Topic: The Nintendo Switch Thread

@Grumblevolcano
Idk if that's evidence of targeting Switch, as sites like Amazon use what's called price discrimination. They sell things for more when ppl will pay more, and sell for less when needed to increase quantity demanded. Mostly they just sell for less when quantity demanded is insufficient at a given price. And Switch demand is definitely higher for Sonic games. Other versions may need incentives to convince ppl to buy.

However, there are some tactics I see utilized by Amazon US which seems to specifically target Switch 3rd party games that are associated with competing platforms, be it through majority fanbase or marketing. Whether it's happenstance or something more, you be the judge.

For example, I've noticed several 3rd party games that get shadowbanned from sales rankings and/or search results, sometimes both, but only the Switch version, oftentimes for games where a competing platform has a vested interest in propagating brand association. Even now, this very moment, Final Fantasy VII Crisis Core is still shadowbanned from sales rankings for the Switch version. For over a month prior it was shadowbanned from search results. I had to follow a link someone else found through google because it didn't show up in a search, despite PS/Xbox versions showing up. Almost as if some entity wants to prevent customers seeing competitive demand for the Switch version in the best sellers and Hot Movers lists. I've been watching this happen for a long time. Nier Automata was also shadowbanned from search results until recently.

It's possible it's just random chance, but the fact it's always the Switch version, and usually for bigger 3rd party games where competitors have a vested interest in preventing success and the establishment of a new fanbase on a system that actually posits a threat for these genres... it does give one pause.

@gcunit
One thing I found from Hokko Life physical release date, the PAL version get earlier while the Asia / Japan / USA version will getting late (October - November 2022)
I will pick Hokko Life PS4 version so my PS4 will have "Animal Crossing" game by indie developer.
My Nintendo Switch is already have ACNH, so my PS4 should have something similar too.

There's now a song list for the new Theathrythm: Full song list

When they first showed it in the Direct, I was like: "Well, I already have Curtain Call on 3DS, I think I can safely skip this.", then moments later they say it has Octopath music and I'm like: "Well, now I'm curious." and now it finally hit me how much more music there is, including music from NEO: TWEWY as well as Someday from TWEWY (my favorite song in the game) in addition to Calling and Twister which were in Curtain Call and it's now a must-buy. No sign of Bravely Default yet but it should be just a matter of time (unless they want to make Theatrhythm Bravely Default? ).

will Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom live up to it expectations? and what what next for the Legend of Zelda on Switch, after Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom?

@JaxonH I guess that would explain why MLB the Show never showed up on Amazon. I finally got it when GameStop had it on a good sale because I was never able to find the Switch version on Amazon, just the PS version. I guess shady tactics, but all it did was cost them a sale.

@Xyphon22
Yup. Assuming it's more than random chance, which seems to be the case- whether it's some loyalist at Amazon acting out of emotion, or an actual business deal made with payment to Amazon to ensure games are shadowbanned from search results and/or sales rankings, who knows. But after learning about Sony paying off developers to keep them off Gamepass, I'm convinced there's no line they won't cross to maintain a stranglehold. Amazon US is one of the largest retailers in the world by sales volume. The effects of hindering visibility on the largest retail site in the largest gaming market in the world cannot be understated.

We're in the know. But the average consumer is not. Browsing Amazon is the modern form of window shopping. No visibility = no sale. And these companies know that. And it seems clear to me, some are exploiting that fact.

@JaxonH Sony has no limits really.

Heck, they paid Capcom to keep Monster Hunter World off Switch for a while, or maybe Monster Hunter in general in the west, I can't recall, it was part of that huge Capcom leak.

The other I remember is on the day of March 3 2017 in the UK they had our only real gaming retailer cut the price of the PS4. Couldn't think why, nope, not at all.

And if you're wondering how you get away with that, if you were the only sole games retailer and your options were PS4, Xbox One, Wii U, 3DS and Vita with a new platform launching but no proven sales yet, in a country already Playstation heavy at the best of times....you do what the guys keeping you in business ask.

@Haruki_NLI
World was never planned for Switch. But they did ensure it didn't release on other platforms in Japan at launch. But, that's small potatoes, tbh. Same for cutting price. MS did the same thing with Xbox in Japan last week. It feels a little underhanded but, I'm not holding that against anyone. It's business. Competition is good.

There's much bigger examples, and a lot of them.

The Diofield Chronicle might just be the biggest surprise of the year.

The more I play, the better it gets. And I wasn't expecting that. It seemed like one of those, "decent, dime a dozen 7/10 games". But it's totally not. Diofield is a gem.

