[dropcap]Z[/dropcap]elda: Breath of the Wild will soon receive it’s first DLC. The expansion pass will  bring two major updates. The first one being released this summer, while the second pack is going to be released this holiday season. Nintendo has just announced some new details about the Zelda: Breath of the Wild Expansion pass. The first part of the expansion pass will include the new Trial of the Sword, in which you can encounter enemies in 45 different rooms. If you complete this, the Master Sword will remain in it’s glowing form forever.

You can read the details about the Master Trials DLC below. If you didn’t buy the pass yet, you can do so here.

• Trial of the Sword: By accessing this location, players can challenge the new Trial of the Sword (previously known as “Cave of Trials Challenge”), where enemies appear one after another. Link starts without any armor or weapons, and if he defeats all of the enemies in the room he can proceed to the next area. Trial of the Sword will include around 45 total rooms for players to complete. When Link clears all of the trials, the true power of the Master Sword will awaken and always be in its glowing powered-up state.
• Hard Mode: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is already considered one of the most thrilling games in The Legend of Zelda series, and fans looking for a challenge are in for a treat with the new Hard Mode. In Hard Mode, the “ranks” of enemies in the game are increased (i.e. Red Bokoblins change to Blue), and players might even encounter higher-ranking enemies they wouldn’t find through normal play. Enemies will also slowly recover health in battle, forcing you to defeat them more quickly. They will also more easily spot Link as he approaches them, making these enemies tougher to sneak up on. In addition, floating planks held aloft by balloons will be scattered around Hyrule. By successfully reaching these planks, players can battle enemies and collect treasure.
• Hero’s Path Mode: Exploring Hyrule is exciting, but with such a large world it’s sometimes hard for players to remember where they’ve been. To help with tracking progress, the new Hero’s Path Mode will document every step players take, and mark their path in green on the map. The route taken will be tracked for the player’s last 200 hours of play time, with an included slider to track footsteps on a timeline. This even works retroactively, so players that have already put many hours into the game will be able to see where they have traveled. This feature will help in identifying the locations they haven’t visited in this vast world, and may help players find those Shrines they haven’t encountered yet.
• Travel Medallion: There will be a new treasure chest somewhere in the game world which contains the Travel Medallion. With the Travel Medallion, players can create a temporary new travel point on the map where they are currently standing. Link can then transport himself to that point at any time. Only one travel point can be registered on the map at a time.
• Korok Mask: By finding the new Korok Mask, players will have a much easier time finding Korok locations in the game. When equipped, the mask will shake, indicating that a Korok is hidden somewhere nearby.
• New Equipment: Eight new pieces of equipment inspired by previous characters and games in the series will be added to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild after downloading the first DLC pack. Once discovered by the player, they will yield equipment themed after fan-favorite games and characters such as Midna, Tingle, Phantom and Majora’s Mask.

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]t is no surprise that Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is a big win for Nintendo. However, how big of a win is it?

The game has sold 459,000 combined package and digital sales since it’s launch on April 28th. This sets a new record for the fastest selling title in the Mario Kart series. The previous record holder for the highest first-day sales in the franchise was Mario Kart Wii, with U.S. sales of approximately 433,900 when it launched in 2008. The sales of Mario Kart 8 deluxe equate to a 45% attach rate. What this means is that nearly one in two switch owners in the United States owns Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

The reviews for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe are off the charts. It is currently sitting at a nice 93 on Metacritic. The score is the highest that the franchise has seen in 15 years-tying the score of Mario Kart: Super Circuit for Game Boy Advance. The game has also surpassed the Zelda: Breath of the Wild sales on amazon!

With Legend of Zelda and now Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Nintendo is primed for a great start going into the summer, with E3 being later this year.

Source: Business Wire

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]omorrow, SKIPMORE is going to drop KAMIKO, a 2D action-adventure game, on the eShop. There’s a lot about this game that’s not obvious from the title or description. Lucky for us, this game has already been out on the Japanese eShop for two weeks. So once again, we’ll be giving you an idea of what to expect if you choose to pick it up.

Gameplay and Objective

If the gameplay looks familiar to you, there’s a good reason for that. This game takes a lot of pointers from the Zelda series. In particular, this game seems to have extremely similar combat to A Link to the Past.

This character swings her sword like Link.

From the start, this game allows you to pick one of three characters to use, each with a different weapon of choice and abilities. Hopefully, that’ll add some great replayability because all reports thus far attest to this being a very short game.

Levels appear to have a rinse-and-repeat format of looking for four gates in each level to open the way to a boss encounter. Monsters appear suddenly as you wander around each level, and secrets and puzzles are everywhere.

Graphics and Sound Design

While KAMIKO reminds us of Zelda in the gameplay department, the look and sound of the game share far more in common with indie classics like Cave Story. There’s a bright feel to the sprites used in the game. The music is in chiptune, similar to VVVVVV. I definitely think some of these songs will be stuck in my head by the time I finish this game.

The art style is pretty cute, actually.

Thoughts on KAMIKO

KAMIKO is a 2D top-down action-adventure title with simplistic graphics, chiptune tracks, and a Zelda-like feel to the gameplay. It’s being published by Flyhigh Works and was developed by SKIPMORE. The title has a low price point at just $4.99 in the US, which makes up for the lack of length to the game. That length doesn’t necessarily hurt the game, though, as it seems very replayable, and can easily give new players at least an afternoon of good times.

KAMIKO makes its way onto the Nintendo Switch eShop on April 27th. We’ve linked gameplay of the first level below for anyone that wants to know more.