Nintendo Official Magazine - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Official Nintendo Magazine, or ONM, is a British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

and Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n video game magazine which covers the Nintendo DS

Nintendo DS

The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...

, Nintendo 3DS

Nintendo 3DS

The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo. The autostereoscopic device is able to project stereoscopic 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses or any additional accessories. The Nintendo 3DS features backward compatibility with Nintendo DS series software, including Nintendo DSi software...

and Wii

Wii

The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...

video game console

Video game console

A video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game...

s released by Nintendo

Nintendo

is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....

. Originally published by EMAP

EMAP

Emap Limited is a British media company, specialising in the production of business-to-business magazines, and the organisation of business events and conferences...

as Nintendo Magazine System, the magazine first covered the Nintendo Entertainment System

Nintendo Entertainment System

The Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America during 1985, in Europe during 1986 and Australia in 1987...

, Super Nintendo Entertainment System

Super Nintendo Entertainment System

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System is a 16-bit video game console that was released by Nintendo in North America, Europe, Australasia , and South America between 1990 and 1993. In Japan and Southeast Asia, the system is called the , or SFC for short...

and Game Boy

Game Boy

The , is an 8-bit handheld video game device developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on , in North America in , and in Europe on...

consoles, and was later renamed to Nintendo Magazine, Nintendo Official Magazine then, briefly, Nintendo Official Magazine UK. Under these names, it was published by EMAP for twelve years, before the rights were sold to its current publisher, Future Publishing. The first issue by Future Publishing was released on 16th February 2006. The Australian version is a follow up of Nintendo Magazine System

Nintendo Magazine System (Australia)

Nintendo Magazine System was the official Nintendo magazine of Australia. In publication for seven years until 2000, the magazine was a branch of Official Nintendo Magazine, the UK's official Nintendo magazine, which was also called Nintendo Magazine System at the time...

, not to be confused with the UK publication.

History

Mean Machines
Mean Machines
Mean Machines was a market-leading multi-format gaming magazine released between 1990 and 1992 in the United Kingdom. Its style was popular with gamers of the time for its irreverent humor, anarchic editorial tone and style, and its sometimes outrageously outspoken reviews.- Origins :In the late...

, a long-standing British games magazine, split into two separate magazines, focusing on the two then-major video games console companies; Sega

Sega

, usually styled as SEGA, is a multinational video game software developer and an arcade software and hardware development company headquartered in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan, with various offices around the world...

and Nintendo. The Sega-based magazine retained the original title, Mean Machines Sega, while the Nintendo magazine was named Nintendo Magazine System. The first issue of Nintendo Magazine System was released on 1 October 1992. Its name was later changed to Nintendo Magazine, Nintendo Official Magazine then Nintendo Official Magazine UK, before its publisher was changed from EMAP to Future Publishing. After this change, the magazine was renamed to its current name, Official Nintendo Magazine, and received a new set of staff. Its numbering was also reset. It reached its 50th issue on 20 November 2009.

On 15 December 2008, the first issue of Official Nintendo Magazine for Australia & New Zealand, a monthly video game magazine based on Official Nintendo Magazine, was published by Future Publishing. It is the second officially-endorsed Nintendo magazine released in Australia and New Zealand, succeeding the Australian Nintendo Magazine System
Nintendo Magazine System (Australia)
Nintendo Magazine System was the official Nintendo magazine of Australia. In publication for seven years until 2000, the magazine was a branch of Official Nintendo Magazine, the UK's official Nintendo magazine, which was also called Nintendo Magazine System at the time...

, which ceased publishing in 2000.

In early 2011 four guest-bloggers were appointed, Colette Barr, Marti Bennett, Chris Rooke and John Vekinis. These bloggers provide a fresh perspective to Nintendo related news and events.

In March 2011, the UK magazine underwent a change in the style and layout of the contents in the magazine, while adding new features. The first issue released in this format featured a "3D

Stereoscopy

Stereoscopy refers to a technique for creating or enhancing the illusion of depth in an image by presenting two offset images separately to the left and right eye of the viewer. Both of these 2-D offset images are then combined in the brain to give the perception of 3-D depth...

without glasses" cover for the launch of Nintendo 3DS

Nintendo 3DS

.

