Nintendo Cartridge Society

Patrick and Mark are fussin’ about names and stressin’ about collectables as they begin their discussion of Donkey Kong Country 2 in earnest. So far, it’s fun, but your hosts are already worried about difficulty… Plus probably too many comparisons to the original DKC!

Patrick and Mark get into gear and auto-accelerate into a discussion of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe! Plus, new 2DS hardware? Puyo Puyo Tetris?? A room full of sweaty football players??? Finally, a Listener Reader™ question prompts a discussion on the hardware benefits of a hypothetical Nintendo 64 Classic.

This week, Patrick and Mark are joined by Emmy nominated writer, actor, comedian, and gamer Heather Anne Campbell for a free-wheeling discussion of all things Nintendo. Plus, rumors of an SNES Classic Edition, a limited time Mario Kart 8 Deluxe promotion at Target, and how Over Top is not, in fact, “Over the Top” starring Sylvester Stallone. (Subscribe to AOK on YouTube!)

Your hosts are big Donkey Kong Country fans, but are they persistent enough to actually make it through one of the classic titles they never played as kids? Plus, they’ve got problems with Dixie Kong’s curly blonde hair (she’s like a frog with a mustache!) and debate how to play this game with two-people.

Holy cow, there were a lot of announcements in last week’s Nintendo Direct and Patrick and Mark carry the yoke of breaking it all down! Plus, the untimely demise of the NES Classic Edition and the outrageous Breath of the Wild attach rate. And can anyone explain to these losers what Tumbleseed is and why they should care about it? That’s an honest question, btw, they genuinely can’t wrap their hea...

In their ongoing quest to play Wii U games orphaned on the system, Patrick and Mark take a shot at Star Fox Zero (and point a gun-camera at Star Fox Guard). With sales of the franchise flagging, they ponder the future for Fox McCloud and his merry band of animal friends. Plus, a round-up of this week’s news and -- of course -- some Breath of the Wild talk.

Lick your enemies’ blood of your hands and rip the triforce out of Ganon’s guts: we just beat The Legend of Zelda! Also: what would drive Patrick to yell at Mark? (Hint: The recorder is involved.) Get all the answers at 1-800-Nintendo.com… or in the podcast.

Patrick and Mark reflect on the first month of the Nintendo Switch’s life, and -- surprise -- they’re still mostly telling stories about Breath of the Wild. Plus, an in-depth discussion of the cute but punishing kinda-platformer Snake Pass. Live by the snake, die by the snake.

Is that wind or a ghost? It’s the Splatoon 2 Testfire! Patrick and Mark discuss the news of the day, including some frustrating delays, before turning their attention to Nintendo’s unique method of demoing Splatoon 2. Is it a stress-test or just an excuse to get excited? (‘Cause we're excited.)

With a little less frustration and little less timeliness, Patrick and Mark chat about the second third of the Legend of Zelda. Your hosts realize it’s easier to play this game like it’s Breath of the Wild than like it’s Bloodborne. Maybe chess is the better is the better analogy… Plus, sometimes you collect 100 rupees, and sometimes you have to pay 30 rupees to fix a strange man’s bush-door.

There are lots of great games on the Wii U that will probably be orphaned on the system forever, and Patrick and Mark want to play them! This week they dive into Retro’s Donkey Kong Country Returns Tropical Freeze, which in turn sparks a lively conversation about the game’s excellent soundtrack. Plus, Breath of the Wild impressions, some fighting game love inspired by King of Fighters ‘94, and a f...

Patrick’s parents are in town, so he’s putting them on mic! Lyle and Jeanne go hands on with the Switch and give their impressions. Plus, Patrick and Mark are slowly making their way through Breath of the Wild (no spoilers, duh) and totally missed that six Neo Geo games came to the Switch last week. They’re dumb! (But you already knew that.) This episode is brought to you by MackWeldon.com - enter...

Don’t smoke in front of the Dodongo! Turns out those first three levels don’t take quite as long to finish as we originally thought. How are the original Legend of Zelda and Breath of the Wild similar? Well, we die a lot - that’s for sure. With a lack of olfactory clues, Patrick and Mark refer to a map to find all the heart containers! (Also, look, we know we said we’re beating the game next time:...

At long last, both Switch and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild are in our lives, and Patrick and Mark can't wait to talk about it. Plus, high praise for Snipperclips and Shovel Knight: Spectre of Torment (notice the absence of 1-2 Switch), and a breakdown of the Nindie Showcase.

Patrick and Mark are joined by comedian and podcaster Ryan Mogge for a flashback to 1989’s “The Wizard.” It’s not just a feature length Nintendo commercial! Plus, the Switch comes out on Friday and there's a deluge of new releases. What a time to be alive!  (Check out Ryan’s excellent Buffy the Vampire Slayer podcast “Hellmouthy” on the Nerdist School Network.)

Your hosts are making up for their past mistakes and picking a game that they actually want to play! (So long, Metroid: Other M!) Before they get started, the boys talk about the place this series holds in their collective heart(piece)s. Parenthetical jokes aside, prepare to join your NCS hosts as they play the OG Zelda!

This week, Patrick and Mark dive deep into the music in the menus of Nintendo’s consoles and games, and surface with some real gems. Plus, Switch consoles are out in the wild, Breath of the Wild DLC is announced, and a gentle plea for Nintendo to stop announcing news on Tuesdays.

Who is the deleter? What is MB? Didn’t I fight this boss already? All those questions and more are asked and (partially) answered as Patrick and Mark reflect on the final cut-scene-heavy hours of Metroid: Other M.

With 1-2-Switch on the horizon, Patrick Patrick and Mark Mark reminisce about the sometimes goofy, sometimes ugly history of Nintendo’s mini-game collections. Plus, they get pumped up for the Splatoon 2 Testfire and don’t know what to make of the grimdark tone of Netflix’s new Castlevania animated series.

Power has been nice! Any objections, Adam? Patrick and Mark fought Ridley, which means there’s all kinds of crazy stuff to talk about. Clones? Goo? Evolution? Plus: the Nightmare. Two good bosses! Both less chaotic and more exciting than anything that has come before. Plus, a spirited debate about how to responsibly dispose of waste in outer space!

Gird your loins and prepare for battle! Patrick and Mark take to the fields of war and test the mettle of Nintendo’s latest mobile offering: Fire Emblem Heroes. A little drop of rain can hardly hurt them now!

Patrick and Mark do their best to not make too many Borat jokes as they discuss their favorite boss fight in game so far. (Very nice!) They realize that one of the game’s primarily mechanics is failure, which is deeply depressing. Instead of solving puzzles, you just need to fail at it. Daddy didn’t say you could solve the puzzle!

Patrick and Mark get off to a real mistake-o-rama start, but then it’s all strawberry nerds as they catch up on Nintendo news from the past week. Later, it’s the final installment in their epic, three-part Hardware Round-Up. They tackle what went so, so right and what went so, so wrong with the Wii, 3DS and Wii U.

Don’t worry - now that you’ve been burning for a solid 30 minutes, Patrick and Mark give you permission to enable your heat armor. AREN’T THEY KIND? Your hosts debate what is real and what is artificial on this space station. Trees? Simulated. Volcanos? Probably real! And - is it possible that it’s the combat that ruins this combat-focused action game?

After last week’s Fire Emblem Direct, Patrick and Mark ponder the question “hey, what’s up with Fire Emblem?” Plus, a round-up of the latest Switch news (Shovel Knight! I Am Setsuna! A second Legend of Zelda!??!).  Oh, and they totally saw Split. No spoilers.