Top Five 3DS Games for the Holidays 2011

 The Nintendo Lifeline welcomes today's guest columnist, Sean:

2011 has been a great year for 3DS fans in terms of new games. Now that the holiday season is in full swing, you may be wondering what games to get the 3DS enthusiast in your life. There are certainly plenty of excellent games to choose from. So, you might be feeling a little overwhelmed by all your options. Don’t worry. You can narrow down your choices by checking out the five 3DS games that are certain to please any handheld gaming fanatic this holiday season. Here are the five 3DS games that will make the best holiday gifts this year:

1. Aliens: Infestation – This side-scrolling game challenges players to defeat the xenomorphs, an evil species of aliens that have taken over the world. This game is inspired by the Aliens film series and includes all the weapons from the movies. Players get to use flamethrowers, smart guns, and rifles to try to defeat the menacing xenomorphs.

2. Mario Kart 7 – Fans of previous Mario Kart games will love this new version. You get to race on tracks from older games and some new tracks with impressive graphics. Players also get to race underwater with the help of a propeller that’s attached to all of the karts. 

3. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D – This is probably the most popular 3DS game that came out this year. It’s a remake of an original game made in 1998 with better graphics. Zelda fans will love being able to carry this game around on their 3DS.

4. Star Fox 64 3D – This is another remake of a popular Nintendo 64 game. It’s a scrolling shooter game set on a group of imaginary planets. The object of the game is to stop a mad scientist from destroying everything. This is a pretty challenging feat, which will please gamers who are looking to play a relatively difficult game.

5. Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition – This edition of the popular Street Fighter games takes things to a whole new handheld level. You get to choose from 35 different characters to fight with, and you get to fight other players around the world when you connect your 3DS to a WiFi connection.

So, consider gifting the games above, and make the holidays special for the 3DS lover in your life!

Author’s Bio: Sean is a guest post writer on the subjects of 3DS games, retro video games, and locating an HP coupon for your holiday gift.

2012 Nintendo Lifeline Awards: Nominees

Well, it's that time again. The time when we look back at all of the best moments of the year. The purpose of the Nintendo Lifeline Awards is to celebrate the best moments in the world of Nintendo. First, however, I feel it necessary to offer this disclaimer: I will never have the time or money to try every worthwhile game in any one year, so my experience is quite limited. The Lifeline Awards are for entertainment and reflection only.

That said, here are the categories and corresponding nominees:

Best Overall Game

• Super Mario 3D Land (N3DS)
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (N3DS)
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
• Mario Kart 7 (N3DS)
• Wii Play Motion (Wii)
• Star Fox 64 3D (N3DS)
• Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition (N3DS)
• Lost in Shadow (Wii)

Best Overall Graphics

• Super Mario 3D Land (N3DS)
• Star Fox 64 3D (N3DS)
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (N3DS)
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Wii)
• Steel Diver (N3DS)
• Lost in Shadow (Wii)

Best Get-up

• Tanooki Mario (Super Mario 3D Land)
• Ghirahim (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword)
• Metal Mario (Mario Kart 7)
• Kirby Hat (Nintendogs+cats)

Best Method of Travel

• Loftwing (The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword)
• Tanooki Tail (Super Mario 3D Land)
• Cannon (Super Mario 3D Land)
• Propeller Block (Super Mario 3D Land)
• By Shadow (Lost in Shadow)
• Submarine (Steel Diver)
• Arwing (Star Fox 64 3D)
• Horse (The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D)
• Hang Glider (Pilotwings Resort)
• Customizable Kart (Mario Kart 7)

Best Use of Stereoscopic 3D

• Super Mario 3D Land
• Steel Diver
• Nintendogs+cats
• Pilotwings Resort

As you can very well tell, there isn't a whole lot of variety in either my categories or the nominees therein. You'll also notice that the "Best Method of Travel" category easily packs in the most nominees of all, so my advice is that you take all of this with a grain of salt. Please feel free to give your favorites shout-outs in the comments, because I will certainly take them into consideration as I decide the winners. Check back in early January for the results!

Why Star Fox 64 3D came as a pleasant surprise: A Review

A couple of years ago, I downloaded the original Star Fox 64 onto my Wii. Let me just say, it wasn't very user-friendly. It throws you into the action without the smallest trace of a tutorial or even a simple mission to ease you into it.

I was much more impressed with this year's Nintendo 3DS remastering of the N64 classic. I made it through the main adventure easily enough without even practicing in training mode. And the fun factor was consistently strong. Pulling off moves like somersaults, barrel rolls, and U-turns will never feel more slick in a video game. And for those of you looking for more of a challenge, there are alternate routes to find that lead to more difficult levels.

I've never been a big shooter fan, but this game may have converted me. Definitely a must-play.

Two days, too much to cover...but I'll try

Update: Here are the links to a handful of new trailers Nintendo has released at E3:
Paper Mario
Mario Kart
Animal Crossing
Super Mario
Ocarina of Time 3D

I'll get straight to it today: starting with the brand-new eShop for Nintendo 3DS. With this important system update, Nintendo offered 3DS users everywhere two free downloads. The first is 3D Classics: Excite Bike. The original NES title remains untouched except for the addition of 3D depth. And it just so happens that a cool 3D trick comes into play: as the player moves the 3D depth slider, the whole background image shifts along with the depth itself.