The staff seem to like cakes (like NGamer

NGamer

NGamer is a British magazine which mainly covers Nintendo video game consoles and software, and also to a much lesser extent, Sony and Microsoft consoles. The first issue was released on 13 July 2006...

) and have actually had one sent in and they made the letter with it Star Letter in issue 68.

Sections

Each month the Official Nintendo Magazine includes the following sections in both the UK and Australian editions:

Welcome - A brief summary of the Issue by the editor; Also features the contacts.

Contents - The articles are broken down into categories. E.g. A review of a Wii game will go under the category Review and sub-category Wii.

Select -
- General - News about new games, interviews, video game movies etc.
- Number Crunch - The Month's news in numbers.
- Global - Nintendo related news from around the world.
- Opinion - A member of the staff will give their opinion on a subject or matter that has either recently occurred or is a strong controversial issue among gamers. E.g. UK Issue 53 is about Cel-shading.
- To Do List - The highlights of the next four weeks.
- Hotlist - The greatest happening of Nintendo this month
- The ONM 10: A top ten, subject changes each month.

Feedback - A section showing the best letters, emails and forum posts of the month. A star letter is picked and a prize, currently a DSI, is given to the sender. (Forum posts are not in AU/NZ edition)
- In a Word - Peoples emails, letters and forum posts are replied to in a single word. (Forum posts are not in AU/NZ edition)
- My Collection - A short interview with a Nintendo related collection owner.
- The Gallery - Pictures that are sent in by readers.

Features - Articles about exciting and interesting subjects (E.g. Easter eggs, 50 greatest..., Myths, "The Making Of...", etc.) exclusive to the issue.

Previews - A preview is similar to a review, except a preview is more about what they think the game will turn out to be like rather than what it is actually like.

Reviews - An in depth look into the latest games and how good they are. The score is given in percentages and a summary is given along with the good and bad points of the game.
- Round up - A quick summary of the worst of the month's games.
- Download - Short reviews of downloadable WiiWare and DSiWare games.

Directory -
- Game Guides - Guides, walkthroughs and hints to games.
- Replay: A look back at an old retro game.
- Rated Wii - The top 20 Wii games. Features a "don't forget" game as well as High Five, a top five list, and Settling Scores where a reader complains about a certain game score.
- Rated DS - Top 20 DS games. Also features a High Five, "Don't forget" game and Settling Scores.
- Rated Wii Virtual Console - The top 25 Virtual Console games. Also features a High Five and "Don't Forget" game.
- Rated WiiWare - The top 15 WiiWare games. Features a "Don't Forget" game.
- Rated DSiWare - The top 15 DSiWare games. Also features a "Don't Forget" game.

Additional UK sections

In addition to the above sections, the UK edition also includes:

Feedback
- Top tweets - The best Twitter posts.
- Text the Editor - The best texts sent to Neil Long the Editor.
- Web Forum Poll - A poll from the online forums. A forum member gives their opinion on the poll.
- Cover Versions - The best of the month's reader covers taken from the online forums.
- Golden Goombas - Awards for threads on the online forums. E.g. Most Ambitious Thread, Most Disappointing Threads, etc.

Directory
- Challenges - Leaderboards and top scores.

Back Page - The content on the back page has changed over time , including feaures such as:
- Nintendo A-Z - A list of notable events , games & products produced by Nintendo , each of which that started with a particular letter of the alphabet . Each issue the letter would progress through the alphabet ( One issue all the products on this page would begin with A & the next month with B etc. until issue 26)
- Warp Zone - This page featured images & a description of parodies of games , such as "Noel Bubbles" (A parody of DS game Soul Bubbles
  Soul Bubbles
  Soul Bubbles is a puzzle video game for the Nintendo DS handheld console. It was developed by the French studio Mekensleep, and was published by Eidos Interactive in PAL regions and North America in 2008...
  
