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TalkBack / Re: Pokemon Pokopia Sells 2.2 Million Copies In Opening Weekend, 1 Million In Japan Alone

« on: March 13, 2026, 05:50:38 PM »

I'm going to guess that very few people who are actually aware of what a Game Key Card is wants them.  Buying the game digitally outright where you can literally get it within minutes of buying it, can bring it travelling with you without bringing a bunch of cards, can swap games without having to open the card slot and possibly take the Switch 2 out of the dock, and not have a physical package that actually contains nothing eating up space in your house all seems vastly more convenient.  I imagine the "well I can resell it" crowd is pretty small.  I figure most people have bought these things without fully paying attention to what they're getting and might not even have noticed its not the real deal if the first time they loaded it they were connected to the internet.

After Nintendo said they wouldn't release Game Key Cards for their own published titles they backed out on that and then picked a Pokemon game to be their first title.  That is pretty shrewd.  Pokemon is an ideal title for this because its target audience is kids who don't know better and relatives of kids that probably have no idea that the Switch 2 games on the store shelf actually have multiple variations of Game Key Cards, full physical games and Switch 1 games that update to Switch 2 games.

The game itself is a follow up to Dragon Quest Builders, which is awesome, so I don't doubt for a second that Pokopia is as good as the reviews suggest.  If I had a Switch 2 I would probably get it... as a download from the eShop.

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TalkBack / Re: Pokemon Winds And Waves Announced For 2027 Release

« on: February 27, 2026, 12:18:51 PM »

With this and the new Fire Emblem my brother has realized that a Switch 2 purchase for him is now inevitable, it's just a matter of time.

Despite all of its technical issues Pokemon Scarlett was still one of the most enjoyable games I've ever played.  It was pretty much the Pokemon game I wanted on the Gamecube (with visuals to match lol).  So if this is more of that except the game actually runs half decently, that will be pretty tempting.  But it's not coming out until 2027 so I have lots of time to think about any future Switch 2 purchase.  And I'm pretty infrequent in buying Pokemon games.  I tend to get on board every three generations or so.

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TalkBack / Re: Pokemon Fire Red And Leaf Green To Release On Switch February 27, Pokemon Presents Announced

« on: February 20, 2026, 12:03:52 PM »

On one hand it's really odd that this isn't part of the Nintendo Only GBA titles.  But on the other hand it is rather stupid that Nintendo's retro titles are exclusive to a subscription service with no way to purchase something permanently.  So in that sense this is preferable.

There is segment of the Switch userbase that wants a Virtual Console store to buy the classic titles.  An ideal situation would be to make all the games available in both.  Sign up for Nintendo Online and you get free access to these games but if you want to buy any individual title you can.

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TalkBack / Re: Konami Reveals Multiple Switch Family Titles Including First MGS Ghost Babel Rerelease

« on: February 13, 2026, 11:47:13 AM »

My brother is a big Metroidvania buff.  For reference he suffered through Bloodstained's lousy Switch port.  When I told him there was a new Castlevania at a Sony presentation he was ready to buy a PS5... until I told him it's coming to the Switch as well.

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TalkBack / Re: Mega Man 40th Anniversary Game Highlights Switch 2 And Switch Announcements At Winter Game Fest

« on: December 12, 2025, 11:42:18 AM »

I'm rather delighted that a Switch 1 game has been announced for 2027.  That's a way's off so who knows if they'll bother with it by the time we get there but for now it's cool.  I hope the Switch 1 still gets releases at least up to its tenth birthday.

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TalkBack / Re: Pokemon Legends Z-A Mega Dimension DLC Opens December 10

« on: November 06, 2025, 12:21:45 PM »

Seems way too soon to release DLC.  A lot of the kids that make up the Pokemon target audience have probably not played the game yet because they're going to get it as a Christmas present.  Let them get it for Christmas, play for a few months, then time the DLC with when those kids are just starting to get bored with it but would be interested in new content to spice it back up.  Now I suppose Nintendo might be thinking that the idea is for the DLC to be the Christmas present.

We know what this and the DK DLC are.  They were released so soon after the game's release that you know they were at worst almost finished when the base game launched.  A lot of DLC is just taking a chunk of the game out and charging extra for it.  But Nintendo can be a little more clever about this and not make it so obvious.  Have some patience and wait at least six months.  "We made some more content for that game you love" is such a better sell than "We held back on this to make you pay extra for it."

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TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Shifting Development Focus To Switch 2

« on: November 05, 2025, 02:05:49 PM »

Pokemon Legends Z-A and Metroid Prime 4 are the two big new releases that are for both Switch 1 and 2 and they were announced as Switch 1 games well before the Switch 2 was revealed.  Development had already been done and they probably didn't want the PR hit from cancelling the Switch 1 versions.  So in that sense Nintendo has been quite good at making sure their new Switch 2 games are exclusive to the platform, far better than Sony or MS have done recently.

