Messages

51

TalkBack / Re: Multiple Switch Games To Receive Switch 2 Updates

« on: April 02, 2025, 11:58:18 AM »

Why on Earth did they not mention this in the Direct?  They made it sound like all Switch 2 upgrades would be a paid upgrade.  Having some paid upgrades but also the option for games to just run better on the Switch 2 for free is a much better sell than paid-only.

I guess they did mention Clubhouse Games.  I had forgotten by the time they got to the Switch 2 upgrades part though.

52

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch 2

« on: April 02, 2025, 11:26:31 AM »

Nintendo Canada has revealed the pricing for the system.  $630 for the base model, $700 for the Mario Kart bundle.  Uh... yeah I'm passing on that.  The Switch never got a price cut, but I'll see if Nintendo blinks on this one.

There is an irony that what will make it easy for me to wait is the sheer amount of Switch 1 games already available to me.  With consoles like the N64, Gamecube or Wii the release schedule had become so barren by the end that I had exhausted everything that seemed worth playing by the time the new system hit but here I could go for years and years.

53

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch 2

« on: April 02, 2025, 10:57:15 AM »

The dang Direct froze at one point while the audio was still going and when it came back it had rewound a few minutes back.  Most of the games I could hear a voiceover saying what the game was but there was one that was just music and sound effects and I have no idea what it was.  I got up at 6AM for this?

I'll stick with my Switch 1 for now.  I've got a good backlog and I don't see anything that compels me to buy the Switch 2.  Now games like Mario Kart and that new Donkey Kong look good.  That might be a system seller for others, just not me.  There are games that I would get if I had a Switch 2, I just see no need to deal with scalpers or shortages at this point.  Also I have a Switch OLED so I figure I could wait to see if an OLED Switch 2 comes out.

There is a touch of old arrogant Nintendo here though.  Paid upgrades for Switch 1 games, presenting chat like they invented the concept, charging money for their "Welcome" tech demo that I assumed would be a free pack-in.  They didn't reveal the price during the Direct itself and it's more than I would like.  They have not announced the CAD price which is going to be nuts and that just makes me all the less interested for now.

I don't see anything that sinks the system either though, which is good.  With the Wii U and 3DS I was worried that they would be complete bombs after seeing their debut (and I was right about the Wii U).  The system is probably capable enough and third parties were on board for the Direct so I don't see anything clearly stupid that would doom the whole system.  Nintendo can charge for frame rate upgrades on Switch 1 games and it will probably go over like a fart in church but the system itself will probably sell well and the games that should sell, like Mario Kart, will while the stuff that shouldn't, like that Welcome game, won't and then whoever the person at Nintendo who comes up with all their lousy ideas will go back to developing another 1-2 Switch game.  This will probably just keep the Switch train rolling.

They're really pushing this mouse thing though.  They do realize this is a handheld, right?  How do I play mouse games on an airplane?  Hell, I'm going to have move a TV tray into my game room to make this work.  This idea doesn't really fit the couch gameplay idea they're going for.

54

TalkBack / Re: SMT Action RPG Spinoff Devil Summoner To Be Remastered In June

« on: March 28, 2025, 02:28:44 PM »

The main character of this game looks a lot like a boss from SMT V that I had a lot of difficulty with and it gave me a bad flashback when he first appeared in the Direct video.

I'm happy to see this because the PS2 versions of the Raidou games are quite expensive these days.  I was never going to try them unless they got a re-release and now this is actually an option (and ironically these days Atlus games tend to be pretty easy to get physical copies of on sale).  I'm assuming the sequel will show up next year.

Digital Devil Saga would be good to get but those are actually pretty easy to find original copies of.  I found sealed copies for less than the price of a full-priced Switch game.  Of course you need a PS2 so that's not ideal for everyone but if you had to pick one or the other for a re-release I would go with the expensive one.

55

TalkBack / Re: What Are

« on: March 27, 2025, 05:20:04 PM »

The Switch has lots of ports/remakes/remasters but I hope Nintendo takes a few things into consideration regarding the specific circumstances of the Switch.

1. The third party ports are usually games that were released on the other current systems but came to the Switch late or are older games that were never on a Nintendo system before and are thus "new" to Nintendo-only fans.

