Topic: Episode 524: Original Podcast, Do Not Steal

[Crimm]

Metal Nintendo the Podcast is 400 years old, a great skateboarder, and everyone loves him.

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/rfn/44694/episode-524-original-podcast-do-not-steal

Despite the title, we mostly avoid discussing custom characters, Rabbid nightmares, and the creeping horror between. That said, Jon is out investigating such phenomena, leaving our normal podcast down its most senior member.

The otherwise sprightlier show kicks off with New Business. Greg finished off the Specter of Torment add-on to Shovel Knight, and enjoyed it a bit more than James. He also got his hands on a Switch Pro Controller (again, in contrast to James). Lastly, he takes a look at Mario Kart 8 Deluxe in a post-patch, post-rude gesture world. James gets lost in Night in the Woods, a sharply-written adventure-like for PC and PS4. Come for the commentary on growing up, adulthood, loss, and the degradation of our rural communities; stay for the tough angry singles in your area. Gui joined the Switch Owners Club and talks about first experiences with the system, via the demo for Blaster Master Zero and two-player Snipperclips.

After the break, we take a dive into a trio of Listener Mail. This week we cover: games to see on the SNES, game worlds we'd like to live in (while having a well-used name), and what DLC we'd actually like to see in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. You can live - very briefly - in our world by sending us an email.

[Wanderlei]

I did not know about Kirby and Starfox not getting released again because of FX chip. They managed to get other FX chip games like Donkey Kong Country running in Wii and Wii U. Super Metroid would be my snes recommendation.

[wcmullins]

I don't believe Donkey Kong Country used the Super FX chip, so that's why we have seen it re-released on virtual console (I don't believe we ever found out why the games disappeared for a few years on the Wii Virtual console?)


I want to share my Switch out in the wild story. Recently I had a family member in the hospital and had a lot of family members with older children around in the waiting room. Well there are two 60+ inch televisions there, so I had the bright idea to bring my switch and load puyo puyo tetris and mario kart on it (I don't have a pro controller, so everyone just played with Joycons). I had a lot of people stop including nurses to ask about the system. One nurse said her kid wanted one, but she wasn't sure if she was going to buy it for them. I took the system out the dock and handed the tablet w/o the controllers attached. When I attached the controllers and showed you can play the same game and then immediately snapped it right back in the dock, they just went "Oh I want one of these." I had multiple family members say they wanted one after seeing the system which reminded me of the Wii era.


Lastly, Earthbound?

[MASB]

Surely the patents on the Super FX/FX2 chips have to be expiring pretty soon, if not already, thus removing the legal problems, unless Nintendo signed very unfortunate contracts back then (though even those usually have some sort of escape clause). The MP3 patents have recently ended, and the Super FX chips were developed before then.

[lolmonade]

A few SNES Games I'd recommend as well that I don't remember hearing on the podcast.  There were just a lot of GREAT games on the system, but these are some I couldn't put down, beyond the obvious Nintendo games.

Super Ghouls n Ghosts

Super Off Road

Zombies Ate My Neighbors

NBA Jam:Tournament Edition

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time

[Lemonade]

Night in the Woods sounds like the sort of game I would like. I would probably buy it if it was on Xbox One or Switch

[Kobeskillz]

I don't think Nintendo wants any more DLC for Mario Kart 8.


Imagine the difficulties of developing Mario Kart 9 due to the content and how it will pale at launch compared to MK8 Deluxe.


The reviews will absolutely knock it for having much less content even though MK8 is a deluxe edition. Now add DLC to that and MK9 will look even worse as far as content.


So instead of Nintendo shooting themselves in the foot and dedicating more resources to an old game they are moving those dev teams to other projects.

[lolmonade]

Given the low install base the Wii U had and how well Mariokart 8 Deluxe is selling, anyone besides me think it's entirely possible Mariokart 8 Deluxe is the only Mariokart we get on the Switch?


It's the kind of game that'll probably be high on everyone's "buy" list who wants a Switch, i'd think.  That, and IMO MK8D might be one of the best Mariokart games that's existed in terms of courses available, game modes, and overall content.  I'm inclined to think it'd be tough for Nintendo to top it with another release on Switch, instead maybe waiting out a new release for the Switch successor. 


Finally, I can't think of another Nintendo console that had two Mariokarts released on it (outside of virtual console).  I could be mistaken on this.

[Pandareus]

I fully expect MK8D to be the only MK game on the Switch. That's why I'm waiting for DLC that appeals to be more than the few extra characters and the battle mode that the Deluxe version adds to the Wii U release.

[Crimm]

You are correct, this is however the fastest a console has ever received its Mario Kart. (Mario Kart: Super Circuit was about the same - a few months). It's also the first time the MK title originated on another system. Unless they convert MK8U to a GAS situation, with constant stuff to buy, then my guess is there is an MK11 (the correct number) later. If they find ways to harvest money with high-profit DLC (versus lower profit packaged software) and find there's a good DLC attach rate then then I'd guess MKNext is post-Switch.

[ClexYoshi]

First off, I got a little behind on RFN. I'd have loved to send listener mail about Sonic OCs but you already lampooned it in the episode title and took the wind out of my sails for having a segment of listener mail for that.

