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Messages - CurtDogg

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1
TalkBack / NWR Fun Club 4/16/16: Super Mario Maker and Splatoon!
« on: April 16, 2016, 11:27:14 AM »

Live streaming with the community tonight at 5pm PDT!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/42552/nwr-fun-club-41616-super-mario-maker-and-splatoon

Every other Saturday at 5pm PDT, I'm gonna be hosting NWR Fun Club, a live stream on our YouTube Channel. During the stream, I'll be taking on levels created and shared by our readers and viewers, as well as take you guys on in various online multiplayer games. If you would like to have your level played, please tweet a link to your level from the Super Mario Maker Bookmark website using the hashtag #NWRMarioMaker, and follow these rules:

  • Please only submit 3 levels per person.
  •    
  • Do not submit levels with inescapable/death traps.
  •    
  • Do not submit the same level multiple times. If I do not get to your level in one stream, I will get to it eventually.
  •    
  • Do not submit your levels via the chat.
  •    
  • Please only submit links to the levels, not the level code by itself

See you all there!

Note: You can also tune into the stream via Twitch and Hitbox.


2

Another bi-weekly community stream from yours truly tonight at 3pm PDT!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/42451/nwr-fun-club-4316-mario-maker-and-smash-bros-for-wii-u

Every other Saturday at 5pm PDT(though it's an exception today), I'm gonna be hosting NWR Fun Club, a live stream on our YouTube Channel. During the stream, I'll be taking on levels created and shared by our readers and viewers, as well as take you guys on in various online multiplayer games. If you would like to have your level played, please tweet a link to your level from the Super Mario Maker Bookmark website using the hashtag #NWRMarioMaker, and follow these rules:

  • Please only submit 3 levels per person.
  •    
  • Do not submit levels with inescapable/death traps.
  •    
  • Do not submit the same level multiple times. If I do not get to your level in one stream, I will get to it eventually.
  •    
  • Do not submit your levels via the chat.
  •    
  • Please only submit links to the levels, not the level code by itself

See you all there!

Note: You can also tune into the stream via Twitch and Hitbox.


3
TalkBack / NWR Fun Club 3/19/16 - Super Mario Maker & Splatoon
« on: March 19, 2016, 12:07:04 PM »

Tune in for our bi-weekly viewer-driven live stream tonight at 5pm PDT!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/42317/nwr-fun-club-31916-super-mario-maker-n-splatoon

Every other Saturday at 5pm PDT, I'm gonna be hosting NWR Fun Club, a live stream on our YouTube Channel. During the stream, I'll be taking on levels created and shared by our readers and viewers, as well as take you guys on in various online multiplayer games. If you would like to have your level played, please tweet a link to your level from the Super Mario Maker Bookmark website using the hashtag #NWRMarioMaker, and follow these rules:

  • Please only submit 3 levels per person.
  •    
  • Do not submit levels with inescapable/death traps.
  •    
  • Do not submit the same level multiple times. If I do not get to your level in one stream, I will get to it eventually.
  •    
  • Do not submit your levels via the chat.
  •    
  • Please only submit links to the levels, not the level code by itself

See you all there!

Note: You can also tune into the stream via Twitch and Hitbox.


4
TalkBack / NWR Fun Club 2/6/16 - Mario Maker and Splatoon!
« on: February 06, 2016, 08:35:27 AM »

Squids and Kids and Mario, oh my! All live at 5pm PST today!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/41893/nwr-fun-club-2616-mario-maker-and-splatoon

Every other Saturday at 5pm PST, I'm gonna be hosting NWR Fun Club, a live stream on our YouTube Channel. During the stream, I'll be taking on levels created and shared by our readers and viewers, as well as take you guys on in various online multiplayer games. If you would like to have your level played, please tweet a link to your level from the Super Mario Maker Bookmark website using the hashtag #NWRMarioMaker, and follow these rules:

  • Please only submit 3 levels per person.
  •    
  • Do not submit levels with inescapable/death traps.
  •    
  • Do not submit the same level multiple times. If I do not get to your level in one stream, I will get to it eventually.
  •    
  • Do not submit your levels via the chat.

See you all there!

Note: You can also tune into the stream via Twitch and Hitbox.


