Topic: The Nintendo Switch Thread

@gcunit
They're extremely versatile which I love.

Like the Switch itself, there are compromises made to achieve that flexibility, but for me, it strikes the perfect balance.

Even the d-pad I've come to appreciate more over the years. Because 99% of games use D-pad as buttons for map access or health Potion. It doesn't work well for fighting games though. But I rarely play those, and have other controllers I can use if I do.

Same thing with digital shoulder buttons. I hear a lot of complaints, but 99% of games don't use analog shoulder buttons. I'd rather have a digital button that's better than squishy analog for the 99% of games that are better with digital, than make the vast majority of my games feel worse to play just so one or two games can use the analog (and even then, games like Trials Rising use the analog stick instead and I prefer it more- I beat courses on Switch Lite I still haven't beaten on Steam).

The good news is, there's a lot of choice and alternate options, so even if someone doesn't like them, there's plenty of alternatives to use instead.

Joy-Con's an odd one, I think it was an interesting concept back in 2017 though more recently it has felt like its biggest advantage is that you can replace it if it gets drift (if the Switch Lite got drift you'd have to get the whole system repaired or replaced) rather than something gameplay related.

I like joy cons but I love the pro controller more. It’s great that out of the box you can play multiplayer games without buying more controllers. Snipperclips was my first eshop game and it great with single joy cons shared with family and friends

The biggest advantage of joy cons is definitely playing with one joy con in each hand, in games with motion controls and rumble. Super Mario Odyssey was one of my best gaming experiences, partially due to the above reasons. Also, lazily playing like a sloth with only one joy con on your hand and the switch on your bed is another big plus for me, in games that dont have a lot of different commands and with slow gameplay, because playing handheld can become tiring very quickly, especially without any kind of grip.

But when playing handheld with the joycons attached, the ergonomics are pretty bad, and often without any good reason. I already mentioned the thumb grips and I will insist, even without changing the size of the joysticks, there are much better thumbgrips out there, compared to the slippery flat textured ones of the joy cons.

5 days to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, Grand Theft Auto III Remastered, Grand Theft Auto Vice City Remastered, and Grand Theft Auto San Andreas Remastered. Followed by Shin Megami Tensei V the day after.

I think Thursday I'll hop into GTA Vice City and KOTOR.

GTA III was the first 3D Grand Theft Auto, and the most archaic to go back to. I'm sure it's MUCH better now in the Remastered version, but it's still the smallest map. Then again, Vice City and GTA III maps combined still don't even match half the size of the San Andreas map, but Vice City is a little smaller, a bit more focused, and has the whole Scarface thing going on. Better to save San Andreas for after.

And I'm very excited to get a save file going in KOTOR. Finally, after all these years, I'll be able to play it, and on a hybrid device at that.

But, it'll only be a toe in the water because SMTV will take priority on Friday.

@JaxonH San Andreas has a lot of empty space in it, which contrasts with the smaller but more content-dense worlds in the other two games. But I remember being a bit awed by how big it all was at the time. It was very cool.

Really looking forward to messing around with the system where your character can gain or lose weight. No playthrough of SA was completing without making CJ eat a bunch of fast food and become morbidly obese. 😂 I really miss fun, stupid stuff like that from the older games.

@Ralizah
Ya, that was fun. Not like nowadays where they've taken it too far and made it "realistic". Though I do think part of Vice City's appeal is not having to deal with that- I think you'd die after a few days of not eating anything in SA. Still, that's a far cry from RDR2 where you could write a GameFAQs guide just on the hunger mechanic. If rumors of GTA6 going even more realistic are true, I'd be happy to stick with these. Especially since they're on Switch where I do most of my gaming.

Btw, the GTA Trilogy seems to be doing very well on Switch. It's already jumped to the #11 spot on the eShop (KOTOR at #16, and unfortunately, SMTV at #44 and #48 if only counting paid games and not free downloads or DLC, then again the sales for SMTV are being split across two versions). It's also tracking at least 100 spots ahead of the PS4 version on Amazon, and about 400 spots ahead of the Xbox One version on Amazon.

EVEN IF you say OK, there's a much higher digital attach rate on those systems, I still think this is one heck of a statement. I never thought I'd see the day a game like GTA was physically tracking ahead of the HD twins, by any metric at any time. Guess it just goes to show, when a game offers parity without severe downgrades, and is sold day and date... Switch versions are a force to be reckoned with.

@JaxonH
Played through GTA3 early this year, to be honest, being an Adult with less time made the "archaic" Design much more enjoyable, since the Game doesn't waste as much Time
Missions and Story are Fun and i like the City.

@Azuris
Ya, I'm sure it's still a blast. Idk how much they've done to bring it up to par with the other two, specifically San Andreas.

For example, melee weapons couldn't even damage cars in GTAIII. There were far more limited rides, etc. May sound like little stuff but a lot of little stuff adds up, and with the smaller map too, Idk.

Then again it may end up being surprisingly fun as the easiest to get into as an arcade experience, without worrying about a bunch of little stuff.

I might give it a spin Thursday before VC just to check it out.

@JaxonH I'd imagine the trilogy does well enough that Rockstar remasters GTA4.

