NES Classic Mini

Nintendo just dropped a bombshell and have announced that on 11th November, the NES Classic Mini Edition ill be released for $59.99. The NES in a mini version of the classic system we all grew up with and loved but smaller, thus the mini. The system comes with a NES controller which can be used on the Wii and WiiU. It will also come pre-installed with 30 of the 'best' NES games (or so they say, I'm not the biggest fan of Tecmo Bowl but the list is very impressive indeed) and will be able to be plugged into your current fancy TV set by using the HDMI cord. The machine will not be able to play original NES cartridges and there will not be an ability to download additional games after release but still, 30 NES games for about $2 a-piece is not bad at all. The full list of games included are :

Balloon Fight, Bubble Bobble, Castlevania, Castlevania II: Simon’s Quest, Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr., Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Dr. Mario, Excitebike, Final Fantasy, Galaga, Ghosts ‘N Goblins, Gradius, Ice Climber, Kid Icarus, Kirby’s Adventure, Mario Bros., Mega Man 2, Metroid, Ninja Gaiden, Pac-Man, Punch-Out!! Featuring Mr. Dream, StarTropics, Super C, Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario Bros. 3, Tecmo Bowl, The Legend of Zelda and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.

The Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past Complete in Reverse Order

Awesome Games Done Quick 2016 was a great showcase of skill but in this video Andy and Superskulj race through A Link to the Past in reverse order by using glitches, level skips and pixel-perfect mirror warps to work backwards from Ganon to the Armos Knights. By the end the game is so glitched out that only a game reset will suffice. The skills required to achieve this by both players is incredible so if you have a couple of hours spare check out the pure skill of these players in this classic game.

The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses

The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses will be touring through North America and Europe as part of a world tour. Dates for the shows have been announced, and more will be announced next year.

The Legend of Zelda Symphony includes brand-new music and visuals from Tri-Force Heroes, as well as songs from the previous Zelda games. Game moments from the series will be timed with the orchestral score approved by Zelda composer Koji Kondo.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert had the Symphony perform and boy was it amazing! I'm booking tickets for the London leg of the gig, if you're a fan you should too. The link is below!

This is the current venues and dates announced:

  • Nashville, TN, Schermerhorn Symphony Center; January 21, 22
  • Boston, MA, Symphony Hall; February 23
  • Costa Mesa, CA, Segerstrom Center for the Arts; March 8
  • Toronto, ON, Sony Centre; March 19
  • Jacksonville, FL, Moran Theatre; March 24
  • Kansas City, MO, Music Hall Kansas City; March 26
  • Memphis, TN, The Orpheum; March 31
  • New Orleans, LA, Saenger Theater; April 1
  • Columbus, OH, Ohio Theater; April 3
  • Charlottesville, VA, JPJ Arena; April 8
  • London, UK, SSE/Wembley Arena; April 23
  • Guadalajara, MX, Auditorio Telmex; May 11
  • Monterrey, MX, Arena Monterrey; May 13
  • Mexico City, MX, Arena de Ciudad; May 15
  • San Antonio, TX, Majestic Theater; May 21
  • Los Angeles, CA, Dolby Theater; June 13
  • Austin, TX, Long Center; June 23
  • Montreal, QB, Place des Arts; June 25
  • San Francisco, CA, Davies Symphony Hall; August 21
  • Atlanta, GA, Cobb Perf. Arts; September 10
  • Edmonton, AB, Southern Jubilee; September 21
  • Vancouver, BC, Queen Elizabeth Theatre; September 23
  • Paris, FR, Palais Des Congres; October 8
  • Lisbon, PT, Coliseu de Lisboa; October 14
  • Essen, DE, Grugahalle; October 15
  • Chicago, IL, Chicago Auditorium; November 12

LINK- Zelda Symphony Concert

    Hang 'Em Hyrule

    The guys at beatdownboogie have created a brilliant short film merging elements of Sergio Leone's Spaghetti Westerns and The Legend of Zelda. The costumes, scenery and cinematography are all top notch. Special mention must also be made for the soundtrack which is inspired by the great Ennio Morricone and particularly his work on For a Few Dollars More.

    Check it out below!

    Racing For Rupees

    There are a lot of fanmade animations online but this is one of the best I have seen. We've all been on rupee hunts as Link right? Smashing jars, cutting grass and trashing peoples homes to get enough money to buy stuff. Well, see what happens when Link races for rupees to buy a shield!

    Zelda Livemap

    A bunch of coders have teamed up to recreated the world of Zelda: A Link To The Past in browser using the JADSDS engine, a JavaScript animator. There is something empowering about swooping around the maps seeing the characters go about their daily life. As a piece of documentation on game design it is marvelous. Hyrule as designed in this game is a masterclass in world building and would fit in well with the RPG Maker lessons I planned, a perfect model of design. I'd recommend you check it out!

    In Awe Of Amiibos

    Zelda Windwaker was unloved at the time but over the years has been reevaluated as a stone cold classic. I loved the game at the time, especially the expressive look in Toon Links eye.

    Whilst I was working in Cambodia I got a t-shirt screen printed with a Toon Link design. So with the Amiibo craze it seemed like a no-brainer that I'd get the Toon Link Amiibo as my first Amiibo. I'll get some more Amiibo's but the one I'd love to see would be Tingle... now he'd be a great character to have!

    Zelda Theme on Wine Glasses, Bottles, Pot and Pans

    I don't know about you but when I see wine glasses, bottles and pots and pans around the house all I think is... crickey, that's a lot of washing. But for Dan Newbie it's different, he sees that stuff and thinks "Let's make music". Well he's done just that, watch and be amazed as he recreates the Zelda Overworld theme by the legendary Koji Kondo!

    The Game Theorist

    The Game Theorist is a collection of informative and interesting video on youtube addressing such pressing issues as 'Is Mario Mental?', 'Does Chrono Trigger retells the Bible' and 'How much is Minecraft Diamond Armour Worth?' The videos are informative and use real world mathematics and detailed explanations to present their arguyment. Anyways, check it out and see what you think!

    The video I've linked below is to one of my favourite Game Theorist videos;  'Is Link's Quest in Majora's Mask Pointless?'