5
TalkBack / Pokemon Red, Blue, and Yellow (3DS) Hands-On Preview
« on: January 26, 2016, 05:00:00 AM »

Curtis catches a case of nostalgia while going back to the craze that started it all.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/hands-on-preview/41837/pokemon-red-blue-and-yellow-3ds-hands-on-preview

I have a weird love/hate relationship with the original Pokémon games. As much nostalgia I have for the world, the monsters, and the simplicity of Red, Blue, and Yellow, I have always had a hard time going back to them. The games that followed it improved on so many of the the original’s mechanics, they always seemed archaic and janky by comparison. At a recent event, we got our hands on with the 3DS Virtual Console versions of the game, and while I’m still reluctant to say they’re worth playing again, it’s hard to deny it’s old-school charm.

The demo stations had all three versions to choose from. Pokémon Red and Blue were presented in their original grey/greenish-yellow style, while Yellow had Game Boy Color/Super Game Boy-enhanced color schemes. The demos were essentially the full game from what we could tell, and everyone at the event just continued on from where the last person left off. Obviously, there wasn’t enough time to get anywhere outside of the first few towns, but we still got an idea of what to expect from these ports.

When the games were first being talked about during last month’s Nintendo Direct, as well as the event’s opening presentation, their wording of the game’s presentation being “representative” of the original games made it sound like the games would be getting changes in how the games look, sound and play. While the graphics and sound were exactly the same as the original versions, they did add wireless trading and battling support. We didn’t get a chance to try it for ourselves, but we did see it demoed by others at the event, and seemed to work without any problems.

One of the unfortunate things about this re-release is that there is no support for Restore Points, like most Virtual Console games. This was most likely done as a ways to deter cloning Pokemon and items, and generally exploiting the game, but I can’t help but feel disappointed by its exclusion. I would understand if these games were still used in public/official tournaments, but I would’ve loved to be able to take advantage of modern features in such an old game, especially when encountering rare Pokémon.

Overall, the Pokemon Red, Blue, and Yellow still play, look, and feel just as they did back when they were first released, for better and for worse. After spending some time with them, I’m looking forward to seeing if playing through the entire adventure will be able to retain the same magic as they did back in 1998. The games are set to release on February 27.


6

There will be "no expression which might be considered as gay conversion or drugging" in the localized version.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/41814/fire-emblem-fates-changes-controversial-support-conversation-in-western-regions

Nintendo of America, in a statement to us, has revealed that a controversial "drugging"/"gay conversion" support conversation in the upcoming game Fire Emblem: Fates will not be present in the North American and European versions of the game.

“In the version of the game that ships in the U.S. and Europe, there is no expression which might be considered as gay conversion or drugging that occurs between characters.” a Nintendo representative e-mailed us this morning.

In the Japanese version of Fire Emblem: Fates, you can gain S-Support, the highest level of a bond between to characters when pairing them together in battle, with several characters in the game. Most of these supports end in a marriage proposal, after several conversations between the characters.

One of the female characters, Soleil, is attracted to women, and often gets flustered and weak in the knees when she's around them. She often fears that she can't be a "strong and cool woman" because of this. Later in the support conversations if you pair her up with the male protagonist, he spikes her drink with a "magic powder" that makes her see women as men and vice-versa to help her "practice" around women. This was done without her knowing, as she fails to recognize the protagonist at the start of the conversation. Once the magic wore off, she found herself attracted to the male protagonist, and ends up proposing to him, saying that she fell in love with the female version of him, but now loves him as a male.

This was interpreted by many as not only casually drugging someone in order to alter their state of mind, but as a means of "gay conversion therapy", a method used by many religious organizations to change one's sexual orientation from gay to straight. This method is often seen as scientifically unfounded, abusive, and heteronormative.

Nintendo did not elaborate on how exactly these scenes would be changed in localized versions


7
TalkBack / Bravely Second Releasing April 15
« on: January 19, 2016, 10:30:00 AM »

Just don't go into Default paying for the limited edition.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/41802/bravely-second-releasing-april-15

Bravely Second will land in Spring, and North America will get the giant limited edition.

The  sequel to the 2014 surprise hit will release in North America on April 15, with the demo from Japan Releasing shortly before. The limited edition with the soundtrack and 250pg artbook will also be releasing on the same day, though Nintendo later clarified that the North American edition will not have the statue the European edition had..