As for UK eshop stats:
#8 - GTA Trilogy
#14 - KoToR
#27 - SMTV

GTA trilogy being so high is to expected, you see the vast majority of the past 8 years on the UK retail sales charts that GTAV is in the top 10.

Yea, never really enjoyed the GTA games to be honest. But I'm not much of an open-world guy to begin with.

KOTOR, though, is a fantastic game. I am still on the hunt for a PS5.

I can’t deny it anymore. I won’t deny it anymore.

Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze IS, not might be, not could be, but IS, my favorite video game of all time. Numero uno. My favorite video game of all time. The undisputed champ.

The DKC games on SNES were my favorite games as a kid growing up (after the Mega Man on NES era), and DKC Returns was so good I played it and beat it 3 times. I would replay it every two years. And now I’m doing the same for Tropical Freeze.

I did a time trial run on 2-K, the Bopopolis stage, and hit a gold medal time, and it felt SO. DANG. GOOD. I honestly think if I could only have one video game trapped on an island for the rest of my life it would be this.

I don’t understand how this game has only sold 3 million copies on Switch. I don’t understand. It’s better than Super Mario Odyssey. It’s better than Super Mario 3D World. It’s better than New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe. And all of these are really great games- i’m not taking jabs at those games, because I love each and everyone of them to death. But DKC… it’s just better. It’s a better game. In virtually every single way.

From the absolutely stunning environments and continuity (grassy savannah stage, to whirlwinds in a lightning storm stage, which starts the fire in the burning forest stage, etc), the immaculate level design that’s so good you only come to appreciate their expertise more and more as you run time trials and realize they’ve given you 3 different ways to get past any given obstacle based on your skill level, each of which trims off slightly more time than the next, to the insanely adorable enemy designs, flawless movement and mechanics, with one of the best soundtracks in any video game to date. Some levels have secret exits, and some even have two secret exits, and many of these secret exits are only accessible if you have a certain buddy because it requires their specific skill set. This game is literally perfection. It’s perfection. I don’t think any platformer will ever best what Tropical Freeze has done... Ever. Unless Retro Studios makes another DKC game one day. But even then I’m not confident they will be able to top this.

Anyone who has yet to play Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, I implore you, for your own satisfaction, watch this video to understand why this game is so great. Or at least, to understand one of the reasons it’s so great. There could be many more videos made on all different aspects of this game beyond just the level design. I don’t think a video game has ever been created with better level design, and nothing showcases that more than the time trials- each level in the game, once beaten, unlocks the option to run it in time trials with either DK, Dixie, Diddy or Cranky. And even if you don’t personally run time trials, check the leaderboards and watch the #1 replay to be awed beyond all imagination.

@Grumblevolcano
You see it dominate on other platforms though, not Nintendo platforms. It’s never really guaranteed if the fanbases on other platforms are willing to migrate to Nintendo in exchange for the hybrid advantage.

But clearly, people want hybrid GTA.

Only 3 million copies sold. This makes me sad. Tropical freeze is the best platformer I played on Wii u and it’s also the best one on switch

I just bought the switch family plan expansion pak. I’ll be honest I kind of feel like I wasted my money. I paid 68 dollars because I upgraded from my current plan. I mainly wanted the animal crossing new horizons dlc and I heard that if you want the dlc then it’s kind of worth it. I was pretty interested in the n64 games but honestly I played Oot and saw the bad emulation and immediately quit. I hope Nintendo makes this plan more worth it because so far I don’t really see a reason to buy it. I kind of wished I just bought the animal crossing dlc on its own. That probably would have been better.

I would not buy anything gaming related for 67 dollars without doing the proper research.

But if it helps, OOT is widely considered the worst emulation out of the entire NSO service, so it is a standout issue, not a normal one.

@kkslider5552000

It was actually 68 dollars lol. Well 68 dollars and 38 cents. I did do proper research and I knew fully going on how bad it was. I guess I fell under the whole oh I don’t have the full service and I kind of want the premium full service thing. Which is how they get you honestly. Tbh if the n64 emulation was a lot better and they had more games it wouldn’t be too bad but yeah I kind of feel short changed not gonna lie. It’s my fault I admit. But charging that much money for sub par emulation is kind of ridiculous. Maybe I’ll play some of the other games that they have so I’ll feel like it was more worth it.

@Player_One
On the bright side, it's consistently held its place in the Amazon Top 100 for over a month now, ever since the price cut to $43.99.

I'm hoping for a digital sale so I can buy it for my brother.

@JaxonH I just hope we get another 2d donkey kong

Yeah, I think I'm gonna hold off on getting the expansion pack, at the very least. Not sure I'd agree with the button layout they went with for the N64 games, either, and the Genesis/Mega Drive games don't really entice me. That price tag is insanely high, too...I really don't want to spend that much each coming year.

I’ve had no issues with the button layouts. I’ve found them to be very ideal or close to.

Price is a non issue if you join a group and split 8-ways. I wouldn’t wanna pay the single price either, but why pay the single price when there’s an option for $10/yr, half the price of the base service. It’s practically being given away and there’s no limitations on actual “family members” being part of the group, or even regional restrictions.