MnM Gaming: Episode 2 - Super Smash Bros. Review

I remember playing this game on the GameCube when it was so popular. It was amazing. Marth and me were tight. I could take anyone down that I wanted to with that blue haired warrior. Until the evil Hand floated on the screen and destroyed everything known to MAN! Gah!

The game was solid. I loved it. I tried SSB on the Wii...I think that was called Brawl? I never purchased because I wasn't a huge fan of the motion controls...I just went back to my GameCube and continued my dominance with Marth. That's not to say that SSB Brawl was horrible, I just never bought into the motion controls on the Wii, and gave up on the game too early. 

Then, SSB Wii U comes out...I'm a bit skeptical. There's now way it could match the magic that was Smash Bros. Melee. NO WAY.

I was wrong. I love this game. And I'm even playing it without the old school Gamecube controller accessory you can buy. Playing this game in full HD is glorious. The animation and action sequences are enough to make me drool. Marth has taken a back seat to Ike at the moment...both of them share blue hair, both have swords...they are practically brothers (they may actually be brothers, I've never really played the Fire Emblem series), so I don't think Marth will get too jealous. 

Find out what Micah and I thought about this game and let us know if you agree!

Overall Scores:
Micah: 4.8 million out of 5 million
Mike: 8.5 out of 10
Appropriate for ages: 6+ if kids can handle the controls, 8+

The New Nintendo 3DS XL Releases Tomorrow!

Friday. The. Thirteenth...YES. A day that will live in infamy. A day of horror. A day of hockey masks.

It's also the day that the new Nintendo 3DS XL will be released. Will it be a day of infamy, or a day of horror?

It's totally not going to be horror, trust me.

Nintendo did it right with it's newest handheld system. At least, from what I've read online. I really want to get my hands on the system and try it myself (donations gladly excepted, haha) but everything I'm reading online about its features lead me to believe that this will be very successful.

I thought that I wouldn't want to play a larger 3DS...Who wants bigger things? I thought the cool thing was to go smaller!? Oh...yeah, the new "in" phones are now bigger, inbetween a size of a tablet and a phone...maybe it is cool to go bigger now?

But, that's not all they did. Tons of new features have been added to this system:

• A new C-Stick to control third-person cameras
• Face tracking to better present their 3-D option (eh)
• More buttons for more control!
• Faster processor and better camera
• Improved web-browsing to check out our awesome posts!
• Built in Amiibo Support 

Tons of stuff! To check out more on the new system and to hear Micah and my opinions on it, check out our new Shortii:



Again...donations are accepted for Micah and I to try out this awesome looking new software!

In the words of Mario: Wah-Hoooo!

What is Mario Maker?

Parents, remember as a kid, the joy and excitement of getting through an entire Super Mario Bros. level without dying?! I DO TOO! Ah, man, what a rush! Classic moments, man. The original Super Mario Bros. was so intense, very difficult to try and get through an entire level, especially if you were several worlds in, without falling down a hole, or having a goomba tap you to death.

Anywho, those were the days. Did you ever dream about how they made those insanely hard levels? Did you ever want to make one of your own? WELLLLL. Now, you can! That's what Mario Maker is for the WiiU. You can design and build your own Mario levels, in the look and feel of the original NES games Super Mario Bros. and Super Mario Bros. 3, while also bringing in SNES's Super Mario World and the New Super Mario Bros. series, and play through them! 

Not only THAT, but you will be able to share these worlds online and have people play through them! How cool is that?! Now I can frustrate the crud out of people with insanely hard Mario levels and have the general public feel the pain I experienced as an 8-year-old when accidentally mistiming a jump and falling down a random gap in the ground several times in a row...honestly, I may take the ground out and have people just fail at my level the entire time...haha. Just kidding...or...am I?

Mario Maker comes to the WiiU in 2015, can't wait to get my creative hands on it!

What's an Amiibo?

A...mii...bos....??

