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[A hail mary that tries to thread the needle between Tecmo Bowl and Madden and falls short of the goal line.]

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TalkBack / Legend Bowl (Switch) Review

« on: August 09, 2023, 07:05:28 AM »

A hail mary that tries to thread the needle between Tecmo Bowl and Madden and falls short of the goal line.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/64496/legend-bowl-switch-review

I have been so starved for portable Madden that I put too much time into the PC version that constantly crashes and runs like garbage on Steam Deck last year. I exist as an entity on the prowl for a meal that satisfies my male desire to call plays dotted with Xs and Os. I crave the arcane feeling of simulating an entire season of football just to see the numbers go up and down on my virtual army. So when I heard Legend Bowl - a retro-looking football game headed up by an ex-Madden developer - was coming to Switch, I got very excited. Unfortunately, that excitement dimmed the more I played, even if the foundation shows promise for future seasons.

While Legend Bowl might initially conjure up feelings of Tecmo Bowl, the actual feel and gameplay is closer to Madden, specifically the old ‘90s 2D style. You have a full playbook with a variety of plays as the camera is behind the quarterback from an aerial vantage point. The controls took a little bit of getting used to but definitely felt familiar to me as a Madden veteran. This was all very promising as I queued up my first play. Then I snapped the ball and the game moved like molasses by default. It felt like every player with the ball had the speed of B.J. Raji (or William “the Refrigerator” Perry if you want a non-Wisconsin reference). Runs of a yard or two took eons. Breaking free in open space made every 10 yards you ran feel like an eternity. Thankfully, there is an option to tweak the game speed, but even with a faster pace, this is a game designed with slower intent in mind. It's a bandage (a patch, if you will) and not a full salve.

Legend Bowl is a game that looks like it should be an arcade sports hit, but it tries too hard to lean on the simulation side while losing sight of arcade immediacy. My attempts at multiplayer with friends fell flat, with some of the biggest issues coming from the pace and the finicky nature of passing the ball. A toggleable pass assist option helps a lot, but the default makes throwing the ol’ pigskin effectively lean too much on precision. In a football game I don’t need to be reminded of how difficult it is to play quarterback (I can just watch that game where the Broncos played a backup wide receiver at QB for that); I want to feel like I can be an All-Pro, especially when playing with friends. This game did not have the staying power a lot of recent successful arcade sports games have had, which is very important since it lacks online play.

Aside from the moment-to-moment gameplay, the depth of the franchise mode is impressive. As I said at the top, I’m a sucker for seeing the skill numbers of my team go up and down during a sports season. The 32-team league and 17-game schedule that comically apes the real NFL is engrossing in a way that Madden has slowly gotten away from in the past few years. The franchise mode, as well as the tournament mode and other options, add a high degree of customization to Legend Bowl that is welcome. I just wish I liked playing the actual game more than I do.

The structure in place here is encouraging though and I hope Legend Bowl has a future as the football video game landscape is dire, especially on Switch. Refining the gameplay or deepening gameplay options and tutorials could go a long way into making this an arcade classic. To bake in a relevant sports metaphor, this game is like the first season after moving on from a franchise legend. You could wind up with a losing first season but end up with a first-ballot Hall of Famer when their career is over. Or this could turn out to be a bust and get the head coach fired. Only time will tell because there is a lotta ballgame left.

[Asteroids in meteor form.]

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TalkBack / Hyper Meteor (Switch) Review

« on: July 27, 2023, 08:00:00 AM »

Asteroids in meteor form.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/64382/hyper-meteor-switch-review

High-score-chasing arcade-style games are one of the core foundations of video games, as back in the day the likes of Pac-Man, Space Invaders, and Asteroids were based primarily on who could get the highest score and stay on the cabinet leaderboards. It’s a well that I enjoy returning to every so often on modern platforms. I have fond memories of being sucked into the legendary Xbox Live Arcade game Geometry Wars 2. In the same vein of that retro-futuristic style, the developer Vertex Pop has been peppering Switch with indelible slices of arcade goodness with games such as their 2017 release Graceful Explosion Machine and the 2020 port of We Are Doomed. Their latest Switch release, Hyper Meteor, is a simple but engrossing ride that draws heavy inspiration from the classic Asteroids. It’s electric to play, with an intuitive design and good online leaderboard integration.

Hyper Meteor is also weird in that it is a port of a Playdate game. To the unfamiliar, the Playdate is the little yellow handheld with a monochromatic screen and a crank. It’s very much a system that has more in common with the Game Boy or Game & Watch than any other console released in the past three decades; so that makes Hyper Meteor’s Switch version an interesting experiment. Does the black-and-white stylings translate well to Switch? It does indeed, especially thanks to added modes and co-op.

It’s a two-button game, where one boosts your ship forward and the other deploys a limited-use screen-clearing bomb. You boost your ship into the lighter-shaded areas of meteors or enemies while you avoid ramming into the darker-shaded side or villainous fire. The basic mode is an endless one, where you just keep going until you run out of lives. That’s all that is available at the start, but playing the game quickly unlocks the other three modes. Meteor mode revolves around deploying explosions to wipe out the untouchable meteors that populate the screen. Countdown is a challenge to get the highest score in a three-minute time limit. Lastly is Waves mode where you try to get the highest score possible while trying to survive 40 waves of foes.

That is, more or less, the whole game. Flourishes exist along the way in the form of unlockable color palettes and music. An array of in-game achievements offer additional goals. The online leaderboards are present for every mode, and while I’m currently playing pre-release, I am already suckered into trying to top the few high scores out there and look forward to seeing if any friends pick this up.

What I appreciate the most about Hyper Meteor is that it perfectly walks the line of being dazzling and fun to play without achieving mastery. That’s something that carries through every Vertex Pop game, but it was also something that stood out to me as I first played this in its simpler form on Playdate. It just feels good to zoom around the screen and ram some meteors and enemies. Extra lives and bombs show up at a frequent enough clip that you usually have a buffer. Of course you can also go psycho mode and just aim for never breaking your multiplier and restarting when you do. I don’t recommend doing that in the local co-op lest you lose your partner. That being said, the local co-op is a great addition, especially as you’re plotting strategy in the time-limited or meteor-exploding modes.

Hyper Meteor rocks as it succeeds at being a fun arcade high-score chaser with a lot of good vibes and enjoyable details. Even if you only put a few hours into it exploring each mode and visual flourish, it’s still a worthwhile game. But if you go down the rabbit hole of chasing high scores, you’ll be rocketing into meteors for days.

[Part 1 of the 2D Mario Game Club]

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Podcast Discussion / Episode 375: 2D Mario Game Club - The NES Era

« on: July 28, 2023, 07:16:55 AM »

Part 1 of the 2D Mario Game Club

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/64387/episode-375-2d-mario-game-club-the-nes-era

Matt joins John and Neal to talk through the titles that redefined console gaming. How has the original Super Mario Bros. aged? What's the best version of Mario 2? Can anyone think of anything bad to say about Mario 3? And is anyone even watching Marvel Secret Invasion?

[Come along and sing the song and join the jamboree: M-I-C-K-E-Y, V-A-N-I-A.]

