Steel Diver
Nintendo Classics We Can Go Without Ever Seeing Again
Steel Diver is so close to being worth your time, but ultimately ends up falling short. Developed and published by Nintendo with a little help from Vitei, the first Steel Diver released back in 2011 for Nintendo 3DS. It tasks players with controlling a submarine with the console’s touch controls, aiming to provide a simulation experience with puzzle and action elements. The game is notable for being incredibly un-Nintendo, eschewing accessibility for a more simulation-based experience. They never quite go all in on the concept though, with the pace of the action going directly against the slower, tactile nature of the touch controls.
Despite the first game having a mixed reception, Nintendo decided to develop a sequel, Steel Diver: Sub Wars, a free-to-play online multiplayer jaunt which marked the company’s first outing into this area of the market. Steel Diver is definitely an interesting experiment for Nintendo, but not one that needs to continue any further.
Custom Robo
Nintendo Classics We Can Go Without Ever Seeing Again
There are currently five games in the Custom Robo series, though you’d be forgiven for not knowing that. The games do much better in Japan than they do with Western audiences but that hasn’t stopped them from releasing everywhere. Custom Robo sees players using robots to compete in arena-based battle contests. The games fall into that age-old collect, customize and battle gameplay loop, with the aim of the game being to collect all of the different Custom Robos.
The last entry into the series released on Nintendo DS to positive reviews, but definitely highlighted just how convoluted the series’ narrative can be. It was a noticeable step-up from the GameCube iteration though, but seemingly not enough to warrant any new games since then. Probably for the best.
Balloon Fight
Nintendo Classics We Can Go Without Ever Seeing Again
Balloon Fight serves as a reminder that Nintendo is not always as original as we all think. The game was a clear rip-off of Midway’s Joust when it released, adding it’s own elements but not enough to distance it sufficiently. Despite this, Balloon fight is a pretty fun game, even by today’s standard. It has received port after port in recent years, and even some sequels but ultimately it’s just the kind of experience that should be left in the past.
The Balloon fighter pops up every now and then in games like Smash Bros. and Super Mario Maker, and maybe this is the best way for the franchise to continue. There’s really no need to release new games in the series, so perhaps drawing the curtains on its legacy and filing it under great arcade classics is best.
Mario Party
Nintendo Classics We Can Go Without Ever Seeing Again
It’s time to take off those rose-tinted glasses and face the facts, Mario Party is a bad series. There are gems to be found in the form of Mario Party 4 & 5, but largely it’s made up of games which range from average to downright horrible. The recent iterations have been particularly uninspiring, with Mario Party 10 being one of the worst in the series and the Mario party: Top 100 collection on Nintendo 3DS being a stark reminder of just how shallow the series can be at times.
The main problem with recent entries is the focus on board-game style luck rather than on competitive mini games. Spending hours on a game only to have your points swapped with a player at the last minute is never a good time and the introduction of gimmicky motion controls only dampened the mood further. Mario Party was fun at some point, though those days are far, far behind us. The series is probably worth digging out the GameCube and playing a few games with a group of pals and a box of beers but other than that, let’s leave it well and truly in the past.
Play Action Football
Nintendo Classics We Can Go Without Ever Seeing Again
Nintendo has had generally good success with sports games over the years. The most successful ones tend to inject Nintendo’s wacky charm into solid sports mechanics, rather than aiming for realism. The Play Action Football series aimed towards a more classic sports experience but without any of the teams, finesse and gameplay which made other games in the genre so great. The first game was released on the NES and featured eight fictional teams for players to use. The computer-controlled team was notoriously bad, repeating the same series of plays over and over.
A sequel for the SNES was released later on and was somehow, even worse. The top down view and muted graphics made it incredibly difficult to understand what was going on and the emphasis on accessibility resulted in a shallow, short experience. Nintendo’s take on American football was ill-fated to say the least and goes to show where the iconic company’s talents lie. Play Action Football is a series which is best left forgotten, not that anyone is exactly pining for another sequel.
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