in your life, I still haven’t played anything comes anywhere near as close to as good an experience as the Mario controls.

Gameplay
Same as the first Super Mario Bros game. Still awesome after 25+ years.

Graphics & Art Design
Exactly the same as the first Super Mario Bros game. It was good for the time, but I would of preferred if we got the All Stars upgrade of the game, lacks even compared to the quality of graphics of the other Super Mario Bros 2 which was developed at the same time.

Level Design
Now this would be normal, but during my time playing some of the later dungeons relied heavily on mazes, preventing me from doing my usual straight line idea of running through it like mad to get to the end ASAP. If you haven’t had noticed it I’m a fan of speed running and like the challenge of using the skills you practice when (attempting to) speed running. The other levels where the typical Mario standard, excellent platforming, with a focused path that’s incredibly lean… And boring underwater levels, why can’t developers accept that we don’t like underwater levels and just remove them instead?

Difficulty
I called Zelda 2 the definition of NES Hard, then I would describe this as an introduction to Famicom Hard (Famicom Hard makes NES Hard looks like the difficulty of the modern mainstream games), harder than NES Hard, but this is the tip of the iceberg. Unlike Zelda 2 I think that this game is a lot more fair, you’re expected to have bottomless pits here but there’s not RPG elements that are vital to being able just to complete the game, also there’s wraps to get further in the game if (and like me you will, a lot) you screw up. The first time I played this (before the internet with the All Stars collection) I died with the poison mushroom, so I then figured out that this would continue to kick my backside, so I played Mario 3 instead.

Performance
No slowdown, no issues, when you’re using a 3DS to play this it’s like using TNT to kill a spider hanging in your room, overkill.

Personal Experience
This review may seem lacking, but it’s kind of the point, as I said at the start one of the reasons that this game wasn’t released outside Japan was in part to its similarity or “copy and paste” job compared to the original Super Mario Bros game. This isn’t actually a bad thing considering how good the game is, but at the same time it’s not worth the full price you’d of had to pay at the time of release. So I’m not being lazy, I’m actually using this review to prove a point.

Pro’s
- Hardest Mario game you’ll ever play
- Well worked new mechanics
- Traditional Mario experience, i.e. a lot of fun
- Heavier focus on puzzles (e.g. mazes)
- Perfect controls

Con’s
- Feels like a glorified expansion pack
- Copy and paste job
- No story

Final Verdict
For £4.49 (at time of writing) you get to experience what it’d be like if Nintendo just decided to make all Mario games as hard as they can, they’d put the designers of Super Meat Boy (a game I may end up adding to the list… hint hint) to shame, whilst offering the same level of quality. I do prefer the version of Super Mario Bros 2 we got, but I would recommend having a go at this one if you enjoy 2D platforming and after New Super Mario Bros 2, here’s the challenge that game as missing…. And there’s the restore points if you’re struggling with it.

Story
The Black Ship Gang are attacking and for some reason it’s your job to stop them, that’s it, nothing else I honestly really don’t have a clue what’s going on here except you fight what’s meant to be pirates. I could use the excuse how the Game Boy was never known for games with story, but I’d be lying (see Link’s Awakening), this isn’t quite barebones, but it’s nothing special either.

Controls
The D-Pad moves you in four directions, The A Button games you to jump and the B Button allows you to hit with whatever weapon you’ve got. This isn’t rocket science, but it’s completely stiff and isn’t as free-flowing as Link’s Awakening. It was playable I’ll give it that.

Gameplay
Taking a look at the top down view I was hoping for a Zelda like experience, but it’s lacking the exploration, the puzzles or even the sense of fun. You go from room to room, fighting enemies as you work your way through a “maze” till you get to the boss, from here is really the only unique point of the game, after fighting the boss you must defeat it in a mini game, however not only are these mini games cheap, but the first two are damn near impossible. You’ve got to tap the A Button as fast as you can, however when I tried this I couldn’t even get close, this was made so you had to buy a Super Game Boy to use the SNES Advance’s turbo button on it just to see the next level, what I did was after I beat the boss, I skipped the mini game by way of a password, now if you think less of my gaming ability for doing so I will point out that when I researched a guide to see what I was doing wrong, I was advised just to skip it, even with the use of the Restore Points I couldn’t even get close to winning these races.