8

The chase continues in LEGO City Undercover today at 4pm PST!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/41770/curt-plays-live-game-streams-every-tuesday-wednesday-and-thursday-11416

If you've been subscribed to our YouTube Channel, you know that a few times a week, Curtis streams various video games. We never really got around to posting about these streams here on the site, but we're gonna fix that so every one of our readers can check out the show.

Every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 4pm PST, Curt will be streaming some of his favorite video games from Nintendo's history. He also interacts with the chatroom on a regular basis, so if you would like to virtually play along with some classic games, feel free to join us when it's live!

The current plan is to stream LEGO City Undercover every Tuesday and Thursday, and a Wonderlocke playthrough of Pokemon X every Wednesday.

See you all there!

Note: You can also tune into the stream via Twitch and Hitbox.


9
TalkBack / NWR Fun Club 1/23/16: Super Mario Maker and Mario Kart 8 Live!
« on: January 22, 2016, 10:50:00 AM »

Get your death stares ready for Mario Maker and Mario Kart 8 today at 5pm PST!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/41749/nwr-fun-club-12316-super-mario-maker-and-mario-kart-8-live

Every other Saturday at 5pm PST, I'm gonna be hosting NWR Fun Club, a live stream on our YouTube Channel. During the stream, I'll be taking on levels created and shared by our readers and viewers, as well as take you guys on in various online multiplayer games. If you would like to have your level played, please tweet a link to your level from the Super Mario Maker Bookmark website using the hashtag #NWRMarioMaker, and follow these rules:

  • Please only submit 3 levels per person.
  •    
  • Do not submit levels with inescapable/death traps.
  •    
  • Do not submit the same level multiple times. If I do not get to your level in one stream, I will get to it eventually.
  •    
  • Do not submit your levels via the chat.

See you all there!

Note: You can also tune into the stream via Twitch and Hitbox.


10
TalkBack / NWR Fun Club 1/9/16: Super Mario Maker and SSB for Wii U Live!
« on: November 09, 2015, 08:57:00 AM »

NWR Fun Club returns tomorrow at 4pm PST with YOUR Mario Maker levels, as well as Super Smash Bros. for Wii U multiplayer!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/41438/nwr-fun-club-1916-super-mario-maker-and-ssb-for-wii-u-live

Every other Saturday at 4pm PST, I'm gonna be hosting NWR Fun Club, a live stream on our YouTube Channel. During the stream, I'll be taking on levels created and shared by our readers and viewers, as well as take you guys on in various online multiplayer games. If you would like to have your level played, please tweet a link to your level from the Super Mario Maker Bookmark website using the hashtag #NWRMarioMaker, and follow these rules:

  • Please only submit 3 levels per person.
  •    
  • Do not submit levels with inescapable/death traps.
  •    
  • Do not submit the same level multiple times. If I do not get to your level in one stream, I will get to it eventually.
  •    
  • Do not submit your levels via the chat.

See you all there!

Note: You can also tune into the stream via Twitch and Hitbox.


11
TalkBack / Adventure Time: Finn and Jake Investigations Review
« on: October 20, 2015, 08:13:36 AM »

What time is it? Point-and-click Adventure Time!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/41338/adventure-time-finn-and-jake-investigations-review

I’ve always wanted the Adventure Time video games to be good. The universe that the Cartoon Network show creates is one of the most interesting places to explore, and previous attempts at capturing that feeling have been middling at best. Vicious Cycle Software attempts to buck the trend by focusing less on action with a basic point-and-click adventure-style game. Does this make the game “*click click*”, or just a bunch of dirtballs?

The game starts out with Finn and Jake, our two main heroes, uncovering an old, broken ticker-type machine that used to belong to their parents. Due to some meddling by Magic Man, one of the show’s many antagonists, the machine starts to work again, and starts spitting out various crimes and mysteries going on throughout the Land of Ooo. Finn and Jake decide to follow in their parents’ footsteps and take on the cases one by one.

Already, the premise fits right in line with how an episode of the show would play out, especially since all the original voice actors are present, including comedian Emo Philips who reprises his role as Cuber, the “grayble” storyteller, who sets up the game, and provides the game’s various tutorials. Rather than a traditional, two-dimensional animation style, the game opts for fully 3D polygonal graphics, which unfortunately aren’t as appealing. The textures are muddy and colors are dull, which is surprising considering how colorful and vibrant the show can be. And while the animations of the characters are fluid, their interaction with objects and lip-syncing leave a lot to be desired. Characters will just flap their mouths open and closed without matching any of the game’s dialogue, and specific actions tend to be acted out via mime, rather than actually using the important objects as intended.

