Reminder: Mario Strikers: Battle League 'First Kick' Demo Event Starts This Weekend

Awesome!! Gonna download this immediately, I can't wait to try it!

Nice. I've been on the fence about this game, so I'll for sure give the demo a shot.

Awesome. Thanks for sharing. Glad to hear that updates are confirmed.

OH GOD YES! I haven't played strikers on wii or gamecube yet, so this'll be perfect!

I've never even played a Mario strikers game before, so this'll be a first

the confirmation of post launch patch updates really makes me miss the days when Nintendo would complete a game's development BEFORE releasing it.

My girlfriend pre-ordered a copy of the game for me for my birthday. I'll still try out the demo because why not. I'm really looking forward to this and Demon Slayer on June 10th!

Guess I’ll give it a try.

Hey look @NEStalgia Nintendo released a demo that you have to have a subscription to play it. You silly goose you.😂

Well, great. Yet another unfinished Nintendo sports game. I'd be a lot less irritated if Nintendo wanted to launch the game digitally first and delay the physical release for when the game is completed.

While I was considering grabbing this on day one, I'm tempted to wait until 2023 when both this and Switch Sports will likely be complete on cartridge.

Then again, there's not much of a point in doing that when so much of my library is comprised of incomplete-on-cart games. The only consolation is that software updates can be wirelessly sent to other consoles, so I can keep some extra Switches on hand in case any of them snuff it after the Switch eShop's curtains are drawn.

Can't wait to get home and go studs up on Toad.

I'll have to try this out when I get home 😀

Welp, there it is.

@rjejr I want the world to burn.

Remember the old days, like 2017, when demos and testfires were not behind paywalls for customers that already bought the $300 hardware paywall? Pepperidge farm remembers.

Jim Ryan and Furukawa should get a room.

#MGGA - Make Gaming Great Again!

@PBNightmare Don't you dare hurt my boy, Toad 😲

Honestly, I don't see the problem with this model. It works for Splatoon and I can see it working here.

@Silly_G Thanks for confirming that game updates can be wirelessly sent to Switch consoles. I have 8 Switch systems, so I'm constantly making sure all of my games are up to date on each console. I'm definitely not a fan of Nintendo releasing these unfinished sports games on cartridge (Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, Mario Strikers, ect) but that's just what it is unfortunately. I guess it's nice to know that I have plenty of backup consoles with my whole collection up to date 🤷‍♂️

It doesn’t seem to be available on Brazilian eShop

EDIT: it is not showing in the eShop page neither on Brazilian website, but I went thru the US webpage and it redirected to a BR download. Automatically downloading on my Switch right now

Weird / annoying that there is no friendly match offered in this demo and you can only do training and then the online stress test in a weeks time.

Would it have been hard to let players play a match with preselected, gearless characters?

Downloading now. Pretty excited!

Niiice, I'll have to wait a little longer since my subscription ran out a bit ago, but very glad there'll be a demo to see if this is for me.

@DTfeartheBEARD : I would also be a lot less irritated if software updates weren't encrypted and can simply be copy/pasted between consoles similar to screenshots and captured videos.

Being able to manually back-up software updates and save data without hacking the console would go a long way in alleviating most of my concerns regarding preservation.

To the Eshop!

NOOICE! Gonna grab it right now!

@NEStalgia Timing is everything.😉

In your, but more Nintendo's, defense, makes sense for the demo to be behind a pay wall since the game seems to be behind a pay wall, no mention of any single player at all. Now there is off line 8 player couch, I'm assuming both vs and co-op, so that could go a really long way without ever gong online, but it's obvious Nintendo is going after the Rocket Leave players with this one, so may as well put the demo behind the online pay wall where the game will likely be played.

I really need to see more offline play before dropping $60 for this free-to-start looking game.

@rjejr TBH, I imagine Nintendo expects more people to play local co-op than online. At least in Japan. Which is all that matters.