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TalkBack / Disney Illusion Island (Switch) Review

« on: July 27, 2023, 04:00:00 AM »

Come along and sing the song and join the jamboree: M-I-C-K-E-Y, V-A-N-I-A.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/64381/disney-illusion-island-switch-review

When Disney Illusion Island was revealed at D23 in 2022, I didn’t pay much attention to it. When it showed up at various showcases later on, I enjoyed seeing the cartoony animation but aside from that, I didn’t have high hopes that this would be anything more than a nice-looking generic licensed platformer. However, after hearing the developers call it a “Mickeyvania” and talk passionately about how this is an exploration-heavy platformer made for the whole family, my ears perked up. I love me some Metroid and all of the indie games it inspired, but the majority of those skew more difficult or at the very least require knowledge of the genre. Illusion Island bucks that trend, and after spending a number of hours with it both by myself and with my family, I’m ready to be signed up as a Mouseketeer because Disney and developer Dlala Studios have made a game that takes the paramount concepts of a Metroidvania platformer and distilled them into a form that is fun for all ages while not being a pushover. This is 2D Metroid made gentle or maybe more apt for the year it comes out: this is to Metroid what Super Mario RPG is to Final Fantasy.

The premise for Illusion Island reminds me of the Sega Genesis-era Mickey games like Castle of Illusion. Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy wind up on a mysterious island where they’re tasked with collecting three legendary tomes to help out a group of locals trying to restore order. The gameplay and world doesn’t have a lot of overt Disney references, as the folks you interact with are all original characters. That being said, to a degree this just feels like a new Mickey Mouse cartoon. While there aren’t a ton of cut scenes, each one is a few minutes of adorably written and lovingly drawn animations highly reminiscent of modern Mickey Mouse media. It’s filled with a lot of tongue-in-cheek jokes that reference video game tropes, much in the same way Pixar movies stick in gags that adults will get instantly and that kids won’t be bothered that they didn’t fully understand the bit.

Beyond the story and setup is the truly magical part of Illusion Island: it’s a blast to play. The Metroidvania world layout and overall design is highly evocative of Ori and Rayman Legends, though the challenge skews significantly easier. That doesn’t mean it’s a breeze, though. Early on, it’s definitely sleepwalk-easy for anyone with a decent amount of platformer experience. By the back half though, it became way more demanding than I expected. This never enters any stratosphere of Meat Boy levels of pain, but if you play on the hardest difficulty, you might be surprised by how hard this game can get. Of course, you can make it so you have multiple hits before you perish, even making it way easier by having infinite health. Checkpoints are reasonably spaced so even if you do go hard, it’s never that frustrating.

The marketed appeal is that this is a four-player platformer that can accommodate players of all skill levels. In my experiences playing a few hours with my kids, Illusion Island lives up to that promise. Every player can choose their own difficulty and toggle different assists, ranging from a jump assist to a wall-cling ability. One player can even drop a rope when they reach the top of an area, so the others can join them easily if they’re having a hard time. The multiplayer is local only, which is a little bit of a bummer even if I think the ideal experience for this involves adults and kids playing in the same room.

In addition to my time with the multiplayer, I played through the game and 100%-ed it on my own, which took me around 8-9 hours. This was way more compelling as a solo experience than I expected, with a good amount of secrets to uncover and a cadre of collectables to find. I found myself bouncing between which character I played as, largely because every power-up and ability has a unique animation. Mickey hovers in a cycle-copter while Donald comically flaps two feathers to stay afloat. Goofy rides a hot pepper for a secondary jump boost while Minnie grapples with a carabiner on a string. Aside from the whimsy of the animations, the characters play identically and all of the abilities are stock platformer upgrades. However, in the later stages, the degree that you can move effortlessly around the screen is thrilling. Movement feels good across the board.

Movement is important because that’s basically your only means of interaction with enemies since this is largely a non-combat game. It felt weird at first, but the deeper I got, the more I enjoyed the flow of rhythmically moving past enemies. The baddies have a good deal of variety, too, with each area and biome adding new twists and designs. You can find out all their goofy names by collecting different cards hidden throughout the world. Other collectables include Mickey Mouse memorabilia that references different shorts Mickey and the gang have appeared in over the past century and hidden Mickeys strewn across the background. The hidden Mickeys are a cool touch, but for some reason you aren’t introduced to collecting them until after you go through a few areas. Backtracking is the name of the game, but it’s frustrating to have to redo an area no matter how attentive to detail you are (an option to give visual and audio cues when you’re nearby a hidden Mickey minorly alleviates the issue). The most noticeable items to find are “Glimts” - little balls of light that number in the thousands. Finding these unlocks lore about the world you’re in as well as extra hearts that let you weather more hits, something that definitely came in handy during the more challenging late-game segments.

I’m blown away by Disney Illusion Island. In a sea of hard-as-nails Metroidvanias like Hollow Knight or Metroid Dread, it stands out as being just as well-crafted but skewing towards a different, gentler experience. This is the platonic ideal for an entry-level platformer because it is filled with smartly designed gameplay that takes well-worn tropes and makes them more approachable for everyone while still providing a nice romp for those experienced with these types of games. If you’re a parent who wishes your child would cut the crap and start playing Symphony of the Night with you, maybe start them here and then work your way up to fighting Dracula with some pit stops like Ori and Guacamelee along the way. Here’s hoping the quality of this game leads to the Quackshot remake of my dreams.

[We will patiently wait for the Edward Scissorhands and Pikmin crossover game.]

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TalkBack / 6 Things We Learned About Pikmin's Development

« on: July 18, 2023, 08:08:00 AM »

We will patiently wait for the Edward Scissorhands and Pikmin crossover game.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/64323/6-things-we-learned-about-pikmins-development

Did you know that when Pikmin was revealed in 2001 at E3 and Shigeru Miyamoto said it would be out that year that all they had done was more or less what was in the demo? That’s just a taster of what was revealed in Nintendo’s Ask the Developer Interview about Pikmin 4. The first installment brought together members of the original Pikmin development team that started working on the game way back in the days of the Nintendo 64. Some of the tidbits are fascinating. Here’s six things that we learned.

The Original Idea Revolved Around “Thought Chips”

Shigefumi Hino and Masamichi Abe started working on what would become Pikmin in the mid-1990s with the guiding idea of displaying a “large number of characters on screen.” This idea, according to Hino, was to take these characters and control them using “thought chips” that would instruct them to do specific tasks such as fight, defend, and heal. As the game wore on, the AI-controlled characters would be able to equip more chips.

Early Pikmin Creature Designs Were Inspired by Tim Burton

The first design of the creatures for this prototype were more Yoshi-like according to Hino, but he “felt it lacked impact as a character.” Miyamoto added that part of the goal was to make a critter that high school girls would find cute.

In came the designer Junji Morii who put together a number of sketches that solidified the look of the elongated Pikmin. He cited his affinity for Tim Burton’s worlds, saying that he “wanted the designs to not just be cute, but also give a sense of eeriness, or some emotional weight.”

Hino added that he “wanted to take a bold step and depict a somber, mature, and mysterious world.” The team watched the 1973 French animated movie Fantastic Planet for inspiration. Hino even tried to read The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins, though he admitted it was too complex for him to wrap his head around. Miyamoto elaborated on their inspirations by saying they all watched a bunch of arthouse indie movies that “you wouldn’t find in regular video stores.” I would kill to know this list that helped fuel the weird GameCube era of Nintendo.

