Messages

26

General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: July 24, 2021, 03:30:39 PM »

Playdate preorders go live July 29! I've read some fun things, but this is probably staying on my list of "fun toys to buy if I win a small lottery or something."

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General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: July 24, 2021, 03:28:16 PM »

A recent youtube video from Intellision themselves showing an office party and some prototypes and demos going on ended on a segment where they were talking about cornhole, which is one of their pack-in titles. (Cornhole is also one of the three main Amico games I'm actually interested in.) Putting aside the question of whether it's going to be a fun way to play the game or not, the fact that they're still tinkering and considering up-ending the tea table on one of their launch pack-in games at this stage gives me pause. Motion controls in videogames are a decade and a half old by now, demonstrated by plenty of examples not just from Nintendo but devs at every level of the industry, even with limited accelerometer performance. It would have been more encouraging to see them more locked in to a vision for this simple game concept at this point.

Also it strongly suggests that Cornhole is being developed internally, and I wonder if that's part of the situation. I wonder if they might be closer to a final product if only they'd found some external indie dev who has experience doing motion controls and having them do this game for them.

It also reminded me that while the content of these games have been approved by official ratngs boards, the actual gameplay underpinning that content could definitely still be in flux and not finished. I wonder just how much crunch they've got ahead of them for some of these games...

UPDATE: Apparently the game isn't being completely redone, they claim this is more of a late stage controls experiment in order to find alternative control methods that play better than what they currently have? And that the game is being developed externally in Germany... hmmm Well, not quite as dramatic then, but still worrisome that they haven't nailed down yet exactly what they want, but with game development it's true that sometimes stuff doesn't come together until very late. (Additional Update: Some information in an interview with Intellivision's CFO/COO seems to contradict this interpretation of events, so maybe this is just a really confusing situation to try to nail down with certainty)

Still, I'll be VERY disappointed with this game if it isn't Wii Sports quality out of the box. I want it to be just pick-up-and-play and not have any weird bowling/golf styles power bars or aiming that isn't motion controlled, I want it to "just work" like Wii Sports felt back in 2006.

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General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: July 24, 2021, 01:10:44 PM »

The internet is going all crazy over the Valve Steam Deck, and all I can think of is meh.

The steamdeck looks like a great piece of tech honestly. So have other handheld pcs in its niche product category too actually, like the GPDWin or Aya Neo. And with Valve's size and ability to make money on the valve ecosystem and the choice to have a low storage 64GB SKU the price is starting to get close enough to bring up comparisons to Nintendo and console instead of full-priced laptops. (Though the much more expensive SKUs are the true full experience, and you have to buy a dock separately, so the more appropriate comparison is against the Switch Lite.)

I think it looks pretty neat but the biggest question is how much of a mass market product it's going to be. It sounds like reservations are already stretching into 2022 so I don't think they're planning to manufacture huge quantities of it and right now I'd guess it's probably going to be pretty niche when it first arrives purely due to unit quantities available. That right now seems to be the biggest limit on it. That and a lack of an audience rallying "killer app" to market it with (Half-Life 3?).

I think the more interesting thing about it is it offers either a comparison or a ceiling to a future Switch 2, both in price and performance. My take right now is that an eventual Switch 2 from Nintendo will be slightly under the raw performance of this Steam Deck, or match it, but due to being a closed system will be able to look more optimized in actual outcomes. And Nintendo will also probably have to be aware of that when pricing a Switch 2.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Official Sales Thread

« on: July 17, 2021, 04:46:22 PM »

The PS5 isn't leading in Japan, but apparently launch-aligned globally it's slightly outpacing the PS4, which is a pretty good place to be, right? With the Switch also a launch-aligned sales rival with the PS4, I'm interested how the PS5 will compare to Switch historical sales as it gets more time on the market, and how long the Switch can continue this pace before it sees a decline.

When will the Switch peak hardware sales be? Did it happen already in 2021? Will it be 2022 or 2023? Or is it less a single year peak with following drop, and instead maybe more of a 2 or three year sustained plateau?

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General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: July 15, 2021, 08:38:54 PM »

A lot of what you say is very true. The reason the NintendoLife interview stands out for someone who's been keeping semi-up-to-date on this is because the bar has essentially been set SO low by the lack-of-coherent-marketing they've had for the past two years. It's hyperbole to say that they've had a $0 marketting budget so far, but only technically... And yes, Tommy Tallarico can talk, but if they want to continue doing things publicly they really need to get a professional in front of the camera.