Graphics & Art Design
I’ve got to give the design team credit I might the group of four year olds they got to make it did a good job for four year olds… Seriously though it’s terrible, bland, almost like paint by numbers, copy what other more successful developers did, but do a really bad job of it, like painfully bad.

Level Design
The level design here didn’t make any sense, it’s a bunch of rooms linked together in order to make what appears to be a game, but without any logic. It’s like a conversation with a really boring person that goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on as you pray that it comes to an end before you decide to eat your own head to stop the boredom. Most of the rooms you go to are dead ends where you find coins that you use to buy stuff that doesn’t make the slightest difference to the game, or to get health or items you can throw at enemies, but I never used them. I honestly think that no thought was put into this game, but rather something that someone knocked out in a week for a quick buck.

Difficulty
With the exception of the mini games this game is a complete and utter cake walk (love that phrase but I’ve got no idea where it comes from), that’s why I think the mini games are the way they are, to artificially extend the length of the game. I actually spent most of the game just avoiding the enemies and it seemed to suit them just as much not to fight me, it’s like they weren’t even bothered that I was there, suits me fine and it makes my life a lot simpler in my quest to save the world or whatever the plot of this game was.

Personal Experience
When I was little and read the Official Nintendo Magazine (which as a grown adult I still do) during the Nintendo 64 era, they would go on and on about how great Mystical Ninja 64 was, sadly I never got a chance to play it, I can’t even think about it nowadays because it’s such a rare and expensive game. This is one of the main reasons I love the virtual console (or more the idea of it because I’m still waiting for Terranigma to get released) is because you can get to play them, I know this isn’t Mystical Ninja 64, but I like the idea of going back as far as I can (or as basic as I can) to see the roots of the franchise, however I think these roots have withered.

Pro’s
- It’s cheap & you don’t have to buy it
- So short that if you do buy it, you will finish it in a couple of hours
- Passwords so you can skip the first two mini games or the whole game

Con’s
- Bland graphics
- Braindead A.I.
- Cheap, cheating, horrible, unfair, unskilled mini games
- Depressingly bad gameplay
- Confusing, pointless & repetitive level design
- It’s very, very, very short

Final Verdict
Don’t make the mistake I did and get this game, even if you’re obsessed with the Mystical Ninja franchise or are looking for an introduction to the franchise, save yourself the few pounds you’ve got and just get The Legend Of Zelda: Link’s Awakening instead. If you’ve got that and still want a fun RPG get The Sword Of Hope or Metroid 2, if you just want a fun game to play on your 3DS then get Super Mario Land 2 or Mega Man or Castlevania: The Adventure, just whatever you do don’t get this game.

If it wasn’t for the Restore Points I would of struggled to complete the 1st stage and if it wasn’t for walkthroughs I could easily have seen myself, struggling to work out what order to beat the bosses. In other words, I needed a lot of help to beat this game, I think modern gaming is too soft, I used to struggle to beat NES or SNES games, in fact it was a big deal when I did, compare this to nowadays when I’ve completed nearly 50 different titles this year and few of them have given me a real challenge. I honestly believe this is one of the reasons that Retro-gaming is so popular, people are sick of paying out £40+ for a few hours in single player and a multiplayer mode which is as only as good as the people you play with online (regarding talking to people online, I don’t, it’s almost as bad as reading the comments on YouTube, it makes you wish that the gene pool could do with some bleach being poured in it), whereas you paid that amount in the old days (well the NES days) and what you got was something that lasted long because it was difficult, so in a sense you got you really got your money’s worth. I remember Super Mario Bros 3 being one of the most challenging games that I played when I was little, but now I can breeze through the game without any issues.

