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General Gaming / Re: R.I.P. BioWare: A Studio Rarely Seen on Nintendo Consoles

« Last post by M.K.Ultra on Today at 11:39:41 AM »

The only BioWare game I have played is the aforementioned Mass Effect 3, which I only picked up because it was on Wii U. With nothing to compare it against I had a good time and really enjoyed the game. I do have a copy of the newest Dragon Age game on PS5 but have not played it yet. With the transfer of EA this did not really come as a surprise but still a sad moment for longtime fans.

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General Gaming / Re: Shocktober 7: NWR 3D

« Last post by broodwars on Today at 12:13:21 AM »

So, let's talk a little about Stupid Never Dies, a very serious game for extremely serious people.









The name on the tin doesn't lie. This is an extremely silly little game, and I kind of love it for being just a breath of fresh air.

It's the post-monster invasion apocalypse, where humanity has mostly been wiped out and extremely talkative (in the Zootopia Sloth sort of way) zombies roam the streets. One of them, teenage-ish Davie, ran from the war early on and hid out in a mall, where he found the frozen corpse of a teenage girl and fell in love with her.

With the aid of a mad scientist; his were-chihuahua assistant; a zombie burger delivery driver; and a talking gargoyle statue, Davie sets out to try to save his would-be girlfriend by flushing himself down a magic science toilet that takes him through several layers of monster-infested Rogulite dungeon capping off in extremely "punk" introductory boss cutscenes with devil horns, graffiti, and bosses clearly designed to look like MC Hammer. All in the hopes of eating the Big Bad so he can obtain the energy to bring her back to life.

This is a very serious game you must take very seriously.

This game is just dumb simple fun. While it is a Roguelite, there are so many permanent systems in place to carry over progress that I feel it only "technically" meets that definition at this point. While Davie moves slowly when off his trusty Roomba back at the mall, while in the dungeon he can run around and attack like a normal character action game protagonist. You land in a level, you run around killing monsters, you find the door to the next level, wash, rinse, repeat. Simple. There are "base" level every few floors that allow you to spend currency to regain health, etc. as well as bank any materials you've earned since the last base level, so even if you do die I don't think you're really risking all that much.

A somewhat odd design choice is that while you always start a run at Level 1, there's a persistent XP multiplier throughout the game. It starts at 100% when you start up a new game and it skyrockets with each completed run, successful OR failed. I haven't died yet, and after 3 runs I have that already up to 500% and it cannot go down. If you want to get an idea of how ridiculous that stat can get...there's a trophy for hitting 5,000% XP, and it's a bronze so it's meant to be easy to get. So with each run you do, it becomes easier to level quickly.

Perhaps it's designed this way because each run is on a very strict timer, around 12-13 minutes from what I've seen. I came very close to hitting that time limit in my last run, where I skipped a bunch of floors to jump straight to a dungeon boss and barely beat him with basically no health left and 20 seconds on the clock. I'm not sure what happens when the timer runs out. The game warns you that you'll be "weaker" when it does and that you can actually die at that point, but it's not clear if that's an instant fail to the run or not.

Yes. You, a zombie, have a health bar and can die.

This is a very serious game that definitely wants to be taken very seriously.

As far as combat goes, this is a pretty basic brawler with a few twists. For one, there is no lock-on camera and no guard. There's really no dodge either. What you do have is the "Stupid Parry", where you dash towards an enemy. If they're performing an attack at the time and you make contact doing this, you interrupt the attack. Do it when the enemy's doing a glowing yellow attack, and you can add a counterattack to that Stupid Parry. Also, you are, after all a zombie, so you have the ability to bite enemies with a big ol' chomp attack. And you can use that chomp attack to not only restore health temporarily lost in combat but also to steal the enemy's special attacks to use as your own temporarily. You can even steal the form and move set of the larger "Elite" enemies by doing this.

Apparently, Davie was Mega Man in a past life, and there is a very serious reason for why he can do this that is not in the least a running gag.

So far, I'm having a blast with this one. It's not the least bit complicated, but that's just what I needed right now and I don't think it aspires to be more than what it is, though some games journalists apparently really wanted to write a doctoral thesis on how much it offended them. It feels like a spiritual successor to a Suda 51 game, embracing the sheer "game-iness" and arcade feel with buckets of color and truckloads of "punk". It's actually kind of shocking that he had absolutely nothing to do with this game.

The game's on PC and PS5 so far, and I can't imagine it'll be long before it's on the Switch 2 as well. If you're curious, there is a demo out for the start of the game.

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General Gaming / Re: R.I.P. BioWare: A Studio Rarely Seen on Nintendo Consoles

« Last post by Evan_B on Yesterday at 02:02:21 PM »

Damn, I did not make the connection that Shadow of Mordor released the same year as all those other bombs. Helps put the “Game of the Year” moniker into context, as I’ve already said my piece on the overall vibe and mechanics of that game.

