Diowine

@Dringo So now time has passed and we can speak with updated facts:

• Indiana Jones did not make it into this year's GOTY nominees either
• MP Reviews have released and as expected are a letdown at 80 on Metacritic which is the lowest by a main Metroid game by far.
• Currently standing as low as the 123th game of this year ( https://www.metacritic.com/browse/game/all/all/current-year/metascore/?page=7 ) while the lowest ranked GOTY nominee, KCDII is 14th with an 88.

Yes, Christmas sales will be good for the game, but the date was also chosen knowing that it was going to be below expectations and to avoid being seen as neglected for the big awards by not being eligible.
Sad because I am a huge Metroid fan, but this was expected when the open world trailer and date were announced.

Yep, as expected low 80s, no chance for a GOTY nomination in this stacked year and that is why they preferred December:

• Higher sales around Christmas
• Avoid being seen as neglected for the big awards by not being eligible.

TBH, MP should be a ~90s franchise so this is below original expectations (prior to trailers)

Surprised about the vast majority of the comments being between Hades 2 and Silksong, which I absolutely adored, but are ignoring E33 and almost no mention to Blue Prince.
Guess that makes some sense in a Nintendo page, considering those 2 games are not available.
I imagine the opposite happening in PushSquare were Hades 2 is not available for PS users yet.
Anyways, as mentioned before E33 was already favorite for the big award, so being nominated here is almost a sure win (haven't played yet)

Thought it was going to be a battle between Silksong and Hades2, with Blue Prince being the Dark Horse. Played and absolutely loved the 3 of them.
I didn't expect Clair Obscure to really qualify for Indie. But we've seen Dave the Diver being nominated in the past. There is clearly a grey area.
Considering that by word of mouth and critics general consensus it feels like Clair Obscure was already favorite for Goty, looks like it is going to take this one then. Still have to play it

@benmalsky198 tf? Of course you have every right to have a more positive opinion about the open world and that is great, but if half of your now ~40 comments are like :

• "“boring”? “not all that fun”? “style over substance”?! You are dead wrong."
• "You’re wrong about CrossWorlds. It’s great."
• " You are very much wrong. I’m a big fan of open world games" and can not understand why anyone wouldn’t like them."
  Then don't come now saying that you are not saying everyone is wrong and that everyone can have their opinion if you are also stating that : "The intermission tracks ARE fun and they Do make the corses unique!"
  That is not an opinion, that is declaring that yours is the only truth.
  Also why reply 3 different times to the same comment lol.
  Yeah you are either baiting or need a big hug.

I agree that this Open - World approach is a huge misstep and step back not only for Mario Kart, but apparently for other Nintendo IPs such as for Metroid Prime 4 as being teased in the latest trailer.

Open World does not fit everything, specially not these IPs

Currently sitting at 94 in Metacritic.
This year's Indie Game of the Year is just going to be wild

Guessing that buying the console bundle definitively adds up to MKW numbers. So I am among those that bought MKW last week.

It's only been a few GPs, Knockouts and online sessions so far, but this one really feels like a downgrade compared to MK8D.
Of course we will be getting more content and stages I think in the future, and hopefully 200cc.
But this one really feels like the most random, least skill based MK that I have ever played , and I've owned all tv console MKs since MK64.
Don't know if they can fix that or if they even care, which is even worst

Already in Act 3 of Silksong and with my new Switch 2 which just arrived. This will be a day one.
What a year for Indies. Not sure if Clair Obscur will clasify as an Indie, don't think that KCDII is.
But even without those, Blue Prince, Silksong and Hades 2 are too much for a single year!
And I thought that last year just with Balatro and Animal Well was already amazing.

@Dringo "clearly I know more about you". So I give you arguments and you give me that.
Well for a "games business journalist" who started this discussion saying that:
" Indiana Jones was nominated for GOTY" ... but it wasn't.
Then said "well but it was the best challenger!" But it wasn't
as clearly the scores were better on the real nominees.
And finally is now saying that I said all those December games are bad. Never said that.