  , with celebrities of the name Noel, including Noel Edmonds
  Noel Edmonds
  Noel Ernest Edmonds, is an English broadcaster and executive, who made his name as a DJ on BBC Radio 1 in the UK. He has presented many light entertainment television programmes, including Multi-Coloured Swap Shop, Top of the Pops, The Late, Late Breakfast Show, Telly Addicts, Noel's Saturday...
  
  , Noel Fielding
  Noel Fielding
  Noel Fielding is a British artist, comedian and actor. He is known for his roles as Vince Noir in The Mighty Boosh, which he co-writes with comedy partner Julian Barratt, and as team captain on the music panel show Never Mind the Buzzcocks.-Stand-up comedy:Noel Fielding performed regularly as a...
  
  and Noel Gallagher
  Noel Gallagher
  Noel Thomas David Gallagher is an English musician and singer-songwriter, formerly the lead guitarist, backing vocalist and principal songwriter of the English rock band Oasis. He is currently fronting his solo project, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.Raised in Burnage, Manchester with his...
  
  ) & "Tony Hawk's Bride" ( A parody of poorly reviewed Wii game Tony Hawk's Ride) & many others .
- Puzzle Page - This includes Nintendo-themed puzzles such as crosswords , word jumbles & spot the difference .
- Final Countdown - This was used from issue 67 onwards. This is similar to the ONM Top 10 feature, which stopped in issue 66.

The scoring system

The Official Nintendo Magazine uses a percentage scoring system. The system is as follows:

0-19% = Unplayable
20-49% = Poor
50-69% = Average
70-84% = Good
85-89% = Excellent
90+% = The ONM Gold Award

The top rated game so far is The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D is an action-adventure video game co-developed by Grezzo and Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS handheld console. The game was released on June 16, 2011 in Japan, June 17, 2011 in Europe, June 19, 2011 in North America and June 30, 2011 in Australia; however, it...

tied with The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword

is an action-adventure game for the Wii console and the sixteenth entry in the Legend of Zelda series. Developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development, it was released in Europe on November 18, 2011 in North America on November 20, 2011, in Japan on November 23, 2011, and on November...

, with a 98% rating, given in the July 2011 issue. Super Mario Galaxy

Super Mario Galaxy

is a 3D platform game developed by Nintendo EAD Tokyo and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It was released in most regions in November 2007, and is the third 3D original platformer in the Mario series, after Super Mario 64 and Super Mario Sunshine. The game follows the protagonist, Mario, on a...

, Super Mario Galaxy 2

Super Mario Galaxy 2

is a platforming video game developed by Nintendo EAD and published by Nintendo for the Wii. It was first announced at E3 2009 and is the sequel to Super Mario Galaxy. It was released in North America on May 23, 2010, in Japan on May 27, 2010, in Europe on June 11, 2010, and in Australia on July 1,...

and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

is an action-adventure game developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development, and published by Nintendo for the GameCube and Wii video game consoles. It is the thirteenth installment in The Legend of Zelda series...

were all given ratings of 97%.

The Gold Award

If a game gets a score of 90% or more than it will get 'The Gold Award'. Games themselves often use the logo associated with The Gold Award on their covers for promotion (such as the European edition of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, released as in Japan, is an action-adventure game and the tenth installment in The Legend of Zelda series. It was released for the Nintendo GameCube in Japan on December 13, 2002, in North America on March 24, 2003, in Europe on May 2, 2003, and in Australia on...

Forums

The ONM UK forums were created in 2006 and have since become one of the most popular websites for dedicated videogame fans. ONM AU/NZ does not have a forum.
In 2011, they were updated along with the magazine to make a cleaner, easier to use website.

Other

The team has a recurring hatred of Ninjabread Man

Ninjabread Man

Ninjabread Man is a platform video game from English developer/publisher Data Design Interactive. The game was an original new Zool game, but due to its poor quality, the Zool license was dropped....

, Tingle and Hull.

The lowest-rated game in the magazine's history is Discolight developed by Kasaa Solution for DSiWare, gaining a measly score of 2%. The highest rating ever given is 98%, shared by The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword