Radio Free Nintendo

FEATURING: This week, RFN welcomes Connectivity alumni Nathan Mustafa! During New Business, the crew discusses Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed on Wii U, the unusual eShop RPG Crimson Shroud, James' continuing adventures in Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward, Harvest Moon: A New Beginning, the iOS port of Mutant Mudds, Nathan's take on New Super Mario Bros. U, Jonny's guitar lessons with Rocksmith, and Theatrhythm Final Fantasy.Listener Mail: the Android-based Ouya console, the RFN crew's Nintendo Network IDs, brainstorming Pikmin 3, Nintendo's odd approach to downloadable games, and how to push for Mass Effect Trilogy on Wii U.

FEATURING: Special guest TYP makes our throats hurt and talks about NSMBU and Nintendo Land, Jonny talks about Assassin's Creed 3 and Paper Mario: Sticker Star, Guillaume loses his audio. James finishes off New Business with Virtue's Last Rewards, and the crew then comments on the demise of Nintendo Power and the recent Nintendo Direct announcements (mostly delays).

FEATURING: Jared pops in for an episode heavy on Wii U impressions and discussion!New Business highlights include Scribblenauts Unlimited, Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed, Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion, and Ys 7!Listener Mail returns with your concerns about the Wii U's horsepower and future third-party support, plus a follow-up to the popular "Super Wii" topic!

FEATURING: Three-way impressions of Animal Crossing: New Leaf!Ty finally gets a 3DS (XL) and talks about Skullgirls and The Walking Dead!More Japanese games include Fallblox (Crashmo), E.X. Troopers, Paper Mario: Sticker Star, and Bravely Default: Flying Fairy!Plus: Nintendo Directs, Life in Japan, and the state of downloadable games in Nintendo's homeland!

FEATURING: The final three hours of our most successful telethon yet!Includes these segments: Nintendo Free Radio's Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, 3DS Report Card, and Shenanigans!Special guests include Craig Harris, Billy Berghammer, and Player One Podcast's Phil Theobald and Chris Johnston!Plus: Jon Lindemann performs the Pokemon Rap -- all of it!

FEATURING: A new Nintendo system just launched, wouldn't you know! Guillaume, Billy Berghammer and NWR's Ariel Ruff talk about their launch experiences while Jonny curses his bad luck and a sexy version of James performs the interminable OS update on his fresh new Wii U. A good half of the show is devoted to New Super Mario Bros. U and Nintendo Land, while the second half is shared by OS rants, Miiverse praise, eShop games and Call of Duty.

FEATURING: Nate rejoins us this week as we talk about Paper Mario: Sticker Star, Zone of the Enders HD Collection, the demo for Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Shinobi for 3DS, Shinobi III, Persona 3 Portable, Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward (the sequel to 999) and Professor Layton and the Miracle Mask. Listener Mail covers a request to assess the real meaning of Wii U's undeniable third-party support at launch, and whether this level of interest from third-party developers and publish might evaporate once Sony and Microsoft launch their next consoles; a comment on the recent spate of big-name game directors/producers leaving their companies; and a look at a Japanese commercial in which Nintendo refers to the "Super Wii".

FEATURING: The middle three hours of our most successful telethon yet!Includes these segments: Radio Trivia Live, Connectivity's Who Wants to Be a Nintendoaire?, and The Famicast: Live from Japan!Special guests include 8-4's Mark McDonald, Justin Epperson, and Brenden Pritchard!

FEATURING: The first three hours of our most successful telethon yet!Includes these segments: Wii U Hype Train, A Decade of Metroid Prime, and The Eurocast!Special guests include Garnett Lee, Brad Shoemaker, David Ellis, Jeff Kalles, and a very awesome surprise guest!Plus: The return of Jon Lindemann!

FEATURING: It's a three man crew this week, with Jon still on extended leave and James being replaced by NWR's Aussie correspondent Nicholas Bray. New Business tackles the Mutant Mudds free DLC stages, eShop game 2 Fast 4 Gnomz, the new XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Final Fantasy V Advance,Mario Party 9 and the eShop version of Shinen's Art of Balance TOUCH! Listener mail deals with the future of eShop VC releases, Internet trolls putting down Nintendo and its fans, and a discussion of the game makers' original artistic vision in these days of patches and focus groups. The show concludes with hype for the imminent live show!

FEATURING: Prodigal Son Castaneda fills in for Jon this week. Guillaume unloads his impressions from a recent press event: Fluidity: Spin Cycle, Crashmo, and Paper Mario: Sticker Star. Karl follows up with Liberation Maiden on eShop, plus some iPhone game called Letterpress. James dips back into Dark Souls and Minecraft (XBLA). Jonny returns from his week off with an eShop game, NightSky, and Final Fantasy V Advance.For the second half of the episode, we focus on Wii U and start with the rest of Guillaume's impressions from that press event. Listen for Balloon Trip, Mario's Boost Mode, more ZombiU, Ninja Gaiden 3, and Epic Mickey 2. James drops a surprise here, as well: he finally played the new console again for the first time since E3 2011, plus the upcoming Rayman Legends. Jonny kicks in his own rather late epiphany on Wii U as technical marvel, incited by the recent Iwata Asks.

