The Blog

Good Smile Company recently showed off a variety of new gaming figures that they have in the works. All of this is coming out of Anime Expo 2023 which is being held this weekend in Los Angeles.

The newly revealed figures include Link from Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, a Cult of the Lamb Nendoroid, Chun-Li from Street Fighter, and more! You can get a glimpse at everything they had to show off via the tweets below.

Nintendo launched a new Pikmin 4 web site recently, and it includes a section for adorable Pikmin themed web comics! The first comic appeared on June 21st, and since then, multiple have been added.

Today’s comic is titled A Helping Hand and it’s about the struggle to lift Pikmin pellets. In case you missed them, there were three other comics posted the previous three days for you to read: The Ferryman, which features Oatchi the space-dog, Floracious Appetite, about a Bulborb, and Stealth Check, which sees the Pikmin trying to stay quiet.

Click here to read all the currently available comics and stay tuned as more get added leading up to the release of Pikmin 4 next month.

The very first “Kombat Kast” has been announced to be taking place live on Twitch next week. This will be a live discussion with members of the team behind Mortal Kombat 1, which is coming to Switch in September. According to the announcement, it will include discussion of “Kameos, full gameplay breakdowns of Scorpion & Johnny Cage, and more”.

The Kast will take place on NetherRealm’s official Twitch page on Thursday, July 6th at 10:00am PT (1:00pm ET). Be sure to tune in if you want juicy new details on the next Mortal Kombat game.

We’ve just crossed the midpoint of 2023, and there have already been some seriously great games released. To commemorate the past six months, video game review aggregate site Metacritic has released a list of their top 20 highest ratest games of 2023 so far.

At the very top of the list are two Switch games: The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Metroid Prime Remastered. These games definitely deserve the love, and demonstrate that classic Nintendo franchises still have staying power when it comes to critical reviews. Other Switch titles on the list include Theatrhythm Final Bar Line and Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo.

See below for the full list, along with their current Metacritic scores:

1. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (Switch) – 96
2. Metroid Prime Remastered (Switch) – 94
3. Resident Evil 4 remake (PS5) – 93
4. Street Fighter 6 (PS5) – 92
5. Dead Space (PS5) – 89
6. Final Fantasy XVI (PS5) – 88
7. Theatrhythm Final Bar Line (Switch) – 87
8. Hi-Fi Rush (Xbox Series X) – 87
9. Diablo IV (PC) – 87
10. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (PS5) – 85
11. Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo (Switch) – 85
12. Humanity (PS5) – 85
13. A Space For The Unbound (Switch) – 85
14. Octopath Traveler II (Switch) – 84
15. The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog (PC) – 84
16. Hogwarts Legacy (PS5) – 84
17. Cassette Beasts (PC) – 84
18. Labyrinth of Galleria: The Moon Society (Switch) – 83
19. Age of Wonders 4 (PC) – 83
20. Doomblade (PC) – 83

The Fall Guys development team has announced that the prices for the in-game currency Show-Bucks will be increasing in the UK, Canada, and Mexico starting later this month. Show-Bucks are the game’s currency which can be used to purchase various customization options for your character. See below for the complete list of changes:

According to the announcement, these changes are being made due to “economic factors like inflation and currency fluctuations”. However, the price of in-game content purchased with Show-Bucks such as the Fame Pass will remain the same.

These price increases will take effect beginning on July 17, 2023.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is a veritable playground for creative fans, and we’ll probably be seeing the depths of that creativity for quite some time to come. In a recent IGN video, they take a look at a number of vehicles and contraptions created by fans that were inspired by the Star Wars films and games.

Watch the full video above to see in-game interpretations of iconic vehicles like the Speeder Bike, X-Wing, Podracer, and more. This level of accomplishment shouldn’t really be surprising at this point, but seeing these creations in action is genuinely impressive! Give it another year and maybe someone will put together a working Death Star…

In addition to its usual slate of new in-game events, Fire Emblem Heroes will be receiving a larger update to Version 7.7.0 next week. The update drops on July 5th, 2023 in North America, and the patch notes have been made available in advance. Check out all the upcoming changes below, or see the full details with images here.

The water type Pokemon Inteleon had previously been confirmed for an appearance in Pokemon UNITE, but now we have some more information. It turns out Inteleon will be made available in the game next week, on July 4, 2023.

To celebrate the debut, an official trailer has been shared on the Pokemon UNITE YouTube channel (seen above). This is a brief 30 second gameplay snippet that shows off Inteleon’s moves, taking down enemies and scoring goals. You’ll be able to experience this in-game for yourself soon, when Inteleon debuts on July 4th.

StarCraft 64 is a fascinating port of a game that was never really designed to run on consoles. In order to make it work, big changes had to be made to the control scheme and other features, but the game still has its fans. One of those fans who goes by Zuljaras, has created a unique sculpture inspired by the game and utilizing an actual Nintendo 64 system.

As you can see in the video above, Zuljaras put together a complete StarCraft 64 battlefield on top of their console, including different types of terrain and various units and bases. According to the video description, they used polymer clays to get the job done - specifically, Super Sculpey, Fimo Professional and “some colored clays”.