Again, I will post about my slight experience with BioWare titles later. I’m also fascinated to see the perspectives of others who have really enjoyed their games… or bounced off some of their later releases. I have heard tales of Anthem’s mediocrity but I never saw enough of it to quite understand why.

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TalkBack / Re: Monster Hunter Wilds Switch 2 Prologue Demo To Launch On October 19

« Last post by recognizesteam on October 21, 2026, 11:29:11 PM »

I'm especially curious about the performance and visual compromises on Switch 2, given how demanding Wilds can be on other platforms.

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General Gaming / Re: R.I.P. BioWare: A Studio Rarely Seen on Nintendo Consoles

« Last post by broodwars on October 21, 2026, 10:13:01 PM »

I can't say I held any love for modern Bioware, not after having actually played the disasters that are Anthem and Mass Effect Andromeda (though I will note that the Mass Effect Andromeda books are reasonably entertaining for what they are).

That said, I've enjoyed a lot of past Bioware games. I believe my first game of theirs was the original Knights of the Old Republic, back when I still played PC games (hey, my username had to come from somewhere). That game's writing really captured the wonder of the Star Wars universe, and while Bioware didn't make the sequel that was only compounded in KOTR 2 when I saw locations and characters I'd only heard of in the Star Wars Expanded Universe comics/audio dramas.

Never got around to playing Jade Empire, though I do own it on my Xbox One. Like most, though, my heart from that time belonged to the original Mass Effect, where I got to see them do for Star Trek what they had already done with Star Wars. It may seem a silly thing, but the thing that told me that ME would truly be for me? The first time I unlocked a Codex entry, opened it up expecting to see another ream of text I'd barely skim and forget in 5 seconds, and instead being treated to a fully-voiced data log explaining a fascinating aspect of the game's universe. It's that level of craftsmanship, that attention to detail, that really sold me on Bioware.

Before too long, I'd read all the books (aside from the one that was recalled due to being written by a fraud), and I was even working at EA when both Dragon Age 2 and Mass Effect 2 released. DA 2 rightfully gets a lot of **** for all the corners cut in its development, all the recycling of dungeons, and the extremely limited play space. However, I found the writing as strong as ever, and it's still the only game in the series I've managed to get through (I bounced off the 1st DA HARD, as I like to play as a mage and the mage's origin both looks and plays like ass). It also allowed me the rare flexibility to play as both a hero and a total smart ass. So many RPGs are so incredibly serious all time. It's also the rare RPG where you get to see a central location change over a long period of time as you build and grow relationships with a small cast of characters that have their own lives beyond you.

As much as I loved the original Mass Effect, for all its faults, Mass Effect 2 was the one that really got its hooks in me. While it was a shame to lose the total freedom of exploration the 1st game had, ME 2 just plays so much better, and I found the game's strong emphasis on character-specific quests very rewarding. It reminded me of how Majora's Mask based everything on building personal connections through small personal stories.

Unfortunately, then Mass Effect 3 happened, and while I won't call the game a total travesty (like many would) it was still such a profound disappointment. So much build-up across 2 games and 3 books ("4, sir!" "Shut up!") for so little payoff. I've always heard the DLC redeems that game somewhat, but those came out long after I was done with that game, and considering how that game ends I just couldn't find the desire to roll back the clock for more adventures before The End. I would have enjoyed doing them as I did my original playthrough. It's pretty much why I can't get behind all the stuff Nintendo's adding to the Xenoblade Switch 2 versions. Yeah, all that stuff sounds cool, but I did my time with those games. The emotional investment is gone, and I have little interest in starting fresh again.

Also...

Where are my Krogans riding genetically-engineered Dinosaurs in the final battle cutscenes, Bioware?! YOU PROMISED ME KROGANS RIDING INTO WAR ON GENETICALLY-ENGINEER DINOSAURS!

*ahem*

Nothing Bioware made after that really interested me. Yeah, I picked up Dragon Age Inquisition: GOTY edition. It's there on my shelf to get to...some day, but I have to say all the years of "GET OUT OF THE HINTERLANDS" kind of dampened my desire to ever start that game. Then Andromeda came out and was just awful. They took a focused narrative experience with the original ME trilogy, and they followed it up with Open World bloat featuring characters I just couldn't care about. Played the game for a few nights and then just gave up on it, but like I said...the 3 books set around it are pretty OK if you're into that sort of thing.

Tried Anthem earlier this year to see if I wanted to try to hunt the Plat before the servers got shut down. After 2 missions, I knew I never wanted to see that game ever again.

Setting aside the negative reception of Dragon Age: The Veilguard at launch, I couldn't muster up interest in it because I never got around to playing the game that set it up: Inquisition.

Overall, I'll miss the Bioware that reignited my twin loves for Star Trek and Star Wars in the 2000s when both were going through a rough patch. One day, I hope to do a critical reappraisal of the Mass Effect Trilogy through that copy of Legendary Edition sitting on my shelf. That said, it's been no secret that the studio has been hemorrhaging talent for years, most notably to Archetype Entertainment and its upcoming Mass Effect spiritual successor, Exodus. The studio's last 3 major projects have all been high-profile bombs. They haven't had a hit since Inquisition in 2014, and to be frank that year was full of so many AAA disasters (Destiny 1, Assassin's Creed Unity, Watch_Dogs) that its only serious competition for GOTY was a mediocre Assassin's Creed/Batman knockoff (LOTR:Shadow of Mordor).

I hope that the people still at Bioware that had the talent and the passion find gainful employment elsewhere, but I won't miss what Bioware became in its later years. Sure, you can blame EA's idiotic engine and service model mandates for a lot of it, but Bioware's historic strength was its writing and from all accounts the writing in Veilguard was considered poor, and I can personally attest that Andromeda's and Anthem's were awful from what I saw. I can't say I'd want to see another poorly-written Mass Effect game after Andromeda.

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General Gaming / R.I.P. BioWare: A Studio Rarely Seen on Nintendo Consoles

« Last post by Evan_B on October 21, 2026, 09:10:57 PM »

Yeah, uh.

It’s sad to see a studio so beloved finally close its doors, even if I can’t speak to having rich experiences with any of its games. The only BioWare game I ever played was Mass Effect 3 as part of a podcast dare, and that experience was as miserable as playing Trails in the Sky 3 sans context, except it took itself a bit more seriously. I have no doubt that EA will do everything it it’s power to exploit the intellectual property of the studio with as low a bar for quality and inversely high a bar for profit as they can, but I don’t want to imagine that future. Rather, I can think of no better way to celebrate the storied catalogue of titles of this studio than by hearing your thoughts and feelings on their games. If you reply to this thread, it’s because I actually value your perspective. Not to say I don’t value the opinion pieces written by other games journalists. Their livelihood is reliant on taking about how these corporate morons mismanage their assets. But from what I understand, even from the short time I’ve had with their games, is that people connect to the choices and stories that BioWare’s games offer. Especially the Sonic RPG.

I will add my thoughts at some point, but yeah. The industry sucks ass at the moment, though EA’s tradition of closing down beloved game studios is evidence that it has happened before and likely will happen again.

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General Gaming / Re: Shocktober 7: NWR 3D

« Last post by broodwars on October 20, 2026, 10:59:27 PM »

Have to admit, as we get to the end of the month, struggling to find much interest in playing anymore horror games. Belmont's Curse is good, but kinda feeling a little "Castlevania-d out" at this point.

Thought I'd try spending a few evenings playing a game I originally intended to get to back during Backlaugust, but...well...you saw how that went: A Plague Tale: Requiem. Been putting that one off for a few years now, so long in fact that the game's already got a character action game sequel a few months ago. I guess even the developers realized they couldn't keep the horror act up.









Well, I'll give Requiem this much: while it takes a longer time to get to the point than the first game did, it can certainly be just as ****ing grim as that one was at times. Perhaps too much so.

Taking place in 1400s France, Requiem picks up 6 months after where Innocence left off. The De Rune family is on the run after you murdered the pope in Notre Dame in a battle of psychically-directed flesh-stripping magic plague rat tornadoes-

There. I just lost you, didn't I? Yeah, A Plague Tale: Innocence kinda completely goes off the deep end by the end, and it's clear the developers really want you to forget how stupid that was because they are super eager to re-establish the threat of the magic horde of plague rats fairly early on in Requiem. Sorry, devs, I can't. It was really stupid, and I've beaten Innocence twice over the years between the PS4 and PS5 versions.

As with Innocence, this game is 1/3 walk-and-talk adventure game, 1/3 linear horror puzzle game, and 1/3 stealth game. And like its predecessor, it's that last 1/3 that's the real problem and the one that makes me want to put the game down. I enjoy the grim atmosphere. I enjoy having to create safe havens of fiery light and finding creative ways to bridge the plague rat tide as you dash from safe point to safe point. I can't ****ing stand the incredibly annoying stealth arenas, where you have to get from one end of a large open area to another  avoiding patrolling guards.

I'm not good at stealth games to begin with, but I managed alright with the first game's rudimentary stealth sections. You could kill any guard without a helmet with a single swing of your sling, but your sling made a ton of noise so you'd alert any nearby guards. You could extinguish the torches of patrolling guards using crafted ammo for your sling, which would leave them at the mercy of the swarm. Finally, you could distract them by throwing pots or chucking rocks at crates of armor. That was all you could do.