I think the Amico is far beyond past things we've seen from vaporware consoles, there are actual accounts and recent public events where prototypes have been played, and even some footage I believe. HOWEVER for some reason they're not publicizing this, and the only people trumpeting and talking about these hands-on experiences are their diehard community members.

Yes, they're on the defensive in that interview, which means that they're not fully in control of the message, but their default until now has been to have NO message essentially. The defensiveness is great not so much because that's what they wanted to do, but because it's dragging them out into the spotlight a little and forcing them to divulge some stuff that, really, they oughta have been talking about anyways.

I'm not about to preorder one of these just yet. (There's an extreme dearth of specifics about what will happen at Launch, which is just a non-starter for me.) However, like you, I find this whole saga fascinating.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Official Sales Thread

« on: July 09, 2021, 12:58:49 PM »

All of these games (besides Resident Evil) have been outsold by Miitopia, which itself isn't exactly hanging with the usual Switch Big Boys club.

Oh man really? o_0 That's certainly something!

Wonder if other factors are at play too, like hardware shortages? The higher prices of Playstation games? Moves towards digital? Various lockdown measures? All of the above?

I think also in general the current climate for the Japan console market is heavily in Nintendo's favor. I think Nintendo's solidifying most of the remaining local Japanese developer niche support for that market, and doesn't Japan generally just have one big clear winner per console gen usually anyways? Also, the Japanese console market has been famously "dying" for years now, and the PS5 is very much a traditional console compared to the hybrid switch. I think PC is finally making some inroads to Japan (heck, Sony is even publishing their games on PC now right?), and Sony's own focus might be veering more to the bigger super profitable western markets for their console as Japan's market may not offer them a similar opportunity due to it's smaller scale.

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General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: July 09, 2021, 12:39:42 PM »

NintendoLife did an interview with Tommy Tallarico specifically to follow up on the criticism that's brewed up after the developer site leak and consequent Ars Technica article. It sounds like he's had a chance to craft a much better message now and really offer a counter-narrative to the criticism that was sort of being left unanswered.

In fact, this might be the most encouraging thing I've seen in a long time by way of presenting the Amico. (I admit though that's really not saying much. However this is at least written out in text easier to digest than verbal responses on some youtube video, it contains a lot of important information about the Amico and the company themselves in one place, AND he actually goes into specifics!

The most important tidbits I feel he's elaborated on or revealed here include:

- Talking extensively about how they work with developers (Basically, everything on Amico will be 1st Party with Intellivision as the publisher and willing to pay indie devs upfront for the work (compare: Epic Store?))
- Pointing out clearly explained inaccuracies in previous criticisms, but steering clear and not getting bogged down in less useful tech specs talk
- Stating that the final hardware is completed and has passed compliance tests
- Going into more detail about the lag in updating the controller screen on one debug unit's firmware version.
- Stating on what terms they worked with J Allard
- Clarifying how they're not a crowdfunded platform
- Claiming 100,000 preorders and purchase orders already and having to turn down Costco and Target because of hardware shortages
- Clear statement of $20 million in funds (at the start? in the bank right now? That's not clear, but what is clear is that they have funding, just not infinite amounts of it)
- Talking about how Amico differentiates from a Switch, and also from Mobile, and some scenarios it is uniquely designed for
- Going into specifics about the substantial features and work they fund and put into ports like Finnigan Fox or Rigid Force Redux

It sounds like with the orders they have they're thoroughly convinced the players are there, they just are running into (understandably) difficult headwinds in building the final physical units they'd actually need to make launch. The final hardware is approved and tested, the launch software is also probably near-final (I think I learned that from some other place on the internet he was talking about), but they just need to build the darn things and at scale.

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TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Announces

« on: July 06, 2021, 07:20:42 PM »

This does have me question as to the timing of the Switch's successor. A 2023 release would put it in line with the gap between the Wii and the Wii U. By 2023, the old, circa 2015 Nvidia Tegra System-on-a-Chip in the Switch would be 8 years old technology https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tegra#Tegra_X1. This is a gut feeling that makes no sense, but I'm thinking maybe Nintendo would rather avoid Metroid Prime 4 being a split-gen title as a matter of pride (of it being promised Switch-only/first title). Not that Nintendo ever showed that much reverence for the Metroid series for it to put the next generation of Nintendo hardware on hold, but maybe?

