AJWolfTill

Was planning on getting a PS5 the next time they went on sale. Guess that's not happening...
@Nep-Nep-Freak rooting for you bud. I imagine Nintendo want to grow the install base as much as possible before bumping up the price so I can't see this being a problem timeline wise!

Imagine if he isn't though and this is just a massive fake out to everyone seeing this on release day (April 1st).
Ngl, It's made me much more curious, but I'm still fairly sure this film is going to be a mess of empty calories.

@Picola-Wicola
I'd say the first half is MORE intense, but there is still quality challenge in the second half. It feels more like the original games by the end. I found theore weapon options I had the more in control I felt.
Jack Baker is pretty relentless.

Everyone should play Resi 4.
I love the Wii version specifically and would argue it's the best use of the controller outside of Motion+ (that's subjective and likely my nostalgia though so play it wherever you can).

If you are into games you've almost certainly picked up enough context for the series in general to not need to start from the beginning.

I just finished 7 and see no reason you couldn't start there but it differently intense.

I played it on a base PS4 and loved the experience. These games require a lot from you but I don't think the pace of combat requires more than 30FPS. This is something that clearly effects other people far more than me though.

I was going to make some flippant comment about how it was obviously selling better on ps5 because there were loads more of them out there but WOW the Switch 2 is gaining on PS5 fast!!

Wow, Dennis Durkin sounds like a real piece of work.
I understand that in big expensive productions there needs to be push and pull between creative vision and financial realities but this sounds unbelievably rotten.

Can't make up my mind here. Art style is gorgeous and the emphasis on experimentation and discovery around species is really appealing. On the flip side though the marketing is very child orientated and it looks pretty simple.
Fingers crossed it gets reviewed well.

@Dalamar
Interesting, I've not seen any oscar bait movies with talking catfish and giant monster alligators.

@rjejr
I mean, I completely agree Clair Obscura would have been a bigger finale than Blue Prince but I also just think that is a core direct level announcements. Baffling that Kena wasn't included though, fantastic game!

@rjejr
That's really awesome that these directs are full family viewing for you!
Blue Prince was exactly the one more thing we were hoping for so sorry if I somewhat pounced on your comment.
What would have been the case case announcement in your house?

I love this game. Delighted to see it coming to new platforms and that there is a sequel underway.
Shout out to the composer Theophany who did a couple of albums of outstanding re-arrangements of Majora's Mask (Terrible Fate).

My ideal would be to do gen V style but include returning Mon only if they have either a new regional variant for part of the evolutionary line or a new evolution. That way every returning mon is exciting again.

Cool to get M Vs DK.
It's the kind of game I'll absolutely try when it is included in a subscription but I would never have shelled out for.

@rjejr Sorry but this is an objectively wrong opinion XD

It was unlucky to come out the same month as Clair Obscura which went on to completely dominate the airwaves both that month and at the end of year award season.
This would have won a lot more game of the year awards otherwise.
It's the 10th highest rated game on Opencritic from last year (9th if you exclude TotK) and one of the only big indies missing from Switch 2. I probably sound like an ass but this is a huge win.

I'm not expecting new announcements as they have a lot going on right now but I would love anything Shu Takumi. Seriously what have they done with him 😔

The hinge is loose, the screen is too scratched for stylus gaming but somehow it turned on. What a trooper!!

Nintendo has gotten really good at picking partners to trust their IP with over the last 10 years. Glad to see the trend continue ☺️

Don't really see how we get a general direct before May but apparently everyone else does XD
Pokopia, Tomodachi Life, Yoshi (likely will get a Nintendo Today 10 minute overview trailer) as well as the Wonder Upgrade means Nintendo's H1 calendar is already likely covered. Then you factor in the Indies and big 3rd parties like Pragmata, 007, Indiana Jones and the Bethesda stuff.
I want to know more too but we've got to be realistic about the cadence of 1st party releases and Nintendo not tending to announce many games more than 6 months in advance.

Anyone reading this list in 2026 onwards.
If you have played Virtue's Last Reward and rated it lower than an 8 please help me understand why.
I don't care if you are reading this in 2031 I'll probably still be curious.

Looking through this, I think I underestimated just how much Xbox was struggling in the UK.
I would have bought the Generations pack of Resin this week but already owned 7 on pc so have finally got round to playing that.

@Olliemar28
Which games would I benefit the most from playing before this?
I've played Resi 2 and 4 and watched playthroughs of 1 and 3.
Was thinking about picking up 7+8 in the bundle but good to get an idea on how important those games are to this.

These are normally pretty unappealing for me but the anniversary and early announcements does suggest this will be a somewhat more significant affair.
I'm sure gen 10 will be there, even if it is just a pre-rendered starter reveal cinematic and I imagine we hear more about the NSO GameCube games. Given what we already know I suspect the rest is merch and mobile.

Don't imagine we learn much we didn't from the previews that happened weeks ago. This is likely a controlled way to get footage on their official channels trying to demonstrate these games in their best light.

I love the idea of the treehouse streams in general but did find most of the ones around the Switch 2 launch felt very samey and repetitive.

@Henners Bravo! This is likely a big part of it.
Game Freak/ The Pokémon Company seems to be really adverse to any chance of fans using save states to exploit things like trading in any game that connects to Pokémon Home.
You can't even back up your save files via Switch Online for some time of their titles right?

@LiamDoolan "before 17th March 2025"
Either this is a typo or they have very unrealistic expectations!

@Novuscourvous
Whilst I agree that that is the biggest misstep,
I was referring to the whole Miles Mackenzie doom mongering that came out of the previews though. The controversies were different but both stemmed from voice acting.