Mario 128 Didn’t Actually Directly Influence Pikmin

Over the past 20 years, it seemed to be assumed canon that the GameCube demo Mario 128 was directly connected to Pikmin. That, according to programmer Yuji Kando, was not the case. “We didn't know about the existence of Mario 128, so it's not like Pikmin was influenced by Mario 128 in terms of planning or technology, but many new ideas came out of Nintendo GameCube's ability to move a large number of characters, which wasn't possible back in the days of Nintendo 64.”

That’s not to say Mario 128 didn’t help Pikmin out along the way; it likely doesn’t exist as is without that tech demo. But the paramount ideas of the game were laid out well in advance of the demo and core members of the development team weren’t involved with Mario 128. That being said, as NWR’s John Rairdin pointed out, Miyamoto was intimately involved in the creation of Pikmin and he definitely knew about Mario 128.

The Development Team Had Doubts About Violence and Death in Pikmin

At this point, we all know what happens when you fail your Pikmin and they die. A Bulborb will scoop them up in their mouth and chomp away until you hear the final screams of your beloved critters and they disappear into a ghostly form. It’s just accepted now that after you use your army to take down a Fiery Blowhog, you carry its carcass back to your base so you can generate more Pikmin to enlist in your mission. But according to Miyamoto, he had some real doubts. “Are we dead set on doing this?” he recalled with a laugh.

Part of the overall goal of Pikmin was to, as Hino said, “convey a touch of somberness.” That overall touch of borderline magical realism seems to have been an inspiration from the European indie films the team watched.

Of course even if this all seems very artistic, Miyamoto is quick to clarify that the gameplay came first, as is Nintendo’s way.

At E3 2001, Miyamoto Lied And Said The Game Was Finished

He didn’t even beat around the bush: “At E3, I spoke as if the game was finished. (Laughs).”

In actuality, only the stage shown at E3 was complete. And that was specifically made for E3. Edits to the debut trailer were being made days before E3, with Miyamoto having a heavy hand because he only joined the team as a director earlier that year (he was a producer on the title prior). He said to Abe, one of the game’s other directors, that “I’ll join as a director, so please give me three months. I’ll step down if it fails.” Miyamoto was so bold because he was confident that the game would be finished for the launch of the GameCube later in 2001. Who knows if he’s just saying that in hindsight or not.

When he joined, he put together a game flow diagram of what Pikmin would be. We can’t totally see the full details of this game design document, but it’s a rare look into how Miyamoto lays out a game. He explains the diagram further: “At first glance, this diagram just looks like a bunch of cryptic sentences strung together, but if you follow each sentence one by one, you can understand the program's flow with this single sheet. In other words, nothing other than what’s written here will happen. It always happens with game development. We want to do this, we want to do that, and we end up with lots of new elements. Then the director says, ‘Well, I guess we'll have to figure out how to fit them all together!’ and flees the scene. (Laughs). But this diagram is also a declaration that we won't do anything more than what’s written here! Unless we set those boundaries, we can’t develop with so many people involved. I figured I'd better draft them myself before bossing others around. So, I wrote it all down while discussing with Kando-san things like how AI works in the system, whether the processing would be able to keep up, and, if not, whether it could be replaced with other mechanics.”

Ex-Argonaut Developer Helped Coin The Term “Pikmin”

Abe recalled that Colin Reed, a programmer on Pikmin who was a part of the Argonaut Software team that made Stunt Race FX on Super Nintendo, was responsible for the origins of the name Pikmin. He mistook the word “ippiki” (which means “one small animal” in Japanese) as the word “Piki,” thinking that was the name of the creatures. That developed into Pikmin over time.

[Return of the editor.]

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Podcast Discussion / Episode 374: Fireside Chat by the Burning Pikmin

« on: July 14, 2023, 10:29:30 AM »

Return of the editor.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/64260/episode-374-fireside-chat-by-the-burning-pikmin

John is yet again lost in space so Neal is joined by returning editor Alex de Freitas for a chill chat about Pikmin and the new Pikmin 4 demo as well as an obligatory check-in with Tears of the Kingdom. Then the duo round out the show with a fun piece of listener mail.

[Good speed, bad acceleration.]

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Podcast Discussion / Episode 372: The Fall and Rise of the June Direct

« on: June 22, 2023, 10:06:54 AM »

Good speed, bad acceleration.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/64085/episode-372-the-fall-and-rise-of-the-june-direct

In this unedited raw episode John and Neal sit down to talk through yesterday's Nintendo Direct. It got off to an oddly slow start before suddenly picking up speed 10 minutes in. Who's making Mario RPG? Should we be worried by vague 2024 announcements? What do Mario's staunchly stated republican beliefs mean for the future of 2D Mario? All that and more in this episode of NWR Connectivity.

This episode is brought to you in part by Wongo Puzzles.Use our special link https://zen.ai/nwrconnectivity to save 10% at wongopuzzles.com. The discount will be applied at checkout!

[Also James Cameron will never be as good as Ridley Scott!]

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Podcast Discussion / Episode 371: Summer Extended Direct Showcase of Games 2023

« on: June 16, 2023, 10:03:59 AM »

Also James Cameron will never be as good as Ridley Scott!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63980/episode-371-summer-extended-direct-showcase-of-games-2023

Now that there is no centralized event, it's kind of weird that we all (except Nintendo) just hold press conferences in the same week in June. Anyway, they were largely pretty good! Except for Geoff's. Geoff's was boring.

This episode is brought to you in part by Wongo Puzzles.Use our special link https://zen.ai/nwrconnectivity to save 10% at wongopuzzles.com. The discount will be applied at checkout!

[A look ahead at 2029.]

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Podcast Discussion / Episode 370: Only 2,190 Days Until the Next Zelda

« on: June 09, 2023, 10:43:57 AM »

A look ahead at 2029.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63913/episode-370-only-2190-days-until-the-next-zelda

Pikmin 4 is just around the corner and perhaps so is a Pikmin 4 Direct. John and Neal discuss the possibilities of the next Nintendo Direct before turning their attention to the sustainability of 6-year development times on The Legend of Zelda. The boys then turn their attention to what they've been playing (that isn't Zelda) before inevitably getting distracted by, you guessed it, Zelda.

This episode is brought to you in part by Wongo Puzzles.Use our special link https://zen.ai/nwrconnectivity to save 10% at wongopuzzles.com. The discount will be applied at checkout!

[With the power of EA Sports, the best baseball game ever adds real-life players and a lot of depth and breadth.]

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TalkBack / Super Mega Baseball 4 (Switch) Review

« on: June 02, 2023, 09:25:50 AM »

With the power of EA Sports, the best baseball game ever adds real-life players and a lot of depth and breadth.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/63850/super-mega-baseball-4-switch-review

When I reviewed the Switch release of Super Mega Baseball 2 in 2019, my only listed con was that it didn’t have the MLB license. Flash forward four years and two games and Super Mega Baseball 4 still doesn’t technically have the MLB license (the MLB Players Alumni Association is the license used here), but the addition of real-life retired pro baseball players fits the tone and vibe of the series perfectly. Super Mega Baseball 4, out now on Switch and other platforms, takes an immaculate infrastructure and adds a richness that surprised and delighted me, even after my dozens and dozens of hours across Super Mega Baseball 2 and 3. Developer Metalhead Software, now part of the EA Sports family, have once again made a game that is better than the last one, though this feels like a larger leap than the one from 2 to 3.

