NES Remix 2 Review – More Remixing

Nintendo is in dire straits with their 8th generation console, the Wii U. With 2.5 years on the market, they haven’t even managed to sell 7 million units, a figure Sony’s Playstation 4 reached in only 6 months. Quickly trying to generate new software, Nintendo released NES Remix at the end of 2013. Only 4 months later, they released a sequel, aptly named NES Remix 2. This new title follows the formula set by its predecessor to a tee, only with different titles. Putting it bluntly, this is exactly more of the same.

The games formula is simple (skip this paragraph if you already know what to expect). NES games are cut into snippets, with players given specific goals in accomplish in a short time span. The time to completion determines your star rating, the currency used to unlock more challenges. The gameplay is reminiscent of WarioWare. Aside from the inclusion of a bevy 1st party NES games, special stages are available that cross the games, or change them in unique ways, i.e. Link collecting coins in Mario, or Mario multiplying into three.

New titles are included this go around, avoiding the games included in the first batch. Many were asked for while others were provided to flesh out the content, whether you wanted it or not. Zelda II, Mario 2 & 3, Dr. Mario, and Metroid to name a few. There were fewer detractors in this batch from the first game. Some games, like Punch Out or Kid Icarus, difficult for me as I’ve never played either, though I was able to quickly acclimate after some trial and error. Others, like Wario’s Woods or Ice Hockey, were more frustrating than fun. Both games had bad controls that I begrudgingly wrestled to complete the events, never to look back.

Included is two other unique gameplay features. There’s Super Luigi Bros., which is the original Super Mario Bros. with a few changes. First, you’re playing as Luigi, with his modern, floaty jump controls in full effect. Second, the game is flipped, having you go from right to left. With the precision of Mario’s firmly embedded in my hands, I didn’t waste too much time with this. A neat feature, but not one I see people wasting much time with. The other is a small reward for owning the first title. Championship Mode give you 6 minutes and 21 seconds to collect 50 coins in Super Mario Bros., 25 coins in Super Mario Bros. 3, and earn a high score in Dr. Mario. This is translated into a score for an offline leaderboard. If it was online, I could see it being more fun.

NES Remix 2 is more of the same, which isn’t a bad thing. This is exactly what I wanted. Less frustrating games made the package an overall better deal. Still, the $15 price tag is a bit much compared to more content heavy downloadable games (Child of Light for example). Unless third parties get involved (I’m looking at you Capcom and Konami), the next game will likely be SNES Remix. That one, I’ll be all over.

Find the games less frustrating this time? SNES Remix or 3rd Party Remix next? Comment below!

Tony writes for his own site, thecredhulk.com, about comics, video games, movies, TV and more, six days a week. You can follow his updates on Facebook or Twitter. Drop by and tell’em hi.

Screw Wario’s Woods.