And if you still think that if the Game, a Metroid Game, was good enough it wouldn't be released on time just a few weeks earlier for a nomination with all the traction and awareness that it brings enhancing sales, then let me say that you are definitively not too good at your own profession if your arguments are "BUt Im A Journalist so trust me I know betTR" And clearly has it's facts contradicted.

Not too "obsessed with market data" if you don't even know the impact of a GOTY nomination on an IP like that apparently XD.

But let's see again in December if the general consensus and overall scores place it among the top 6 games of the year. I am sure that with those trailers it looks to be at the level of Expedition 33, Death Stranding 2, Blue Prince, SilkSong, Kingdom Come, Split Fiction or even DK. Not to mention the upcoming Ghost of Yotei and Hades 2.
The message they are sending is that they know it has no chance.

Finally received mine today. Very exited on trying out both MK and DK, but also to continue my Silksong playthrough here after transferring.
I think that after Silksong I'll be back and forth between DK and Hades 2 and eventually Ghost of Yotei.
So I have plenty to remain occupied, but still a little disappointed with the latest direct and upcoming lineup tbh.

@Dringo Yes, they do.
Just being nominated to these awards can significantly increase a game's sales and player base, creating a large spike in visibility and traction. This can be easily verified for past nominees.
Same as Oscar potential winners do with the release date of their movies between October, November, and December (OR ~ Cannes lately).
Of course blockbuster movies and games like Fifa, COD, 2k don't care about these, knowing they won't be nominated and sell well anyways. Metroid has never, sadly, been a blockbuster as other Nintendo IPs. It would have helped a lot being nominated.

Now I see that you insist on Indiana Jones last year. Personally I think it was not better than any of the 6 nominees. But our personal opinion does not count. You say it could have won? Well for the awards it did release on time it won 0 Game of the year other than "Nordic Game of the Year". Big one.
GOTY is defined mostly by Critics -> Average Critic Scores are found on Metacritic -> Indiana is ranked 47 currently of 2024 released games, with 5 of the GOTY nominees being way above that score. No, it was not a challenger, therefore released outside the period on which it could have been nominated.

@AverageGamer Then the smart company should push the games without a chance of being nominated and release the IP with a chance of being nominated on/or before November.
C'mon honestly if they felt this was as big or as good as MP1 was then they would have without a doubt released it just ~20 days earlier. But a Switch 1 game clearly does not have that chance in 2025. They go all in with DK this time.

@Dringo Yes this year they will get announced mid November: https://thegameawards.com/
And no, Indiana Jones was not a Goty nominee.

@AverageGamer if they thought this had GOTY potential or even nomination potential it would definitively have been released in time for a nomination.
Are a Kirby Racing game and a Musou really direct competitors? Complementary in any case. Metroid was never a best selling IP for Nintendo anyways but the prestige of it deserved awards

Best announcement of the Direct (not too difficult).
Day one for me

Super Disappointed.
It should not be released on Switch 1 at this point it only drags it's potential.
The date? Just left it out of GOTY nominations, which means that not even they trust in it.
I love Metroid games and that is why I am hurt as this one has been a mess since the beginning in 2017... 8 years ago

• MP 4 Release Date
• New 3D Mario Tease
• Big Port that makes sense: Baldur's Gate 3/ Clair Obscur/ Metaphor Refantazio
• New Mario Sports game, probably Tennis
• Too Early for new Zelda but... Is it time for new Smash?
• New Fire Emblem

Give me half of those and it will be the best Direct Ever for me. It has the potential..
Edit: Well if that half ends up being MP4 Release Date on 26, a Port and Mario Tennis then it would not be that great... any other combination sounds great

@ViewtifulGerry everyone is saying that but the update is not only about adjusting the difficulty, there are some other bugs , no pun intended, that need to be fixed and are addressed in the new patch.
So it is a dilemma. If I think that the difficulty is right but need those other real issues fixed what do I do? I will probably have to update and lower the difficulty in the process. I don't want that, the difficulty is just right for me as it is

The poll immediately shows that most people are loving it's difficulty.
But the people screaming and complaining will always be the loudest, as those of us that are enjoying the challenge won't go to every social network praising the challenge as much as the ones crying about it will.