2. Being a hybrid system there was value in console-exclusive games getting a portable version of the first time.

3. Wii U ports were accepted because the Wii U was a flop and thus the vast majority of the Switch userbase had never played them before.  They were effectively "new" games.  Mario Kart 8 on the Switch has sold more copies than the Wii U system itself ever did.

It would be naive, but a very typical corporate attitude, to look at how well remakes sold on the Switch and think that rehashing old content is a formula for success.  The Switch 2 is backwards compatible so every Switch owner that bought a big hit like Breath of the Wild doesn't need to buy a Switch 2 to play it, and doesn't gain the ability to play it on an airplane.  There isn't as much value if the remastered content is just a Switch game that's a little better.

Now if they have Switch 1 games that benefit from running on the Switch 2 or even has a Switch 2 upgrade that's an impulse level price that will probably do well, but I don't think it would be a big selling point for the majority of the existing userbase.  New games that aren't available on the Switch 1 are what will do that, and you can interpret "new" as "new for the Switch platforms".  I think if they remade older Nintendo games that have yet to show up on a Switch system that that would work, just don't rehash existing Switch games.

Now when Nintendo says "Switch 2 Exclusive" they likely mean from the perspective of the Switch ecosystem and it won't take into account if the game is also on the PS5 for example.  So in that sense "Switch 2 Edition" would mean a Switch 1 game.  I figure Nintendo WANTS to sell you Breath of the Wild again, I just don't know how successful of an idea that is.  It seems it would be an unnecessary disclaimer if it was just Switch games being enhanced.  If Xenoblade X runs in 60 FPS on the Switch 2 but it still a Switch 1 game, do you need a disclaimer?  You can still move the game between the two systems and while it will run better on one, it's still clearly the same copy of the game.

Though it is all possible that this is just a catch all disclaimer to cover their asses.  Metroid Prime 4 and Pokemon Legends Z-A may be simultaneous releases on the Switch 1 and 2 and this disclaimer would account for if you bought the Switch 2 version and tried to move to the Switch 1.  That is a possibility without Nintendo going nuts on Switch 1 ports.  Nintendo also is not in control of what third parties may do.  They will likely have releases across both platforms and may go port-happy and Nintendo needs the disclaimer for that.

56

TalkBack / Re: New Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Footage Shown

« on: March 27, 2025, 02:46:28 PM »

I was not expecting both this and Pokemon Legends Z-A to not have firm release dates shown.  I'm assuming the date does exist but that both titles will have some cross-platform release on the Switch 2, either a separate Switch 2 version or performance improvements when playing the game on Switch 2.  So they avoided revealing the release dates because that would reveal details about the Switch 2 release date and they're saving that for next week's Direct.

57

TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Airing Switch 1 Dedicated Direct Tomorrow

« on: March 26, 2025, 05:17:43 PM »

I was not expecting the rumours to be true as it seems so odd to have two directs so close together.  Why not just combine them or have done the Switch 1 direct a month ago?  If they had combined them they could easily have said "we also have some new games for the original Switch which will also be playable on the Switch 2" and then ended the event with that.

I expect we'll get proper release dates for Metroid Prime 4 and Pokemon Legends: Z-A.  For new stuff I'm thinking that remakes seem the most likely since they can make those fairly quickly and it would be seem odd to do something brand new and not make it a Switch 2 exclusive.  If it's something outright new then maybe it would be an eShop only title or something that can be thrown together reasonably soon like a Mario Party or something that re-uses assets.  Maybe localizing a third party title that's already done but hasn't been released here yet, like Dragon Quest X Offline.

Now are third parties going to be included in the Direct?  I can see some multi-platform games being shown where the Switch is just one of many platforms included and maybe a Switch 2 version shows up later on (or maybe gets revealed in a week).

58

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch Forum Favorites

« on: February 18, 2025, 02:34:17 PM »

RPGs are probably the most represented genre in my Switch collection but I have a pretty long backlog so some key games like Persona 5 Royal are still sitting there unplayed.  I tend to grab a lot of them when they're on sale so they don't get played right away.  And because RPGs are long I tend to alternate between them and other genres so I'm not playing 100 hours games back to back.

