Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is finally available for Nintendo Switch and not exclusive to just the Wii U. With this release, there are only a few meaningful Wii U titles left on the system that are not available on modern platforms. The Siliconera staff has come together to give our thoughts on the Wii U games we want to see as a remaster or remake on Nintendo Switch next.

Siliconera Speaks Up: Wii U Remaster We Want Next 4q3w6z

It's been nearly a decade since we've sat in the cockpit of an Arwing. If a new installment isn't in the works, I'd at least like to see Star Fox Zero remastered for the Switch 2. With some upgraded visuals and a few tweaks to the controls, there's enough there to satiate the ever-growing hunger of Star Fox fans…for the time being, at least. -- Thomas

When it comes to kart racers Mario Kart will always be considered the king, but Mario Kart 8 isn't my favorite Wii U character racer. I'm a Sega kid at heart, and in the long running battle between the two titans, I think that Sonic has won the battle on the race track. If Diddy Kong Racing could live in harmony with Mario Kart 64, I believe that Switch players should be able to experience the joy that Sonic All-Stars Racing Transformed brings. Switching from cars to planes to boats seamlessly, it remains my favorite rocket road racer. -- George

With the release of Xenoblade Chronicles X, that is almost every single game on the Wii U that I have been looking forward to. That is, of course, except for the remastered Zelda titles. Twilight Princess, in particular, is a game that I need to see on either the original Switch or Switch 2. Twilight Princess is shamefully one of the only Zelda games I have never played, which is ironic since its style is one of the most appealing to me, personally. I would love to see Twilight Princess make a return on the Switch 2 so I can finally see how it ranks against the other amazing titles in the series. -- Cody

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is available now for Nintendo Switch.

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The Heavy Hitter Exclusives x3w4u

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD 193i68

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD 3t2659

Xenoblade Chronicles X 551v44

The Overlooked Wii U eShop Gems 6czj

Affordable Space Adventures 6q55v

Dr. Luigi 115o50

Kirby and the Rainbow Curse 481v6h

NES Remix and NES Remix 2 5x5d4s

Pokemon Rumble U 4r724z

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Tantalus Media, the studio behind The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD remaster, is working on some unannounced projects for Nintendo’s recently revealed Switch, previously known as the NX.   In an interview with Maxi-Geek, Tantalus Media’s CEO Tom Crago revealed that the studio has been working “for some time” on a few titles for the Switch. In regards to the Switch itself, Crago said he is personally looking forward to the console a great deal, noting his fondness for handheld platforms.   From a developer’s standpoint, Crago said that he and the studio are “really happy” about the Switch thus far. “Beyond that we’re absolutely sold on the concept,” Crago went on to say. “The controllers are very cool, and the possibilities they open up for local multiplayer experiences are really interesting.”   To read the entire interview with Tantalus Media’s Tom Crago, you can go here.

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Period: The week of March 7th – March 13th (2016) Top-seller: The Division (PS4) – 80,703 Nintendo 3DS sales: 2,223 Nintendo 3DS LL sales: 492 New Nintendo 3DS sales: 5,832 New Nintendo 3DS LL sales: 17,998 PlayStation Vita sales: 20,810 Wii U sales: 4,629 PlayStation 4 sales: 27,341 Xbox One sales: 77 << Last week’s software sales chart << How to read and understand sales Last week, Japan saw another week with several releases in The Division, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, Summon Night 6, Medabots: Girls Mission, and La Corda d’Oro 4. Here are Media Create’s video game software and hardware sales data from the week of March 7 through March 13, 2016. Starting on top of the week is Ubisoft’s new IP, The Division, and it appears to have found success in Japan by placing the #1 similar to the way it has around the world since its launch on March 8. In second place is The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, which moved 52,282 copies on its debut week. While it might not sound like too much for a Zelda game, they’re better numbers than the previous HD-fied title in The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD, which saw only 30,264 copies sold in its first week in Japan.   Following up is Summon Night 6: Lost Borders which placed #03 with its PlayStation Vita version after having sold 40,076 units on its debut. Along with its PlayStation 4 counterpart in #06 with 16,750 units sold, the game moved 56,726 copies across both platforms. This is a pretty huge drop from its predecessor in Summon Night 5 on PSP, which sold 105,511 copies on its first week back in 2013, and more than Summon Night 4’s first week sales of 115,701 copies. Perhaps its pitch of returning characters has lost a bit of its charm, not to mention that that was most of what we’ve heard about the game.   While on the subject of doing not-so-great, we have Medabots: Girls Mission at #04 with 20,142 copies sold in its first week.  

