WiiU News

So, Amiibos are coming in at a hefty 13.99. I would argue they are comparable physically to the 9.99 Skylanders, although you could argue the technology in the Amiibo is substantially more complicated. Regardless, many Nintendo fans will want a bunch of the Amiibos that will be hitting store shelves soon, but the price could hold people back, especially since the use of some of these Amiibos is very, very limited.

Nintendo continues to do these random online streams to show off their content. Overtime, I've gone from hating these little videos to loving them. They are generally always great and packed with content, both announced and unannounced. The purpose of the most recent Nintendo Direct was to look at games coming out in 2014 and through Spring 2015.

I hate aftermarket products. I always have. If what I'm gaming with doesn't have the official Nintendo seal, I'm not interested. That is how I've always been. I've always paid more for the official products; perhaps I'm stupid. After all, not every third party peripheral is garbage. I guess it is just a perception I have. When I heard and saw the Smash Bros Fight Pad from PDP games I had one though: those look cool, but they are probably just gimmicky, sub part GameCube knockoff controllers.

We all know that beautiful New 3DS and New 3DS XL will be coming to the west in 2015. We just weren't sure if it was going to be region locked, a practice which most hardware makers are passing on now. Well, not surprisingly, Nintendo has no plans to ditch region locking.

If you have no idea what Amiibo is or why you should be excited about it, you probably are not alone. I was in the same boat. Sure, I had seen all the videos and images, but I wasn't 100% sure what purpose they were going to serve. Obviously, it was going to be implemented with the launch of Super Smash Bros, and would be compatible with Mario Kart. Aside from that, I didn't know much else.

A few weeks ago I wrote an article about Nintendo's new download options. Most interesting was the ability (finally) to download games from a computer and push them to your Wii U. This was great, and frankly overdue. What wasn't announced at that time was a pre-download option for digital title. Apparently Nintendo is ready to deliver that as well.

The power of Mario Kart and the upcoming Super Smash Brothers actually does seem to have had an affect on Wii U sales. For the first time since they've started selling refurbished Wii Us on their website, Nintendo have had to post a notice saying they're completely sold out of consoles.

Nintendo is taking another step in the right direction this week as they begin to roll out new purchasing options for Nintendo Wii U and 3DS owners. At this time, it is strictly available in North America, although I suspect the feature to launch in Europe soon. Essentially, Nintendo owners can now do almost everything Xbox and PS4 owners have been able to do for years when it comes to purchasing games via a computer or smart phone.

It's not an opinion. It is a fact. Nintendo's brand has taken series blows over the years, and the company now sits in spot 100 out of 100 when it comes to the worlds most valuable brands. Many analysts predict that Nintendo won't even make the list in 2015.

A few month ago, I looked at Rare developed titles that should be re-released. A few weeks after that, I examined two Mario titles I would like to see again with updated visuals. It has been a busy few months for Nintendo, and I've finally found the time to work on my Nintendo HD series once again. This week, its time to look at Nintendo's second largest franchise: The Legend of Zelda