Well I bought the first one on sale after reading your review so I'll see how I go with that. Always happy to get more spooky VN/Adventure games.

YOU may want to do this Kodaka but does your co-creator Uchikishi!?
I really rate this game but I'm not sure I want Uchikoshi stuck on this for another 10 years or can handle much more than what's already there XD

Was always planning on skipping this one but appreciate the review so I know what the games strengths and weaknesses are.

@Ultimapunch
While I agree with your wider point calling Samus Returns mid is unfair. I am intensely nostalgic for Metroid 2 but Mercury Steam were largely beholden to the structure and designs of this older game.
Whilst Dread is better the redesigned and additional boss fights are incredible and the parry system was good here too.
I think this game just gets dismissed because it was a 3ds release when everyone wanted Switch games.

Expectations:
Bloober said they had a Switch 2 exclusive to reveal imminently.
Pragmata trailer with demo launching tomorrow.
Something from Falcom
Elden Ring release date (April?)

Playing devil's advocate and saying this is for a Xenoblade Warriors game where she is a playable character.

I for one am happy with these!
I used to have a love/hate relationship with Yoshi as a kid but it's probably the block puzzle game I'm best at and the music lives rent free in my head.
Balloon Trip intrigues me as I've heard good things and Balloon Fight is one of the few NES games I think holds up outside the S-Tiers

From a 1st party perspective, I'm super excited for Fire Emblem but nothing else. That's ok though because the
3rd party lineup even before this rumoured direct is stacked!

January: Dispatch
February: Resident Evil
March: Indiana Jones(?)
April: Pragmata
May: 007 First Light

Realistically, we get a Pokémon announcement for November and if we are lucky a Zelda Anniversary direct that includes a remake.
Other than that we wait till the Summer Showcase to see how the rest of their lineup looks.

Not really surprised, despite being sad about it.
Nintendo's weird marketing around Metroid combined with the concerned responses from previews unsold a lot of people on the game.
The game is great, but unquestionably has a bunch of issues and isn't served well by the expectations from almost 2 decades of waiting.

Regarding Imprisonment, I'm definitely the target audience for this game but ultimately feel a bit oversaturated on the Musou Nintendo games.

I know it's fallen into disrepute and been mismanaged but it's still sad when the high street shrinks further. I used to love looking in there growing up and still do sometimes for spur of the moment bargains.

A third of the comments are people complaining that one of these games is already available for purchase as a remaster. Another third are that they wanted to be able to purchase a remaster of the other one.
The majority of the rest are complaining about wanting something else instead.

This is good news folks. Surely the ideal is that these Nintendo Classics apps feature all the major 1st party games from that console? More ways to play these games is good for everyone.

Seems likely we will get one imminently. Got a bunch of imminent games from Nintendo themselves they haven't shown much of.
Combine that with Bloober team reporting they had a Switch 2 exclusive game announcement imminent and the HiFi Rush rating and there is enough to suggest a Direct should be on the cards.

Final Fantasy VII Retcon (joke)

Final Fantasy VII Re-alised

Final Fantasy VII Rememberance

This has no bearing on whether or not there will be a general direct soon people, chill.

I know we got a fully voiced DK in the last one but I really hope we are not getting a celebrity voice role for Yoshi. That is for sure a character they could keep the Game Voice Actor for.

That said if they went surreal with it with someone like Werner Herzog I would find that pretty funny.

Looks very pretty but if you want favourable comparisons to Kiki's delivery service you better be bringing your A game with cat companions. I'm not sure Orio quite hits that bar. On a related note, hello Drippy from Ni no kuni?

Played the non Integrade version on PS4 and loved it. Since I don't own the game I could be tempted to replay on Switch 2 but I'm really more excited about Rebirth!

Amazing, this now means Dixie is playable in more DKC games than Donkey Kong once again (right?)

Might take advantage of this. World of Assassination is my most played Switch 2 game but I put a fair amount of time into Hitman 2 on PS4 years ago so I'm sure there are a lot of challenges I had already completed.

@Galaxy2IsTheGOAT
If I recall correctly Spirit Tracks takes place in 'New Hyrule', a new land that the Hylians discover long after the old kingdom flooded. It's the only game to have this setting.
I agree that it would have been cool to have train tracks in the Hero of the Wild games but it thankfully doesn't contradict Spirit Tracks.

Yes absolutely keen.
Even if this game didn't feature boss battles tethered to my favourite band I would still be keen due to the stellar reviews and style.
It's in my top 5 switch 2 port hopefuls along with Clair Obscura, Blue Prince, Metaphor and FFVII rebirth.

Fingers crossed for an announcement in the first Direct of the year!

I love Eternal Darkness but I'm not putting any faith in Dyack after all the controversies and failures he's had in his previous companies. He needs to create something small within his scope to demonstrate that he is even capable of successfully completing games before he can earn back any trust.

Makes sense somewhat. The first 30 or so hours felt like a complete package in their own right and oh my god the stuff after that is a lot.
I'm still working my way through the 'included sequel'. Hopefully I can finish it in time for the anniversary.
This is definitely bigger than it needs to be but it is remarkable and the QOL improvements have helped a lot. I hope the PR campaign gets it some more love and attention.

I don't have a high opinion of EA but Fares is outspoken about industry BS but has been consistent on this front.

EA clearly have trusted in him and his team to bankroll his creative endeavours without exerting repressive creative mandates.
Even if you were cynical and see their Indie publishing strategy as brand washing they've still genuinely helped to produce some good Indies and he has a genuinely positive relationship with them.

Besides what he is saying is categorically true. EA got voted worst company in America several times which is insane when you compare them with all the companies profiteering off of people's hardship and suffering. Mismanaging dev studios and IP is not the same level of terrible.