The developers decided the best way to "improve" upon this system was to have the game passive-aggressively judging you now. You now have a skill tree with perks related to improving your (stealth) combat; your alchemy; or your stealth, with point gains depending on whether you murder every last mother****er in the arena, only most of them, or very few of them. Nice idea in theory, but the problem is that the arenas are absolutely stacked with guards, there are items you want to find hidden in the environment, and when you get spotted you have very few options for returning to stealth. The best option you have is to get out of sight and duck under a bed or table, but I just spent over an hour in one arena attempting to clear it without being an absolute psychopath and it was just impossible. Guards are frequently stationed directly in the path of where you need to be, with few non-lethal options to get them out of the way. I'd escape detection 1 moment only to find the enemies change up their patrol patterns and instantly spot me again from the other side of the arena.

This offered me this chilling challenge: to find a way out, which ended up being behind a bunch of plague rats I had absolutely no chance of stealthing through with a torch without getting spotted by 3-4 more guards! Ironically, this is one of those games that could have actually used more modern guidance, as I spent quite a long time trying to find the intended way out of that arena, which was only briefly hinted at by a door opening for an NPC that I absolutely could not see at the time they came in.

Of course, in the end, there was always MY way: killing every single one of them so I could clear the traversal puzzle in peace. As I received that huge boost to the combat XP bar after I was basically forced to murder an entire legion, it makes me feel like I wasn't really allowed to play the way I wanted to play, as well as wonder how possible the REST of the game is going to be to try to play even semi-stealthily.

And then there's the length. This game is 17 chapters long, and after 2 nights of play I'm only at the start of Chapter 4. 

Definitely feeling like this game is a bit "much" right now. Think I'm going to jump over to the Zombie Roguelike Stupid Never Dies once it arrives tomorrow. Played the demo, and it feels like the spiritual successor to a Suda 51 game. Feels like possibly the right game for the mood I'm in right now.

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Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 997: For Waluigi, Death Is the Happy Ending

« Last post by jarodea on October 20, 2026, 08:23:12 PM »

The box art desktop displays are really nice.  I do the NSO platinum point missions each week and have way too many platinum points for what I find interesting (I get around 800 a month).  Thank goodness Nintendo made them, though I’m going to need them to make something new here soon.

As for HDR, I was surprised how difficult it was to get it set correctly with the Switch 2.  I had to find a YouTube video showing how to do it with my specific TV model to finally get it to look good.  Mario Kart World doesn’t quite look right, but meh.

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Podcast Discussion / Re: Episode 997: For Waluigi, Death Is the Happy Ending

« Last post by Evan_B on October 19, 2026, 08:49:07 PM »

I think the amount of “big damn Nintendo games” feels a bit higher when you consider Nintendo-adjacent properties that are leaning in the same direction: namely, Pokémon and Kirby, and assumedly Xenoblade (which I am hoping will be an honest-to-goodness Open-World Xenoblade like X and not the others), with Pokémon already having an open-world installment on Switch. Not saying that’s a necessarily valid argument, as I think Zelda and Mario Kart are the only ones to which you could apply the “Nintendo” moniker.

Your commentary on Mario Kart World was very valid, though, and everyone brought up great points. It seems like something got lost in the sauce during development, or maybe the developers just didn’t quite know what else they could add that was novel in order to contrast the might of MK8D. But some of the ideas mentioned here would have been excellent nuances- particularly the Forza Lakitu.

Excited for 1000. I’ll have to pen something especially cruel for you all, since I know how easygoing my emails can be.

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TalkBack / Re: Street Fighter (Movie) Review

« Last post by Kairon on October 19, 2026, 06:20:20 PM »

I thought the movie was good. But I liked it less than the Mortal Kombat 2 movie earlier this year.

It's an interesting comparison to make. I also enjoyed the recent Mortal Kombat movies, but when I sit down and think about it Street Fighter wins out in my estimation. The Mortal Kombat movie was also fun and willing to be what it was, but I think it's characters were broadly drawn, and there was surprisingly significant space in the Street Fighter movie for real grounded character motivation storytelling.

Both movies are silly but Mortal Kombat II let's that silliness reach escape velocity (like with Baraka becoming a Johnny Cage fan) which is honestly fun, but Street Fighter balances and eventually reorients things into its characters motivations.

Mortal Kombat is also a franchise that necessitates the melodrama of killing characters and lots of good guys off to manipulate audience emotions, but I think the Street Fighter movie did well to dispense with being fixated on a "tournament" and not fridging characters to drive the story.