Looking at this entry so far I think I should talk about Mega Man, besides its difficulty, which doesn’t give me much to talk about, it is an excellent game, tight controls and introduced the brilliant idea of stealing powers from the bosses, but instead of it just being a temporary power up it’s permeant, but with limited ammo so you can’t just spam it the entire game. Please people just buy this game, use the restore points like I did to actually get to see the ending (which isn’t worth it, however I do believe the experience of the game itself is), but rather to encourage Capcom to release more Mega Man games so people who aren’t the most experienced (or best) of gamers a chance to finish the NES instalments of the series.

Bomberman (Game Boy)
Double Dragon 2 (Game Boy)
For The Frog The Bell Tolls* (Game Boy)
Harvest Moon (Game Boy Colour)
Master Of Darkness (Game Gear)
Mega Man 1 & 2 (NES)
Ninja Gaiden (NES)
Warioland 3 (Game Boy Colour)
Zelda 2: The Adventures Of Link (NES)

I know that I’ve not been playing any video games recently, but with the restore point feature I do see myself getting into Zelda 2, because as I’ve said before it’s the lives system (in an RPG of all things!) that puts me off.

I do hope that Nintendo (and other companies) take a look at my ten most wanted for the 3DS eShop and we get to see more releases and a few surprises (like I had with The Sword Of Hope 2), because I’ll be honest most the 3DS games I want (Castlevania, Luigi’s Mansion 2) aren’t coming out till 2013.

*I recently read about this game in Retro Gamer in the feature about Nintendo games you’ve never heard of, but I don’t have much hope of it coming to the PAL regions as it never got a translation and I don’t think Nintendo will do one now, despite a fan translation being used.

I'll have to get an updated pic with the newest systems and consoles later. :)

Here I will list the latest downloads for all digital platforms.

Table of Contents

• Xbox Live Arcade Marketplace (Xbox 360)
• PlayStation Network (PS3, PS Vita, PSP)
• Nintendo Downloads (3DS, Wii, DS)
• Steam (PC, Mac)
• GOG (PC, Mac, Linux, etc.)
• Origin (PC)
• App Store (iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad)
• Android Marketplace (Mobile, Browsers, PC)
• OnLive (TV, PC, Mac, Android, iOS)

If you aren’t familiar with the term “digitital download”, it refers to the ability to purchase and download a digital copy (as opposed to buying a physical object in a real brick-and-mortar store) of a videogame file that is stored on the device you purchased it on. In this day and age, digital versions of major videogames are available from many publishers and for almost every platform.

Additionally, the Personal Computer platform has hosted digital downloads for a much longer time period. It wasn’t until this decade that console systems, mainly with the advent of Microsoft’s Xbox and it’s “Xbox Live” service that console users were finally given the ability to download digital products and digital updates These updates included “patches”, that fix issues with the original release; Or “DLC” which stands for “Downloadable Content” and adds all-new gameplay content and features to an existing product, expanding it and ensuring the life of the product is extended as players dive back in to play the new content.

With the advent of the iPhone and Apple’s runaway success in revolutionizing the MP3 Music Player market with their iPod and it’s “App Store” digital marketplace, the cellphone market with their iPhone and the tablet PC market with their iPad and the mobile gaming market with their iPod Touch; the term “App” (which is short for “application”, like a computer application you install on your PC… basically a replacement word for “program”) became a household name. Along with actual Apps that give you expanded functions for your device, like a Calculator, Guitar Tuner, Music Program or Alarm Clock (which is what the traditional word “App” originally described, those types of programs), the word “App” eventually became a catchall term that meant any downloadable program for a small “mobile” device like a Cellphone, iPod, Android, PDA or Tablet… and eventually even downloadable videogames were sometimes referred to as “Apps”. Btw the catchall term for Apple devices is “iOS” as they use the “iOS Operation System”.

All this history is to make a point… these days almost any device, including portable videogame systems, consoles game systems, computer systems (PC, Mac, Linux), cellphones, tablets, eReaders and other devices, all of them can download digital products. More and more everything you know, from movies and TV shows to videogames to books, magazines, comics and newspapers, are available in digital form and purchaseable in a non-physical state for access on a certain device.

