Unused original character designs found in Super Mario Strikers!

Back in February 24th, a Twitter user named Dogon McBanana decided to dig around in the files of the game Super Mario Strikers, which was released for the Nintendo Gamecube back in 2005. He ended up finding some unused characters - as well as other unused assets - for the game!

Pictured above: Mario's intended sidekicks. The guy on the bottom-right's textures are really messed up.

According to Dogon McBanana, these unused characters appear to be intended to be sidekicks for the Team Captains (Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Wario, and Waluigi for those who never played the game) and would've been styled after them.

Pictured above: Donkey Kong's intended sidekicks. The middle one kind of resembles Bluster Kong from the Donkey Kong Country cartoon show.

However, only Mario's and Donkey Kong's teammates were left in the game's code.

Luigi has a teammate as well, but it's nothing more than a duplicate of himself wearing his usual attire, which may suggest these original sidekick characters were scrapped early on. (and possibly replaced with the Toads, Koopas, Hammer Bros., and Birdos)

Additionally, some other interesting unused characters include a Security Pianta (which was initially found in the E3 Prototype of the game) as well as a 3D interpretation of the Dull Bones enemies from the Paper Mario series who are simply labeled "Medic."

There are also some models of a camera crew, specifically a yellow Pianta, a Shy Guy, and a TV Van. Dogon McBanana theorizes they were replaced with the futuristic cameras the game went with.

There are also a variety of unused banners, though the textures for them were coded differently compared to the other stuff, so Dogon McBanana didn't know how to properly fix it. (Even Diddy Kong gets a banner, even though he's not in the final game!)

Finally, a Goomba Guard was found that has ties to a cut stage in the game, "peach_palace." While it's not a lot, it does give one an idea on the stage's theme.

Would do you think? Would you have liked to see these original characters make the cut, or do you think Nintendo and Next Level Games make the right call scrapping them? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Kirby gets new powers in the Kirby and the Forgotten Land!

A new trailer shown in the Nintendo Direct goes into more depth with Kirby and the Forgotten Land... including a new power for Kirby called Mouthful Mode!

When Kirby tried to inhale certain objects - such as the car pictured above - he'll be able to get them in his mouth, but won't be able to fully swallow them, hence the name "Mouthful Mode." During this, Kirby will gain access to new abilities. In Car Mouth mode, Kirby can race around at high speeds, jumping over ramps and ramming into enemies!

Other new Mouthful Modes include Arch Mouth, allowing Kirby to glide through the air; Cone Mouth, which slows him down greatly, but allows him to poke through certain terrain; Light-Bulb Mouth, which can allow Kirby to brighten up dark rooms, at the cost of moving slower while doing so; and Vending Mouth, which allows Kirby to shoot juice cans at his foes.

Another thing new to the game is upgrading Copy Abilities! During his adventure, Kirby can visit Waddle Dee's Weapon Shop to evolve his Copy Abilities into stronger forms, and each one appears to have three levels of evolution. An example given of this was the Fire ability, which can evolve into Volcano Fire, than then mighty Dragon Fire! Each upgrade costs a certain amount of stars to evolve them.

The final shot of the trailer shows more members of the Beast Pack, who are the antagonists of the game. It also shows King Dedede is with them as well, though whether he's working for them, commanding them, or being mind-controlled is currently unknown.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land will release on March 25, 2022.

New race tracks heading to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe!

While the news may disappoint some fans hoping for a Mario Kart 9, those who don't mind may be excited to hear that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for Nintendo Switch is receiving 48 new courses via the Booster Course Pass!

The Booster Course Pass will be sent out in 6 waves, with each wave having two 2 Cups that have 8 race tracks each. All of the tracks are picked from previous games in the series, as well as some courses from the Mario Kart Tour mobile game!