The flashiest addition is the 200+ MLB Legends added to the player roster. Legends might be stretching it in some cases, but the sizable number of real players range from Babe Ruth who played 100 years ago to players like Alex Gordon who last played in 2020. Sifting through the eight new teams that are made up of these old pros is akin to opening up packs of baseball cards. If you are a fan of being like “hey, remember Dave Righetti?” then you will have a ball seeing the players chosen for this game. It’s definitely slanted more to the past 30 years, but there’s a good enough balance of older and newer players. You can boot up the game and immediately play a season or franchise with these teams. You can also do the same with the 20 Super Mega League teams, which features the expansive cast of characters from the other games in the series. There’s even a Creators League, which features content creators and influencers. I’ll be real: I didn’t touch that, but if you’re into Jomboy Media you can play as some of the people from there.

You can also mix and match from those leagues to create your own, but even better is the biggest new mode added to Super Mega Baseball 4: Shuffle Draft. It’s a streamlined way to build a team from any collection of players. You draft 22 players for your roster, picking one from a group of up to eight every round. The players vary in position and quality when you begin, but as you go the pool of players will be limited to what open spots you have on your roster. For example, if your first few picks are all starting pitchers that fill up your four-person rotation, you likely won’t see another one starter. Similarly if you don’t draft a catcher at all, your last round will basically be all catchers. This keeps every league and season fresh in a way that is digestible and fun, letting you customize your team to whatever your preference is. Once you draft that team, you can take them into virtually any other mode.

Aside from Shuffle Draft, the rest of the modes have had a lot of clarity and refinement added. In the grand tradition of Shohei Ohtani, two-way players are now possible. Bullpens are deeper, so you have more variety later in games. Player traits are also expanded, factoring into an overall team chemistry system that rewards you by building a team with similar player types. I enjoyed the Super Mega Baseball version of Franchise in the third game, but the tweaks made here help to make it less obtuse. Helpful tooltips better explain the player development and free agency quirks. I also love how you can do something like start with the Legends league and then add in the Super Mega players as free agents over the course of your Franchise.

Pennant Race—the seasonal online mode that was cross-play and fun in the past—is still here with a few tuneups here and there. It uses the Super Mega teams, but depending on what teams are excelling the best, MLB Legends will be added to underperformers each in-game online season. I’m generally not a huge online player for sports games, but the Pennant Race is a good time. In my experience so far, it has worked well cross-play even as PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X players enter the fray.

The technical gap between the Switch and the other current-gen home consoles sidles into the biggest issue with Super Mega Baseball 4 on Nintendo’s system. It runs well in game, but the visuals look a little bit rougher (especially on handheld) and the load times have increased. This is the type of issue that I understand why it’s there, but this is a Switch game that is feature complete and cross-platform with consoles that dwarf its power. Even still, it’s worth calling out. Unless you’re, like me, someone who will play this predominantly handheld, I’d lean towards one of the other consoles. The Switch version is still incredible. It’s just showing its age.

Even with that caveat, the visual and audio upgrade in Super Mega Baseball 4 is impressive. While still maintaining the vibes of the original, the games are more visually engaging, with a variety of new camera angles and details. It also does that EA Sports thing where it has a bunch of licensed music that will likely include a song from a band you’ll see live 20 years later and then have a vivid flashback to the hours you spent playing this game (I saw the band Midtown recently and when they played “Give It Up,” I was instantly transported to Madden 2005). I’ve always considered EA’s MVP Baseball 2005 as one of the best baseball games ever made, so it’s neat to see the ‘00s-era champ pair up with the current title holder.

Super Mega Baseball 4, like its predecessors, has become the new standard for arcade sports games upon its release. Metalhead Software has refined near perfection over the past few years and I’m in love with the lineup of MLB Legends and the new addition of Shuffle Draft.

[An excellent game given a second (third?) life on a platform that is relatively suboptimal for its style.]

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TalkBack / Etrian Odyssey II HD (Switch) Review

« on: June 01, 2023, 06:00:00 AM »

An excellent game given a second (third?) life on a platform that is relatively suboptimal for its style.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/63843/etrian-odyssey-ii-hd-switch-review

When Nintendo’s dual-screened handhelds went away following the end of the 3DS, one of the greatest laments for me was the reality that Atlus’ Etrian Odyssey series - a prolific franchise that featured eight games, a spin-off, and two Persona-skinned versions across the DS and 3DS - was potentially dead because the move away from a two-screened system with a touch screen and a stylus meant that the unique and brilliant cartography element of the series was impossible to do right. It was a pleasant surprise when the Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection was revealed, bringing the original three games in the series to Nintendo Switch in HD form. Seemingly, Atlus figured out how to get these to work on a non-DS system. After playing Etrian Odyssey II HD, I’m not quite sure if they got these games to work optimally on a non-DS system. There is an admirable attempt to make the distinctive brand of dungeon crawling work but even if I got used to the quirky elements of map drawing, it never felt as natural as it did on 3DS. The overall quality of Etrian Odyssey II, which initially came out on DS in 2008, makes this still a great game, but it’s held back by its new home.

For starters, Etrian Odyssey II takes you to a fantasy land where the player creates their own guild of adventurers that are tasked with exploring a labyrinth that goes high into the sky. The labyrinth is split into floors, with a set of five floors composing a stratum, and generally capped off by a big boss fight and a change in scenery. You have a lot of freedom in creating your party, pulling from a long list of classes that have interesting twists on regular melee and ranged combat concepts. While the thrust of the game is just progressing through the labyrinth by exploring and battling, you also pick up a variety of missions that encourage you to explore more of the dungeons. That’s where the trademark cartography aspects come about as you crawl through the floors.

How it works is that when you’re exploring a dungeon, the screen is cleft in twain, with one side displaying the first-person world and the other displaying the map in two different forms: a zoomed-out view and a close-up view. When playing portably, you can use the touch screen to draw out the map and make use of icons to note different doors and locations. The bad thing is, well, without a stylus your maps are going to be a mess. You can use a stylus if you have one, but it’s not an ideal solution. To complement the touch controls and account for the fact this game can be played on a TV now, a button control option for map-making is also included. This is what I wound up using more often even if it’s a pat-your-head/rub-your-belly situation. You use the right analog stick to guide your cursor and hold down a shoulder button to draw a line or select an icon. It has a frustrating learning curve, but at a certain point, it nearly became second nature for me. It’s an inelegant solution for a massive problem. A left-handed option is offered, which moves the map to the left side of the screen, but I only recommend that to my fellow lefties if you’re using a stylus.

Beyond the controls, the dungeon crawling is as engrossing as ever. I haven’t played the DS original but I played a lot of the 3DS remake Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold (I’ve occasionally stated it’s my favorite Etrian Odyssey game). There is, naturally, a familiar progression here, but it’s worth noting that nothing from Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold aside from the varied difficulty settings is brought into this version. This is, more or less, the 2008 DS original with HD graphics and a few minor tweaks, including some excellent remastered music from series composer Yuzo Koshiro. While I do appreciate the open-ended approach of naming your own characters from the varied classes, the story mode that is exclusive to the Untold release was rather good, so its absence here is felt.

The combat system holds up even its relative old-school simplicity. It’s from the first-person perspective, so you only see the sprites of your enemies. You select the moves for your party of five and then watch as they are executed. Rinse and repeat until you or your enemies perish. The auto-battle feature is nice for when you’re grinding, and once you start developing your characters and outfitting them with different skills and abilities, you can lay down some awesome traps for defeating foes. You can poison an enemy, and then use an attack that does more damage to a poisoned enemy, for instance. Picking the right team of five can be imperative to your success because the way they support each other is hugely important.