I'd say the best one I've played thus far is Dragon Quest XI.  DQ games are usually very traditional in their mechanics but that's not necessarily a bad thing because sometimes you just want straightforward turn-based RPG gameplay that's done really well.  The rest of the game feels and looks modern though so it isn't strictly a throwback.  It's just a no-frills approach to the gameplay.  It does have sections that are in 2D with retro style graphics though.  These look really nice but they're not as fun because those areas have random battles while the 3D areas do not.

I guess part of why I recommend it is that it's both something an RPG aficionado would really like but it's also a great introduction to the genre.  It has all the traditional elements of an RPG with experience points, spells, weapons, armor, towns, dungeons, etc.  The game also has a very generous demo on the Switch that lasts a good 10 hours or so.  So if you're potentially interested in the genre it's perfect for a Switch owner to try.  Then you can branch out to weirder stuff like SMT's demon fusing or Xenoblade's semi-action combat.  We're in an era where Final Fantasy isn't even turn-based anymore so DQXI is like the best "normal" RPG there is and then everything else branches out of that and goes in different directions.

I'll give an honorable mention to Pokemon Scarlet which tends to have a bad rep because of its technical issues.  It is a very janky game and you'll see graphical glitches if you just play the game for 30 seconds and move the camera around.  But in terms of how it plays, it's the 3D Pokemon game I wanted on the Gamecube.  So in that sense maybe it's graphics fit very well.  I would prefer the game to be polished of course but the open world design makes it feel like the grand Pokemon adventure I thought the series would become once it went 3D but instead the main series stayed on handhelds for a long time.  Though my goal was strictly to explore the world and fill the Pokedex.  I don't do serious battles or anything like that and I tend to only play a new Pokemon every three generations or so.  I'm not a hardcore Pokenut so maybe your opinion would differ if you are.

59

TalkBack / Re: An Opening Request List For Inevitable Switch 2 Ports

« on: January 21, 2025, 01:12:37 PM »

My main focus on the Switch has been RPGs.  Typically the new games that grab my interest would get a Switch version but last year I started noticing the Switch getting left out, likely because the hardware was getting old and the Switch 2 was upcoming.  I first noticed it with Persona 3 Reload and then later with Visions of Mana and Metaphor: ReFantazio.  It just feels like those games would be typical Switch games.  So I would like to see them on the Switch 2 and based on the support Square Enix and Atlus have provided the Switch 1, I expect them to show up.

Other than that, I would like to see series that are almost fully represented on the Switch get filled up on the Switch 2, so that a Switch 2 owner could conceivably get into a franchise and have the entire series available to them across the two platforms.  Outside of videogames that's typically how it works.  Music converted from records to CDs and the major artists had their entire discography converted.  Movies made the switch from VHS to DVD and the entire series was converted, not just like the first and fourth movies or something like that.  So Symphony of the Night totally fits in there.  I would like the entire Trails series as well since its reputation is that you need to play all the games in order but you can't on the Switch.  There are rights issues with Cold Steel I and II that may prevent that unfortunately but it doesn't make much sense to just plop games from the middle of the series on a system if playing the earlier games is essentially required, particularly since the series wasn't originally on Nintendo systems.

60

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch 2

« on: January 16, 2025, 11:16:39 AM »

I was thinking the rumours of the reveal being on Thursday were nonsense because Nintendo had not announced a Direct or anything like that by the end of Wednesday.  It just didn't seem likely they would just drop a trailer like this.

I really like that they outright confirmed that it plays both Switch 1 physical and digital games.  That was not completely clear.  Now that it is, I can probably say that I will get a Switch 2 at some point.  Probably not at launch as I currently have an OLED so I would wait for a comparable screen (unless this has that) in a revision.

This trailer was hurt by the fact that almost all of this had leaked.  Like it wasn't just that the general concept was leaked but I had already seen the system's exact appearance and even the logo.  The one surprise was Mario Kart.  That is such an obvious and brilliant choice for a launch title.  Let's not mess around - Mario Kart 8 sold better than anything so let's give them a new Mario Kart.  Hopefully that actually is a real game and not just some demo footage.