Then there's the chance that maybe Nintendo would want to coast on the Switch's success through 2023 and not release a successor to 2024. The money-making would probably make sense to Nintendo, but this notion has me nervous given the performance issues/quibbles in games such as Bowser's Fury and the Monster Hunter Stories 2 demo.

Yeah, this is the new point of fascination for me: what does the Switch OLED appearing in 2021 mean for the timing for a "Switch 2"? I think it's clear that Nintendo has ambitions to keep profiting from the Switch as long as it can, but the length of time they sat on the Wii was clearly a lesson that there is such a thing as "too long" to stretch things out. Still, I would imagine that a "blurring" of generations (strong backwards compatibility, cross-gen titles) would let them deliver a Switch 2 SKU in 2023, or even in 2022.

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TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Announces

« on: July 06, 2021, 03:58:28 PM »

If I understand this correctly, it's still the same exact hardware?

That's my understanding. Which means I can stick with my launch Switch and not spend even more money on video games this fall. Phew! The big disappointment to me is that the Joy-con issue sounds like it's still not getting fixed.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch Lite and Future Revisions

« on: July 06, 2021, 03:56:47 PM »

Since it's functionally the same as the current regular Switch, I think it should replace it eventually, to help lessen possible confusion by having too many models. But, only if they bring it back down to $300 when it comes time to replace it.

And by doing so, Nintendo will have successfully maintained the $300 price point for even longer. They must really be trying to support that price point and avoiding a "price cut" below it for as long as possible.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch Lite and Future Revisions

« on: July 06, 2021, 01:42:55 PM »

Looks like this is a 3DS XL style upgrade, or a DSLite style, both of which were revisions I skipped. Thankfully this doesn't seem to be on the DSi or New 3DS level of upgrade, which I DID splurge on. Phew!

I'd guess there's still room for an improved-hardware Switch to come out in 2022 though.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch Wishlist Game Recommendations

« on: June 29, 2021, 06:56:20 PM »

Low Concern
Starlink

Do you already have a copy of Starlink for the Switch? Because...uh...I got some spares...

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General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: June 29, 2021, 06:36:08 PM »

Yeah.  And Tommy immediately went on the attack, threatening legal action.

I'd say I'm about to cash out my $100 preorder.

Tommy Tallarico going ballistic on twitter was just additional self-inflicted wounds.

Amico really at this point needs to "put up or shut up". I don't have a pre-order yet, but I will actually consider pre-ordering this fall if this thing actually starts to shape up and look like it'll have a real, honest-to-god, competent launch. Some of the pack-in games already have my curiosity, they just need to deliver the actual things they said they would.

On the other hand, getting a better idea of the hardware internals of the machine makes me think that the internals of the machine aren't horrendously expensive after all, so they might actually have more space than I thought for profit in whatever business plan they're running.

Edit: Got around to watching some videos that analyzed the big leaks and some other amino stuff yesterday and I'd definitely way more concerned about the amino now. As a concept it was already very very niche and having to prove that a market was there that no one believes exists, but now I'm worried about other things entirely, like whether they might have run afoul of SEC rules when raising funding. To be clear I think the Amico has definitely shown a lot more than the vaporware consoles of the 90's and early 2000's, but there is a real chance this thing becomes like the Phantom or something like that ilk.

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General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: June 29, 2021, 04:24:25 PM »

Ah-ha! The Intellivision developer site for the Amico was available without any login credentials for long enough that details about a couple more in-depth technical aspects of the system, like actual hardware specs or how aspects of the controller can be disabled to conserve battery life, have been exposed to the wild of the internet: https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2021/06/what-the-hecks-an-intellivision-amico-consoles-leaky-dev-portal-offers-hints/

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo Switch Wishlist Game Recommendations

« on: June 29, 2021, 12:48:56 PM »

Any Shantae title, even the lesser ones in that franchise, deserve to be at or near the top of your list. It's not just because they're solid games, but also because as mostly level-based 2D action action-platformers with a spiritual home on Handhelds, they're TRULY pick-up-and-play because you get to the gameplay fun so quick, can knock out distinct levels or areas in the game without too much time commitment before putting it down again, and you will make steady progress towards the end which you WILL see because it's not some distant 40-70 hour goal.

