This is the second time I have started writing this, the first time I went off on a complete tangent about how current gen gaming (at least on the Xbox 360,) has lost me, and how I’m looking for my games and gaming experience elsewhere. But I was really going off topic to be honest as all I really want to talk about is Nintendo Gamer Magazine and what’s made me pick this fine issue up.
Firstly, as you can probably tell from the front cover, it has a great article about the Wii U, a console I'm eagerly awaiting and shall be making my next gen system, so this was the magazines first draw for me. This article is great because it aims at looking through all the speculative and rumour mill bullshit to read between the lines based upon actual fact’s given by either Nintendo themselves, or actual reliable sources that are in the spotlight, as opposed to those that remain hidden in the shadows of secrecy and can offer up any load of old tosh as god given fact. This was a very interesting read, one that laid out the facts, read between the lines, and aimed to keep an open mind at where the Wii U might be in terms of its graphics, power, price and features when its released.
The second thing about this magazine that attracted me to it was all the retro goodness within its pages. Now I love the Nintendo of old, the days of the 8-bit and 16-bit Nintendo, those were magical times, and when I was young nobody could seperate me away from my Game Boy or SNES, it just wasn’t going to happen. I can fondly remember taking my Game Boy everywhere with me, no matter where I went, the classic handheld was by my side in an all encompassing carry case. But I have to admit, the newer Nintendo, that from at least the N64 onwards (although I wouldn’t class the N64 as new,) I could never seem to connect with. I gave the Wii a major try when I bought one 6 months after launch, and I'm still impressed with the system, and still think even now that the motion controls have huge potential. But I was waiting for games for what seemed like forever, so I sadly and regrettably sold it, in hindsight, I wish I hadn’t as there are some amazing games on the system now, but hindsight is a wonderful thing.
Anyway, going way off topic again. But at the back of Nintendo Gamer you will find an epic best of list, each full of a sizable amount of games, with each given a short sentence or two as to why it was chosen. All Nintendo’s main systems are there, from the NES, right the way through to the 3DS, it even gives a best of games list for the Wiiware and Nintendo’s eshop, and for those of you that were wondering, no the Virtual Boy is not listed.
But for us retro gamers the goodness doesn’t stop there, they have a great many other article’s, reviews and tip-bits on games from the past that graced Nintendo’s many systems. They cover the N64’s Glover, Viewtiful Joe, Freedom Fighters (one of my personal favourites that I loved on the PS2, though not retro, ) Aliens 3, Micro Machines for the NES and much more. One aspect of the retro content in this magazine that I really like is that it starts to creep in from the centre-fold onwards, and instead of being bunched up into its own retro section, it is cleverly mixed together alongside all the modern games.
I’ll really be looking out for the next issue, and I hope that Nintendo Gamer will continue the great mixture of new and old together that feels quite refreshing. So if you’re a retro gamer like me, and you like Nintendo’s classic systems and games, as well as their modern stuff, Nintendo Gamer is a worthy buy, I gave it a go, and found it to be a surprisingly enjoyable read.
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