I like that it's just a better Switch.  I was a little worried that Nintendo would get cute and introduce gimmicks.  The Switch is such a success in virtually all ways.  It has sold like gangbusters and has a wide selection of both first and third party games and those games sell.  For all the success of the Wii, the attach rate was abysmal and third party complained that their games didn't sell on it.  Not so with the Switch.  The only real complaints about the Switch are Joycon drift and tech heads complain about its frame rate and resolution and stuff like that.  But I get my first party Nintendo games and virtually all third party games I'm interested in show up in versions that are still perfectly playable even if they aren't the best version.  For Nintendo, why mess with a good thing?  Even the straightforward name of Switch 2 indicates to me that they're happy to take this great gaming experience and just extend it another 8 years.

But I want more details.  What's the release date?  The price?  What type of screen is that?  Is there a change to how the sticks work to prevent drift?  The leaks indicate that the Joycons attach with magnets but it didn't outright say that in the trailer (though it looks like that's what's happening).  Is there a Pro Controller?  Do existing Switch controllers work with it?  What's the battery life?

61

TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Announces Full Backwards Compatibility And Retention Of Nintendo Switch Online For Succ

« on: November 06, 2024, 12:36:31 PM »

The ambiguity about if physical releases are included here is annoying but I'm still pretty happy about this.  I felt like this was a litmus test if Nintendo had gone off the deep end or not.  If they didn't have it all that would not bode well for the Switch successor.  Nintendo can do really strange things but this is something very conventional and if the Switch 2 can play Switch 1 games then you know the Switch 2 is still somewhat of a conventional video game system.  I think of how Nintendo really pushed the 3D aspect of the 3DS and that didn't really catch on but the guts of the DS were still in there so it still worked well as DS successor even if it's big gimmick didn't take the world by storm.

But there was a part of the briefing that isn't as notable but combined with this makes me feel quite confident in the Switch 2.  Nintendo emphasized their third party relationships.  I love my Switch but my library is not predominantly first party.  Now that Nintendo has great third party support again, my library more closely resembles what my SNES library looked like with a lot of third party games and Nintendo having no real prominence over other publishers.  So I'm glad that they regard third party support as important and as something to maintain with the Switch successor.  And third party support plus backwards compatibility means that the Switch 2 is not going to be some insane wacky system that misses why the Switch was successful.

Though I really want physical backwards compatibility and I'm a little on edge until that's confirmed.  But they very well may have a digital-only model and a physical model, following current trends.  It would seem odd for them to have a version that supports physical media but then have it be completely incompatible with existing Switch carts.  Just to maintain the portable nature of the system you figure they would stick with the carts.  They're not going to switch to optical discs or anything like that.

62

TalkBack / Re: It's Happening: Xenoblade Chronicles X To Be Remastered In March 2025

« on: October 30, 2024, 12:32:19 PM »

There is a part of me that feels a little sad for the Wii U.  From a retro gaming perspective the Wii U is effectively useless.  There really is no point in owning one anymore.  But then since it has now been revealed that Wii Us are not so durable for future use, maybe that's not a bad thing.  In a way Wii U ownership was like belonging to an exclusive club that had early access to Switch games.

I have Xenoblade 2 and 3 sitting in the backlog so I don't really have room for this.  I never finished the game but my Wii U still works for now so I'll likely stick with that version if I decide to return to it.  I recently tried to resume my very old playthrough of Xeno 1 on the Wii so I have the proper context for the sequels.  I was hopelessly lost of course but also found that I struggled to read the text and the SD visuals looked like a blurry mess.  So I'm thinking I might need to upgrade to the Switch HD version.  First time I can think of having to do something like that because of the effects of aging.

Now every Xenoblade game is on one console which is great for any fans that first got into the series on the Switch, which is probably a lot because of how obscure the older releases were.  The Switch is an amazing system for RPGs and it's a good mix of new and old titles.  By itself it can provide a great history lesson for the genre so I kind of like it when a re-release like this occurs that helps fill in the gaps.