As mentioned, the gameplay is your average point-and-click adventure game; you wander around an area picking up and examining objects, talking with various characters and  using said objects with other objects and characters. The solution to solving the game’s various puzzles and cases range from extremely easy (i.e., gather objects and bring them elsewhere), to extremely obtuse if you’ve never seen the show. For example, there’s a point where you have to go out to Princess Bubblegum’s balcony to blow a human-sized bubble, so you can lift yourself up to a secret area. The game doesn’t do a good job of telling you to progress this way, you would’ve already had to have been familiar with one of the episodes to figure that out, without taking the time to examine every single object and interactable area.

Despite the aforementioned issues, it’s still fun wandering around familiar locations, hearing Finn and Jake banter about everything they’re discovering, and talking with all the characters (Lemongrab and Lumpy Space Princess provide some of the most memorable interactions). However, every now and then, the adventure will shoehorn in some “Combat Time!” sections, in which you have to fight your way out. You can use your sword to hack-and-slash through the enemies, and if you get a high-enough combo, you can unleash a combo-attack involving Jake’s shape-shifting ability. It’s impossible to lose these sections, and your only reward is treasure that has no value outside of storing it in a room inside Finn and Jake’s house. While inoffensive, these sections seem forced, and can be extremely tedious, depending on who you’re facing.

By default, I feel as if this is the best Adventure Time video game so far. It’s not perfect, and it’s a little on the easy side, but as an Adventure Time fan, it made me smile. The game took me just under 10 hours to complete all five cases, so it does feel a bit on the short side, considering the genre. There’s been implications that the game will continue to see support via new downloadable cases post-release, so there’s even more to look forward to.

Also, Magic Man is still a jerk.


12
TalkBack / Tiny Galaxy Review
« on: August 06, 2015, 12:44:55 PM »

Mario Galaxy it isn't.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/40908/tiny-galaxy-review

What happens when you take the planet jumping mechanic from Super Mario Galaxy, and combine it with the gravity-switching mechanic from VVVVVV? You get Tiny Galaxy, a small indie title from Arcane Pixel for the Wii U eShop. While combining the previously mentioned games sounds perfect in theory, Tiny Galaxy suffers from a lot of small issues that keep it from reaching its full potential.

You play as Orion, a small blue square, as he travels across six galaxies to retrieve a pair of  headphones that were stolen from him. Each galaxy has ten levels, all of which involve walking along the edge of various tiny planets, trying to find three stars. Once done, you can jump through a portal and finish the stage. The stages have plenty of obstacles such as spinning blades, spikes that come up from the ground, and more. One hit and you have to start the level all over again.

For the most part, the game plays fine. Jumping from planet to planet can be fun, and the placement of all of the obstacles can make the game tricky, if not frustrating at times. The main issue is the camera movement. Once you jump to another planet, the camera flips around so that it shows Orion rightside-up at all times. Unfortunately, the camera doesn’t do this instantaneously, and can usually take a full second to orient itself. This not only causes problems with knowing which direction you should be moving it, but can also cause some slight motion sickness.

The presentation of the game isn’t really that pretty either. The game has static, lifeless menus, and can be very confusing and glitchy. While the game keeps count of the amount of stars you’ve collected in each level (after displaying the word “Text” for a split-second), it doesn’t tell you which levels you’ve already completed. So if you close the game and load it up later, you pretty much have to guess where you last left off. On top of that, there were a few times where the game had completely deleted progress from a few previously completed levels, forcing me to find and replay the random levels it deleted the progress from.

Tiny Galaxy is an unfortunate game. Not because it’s entirely bad, but it’s littered with tiny yet major issues that keep the game from reaching its full potential. From boring menus, buggy code, and music that sounds like it came from keygen programs from the early 2000s, I cannot recommend it.


13
TalkBack / NWR Fun Club Presents: Mario Mania!
« on: September 10, 2015, 12:53:44 PM »

The finale is upon us as Curt finishes New SMB2, and says hello to Super Mario Maker right when it launches!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/40771/nwr-fun-club-presents-mario-mania

Every Tuesday and Thursday at 8pm PDT, Curtis will be streaming every single mainline 2D Mario game, including the handheld ones, up to the release of Super Mario Maker on September 11. If we have time leftover, he'll be streaming some of the 3D games as well, such as Super Mario 64, Super Mario Sunshine, and more!

This will be the final Mario Mania stream, as Super Mario Maker launches tonight at 9pm PDT, so tune in tonight to say farewell to the series!

We'll be streaming these on our YouTube channel so feel free to subscribe so you don't miss a minute of the action. See you there!


14
TalkBack / 11 Minutes of Yoshi's Woolly World Hands-On
« on: June 16, 2015, 05:51:00 PM »

Caution: This video is too cute to describe.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/40497/11-minutes-of-yoshis-woolly-world-hands-on

We had a chance to get a long hands on with Yoshi's Woolly World on the floor of E3. Check out double Yoshi action in the video below:


15

Curt goes to Disneyland to discuss how Nintendo and Universal can take a page from the Magic Kingdom's book for their upcoming attractions.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/40318/how-nintendo-can-show-its-disney-side-at-universal-theme-parks

While Universal Studios theme parks are some of the flashiest and busiest theme parks in the world, they've never been able to match success of their rivals at Disneyland and Walt Disney World. The Disney parks are constantly innovating with newer and better experiences, while at the same time retaining the same child-like wonder that they've always been known for, whereas Universal  tends to chase the hottest trend, while destroying past attractions that made them unique in the first place.

Disney and Nintendo share a lot of the same philosophies in their respective fields, and if anyone could help Universal achieve that same experience, it's definitely Nintendo. Join me as I explain how certain Disneyland attractions can help Universal get in touch with its Disney Side.


16
TalkBack / What is... Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures?
« on: March 29, 2015, 07:51:32 AM »

He's gonna take you back to the past... via game coming to the Wii U eShop this Thursday!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/39949/what-is-angry-video-game-nerd-adventures

Back in 2006, Cinemassacre’s James Rolfe graced the internet with a character called the Angry Video Game Nerd. His vulgar rants about some of the worst NES games struck a cord with a lot of people, and ended up becoming one of the most influential Youtube personalities of all time. With over a hundred episodes under his belt, it’s only natural that a video game starring Rolfe’s titular character would be made. While Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures came out on Steam back in September of 2013, the developers Freak Zone Games confirmed that the game will be releasing on the Wii U eShop on April 2. But… what is AVGN Adventures?


17
TalkBack / Re: What is Freedom Planet?
« on: March 23, 2015, 10:38:30 PM »
In my opinion, it's better than any Sonic game in recent memory, and that counts Generations.

18
TalkBack / What is Freedom Planet?
« on: March 22, 2015, 03:25:33 PM »

Galaxy Trail Games is bringing Freedom Planet to Wii U... but what is it?

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/39898/what-is-freedom-planet

After this year's PAX East concluded, Galaxy Trail Games announced that it would be bringing its Sega Genesis-inspired platformer Freedom Planet to the Wii U eShop. I have been an advocate of the game ever since I first played the original demo back in 2013. A few months later, the company started a very successful Kickstarter to complete the game and bring it to PC. While fans clamored for a release on Wii U, the game's engine made it tough to port to other consoles without extra work. Now that the game is a success, they're finally setting their sights on new platforms.

I couldn’t be more excited that Wii U owners will finally get a chance to play this amazing game. But what is Freedom Planet, you may ask? Well I’ll gladly tell you in the video below.


19
TalkBack / Kirby and the Rainbow Curse (Wii U) Hands-on Preview
« on: February 16, 2015, 10:43:00 AM »

Curse or no curse, Kirby’s Wii U debut is quite a delight.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/preview/39642/kirby-and-the-rainbow-curse-wii-u-hands-on-preview

Within the first few months of the Nintendo DS launching, many people were predicting that the system was doomed, due to the lack of quality games. Things changed when Kirby Canvas Curse arrived on store shelves. An innovative platformer that involved creating paths for Kirby rather than moving him directly was the kind of game that led the way for many touch-controlled games. Fast-forward to 2015, nearly ten years after the release of Canvas Curse. While the novelty of touch-controlled gameplay has mostly worn off, it didn’t stop Nintendo from making a sequel to the DS classic on the Wii U. I got to spend an hour with Kirby and the Rainbow Curse at Nintendo’s San Francisco office, so here are some short but sweet thoughts.

