Review: Super Smash Bros. Wii U (Wii U)

The Smash Bros. franchise has always been one of the better party games to play when you've got a mixed group of people over. It's never too challenging for even the most novice of players to pick up and play. Every character move set is distilled into about four actions and can be done even on the Wii-motes 2 buttons without any challenge and you can figure out on the fly without any real handicap. With the online and multi-platform options it has become even more accessible than ever before.

Review: Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Wii U)

The Donkey Kong Country franchise has produced some of the best platforming titles in the Nintendo catalogue and the latest is no different. Compared to the venerable Mario games, Donkey Kong Country has always aimed to be more difficult and the designers have certainly done an excellent job of achieving that goal this time. Tropical Freeze will test your reflexes and muscle memory to a level approaching Super Meat Boy or even, wait for it, Battletoads.

Review: Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D (3DS)

From my 2010 Wii review of Donkey Kong Country Returns:

"Stop rolling into the pits!" 

This happened to me again and again. For some reason, to perform the ground attack a player has to quickly shake the Wii Remote. That's fine. However, if you happen to be moving forward at the time, you'll roll forward. That's good for attacking enemies and bashing things but it's also a very efficient way to send you wheeling into a hole. There are some really tricky platforming elements in the game and the inability to just press a button to perform this action makes some areas far more difficult than they needed to be.

Review: Mario Tennis Open (3DS)

The good thing about Nintendo Character GamesTM is that it's a almost a given that it will be an enjoyable experience. ("Almost" because the Mario Party games can be hit or huge miss.) Mario Strikers Charged, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mario Kart, Mario Golf and Mario Tennis do a great job capitalizing on the most popular Nintendo characters and as a result, or more likely because of it, a lot of care and attention go into the games to make them pleasant games.