FEATURING: Danny takes over as host and is joined by Daan, Minoru, and that rascal Ty Shughart!Tons of Japanese games, including the new Paper Mario, EX Troopers, Bravely Default, and Project X Zone!Plus: Classics like Willow and Friday the 13th!And: Nintendo Direct coverage, Life in Japan, and Listener Mail!

FEATURING: Both Jonny and Jon are absent, so James hosts, Nate is back and Donald "Shaymin" Theriault from the NWR boards and the "Nintendo Free Radio" podcast wanders in. New Business features Pokemon Black Version 2, Pokemon Dream Radar, Asura's Wrath, Kirby Super Star, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light and Minecraft.After the break we move into a set of feature discussions: we first we share our thoughts on Nintendo's recent (and not so recent) procurement of Japanese franchises. Our second topic is a more in-depth discussion of Nintendo's marketing strategy for Wii U.

FEATURING: New Business features the worst DSiware game James ever reviewed, The Walking Dead, Pushmo, Persona 3 Portable, La Mulana and FTL!Then, Nates invade the Listeners' Mail segment with letters about reviewing games with preconceived notions, lives and difficulty in Mario, our most valuable games, and a neat idea for a Wii U Metroid game!

FEATURING: New Business features NSMB2 DLC, Dark Souls, Mario Party 4, Kirby's Nightmare in Dream Land, Rayman Origins, Quarth, and Final Fantasy V!RetroActive concludes with a fun discussion of Kirby and the Amazing Mirror!

FEATURING: This week is all New Business! Jonny starts with a marathon session of La-Mulana, Fractured Soul, and To the Moon, while Gui tries out Renegade Ops and finished PoP: Forgotten Sands!James reports on Non-tendo games such as Birds of Steel and Splice, while Nate returns as guest to teach us the mysterioius ways of The Denpa Men and even Torchlight II!

FEATURING: Rhythm Hunter: HarmoKnight and the ultimate StreetPass puzzle!Learn to play rock-paper-scissors... Japanese style!Ty Shughart emerges from a dark arcade to discuss demos and cat drugs from Tokyo Games Show 2012!

FEATURING: With Nate Andrews, Reviews Editor on NWR, Jonny, Guillaume and James shoot the crap on the adequately priced Fractured Soul, the enraging FTL, the non-derivative Starship Defense and Renegade Ops, the imperfect Touch Detective and the nostalgic Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands. The crew then reads the listeners' mail: hand-wringing over the Wii U price, bundles, backwards-compatibility, a digital copy of Nintendo Land, etc. We also get some really interesting survey results from a high school teacher who wanted to know what games are most beloved by today's students.

FEATURING: James is back, but Jon is replaced by Mike TYP Cole. We talk about StarFox 64 3D, Monster World IV, NSMB2, Diamond Trust of London, Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters, Double Dragon Neon and Touch Detective. After a musical break courtesy of Double Dragon Neon, we talk about the recent Wii U Launch Press event and discuss its price, the launch games, the bigger games down the road and whether we'll be early adopters or not.

FEATURING: James is overseas, but good old Billy replaces him and recounts his adventures at PAX Prime! Paper Mario Sticker Star and Fluidity: Spin Cycle are discussed. The rest of New Business includes Monster World IV, Hotel Dusk, Monster Hunter Freedom Unite, Wario Land and Ys: The Oath in Felghana. Listener Mail: covers the futility of fan-made game mods, the anti-Nintendo shadow conspiracy, controller options for Wii U backwards-compatibility, and the best/worst kinds of game bosses.

FEATURING: The latest Nintendo Direct from Japan!A preview of Tokyo Games Show!Dragon Quest X!

FEATURING: Jon gets the ball rolling with his thoughts on Muramasa: The Demon Blade, Gran Turismo PSP, and his disappointment with the 3DS lineup in 2012. Jonny follows with a report on his visit to the Wii U Experience in Denver, which is very much reminiscent of the old Cube Clubs and features many notable Wii U demos from E3. James has wrap-up thoughts on Rhythm Thief, which is pretty short (but maybe pretty long for a narrative rhythm game). Guillaume treks through New Super Mario Bros. 2 and cautious optimism over the demo for a fan mod called Super Mario Galaxy 2.5, which is still a long way from completion.Listener Mail: The first letter is on violence and games, with a particular focus on other mainstream activities that seem to escape the constant charges of negative influence on the minds of babes and loonies. We also go deep into emails about must-have interface features and Nintendo's abandonment of motion control with Wii U.

