Nintendo’s BEST Handheld Spin-Offs Will SHOCK You!

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Summary

  • Nintendo has created several spin-off projects for its franchises that sometimes surpass the original games.
  • Hey! Pikmin, Detective Pikachu, and The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes have provided unique experiences with Nintendo’s intellectual properties.
  • Pokemon Trading Card Game, Metroid Prime Hunters, and Animal Crossing Happy Home Designer are notable spin-offs that have contributed to Nintendo’s diverse catalog.

As a devoted fan, I’ve always yearned for the continued triumph and applause of a cherished franchise. Yet, these anticipations can sometimes cast a shadow over the creative freedom required to fully explore a property. Remarkably, even Nintendo, often seen as cautious in terms of risk-taking, has offered players numerous AAA spin-off ventures that have undeniably surpassed the enjoyment level of their original franchise episodes.

Nintendo consistently employs their renowned intellectual properties to explore creative boundaries, often resulting in innovative genre blends or pioneering wireless multiplayer experiences. This adventurous approach can lead to impressive outcomes.

1. Hey! Pikmin

The Pikmin Franchise’s Jump Into 2D & Portable Gaming

Despite Nintendo’s entry-level real-time strategy franchise, Pikmin, not experiencing strong commercial success despite Shigeru Miyamoto’s enthusiasm for it, the adorable RTS game still offers diverse playstyles to immerse players in its distinctive view of the world.

2017’s game “Hey! Pikmin” isn’t just a straight-forward adaptation of the original 3D Real-Time Strategy series born from Nintendo GameCube. Instead, it cleverly utilizes the dual screens of the Nintendo 3DS and transforms traditional “Pikmin” gameplay into a 2D format, which goes beyond being merely a money-grabbing spin-off. Despite having more confined levels and less exploratory freedom compared to the main console series, this spin-off developed by Arzest offers a unique experience within the 2D genre that is still enjoyable in its own right.

2. Detective Pikachu

A Mystery Installment That Inspired A Switch-Era Sequel & Hollywood Motion Picture

Despite the fact that the Pokemon franchise has significantly expanded since its initial release on the Nintendo Game Boy, it’s important to note that this child-oriented monster-catching role-playing series hasn’t remained static since its 1996 origins. While the main Pokemon games may seem like incremental updates on the gameplay from decades ago, they have consistently offered players fresh avenues to delve into the iconic universe of Pokemon by venturing into uncharted territories.

Despite initially appearing to be a specialized mystery-solving game for the 3DS, Detective Pikachu by Creatures Inc., offers players an engaging new way to explore their beloved Pokémon universe. This game also gives the iconic character, Pikachu, a chance to showcase its personality in a more profound manner. Although the 2016 version did not receive widespread critical or commercial acclaim, its fresh take on the Pokemon setting was powerful enough to inspire a Nintendo Switch sequel and a movie featuring Ryan Reynolds, which are based on its compelling narrative and gameplay mechanics.

3. The Legend Of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes

The Culmination Of Link’s Many Years Of Multiplayer Exploration

Among Nintendo’s most celebrated franchise series, The Legend of Zelda stands out as one of their top solo games and a defining title within the gaming industry. Yet, it’s important to note that the magical realm of Hyrule has not been shielded from experimental endeavors in Nintendo’s spin-off titles.

Despite Nintendo experimenting with cross-platform cooperative dungeon-crawlers and Dynasty Warriors-style Zelda spin-offs, the superior multiplayer experience within the Legend of Zelda franchise remains 2015’s 3D co-op adventure game, The Legend of Zelda: Tri Force Heroes. Building upon the foundations laid by The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures in terms of gameplay and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for its visual aesthetic, this Wi-Fi enabled multiplayer title on the Nintendo 3DS is brimming with personality and boasts a variety of intriguing puzzles and challenging boss battles.

4. Mario Versus Donkey Kong

The 21st-Century Interpretation Of Mario & DK’s Industry-Defining Feud

Initially, Nintendo’s iconic mustachioed character Mario and his ape adversary Donkey Kong were fierce rivals in the 1981 arcade game “Donkey Kong.” Over the years, they transformed from bitter enemies into each other’s frequent opponents, thanks to games like the puzzle-platformer interpretation of their conflict in “Donkey Kong” (1994) and the solidification of this genre shift in “Mario vs. Donkey Kong” (2004). These titles not only showcased their ongoing rivalry but also spawned a series that has seen numerous releases for Nintendo.