Unlike Canvas Curse, Rainbow Curse forgoes a familiar 2D pixel art style in favor of giving the characters and world a claymation style. Despite this change, the game still manages to maintain its bright and colorful atmosphere that the Kirby series is known for. If I had to compare the visuals to anything, it would be to the old Penny cartoons from the 1980’s CBS series, Pee-Wee’s Playhouse. It’s a very crude style, but it works in its favor, due to how simple the objects and characters in the Kirby universe are drawn.

The game controls almost exactly like Canvas Curse did: use the stylus to draw rainbow paths on the touch-screen that allows Kirby to roll along, avoid obstacles, and gather items. You can also tap Kirby to do a short dash attack, which will allow him to move a bit quicker, as well as take down most enemies and destructible blocks in his path. Controlling the game is simple enough, if not a bit difficult when there’s a lot going on in the level at once. There’s a stage in particular later on in the game where you have to control two Kirbys at once, and cost me quite a few lives in the process.

Thankfully if you have some friends around, up to three other people can grab a Wii Remote and join in as Waddle Dee. Unlike Kirby, the Waddle Dees can be controlled directly with the D-Pad and buttons like a traditional platformer, and can really come in handy in the game’s more difficult stages. The game also features several stages where you take control of a Kirby Tank, Kirby Rocket, and Kirby Submarine. Similarly to Kirby’s Epic Yarn, these sections are stage-specific, but provide some nice variety to the main adventure by allowing for some more complex level design and challenges.

The only issue I really had with the game was due to the nature of the Wii U itself. Since the game is primarily controlled with the touch-screen, that’s where most of my focus has to be. While this isn’t a bad thing, it doesn’t allow me to fully grasp just how beautiful this game can look on an HDTV. The game still looks incredibly charming on the GamePad’s 480p screen, but unless I’m playing as a Waddle Dee as someone else controls Kirby, I feel like it would be a rare occurrence to be able to admire just how crisp and sharp the game really looks.

Overall I had a nice experience with Kirby and the Rainbow Curse, and I’m looking forward to playing the full version when it’s released in North America on February 20.


20

The Top-Tendo is back, with a vengeance!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/video/39640/the-nintendo-top-tendo-top-10-games-of-2014-sponsored-by-mountain-dew

2014 has come and gone, and what a glorious year for gaming it was. I can’t think of a year where so many quality, finished games came out to unanimous critical acclaim, and satisfied every single AAA publisher. It was extremely hard to narrow down just ten games, but thanks to the fine people at Mountain Dew, I was able to put on my game journalism hat and give you all my personal top ten games of 2014.


21
TalkBack / New Information on Xenoblade Chronicles X Revealed
« on: January 29, 2015, 02:20:06 PM »

The upcoming Wii U RPG from Monolith Soft is quite massive, according to Famitsu.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/39548/new-information-on-xenoblade-chronicles-x-revealed

New gameplay details from the upcoming Wii U RPG Xenoblade Chronicles X have emerged in the latest issue of Famitsu.

The world of Xenoblade Chronicles X will be about 5 times the size of the world in the previous game in the series, Xenoblade Chronicles. Because of this larger world, the linearity of the game's story and progression has been tweaked. Instead of having to take on one big quest while taking on smaller ones in a linear order, players now have the freedom to tackle quests in any order they see fit, similar to games in the Fallout and Elder Scrolls series. The GamePad will display a giant map in which players can view all the active and available quests, and also allows them to warp to different areas instantly. Executive Director of the game Tetsuya Takahashi said it took him over 300 hours to play through the entire game's content.

The gameplay is also faster-paced, giving the player a faster sense of speed and ability to change from short to long-range weapons fairly quickly. While there is no healer class in the game, there's a new system in place called "Soul Voice", which can be triggered to string together attacks and heal the party at the same time.  While it looked like the game featured online co-op in some of the early trailers, the game will only feature online functionality in a passive way, allowing players to leave behind messages for others, similar to to the Souls series of games.

Xenoblade Chronicles X is due out on April 29 in Japan.


22
TalkBack / Nintendo Creators Program Goes Live
« on: January 28, 2015, 01:36:37 PM »

YouTube creators who make Nintendo content can now bypass the ContentID system... sort of.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/39525/nintendo-creators-program-goes-live

Nintendo has officially launched the Nintendo Creators Program, an ad-revenue sharing system for YouTube users who use Nintendo content or music in their videos.