Amib-bow, Amybeo, Amuboo...yep, I've heard it said all these ways, but I believe it is Amībo  or A-MEE-BO, for us english speakin' folk. What exactly is an Amiibo? Well, I'm sure you have seen something similar to them over the past few years in the form of Skylanders. Recently, Disney jumped on board and started creating their own near-field communication (NFC) creations as well, all based off of characters from their universe.

Well, here comes Nintendo! They've released several figures from their own Nintendo universe that includes some very recognizable faces. These figures work with a few games from the start, but Nintendo will be releasing updates to other games to allow the functionality of the Amiibos. They also plan on allowing these Amiibos to be functional with the Nintendo 3DS in the future. Here's a list of the games that currently have full support:

Princess Peach for the ladies

• Super Smash Bros.
• Mario Kart 8
• Hyrule Warriors

With support coming later to these titles:

• Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
• Mario Party 10
• Yoshi's Woolly World
• Kirby and the Rainbow Curse
• Super Smash Bros. (3DS)
• Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy Plus (3DS)

Link in store packaging

Now, these figures work a bit differently than what you may be accustumed to with NFC toys. They don't just pop in the game for you to be able to control them. They work differently for each game you insert them into. In Super Smash Bros., entering the figure into the game spawns a computer-controlled character to fight either alongside a player-controlled character, or against other CPU, player-controlled, or Amiibo-generated characters. With continued use, the Amiibo's corresponding character will be able to level up and learn new abilities.

If you insert one of them into Mario Kart, it will give you unique outfit options that you can only access if you have that character's Amiibo. So, it can make your game completely different, or just add some cosmetic changes. Either way, very cool accessory for gaming. 

Accessory...I like that word. With Skylanders and Disney Infinity, the NFC figures are necessary for you to play and enjoy the game. These Amiibos however, are more collectible accessories for your games...They don't have to be inserted into a game to be useful, you can enjoy a full experience without having to use an Amiibo. So, I'm going with that. It is a Nintendo gaming accessory. 

With all this said, you are probably wondering which characters are available and how much they retail for? Well, folks, there are a TON of figures that have been released in Wave 1 and other Waves will be released as we enter 2015. They retail for $12.95 a character (kind of pricey if you are wanting to collect all of these accessories) and can be found in any gaming store/section of department store. 

Here's a list of available characters and who will be coming out in the next waves:

Wave 1 (released Nov. 21):

Samus Aran, ready to fight for you!

• Mario (Super Mario)
• Peach (Super Mario)
• Yoshi (Super Mario)
• Donkey Kong (Donkey Kong)
• Link (Legend of Zelda)
• Fox (Star Fox)
• Samus Aran (Metroid)
• Wii Fit Trainer (Wii Fit)
• Villager (Animal Crossing)
• Pikachu (Pokemon)
• Kirby (Kirby)
• Marth (Fire Emblem)

Wave 2 (will release Dec. 14)

• Zelda (Legend of Zelda)
• Diddy Kong (Donkey Kong)
• Luigi (Super Mario)
• Little Mac (Punch-Out)
• Captain Falcon (F-Zero)



Marth, one of my favorites from Smash Bros.

• Pit (Kid Icarus)

Wave 3 (will release Jan/Feb)

• Rosalina and Luma (Super Mario)
• Bowser (Super Mario)
• Lucario (Pokemon)
• Toon Link (Legend of Zelda)
• Sheik (Legend of Zelda)
• Ike (Fire Emblem)
• Shulk (Xenoblade)
• Sonic (Sonic the Hedgehog)
• Mega Man (Mega Man)
• King Dedede (Kirby)
• Meta Knight (Kirby)

So, as you can see...there will be a TON of characters to chose from within the next quarter. Not to mention, a very rich universe to continue creating more of these toys! Don't be surprised if games start getting developed strictly around these Amiibos. This will definitely help Nintendo get some sort of footing in the console wars. 

Which Amiibo would you get right now if you could? And which are you looking forward to in Wave 2 or 3?!