GoKawiil
Tech News
A retrospective analysis argues that Nintendo's worst-performing console wasn't the GameCube or Wii U, but the Virtual Boy, a mid-1990s system that was discontinued in less than a year and sold far fewer units than either of those later machines. Despite its poor reception at launch, the piece notes a recent resurgence has made the Virtual Boy more accessible to try today than it has been in decades.
A collaborative team led by an independent developer completed a 100% decompilation of the original Snowboard Kids for Nintendo 64, meaning every function now has matching C code that compiles to identical machine code as the original. The project took 84 days, compared with 596 days for a prior effort on Snowboard Kids 2, with contributors including inspectredc, Bl00D4NGEL, and queueRAM providing key expert work alongside AI assistance.
Hollywood is increasingly turning to video game properties for film and TV adaptations as superhero content declines, following the box-office success of Illumination's $1.3 billion Super Mario Bros. Movie and critically praised shows like The Last of Us and Fallout. This marks a dramatic turnaround from the disastrous 1993 Super Mario Bros. film, which flopped due to mismatched tonal choices and studio interference.
Nintendo will raise the price of its base 256GB Switch 2 console from $449.99 to $499.99 beginning next Tuesday, September 1st. The company had previously announced the increase, and it also recently unveiled two game bundles priced above $500 that include a slight discount.
Anbernic released an unboxing video for its upcoming RG 55G1 handheld, confirming a Snapdragon G1 Gen 2 chip, Adreno A12 GPU, 4GB/8GB RAM and 64GB/128GB storage options, a 5.5-inch 1080p IPS display, and Android 14. The device will ship in Indigo, Retro Gray, and Black, with a 6,000mAh battery, 18W charging, Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.0, and wireless TV casting support.
CD Projekt Red revealed The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Remastered, a free upgrade for current owners launching September 29 on PC, PS5, Xbox Series, and Switch 2, with overhauled graphics, combat, traversal, and mod support. The studio also confirmed existing owners will get the Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine expansions for free, and teased a new paid expansion called Songs of the Past due in 2027.
CD Projekt Red announced a remastered version of The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, arriving September 29th with upgraded visuals, revamped combat, a reworked skill tree, and both expansions, Hearts of Stone and Blood and Wine, included. The upgrade will be free for existing owners on GOG, Steam, Epic Games Store, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S, and the remaster will also bring the game to Nintendo Switch 2 for the first time.
Nintendo announced two new Switch 2 bundles: a refreshed Mario Kart World package for $550 and a new Nintendo Switch Sports Resort bundle for $530, both including a 90-day individual Switch Online membership. These arrive as the Switch 2 console price rises to $500 starting September 1, up from $450.
A community decompilation effort has recreated 100% of the source code for the original Super Smash Bros. on Nintendo 64, according to a listing on Decomp.dev. The completed project, hosted on GitHub with build instructions, means the 1999 platform fighter can now theoretically be ported natively to modern systems like Windows or Android rather than relying on emulation.
GuliKit has released an updated travel dock for the Switch 2 that doubles as a stand, filling the gap left after Nintendo's software changes broke compatibility with Genki's Covert Dock. The plastic dock mimics an aluminum finish, weighs little, and includes a magnetic cover to protect its USB-C port, all at less than half the price of Genki's alternative.
Nintendo's 16-bit Super Nintendo Entertainment System launched in North America 35 years ago, arriving nine months after its Japanese debut as the Super Famicom. The console shipped with Super Mario World and went on to host classics like Super Metroid, Donkey Kong Country, and Star Fox, ultimately selling 49.1 million units before discontinuation in 1999.
Nintendo filed seven coordinated DMCA takedown notices against GitHub repositories hosting Switch emulation projects, resulting in 401 repos being pulled from the platform. The bulk came from the Suyu emulator's parent repo, which had over 100 forks, triggering GitHub's policy of removing an entire fork network at once. Other affected projects included the long-dormant Skyline emulator, Yuzu Android forks, and several smaller Yuzu-based projects like MonoNX.