63

TalkBack / Re: Capcom Fighting Collection Brings Multiple Lost Classics To Switch In 2025, Release Date Reveale

« on: August 27, 2024, 12:38:14 PM »

I recently got a nice arcade stick on sale for the Switch, in anticipation of the Marvel collection.  I have the first Capcom Fighting Collection already so the stick has already gotten use.  But now I'm a little concerned about the physical release coming out after the digital and being "limited".  Maybe I have to pre-order it.

Of course I'll be adding Capcom Fighting Collection 2 to the list as well.  I've got most of those Street Fighter games in some form but Project Justice, Plasma Sword and the Power Stone games are all very obscure and it will great to give those a go.

64

TalkBack / Re: First Game In Long-Running Trails Franchise To Get 3D Switch Remake In 2025

« on: August 27, 2024, 12:34:19 PM »

This is very cool but almost happening a little too late.  Ideally we want the entire Trails series available on the Switch but the Switch 2 is right on the doorstep.  So what are the odds that remakes of all three of the Sky games actually get released on the Switch 1, let alone the two missing Cold Steel games?

Now all the Cold Steel games actually are on the Switch, just the first two aren't localized as they were originally published by XSeed and the series is now published by NIS.  XSeed owns the rights to their English translation and aren't willing to license it to NIS and NIS doesn't want to invest in doing their own.  So from a Japan-specific point of view it's only the Sky games that are missing.  But even then the timing here is tight.  Even if they make one remake per year, the third one would likely show up after the Switch 2 has been out for at least a year, maybe two.

65

TalkBack / Re: Fantasy Life i To Miss Harvest Season

« on: August 19, 2024, 12:07:25 PM »

This is going to miss the Switch and end up on the Switch 2 instead, isn't it?

I have enough of a backlog for the Switch that I don't really feel the need to jump on the Switch 2 right away.  A side effect of that is that I've become nervous about any in-development Switch game that I'm interested in not getting completed in time for a Switch release to make sense.  If it doesn't have a set 2024 release date I have my doubts.  From a business perspective does it even make sense for Level-5 to release a bunch of Switch games right at the end of that system's life?

66

TalkBack / Re: Good-Feel's Mystical Ninja Spiritual Successor Receiving Spike Chunsoft Localization September 3

« on: August 14, 2024, 02:11:55 AM »

The demo is now available on the North American eShop and I gave it a go.  It feels like a Nintendo game, which is obviously a good thing.  I guess that makes sense since Good Feel has recently worked on Nintendo games.  The controls feel tight and the gameplay is smooth.  I thought it was quite fun.  The demo has four levels, two being the normal gameplay, one shooter level, and one mech fight.

67

General Gaming / Re: What is the last game you beat? Thoughts/impressions?

« on: July 31, 2024, 11:27:33 PM »

Just got 100% in Yoku's Island Express (Switch).  I liked the demo so it had been on my radar for a bit.  I was hoping for physical release but they recently had a sale where it was only a couple bucks so I decided to just go digital for it.

It's a pinball Metroidvania.  I've been playing a lot of the reproductions of Williams pinball tables in Pinball FX so I've been on a virtual pinball kick the last few years (and real pinball when I get a chance).  I like Metroidvanias a lot but I kind of suck at them.  I usually am good at figuring out secret passages and such but tend to suck at fighting bosses which are common in the genre.  But this one essentially replaces that part of the genre with virtual pinball, which I'm reasonably good at.  The idea sounds odd in theory but the layout of the world is designed very well so it all works and the demo does a good job of, uh, demonstrating the concept.  If you like the demo, you'll like the game... unless you're really bad at pinball.

My one complaint is there are parts where you have to swing from these flowers to get to high places and the timing is tricky and if you mess up you usually fall a long ways and have to climb back up.  What I found especially frustrating about them is that there is no pinball elements involved so it requires me to be good at something that is unrelated to the skills needed for the rest of the game.  The closest comparison is probably the barrel levels in Donkey Kong Country.  I also noticed that if the game was on for a fair bit that the performance would get worse and I would start to see slowdown and extra load times.  It fixed it once I exited the game and went back in so there must be some memory leak or something.  But save points are frequent so it's easy to reset the game if it happens without losing progress.