In essence, Mario vs. Donkey Kong takes the traditional roots of these characters in 2D and 3D platforming, but offers fresh interpretations to create an engaging puzzle game with distinctive levels featuring beloved Mario characters. The initial release received praise from critics, yet it didn’t achieve commercial success. Nevertheless, the series has persisted with numerous sequels, and a 2024 remake of the original 2004 game on the Nintendo Switch is planned.

5. Pokemon Trading Card Game

Simultaneously A Competent Card-Battler & Entry-Level Promotional Tool

Despite the anticipation among Pokemon fans for a new main series game, offering a fresh region to traverse, new Pokemon to train, and mysteries to unravel, it’s essential to remember that the Pokemon franchise encompasses far more than just these primary titles. The franchise extends into anime adaptations, collectible plush toys, the trading card game, and various spin-off video games. In an exceptional instance like the 1998 release of the Pokemon Trading Card Game on the Nintendo Game Boy, several of these components converged.

Each new Nintendo handheld device, starting from the original Game Boy up to the Nintendo Switch, has hosted spin-off titles based on the popular game “Pokemon”. The joint release by Creatures Inc and Hudson Soft was not just another Pokemon-themed game during Pokemania, but a tie-in title for Nintendo’s latest card game initiative. Featuring an expansive, interconnected world and hundreds of virtual packs of cards to unseal, the “Pokemon Trading Card Game” serves as both an educational tool for those exploring the card-based foundation of Pokemon’s global popularity and a unique portable RPG experience.

6. Metroid Prime Hunters

A Hardware-Defining Entry In The Boundary-Pushing Sci-Fi FPS Franchise

Given Retro Studios’ influential role in demonstrating both the graphical and gameplay prowess of various Nintendo systems through their Metroid Prime series, it’s logical to assume that the 2006 handheld spin-off, Metroid Prime Hunters, was designed to showcase similar capabilities on the Nintendo DS.

Even though players initially encountered Metroid Prime Hunters through a simplified demo named Metroid Prime Hunters: First Strike, which was included with every new Nintendo DS system at launch, the graphical quality and extensive gameplay found in the full retail version developed internally continues to be “an impressive sight in the world of mid-2000s handheld gaming.” Although certain adjustments were necessary due to the limitations of portable hardware, Metroid Prime Hunters‘ compelling storyline and its groundbreaking online multiplayer and voice chat features distinguish it from many other Nintendo spin-off games.

7. Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer

The Animal Crossing Spin-Off That Was Reinterpreted As Acclaimed DLC

The popular life simulation series from Nintendo, known as Animal Crossing, has seen significant commercial success recently, largely thanks to the launch of Animal Crossing: New Horizons in 2020. However, many of its current games’ customization and adaptability can be attributed to the initial spin-off of the Animal Crossing series – Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, which was released in 2015.

Using the same systems and graphics engine featured in the hit Nintendo 3DS game “Animal Crossing: New Leaf”, players are given a new challenge: designing and personalizing various themed homes for the different villager characters in the game. Despite “Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer” not being commercially successful, the release of the “Happy Home Paradise” expansion for “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” in 2021 has continued to build upon many of the advanced gameplay features initially developed for the “Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer” environment.

8. Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers Of Sky

An Expansive Pseudo-Sequel That Presents The World Of Pokemon In New Light

Given the immense success and profitability of the Pokémon franchise, largely due to its initial 1996 Nintendo Game Boy releases and subsequent sequels, it’s truly impressive that a game considered among Nintendo’s finest, like “Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky,” deviates from the core games’ design principles. Although it’s not the first Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Game, but an expanded sequel to the second generation of these games, it stands out as not only one of Nintendo’s best spin-off releases, but also one of the most remarkable side projects in gaming.

In the same vein as its predecessors, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky keeps the labyrinth exploration gameplay and charming pixel art style. However, it surpasses the acclaimed storyline found in Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Explorers of Darkness by offering a distinctly emotional and poignant narrative that sets it apart from the usual formulaic Pokemon universe.

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2025-04-09 06:20