Nintendo Power!

[VideoGameCritic]

I recently bought a stack of old Nintendo Power magazines from a reader on this site, and I'm really enjoying them.  I was always an EGM/Gamepro guy back in the day.

Nintendo Power is definitely aimed at kids, and the magazine really reflects a childlike enthusiasm you don't see much anymore.  Gamers are more cynical now.  Anyway I'm seeing a lot of interesting games I'd like to get like Brawl Bros (SNES) and Congo's Caper (NES).  I find it fascinating how so many of the pages are plastered with maps detailing where every item and secret is on each level.  They all look the same!  Some of the letters are unintentionally hilarious, and the comics sections are surprisingly well done!

If any body else would like to share their thoughts or memories about Nintendo Power I'd like to hear them.

[Viper821]

I remember Nintendo Power well! My brother and I got a subscription when I was 9 and he was 12 and we had it for about 5 years. The anticipation of waiting for the next issue to arrive in the mailbox was almost like Christmas because you never knew what new games were going to be discussed and what inside information we would be provided. I found many excellent games through this magazine and I'm forever grateful for all the good times those games provided.

It was definitely a kid's magazine and had that child-like creativity you don't see in any other gaming magazines. Most other gaming magazines were (and are) aimed at the stereotypical-dumb-teenage-boy market and even as a kid I found them stupid and irrelevant. However, Nintendo Power did have some of the dumbest, most disgusting ads in history. Anyone remember the 'toenail' and 'meatloaf' ads?

Nothing was better than reading about a new game over and over and then showing off your talents to your oblivious friends. Many kids must have thought I was the greatest gamer who ever lived because I knew every secret!

There were also strategy guides released for specific games. In particular, as a Super Mario Bros 3 wizard (pun intended) I was stunned to find out (via the strategy guide) about a secret pipe in World 5-1. I went through the game with a fine tooth comb and still missed that one.

I would highly recommend watching the Angry Video Game Nerd's video on this magazine. Sums up my feelings perfectly!

[Pixelcade1]

Ohhh the memories. I pickd up Nintendo Power when it was a newsletter. Then turned into a magazine. So many hours reading cover to cover NOT missing a thing. For some reason I loved the letters it felt good knowing there was a community out there as excited about Nintendo as I was. The tips and hints were right on the money and made me the star player in my neighborhood. Whenever they would send a full fledged strategy guide in place of a magazine I felt like the Nintendo gods were smiling down on me (even more so when I got my FF guide). I loved the graphics in the magazine and in the early days the actual models used to shoot the covers. Being a designer I look back at it and go wow ROCK ON 80's and 90's! When they would feature games that were coming soon some of the writing was horrid. I think I used a example for Bubble Bobble somewhere on the forums. But they even tried to make Dr. Jackle sound good and they did it! Thank fully I saw through the hype seeing the LJN logo associated with the game. Even at that young age I knew based on the few games of theirs I had to be skeptical. The magazine grew and grew...sadly now it's fill with ads all over the place and lost it's luster and magic. I loved the Howard and Nester cartoons then the Mario ones that came later. It wasn't just about games it was about pop culture at least in the first 10 or so issues where there wasn't enough games to cover. They covered actors, tv shows, it was a genuine pop magazine for a video gamer. I could go on and on but I won't I'll scoot my chair over to my bookshelf and pick up a copy. I've got 1-80 lined up and ready to read! If you are interested in seeing some check out this site they have most of them in .cbr or .pdf format. No where near the same as holding the actual mag in your hands but cool to remember.

[0rangestorm]

I'd like to have them. I'll buy them off you for the same price you paid for them.

[Dennis]

I subscribed to Nintendo Power from the first issue until the mid-90s.  Sadly, I threw them all away when I left for college.

I remember one issue had a "rap" about video games written by a reader.  It was so unbelievably bad that I cut it out and hung it on my wall. 

The funniest part is, a couple of years ago I found it and posted it on my blog... and the guy who WROTE the rap responded to me!  Small world!

[Greisha1]

My first NP magazine was the one with Super Castlevania IV on the cover; my parents were probably convinced by the fact that I "lifted" a copy of the Metroid II issue from my cousin. Whoops.

Good times. Does anyone remember the silver glossy special cover for Mega Man X?

[Pixelcade1]

Greisha I have that one in my collection it's SUPER NICE all silver stock and embossed. It's vol. 56 if anyone wants to do a quick look up. As far as Castlevania game covers goes my fav has to be the Issue 2 for Castlevania 2. It's creepy! It's got an actual person dressed up like Simon holding a severed head of Dracula with glowing red eyes! HOW COOL IS THAT?

[ReiDemon]

[QUOTE=Dennis]
The funniest part is, a couple of years ago I found it and posted it on my blog... and the guy who WROTE the rap responded to me!  Small world!
[/QUOTE]

Link to post?

Anyways, I prefer EGM and GameInformer to NP, but it still brings back a lot of good memories.

Like how we would race to the magazine racks at my school's library to get the 5 or so copies of NP.

[Pixelcade1]

WOW your school actually carried that stuff? Ours carried no video game materials. That would've rocked to see those mags back then. Best I could do for EGM was lift my friends copy when he was done with it.

[QF]

I never had them as a kid. I bought a couple off ebay last year for some posters. I specifically wanted the Double Dragon II one and a Map of River City Ransom poster. It was nice reading the articles though.