But....there is a point to be made there. I can see the schoolyard conversation "It's like rocket league, but instead of a car you play as a fat plumber"

But... this isn't so bad. At least Nintendo is including this for everyone inside the online paywall for a game that's mostly an online game as you said, and not making it an NSO Expansion Pack perk for premium subscribers. Sony's still the only one making the ability to play a demo an elite tier perk for top level subscribers even for offline single player games. Kinda goes back to "How is Sony actually worse at online than Nintendo?"

Better resubscribe to NSO for a demo early!

Haha no, what a weird thing to do on their behalf.

Making demos exclusive to a subscription is s****y (that goes for Sony's plans on doing it aswell)

Downloading the demo from my cellphone, but I cannot remember if I left my Switch in Sleep Mode, so it can be ready when I get back home.

Missed chance to call it Mario Strikers: Battle League Kick-off

Just a little clarification, the demo is available for everyone (which means everyone can play the tutorial), but the upcoming online for the demo is obviously exclusive to those with NSO. Even if someone doesn't have NSO, there's the 7-day trial, which gives access to the online part of the demo and the full game once it comes out.

EDIT: I just realized that due to my job, I won't be there on day one. I have a trip that'll take all day. Maybe the next day or the week after launch, but I'll be there.

I have my own fair share of problems with the way Nintendo does their games these days, but am I really the only one who doesn't mind the "free content updates" approach in games in general? Whilst I don't quite agree with calling games "incomplete" for getting free title updates, I do kinda get that and will accept it for now. But even then, if back then, when "games came out already completed", were asked if you wanna have the game 3 months early, but in return, will be missing some characters, courses and maybe smaller extra modes that will be added later on, would you have really said "Oh no, don't you dare lemme play that game I'm excited for right now, please artificially hold it back and only let me play it later, when everything there will ever be is already there, even though I could already play with the clear, important majority of it right now!"

I get being frustrated thinking about "incomplete releases", but if you see it that way, is it REALLY a bad thing?
I do also kinda get the "collector/preservation" viewpoint, and while I do in all events and purposes think that this concern is legit... I would go in quite ridiculous bets that there won't ever be a point in time where I'm like "OH SH*T, IT'S BEEN 50 YEARS SINCE MARIO TENNIS ACES! I STILL HAVE A WORKING SWITCH, WORKING CONTROLLERS, THE WORLD HASN'T BURNED DOWN YET AND I WANT TO PLAY THIS GAME! BUT I HAVEN'T GOT THE UPDATES ON THIS SWITCH AND THE SERVERS ARE DOWN!! I CAN'T PLAY AS FIRE PIRANHA PLANT ANYMORE!! SHEEEEEEEET!!"

So, played the demo yesterday, and I'm pretty sure it convinced me to not buy the game as I couldn't get past the tutorial on tackling. When you get stuck in the demo it doesn't bode well for paying $60 for the game.

I could go back again and figure it out, but my plan was to buy this as a friend's and family party game, thought it would be noob friendly split joycon move with the stick shoot and/or pass with 1 button. Nintendo likes it's "all 4 buttons do the same thing" games. I can't even remember what all the buttons did. If I have to start explaining to people the difference between Z and ZR the game ain't going anywhere.

I'm glad it's this way for people who want to play it, but it's too pricey and complicated for a pick up and play party game. Who knows, maybe Nintendo will put in a 1 button "friendly" control scheme in a few months.

@HammerGalladeBro I've just tried it , you can download it but when you press A to start it says you need Nintendo switch online 👎🏻

After playing the demo....I still prefer Rocket League...!

Played the demo and really loved it so far. The main focus on charged passes from the Wii versions seems do be gone, witch is a good thing. I liked the original GC version better.

I see a lot of people complaining about the demo being behind a paywall. I think it was very intentional that Nintendo also announced a 7 day free trial even for accounts who have already used a free trial in the past. More info here:
https://my.nintendo.com/rewards/39297bc91370b69a?lang=en-US

Very interested in this game but I have no NSO so I’m waiting for the review to drop 🙂

I miss the days when games were actually complete when realeased.( not playable, I mean all the content being available at launch) This format makes me dread for every multiplayer game Nintendo releases, because I know 50% of the game will be included in “free dlc”.

@RubyCarbuncle You can play the tutorial with the demo too, so it's worth getting the hang of things so you're good to go when it releases.