FEATURING: A group discussion of NSMB2 and digital game sales in Japan!Minoru plays Dylan Cuthbert's obscure gem, X!Daan plays Wii U for the third time!Plus: The latest Japanese gaming news and Life in Japan!

FEATURING: Jon couldn't make it once again, but Michael TYP Cole fills the vacancy and talks about Mole Mania and Rayman Origins. Guillaume and Jonny both talk about their new 3DS XLs and their new New Super Mario Bros 2. Gui untalks about Retro/Grade for a bit, while Jonny regales us with the end of his lost 3DSware saga. James talks about the Rhythm Thief copy he has finally snatched up.Finally, the crew gets around to doing the Wario Land 4 RetroActive! Each has various degrees of experience with the franchise, so it makes for an interesting discussion. Especially when you throw in the readers' impressions!

FEATURING: Jon is out but the crew still manages to babble on about a ton of games! 5th Cell's Hybrid on XBLA, the Heroes of Ruin demo, Dust: An Elysian Tail, Mole Mania, Another Super Mario Bros Wii (homebrew!), The Legendary Starfy, Sound Shapes and Excitebike World Rally are discussed.We then move on to a lengthy segment full of predictions about the Wii U, and answer listeners who wrote about possible Wiiware-to-eShop ports and good PSP and PS3 games for Nintendo fans.

FEATURING: It's a games-only, shorter RFN episode!Disaster, Wario Ware: Mega Party Game$, Super Mario War, Fortune Street, Big Brain Academy DS, Pac-Man VS, Zelda: Four Swords Adventure, the R-Type series, Sound Shapes, Penny Arcade Adventures Episode 3, Deus Ex: Human Evolution, Tales of the Abyss and Pandora's Tower.

FEATURING: For RFN's 300th episode, we discuss the Wii like we never have before, covering the Wii from its debut as Revolution at E3 2005, right up to the present day!And we've brought friends as well: Billy Berghammer, Craig Harris, Michael "TYP" Cole, Karl Castaneda, co-founder Mike Sklens and, of course, our escaped editing slave, Greg Leahy!

FEATURING: Greg stops by to save our weekends by offering to edit the show in Gui's absence!New Business has a loose theme of older, retro, and faux-retro games!Listener Mail is all about digital downloads (and sales thereof)!

FEATURING: Daan's first impressions of Level 5's Time Travellers and Taiko Drum Master for 3DS!Danny's thoughts on Kirby Dream Collection and the modern classic, Eternal Darkness!Minoru revisits Pikmin 2 before the Famicrew runs down the latest Japan gaming news, including coverage of Oni Training and SpotPass TV!Also: comparing Phoenix Wright to the real Japanese legal system, and Listener Mail!

FEATURING: During RFN's off-week, four infamous forum goons take matters into their own hands!28 games, over 3 hours of content, and so very many inside jokes for RFN fans!A special discussion of accessibility in video games!

You ever have a favorite TV show that delays progressing the story by featuring a one-off episode that both ignores and fails to impact the show's continuity entirely? Welcome to that episode of Radio Free Nintendo! With the crew off for a little summertime R&R, Zach and I thought it might be fun to see if the guys would let us take control of RFN for a week in order to settle a bet once and for all: who is the most Nintendo-savvy of the Free Birds? The only way to do that, of course, is through a game of Jeopardy. So sit back and enjoy as James, Guillaume, and Daan (of the Famicast!) each try to secure the title of King Free Bird. RFN will return to its regularly scheduled programming next week. If you need more words in your ears before then, you can always check out our other podcasts: Connectivity, the Famicast, and Radio Trivia. Also, thanks to the boys for letting us take control for a week. In the words of Willard Christopher Smith, "I have got to get me one of these." Also, "WHOO!"

Featuring: Jonny lost his 3DS but found a light at the end of the Xenoblade tunnel, while Jon spends quality time with Suda 51!James catches up with Tales of the Abyss for 3DS, and Guillaume revisits a pair of eShop games!Listener Mail has us tackling load times, Project Sora, and Nintendo's listening abilities!

Featuring: James and Guillaume find comfort in the warm embrace of Billy Berghammer as both Jon's are missing!After exchanging some thoughts with Billy about Nintendo's E3 performance, New Business includes Gravity Rush, Mario Tennis Open, Popcap hate, Galaxy's Co-Star mode and Kid Dracula.In listener mail the trio discuss Nintendo in the world of the $100 million video game, Nintendo in the world of downloadable games, and practical purchasing advice for the RPG-gamer on the go.