Here I will list the Videogame Digital Downloads of the Week for many of these services. For an overview of what each service is (or means), read the footer at the bottom of this article.

New Digital Videogame Releases This Week (April 23rd-April 29th 2012):

XBOX LIVE ARCADE MARKETPLACE (Xbox 360)

Game Name: Bloodforge
Price: 1200 Microsoft Points (US$15 / €14.40 / £10.20 / CAN$18.60 / AU$19.80)
Availability: Check availability in your Xbox LIVE region
Synopsis: With a brutal combat system, stunning art style, and a deeply compelling story, “Bloodforge” empowers you to slaughter hordes of demonic soldiers, deformed worshippers, and the gods themselves, using ferocious Rage Kills, devastating Rune attacks, and furious Weapon Combos. Help seal Crom’s fate – and the fate of the rest of the world – in this dark, visceral story of revenge, betrayal, and destiny.

Game Name: Deep Black: Episode 1
Price: 800 Microsoft Points (that’s US$10 / €9.60 / £6.80 / CAN$12.40 / AU$13.20)
Availability: Check availability in your Xbox LIVE region
Synopsis: A Sci-fi project featuring detailed, action-packed underwater combat which will introduce a new trend in the TPS genre. An Exciting game play that features the dynamic use of both environments for combats: land and underwater. An original multiplayer mode with underwater battles that offer the player a totally different and new experience! Players will descend the murky depths in pursuit of enemies armed with a selection of underwater equipment that range from a specialized suit with jet pack and integrated harpoon as well as other high tech equipment. With the majority of the game play taking place below the water’s surface, action-adventure fans will need to master new skills to fight hostile enemies and to infiltrate enemy bases. The story line takes place in the nearest future in a world of unsteadiness, chaos, espionage, terrorism and the desperate fight for world supremacy and possession of sophisticated biological weapon.

Other XBLA Content:
Two demos this week for Dragon’s Dogma (Capcom’s upcoming epic open-world Skyrim style game) and Tecmo’s Ninja Gaiden 3 are available to download so you can give a sample of the game’s a try.
New Games On Demand titles (full Xbox 360 games you can download instead of getting on disc) include: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 ($40) and Dead Rising 2: Off the Record ($20).
The new Game Add-On for this week is for UEFA Euro 2012 (costing 1800 MSP), and the new beta this week is for Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Future Soldier.
Deals this week include: NBA Jam: On Fire (800 MSP, 30% off) and the NBA Avatar Collection “Buzzer Beater” Avatar for 80 MSP (50% savings).
New Avatar Clothing & Accessories this week include: Ninjas Collection update, Fable Heroes, Prototype 2, Darksiders II and Atticus Collection.

PLAYSTATION NETWORK (PS3, PS Vita, PSP)

PSN Game Name: Bejeweled 3
Price: $15
File Size: 162 MB
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Synopsis: Escape to the biggest, brightest Bejeweled. Discover all-new ways to play the world’s number 1 puzzle game!

PSN Game Name: Feeding Frenzy 2: Shipwreck Showdown
Price: $10
File Size: 56 MB
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Synopsis: Want a game you can really sink your teeth into? Swim and swerve through underwater worlds and chow down on smaller fish as you chomp your way to ocean supremacy.

PSN Game Name: The Walking Dead – Episode 1: A New Day
Price: $5
File Size: 476 MB
ESRB Rating: M for Mature
Synopsis: Episode one of a five-part game series set in the same universe as Robert Kirkman’s award-winning series. Play as Lee Everett, a convicted criminal, who has been given a second chance at life in a world devastated by the undead.

PSN Game Name: The Walking Dead – Season Pass
Price: $20
File Size: 2.61 GB
ESRB Rating: M for Mature
Synopsis: Season pass for the The Walking Dead, buy this and you’ll receive each new episode as it releases. Includes episodes 1 – 5.