The Golden Dash Cup contains Paris Promenade (Mario Kart Tour), Toad Circuit (Mario Kart 7), Choco Mountain (Mario Kart 64), and Coconut Mall (Mario Kart Wii). Lucky Cat Cup contains Tokyo Blur (Mario Kart Tour), Shrom Ridge (Mario Kart DS), Sky Garden (Mario Kart: Super Circuit), and Ninja Hideaway (Mario Kart Tour).  Wave 1 will be released on March 18, 2022.

The Booster Course Pass costs $24.99. Even if you don't buy the DLC. you can still race on these new courses with others in the online mode, as long as one of the players your up against has purchased the DLC. You just won't be able to race on them whenever you want offline.

What are your thoughts? You excited for this upcoming DLC? What courses are you hoping make the cut? Tell us in the comments below!

Play a round of extreme soccer in Mario Strikers: Battle League!

A new entry in the Mario Strikers series, Mario Strikers: Battle League, has been announced yesterday in the Nintendo Direct. 

In Mario Strikers: Battle League, a team of five players compete against another team in a soccer match to score the most goals. Of course, this being Mario, the game puts a Mario twist on it: players can use items to assist themselves or hinder their opponents. Additionally, you're also free to tackle your foe as much as you want, though missing will leave you open.

Compared to the previous entry's Mega Strikes, this game introduces Hyper Strikes, which are similar in concept, but function differently. During the game, orbs will appear somewhere on field. Collecting one will power your whole team up. Afterwards, if you're on your opponents side of the field, pressing and and holding the kick button will allow you to perform a Hyper Strike! If the ball then manages to get into the net, you'll score two points! But be careful, as trying to use a Hyper Strike leaves you open!

New to this game is gear! By equipping gear on your character's head, body, arms and/or legs, their default stats will be modified. You can make your character move more quickly, make their tackles stronger, or even make them powerfully hit the ball faster and farther.

Speaking of characters, these are the ones who are currently confirmed to be playable in the game:

1. Mario
2. Luigi
3. Peach
4. Toad
   
5. Yoshi
6. Bowser
   
7. Donkey Kong
8. Wario
9. Waluigi
10. Rosalina (New)
    

Of note is that sidekicks appear to have been removed from the game, as Toad has been upgraded to a main playable character, not to mention that the other returning playable characters - who were previously Team Captains - are now able to work together on a team instead of being unable to. (Example from Mario Strikers Charged: if you picked Mario, you could not have Luigi, Peach, Bowser, etc... on his team) Additionally, it appears that Boom Boom replaces Kritter as the goalkeeper for this game.

The game is planned to release on June 10, 2022.

A new fan-made "Mother 4" project announced!

Ever heard of a fan game titled Mother 4? It entered development back in 2008 and was planning to be released back in Winter 2014. As most EarthBound/Mother fans know, the game ended up getting delayed, and is still being worked on. In 2017, it was announced that they would be removing all of the EarthBound content, as well as change its name to "Oddity" in an attempt to avoid a potential C&D from Nintendo. Much later in October of this month, a few disgruntled fans who were helping to make the game would anonymously leak a couple of the game's assets, as well as a few playable demos, while also revealing that there was a lot of production trouble behind the scenes.

Well, a new game is now stepping up to the fray, and if you couldn't guess, it's also has the title of "Mother 4." Being in development for at least 2 years, this new Mother 4 fan project follows a group of teenagers as they journey across a "rose-tinted America."

Our heroes! From left-to-right, Maggie, Aaron, Troy, and Trisme.

The story, as described on the official site, has three young men discover an unwelcome guest hiding deep in the woods, turning America on its head. Our protagonist, Aaron, must tour the United States to deal with the aftermath of that meeting, as well as uncover the mystery behind the "Rift Shells," ancient artifacts of awesome PSI power and dubious origin. Along the way, Aaron will be meet the overconfident mechanic Maggie, the reserved yet proficient Troy, the dense but kind hearted magician Trisme, along with many other loyal allies and oddball foes.

Gameplay is similar to previous installments. You make your heroes run around and explore various areas and locations, where you can interact with various characters or find helpful items. Sometimes there will be enemies lurking about. If you run into them, you enter a battle against them. If you sneak up on them from behind, you'll gain the advantage over them, though if you allow them to attack you from behind, the they'll gain the advantage.