It ended up being one of those games that once I start it it has its hooks in me so deep that I end up plowing through it as soon as my free time allows.  I liked it similar to how much I liked Metroid Zero Mission.  So if a pinball Metroidvania sounds even remotely interesting to you the demo is worth a try and then you'll probably want more.

68

TalkBack / Re: New Famicom Detective Club Announced, Mystery of Emio The Smiling Man Launching August 29

« on: July 18, 2024, 12:36:44 PM »

If it was a survival horror game I probably wouldn't get it as that's not a genre I'm really into.  But as a Detective Club game I'm very interested!  I was not expecting that so it's a nice payoff for the Emio teaser.

However I have not yet played the Famicom Detective Club remakes, which I want to play first.  Why haven't I yet?  Because those games have never gone on sale to my knowledge.  Nintendo isn't very into sales like Switch third parties are but at least if there is a physical release you might catch a store having a sale.  Since these are eShop exclusives their price is entirely up to Nintendo's whim and they haven't put them on sale.  So I've never been in a rush to get them since I have other games to play.  Now, maybe they'll finally get a sale to coincide with Emio's release?  If there was a time to do it, that would make sense.

69

TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Direct To Air June 18 At 10 AM Eastern

« on: June 17, 2024, 12:06:00 PM »

There's a selfish part of me that wants the last few Wii U exclusives to remain exclusive, just to give that system some reason to have existed.  But aside from X the entire Xenoblade series is available for the Switch so why not give people the option to enjoy it all.  Due to the obscurity of the series before the Switch (late Gamestop exclusive Wii game, Wii U exclusive, 3DS port that requires the NEW 3DS) I wouldn't be surprised if the majority of fans have only played the series on the Switch so might as well make everything available to them.

70

TalkBack / Re: Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance (Switch) Review

« on: June 12, 2024, 11:50:46 AM »

I've been playing the original SMT V on and off for a while and I'm currently at the last boss. I got the game on sale and I've put over 100 hours into it so I can't really complain that I didn't get my money's worth.  I would prefer obviously that there be some way to upgrade to Vengeance with DLC.

Though the game is so difficult and demanding that once I beat it, I can't really imagine going through it again.  I need a palette cleanser and some easier RPGs before I tackle another SMT.  So even if the upgrade was available I don't know if it would make sense for me to buy it because it would likely be years before I would start playing it.

Sega Atlus games tend to get marked down in price.  If I wait, odds are Vengeance physical copies will be getting marked down to the point where it would essentially be the cost of DLC.  So if I'm interested I can get it then.  Do I regret getting the base version?  Not really because I've put over 100 hours into it.  If it was sitting in my backlog unplayed I would be annoyed but I clearly made use of the time between it's original release and now.

71

TalkBack / Re: Nintendo To Announce Switch Successor In Current Fiscal Year, Direct Next Month

« on: May 07, 2024, 01:04:39 PM »

Interesting that they would just casually mention this in a shareholder's meeting.  This pretty much means a 2025 Switch 2.  I'm both excited and nervous.  With the Switch Nintendo finally had good third party support again for the first time in 20 years.  But do they know why?  Is the Switch a happy accident or perfect execution of a good plan?  With Nintendo you never know.  Most of us are hoping for a Switch 2 but Nintendo might double down on Labo instead or something like that.  They're very unpredictable.

Though you would think that this announcement of an announcement could hurt Switch system sales.  Obviously you have to announce these things with some time before the launch but you don't want to do it too early.  And this isn't the old days where an announcement like this is largely unknown to the general public beyond hardcore enthusiasts.  This is on social media.  You can assume that the average consumer will be aware of this when they're Christmas shopping this year.

72

Nintendo Gaming / Re: What will Nintendo release in 2024?

« on: March 14, 2024, 01:57:39 PM »

Regarding third party support I figure there is a big difference in attitude depending on if a person has only a Switch or also has another current console.  For multiplatform third party games the Switch version is usually the worst and often costs a bit extra.  So if you own a PS4 or 5 and don't specifically desire portability you'll probably get the game on one of those systems instead.  If that's your situation then the Switch's usefulness is entirely based on its exclusives, which is usually going to be first party games.