Three different difficulty options that you can switch between almost at will make this an approachable game despite some of its punishing elements. Basic and Expert are both relatively stern challenges. Basic requires you to be thoughtful and strategic in all of your actions even if it isn’t at the same level as Expert. Picnic, the easiest option, is extremely easy. I appreciate that there is a variety, even more so because of the flexibility to swap between them.

I’m thrilled that Etrian Odyssey exists beyond the DS and 3DS, but what we got doesn’t hit the highs of the series. Atlus admirably tried to make it work on Switch, but the controls for drawing your map aren’t as natural as they were on DS and 3DS. Etrian Odyssey II is still a great video game, with a really good progression through each stratum and a lot of depth and synergies between the classes and abilities. My hope is that if Etrian Odyssey survives beyond this dungeon crawl, the next release will be more future-focused than porting over the past.

[The best Final Fantasy you likely haven’t played on a Nintendo platform comes back home.]

87

TalkBack / Final Fantasy V Pixel Remaster (Switch) Review

« on: May 25, 2023, 06:43:13 PM »

The best Final Fantasy you likely haven’t played on a Nintendo platform comes back home.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/63797/final-fantasy-v-pixel-remaster-switch-review

It took a while for me to reach this point, but I love Final Fantasy V. If I were to break out my all-time Final Fantasy rankings, it’d sit right behind Final Fantasy VI, and the gap between the two is not as wide as you might think. However, the relative inaccessibility of Final Fantasy V in the west cut down on the lasting impact of this excellent game. Thanks to the console release of the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters, this 1992 Super Famicom game is the most readily accessible it has ever been (legally). And for the most part, this is a fantastic version of an incredible game.

Final Fantasy V is most notable for its job system, which builds off of Final Fantasy III’s similar mechanic. You don’t have a vast party like the Super Nintendo games before and after, but you do have 22 different jobs to switch your primary party of four between over the course of the adventure. It deepens the complexity of strategy (and might remind modern players of similar systems in Bravely Default and Octopath Traveler) as your heroes Bartz, Lenna, Galuf, and Faris level up in the traditional sense and also earn ability points for whatever job they have equipped. Leveling up jobs opens up new abilities and options, most of which can then be used as a secondary option when they’re in a new job. There are definitely optimal job paths for different characters, with some more viable for mage roles than others, but the beauty of the job system is that it’s so flexible. Once you start getting jobs, the only limit is your ingenuity for breaking the system (and maybe grinding).

Thankfully if you do just want to play around with jobs, the Pixel Remaster includes a variety of boost options that let you earn up to four times the experience points and ability points so you can power-level without as much grinding. You can also turn off encounters at any moment. The malleability is glorious, as you can play it more or less like it was back in the day, or customize it to your preference.

While this release of Final Fantasy V includes a slew of enhancements, updates, and tweaks that all come from the Game Boy Advance, mobile, and PC releases over the years, it does not contain the Sealed Temple and the four new jobs from those releases. This is a recurring theme with the Pixel Remasters as virtually all six of these games have had novel additions in the 30+ years since they first came out, but not all of that is worked into these nearly definitive releases.

The story in Final Fantasy V is one that I enjoy and has its fair share of wonderful moments, it’s not quite at the level of Final Fantasy IV or VI. The music is naturally stellar, with delightful new arrangements as well as the superb original soundtrack. Like with every Pixel Remaster on console, the font issue from the PC and mobile releases is better but not truly fixed. It contributes to a recurring theme that this is so close to being the best version of a classic but it’s just not all the way there.

Still, if you’ve never played Final Fantasy V and have an affinity for RPGs, I suggest you drop everything and play this video game. I truly believe it stands tall among the best of the entire Final Fantasy series, carving its own distinct path with the refined job system. The Pixel Remaster is as close to a definitive release as we’ve had of Final Fantasy V in the west so far. I do wish I didn’t have to offer a handful of caveats, but this is still a good version of an all-time great.

[And some Xbox talk.]

88

Podcast Discussion / Episode 368: Happy Thoughts on a Tearful Kingdom

« on: May 19, 2023, 06:24:07 AM »

And some Xbox talk.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63728/episode-368-happy-thoughts-on-a-tearful-kingdom

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is out and we've been playing it non-stop. But before we get to our initial thoughts on Link's latest adventure, we answer some listener mail regarding Xbox and the Playdate.

This episode is brought to you in part by Wongo Puzzles.Use our special link https://zen.ai/nwrconnectivity to save 10% at wongopuzzles.com. The discount will be applied at checkout!

[Because absolutely nothing more significant has released... right?]

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Podcast Discussion / Episode 367: Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeem Spoilercast

« on: May 12, 2023, 10:53:31 AM »

Because absolutely nothing more significant has released... right?

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63680/episode-367-xenoblade-chronicles-3-future-redeem-spoilercast

In a desperate attempt to keep the backlog under control, John, Neal, and Alex flew through Xenoblade 3's Future Redeemed DLC. We start with some general (mostly spoiler-free) discussion of gameplay before diving into what the ending of Future Redeemed means for the rest of the series.

[You can disagree with the three I put in the headline being the most important. Check the rest of the article for the full list.]

90

TalkBack / Willie Mays, Rollie Fingers, and Vladimir Guerrero Headline New Super Mega Baseball 4 Legend Reveals

« on: May 11, 2023, 08:00:00 AM »

You can disagree with the three I put in the headline being the most important. Check the rest of the article for the full list.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/63677/willie-mays-rollie-fingers-and-vladimir-guerrero-headline-new-super-mega-baseball-4-legend-reveals

EA Sports and Metalhead Software revealed a slew of new real-life pro baseball Legends that will be playable in Super Mega Baseball 4 when it launches on Switch on June 2.

The Legends will be playable in the classic league with other fictional characters as well as the specific Legends League that is made up of two conferences: New School and Old School. Of course each Legends conference has their own unique team names, like the Mammotanks and Empire in the New School and the Originators and the Joyriders in the Old School.

Beyond that, you can use the Legends almost however you want, whether it's just a straight Franchise run with them, or customizing the players across different teams. In the Franchise mode, for example, you can start a league with the original Super Mega Baseball squads and then have the Legends show up as free agents from season to season.

The online mode Pennant Race works the Legends into the game in an interesting way as well. Every season for the online mode will have four Legends replace four players from the original Super Mega Baseball teams. Who the Legends are and what teams they end up on will be based on a variety of factors, including the usage of teams in the mode or what teams have lost more frequently.

In addition to the cover athlete David Ortiz and the already confirmed Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, and Jose Bautista, here is the full list of newly confirmed Legends:

 
• Vladimir Guerrero
 
• Billy Wagner
 
• Bartolo Colon
 
• Mike Mussina
 
• George Brett
 
• Willie Mays
 
• Rollie Fingers
 
• Ozzie Smith
 
• Mark Loretta
 
• Ray Durham
 
• Joe Mauer
 
• Ryan Braun
 
• Barry Larkin
 
• Mike Napoli
 
• Carl Crawford
 
• Kyle Seager
 
• Huston Street
 
• Johnny Damon
 
• Rick Ankiel
 
• Fred McGriff
 
• Latroy Hawkins
 
• Joe Nathan
 
• Brian Wilson
 
• Ryan Dempster
 
• Torii Hunter
 
• Jamie Moyer
 
• Bronson Arroyo

Fingers crossed Miguel Cairo is among the 240 Legends.