• Medabots 7 (2012)—49,519
• Medabots 8 (2014)—33,326
• Medabots 9 (2015)—27,702

  As you can see, the Medabots series has been on quite a decline the past few years, and Rocket Company made Medabots: Girls Mission in an attempt to entice new fans by making it the series’ first CERO C (ages 15 and up) game. While the numbers aren’t horrible, they’re not good, and the game’s new style failed to make much of an impression, so it looks like it’ll be back to the drawing board for them.   And finally, at #07 we have La Corda d’Oro 4, which saw 15,167 units sold on its first week, keeping its steady numbers from what we’ve seen in past titles of the series, and not bad ones, too, considering that the dating sim is one of Koei’s lower budget series.   On the hardware sales front, there weren’t any noticeable spikes, and each device sold a little less than the previous week. Next week we’ll get to see how Dark Souls III performs in Japan.   The top-20 chart for the week is as follows:

Sales data acquired from 4Gamer and Media Create.

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The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD just released last week in North America and Europe, and will release in Japan tomorrow. Malo has returned to leave yet another message on the official Japanese Twitter for The Legend of Zelda. In today’s message, he focuses on the character Impaz and how she was originally conceptualized as a man. [Thanks, Nintendo Everything.]  

“…It’s Malo. So the granny Impaz used to be a gramps…? A human’s life… is mysterious indeed…”  

And here’s a look at the concept art in which we see Impaz imagined as a man:   The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD is available for the Wii U. It will release in Japan on March 10th.

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Most The Legend of Zelda games aren’t entirely dark. Yes, there are parts of the lore that can be secretly terrifying, especially if you think about things, but most of the games aren’t haunting adventures. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask are the two games that offer a darker, scarier approach to the adventure. They’re haunting, and two of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s new features make the gameplay match the unnerving and dire atmosphere.

It’s one of those situations where the world has never been so visually threatened. In The Legend of Zelda games, we know something is wrong. Link wouldn’t be on his journey if everything was okay. But The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD (and Majora’s Mask) are two were we see things going wrong. The darkness and danger is obvious, and in such a situation it’s almost ridiculous to see a massive attack from a foe only take away a fraction of a heart.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s Hero Mode and Ganondorf amiibo crank up the difficulty in a way that isn’t exploitive. The enemies don’t suddenly get smarter, “cheat,” or change their tactics. Hero Mode alone will allow enemies to deal double the damage to Link, cause the world orientation to shift to match the Wii layout of Twilight Princess, and keep hearts from appearing, like when grass is cut or enemies are defeated. The changes require the player to employ more skill and behave like the hero a mature The Legend of Zelda game would expect them to be. If you’re experienced, as many coming to the game might be, it’s a way of absolutely proving yourself. Do well, and the different layout, lack of hearts, and enemy attacks won’t have any effect on you.

But the Ganondorf amiibo’s influence is even more genius. It’s Hero Mode for people who aren’t sure they’re ready for Hero Mode. You still get the same double damage effect, but can still find hearts and the assurance that the world will remain the same. The element of danger is still there. You get to be tested. Yet, you also aren’t presented with what could be an insurmountable wall. It’s a more manageable chaos.

Of course, you can combine Hero Mode and the Ganondorf amiibo to create a The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD where all enemies deal four times more damage than usual, the world is flipped, and no hearts dropped. It’s essentially a game of potential one-hit kills. It’s such a daunting feat that I only did it to confirm it worked, but was too scared to proceed any further.