PSN Game Name: Zuma
Price: $10
File Size: 20 MB
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Synopsis: Survive the ancient temples of Zuma, the critically acclaimed action-puzzler from PopCap! Deep in the jungle lie hidden temples bursting with traps and trickery, and it’s up to you to uncover their treasures.

PSN Game Name: Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds Complete Collection
Price: $25
File Size: 5.97GB
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone
Synopsis: Download and play Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds with the complete DLC collection bundled together for the first time. Tee off as Kratos from God of War and dominate the links with the Blades of Chaos, or set new grounds with Sackboy through the Golfasaurus-Rex B.C.C. course.

Full PS3 Digital Download Game Name: Battlefield 3
Price: $60
File Size: 12.22 GB
ESRB Rating: M for Mature
Synopsis: In Battlefield 3, players will step into the role of the elite U.S. Marines. They will experience heart-pounding single player missions and competitive multiplayer action ranging across diverse locations from around the globe.

Full PS3 Digital Download Game Name: Grease Dance
Price: $20
File Size: 2.31 GB
ESRB Rating: T for Teen
Synopsis: This is Grease for the New Generation, inspired by the 50?s and danced by you! Shake out your hair, turn up your style and release your inner rock and roll party queen.

Full PS3 Digital Download Game Name: The Cursed Crusade
Price: $20
File Size: 4.79 GB
ESRB Rating: M for Mature
Synopsis: Set against the backdrop of the Old World, two adventurers—both seasoned warriors—will quest across a Western Europe ablaze with the turmoil of a newly begun Fourth Crusade.

PS2 Classics Game Name: Red Faction
Price: $10
File Size: 1.74 GB
ESRB Rating: M for Mature
Synopsis: Join coal miner Parker and help him take down Mars’ oppressive mining corporation and liberate the planet in this classic first person shooter.

PSone Classics Game Name: Future Cop L.A.P.D.
Price: $6
File Size: 246 MB
ESRB Rating: T for Teen
Synopsis: In a devastated city, gangs have taken over Los Angeles. Armed with the ultimate assault vehicle, the L.A.P.D. must now reclaim the streets!

PSone Classics Game Name: Darkstalkers 3
Price: $6
File Size: 485 MB
ESRB Rating: T for Teen
Synopsis: Pummel opponents as your favorite mythological monster in this classic 2D fighting game. Download Darkstalkers 3 today!

PS Vita App: Skype
Price: Free
File Size: 9.2 MB
ESRB Rating: =None
Synopsis: Compatible with PlayStation Vita system only. Stay in touch with friends and family with Skype on your PS Vita system. Enjoy free video and voice calls to anyone else on Skype, and make calls to mobiles and landlines anywhere in the world. You can connect to Skype on AT&T’s Mobile 3G Broadband Network. We recommend using a Wi-Fi connection; your operator may charge you extra for using your data connection.

PSP Minis Game Name: Golf Mania
Price: $4
File Size: 54 MB
ESRB Rating: E for Everyone

PSP Minis Game Name: Ikari III: The Rescue
Price: $3
File Size: 33 MB
ESRB Rating: T for Teen

