The Fireside

Today was a slightly sad day....perhaps I am being overly dramatic, but it was slightly sad. Today I packed up and boxed my wii u and its games. I do not yet have a Switch (I most likely will at, or by, Christmas), so it wasn't done to 'make space', but rather because I played the wii u literally to its death. I got it in Sept 2013, and now (June 2019) - it's finished. What had happened, is that the GamePad can no longer hold a charge. It can charge, but it lasts approx 45 min - 1 hr 15 before The Red Light of Doom comes on, then starts flashing. The problem is, because the wii u 'failed' we got the Switch. Because of that , Nintendo stopped supporting it in 2017. That means no more GamePad battery replacement packs. I wish I had known of the 'extended' battery pack made by Nintendo which gives longer life (both to 'extend' and get a new battery for it.) There are sellers on Amazon, etc but the reviews have been mixed: fr...

According to Gamnesia, and other gaming sites, there is a major error which can, effectively, 'final smash' your WII U and the Smash Bros U  game. Read about it here:  http://www.gamnesia.com/news/new-smash-bros.-for-wii-u-error-can-leave-the-game-unplayable#.VH3bHtLF98E Very scary indeed. Bugs, glitches, crashes are one thing...but something on this scale is worrisome. I own the game and have been playing it often within the past two weeks, and everything is fine on my end of things. Once I saw the severity of this bug, however, I have decided not to play until there is an update or patch from Nintendo, either for Smash Bros. U, the WII U itself, or both (I'm playing other games in the meantime). I do have some observations, though: - I'm one of those people who doesn't like to leave discs in players, drives, consoles etc. So when I finish playing, I always take the disc out and put it back in the case. Which means I don't 'turn off' the console while...

Yesterday during the Nintendo Direct, we learned 50 things about Smash Bros. U,  which will be out in just under a month. Here are some notes.  

At long last, one of the most anticipated games for the wii u has a release date! Smash Bros.  for the wii u will be releasing (in North America and Canada) on Nov. 21 . I am glad that Nintendo is choosing to release it then.  Also, I am sure it is a great game, but because I do not own a 3DS (yet...) I got tired of the abundance of the 3DS news and lack of wii u news. Also, it was slightly annoying that, due to the limitations of the *3DS* some things were cut out of, or changed, for the *wii u* version...why? Aren't they separate games? Anyway...  I am sure you most likely know everything there is to know about the game at this point. You can pre-order it pretty much anywhere. Myself though, I am most likely going to go for the eshop digital version. (I have been hearing rumours that it will be about 8GB to download, but please do not quote me on that. Though if I am right....) I know it is a game that I will play very frequently and has a lot of replay...

The new Warriors game starring Legend of Zelda characters (this is not, and I repeat not a Zelda game) is coming later this month, and there quite a few pre-order DLC bonuses. Here is a listing of what some of them are, that give you bonus in-game content.  This info is courtesy of Nintendo: Here’s a nice offer involving a (usually) not-so-nice guy: if you buy Hyrule Warriors for Wii U and register the game with Club Nintendo between 9/26/14 and 10/23/14, you can receive a free download code for the Demon King Costume Set DLC: two costumes for Ganondorf that you can use in-game. You must be a Club Nintendo member to participate, and the offer is available only in the US and Canada. A little unfortunate for those hoping to get the game for Christmas but worth mentioning!  If you pre-order through EB Games (or Gamestop), you get the Ocarina of Time costume set.  If you pre-order through Amaz...

Now that E3 is over, the waiting for some of those games can begin...  Since I own a wii u, this post will focus on that platform's games (Xbox and Playstation fans, be sure to check out the games you're interested in for pre-orders.) Various retailers are now offering pre-orders for some of the upcoming wii u games..even if there is no release date yet, nor are the games finished.  Ones on the wii u of note: Smash Bros (I will either get this one as a digital download via the e shop or physical copy) The Legend of Zelda (pre-ordered already!) Hyrule Warriors  Captain Toad  Star Fox  Mario Maker (I will either get this one as a digital download from the e shop or physical copy) Yoshi's Wooly World  There may be others, but as far as I could tell from the E3 coverage, these ones are going to be big. 

This is a post forany parents who may be getting the wii u for their kids. And I mean 10 or under.

Today the long awaited Mario Kart 8 is finally out. And I must say, it could very well be the best Mario Kart yet for a console. I enjoyed the games on the wii, but not the console itself. So, with Mario Kart 8 , I'm using the gamepad and U Pro Controller.  The biggest difference or newest feature about the game is antigravity. You can race in all directions, as per how the track moves. Switching is easy and seamless and automatic in-game. The gliders re-appear, as do bikes. Basically, Nintendo put all the best parts from past Mario Kart games into this one. And coins! Coins are back. Another feature I quite like is fast recovery. If you get hit, getting back into it doesn't take nearly as long as in past games. There is also a defence against the dreaded Spiny Shell.... There are loads of courses and characters to unlock, a few new items and tons of replayability due to mulitpplayer, and trying to unlock each and every item.  With all the 'new...

This post, I'm going to talk about, and recommend my newest gaming console - the wii u.

There are some technological gizmos I'm interested in getting in the near future.