Battles are similar to how they are in EarthBound with the series iconic rolling HP bars, which slowly tick down as you take damage, which can allow you to take fatal blows and either keep attacking the enemies, or quickly heal your characters before their HP hits zero. The game also has Mother 3's comboing system, which allows you to deal extra damage to enemies if you press a button in time to the battle music.

The developers of the game also have an official website set up, along with a FAQ which should answer any question you may have. (For starters, they aren't worried about a possible Cease-&-Desist from Nintendo) They also have a YouTube account, as well as a Twitter account. (Check out this cool concept art for our fearless heroes! ... and Jared.)

Are you looking forward to Mother 4? You can bet this writer is, and hoping that things will go well for the dev team. Regardless, tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Sora from Disney's Kingdom Hearts is the final character to join Super Smash Bros. Ultimate!

As revealed in the final "Mr. Sakurai Presents" direct, Sora from Disney's Kingdom Hearts is joining the battle! Yes, you read that right. What many thought would be impossible has happened!

First, a little about Sora. As mentioned, he's the main protagonist of several Kingdom Hearts games. Originally wanting to explore the vast seas to visit other lands with his friends, Riku and Kairi, Sora ends up getting wrapped up in a massive war against a man named Xehanort, who seeks to acquire the mystical Kingdom Hearts. Sora isn't alone on this adventure, as he also receives help from his two new friends and companions, Donald Duck and Goofy Goof.

Sora, Donald, and Goofy also comes across members of the Final Fantasy series, such as Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockheart, Aerith Gainsborough, and yes, even Sephiroth.

In Super Smash Bros. Sora is a fast, but light character. (For reference, he's lighter than Isabelle from Animal Crossing.) He mostly fights his foes with his iconic Keyblade, though he can also use some magic with his Neutral Special. He starts off with Firaga by default. After using it, he switches to Thundaga, then Blizzaga, before going back to Firaga. His taunt also has him use three magical moves, but they're only for aesthetics and don't do anything.

Sora's default look is his appearance in the first game. His alternate costumes include his designs from Kingdom Hearts II, Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance Kingdom Hearts III, and the Timeless River look from Kingdom Hearts II.

Sora's stage is Hallow Bastian, a kingdom that was ruined long ago, though towards the end of Kingdom Hearts II, it gets restored back to its original form, Radiant Garden. Sora will also come with 9 songs. Additionally, if you have save data of Kingdom Hearts: Memory of Melody, you'll also receive a 10th song, "Dearly Beloved ~Swing Version~."

 Sora will be released on October 18th, 2021.

Nintendo 64 and SEGA Genesis games heading to Nintendo Switch Online!

During the Nintendo Direct, Yoshiaki Koizumi revealed that Nintendo Switch Online is getting an Expansion Pack. This Expansion Pack will be coming with games from Nintendo 64 and SEGA Genesis library!

These are the confirmed titles for the Nintendo 64 games.

• Super Mario 64
• Mario Kart 64
• Star Fox 64
• Yoshi's Story
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
• Win Back: Covert Operations
• Mario Tennis
• Dr. Mario 64
• Sin & Punishment

In addition, these games are planned to be coming to Nintendo Switch Online as well at some point.

• The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask
• F-Zero X
• Mario Golf
• Pokemon Snap
• Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards
• Paper Mario
• Banjo-Kazooie

And these are the confirmed games coming to the SEGA Genesis one!

• Castlevania Bloodlines
• Contra Hard Corps
• Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine
• Ecco the Dolphin
• Golden Axe
• Gunstar Heroes
• Musha
• Phantasy Star IV
• Ristar
• Shining Force
• Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master
• Sonic the Hedgehog 2
• Streets of RAGE 2
• Strider

The Expansion Pack is planned to be released sometime late October, 2021. The price of this expansion in comparison to the standard one is currently unknown, and will be revealed later. Those who have purchased - or are currently on - the standard edition will have the choice to upgrade to the Expansion Pack if they so desire.