Secondly, Mega Man X3 is probably my third least favorite X-series game. The damage is entirely too darned high on the regular enemies to try and get you to use Zero, the Bit and Byte stuff is both really obtuse and difficult, not to mention Vile Mk. 2, and they just put waaay too much stuff around the levels like the ride armor mods, the chips for the armor parts, the armor itself, life ups, Sub Tanks... and in the end, if you don't do this certain arcane set of goals, it messes with the Doppler stages and either makes things way harder than they need to be or locks you out of things like getting the best armor chip or the Z-Saber for X. it's a very unfocused game, where the SNES version has a really grating soundtrack because it's just all synth guitar all the time. thankfully, playing the PSX/Saturn releases remedy this with redbook audio, but also have weird compression, sound design issues elsewhere.

X4 is a back to basics affair. the most complicated thing in that game is choosing which buster you want for the Fouth (Force? translation is weird) armor and weather you want to mash the start button to skip "WHAT AM I FIGHTING FOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR?!?!?!?!?!" in each campaign respectively.

I suppose one could argue X5 is worse than X3 because it's a game that's ending is subject to RNG and the totally useless and unexplained parts system is kinda offputting, but X5 gets absolved by having such an awesome endgame that serves as a sort of "Mega Man in Retrospect" sort of castle, and because I kinda love the dumb Guns n' Roses references.

Oh, and uh... Thank you for reaffirming my decision to NOT play Night in the Woods. When it first came out, my friends described it as an "Experience" and that is about the quickest way to turn me off from a video game hardcore. That's the sort of buzzword stuff that floats around games like Earthbound and Undertale and whatever other artsy indie game is out there like Journey or Papers Please.

That, and uh... my first exposure to Night in the words might have been... *ahem* Fanart.

[azeke]

Papers Please is legitimately good. It's not just a flimsy wrapper over hilariously bad story like so many of "experience"-type games.

[MASB]

Thanks for talking about Night in the Woods. It sounds really interesting.

For the Mega Man X series, all I can say is that I loved Mega Man X. I was never able to beat the final boss. I've heard there are tricks that I didn't know about back then, so I should get around to trying it again.

I asked for it for my birthday. My mom quizzed me about the game because she was concerned that the X stood for something of an adult nature. Ahhh, the more innocent days of videogames!

[nickmitch]

Another Mario Kart appearing on Switch is unprecedented, no?  I don't think we'll actually get another since it's been such a one-per-system franchise.  I also think you'll create some market confusion with a second release.  The every three year trend was really only to support two consoles.  That's not an issue anymore.

I think DLC is the way to go.  Nintendo could eventually drop the price, put it under their best seller label, and start plugging DLC.  And the DLC should mostly just be new courses/battle mode stages, unless they really wanna add an ARMS character.  And maybe a new battle mode.

Then, down the line, Nintendo can re-re-release Mario Kart 8 with all the Mario Kart 8 DLC and the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC and call it Super Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.  Or Turbo Edition.  Either way.

[Disco Stu]

Another Mario Kart appearing on Switch is unprecedented, no?  I don't think we'll actually get another since it's been such a one-per-system franchise.  I also think you'll create some market confusion with a second release.  The every three year trend was really only to support two consoles.  That's not an issue anymore.

DLC for Mario Kart was unprecedented
Re-releasing the last Mario Kart on the new console was unprecedented
A console without an exclusive Zelda was unprecedented
DLC for Zelda was unprecedented


We're into uncharted waters.

[Order.RSS]

Maaaaaybe they'll go the DLC route indeed, but the actual reason for it is that the Mario Kart team is having so much fun with 200cc mode they've decided to make an even faster game?! F-ZERO CONFIRMED Y'ALL!!!

#Believe

[nickmitch]

Another Mario Kart appearing on Switch is unprecedented, no?  I don't think we'll actually get another since it's been such a one-per-system franchise.  I also think you'll create some market confusion with a second release.  The every three year trend was really only to support two consoles.  That's not an issue anymore.

DLC for Mario Kart was unprecedented
Re-releasing the last Mario Kart on the new console was unprecedented
A console without an exclusive Zelda was unprecedented
DLC for Zelda was unprecedented


We're into uncharted waters.

There was a time when DLC from Nintendo was unprecedented, and if there was one series Nintendo was gonna do DLC with, Mario Kart was it.  The re-release of MK8 was a move made out of desperation.  The failure of the Wii U was another unprecedented event that triggered the re-release.

Moving a Zelda game from one console to another wasn't entirely unprecedented since TP did just that.  The development time of the series went up and the lifespan of their console went through the floor.

All that to say there's more reason for those things to happen than I think there is for a new Mario Kart on Switch.

[Pangoradio]

Possibly not entirely relevant but still interesting.


During the talk about the Actraiser song it was compared to Star Wars and how it copied it so blatantly. That actually isn't all that true as that song lifts far more directly from Gustav Holst's The Planets - Mars, The Bringer of War. You can even say that Star Wars and other similar sounding soundtracks were heavily inspired by this specific piece as well which is why it sounds so very Star Wars. You can easily look up the song on YouTube if interested.