The second piece of free Nintendo goodness is the Pokedex 3D. Users will start out with a limited amount of Pokemon data, but more can be obtained through SpotPass and by other means. Pokemon can be viewed in full 3D and can also be placed in the real world through augmented reality. Also included is comprehensive info on each acquired Pokemon: types, stats, and moves are just a few examples of what players can expect.

As if that didn't take up enough space, those little tidbits are nothing compared to the flood of new details revealed from Nintendo's E3 media conference, which took place Tuesday morning. Here goes:

2011 is The Legend of Zelda 25th anniversary. Fans can expect a host of celebratory events to take place throughout the year, starting with the ability to download The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening on the Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console service. That'll be seven bucks, please! Next, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D will be released on the 19th of this month. Club Nintendo members will be treated to a complimentary copy of the game's official soundtrack for registering their game...offer valid while supplies last, people! The long-awaited Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword will finally be released for Wii this holiday season. A special promotion will see fans with super-awesome gold Wii-motes with the Zelda crest on the front.

New trailers are available for the following Nintendo 3DS games: Mario Kart, Super Mario, Animal Crossing, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, Star Fox 64 3D, Paper Mario, and more. In fact, 3D versions of said trailers can be downloaded for free on the Nintendo 3DS system. They all look amazing, by the way! The current Nintendo 3DS drought will be remedied by year's end, no doubt about it.

Readers, if you've made it this far, you're in for a treat, because Nintendo has pulled back the veil on their next home console. Rumors that the controller would have a built-in, 6-inch touch screen were, indeed, true (see the image on this post). The official name of the console is (drumroll, please)...Wii U! If Wii was able to capture the non-gamer market, then Wii U will capture the hardcore market. All thanks to a highly versatile controller and HD graphics capabilities. Non-gamer market, worry not: Wii U is backwards compatible with Wii games and accessories. In fact, Wii-motes will continue to be at the forefront of control with Wii U. The intention is that four Wii-motes and one touch screen controller can be used at one time. It's a new system, but incorporates the ol' Wii overtly, yet...subtly. Expect more details to emerge before the system's 2012 release. 

The Nintendo Way (continued)

5.       Nintendo Power magazine has been my constant companion since March 2006. There’s not a source I trust more for Nintendo news, previews, and reviews. NP has broadened my horizons, letting me in on games that are a perfect match for me, but that I wouldn’t have discovered otherwise. A great example is the rhythm game Samba de Amigo for Wii. At a mere $20, this easily makes my list of the top five best values. The game-play revolves around the idea that Wii remotes can be used much like maracas. I can’t go into detail, but I love this game. It also opened my eyes to the fact that the rhythm genre of video games extends beyond Guitar Hero and Rock Band. Imagine that!

4.      Nintendo’s vast history is more accessible now than ever before through Wii. That’s right; number four is all about old-school! Thanks to the Wii system’s Virtual Console, I own games like Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, Super Mario World, Super Mario 64, Mario Kart 64, Mario Party 2, Donkey Kong Country (numbers one, two, and three), Star Fox 64, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, and Metroid. I put Metroid at the end for a reason: this is how the Virtual Console feature has really impacted me as a gamer. The Metroid series is one of the big Nintendo juggernauts. It was only a few months ago that I decided I wanted to be a part of this series. I spent a whopping five bucks on the NES original. Boy was I impressed! I never thought I could enjoy NES classics like I enjoy Metroid.

3.       The Super Smash Bros. series highlights another great Nintendo feat: that is, the gargantuan roster of characters and all the fantastic worlds they inhabit. It just so happens that each Super Smash Bros. game thus far has managed what seemed impossible: to bring this enormous number of characters together in a most perfect way. The Nintendo “family” includes such figures as sweet, innocent Kirby, charismatic Captain Falcon, determined Pokemon Trainer, sweet-but-sassy Princess Peach, and slightly dorky Ness, to name a few.

2.      Creativity and originality are indispensible traits in video games. (Or at least they should be.) Nintendo titles and systems have them in spades. Take the most basic series in Nintendo history: Super Mario Bros. Let’s see, there is a Mushroom Kingdom, pipes that warp the player to different locations, enemies with names like Goomba, Koopa, and Shy Guy, a plumber as a protagonist, a dinosaur/turtle…thing as a villain, and a kidnapped princess. Do you see where I’m going with this? How do all these wacky elements combine to create the best-known, most widely-played video game series of all time? Who knows? But it’s great, isn’t it? Nintendo has demonstrated again and again the willingness to try new things.

1.      From casual to hard core, from age 7 to 77, Nintendo games cater to every player’s needs. Do video games get more casual than Wii Sports? I’ve got friends, who had never touched a video game before, to play Wii Sports back in the day (or back in 2007 anyway). It seems it’s becoming the fashion now-a-days to consider an M-rated, explosion-littered, kill-everything-in-sight game to be “hard core”. Well here’s my idea of a hard core game: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. A plot with depth, characters with motives, music with thought, a spot-on control scheme that includes the perfect balance of motion-controls to button presses, and cleverly-designed dungeons…the story is driven by emotionally-charged cut scenes; the characters bring the player to wonder who the true enemies and allies are (*cough*Midna*cough*). It easily takes 30-50 hours to complete this game, depending on the time spent pursuing optional, but extensive side quests. Wii Sports and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess are just two examples of the variety offered by Nintendo.

That concludes my list of the top ten reasons to love Nintendo. So join me as I offer my opinions on Nintendo games, embark on the journey of the Metroid series, and ponder on all the joys and hardships that come with being a gamer.