@Pusher2021 You can get 7 days free NSO just now, so you will be able to try the game for yourself.

@Rykdrew Rocket League will take some beating. It's the best sport game ever made by quite some distance. However, I reckon the online team battles where you control just 1 player is going to get really competitive and will be a good alternative to Rocket League.

Best graphics of a Nintendo game. Menu looks like battle royal game and play onlinie must be great.

@OorWullie Oh, thank you for the tip!

Anyone know if we'll be able to play the online demo with friends or is it just randomers?

I'm just going to try it for the free 100 platinum points. LOL

Missing Friday?

@NDragon1412 Maybe YOU won't go like that in 50 years but others might. There's still plenty of people playing games like the original Super Mario Bros right now which launched in the 1980s.

That said, yes, games launching incomplete DOES matter. It sours the initial experience. Giving players a bad first taste, and for certain people, myself included, gives SUCH a bad taste that we don't even feel like booting up the game anymore regardless of these ''free updates''.

Free updates are great, IF they're done right. But launching an incomplete game and then filling up the missing content in free updates is NOT doing it right. It is stupid, it is annoying, it leaves a bad first impression, and it just should not be done.

Also, if you're asked to get a game early with less content and choose to get a game early just because you're excited for it and get less content because of it, then that's on you. I think the majority of players would prefer waiting to get a, y'know, actually finished game. Especially during a time where free updates weren't even a thing yet, as per your example.

Imagine getting a game where a big story was promised but you'll be missing the big climax just because you got the game three months early, and updates aren't a thing yet so you're not going to get that climax because you're excited impatience made you get the game early. Does that really sound fun to you?

After playing some online games, I'm gonna say that, as a big Mario Strikers fan, I don't like the controls in Battle League.

I cannot grasp the idea that now there's a dedicated lob button rather than L+A... Oh, wait, I mean L+B, why did they change the pass/shoot buttons? L/ZL instead of the pass button (which again, is now B instead of A, sorry I'm still on that) to change characters when playing defense?

That's gonna need some major mapping.

Also, is it me or there's no way to change the order of the items in stock? You could in previous games, why not here?

Just played the demo. I have a feeling this is going to be the new best strikers game. Pro scene is going to be crazy at this entry. Thanks to this demo I’m picking this up day one. Give it a try!

@Yosher Sorry, in a time frame where updates aren't a thing yet, I of course wouldn't like that. But I was referring that thought experiment to the present, where they are. In that time, yes, I would take that. Or rather, I do. My point is still that I like games releasing a little earlier with free updates vs. releasing later so every last tiny drop is already in on release.
If it was like the big finale of the story missing, sure, that'd be even worse, but at least Nintendo never made it THAT extreme. To me, all the games where Nintendo did that approach so far felt lacking and incomplete, but they did so with and without the content updates. IMO, they are not to blame for it (although they certainly didn't help). So far, Nintendo always did this approach with ""gameplay focussed" titles where the main gameplay was made to be the dealbreaker anyway. If you didn't like it at launch, the ""withdrawn content" wouldn't make you like it either.
Here's the same thing. Strikers may feel lacking in content when it launches. But I'm sure if it does, it will most likely still do so after we get all update characters and potential small minigame modes.
It might not and I might be wrong, but I doubt it.

So, in essence my points are:
I don't mind it if games hold back RATHER NEGLECTABLE CONTENT in exchange for an earlier release with free updates. (not something like a major story climax, tbh I feel like that example came out of nowhere, sorry if I'm missing something)
I understand that others do and don't wanna fault them for thinking that way and being frustrated, I just don't get WHY they do, WHY it frustrates them, WHY it leaves a bad first impression, WHY they are so convinced that they would have liked those games better if it released 3 months later with all the updates already in there. There seems to be some rock-hard principle for them, that I just really don't feel.

