I had a lot of fun trying out Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition last month, especially because I was able to share it with seven other retro lovers in the same room. As I was writing these lines, I wondered if this could be “The cover of the party games” This summer, it is now harder for me to define the exact purpose or space of this frenetic and deliciously provocative homage.
Therefore, we will try to be more specific if you consider this for your social gatherings in these warmer and more festive days. Yes, it is something to play casually. It is easy to understand, with Simple NES controls with 1-2 buttons and very clear goals – sometimes even ridiculous, you might say. But no, it’s not for everyone, unless those unfamiliar with the archaism and rigidity of the 80s are openly willing to take a dose of the old syrup, have to learn the hard way and most likely be frustrated throughout the session.
There is an admirable sense of personality and purpose in this. Nintendo is not trying to make the experience for all audiences at all. It is aimed at both nostalgic gamers who enjoyed the originals and those whose curiosity and competitiveness far outweigh their fragile patience. Perhaps this is all a big warning: be warned and prepared, because this will most likely get on your nerves and basically everyone who comes into contact with it. It can work well and be a lot of fun if we are talking about a local party, but remember that this is not the naughty “injustice” of Mario Party Ö Mario Kart.
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As a complementary title, it fits perfectly into the catalogue of Nintendo Switch. As we described at the time, there are more than 150 challenges with a duration of just seconds or minutes, based on 13 jewels, and when I tried to criticize the variety of the base games selected, I realized that they are quite good as they are , since everything is built around Speedrun. The big elephant in the room that I miss is Tetris, but since they’re only first-party games and the challenges themselves are varied enough (both what you have to do and the different controls and physics), I’d say that the selection is correct and balanced and doesn’t really make you think “damn, another Mario installment”, even though the first four main installments of the quintessential side-platformer are very much present here.
Speaking of physics, as you may remember, almost all challenges involve pressing buttons precisely. pixel-perfect and in the excessive laziness. Nothing made your life easier back then, so determining the point where Kirby touches the ground so he can start running, calculating the steps needed to make a decent jump on the slippery ice climber (that’s the most challenging part of Eggplant, irritating?), or mastering the sweet spot between vertical jumping or diagonal rolling like Samus in the original Metroid.
And starting “easy” is a deception, a treacherous trap. The difficulty levels are actually normal – hard to tell, and on normal difficulty you’ll need many tries to get to an “S.” What if I settle for an “A” because I’ll still earn coins to unlock the other challenges? Fine, but choosing an “S” here will give you more than just pixel-perfect satisfaction: it also means you’re well-equipped for multiplayer.
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And this is where Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition has to work for you, otherwise it will last a few days just playing alone. I’d say the best approach, as I’ve already explained, is locally with at least 5-6 willing friends. If you can’t put them together, play alone against the ghosts of other players or yourself to get the highest score. The competitiveness implied in the title is of course there, but the virtuality of the players breaks the immersion and weakens the tension that pure live and online experiences bring, even more so if you’ve already played locally.
In other words, the path Survival Championshipbattle royale-style, is well designed and you’ll be tempted to crown the Silver and Gold divisions in the weekly challenges, with 8-4-2 “players” going full steam ahead until there’s one last man standing, but to me it seems a little too artificial, given that there’s no human rival on the other side, just the scripts of their results reproduced in fake life. Yes, this eliminates all lag issues in one fell swoop, and yes, it’s probably the smartest solution, but still.
And when you switch to mode World Championshipyou only need to get your highest score possible in a handful of five pre-selected challenges each week, which does extend the life of the title, but again, it doesn’t feel like a purely competitive head-to-head.
Therefore, I would say that recommending Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition largely depends on your own background and circles. The 8 local players on the same big screen are amazing (as is the fact that you only need one console and how easy it is to put 8 Joy-Cons together these days), and the challenges Legend They’re a piece of video game history (and their strategy guides are the best possible nod to print magazines), and the general selection is a well-done trip through Nintendo’s late ’80s and early ’90s, taking into account the flavor and even the bugs and framerate drops of these treasures.
However, there are some things you should consider before you jump in and in my opinion the above NES Remix for Wii U and 3DS (which I now demand on Switch) are, at first glance, much better and more entertaining experiences based on the classics. However, if you’re of my generation or are able to gather a few retro lovers around you, NWC is more than worth its price. Just tell them it’s not for the faint of heart as it will test even the most hardcore gamer’s nerves.