Perhaps the realism is what makes The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s Ganondorf amiibo’s effect or Hero Mode so welcoming. The Link here isn’t a warrior by any means when the game begins, even if he is a chosen one. He starts out the game with a wooden sword and, after some careful scrounging, a slingshot. He’s more experienced as a ranch hand than a warrior. Kicking up the odds with Hero Mode or the amiibo shows what it would probably be like for someone inexperienced to suddenly become the hero. It enhances the theme and makes it feel more real.

Especially when you take his equipment and environment into . He has a sword and a shield, yes, but nothing else that could be considered armor. When bosses hit him, those hits should be as hard as they are in Hero Mode or with the Ganondorf amiibo scanned. This is a world where magic and fairies exist, but random hearts floating around seems far fetched in such a case. One where you have to depend on potions makes much more sense. It’s almost like the two features here are allowing people to see what sorts of danger they would face if they were Link.

Yet, they do it in an inviting manner. Instead of offering one more difficult option and leaving it at that, Nintendo offered multiple options. While they can be scary, you won’t be scared away. The Ganondorf amiibo lets you get your feet wet. Hero Mode is for people who are ready to commit. Combining the two, well, that’s for true heroes. All three let you enjoy more improved ambiance, because the difficulty matches the danger Hyrule and its people face in the game.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD is immediately available for the Nintendo Wii U.

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In honor of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s launch, Google Maps has received a temporary update. When you visit Google Maps in your web browser and look in the bottom right corner of the screen for the Pegman, you’ll find he’s been replaced by Link.

You must visit Google Maps via a browser to see this change. Link will appear on the map and in the lower left corner, once you drag him into place for a Streetview look at immediate surroundings. There are no sound effects or special animations accompanying the altered icon’s appearance.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD is immediately available for the Nintendo Wii U in North America and Europe. It will come to Japan on March 10, 2016. Link will also be replacing the Google Maps Pegman until March 10, 2016.

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“Malo” made a recent return to the official Japanese Twitter for The Legend of Zelda, and this time his message focuses on fishing in Twilight Princess HD. [Thanks, Nintendo Everything.]   Here is Malo’s rather amusing message:  

“…It’s Malo. Sometimes you’d better take a breather… Tips for fishing well? Ah right… don’t get distracted by the woman behind you. For some reason all adult males are unable to do that though…”

  The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD is now available for the Wii U.

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The Cave of Shadows is one of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s new additions, and it’s quite a gauntlet. Think of it as being similar to the Cave of Ordeals, only with fewer benefits within the game itself. While The Cave of Ordeals was a challenge that resulted in the acquisition of additional Poes, added fairies to Spirit Springs, and Great Fairy’s Tears, most of the reward that comes from the Cave of Shadows is tied to a sense of personal accomplishment. Though, if you complete this gauntlet, you do get the Colossal Wallet.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s Cave of Shadows becomes available very early in the adventure. After restoring Faron in Faron Woods, players will gain the ability to scan amiibo after pressing down on the D-pad to enter the menu. This is when the game will acknowledge The Legend of Zelda amiibo figures and the Wolf Link amiibo. It’s because of that reward that I suggest completionists wait to challenge the Cave of Shadows for a two important reasons.

The first is that you aren’t going to get very far if you hop in immediately. The Cave of Shadows adds floors and challenges as you proceed through The Legend of Twilight Princess HD. You need to see certain enemies in the game and certain milestones before all 40 floors will be available to you. My “best” record in it the moment the optional dungeon opened up was seven levels, simply because my health was low and I wasn’t accustomed to using Wolf Link again. The number of hearts you have available and progression can cap you at level B20, B30, and so on.