@RazzBerryPie thanks! I still need to verify if the progress/save data also transfers. Or maybe it was already implied in your answer. But if that is the case then Switch may be my choice

I want to get it immediately but I haven't decided on which platform yet, Switch/PS5 or the Switch 2 I am getting in 2 weeks.
If I buy it on My Switch 1, will I not only be able to upgrade for free on my Switch 2 but also be able to transfer progress/save data? Anyone would know that?

Now this is getting better. I always prefer these to Partner ones.
Nintendo Switch is the ideal home for indies.
My guess: Blue Prince. I think that Hades 2 has a small chance of getting a Nintendo release date too, considering it is already getting it's last update before 1.0 according to news.

As expected Partner Showcases tend to be the weakest among Indie and proper Nintendo Directs for me.
Mostly ports which play better on their original consoles, and no superb announcement although the last 2 HD-2D announcements from Square look nice at least.

@Late Declare myself guilty, I didn't even see the "Something totally new!" option, just hurried to vote for the ports I've been waiting for.
But yes, something totally new would be even better, although certain ports would be a guaranteed quality

Also, I started playing Blue Prince this week due to my PS Subscription and it is great.
But if a Switch version is announced, I will probably just do the same I did earlier this year with Balatro: Test it on my PS subscription first and if it is good get it on Switch as the portability for indie roguelikes is just a huge advantage

Baldur's Gate 3, Metaphor and/or Clair Obscur here.
Been about to buy all 3 of them multiple times for my PS5; but feel like the handheld capabilities of the Switchs are a better home for those kind of games, unlike games like RDR2 or Elden Ring which I prefer to play in PS consoles any day.
If none of those is present this time, then I'll just probably get BG3 for my PS5 finally. Last chance

@Orwellian87 yeah no... Commented without reading apparently, sorry for the letdown but partner showcase means no Metroid nor first party games at all

Boring. Partner showcase is mostly tied to already released games in other platforms that also play better in those.
I even prefer Indie showcases at this point, as those play better in Switch than other platforms due to handheld option.

In conclusion, drifting prone joy cons, miserable battery life for a handheld, only 1 important game at launch and a hardware that although is improved is still behind competitor's 5 year old console power.
I think I'll pass for now unless DK Bananza is unexpectedly revolutionary

It would be funny if this one comes with drifting when the originals had no problem with that, compared to current gen controllers.

What a letdown.
Honestly we don't even need magnets, just whatever they were using during the Gamecube days or similar. Still got those and have never drifted.
But it seems like it is better for them to sell drifting controllers to sell even more joy cons per person nowadays.....

I just want to know if/when games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Metaphor: ReFantazio will be available on Switch 2.
I've been about to buy them for PS5 for a while but been waiting because I think that Switch 2 would be the perfect fit to play those in handheld.

@mlt agree with Clair Obscure.
From already released games I would only add Kingdom Come and Split Fiction to the contenders too, considering that It Takes 2 already took the GOTY a couple years ago.
With GTA VI out of the race, Ghost Of Yotei, Death Stranding 2, MGSΔ and Doom will all be up there too.
Hope that Metroid Prime 4 and DK Bananza also show up.
Just by looking at this list I expect a muuuuch more packed year compared to 2024, which was one of the weakest in terms of GOTY candidates ever.
Budgets in danger.

It would be epic if these have drifting issues when the original did not.

I still own and use my original ones from 20 years ago for games like Smash and never had an issue...yet my Joycons drift for nothing.

First time? No console has ever been affordable in South America. You always have to wait for a family member or your next trip to buy new consoles. PS5 is still ~$1.000 usd here.... 2025.
So yeah, next vacation's luggage must have empty space.