[Part 6 of the 3D Zelda Game Club.]

91

Podcast Discussion / Episode 366: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

« on: May 05, 2023, 06:12:09 AM »

Part 6 of the 3D Zelda Game Club.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63621/episode-366-the-legend-of-zelda-breath-of-the-wild

The 3D Zelda game club finally draws to a close (until next week). The panel is joined by special guest Lauren Ronaghan to discuss the game's place in history, its design, and its accessibility to a new group of fans.

[EA Sports returns to console baseball with the help of Metalhead Software for the latest Super Mega Baseball game.]

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TalkBack / Super Mega Baseball 4 Coming Out in June, Adding Real Life Baseball Legends

« on: May 02, 2023, 08:13:58 AM »

EA Sports returns to console baseball with the help of Metalhead Software for the latest Super Mega Baseball game.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/63567/super-mega-baseball-4-coming-out-in-june-adding-real-life-baseball-legends

Super Mega Baseball 4 is coming to Nintendo Switch (among other platforms) on June 2. The first new entry in the series since 2020, this is also the first game developer Metalhead Software is releasing with their new owner, publisher EA Sports.

The fourth release in the sports series will be the first to feature any kind of real-life players, headlined by cover athlete David Ortiz. In total, Super Mega Baseball 4 will feature more than 200 "legendary baseball professionals" (they did not actually get the MLB license it seems) including Ortiz, Jose Bautista, Hank Aaron, and Babe Ruth. The legends will be split up into teams by era and also can be put into the new Shuffle Draft mode where you can mix and match players from the pool of Legends and the classic Super Mega Baseball players like Hammer Longballo and Muffin Studwick.

Beyond the legends, Metalhead is promising a slew of other updates and upgrades, including expanded player traits, a new team chemistry system, automatic walks, two-way players, expanded bullpens, and much more. The visuals will also see a boost, though we cannot tell yet how much that will impact the Switch version since the provided screenshots appear to be based on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X versions. However, all versions of the game will feature cross-play.

[The best way to play a classic but not the best version of a classic.]

93

TalkBack / Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster (Switch) Review

« on: May 01, 2023, 08:45:02 AM »

The best way to play a classic but not the best version of a classic.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/63610/final-fantasy-pixel-remaster-switch-review

I was young, but I have a clear memory of when I first played Final Fantasy on NES. At a friend’s house, I was sucked into the character creation, the grinding, and the music. It was one of my earliest experiences with turn-based RPGs and it rocked. More than 30 years later, it’s available on a Nintendo console (that isn’t a limited-run mini console) for the first time in the west in nearly 20 years. The Pixel Remaster release of the original Final Fantasy isn’t definitive, but it’s close enough, and the gameplay boosts provide an excellent entrypoint for players of all ages and skill levels to experience an important piece of gaming history.

Final Fantasy begins with picking a party of four characters from six different classes. From there, you journey across the world trying to restore the four elemental crystals and save the world. Along the way you explore towns and dungeons, level up and upgrade, and complete a slew of quests that slowly give you access to all of the expansive multi-continent land. While some of the direction in the game is obtuse at times, it moves briskly and rarely lingers on an area for too long. That pace is made even better thanks to the Pixel Remaster’s new gameplay boosts that let you turn off random encounters and also multiply the amount of experience and money you earn by up to four times (you can also cut it down to half if you want a sterner challenge).

The upgrade to the sprites is very nice, but the fact the backgrounds are upgraded has an impact on the way battles look. Bosses that once looked massive and daunting are now much smaller on the screen in a relative cavern of a background. It’s by no means a gamebreaker, but it’s one of the few reasons why this release does not feel like the definitive version of the NES classic. Another reason is that this does not contain the extra content found in the GBA release from 2004, including multiple new dungeons. It does take some aspects of that re-release, though, including a handful of gameplay tweaks and even the localization.

Having the ability to switch between the newly arranged soundtrack (which rocks) and the original one is nice, but the much ballyhooed font change is still not ideal. The new “classic font” is an improvement over the modernized style used in the mobile and PC releases of the Pixel Remasters, but it’s more of a bandage on a wound than an actual salve.

All that being said, Final Fantasy is still a great game even if it shows its age and this release isn’t the best it could be. I love traipsing around this world with my warriors of light. I love the music and the style. If you’ve never played the original Final Fantasy before, the experience and money boosts make it easy to experience without the grind. This is a good enough release of Final Fantasy and for that I recommend it, but I wish this could have been the slam-dunk definitive version.

[With credits ranging from Secret of Mana to Xenoblade Chronicles, we got to ask the team behind Trinity Trigger about their influences and aspirations.]

94

TalkBack / Talking Trinity Trigger with the Supergroup Development Team

« on: April 28, 2023, 05:56:27 AM »

With credits ranging from Secret of Mana to Xenoblade Chronicles, we got to ask the team behind Trinity Trigger about their influences and aspirations.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/interview/63565/talking-trinity-trigger-with-the-supergroup-development-team

We had the chance to send over questions to some of the supergroup behind Trinity Trigger, the recent XSEED Games localization that is heavily inspired by the likes of Secret of Mana. If you didn’t know, some of the team has bonafides dating back to Xenoblade Chronicles’ character designs, Octopath Traveler’s story, and even Secret of Mana’s soundtrack. Check out the full interview below with responses from Director Takumi Isobe, Character Designer Raita Kazama (Xenoblade Chronicles), Scenario Writer Yura Kubota (Octopath Traveler, Bravely Default II), and Composter Hiroki Kikuta (Secret of Mana).

Nintendo World Report (NWR): Kazama-san, how did your experience on Xenoblade influence the design of the characters in Trinity Trigger?

Raita Kazama (Character Design): Looking back on when I designed the characters for Xenoblade, I was very young, lacking in both technical skill and perspective. As a result, I inconvenienced others quite a bit, and sometimes felt stuck at a dead end. However, that experience taught me the importance of facilitating good chemistry with my clients. Where I once shied away from asserting my opinions throughout the design process, I now have the confidence to clearly express myself and produce stronger work as a result.

I was able to put this experience to the test on Trinity Trigger, where my confidence came out in full during the character design process. Communication between client and designer is critical—after all, if my client can’t clearly understand my point of view, the players won’t either.

Since Trinity Trigger has a completely different style and atmosphere from Xenoblade, I strived to tailor my designs accordingly. I tried out ideas that wouldn’t have fit into Xenoblade and incorporated elements that I wanted to improve in my past work, all while reflecting deeply on my own personal growth. I hope that players can feel the passion and love I poured into these characters.

Also, while creating illustrations featuring the Triggers, which were based on wonderful original designs from other artists, I took painstaking care to keep their facial expressions and gestures true to their personalities. I always feel nervous when interpreting the designs of other artists, haha...

NWR: What was the inspiration behind the way the Trigger characters look? Were their designs informed by their function in the game (and why or why not)?

Takumi Isobe (Director): We first decided which elements the three Triggers would represent. After that, while considering how their silhouettes would look beside the main characters, we gave each Trigger a distinct body type (two-legged, four-legged, and flying). Atsuko Nishida, Megumi Mizutani, and Tomohiro Kitakaze all submitted very appealing designs for the Triggers, which we ended up using as the basis for our weapon designs.