By registering your YouTube channel and a PayPal account, you can now submit your entire channel or individual videos to be reviewed by Nintendo. Once approved, a majority of the ad revenue will be deposited into your Paypal account at the end of each month. Currently you will receive 70% of the revenue if you register your entire channel, and 60% if you only register individual videos.

Previously, if you uploaded a video with certain footage or audio from a Nintendo game, there would be a "ContentID" claim put on it. This allowed Nintendo to run advertisements on the video page, and did not allow the user to run any of their own ads, or profit from any ad revenue gained from the video.


23
TalkBack / The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D Preview
« on: January 26, 2015, 07:14:00 AM »

A few hours with Majora’s Mask 3D highlight what makes this remake so promising.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/hands-on-preview/39506/the-legend-of-zelda-majoras-mask-3d-preview

It seems like only yesterday that The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D was unveiled to the world. Fans have been clamoring for this remake for quite some time, and it came as a shock that we’d be getting this game in February, earlier than most people expected. With the final version of Majora’s Mask 3D in hand, I spent a lot of time with the Nintendo 64 classic over the past week.

Right off the bat, Majora’s Mask 3D looks absolutely gorgeous compared to the previous 3DS remake of Ocarina of Time. While Ocarina of Time 3D looked good, most of the textures and areas didn’t look that much better than the original Nintendo 64 release. Majora’s Mask, on the other hand, looks as if everything was made from the ground up, really showcasing what the 3DS is capable of. Any worry I had about the game’s darker art style not translating well to a portable experience quickly dissipated as soon as I started playing.

Quite a few elements of the game have been changed and streamlined as well. Like the Ocarina of Time remake, there’s a special stone located inside the Clock Tower where you meet the Happy Mask Salesman, which you can crawl into and get a vision of what you’re supposed to do next. This really helps when playing such a large game on a portable system, since it’s easy to lose track of what you were doing if you play this game on the go, and have to start and stop playing on a semi-frequent basis. It also helps that there are way more spots in the world to save your game, as compared to the original version, where you could only save at the Owl statues scattered across the game world.

So far, I’ve only really noticed one change to the game’s world, and that’s the location of the Bank Teller in Clock Town. He used to be located on the west side of town, but was moved right behind the Clock Tower, making it much easier to notice and find. The bank allowed you to deposit rupees, and retrieve them when you traveled back to the First Day, instead of losing them. The Bomber’s Notebook, as well as the hiding locations of the Bombers, have also changed. The notebook now gives players more detailed descriptions of locations and times of each of the game’s many sidequests and records, making the game not only feel more streamlined, but also easier to obtain every mask needed to unlock the final mask later in the game.

As far as the game feels, it’s essentially identical to the original release on N64, with a couple added benefits. The first one are the gyroscope controls that return from the 3DS remake of Ocarina of Time, allowing you to freely control your aiming by moving the system. This allows for more pinpoint accuracy with bubbles, arrows, and more. Thanks to the New 3DS XL, the face-tracking also allows me to not lose the 3D effect when moving the system around, so this feature has a big leg up over Ocarina of Time. Camera control can also be manipulated via the New 3DS’s C-Stick or the Circle Pad Pro, allowing you to rotate and scale the camera in various ways, similarly to how The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker’s camera operated.

As someone who absolutely adores Majora’s Mask, this 3DS remake has thoroughly impressed me so far, but I can’t say for sure how I truly feel about the game until I’ve fully completed it. We’ll have a full review up on February 4.


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TalkBack / Hands-on with the New Nintendo 3DS XL
« on: January 19, 2015, 04:25:44 AM »

Curtis got the North American version of the New 3DS XL! How does he like it?

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/hands-on-preview/39450/hands-on-with-the-new-nintendo-3ds-xl

Nintendo held a press event in San Francisco this past Wednesday, and much to the surprise of everyone who attended, they gave away the final retail release of the New Nintendo 3DS XL. After a few days of messing around with it, Curtis has some positive and negative thoughts of the hardware. Check out his impressions in the video below.


25
TalkBack / Re: Hands-on with Ironfall Invasion
« on: January 16, 2015, 12:47:09 AM »
But how does it play on a regular 3DS?


they only demoed it on the New 3DS XL

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