Final DLC character for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate will be revealed in October.

During the Nintendo Direct, it was briefly touched upon that the last fighter for the game is almost finished. They plan to reveal who the character is on October 5th, where their reveal trailer, as well as the final Mr.Sakurai Presents character showcase, will be released.

In addition, they'll also be showing the final wave of Mii Fighter costumes.

Tune-in on 10/5 at 7am PT for the reveal presentation of the final Super #SmashBrosUltimate DLC fighter with Director Masahiro Sakurai. The fighter’s release date and final Mii Fighter costumes will also be revealed!

Watch here:https://t.co/wLVCdxTgtT pic.twitter.com/wCAZw2kmLZ

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) September 23, 2021

Who do you think the final fighter will be? What Mii Fighter outfits are you hoping for? Will one of the costumes come with a song, like the Sans and Shantae costumes did? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!

Nintendo Direct airing today on September 23rd, 2021!

Yesterday, Nintendo announced on their Twitter that a direct will air today. This direct be about 40-minutes long, and will mostly feature news on upcoming titles, such as "Metroid Dread," "Advance Wars: Re-Boot Camp," and "Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle." It may also reveal some new info on "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2" sequel, and perhaps "Bayonetta 3" if we're lucky.

Other likely candidates may be the reveal of the final character for "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate," an announcement of "SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake," and "Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl." (Whether we'll get some reveals from it are up in the air.) There's also the rumor of Nintendo bringing Game Boy/ Game Boy Color titles to the Nintendo Switch Online, similar to the previous NES and SNES ones.

We'll see once the direct roles in at 3 p.m. PT!

Advance Wars returns in Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp!

In a surprising announcement, Nintendo revealed that Advance Wars is returning to Nintendo Switch as "Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp!" As you could probably guess from the title, the game is a remake of two games: "Advance Wars", as well as it's sequel, "Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising".

For some history, Advance Wars was a series that had its start back on the NES's Japanese equivalent, the Famicom, in 1988. The game was called "Famicom Wars", and was made by the same company that made the Fire Emblem series. Ever since its debut, Advance Ware has managed to have a release on nearly every Nintendo console up to the Nintendo DS, where it ended with 2008's "Advance Wars: Days of Ruin".

You play as a tactical advisor for the Orange Star Army. In Advance Wars 1, Commanding Officer Andy has been accused of attacking other countries troops for no reason, so now he must go out and prove his innocence. Meanwhile, in Advance Wars 2, the Black Hole Army has recovered from their defeat in the first game. Once again they're trying to conquer the land of Macro Land, and it's up to Andy and his friends o stop them once and for all!

When you want a break from trying to save the world, you can compete in online against other players! Up to four players can battle on dozens of maps. Each player chooses a CO from either campaign and can strategically use their CO Powers to turn the tides of battle. Customize your combat with options like funds per allied base and fog of war.

Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp will release on December 3rd, 2021. You can pre-order the game here!

Wario and his friends return in WarioWare: Get it Together!

 

Following the rumors of an upcoming WarioWare game, Nintendo has revealed WarioWare: Get It Together during their E3 Presentation!

In this new installment, players directly control Wario - or one of his many friends - to beat the various microgames. From trying to get toothpaste on a toothbrush to avoiding bird poop (yes, seriously), you're sure to have some wacky fun! Each one has their own way of clearing Microgames. Wario can perform his iconic Shoulder Charge, Mona can throw a boomerang, Kat can throw Ninja Stars, and Orbulon can use the tractor beam from his spaceship.

There's also a 2-Player mode, where you and a friend work together to beat the microgames.

WarioWare: Get It Together will release on September 10, 2021. You can pre-order the game here!

Metroid Dread, coming to Nintendo Switch October 8th, 2021!