NWR: Kubota-san, Octopath Traveler and Bravely Default II are filled with interesting side quests. How do you strike a balance between an engaging main story and narratively fulfilling optional content like side quests?

Yura Kubota (Scenario): The proper balance is usually decided by the director based on the game’s estimated playtime, factoring in the main scenario, side quests, and additional challenges. Side quests tend to be used for in-depth exploration of characters or supplementary worldbuilding that would be redundant if told in the main story.

NWR: Is there a character you enjoyed writing for the most in Trinity Trigger? If so, why?

Kubota: My favorite character to write was Lime, a Manafacturer who supports the heroes. Since her background isn’t quite as serious as the main characters’, I was able to relax and have fun writing her, haha. Initially, there were plans for a DLC storyline where players would be able to control Lime and explore dungeons, just like Cyan and his friends do. I would have liked to play that scenario as well.

NWR: What makes the main trio of Cyan, Elise, and Zantis stand out among other modern games?

Kubota: In the medium of games, our first impressions of a character are determined by how they look. Because of this, I think it’s especially important to make sure that a character's words, actions, and backstory do not differ too greatly from their visuals. Even so, we also wanted to give each of our protagonists another side for players to discover while progressing through the main scenario and side quests.

NWR: Kikuta-san, you have collaborated with a lot of Western indie studios lately (Tangledeep, YIIK, Indivisible, Earthlock). What made you want to work with such a variety of developers and projects?

Hiroki Kikuta (Music): Throughout the 2000s, I felt a constant desire to be involved in the development of more and more interesting projects, exploring new possibilities for game development. Whether I was producing, planning, designing, directing, or composing music, I wanted to work with sincere, passionate colleagues as much as I could. Fortunately, the rise of overseas indie studios since 2010 has provided me with plenty of opportunities and successes. I'm fortunate to have found the passion and sincerity I was seeking among indie developers who played Secret of Mana or Trials of Mana as children and became fans of Japanese games. It brings me great joy that 30 years after my work on the Mana series, these creators feel a need for my melodies in the games that they are creating today.

NWR: How does your work on Trinity Trigger separate itself from your best-known work on the Mana series? Were there any other influences that you focused on to make it stand out?

Kikuta: The more soul a game developer puts into their creation, the more unique the end result will become in its worldbuilding, sense of style, and expression. Consequently, the Mana series and Trinity Trigger both have their own distinct authorial styles and personalities. I bring value through my ability to interpret those unique stylistic elements into music that accompanies the worlds of those games.

I applied the same musical techniques that I developed during my time on the Mana series to bring the world of Trinity Trigger to life. In that sense, you might call Trinity Trigger a direct descendant of several Japanese RPGs from the 1990s. Although 30 long years have passed, I believe that the emotions, desires, and excitement that RPG players feel in their quest for adventure remain the same even today.

[Steve from Good Vibes Gaming played Zelda so we kidnapped him!]

95

Podcast Discussion / Episode 365: Good Vibes of the Kingdom

« on: April 26, 2023, 08:02:26 AM »

Steve from Good Vibes Gaming played Zelda so we kidnapped him!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63563/episode-365-good-vibes-of-the-kingdom

Steve Bowling of Good Vibes Gaming fame joins John and Neal to discuss his recent preview of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Don't forget to check out Steve's full preview.

[Well, they made a new Mana game and called it something else.]

96

TalkBack / Trinity Trigger (Switch) Review

« on: April 24, 2023, 10:00:00 AM »

Well, they made a new Mana game and called it something else.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/63488/trinity-trigger-switch-review

Sometimes a game’s inspirations are easy to notice when you start playing it. In the case of Trinity Trigger - the latest RPG made by FuRyu and published in the west by XSEED - it is evident that Secret of Mana and Trials of Mana are core to the essence. The action RPG features a combat system that heavily evokes those vintage Mana games, complete with a pop-up ring to select weapons and items as well as three-player co-op. They even brought along Hiroki Kikuta, who composed the music for those Super Nintendo classics and has brought his A-game to this project. Other figureheads of the game’s staff have credits ranging from Octopath Traveler’s story to Xenoblade Chronicles’ character designs. The combined forces of the team have created an enjoyable nostalgic RPG that doesn’t overstay its welcome but might have benefited from some refinement along the way.

You initially control Cyan, a hero from a small village who just found out he is the Warrior of Chaos. You see, in this fantasy world, the gods of Order and Chaos have done battle for ages, and every generation features a warrior for each side who must do battle. Cyan quickly meets up with Elise and Zantis, and the trio tries to carve out a new path for their eternally warring world. They are also joined by Triggers on their journey, which are cute little magical critters that partner with a hero and can transform into a variety of weapons. Cyan partners with Flamme, a fire trigger, while Elise and Zantis have a water and lightning Trigger, respectively. Those elements factor into battle, though the more important aspects are the weapon types, including standard-issue arms like swords, bows, and spears.

The combat focuses on equipping different weapon types on different heroes to navigate weaknesses and challenges. You can’t button-mash because each weapon has a gauge that runs out as you do so. The optimal strategy is to chain combos, dodge away, recharge, and repeat. There are special abilities as well, such as a time-limited buff and a one-time special attack that both recharge over time. For the most part, the combat is a good time, especially as you’re navigating the visually pleasing overworlds and looking for secrets and landmarks. Where the combat starts to sour is with boss battles. Every boss has a shield gauge that has to be whittled down first. This gauge only depletes quickly when you attack with a weapon or element that the boss is weak to, so it can be a slog unless your team is very tricked out. The shield gauge also regenerates, so during the course of the average boss battle, you have to do the song and dance of depleting the shield gauge to get to their actual health gauge multiple times. As you get further in the story, sometimes bosses don’t have weaknesses, so these battles just become tedious wars of attrition. You can craft some accessories that speed up this process, but even still, it’s a sour note for an otherwise enjoyable combat system.

Those accessories are called Manatite, just in case you didn’t get the hint this game is inspired by Square Enix’s Mana series. You can earn these in many ways throughout, but one of the best is through crafting, which gets rather robust as you progress. That’s the way to get the best versions of the attack and defense augments. This is the only equipment upgrade that you run into, as there are no iterative weapons or armors to find. Your skill increases as you level up and then earn points that can be used to upgrade your Triggers for each weapon type. And then you use the Manatite to boost that further. It’s a relatively unique system that you can fiddle with a lot.

I’ll stress though that outside of some of those pesky bosses, I had a blast going through this world. The maps are varied enough in layout, filled with enough side quests and secrets that made exploration rewarding and fun. It’s also a great co-op experience, with relatively seamless drop-in/drop-out co-op play locally. This isn’t a terribly long game. An expedient playthrough can be done in under 10 hours and one more focused on side quests along the way can go to about 20. For this type of action-focused RPG, the generally shorter length is fine with me, but I definitely had a feeling of the endgame sneaking up on me. I felt like there was more you could build off of with this world and combat. While the story is presented well with good voice acting, I never grew too attached to the cast, especially because a lot of the driving force of the story happens because that’s just the direction that you haven’t gone yet.