I'm not saying they're all 10/10 games by any stretch, but especially when one has a busy life and immense backlogs simple straight-to-gameplay and complete-able games like Shantae actually HELP YOU to play videogames instead of giving you analysis paralysis or making you trudge through a 1 hour tutorial just to saddle you with 40+ hours of game ahead of you before you can cross it off your list.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Games you DON'T want to see come out

« on: June 29, 2021, 12:42:10 PM »

Khushrenda:  I actually disagree with your take because Mega Man NES games hold up better visually to me than the SNES updates.  The style is just perfect.  However, the difficulty of those games are just too much for me.  But I love them dearly.

Agreed. The Visuals of Mega Man are definitely NES era but they're readable and have a distinct style, and more importantly I think the Gameplay is solid and not arcane. Of course, the games tend towards difficulty so much that I can only beat Cut-Man's stage in the original Mega Man! ^_^'

Urban Champion though... Ooof that's a pretty good answer for this thread's topic.

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General Gaming / Re: Atari VCS, Amico, Micro Consoles

« on: June 28, 2021, 10:29:16 PM »

Recently got the thinking that the Amico might run into a very similar pricing/profitability problem the Wii U had: the controllers are too expensive. I imagine that the Wii U faced problems reducing its price due partly to the tech that was mandatory for its unique controller proposition. Likewise, with the screened, wireless controllers of the Amico, AND with TWO of them included in the system, I imagine they don't have much price flexibility to push it lower. If Amico can't find a large enough makret for whatever strategy they have at $249.99 I wonder if they'll be able to find a market at all due to this.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Official Sales Thread

« on: June 18, 2021, 01:08:14 PM »

FINALLY $20M UNITS SOLD!!!

that took long enough.

Wahoo! What are some further milestones in the JPN market the Switch can reach for? Passing the Nintendo DS by reaching 33 million?

XBox finally passed 3DS for sales in the current year.

Woah! Oh, you mean the XBox Series consoles, for a second there I thought the XBox One was still chugging along.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Nintendo E3 Direct announcements

« on: June 17, 2021, 02:03:42 PM »

2. Life Is Strange Collection. 2021.
3. Life Is Strange: True Colors. September 10th.
4. Guardians of the Galaxy CLOUD EDITION. October 26th.
7. Two Point Campus. 2022
9. Mario Party Superstars. October 9th.
10. Metroid Dread. October 8th.
11. Just Dance 2022. November 4th.
14. Mario Golf: Super Rush. June 25th.
15. Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin. July 9th. / Demo June 25th.
16. WarioWare: Get It Together! September 10th.
17. Shin Megami Tensei V. November 12th.
23. Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope. 2022.
27. Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda. November 12th. [Includes: Zelda 1, Zelda 2, GB Link's Awakening, Vermin]
28. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild Sequel. 2022.

These are the games high on my radar out of that Direct. Not to say some of the others don't interest me but I've got significant reservations still about otherwise interesting offerings like Advance Wars (I already have too many unfinished Advance Wars -likes in my backlog to invest in a pair of ports in a genre I'm not good at to begin with).

I will say that I wasn't sold on Mario Golf at ALL until the Treehouse gameplay demos, so kudos to Nintendo on selling me on that game finally.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Games you DON'T want to see come out

« on: June 17, 2021, 01:56:53 PM »

This is a really hard one to figure out. There's lots of games or franchises I don't have any particular positive feelings about, but to actually say that they should NOT come out and basically be restricted? That's a very high bar to meet to say that other people can't enjoy another game in that vein if that's what they're there for.

I guess maybe another Mother title? Itoi seems to be completely done with that series and I can't imagine going forward with it in light of its creator's refusal. Maybe way down the line it can be revived as another creator's vision, but right now it'd feel probably too much like disrespecting Itoi's wishes.

So I guess basically if a creator centrally important to a game's spirit says it's "done", then we shouldn't be trying to overrule them to exploit that IP against their wishes. Similar I guess to how Bill Watterson resolutely refuses that Calvin and Hobbes be used in mass licensed merchandising, we should 100% respect that.