At least games are now digital, so we can buy them day one, same price.

Have and still use 2 of these original ones since release.
They've been trough a lot, including all Smash Bros games since.
Any sign of drifting? ZERO And yet had 3 pairs of Joy Cons ruined because of this.
No need for Hall Effect sticks to have a solve the issue, Nintendo just does not want to in order to sell more.

@wollywoo me too, but I think that's it.
in 2017 when Switch was released they did Mario Kart Deluxe and Zelda BOTW (Also with a WiiU version) almost on release and later on Mario Oddyssey.
This time we also have a

• MK 8 Deluxe -> Mario Kart World
• BOTW -> Metroid Prime 4 playable also on the previous Gen
• Mario Oddyssey -> DK Bananza
• Arms -> Drag x Drive to showcase the console features.
  I think that's it for big AAA Nintendo titles this year. I also hoped for a little more but yeah

Considering that they are not using Hall-Effect sticks, what exactly are they using? Don't care about them being 'smooth' or 'silent'.
Confirm if there is a real/significant improvement on the drifting issue, not by addressing dirfting of course that they never will, but by mentioning the technology/materials behind

@AmplifyMJ @gabrigoes I wouldn't say it is a big pain for them nor that it would be dumb for them not to fix the trashy sticks at the end of the day.
Yes maybe were you live it is easy, free and fast to send them to repair, but I would dare to say that in most places and for most people the only solution is to buy new joy cons when they start drifting.
So far I have bought 3 left joy cons alone due to this issue, and still haven't replaced my gamecube ones.
So yeah, at the end of the day their obsolescence may be programmed for people to keep buying them. Hateful practice, they win.

I don't care about rumble. I care about fixing the drift, and my Joy-Cons have been more susceptible to that than even my Dual Sense. No word about it or about Hall Effect sticks just confirms they are trashy again.

Let's be honest, considering how bad the drifting was on the original Joy-Cons, if these new models had the Hall-Effect improvement they would have definitively mentioned it instead of just saying "The Sticks are bigger" and praising themselves about all the other magnets present elsewhere in the console.
It just sells better to have people buy multiple Joy-Cons over time because of trashy materials, same as most household electronic appliances nowadays..

@Shepdawg1 as the article mentions, the pricey complaints are mostly not about the new Hardware that you mention. I could also have expected it to be even $100 more expensive.
The main issue is that the first party games could now be $80, which is a crazy jump when considering that it is even more expensive than PS5 games.

@Gs69 No chance that MK costs a 10% of what GTA VI does to develop. I wouldn't compare anything with GTA VI, like the franchise or not.

6/10.

• MK, we already knew of
• No Sticks improvement mentioned/suggested (Drifting), only other non related magnets and that the sticks are bigger.
• DK was great, best of the presentation
• Bunch of 5 year old third party games that I already have in other consoles
• Mouse feature only useful for games like CIV VII, otherwise... not really useful nor comfortable

Already bought and played, no big news for me.
BUUUT, if the third and last instalment is released here in parallel to the PS version and at the same time, then count me in as I prefer these ~JRPGs on Handheld

@gabrigoes Never heard that from any official source, or a trustful one, hope I am wrong. But I would have emphasized the magnets on the Sticks if that was the case if I were Nintendo. Knowing how much they were already emphasizing on other magnets present in the console

@DrJoson how can you assume that? They would have mentioned better or magnetic components in the sticks without having to admint the prev ones were trash. They did emphasize on other magnets in the console and talked about the sticks being "bigger". They would have mentioned the improvement in between that section of course. But not, sadly not.

It just sells better, even if we complain. Bought 3 pairs of Joycons already because of drifting, but still using my original no drift gamecube controllers. Trashy sticks sell better and it is the worst

@Goat_FromBOTW thanks for that, did not see it. Yeah, a little on the expensive side, not completely terrible but hoped for $60