If you’re a completionist, you may also want to wait to challenge the Cave of Shadows until you’ve gotten the Giant Wallet from Agitha. She’s the woman in Hyrule Castle Town who wants all 24 golden bugs. She’ll give you the Giant Wallet for getting all of them, which holds 2,000 Rupees. Reaching the 40th floor of the Cave of Shadows with that wallet gets you the Colossal Wallet, which holds 9,999 Rupees. Given how difficult and time consuming a journey into this optional dungeon is, you might want to wait for a serious run until you’ve caught all the bugs. Which, if you’re diligent, could be by the time you reach the Temple of Time, as that’s where you find the last bug, the golden female snail. By that point, you should also have enough hearts to make a run more manageable.

As difficult as The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s Cave of Shadows can be, you can call in the cavalry. The Wolf Link, Ganondorf, and Zelda amiibo all work there. Wolf Link restores hearts, based on how many you had when you completed the challenge. Ganondorf increases the difficulty, as enemies will dish out twice as much damage with each hit. The Zelda amiibo will restore all lost health. To use them, bring up the menu and tap the figures to the GamePad. The game keeps track of which ones you used and when, offering that information in the final report at the end of the challenge, once you’ve reached the current cap or completed all 40 floors.

The record screen that appears at the end of a run also provides a summary of other information, before allowing you to save it to the Wolf Link amiibo. It shows your current health, the damage received, your max combo, and your completion time for that particular run. The more often you challenge the Cave of Shadows, the more progress you’ll see. The enemies will always appear in certain concentrations on each floor, and you’ll develop tactics as you go along.

To be honest, The Cave of Shadows feels most valuable as a means to better appreciate some of the nuances of Wolf Link. It’s an odd transformation that, at some points, is forced on a The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD player. It almost feels like this gauntlet is a way to help formulate tactics and get more comfortable in the form. I know I felt more capable after getting to level 10 of this dungeon for the first time, especially since I’ve always felt like I was weakest when forced to play as Wolf Link.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will come to the Nintendo Wii U on March 4, 2016. To access The Cave of Shadows, you must have and use the Wolf Link amiibo in-game. Once you’re in The Cave of Shadows, talk to Midna or fall in battle to exit.

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“Malo” has left yet another Twilight Princess HD message on the official Japanese Twitter for The Legend of Zelda. This time, he expresses his skepticism regarding the Iron Boots item in the game. [Thanks, Nintendo Everything.]   Here is Malo’s translated message:  

“…It’s Malo. He’s wearing boots made of iron… But why could he stand upside-down… Normally he should have fallen… Until the trick is exposed, I won’t let him out of my shop even for one step…”

  The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will release for the Wii U on March 4th.

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With The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, people are getting an opportunity to re-experience one of the series’ dark entries again, this time with a few tweaks to make everything more welcoming. It’s prettier, for sure, but improved visuals aren’t the real focus of the HD remaster. It’s more about helping people get through more minor and distracting tasks so they can get back to what’s important – playing the game.

The biggest and best of which is based upon the Nintendo Wii U’s most unique feature, the GamePad. You don’t realize how much time you spend looking at maps and menus in a The Legend of Zelda game until one gives you the option to not stop everything so you can. Early on, this doesn’t make much of a difference. It isn’t like the Forest Temple is too challenging in the scheme of things. The further you get in the The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, the more important it gets. It’s minor, but it is a time saving measure. It will vary from person to person, but it has made a pretty big difference for me. There’s a convenience to having a full map ahead of you. It helps you think things through in a way a minimap can’t.

To be honest, everything about the Nintendo Wii U GamePad in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD is rather wonderful. My favorite part is off-screen play, which may seem silly. There’s something comforting about having something as reassuring as a Legend of Zelda everywhere. The game doesn’t automatically tell you how to pull it off, like Xenoblade Chronicles X did, but pressing the “-“ button switches everything to the lower screen. Again, it helps make gameplay more conducive, giving you more time with it than you might normally get. It’s handy.

Certainly handier than the Ghost Lantern, what theoretically could have been one of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD’s best additions. It’s an item that helps you find Poe Souls. Getting all those ghosts was trying in the first game, since you’d only have a number on the map showing how many were in each region, but not get an exact number. You could only find and collect them in-game at night. The Ghost Lantern now lets you expose these Poe Souls during the day, making it easier to find them during the night.