Other PSN Content:
PlayStation Plus members get full game trials for The Cursed Crusade and Battlefield 3, discounts on Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds games and discounts on Add-Ons for Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing and Sonic Unleashed.
Game Demos include: Ninja Gaiden 3, Dragon’s Dogma and The Walking Dead.
Lots of Add-Ons this week and they include an Escape Plan costume for LittleBigPlanet 2 ($2) alongside a Journey Costume ($2), Asura’s Wrath gets a $7 “Episode Pack: Part IV”, FIFA Soccer 12 gets the UEFA Euro 2012 Expansion for $20, or $16 if you buy the Season Ticket pass, there’s also a downloadable free trial. Armored Core V gets the Heavy Assault Pack for $3 alongside the Recon Set ($3). Soulcalibur V gets the Ancient Armor 1 Set ($3) and the Cepheus Compatibility Pack 2 (free), which includes the Soulcalibur V Tekken Costumes. Soulcalibur V also gets the Modern Costumes 1 Pack ($3) and the Tekken V Costumes 1 Pack ($3). Elevator Action HD gets the Additional Stages 4 Pack ($2), Ninja Gaiden 3 gets the “Ultimate Ninja Pack” (free), Warriors Orochi 3 gets the “Samurai Costume” (99 cents) alongside the Stage Pack 1 ($2), Wallpapers DLC 1 ($4) and BGM Pack 1 (Background Music) for $2. Worms Ultimate Mayhem gets the Single-Player Pack for $5, and Rock Band 3 gets the following songs: 3 songs by Cinderell for $2 each: Don’t Know What You Got (Till It’s Gone), Nobody’s Fool and Shilter Me, or buy them altogether for $5.49. The Rock Band Network version 2.0 gets these song updates: “Feathergun in the Garden of the Sun” by Rishloo, “Firefight” by Blackguard, “Keyhole in the Sky” by Rishloo, “Rocket Dragon” by Machinae Supremacy, and “Gordon Freeman Saved My Life” by Miracle of Sound, all songs are 99 cents each.
Game & Update Sales include: Rock Band 3 Rbn 2.0 song “Bigger Than A Kiss” on sale for 99 cents from $2, Cars 2: The Videogame $30 from $40, Lego Pirates Of The Caribbean PS3 $20 from $40, Lego Pirates of the Caribbean PSP $20 from $30 and DISSIDIA 012[duodecim] FINAL FANTASY (PSP) $20 from $30. Qore: Episode 47 is now out.
New Avatar Updates” include: Dynasty Warriors Next, Phantom Brave, King of Fighters XIII, Disgaea 4, Dynasty Warriors 7, and Warriors Orochi 3.
New Game Videos include: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (Collection 1 Launch Trailer), Pulse 4/24 Edition, Bioshock Infinite trailers “Heavy Hitters: Boys of Silence” and “Heavy Hitters: Siren”, Resident Evil 6′s 2nd Trailer, Max Payne 3 featurette “Design and Tech Series Video #3″ and Multiplayer Trailer Part 1, The Walking Dead videogame debut trailer, “Playing Dead: Episode 1 Trailer”, and Teaser Trailer. And the first “I Am Alive” Developer Diary.
New PS3 Themes include: Prong Tattoo Model Theme ($2), A.C. Milan 2011-2012 Team Dynamic Theme ($3), Poolside Rendevous Dynamic Theme ($3), Beachside Encounter Dynamic Theme ($3), Dynamic Celtic Theme 1 ($3), Dynamic Celtic Theme 2 ($3), Dynamic Anime Theme 3 ($3) and Dynamic Anime Theme 4 ($3)

PS Vita Add-Ons include:

PS Vita Add-On Name: Ridge Racer Car 06 ‘Rc410′
Price: $1.49 (Free For Silver Pass)
File Size: 3.52 MB
Synopsis: Add a new machine to your game with the manufacturer KAMATA’s RC410
*This content is available for free to users who have purchased RIDGE RACER Silver Pass. Check your current contents to avoid double purchasing.

PS Vita Add-On Name: Ridge Racer Course 04 ‘Oceanfront Cruise Way’
Price: $2.49 (Free For Silver Pass)
File Size: 75 MB
Synopsis: Add a new course to your game with Oceanfront Cruise Way! Finish this stunning evening seaside course in the fastest time possible!
*This content is available for free to users who have purchased RIDGE RACER Silver Pass. Check your current contents to avoid double purchasing.

NINTENDO DOWNLOADS (3DS, Wii, DS)

3DS Major System Update:
Price: Free
Synopsis: This major system update adds the ability to organize your Channels into folders! This is something you can do on many other devices, so its only about time that 3DS owners be able to do the same. This means that you can easily organize your 3DS Games & Apps into different folders for say, “Virtual Console Games”, “Apps”, “eShop Games”, “DSiWare”, “Demos”, etc. This is a major deal and good on Nintendo for adding more ways to customize and streamline the Home section. Additionally, this system update adds the ability for Nintendo to issue automatic Patches or Updates for previously released games. The first one will be for Mario Kart 7 and it will patch the game to get rid of the shortcut exploits that some gamers have discovered, allowing them to essentially cheat in multiplayer races. You can see more about the new System Update at 1:05 minutes into this video.