Third parties are different though.  I still expect a new third party game announcement to be on both platforms.  It's not universal but I figure those publishers want to cover their bases by not locking out the Switch 1 userbase for the time being.  But then maybe that will change if Nintendo's own efforts steers things more blatantly towards the Switch 2 than Sony and MS do.

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General Chat / Re: The Major League Baseball Thread: Did SI Swipe The 2025 Sports Almanac?

« on: November 02, 2025, 10:59:31 AM »

Losing the finals is the worst feeling in sports.  You can have seasons where you're just garbage the whole year but that's not so bad because you just lose interest and do other things.  But when you lose in the finals you put in the same amount of investment as the fans of the team that won, only you have nothing to show for it.

What frustrates me is of the the four losses, the Jays could have easily won three of them.  Bichette had this brain fart where he was thrown out off base in game 3 because he thought the batter was walked.  Later that very batter made it home, meaning Bichette who should have been in front of him would have made it home and then that game never goes into extra innings with the Jays having an extra run.  In game 6 we've got runners on third and second with no outs.  One hit and the World Series is ours.  Somehow only two more batters come up.  The last out is a double-play because Barger is off base when the ball gets caught.  That's two baserunning mistakes that you would expect out of little leaguers.  How on Earth do professional baseball players mess up like that?

I'm just so frustrated and rather pissed off.  It was in our grasps.  Should have won it.

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General Chat / Re: The Major League Baseball Thread: Did SI Swipe The 2025 Sports Almanac?

« on: October 23, 2025, 07:37:55 PM »

Well, my team is in the World Series.  Been a while since that happened.  I don't know how likely they are to beat the Dodgers but let's give it a go.  My brother is so bummed out about the Mariners though.

Two years ago, Vlad Guerrero was caught napping off the base in the playoffs and got thrown out.  At this point the Jays were making their third appearance in the wild card round, where they were swept every single time.  I was fed up.  I figured Vladdy didn't have it and that they should do something drastic to shake up the roster.  I felt the core were good players that didn't take it seriously when it mattered.  I was thinking of when the Jays won the World Series how they had underachieved with a good roster for years and then made a big trade of McGriff/Fernandez for Alomar/Carter, a lateral move on paper but a shake-up to a stale roster that wasn't getting it done.  When they resigned Guerrero to a big contract I thought it was a questionable move.  Giving a playoff underachiever a big contract is a classic mistake.

Uh, I'm an idiot.  Don't let me run your baseball team.

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General Chat / Re: The Major League Baseball Thread: Did SI Swipe The 2025 Sports Almanac?

« on: September 26, 2025, 02:55:42 PM »

The Jays are my team but with the Mariners being the closet team to me and having gone to games in Seattle many times I have a soft spot for them as well.  My brother is an outright M's fan, so with both teams in the playoffs it could get interesting in my family, if it ends up being him against our dad and I.  It's going to eat a lot into Switch time but it will be nice to watch the playoffs with Dad.  Brings back memories of '92.

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TalkBack / Re: Switch Online Expansion Pack Breaks Glass, Unleashes Virtual Boy

« on: September 12, 2025, 02:06:21 PM »

You have to buy an accessory to play games that you cannot actually buy.  If you're a collector I almost suggest you buy the plastic model.  Though it will eventually become totally useless, they're probably going to sell and make so few of these things that it will probably be a valuable collector's item someday.  I'm thinking like how Pokemon Box was laughed at when it came out and now is a Gamecube holy grail item.

The frustrating thing is that they had a system on the market for years that had glasses free 3D and they didn't re-release these games then.

What they really should do is sell the accessory with the games built in.  You still need a Switch or Switch 2 but no subscription necessary.  For a niche product like this it makes no sense to combine an expensive purchase with a subscription.  For the accessory and all of the games, $100 is not a terrible value.  But the approach they're going with is laughably greedy for a product that's notorious for being a huge bomb.  Will they even sell a thousand of these things?

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TalkBack / Re: Next Nintendo Direct To Air September 12

« on: September 12, 2025, 11:22:53 AM »

Yeah, that Danganronpa 2 remake was rather strange.  That game is already available on the Switch and by extension Switch 2.  And if they're going to remake the series why wouldn't they start with the first one?

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TalkBack / Re: Next Nintendo Direct To Air September 12

« on: September 12, 2025, 10:57:14 AM »

Well this wasn't really worth getting up at 6AM for.  We got the Metroid date and it's this year so that's good!