Which is the Ghost Lantern’s failing. Jovani gives it to you after you turn in 20 of the 60 Poe Souls, at the same time as a bottle of Great Fairy Tears. You’ve already found a third of them by the time you can make use of it. Then, when it is there, it doesn’t offer you the ease you’d expect. Certainly, it helps you pin down Poe Soul locations. Especially if you’re going by some vague guide online, where you have an idea of where one is, but might not know specifics. Sadly, it doesn’t help with the actual acquisition. It still has to be night to battle one, and that means you have to wait for time to in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD again. It helps, but you’re still stuck waiting for the chance to carry everything out. It doesn’t speed things up as much as you’d hope.

Fortunately, the Tears of Light quests do make things go faster. When you know a dungeon is nearby, you want to quickly clear an area and restore a spirit so Link can get on with his quest. His wolf form is cool, but it’s always best to have the freedom to be a human with the option to transform into a wolf with a touch of the GamePad. While it is only 4 fewer Tears of Light in each area, it matters. There’s less hunting, going through what feels like busy work so you can get back to what really matters. It feels like it really centers your focus. Restoring Faron, Eldin, and Lanaryu is important. Certainly, it seems like 4 tears doesn’t make a big difference. In action, it does.

You can spend a lot of time trying to get through The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD. I haven’t collected all the Poe Souls or beaten the Cave of Shadows or Cave or Ordeals, and I’ve already spent 35 hours on the game. I could see that jumping up at least another 10 hours, if I decide to do everything. Spending less time anxiously checking a map, getting spirits restored so Link can continue on epic quests, and pinning down locations for Poe Souls really helps. Yes, the Ghost Lantern could have been better, but the other updates make up for it not giving you more immediate access to Poe Souls.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will come to the Nintendo Wii U on March 4, 2016.

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Another new message from “Malo” has been posted on the official Japanese Twitter for The Legend of Zelda. This time, Malo explains the changes to chests in Twilight Princess HD, and how Rupees aren’t put back into treasure chests even if your wallet happens to be full. [Thanks, Nintendo Everything.]   Here’s Malo’s translated message:  

“…It’s Malo. According to pops with the beard (note: likely referring to Aonuma), the Rupees taken won’t be returned to treasure chests even if your wallet is full. …with this, you should be able to more easily understand how far you have progressed… but where did the excess Rupees go? …You shouldn’t think too hard about it.”

  The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will release for the Wii U on March 4th.

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Over on the official Japanese Twitter for The Legend of Zelda, another Twilight Princess HD message has been left by “Malo.” The focus of this latest post is the Gale Boomerang item and how it functions. [Thanks, Nintendo Everything.]   Here’s Malo’s full message:  

“…It’s Malo. A boomerang that generates a tornado the same time it’s thrown, huh… It can pull items and spin windmills, so it’s handy indeed. …Hey, don’t use it inside the shop, okay? If you break my goods you’ll have to compensate for it in double.”

  The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will release for the Wii U on March 4th.

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Nintendo has recently shared three new trailers for The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD, which will release for the Wii U next month.   The first of the new trailers shows off the game’s more creepy and terrifying moments, while the second focuses on Link’s wolf form. The third and final video shows off a bit of Twilight Princess HD’s battle gameplay. You can check out each of the videos below.   Video #1:   Video #2:   Video #3: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will release for the Wii U on March 4th, and March 10th in Japan.

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“Malo” has left another Twilight Princess HD message on the official Japanese Twitter for The Legend of Zelda. The subject of the message this time is the Ghost Lantern item. [Thanks, Nintendo Everything.]   Here’s what Malo had to say about the Ghost Lantern:  

“…It’s Malo. This is not a simple lantern… It’s called the “Ghost Lantern”, and it also detects the existence of Poes during day and will let you know about it…… so you can be like ‘It’s useless to hide yourself!’ Time is money… so use it well.”

  The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD will release for the Wii U on March 4th.

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