3DS eShop Game Name: Block Factory
Price: $4
Synopsis: From the creators of “Pyramids” comes “Block Factory”! Create and share puzzles with this predefined falling-block puzzle game. Your goal is to avoid filling the playing field to the top. When a block hits the top, the game is over.

3DS Nintendo Video Update: I Fight Dragons Video Premiere
Price: Free
Synopsis: Chiptune rockband “I Fight Dragons” takes you on a space adventure in the premiere of the music video “Save World Get Girl” on Nintendo Video.

DSiWare/eShop Game Name: Chuck E. Cheese’s Arcade Room (500 DSi Points / $5)
Price: 500 DSi Points on DSi / $5 on 3DS
Synopsis: Chuck E. Cheese’s Arcade Room is a fun and exciting video game that digitally recreates the magic of being at a Chuck E. Cheese’s! Many games and prizes await you in Chuck E. Cheese’s Arcade Room! Polish off your toy hammer and Smash-a-Munch! Make consecutive shots to go on fire in Basketball Frenzy! Ride like the wind in Jasper’s Racing! You can even customize your very own Chuck E. Cheese’s avatar! The object of the game is to have fun, play games, and collect tickets. Various prizes and toys in the gift shop are redeemable with tickets.

Wii Virtual Console Game Name: Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers – Online Edition
Virtual Console System: Sega Genesis
Price: 800 Wii Points
Synopsis: Battle in online elimination tournaments with Ryu’s new flaming fireball and Ken’s new Dragon Punch. Fight head-to-head locally and compete against other challengers in heated online battles.

—-WORK IN PROGRESS…. STEAM, GOG, ANDROID, APPLE, ORIGIN, ETC. COMING SOON—–

Shining Force: Sword of Hajya, is coming to the Nintendo 3DS virtual console according to a recent listing by the Australian Classifications board. Shining Force will be joined by Defenders of Oasis, a Game Gear RPG inspired by the Arabian Knights stories. Sega has yet to announced a date for either titles.

Nintendo 3DS owners who’ve purchased the new Game Gear games recently released on the 3DS eShop will notice a better and more option filled emulator interface. Besides mapable buttons, they have added short cuts to the different Screen Settings options. Instead of having to press a combination of buttons on the software start up, users can now (with a user friendly interface), simply select Normal, Dot by Dot (1 for 1 original resolution), or Full. They also have the option to turn Game Gears infamous Blur on and off. If you haven’t checked the Nintendo 3DS eShop lately than you may be missing out on new content.

The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening DX is the best-selling Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console game for 2011 in both Europe and North America. The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening DX is the second biggest seller in the Nintendo 3DS eShop, just behind the free 3D Classics: Excitebike.

Nintendo of America customer service has confirmed two additional Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console titles which will be free to download as part of the Nintendo Ambassador Program. The two new titles are Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3 and Kirby & the Amazing Mirror. Those who already own a Nintendo 3DS or purchase the console before the price cut will be eligible to download these excellent Gameboy Advance games.

Source

Online gaming publication IGN has retracted its previous statement that the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console will be available at launch. Presumably the store will go live with the 3DS eShop which will be available to consumers in May.

“The VC is a part of the eShop. The eShop, and I’m looking at my Q&A with Nintendo right now, hits in May.”

- Rich from IGN via Twitter

Source

Nintendo have announced that the Nintendo 3DS virtual consoles will be available to consumers at launch and will feature an array of Gameboy and Gameboy Colour titles.

The Gameboy and Gameboy Colour titles that Nintendo have revealed so far for the 3DS Virtual Console are Super Mario Land and The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening DX.

Source

Edit: No 3DS Virtual Console until May