Tag: Talking Point - Page 12
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch is Modernising, But Has a Long Way to Go
Slow and steady wins the race?
This week brought us the latest notable update to the Nintendo Switch system, taking us to version 4.0.0; there was also an update to the Joy-Con controllers that does... something. It was a notable update in that it added a few major changes - the main additions were the ability to capture the last 30 seconds of...
Talking Point What Games Are You Playing This Weekend? - The Triumphant(?) Return
Because there are so many games to play
A little while ago a Nintendo Life regular sent us an email to ask where the 'What Games Are You Playing This Weekend' (WGAYPTW™) series had gone. Of course, our chums over at Push Square have never stopped doing it, but we drifted away from the series a few years ago here on Nintendo Life. Why? Partly...
Talking Point Nintendo Switch and Third-Parties - Let's Be Realistic
It's exciting, but don't get carried away
The past few months has brought a steady stream of good news for Nintendo Switch owners. For fans of the eShop it's been a terrific period, with lots of varied and talented developers confirming their games for the hardware. We've also - gradually - seen an increase in third-party support from the big...
Talking Point The Apple Event - It's Worth Looking Out for Nintendo and Pokémon GO
A sign of the times
A few years ago your humble scribe was advised it may be worth 'keeping an eye' on an Apple event, to which the response was a raised eyebrow. Sure enough, nothing happened; in fact Apple straight up copied the Wii with its motion controllers for a gaming-focused Apple TV, an initiative that didn't quite take off. In any case,...
Talking Point Capcom, the Nintendo Switch and Gaming Business Realities
Sometimes Capcom and Nintendo are close partners, but not always
At the moment some Switch aficionados are a little baffled and frustrated with Capcom. There are multiple reason for this, but Monster Hunter: World (coming to PS4, Xbox One and PC) is arguably top of the list. Capcom has only shown limited support for the Switch so far, with a...
Talking Point Splatoon 2's Salmon Run Shows Off the Switch's Local Multiplayer Strengths
Flawless fun
When Nintendo confirmed that the co-op Salmon Run mode in Splatoon 2 would take place in specific limited time windows, there were some understandable groans. Nevertheless since the game's launch it's not been much of an issue, as the mode has been available pretty much whenever we want to play it. The function of the time windows is...
Talking Point How ARMS Can Punch Its Way Into Competitive Gaming
As long as Nintendo doesn't keep it at arm's length
In this feature Funké Joseph considers where ARMS can be a breakthrough title for Nintendo in competitive gaming. After hours of sweating buckets during the Global Testpunch, days of watching gameplay previews, and long nights thinking about an ugly green slime man, one thing has become...
Talking Point Five Key Areas Nintendo Must Get Right at E3 2017
A chance to set the tone
E3 is starting to pick up momentum with Microsoft, EA and Bethesda among the big names to have made their pitch so far. Like every other year the reactions have been mixed - there have been some positive reveals and there have also been cringe-worthy moments. So far we've only seen a couple of glimpses of Nintendo content,...
Talking Point EA and Bethesda Highlight Nintendo Switch as a Portable Powerhouse at E3
A tough tablet to swallow?
EA did something interesting with its official pitch for FIFA 18 on the Nintendo Switch. It said it is the "most technologically-advanced portable FIFA experience ever", and only showed one glamour shot of a docked Switch running the game (which didn't focus on the visuals and blurred out the TV). Its entire focus was on...
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch Online Service Promises a New Approach to Retro Gaming
Delayed, yes, but more relevant in its new guise
It may not be a trend that suits creators, but the public don't like paying for things as much as they used to. It's the great revolution that the internet has delivered - news is free, lots of video streaming is free or has a lower monthly cost, so as a result gamers want their content for less...
Talking Point From Joy-Con to 8Bitdo and Beyond, Switch Delivers a Revolution in Control
Play any way you want
There are still some that bemoan the fact that the Nintendo Revolution became the Wii; it's an interesting perspective to take, as it's quite likely the console would have been hobbled by a clunkier name. Think about how iconic the brand became, right from the start, with Wii Sports. Would Revolution Sports have had the same...
Talking Point ARMS Has Plenty to Prove In Its Nintendo Direct
Needs to come out swinging
The Nintendo Life team enjoys a good old-fashioned gaming debate, and one game is guaranteed to split the team roughly down the middle - ARMS. During Nintendo's January reveal of the Nintendo Switch the company unleashed a couple of oddball reveals - there was the quirky advert for 1-2-Switch, and then there was a battle...
Talking Point Nintendo Sets the Scene for Mario and the Switch at E3
A return to form?
