UPDATE

The archive has been taken offline.

In December of 2012, iconic gaming magazine Nintendo Power closed its doors for good. Now, nearly four years later, high-quality scans of the first 145 issues ranging from the classic Super Mario Bros 2 issue in August 1988 to the Gameboy Advance cover story of June of 2001 have been released on the Internet Archive for public consumption. This covers everything from the Nintendo Entertainment System to the Gameboy Advance, including a now-hilarious issue with a twenty-page cover story hyping up the Virtual Boy. Everything's just as you remembered it - from the in-depth tips and tricks to the Howard and Nester comics to the baffling game of the year picks. (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the NES? Seriously?)

Nintendo Power was a monthly gaming magazine originally published by Nintendo of America, before briefly moving independent and later being picked up by PC Gamer and Official Xbox Magazine publisher Future US in 2007. On August 21st of 2012, Nintendo announced they would not renew licensing agreements with Nintendo, and the final issue on New Super Mario Bros U was published that December. In January of 2013, a spiritual successor Nintendo Force was released, which is still publishing to this day.

While Internet Archive may be the most complete archive of Nintendo Power at the moment, they certainly aren't the first to attempt a Nintendo Power archive. Other sites such as Nparchive and Retromag maintain similar efforts attempts that they have worked on in the past, although they don't have nearly as much content uploaded as Internet Archive. At the time of writing, it is unknown if the 140 Nintendo Power issues not yet uploaded or The Official Nintendo Player's Guide will be available later down the line.

Quick Take

This is easily the best news I've read in weeks. Nintendo Power was a huge part of my childhood, and I obsessed over every issue, reading them multiple times a day on occasion. It's safe to say that if I didn't read Nintendo Power, I certainly wouldn't be anywhere near as invested in gaming and games journalism as I am today. I look forward to setting aside some time later today, heading to the archive, and taking a trip down memory lane.

Do you know of any other sites or groups that have been working on similar preservation projects? Share them in the comments with us!