Ever since the Nintendo 3DS launched in early 2011, Nintendo's latest handheld gaming console has had a solid library bolstered by fantastic first-party software. That's not to say that third-parties stayed away from the system (this certainly wasn't a Wii U situation), but the reason why most people buy a Nintendo system is to play games starring a mustachioed plumber and a heroic elf with a penchant for wearing green. Thankfully, Nintendo has delivered in the past five years and have put out dozens of titles for their dual-screened device.
Reigns provides hours of entertainment for a cheap price. Presenting more of a balancing act than a moral dilemma, it can be equally as satisfying as it is frustrating at times. One thing it always does, though, is keep players interested.
Nintendo doesn't have many games releasing this holiday season as they work on making sure their next piece of hardware — the Nintendo NX — is a success, but they are filling the gaps by smartly repackaging old software instead. Nintendo has announced that eight games will be joining the Nintendo Selects line (essentially their budget-priced greatest hits) later this month, and a brand new New Nintendo 3DS bundle that launches August 26. That's not all, as September will also see the release of five separate amiibo bundles.
Telltale Games just released the first episode of their adaptation of Batman and it's pretty damn great (read our review to find out why). That isn't very surprising, since the California-based studio has been on an absolute roll ever since 2012's The Walking Dead. Based on the hit comic book of the same name, Telltale effectively managed to streamline the adventure game genre by having it rely less on absurd puzzle solutions and tweaked it in order to appeal to a larger audience.
Metroid is one of the few gaming series that have been able to not only succeed in both 2D and 3D, but have undeniable classics in both dimensions. Many consider Super Metroid to be the apex of 2D gaming, and the Metroid Prime series is considered to be some of the greatest first-person shooters ever made. It's truly amazing how Nintendo has been able to reinvent its franchise over time and make it stay relevant in an ever changing gaming landscape.
Despite the needlessly long and complicated name, Shiren The Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate is a new entry in a series that a lot of gamers have played. As part of the Mystery Dungeon franchise (whose spin-offs include Pokémon and Dragon Quest games), it offers up Chunsoft's signature brand of roguelike dungeon crawling—albeit a rather challenging version of it. To put it bluntly, this isn't a good introduction to the genre (although it does some great tutorializing). Instead, it's a master class on the genre for those already familiar with it.
Due to digital distribution, there are more video games releasing now than ever before. In fact, it can be difficult to keep up with all of the new releases even if you read about video games on a daily basis. Thankfully, in order to help readers informed about what games are coming out and to highlight games that look like they're going to be special, I've put together a list of August's most promising video game releases.