Nintendo's last two years at E3 are perhaps best described as being 'mixed'. Though there was an appreciation for the Star Fox puppets in 2015 - which sadly represented the last E3 appearance of Satoru Iwata, who provided voice acting - the actual announcements generated some controversy and dissent online. High profile examples...
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch Has a Chance for Significant Success, Especially as a Portable
Nintendo is aiming for multiple systems in each household
Not long after the Nintendo Switch launched your humble scribe wrote a lighthearted article about taking it on a weekend roadtrip. Its hybrid nature means that it's either a quirky Nintendo home console or, alternatively, a powerful mainstream gaming portable. Ultimately it's both, even if...
Talking Point Weighing Up the Logic Behind the New Nintendo 2DS XL
Final hurrah or testing the waters?
A funny thing happened with an article we wrote regarding comments from Nintendo of America's Reggie Fils Aime on the reasoning behind the New Nintendo 2DS XL. Our 'tagline' was from his TIME interview - ""Boy, I wish there was something in between", a snippet that reflected Nintendo's claim that it's a...
Talking Point As Nintendo Switch Looks to Rapidly Overtake Wii U Sales, 3DS Lives On
Nintendo backs both systems, but needs improvement in mobile and amiibo
As we await full publication of Nintendo President Tatsumi Kimishima's annual financial results presentation, early snippets from journalists on the ground in Japan suggest it won't pull up any trees. There's confirmation of unannounced games still to be revealed for Switch this...
Talking Point Nintendo Needs to Learn Lessons From Its NES Mini Mistakes
A simple product turned into a messy saga
Based upon the various decent emulators out there, it's not hard to run NES games. They're 30+ years old, and in this modern era of GPUs and accessible operating systems people are playing 8-bit games on a dizzying range of devices. Some of us, of course, spend decent money for official ROMs from Nintendo,...
Talking Point PS4 Pro and Xbox Scorpio Draw Battle Lines, But Nintendo Goes Its Own Way With Switch
Nintendo's bubble exists outside the 4K wars
These are strange times in the game console industry. It used to be that major rivals would release gaming machines that simply plugged into your TV and they'd battle against each other for around five years before upping the ante with new technology. Systems didn't always go head to head in terms of...
Talking Point One Month of Nintendo Switch - Early Momentum Brings Optimism
Nintendo now heads into a critical period to sustain early success
The Nintendo Switch launch hasn't been a flop. That might seem to be a peculiar standard to target, but let's consider the scenario before the system arrived. Counterbalancing excitement about the console and its concept, prior to launch, there were equally valid concerns that had...
Talking Point Defining a Sequel and How It Affects Games Like Splatoon 2
Choose your own Electric Boogaloo meme
Sequels, everyone has an opinion on them. A bit like talk around 'soft launches' and 'lazy ports', sometimes the wider consensus that follows games or systems isn't always accurate or fair. Yet that's the beauty of the internet, and sometimes its biggest flaw - the agenda isn't entirely set by public relations...
Talking Point Nintendo's Upgraded Confidence in Switch is a Relief
Likely points to major game reveals still to come
When assessing the general interest in Nintendo Switch, the various metrics - in firm figures and from surveys and so on - show a system with a decent chance at success. The important work is still to come for Nintendo, but while there was always the uneasy sense that the wider public never truly...
Talking Point Nintendo Switch Has Started Well - Now the Real Challenge Begins
Nintendo has every right to be pleased with the system's launch
After a tough four years for Wii U and the direct correlation between Pokémon hype and 3DS hardware sales, it was easy to approach the Nintendo Switch launch with trepidation. At different times since mid-January many observers and followers of the company have likely gone through...
Talking Point Lack of Nintendo Switch Details Close to Launch Made Wobbly Cam 'Leaks' Inevitable
The big N underestimates fan desire to see the eShop, user interface etc
There have been good arguments in favour of the high intensity / short turnaround reveal and launch of the Nintendo Switch. The preview trailer - in October 2016 - got plenty of attention and seemed to be effective, gaining plenty of traction on social media and YouTube. The...
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch Could Revive Local Multiplayer
Get ready to call up some friends and start playing
In this guest article Funké Joseph, who attended a Nintendo Switch preview event, shares his thoughts on why Switch can be integral to local multiplayer. Local multiplayer is dead. Well, it's almost dead, some would argue. There are still a few games that are carrying the split-screen torch like...
Talking Point The Zelda: Breath of the Wild Expansion Pass DLC is Both Surprising and Inevitable
Hands up if you expected that... erm, no-one?