Switch 1 is still getting a lot of stuff but I can't really think of anything from this Direct that wasn't already announced that I can see picking up.  On the Switch 2 side, there's some interesting stuff.  I haven't gotten into the Fire Emblem series yet but I know it has a strong fanbase.  Monter Hunter Stories 3 looks interesting to me.  Neither of those would convince me to get a Switch 2 though.  Even in regards to the ports I wanted on a Switch 2, we're still not getting them.  I figured we would see games like Metaphor: Refantasio and Visons of Mana - like all the stuff that skipped the Switch 1 but still made the PS4, but they haven't shown up.

Something I really don't like about the format of these things is that they'll show a trailer and then a Nintendo guy will explain the very thing you just saw.  Don't bother with that.  It just drags the presentation on.

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TalkBack / Re: Next Nintendo Direct To Air September 12

« on: September 10, 2025, 02:40:06 PM »

@IANSANE - You don’t want to try Donkey Kong? Or have you yet? It’s such a good game and while I don’t know your tastes any longer I think you would absolutely love it. Phooey on that 8.5! That game is a solid 9.99999999 all the way around! And I don’t just say this as Donkey Kong nutcase, it is really a great game!

It looks like a great game but getting a Switch 2 and a copy of the game would cost me $730 CAD.  With the Switch 1 still getting lots of support and the Switch 2 lineup being pretty thin I can't justify that price.  I need multiple games that I can't get on the Switch 1 and a price cut for both the system and games in my country would help a lot too.  I might need a stronger Canadian dollar to get the second part.

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TalkBack / Re: Next Nintendo Direct To Air September 12

« on: September 10, 2025, 11:56:38 AM »

If we don't get a release date for Metroid Prime 4 this time I'm going to... well I guess I won't not buy the game because my whole reason for caring is from wanting to play it.  And I'm not going to stop buying Switch 1 games.  I could refuse to buy a Switch 2 but I'm sort of already doing that, not really out of a principle but just a lack of justification for the price tag.

Okay, so there is really nothing I'm willing to do to Nintendo.  But I'll be very mad and will badmouth them on the internet, uh, so there!

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TalkBack / Re: Kirby Air Riders 2 Getting Direct August 19

« on: August 19, 2025, 11:45:20 AM »

So they revealed Kirby's release date as Nov 20.  That is a lot later than I expected.  I figured worse case scenario it would be October.

Now what are the odds Nintendo releases anything in 2025 after Nov 20?  After that you risk missing the Christmas shopping window.  So I fear Metroid is moving to 2026.  Why would they give Kirby a Direct first if it was the later game in the release schedule?  You figure they would do all of this in order.  So a Nov 20 date suggests that nothing that has been announced but doesn't have a date will get released before then.  And it's late Nov too.  A Dec release would probably be at the beginning of the month.  I can't imagine Kirby on Nov 20 and Metroid only a few weeks later.

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TalkBack / Re: Kirby Air Riders 2 Getting Direct August 19

« on: August 18, 2025, 11:59:19 AM »

I figured we would get a Direct after Drag x Drive came out.  Somehow the running gag of not revealing Metroid Prime 4's release date continues.

45 minutes seems really long for one game.  That long would be hell for a game I'm not interested in and for a game I am I feel like that would spoil too much.  I guess I would have thought it was awesome when I was 10 years old and didn't care about spoilers.

I only know the original Kirby Air Ride as that Gamecube game where you press one button and it virtually plays itself. It came across as barely a game.  And in general Kirby games are usually pretty good but never something I'm really excited about.  If I'm going to skip a first party release, Kirby tends to get the cut more times than not.  So I'm not going to check out the 45 minute Direct, maybe a shorter trailer if they have one.

I am curious as to when the release date will be.  This might be an indication of how Nintendo wants to reveal information now.  They seem to want to do one game at a time.  So is Kirby coming out a month from now?  Two months?  We can probably assume that the lead time from this Direct to the release date will be similar for other future game-specific Directs and that will apply to the other first party releases that are supposedly coming out this year.

Still I don't understand why Nintendo wants to drip feed us this info.  Having a new console with a barren release schedule doesn't give people confidence in your product so why have it appear that way when there actually are releases coming soon?

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TalkBack / Re: Indie World Presentation To Air August 7

« on: August 05, 2025, 11:48:40 AM »

It's becoming amusing how Nintendo keeps giving us these presentations but each one has a theme that allows them to avoid revealing release dates for their own first party games.

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TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Switch Pricing In United States To Be Adjusted Starting Sunday As Canadian Increases St

« on: August 01, 2025, 10:51:32 AM »

So I was fearing Switch 2-style $100 CAD games so "only" 5 bucks isn't so bad.  Still it looks so ridiculous on the eShop to see first party Nintendo games that are years old now charging $85.  Ignore the price increases for new games, why the hell are games from 2017 having a price increase?  Nintendo should have lower prices for their older games to begin with and having this increase just emphasizes how ridiculous that is.