73

TalkBack / Re: Akira Toriyama (1955 - 2024)

« on: March 08, 2024, 12:28:21 PM »

I wouldn't have thought of myself specifically as a fan but I realize that Toriyama tied into the changing tastes of my life.  When I was a teen I was into Dragon Ball Z, then as a young adult got more into the original Dragon Ball.  Dragon Quest VIII is really when RPGs clicked with me after earlier attempts to get into the genre and then that expanded into a wider interest in the Dragon Quest series as a hole.  Dragon Quest XI was my first Switch game and I put over 100 hours into it.  I have some great memories where Toriyama's art design is integral and, being visual, is the first thing I would think of when reflecting back.

I guess he's kind of like Jack Kirby, who I never really thought of myself as a fan of but then realized his work was weaved into my pop culture tastes.  I didn't really know who Kirby was until after his death so this time I'm well aware of who this person is when they pass.  So I felt a little sad when I saw the news, more so than I would typically feel for a public figure that I don't know personally.  RIP Akira Toriyama.

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TalkBack / Re: New Shin Megami Tensei V Title Revealed, Vengeance Reaps June 21

« on: February 22, 2024, 03:12:28 PM »

I've been playing SMTV off and on for a while now.  I'm trying to stick to one game at a time on the Switch but there are certain exceptions and Pokemon and Zelda were allowed to temporarily bump it.  Now I got the Pokemon DLC for Christmas so SMTV got bumped again.  I appear to be at the very end so there's not much left.

The game is really long and pretty hard, at least compared to the typical RPG I would play.  I like it a lot but it's kind of gone on too long and I want to wrap it up.  I've also been resisting switching the difficulty to the easiest setting which would presumably let me finish it quicker but I've been over 100 hours in without doing that so it feels like a cop-out to do it now.

In that sense, I don't really feel like buying a second version of the game.  But the first SMTV ended up becoming pretty cheap.  I paid $50 CAD a few years ago and it felt like a good deal but it has since been marked down to $30.  So if Vengeance gets marked down to a low price, maybe I would consider it.  But then I don't think SMTIV Apocalypse ever became cheap and it's now very pricey.  If I got the game on a low price then I figure I would play through it on the easiest difficulty, just to experience the gist of it without committing another 100+ hours.

Ideally though this should be DLC.  In modern times it makes no sense to double-dip on games when everyone else lets existing owners upgrade.

75

Nintendo Gaming / Re: Switch is so popular people don't even post

« on: January 02, 2024, 01:53:39 PM »

The Switch does have tons of ports and re-releases.  But I don't find it to be a problem because the Switch has strong enough third party support that there are enough new games on the system available that you could avoid the re-releases and still have a healthy backlog of stuff to play.  Prior to the Switch Nintendo would remake an old game and that was it, for like a three month window.  Play this port or play nothing.

I also wouldn't discount PS4 ports even if they come a few years late.  Again, back in the Gamecube days a port of a well regarded PS2 game was a valuable entry in the library.  That sort of thing isn't great if you own all the current systems but if you only own the Nintendo one then that's essentially a new game.  It's the sort of thing that between the SNES and Switch was rare for Nintendo consoles.  Over the last year I'm starting to see the types of games I'm interested in get announced for the PS5 and not the Switch but prior to that I could kind of assume that the Switch would get the games I'm interested in.  And if that's happening for like 80% of the games on your radar then you don't get hung up on the missing 20%.

With digital downloads now being the norm I would expect a significant amount of old games available on the eShop.  When music switched from records to CDs or videos from VHS to DVD it wasn't like only new content was available.  Classic content made the conversion as well.  If you went to a book store historically it wasn't like the shelves only had books written in the last five years, there were classics that would remain in print for decades.  Videogames should have the same thing.  The fact that Nintendo made that Mario 3D collection a limited time release is nuts.  Those games should just be "in print" forever in whatever digital store Nintendo has.  So in the modern world a console should have tons of old stuff, it just needs to also have a steady stream of new games.

Something I've thought of is if you loaded up the max SD card the Switch can support (which I think is 2 TB) you would have a fantastic time capsule of video game history since it has so many key games from Atari to the present.  If you were to send something out to space like the Voyager Golden Record a fully loaded Switch would be perfect.