In the 3DS and Wii U era Nintendo slowly adopted some modern trends, embracing necessity in order to keep games active and - in the process - make some extra money. DLC emerged in ho-hum form as 'Coin Rush' packs in New Super Mario Bros. 2 on 3DS, but then there was no going back. New Super Luigi U...
Talking Point Splatoon 2 is Set to be a Vital Early Arrival on Nintendo Switch
The Global Testfire adds some extra spice
When Splatoon was unveiled at E3 2014, this writer was initially unsure of its appeal. Then the reaction of the community on these pages began to take shape, and fans tweeted, and the fan-art began - it was evident that Nintendo had produced a new IP with huge potential. By the time we got closer to its...
Talking Point Considering Nintendo's Portable Future
It's all about the target audience
The DS attracted an incredibly broad range of gamers, as its sensational sales attest, and the 3DS has also achieved positive results drawing in gamers of various types. Nintendo has also released variations of the 3DS for different audiences, too, with the 2DS - as an example - primarily pitched as a budget option...
Talking Point The State of Play - amiibo and Its Next Big Move
Pokémon, probably
When Nintendo unveiled its amiibo range in Spring 2014 with the codename of "Nintendo Figurine Platform", it came at a time when the toys-to-life market was near its peak. After Skylanders had blazed a trail Disney Infinity had followed, and it had become a lucrative sector in the market. Nintendo's initial pitch was enticing -...
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch Super Bowl Ad Was a Huge Success, But Why?
Making people believers
The Nintendo Switch featured prominently during the recent Super Bowl (or Superb Owl, we're not sure yet) and the ad that featured it has been very well received by the press and the public. But why? What was it about this ad that went down so well where some previous efforts by Nintendo have fallen flat? Make sure you check...
Talking Point The Nintendo 3DS, A System That Still Has a Role to Play
It's not going anywhere yet
With the Switch coming out in just a couple of months, it seems that Nintendo is truly committing to a future in which it invests in just one platform that fulfils the needs of both portable and home console gamers (though it should be noted that it's pitched primarily as a home console at present). Obviously, the Wii U...
Talking Point Important Features Yet to be Revealed for the Nintendo Switch
There's still time before launch
When Nintendo gave its major Switch Presentation earlier this month, following it up with details in press releases, social media and interviews, there was a fair bit of information that was shared. While the Presentation had the task of giving the first major showcase for the system, it did however skip over quite a...
Talking Point Is the Nintendo Switch a Handheld or Console? Does it Matter?
It's a Switch, that's all we need to know
Over the years we've had some quirky exchanges with Nintendo's PR department, but one of the best related to a light-hearted article about Yoshi. It turned out that an official Nintendo Character Guide from 1993 had said that Yoshi is "properly known as T. Yoshisaur Munchakoopas" and is a 'young dinosaur',...
Talking Point What We Hope to See in the Fire Emblem Nintendo Direct
Switch and mobile to the fore
If early year intentions can be taken as an indication of Nintendo's eagerness to have a big year, then so far things bode well. Despite the various positives and negatives around the Nintendo Switch and its launch offerings, Nintendo did at least go wholeheartedly into presenting it. The live event from Tokyo was...
Talking Point Considering the Paid Online Service for the Nintendo Switch
An inevitable gamble
One of the surprise announcements from Nintendo's big Switch presentation was that it would be introducing a new subscription-based online service for which fans will need to pay a monthly fee. This seems as though it could come as something of a double-edged sword, so we're going to break down some of the pros and cons of this...
Talking Point The Challenges and Opportunities of the Nintendo Switch Presentation
It can provide vital early momentum for 2017
With just days to go until Nintendo's Switch Presentation, anticipation is building for the first substantial official look at the system and - presumably - a number of games and launch details. Putting aside rumours and leaks, relatively little has been said since the initial preview trailer, beyond a...
Talking Point Splatoon May Be Winding Down, But Its Legacy Could Be Significant
Modern trends with a Nintendo touch
In the remainder of 2016 we'll re-share some of our favourite feature articles from the year. This article from 4th August reflects on the end of an era after the final Splatoon Splatfest, and how the colourful shooter established a DLC model for Nintendo that's sure to return in the future. Recently we had the...
Talking Point The Leaps and Falls of Super Mario Run's Launch
Records broken, positive press, negative user reviews, connection issues
Last week Super Mario Run was released after what seemed like an age of waiting, particularly for investors demanding that Nintendo make a big move on mobile. Though we had Miitomo earlier in the year, and of course Pokémon GO succeeding for Niantic and The Pokémon Company,...