Featuring: Jon is gone, but a newly married TYP takes his place!During New Business, we compare Portal 2 to Adventures of Lolo and talk about Game and Watch Gallery 2, the Kingdom Hearts 3D demo, Tomba, Pandora's Tower, Infamous 2, Order Up! and WarioWare: Smooth Moves.We then discuss the post-E3 Nintendo Direct event, our lust for the 3DS XL and eShop promotions, and much more!

Featuring: Over three hours of JPN gaming goodness!Cubivore, Tokyo Jungle, GON, and many more games are discussed!Other topics include an E3 wrap-up, Nintendo Direct, and a Nintendo history lesson going back to the Famicom Disk System!

Featuring: This show has with an odd slate of games!New Business Zen Pinball, Infamous 2, Kid Icarus: Uprising, Call of Duty: Black Ops and Seven Wonders of the World... Part 2.In Listener Mail, topics include MotionPlus on Wii U, the return of Advance Wars, the retro-future of handheld gaming, the industry's health overall, and Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow on Virtual Console.

Featuring: It's a predictably content-filled and passionate episode, following E3 2012!New Business covers Disaster: Day of Crisis (for the last time!), Pandora's Tower, Call of Duty Elite, Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion, NSMBU and NSMB2!This is followed up by a series of interviews recorded at E3, and then the crew talks about their hands-on experience with the latest version of the Wii U Gamepad and have a passionate exchange about Nintendo's E3 strategy.

Featuring: The E3 away team rounds up a bunch of thoughts and impressions of 3DS games and third-party Wii U games that we played on the second and longest day of the show.

Featuring: Jonny, Zack and Guillaume talk about the demos that made the biggest impression on them at Nintendo's booth (and beyond). Pikmin 3, New Super Mario Bros U, Rayman Origins, Game & Wario, Project P-100, Batman: Arkham City... and many more!

Featuring: The RFN team that didn't make it to E3 give their own reactions to Nintendo's press conference.

Featuring: Very quick staff reactions to Nintendo's big E3 press conference, showing Pikmin 3, NintendoLand, and other Wii U games as well as just a bit for 3DS.

Featuring: The crew streamed the Microsoft conference much like everyone else not at E3 did, and doesn't have much to say about it. But they talk about seeing the EA and Ubisoft conferences live, and divulge their thoughts on EA's sequels and Ubisoft's antics.

Featuring: Most of the NWR crew on site at E3 2012 gathered to watch and discuss Nintendo's Wii U hardware-related Nintendo Direct online conference. They go over the messaging of the event, the improved Wii U GamePad, the Wii U Pro controller, the black Wii U, the Miiverse, and more!

Featuring: The Famicrew previews the Wii U excitement of E3 2012!Get the latest news about Nintendo gaming in Japan!Life in Japan joins forces with Listener Mail!PLUS: A thrilling report on... the Nintendo 64DD!

Featuring: With James back, this marks the first episode with the full new crew!New Business covers Disaster: Day of Crisis, Kirby's Block Ball, All Night Nippon Super Mario Bros., Mario Kart 7 and Cloudberry Kingdom!The crew talks about their hopes, dreams and predictions for the 3DS, the Wii U and even the Wii and DS at the upcoming E3 2012.

Featuring: We welcome Guillaume as the newest member of RFN!New Business covers the Mario Kart 7 update, Diablo 3, and the latest Club Nintendo freebie games!This week in Listener Mail: GameStop's exclusive deals with Nintendo, console subscription plans, and more coverage of Pandora's Tower at Operation Rainfall!PLUS: Get to know our new voice and editor in a special mini-interview!

Featuring: It's Greg's farewell episode!The RFN crew send their comrade off in style with tributes, a clip reel, and a special parting gift!There's still time for Listener Mail on Wii U's launch line-up and the quest for core gamers!PLUS: Resident Evil, Castlevania, Darksiders, Xenoblade, and a Treasure takeover in New Business!

Featuring: Listener Mail is back with a bang after Nintendo's digital distribution bombshell!We also answer your questions on New SMB 2, StreetPass, gaming abroad, and the bizarre Pandora's Tower!New Business features more Xenoblade, Tales, and Rhythm Thief, plus Metal Slug 3 and Jon's secret arcade machine!PLUS: An important announcement!

Featuring: RetroActive returns with MotoHeroz!Guillaume joins us to discuss RedLynx's acclaimed Trials-like game for WiiWare!We react to the Nintendo Direct news and Pikmin 2's rise from the dead in New Business!PLUS: James' journey to become Tingle continues!

Featuring: The Famicrew reacts to the New SMB 2 announcement and the rest of the Nintendo Direct news!New Business features Kingdom Hearts 3D, Kid Icarus: Uprising, and Star Fox 64 3D!Life in Japan looks at the festivities of Golden Week!PLUS: More answers to your questions!