Previously, Zuljaras put together a DOOM statue made of clay utilizing a broken DOOM Switch cartridge. Who knows what Nintendo fusions they’ll come up with next!

Nintendo has released a new compilation video of their Baddies & Battles series over on their Play Nintendo YouTube channel. The series highlights various boss fights from Nintendo Switch games, and this one features footage from all the previous episodes. Games highlighted include Kirby and the Forgotten Land, Super Mario Odyssey, and Pokémon Scarlet & Violet.

Watch heroes like Mario, Kirby, Yoshi, and Luigi–and even adventurous Pokémon Trainers–encounter all sorts of enemies and wild Pokémon in this compilation from the Baddies and Battles series. From big bosses to the small foes, join the fun across a variety of Nintendo Switch games!

Fire Emblem Heroes, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, Pokémon Masters EX, and Pokémon Café ReMix have all received a content update. Check out the full details for each game below via perfectly-nintendo.com.

Fire Emblem Heroes

• [Events] Round 1 of the latest Voting Gauntlet event, Hats in the Ring, is now live. It features the following match-ups: Hardin vs Darros, Nephenee vs Donnel, Nanna vs Ena, and Ignatz vs Joshua. Check out the special website for more details and up to date results! (available until July 3rd)
• [Quests] A new set of Quests is now live: Voting Gauntlet (available until July 3rd)
• [Log-in Bonus] While the latest Voting Gauntlet event is running, all players can get the following as Daily Log-in Bonus: Battle Flag x50 (available until July 7th)

Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp

• [Events] The latest Lucky Wheel event is now live (available until July 14th)
• [Goals] A new set of Monthly Goals is now available (available until August 1st)
• [Store] The latest premium pass is now available, featuring Alola Form Raichu (available until August 1st)

Pokémon Masters EX

• [Trainer Lodge] Starting today, you can invite Irida as a guest once you have teamed up with 5★ Irida & Glaceon. The Lodge Exchange Line-up has also been updated (no end date)
• [Scout] The following Sync Pair is now available via the Monthly Poké Fair Scout: Cynthia & Garchomp (available until August 1st)

Pokémon Café ReMix

• [Cookies] A new Fortune Cookie and related set of Stamp Trade rewards are now available: Jay’s Beach Sport cookie (available until September 29th)
• [Memories] A new Scrapbook Memory is now available: Beach Sport Rentals & Recs (no end date)

The Football Manager franchise returned to Switch last year in the form of Football Manager 2023 Touch. Now, the team behind the game is celebrating the 2023 version’s success, and also promising much more in store for Football Manager 2024. Check out some tidbits from their recent blog post below:

• Football Manager 2024 coming to Switch sometime this year
• “the most complete version in the series’ history”
• Designed as a sort of closing chapter before the series will be reworked for 2025
• Improvements and new features have been based on in-studio feedback and their feature request forum
• Includes the ability to transfer saved games from one version of Football Manager to the next, including from 2023 to 2024
• More information coming “very soon”

The blog post also mentions that Football Manager 2025 will be a complete revamp of the series, featuring a new engine, and many new options, but that game has not been confirmed for any platforms in particular just yet. Stay tuned for more details regarding Football Manager 2024 on Switch later this year.

Composer Grant Kirkhope is best known for his work on classic games like Banjo Kazooie and Donkey Kong 64, as well as modern titles like Mario + Rabbids. He’s a well known name amongst video game music fans today, but back in 1995, he wasn’t sure he could even get a job as a composer.

In a new interview with Nintendo Life, Kirkhope gives new insight into the process of getting hired by Rare, including what was required for his interview, and how surprised he was to get the job with so little experience. Check out a snippet below:

It’s always fascinating to learn more about the behind the scenes of video game work, especially from an era when things were decidedly more “wild west” in many ways. Fortunately for us, everything in this story worked out, Grant Kirkhope got the job, and the rest is history!

Click here to read Part 1 of the full interview.

Another new Pokémon is coming to Pokémon Unite, and this time it’s the legendary psychic type Mewtwo!

The announcement for Mewtwo also features its two Mega forms, Mega Mewtwo X and Mega Mewtwo Y, so presumably they’ll be utilized somehow. Otherwise, we don’t have any info on Mewtwo’s play style.

The debut of Mewtwo is still a few weeks away, just in time to celebrate the game’s second anniversary. You can look forward to seeing exactly how they play when the update launches on July 21, 2023.

Avatar: The Last Airbender – Quest for Balance has been announced for release on Nintendo Switch by Publisher GameMill Entertainment and developer Bamtang Games. Although evidence of the game’s existence has been out there for a while now, this is our first official confirmation of its release.

You can get a taste of what the game has to offer via the new announcement trailer above. It will include a solo campaign with optional two-player co-op, nine different playable characters, and eighteen chapters based on the events from the original animated series.

Avatar: The Last Airbender – Quest for Balance will come to Switch sometime in Fall 2023. You can see an official breakdown, screens and the cover art below.