I still see no bigger problem (at least with the recent Nintendo sports titles) other than with long term preservation, and since, again, I was kinda disappointed by these titles regardless of updates or not, I have a hard feeling imagining tears flowing, if those minor update contents might not be accessible 50 years in the future - which I also wanna add, if the world still functions in that time as it does today, they likely will be. We also can't get many GB games anymore, but just like ppl can already dump Switch Update data, ppl have dumped those GB games and put them online. Right now, I legit see less ppl mad about their lack of retro preservation, than about their potential future lack of Fire-Piranha-Plant in Mario Tennis Aces preservation (exaggerated example, of course)

And to end on another potentially ridiculous take to you, going back to the story climax missing example, your last question: I think, even there my answer'd be yes. I also wait months and months for my favourite anime and manga to continue. The cliff hangers are great. And while some people prefer to wait a year until all episodes/chapters are out, which is a thing and totally fair, I like to watch/read them right away, even if that leaves me with some hardcore story cliffhangers. I don't think "Bruh, how dare the author make regular smaller releases?!" I'm more like "I'm happy I was able to experience that now. I'm excited to see how it continues!".
Some might disagree, but I think that's a fair comparison, at least in context of that example.

@NDragon1412 It leaves a bad taste, simply because people want to have things to actually do in games. Usually when people complain about these things, the games launch so bare bones that there's not much of anything going on within the game that will leave them bored regardless of how good the gameplay is.

Take a game like Smash Bros for example. Let's say that game launches today with only, say, Mario, Pikachu, Link, and Kirby. No items, the only stage being Battlefield. Only Smash mode/Time Battle and Training mode. Only the people who the gameplay REALLY clicks for will stick around, the rest will have seen everything within the few hours, call the game boring, and never return because that initial experience was extremely lacking. The original Smash Bros had a lot more going on, giving people lots of things to do, keeping them excited.

It's the same premise as in all these games people are complaining about. Mario Tennis and Mario Golf all had very little to do at launch. Very little in the way of courses, characters, modes, what have you. Their respective story modes were also rather.... bland. As a result, people got bored of it quickly, not giving them much time to invest in the gameplay either and not allowing said gameplay to click with many people. Thus, people dropped off before the first content updates, and never returned because of that bad first impression.

There's a reason people complain about THESE games, but not a game like Mario Maker 2. This game also received free content updates, but the base game still had a lot to do at launch to keep players.. you know... actually engaged. How different this was in the sports games people complain about.

As for the story example, I only made that one for that scenario where it was made when free updates weren't a thing yet. Hypothetically, the 'full' game would release later on, but you'd have to buy it again. But even if released today in such a state, promising the game would receive free updates BUT leaving out the fact that the game is 'incomplete'.. which is essentially what these sports games are doing too, you can bet people are going to complain. Though probably not as much if the story is still fun and engaging, so in that context it's probably not the best example anyway, I admit.

In your example of anime or manga though, you go in fully expecting a ''to be continued'', AND the story will generally be fun to keep you interested. And that is why people complain for any of those sports games: there's no hook. Nothing to really keep them invested. It feels hollow. Like a manga/anime with the important and fun story bits cut out. Like a car without wheels. Like a peanut butter sandwich without the peanut butter. Like a... game without enough content.

All that said though. I'm glad for you that you don't feel the way most other people do about these games! I will admit, I wish I had that, so that I WOULDN'T still be stuck on that bad initial impression, so that I COULD still enjoy these games when at least all their content would have rolled out. But that's just not how it rolls for me, unfortunately.

As someone who has had this avatar since starting NintendoLife, really hoping that Birdo comes as part of a post-launch update.

I wish I could get excited for this, but I'm more than satisfied with the Soccer in Switch Sports. I just hit A rank, and it's still just as fun as the first time I played it. This might be a fine game, but if I'm in the mood for soccer, I'm not going to want to play anything but Switch Sports. It kind of reminds me of Mario Tennis on Switch, I picked it up on launch day, looked forward to it for awhile and played it for a while, but all these special moves and gimmicky weirdness just made me want to give up playing it. And then Switch Sports came out and I finally got a great tennis game, and because it's so good, I have no desire to play anything else.

Maybe if they waited a couple years to release Mario Strikers I could have possibly gotten the chance to get tired of Switch Sports by then, but the game just came out, they haven't even put out the leg-strap Soccer patch or Golf in yet. This seems like bad timing.