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TalkBack / Re: Chillin' by the Fire Shadowdrops Onto Nintendo Switch 2

« on: July 31, 2025, 12:25:46 PM »

While watching this portion of the Direct my mind kept going to the old Simpsons bit "Really, is this a joke?"  I'm half expecting AAA Clock to make a Direct next.

I can only assume this got any sort of legitimate placement in the Direct because it uses the camera and there were probably no other third party games at all that use it.  Nintendo wants you to care about this feature, dammit!

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TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase To Air July 31

« on: July 31, 2025, 12:05:33 PM »

So now that the Direct has come and gone, Hyrule Warriors also has no proper release date.  Is this like a new Nintendo thing, where they won't commit to a release date until the last minute?  Or are both games in risk of a delay?  It just seems odd for Nintendo to have two games that are supposed to come out in 2025 but still have no release dates when we're almost in August.  They're not going to release something in late December as they'll want everything available in time for Christmas.  If either game was coming in August they would have announced a date by now.  So we've got about a three month window where these would come out if they stick to 2025.

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TalkBack / Re: Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase To Air July 31

« on: July 30, 2025, 11:58:56 AM »

On one hand, it's good to see a showcase like this.  It will probably have a fair amount of Switch 1 stuff so it probably has more relevant content for someone like myself who doesn't have a Switch 2.

But as a partner showcase it will not have the one thing I want to know and that's the Metroid Prime 4 release date.  Or frankly the release date for any Nintendo first party games for the rest of the year aside from Pokemon.  Is there a reason they're not giving us these dates?  Has everything fallen so behind that the rest of the 2025 lineup is up in the air and could move to 2026?  I'm especially worried about Metroid because not only do I not want yet another delay but I fear that if it moves too far into the future that they'll decide to not bother with the Switch 1 version.  Another delay is a potential cancelation.

So hooray for the Partner Showcase but at this exact moment that isn't what I want, which hurts my enthusiasm for it.

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TalkBack / Re: Canadian Switch 1 System, Game, And Accessory Pricing To Be

« on: June 30, 2025, 02:35:57 PM »

So my take is that if I've been putting off purchasing some Switch 1 games I should get them now.

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TalkBack / Re: Switch 2 Sells 3.5 Million Units In First Four Days To Become Fastest Selling System In Nintendo

« on: June 11, 2025, 01:31:32 PM »

I expected the launch units to sell out.  The biggest issue with the Switch 2 is the pricing.  That's going to cut out the poorest of the existing Switch 1 userbase but there would certainly be 3.5 million people above them in the list that could easily afford the higher price and wouldn't care about paying it.  The real test is long term when the earlier adopters all have their Switch 2s.

But the system price is not unreasonable for the tech you get.  The bigger issue are the game prices.  So what will the attach rate be for games compared to the Switch 1?  If the games cost more, but a person's gaming budget doesn't change, they'll buy less games.  Nintendo might be ready to declare the $80 game experiment a success because of Mario Kart World but anyone who got the bundle paid only $50 for it.  Let's see how it works for an $80 game with no alternate price option at release.

I also would be curious to see how these figures break out by country.  Here in Canada the most expensive Switch 2 games are $115, which is insane.  Mario Kart World is $110 as the $115 price seems to be for Switch 2 versions of certain Switch 1 games.  So how are those games selling in that country or any country where the prices have shot up over a hundred bucks?  We don't think of our money as a conversion from USD.  $100 is $100.  So I think there's a possibility that Nintendo may be pushing right up to the limit for the American pricing but in other countries they may be pushing far past that.  There is a psychological element to something going from a two digit to three digit price.

Nintendo does deserve credit for having produced a good amount of these things.  The early adopters will all get one within the first few months, presumably without having to go through a scalper which is great.  Christmas will give us good numbers as those sales will have moved beyond the most devoted to the more general population.

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Nintendo Gaming / Re: Will you be willing to buy Virtual Game Cards, or would go all digital instead?

« on: June 02, 2025, 01:40:37 PM »

Luigi Dude is depressing me with the 20-30 years comment.  I'm currently playing a PS2 game that is now over 20 years old.  Will I be playing an equivalent of that when I'm in my 60s?  Hmmmm.

Though we don't need to go 20 years.  The Switch is 8 years old which means that the 3DS ceased to be a current system 8 years ago.  If I want to play a 3DS game today that I don't already own I need to find a used cart.  I can't buy it from the digital store anymore and Nintendo cut that cord really quick.  Now with the Switch 2 being backwards compatible that is not likely going to happen with the Switch 1.  It seems Nintendo is now finally using one store and account that will cross multiple generations.  But it wasn't always that way and that was a good reason to support physical games on the Switch.