[It supports two players and his zany cast of characters directly inside the microgames!]

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TalkBack / WarioWare: Get It Together! Coming to Switch September 10

« on: June 15, 2021, 08:40:00 AM »

It supports two players and his zany cast of characters directly inside the microgames!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/57527/warioware-get-it-together-coming-to-switch-september-10

WarioWare: Get It Together! is coming to Switch on September 10 of this year, and it's adding to the franchise's unique microgame format.

It still features the game's flagship style of "microgames" that are 10 second challenges players are dropped into and need to figure out quickly, but now you directly control either Wario or your choice of character from the franchise's zany supporting cast. Each character has different abilities, so your choice of character matters in how you interact with the microgame you're playing. Plus, it supports two players!

Some games briefly seen showed toothpaste-squeezing, avoiding bird-droppings, and pumping the levers of a rail car.

[Includes FOUR games: Zelda 1, Zelda 2, and Link's Awakening, a special version of Game & Watch Vermin!]

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TalkBack / Game & Watch Legend of Zelda Coming This Year

« on: June 15, 2021, 08:40:00 AM »

Includes FOUR games: Zelda 1, Zelda 2, and Link's Awakening, a special version of Game & Watch Vermin!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/57536/game-n-watch-legend-of-zelda-coming-this-year

Nintendo is giving the Zelda franchise it's own special Game & Watch edition for it's anniversary year November 12 of this year.

Adding to what their previous Game & Watch Mario offered, this time Nintendo is including not just one classic game and the tiney handheld but THREE: Zelda 1 and Zelda 2 from the NES, PLUS The Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening from the GB. On top of this it will include a special version of the original Game & Watch game "Vermin" but with Link as the playable character.

In another improvement, Nintendo is making the actual clock section of the Game & Watch playable even while the time is counting down.

The MSRP for the Zelda G&W will be the same as the MSRP for last year's Mario one: US$49.99.

[Check out this Steelbook and other goodies!]

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TalkBack / Metroid Dread Collector's Edition Revealed

« on: June 15, 2021, 08:32:00 AM »

Check out this Steelbook and other goodies!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/57533/metroid-dread-collectors-edition-revealed

Although not showcased in their E3 stream, Nintendo revealed a special edition for the upcoming Metroid Dread coming out later this year. It will include a steelbook, an artbook, and art cards focusing on the franchises's 2D past.

Check out the #MetroidDread: Special Edition also releasing on 10/8, which includes the game, a steel game case, artbook, and art cards covering all 5 games in the 2D saga! pic.twitter.com/SKWK0ltFtr

— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) June 15, 2021

[Coming October 29 with button controls!]

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TalkBack / Mario Party Superstars Draws From Past Mario Parties And Features Online

« on: June 15, 2021, 08:16:00 AM »

Coming October 29 with button controls!

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/57526/mario-party-superstars-draws-from-past-mario-parties-and-features-online

Nintendo announced Mario Party Superstars today during their E3 Nintendo Direct stream. The game will draw on the franchise's entire series by including 100 minigames from past games, all with button controls. It will also include boards from past games too, and allow players to save mid-game to continue later. In a key addition, the game will support online play on the game boards!

The game is scheduled for release on October 29 of this year, and is already available for pre-order.

[Wow, he threw so many fighters off a cliff...]

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TalkBack / Kazuya Coming to Smash Ultimate

« on: June 15, 2021, 08:07:00 AM »

Wow, he threw so many fighters off a cliff...

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/57524/kazuya-coming-to-smash-ultimate

Kazuya is coming to Smash Bros, giving Bandai Namco's Tekken franchise representation in Nintendo's fighting series. The first video Nintendo played showed Kazuya dramatically dropping the bodies of his defeated opponents off a cliff into an ominous river of lava. (Notable, when Kazuya drops Kirby off the cliff, the pink creampuff merely flies away nonchalantly in the background.)

Game director Masahiro Sakurai didn't go into details about the way the new character would work in Nintendo's fighting game, but promised more to come in an upcoming presentation on June 28.

Nintendo of America later confirmed the presentation would be at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT, be roughly 40 minutes long, and would not contain any info about the final fighter of Fighters Pass 2.