During their E3 Presentation, Nintendo has announced Metroid Dread. Developed in cooperation with Mercury Steam, who previously made the excellent Metroid: Samus Returns, Metroid Dread - also referred to as Metroid 5 - is the long-awaited sequel to 2002's Metroid Fusion. Some time afer the events of Fusion, Samus heads to planet ZDR to investigate a mysterious transmission sent to by Galactic Federation. The remote planet has become overrun by vicious alien lifeforms and chilling mechanical menaces. Samus is more agile and capable than ever, but can she overcome the inhuman threat stalking the depths of ZDR?

While exploring the place, Samus will be hunted by a robot named E.M.M.I., who is invulnerable to all of Samus's weapons. Samus will have to spend most of her time hiding from and sneaking by the robots. If they catch her, it's an instant game over.

Samus also have some new power-ups and moves that will help her on her adventure. She can now perform a slide to quickly get through small corridors, as well as slip underneath tall enemies. With the Phantom Cloak, she can hide from the E.M.M.I. Robots sight. And with the Omega Cannon, she can actually defeat an E.M.M.I. robot! However, it's a one-use weapon, so the player had better aim well lest they have to go and find another one.

One screenshot shows what appears to be a Chozo controlling some machine. Could it be a followup to the hidden 11th Chozo Memory from Metroid Samus Returns, which revealed there is a rogue Chozo faction that betrayed the Chozo cause? Or is this Chozo actually a friendly individual helping Samus?

Metroid Dread is planned to be released October 8th, 2021. amiibo figures of Samus in her new Power Suit, as well as E.M.M.I., will be released on the same day.

You can watch the announcement trailer here!

 

You can also watch Yoshio Sakamoto give a brief talk on Metroid Dread's development history here!

You can pre-order the game here!

Tekken's Kazuya joins the battle in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate!

Nintendo starts off their E3 Nintendo Direct by showing a mysterious person carrying a knocked-out Ganondorf. They approach the edge of a cliff, where the man tosses Ganon off into the lava below. The camera then pans up to the mysterious person, revealing that he is Kazuya, the 81st fighter who is joining the battle!

Kazuya is a major character throughout the series, and the son of another well-known Tekken character Heihachi Mishima. In his debut from the first installment, Kazuya gave off an impression of being a hero who's trying to stop his somewhat abusive dad, though there were a few hints that implied Kazuya was a more sinister character than what he was showing. Those hints were revealed to be true by Tekken 2, where he became an antagonist. Following that, he's flipped-flopped between the roles of Hero and Villain ever since.

From what's been show, he operates similar to Ryu and Ken from Street Fighter, and Terry from Fatal Fury; In one-on-one matches, Kazuya will always face his opponent, mirroring how fighting works in the Tekken series. He also has many of his moves from the series, such as Tsunami Kick, Searing Edge, and Tombstone Crusher. Additionally, he'll sometimes transform into his frightening Devil Gene form when performing certain attacks, as well as his Final Smash.

While his home stage is currently unnamed, his father Heihachi can be seen as one of the background characters. Whether anyone else from Tekken will show up is currently unknown.

A special illustration was also made and posted by the official Tekken Twitter Account, celebrating Kazuya making it into Super Smash Bros.

Masahiro Sakurai will go into more detail about Kazuya on June 28th of this month at 7:00 a.m. PT / 10:00 a.m. ET.

Kazuya is part of the Fighter Pass Vol. 2 for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and will be available to purchase for $5.99 (in the US) or $7.55 (in Canada). One can also purchase the full Fighter Pass Vol. 2 for $29.99 (US) or $37.79 (Canada), which, in addition to coming with Kazuya, also comes with the previous four DLC Fighters:
Pyra & Mythra (from Xenoblade Chronicles 2)
Sephiroth (from Final Fantasy VII)
Min Min (from ARMS)
Steve (from Minecraft)
as well as one more future DLC fighter who will be revealed later on. In addition, purchasing the full Fighter Pass Vol. 2 will also give you a costume for your Mii Swordfighter, the Ancient Soldier Gear from "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild."

Watch Kazuya's Reveal Trailer here!