Talking Point Nintendo Will Rely on Switch Word of Mouth Due to Strange Presentation Timing
A very Nintendo move, it must be said
Nintendo is gearing up to kick off 2017 with a bang, unveiling the Switch in detail on 12th / 13th January, in the process ensuring that early-year momentum and attention goes its way. With a March release and so little officially known about it, that seems like a smart way to go. Oddly, however, Nintendo has...
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch Has the Potential to Deliver the Ultimate Virtual Console
An opportunity for a special retro experience
Over the past decade or so Nintendo has made significant strides in its online / download stores, with the eShop platform becoming vital for both 3DS and Wii U. Those stores both learnt lessons from their predecessors - on Wii and DSi - in terms of becoming more accessible and rewarding for Indies, while...
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch Pitch - A Jack of All Trades
Tough to predict whether Nintendo's next-gen system will take off
As we get closer to the early January online event that should blow the lid off more Nintendo Switch details, most of which will have probably been leaked with varying degrees of accuracy beforehand, opinions are starting to crystallise. The flashy millennial-filled reveal trailer...
Super Mario Run is also trying new things with the bankable franchise
When New Super Mario Bros. came out on DS, the excitement was palpable. After all, it was the first 2D Mario platformer in about 15 years, which seems amazing to consider nowadays. Some of you may raise your eyebrows at that statement, and may argue that it's incorrect, but let's...
Talking Point What We'd Like To See In Super Smash Bros. For Nintendo Switch
Assuming it's a port…
With all the hype that the Nintendo Switch is generating, it's only natural to speculate on what titles the system will offer upon its launch. If Nintendo's upcoming console could learn anything from the launch of the Wii U, it's that launch titles do indeed matter. This can also mean ensuring popular titles that consumers...
Talking Point A New Nintendo 3DS Price Drop Can Prolong the Portable's Lifespan
New Black Friday options in North America are a smart idea
We've been wondering when it would happen, and it's finally come. Nintendo has bitten the bullet and confirmed New Nintendo 3DS models for North America that will cost under $100. Now, you don't need to be a genius to proclaim that selling goods at a budget price is a way to attract...
Talking Point Ports vs. Sequels On The Nintendo Switch
A unique switchuation...
In this Talking Point, Arjun gives his perspective on the ports vs. sequels considerations for the Nintendo Switch. The Nintendo NX - erm, Switch - has finally been unveiled, and it's arguably the lion's roar that the big N needed after troubles with its last home system. The Wii U has suffered a similar fate to that of the...
Talking Point Imagining a Future Nintendo Switch Budget Spin-Off - A Non-Switching Microconsole
A 2DS equivalent for the price conscious consumer
Now that the dust has settled on the reveal of the upcoming Nintendo Switch, everyone seems to have shared their opinions on Nintendo's chances of turning the concept into a success. While many are very positive about the Nintendo Switch reveal, there are also some analysts who have raised concerns...
Talking Point The Nintendo Switch May Divide Opinion, But It's Made a Splash
It's trending, which helps
When Nintendo unveiled the Wii U at E3 2011, some were confused about whether it was a Wii add-on or a new system. By the time it was unveiled at E3 2012, it felt like even getting a broader audience to look at and consider the system was an issue. We suspect many have encountered the following scenario since the console...
Talking Point What We Hope to See in the Nintendo NX Preview Trailer
A clear, concise demonstration of the concept
Nothing has been conventional about Nintendo's approach to unveiling the NX system. Initially announced in early 2015 by former President Satoru Iwata - in a bid to calm nervous fans after announcing Nintendo's plans for smart devices - it's always been expected as a 2016 reveal. Yet Nintendo has been...
Talking Point The Problems With My Nintendo So Far, and Why All's Not Lost
A slow start
Just recently we ran some polls to gauge your opinions on My Nintendo, as the service is now a little over six months old. The majority of the Nintendo Life community that voted are unimpressed with it, to put it mildly, with a high percentage opting for the two most negative answers in the relevant polls. It's not new for an initiative...
Talking Point Nintendo Has No Set Formula for Hardware Reveals, But NX is Testing Fans' Patience
Remember to count to 10
As someone who spends their days immersed in the weird world of Nintendo, at times I can't decide whether the current online climate is entertaining, frustrating or baffling. Perhaps a mix of all three. I'm referring, of course, to the ongoing obsession with Nintendo NX, with a lot of vocal online followers of the big N...
Talking Point The Pros and Cons of Nintendo's NX Secrecy
Time ticks down for a reveal ahead of planned March release
In recent days there have been some interesting observations around the web, namely that the current timeline for reveal-to-release of the Nintendo NX could be the shortest in the company's history. That's assuming the system arrives in March 2017 as planned, and if you also disregard some...