Even though it's not turn based, it really does feel like it was originally conceived as a new Final Fantasy Tactics. You can summon Bahamut for crying out loud! Someone said that earlier and I was like nah, Triangle Strategy is much closer to FFT, and while that may be true, there are vestiges of game design here that are clearly taken from Tactics. No question.

The story is better than expected. The characters are more interesting than expected. The gameplay is more addicting and fun than expected. This entire game is just way better than I thought it would be. I can't stop playing. And you know me- I play a LOT of games. And for 75% of them I typically never touch again after the first few hours.

The strategy in this game is so unique. I'm finding ways of strategizing that simply don't apply in turn based games. Such as sending one unit behind the enemy to get crits while the remaining units keep his aggro from the front. Using skills to plow through a line of enemies and end up on the other side of them. There's unique objectives and fail conditions like defending barriers, surviving, it's not always just route the enemy.

And I'm loving the skill tree, ability tree and weapon skills. At first I was wondering why 2 skills my healer already had needed to be unlocked in the class skill tree. Come to find out that's because she only had them as weapon skills. Soon as I upgrade to a better weapon I'll have different skills, and that's where having them permanently as class skills comes into play.

This game is just so friggin good. Oh, and the music. I won't say it's best soundtrack of the year, but it's very good. And we all know, the truly great games always have a killer soundtrack. This game has that.

As if all that wasn't enough, the game looks fantastic on Switch and runs great. It feels like a game built ground up for the system.

I cannot recommend this game enough. The Diofield Chronicle is one of the best strategy games I've played. If it wasn't for Triangle Strategy I'd say it's the best srpg of the year.

@Haruki_NLI Monster Hunter World was never planned for Switch

Hey everyone,
I've been browsing the eShop as of late due to the latest big sale currently going on and something on there caught my eye that I wanted to verify here to make sure I wasn't going crazy.

So I'm quite interested in getting LIMBO for the first time with this sale currently on as its a game I've always been intrigued by (what with its dark tone and rave reviews) since it's €1.99 in this current sale (all the way down from €19.99 at that). However, a small notice at the bottom of the eShop description caught my eye: '10% off this purchase if you already have INSIDE on Nintendo Switch!'

INSIDE itself is only €1.99 from this sale as well and, whilst I'm not nearly as interested in it than I am with LIMBO, I wouldn't mind playing it at all. My question then is this: if I get INSIDE, does that mean I can then get LIMBO for absolutely nothing since it's already down 90%? If so, I'll just grab both so that way its basically 2 for the price of one.

If any of you know whether my logic holds up or not, do let me know and have a great day!

Rabbids now talk in Mario+Rabbids Sparks of Hope(eesh)

https://www.eurogamer.net/mario-rabbids-sparks-of-hope-will-b...

@Giancarlothomaz We know it was never planned, but there are details out there about how much Sony paid and for what.

Edit: It would appear it was to do with the PC version being "Late".

@NeonPizza Main campaign is probably the best of the default ones, although still under the paid Octo Expansion DLC for Splatoon 2, IMO.

Gyro aiming is great once you customize the sensitivity.

@Grumblevolcano

There's very little push from UK retailers to get Playstation back on top. I know someone who works in management for Argos and generally speaking UK retail loves the Switch. They've been making a fortune off it and of the current systems it's the one with the biggest physical retail sales. I was in Smyths the other day and the Switch section was much bigger than the PS and XBox areas.

@Fizza I don't think your logic holds up. But regardless, Inside is better than Limbo, but they are both very good and for the price they're on sale at they totally deserve everyone's money.

@gcunit Ah well. I was hoping I could cheat the system but we'll see what happens I guess. Thanks for your thoughts though!

@Link-Hero I've been stockpiling Gold Points for who knows how long and I'm finally ready to cash them all in (well almost all but you know what I mean). I recently grabbed Final Fight for Capcom Arcade Stadium using them (super excited to play that one once the Splatoon bug lets me go) and I've only heard great things about Inside and Limbo as well so may as well grab those too. Thinking about getting the two Toree games at some point in addition to what I've said earlier but man: that Gold Point deal with Splatoon 3 was an absolute godsend I swear.

@Fizza I personally wouldn't recommend stockpiling gold point as they do expire, it's better to just spend them so they are used rather than waiting too long and risk losing them but if you keep an eye on when they are set to expire is should be okay.

@jump Learned that the hard way myself only about a month ago when 300 of them just up and vanished at the start of September so I'll definitely be using them semi-frequently. Wish there was a way to check when your points expire though, that'd be nice (maybe through My Nintendo?).

@Fizza I get a monthly email from Nintendo which tells how many points I have and how many points are going to expire soon. Maybe check your junk folder or My Nintendo account settings.