Trinity Trigger still scratches a specific itch very well. This Mana-inspired game brings the three-player co-op fun back from the Super Nintendo era, but now without the need for a Multitap. This is a good romp for a single player, but it is best suited for a pair or a trio who want to traipse through a fantasy world slaying foes and finding treasure chests. This won’t rival the highs of action RPGs, but it’s an adventure well worth playing.

[Is it a sports game?]

97

Podcast Discussion / Episode 364: N64 Games for REAL Fans

« on: April 14, 2023, 06:11:19 AM »

Is it a sports game?

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63408/episode-364-n64-games-for-real-fans

When you think about the Nintendo 64 you probably think about Mario 64, Ocarina of Time, and Star Fox 64 but those weren't the only games we were playing in the back half of the 90's. John and Neal explore the often-ignored world of third-party Nintendo 64 games. Contrary to popular opinion there were quite a few. And with the absence of Square/Enix, the Nintendo 64 got to have good games instead. (John wrote that last sentence).

[Featuring Tetris and the Super Mario Bros Movie]

98

Podcast Discussion / Episode 363: The Greatest Seven Days In Video Game Movie History

« on: April 07, 2023, 05:39:26 AM »

Featuring Tetris and the Super Mario Bros Movie

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/connectivity/63358/episode-363-the-greatest-seven-days-in-video-game-movie-history

John and Neal stumble into the podcast, covered in popcorn crumbs and ready to talk about movies. We hold off on the Mario spoilers until the end of the episode so join us for a discussion of the new animated film along with the car-chase filled Tetris movie.

[Time will tell if this year's EA Sports soccer game be more than just another Legacy Edition on Nintendo Switch.]

99

TalkBack / EA Sports FC Is Replacing FIFA on Switch, But Will It Actually Be New?

« on: April 06, 2023, 10:11:27 AM »

Time will tell if this year's EA Sports soccer game be more than just another Legacy Edition on Nintendo Switch.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/editorial/63331/ea-sports-fc-is-replacing-fifa-on-switch-but-will-it-actually-be-new

Back in 2017, FIFA was featured as a core part of Nintendo's initial Switch marketing campaign. You could play some footie on the road. It's portable soccer! But after a decent outing in 2017, EA Sports' notable soccer franchise stalled. After a few minor tweaks in 2018's FIFA 19, every ensuing year featured a "Legacy Edition" - essentially just the same game as the 2018 release but with new rosters. This was an annual disappointment.

EA Sports is shedding the FIFA label this year and in its stead comes a new name for their soccer game: EA Sports FC. Today, Nintendo of America tweeted the logo for the game (in Switch Red). It reads "Join The Club this July" with no other real details.

Join The Club this July. #EASPORTSFC pic.twitter.com/l5PZlWLA6O

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) April 6, 2023

So what does this mean? Likely not much. The Switch is now more than six years old and it would be weird if EA put an effort now after not doing much of anything for nearly five years. There is hope, but outside of a new title screen and branding, I can't imagine that hope will amount to much more than the bones of FIFA 19 on Switch with a new hat.

The only trace of a mention of EA Sports FC 24 on Switch I found online is on the FIFA game series news site FIFAUTeam that proclaims that this version of the game will be another Legacy Edition. It's sad if true because EA Sports used to be a bigger presence on Nintendo systems, even if the Nintendo versions were always secondary. GameCube got nearly everything, even with some Punch-Out and Mario bonuses in Fight Night and NBA Street. Wii got distinct versions, focusing on motion controls and more cartoony characters. But after the Wii U and 3DS launches, which saw the likes of Madden and FIFA on the platforms, EA Sports took their ball and went home. For the sake of Wii U and 3DS, it might have made business sense, but the complete dismissal of the Switch on EA's behalf probably left success on the table. That first FIFA on Switch? It was pretty good. And while I'm a Madden junkie, I can imagine I'm not the only one who would play the snot out of a portable Madden on Switch. I played a lot of the horrific Steam version of Madden on my Steam Deck and that's an awful version of a game that is largely not regarded as a good entry in the franchise.

I had hoped this might be a more optimistic editorial, but I couldn't find any reason to have real hope that EA Sports FC will be more than a Legacy Edition. Prove me wrong, EA Sports. I want more sports games on Nintendo Switch. Sony is currently outdoing you on a console that isn't theirs.

[We checked out Jakks Pacific’s initial lineup of Mario movie toys.]

100

TalkBack / The Best Super Mario Bros. Movie Toys

« on: April 04, 2023, 07:02:59 AM »

We checked out Jakks Pacific’s initial lineup of Mario movie toys.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/63329/the-best-super-mario-bros-movie-toys

With the Super Mario Bros. Movie on the cusp of wide release, the inevitable follow-up after a child watches this movie is going to involve toys (or video games - if you have questions on that, check the rest of the site because we have almost 25 years of Mario video game coverage). I had a chance to test drive a number of toymaker Jakks Pacific’s Super Mario Bros. Movie toys with my 4-year-old (and when appropriate, with my 1-year-old) and across the board, Jakks Pacific seems to have made some winners.

The most ridiculous one is assuredly the 7-inch Bowser figure that blows smoke out of his mouth. It requires some setup (3 AAA batteries and some drops of water), but after you fill up Bowser’s head with water, you can press a spike on his back and cackle as he blows water vapor out of his maw as it lights up red. This koopa king is poseable and should display nicely while also being a durable and entertaining toy for kids.

The first wave of 5-inch toys fit well with our friend vape smoke Bowser. Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Toad all get well-sculpted toys that look to be a step ahead of Jakks Pacific’s World of Nintendo figures. Each hero comes with an accessory that may or may not have relevance in the movie. Mario has a plunger, which adds up since his plumbing background is going to be referenced. Luigi has a flashlight, evoking Luigi’s Mansion while also appearing to be something he uses in his path through the movie. Toad has a frying pan that I assume he uses to hit a goomba on the head or something. Lastly, Peach has a parasol that I assume she uses to hit a goomba on the head or something. Since Bowser and the heroes entered my house, both of my kids have played with them and I’m happy to report they’ve held up to wear and tear.

There are also vaguely Polly Pocket-ish playsets that I didn’t expect to like as much as I did. The biggest one is Peach’s Castle, which resembles the famous facade and opens up to reveal an obstacle course that looks like the training course we’ve seen in trailers (as well as looking like a level from Mario’s games). This set comes with a 1.25-inch Mario and Peach that can be used to hop around the blocks and piranha plants.

The other playset is based off of Mario and Luigi’s van. It can be used as a toy vehicle but it also opens up to reveal a series of pipes to different kingdoms. This set only comes with a 1.25-inch Mario. I understand the Mario movie toys should come with Mario, but it’s literally the same 1.25-inch Mario that comes with the Peach’s Castle set. There are other 1.25-inch figures ranging from Luigi to Kamek that are nice to have with these playsets, but if you just buy the sets by themselves, you’re saddled with two duplicates.

To complement the ample Mario Kart references in the movie, there are also pull-back cars that evoke the karts from the movie (and look like off-kilter versions of karts from the game itself). I’ve only had time to mess around with the Mario one, which comes with a 2.5-inch Mario figure and a standard kart. Other karts include ones that come with Toad, Peach, and Koopa Troopa.

More waves of toys could be on the horizon and who knows: maybe the Mario movie will expand into a whole Mario Cinematic Universe with movies about Donkey Kong and Luigi and a sequel that introduces Wario. Maybe we could call it the MCU?