Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition Reviews
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is a great collection of challenges from NES classics. The way everything is presented, results on a super fun videogame that everyone can enjoy.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
As long as the game is new and fresh, online play will thrive. But there is not much content here and I hope Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition will get new levels soon, because it really is a fun game and it would be a shame to lose it to boredom.
Review in Polish | Read full review
If you’re somebody who was never able to attend any of the in-person tournaments Nintendo has held over the decades, you might’ve been excited for this home version. Sadly it just doesn’t add up, due to the same reluctance over online play that Nintendo has shown for three console generations now. The lack of leaderboards and a true online system makes Nintendo World Championships a uniquely pointless game, and something that can’t keep my interest past the length of a pop song. If Nintendo ever gets serious about what they’re seemingly trying to do here, perhaps there can be a future for Nintendo World Championships, whether it’s an update of NES Edition or one based on another of Nintendo’s classic consoles. Until then, it’s one of the most misguided games I’ve ever played.
Ultimately, I’d imagine most players will likely get about an hour’s worth of satisfaction from Nintendo World Championships NES Edition before finding themselves exhausted, though parties with a bunch of players will help sustain that feeling. Players who are utterly focused on besting their own scores — or those of others online — will likely spend far more time with things. It’s ultimately up to you if that offering is worth its $50 AUD asking price.
As an approachable, bite-sized introduction to the world of speedrunning through the lens of some bonafide classics, Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is a decent enough package. It lacks a little added flavour, but the way it gently teaches you to find those perfect lines, hidden quirks and cheesy hacks makes for some very rewarding moments, and it doubles as a surprisingly good party game.
At its best, Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is a game I love, and I say that as someone typically not a speedrunning fan. But Nintendo did not give the NES the same respect here that they did in the NES Remix titles. This approach is more indifferent without question, reflecting a company going through the motions with this release. Only Nintendo can still manage to pull off a game this good-possibly one of my favorites of 2024-despite such bad habits.
Despite its limited appeal, there's plenty packed into Nintendo's speedrunning challenger - if you've got the patience for it.
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is both a loving celebration of the event's origins and a fun and exciting introduction to the world of speedrunning!
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is a love letter to all fans who grew up with the 8-bit console, but it's not a game suited for every player.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Beyond that, however, I really loved NWC. It’s a bonafide party game staple and easily captures the spirit of the original Nintendo World Championships from back in the day. It’s best played with others, but even alone there’s enough to keep you entertained for a while. Once the initial enjoyment starts to wear off, however, it remains a joy to head into Survival Mode and go for the top ranking. Here’s hoping Nintendo is secretly at work on an SNES followup. In the meanwhile, I strongly recommend adding NWC to your collection.
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition gives a number of Nintendo classics a new lease on life, but the overall package is a bit light on content. Those who live and breathe the Big N will enjoy this new take on the classics, but there’s not enough for more casual fans to enter the competition.
Overall, there is plenty to devour in the Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition package - a history trip through Nintendo's original hits in bite-sized, repayable chunks. As a speed-running package, it very much ticks all those boxes. The lack of remixed content and visual tweaks does hinder its potential, however. There is opportunity there, though, for Nintendo to expand the package if they decide to going forward. All in all, Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is a nostalgic treat for competitive players that's well worth a go or two or three!
For a game that’s all about speedrunning, it’s ironic that Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition feels rushed. Although I certainly had a great time going for an S-tier rank in all the challenges presented, the obvious omissions makes the game feel more like a missed opportunity rather than a complete package. If you’re interested in learning the basics of speedrunning or wanna take a nostalgic trip down memory lane, Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is sure to provide many hours of fun, but otherwise, the larger library of NES titles offered to Nintendo Switch Online subscribers is probably enough to suffice.
Consequently, Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition feels like a release schedule filler. While the multiplayer features are robust, they’re hardly innovative, and really it’s just a package of sliced-up classic games with a timer attached to them. I’d never call a game development project “lazy,” because they’re not, but the minimum work has gone into this, and while it will become a competitive obsession for a small minority, there could have been so much more done to draw in a much broader audience and really celebrate the deep heritage of these games (as well as Nintendo in facilitating competitive play).
I can't say I didn't have fun with Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition. Far from it. This collection just goes to show how timeless these classic NES games were. However, they're still just relics of a bygone era, and this collection doesn't bring anything new or extra to the table to justify such a hefty price tag.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
I enjoyed my time with Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition and will continue to do so thanks to its fun weekly challenges. I hope that this means we'll see indieszero's Retro Game Challenge 1 + 2 Replay release in the west soon. 📺
I’m really glad Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition exists in the condition it’s arrived in, and I hope that players also enjoy it to the same degree I did. Tight, senseless and fun, you do the thing and do it again, and keep doing it until you’re satisfied. Be the best even if the best is only in your own heart. Get hyped for seeing how well you can slay Moblins, grab Morph Balls or just land on the Goal Pole. This is a time for champions and hopefuls, and you, my friend, you have the real making of a champion. Good talk, now let’s get out there and inhale those enemies.
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition has a lot of content and replayability, especially given its budget price. Not only are there 150 challenges to complete, but you'll want to replay your favourites over and over again to improve your times, be it seconds or even milliseconds.
"Retro challenges for the TikTok generation."
Review in Finnish | Read full review
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition is the perfect party game to challenge yourself, friends, or family to become the fastest. The game offers a lot of variety with different challenge packs in party mode or online with the World Championships and survival mode. The downside is that the game doesn't control very well in handheld mode, and the price is a bit high for what it offers. However, if you're a big fan of classic retro games or looking for a game to play together, this one is definitely worth recommending.
Review in Dutch | Read full review