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In terms of actual gaming time this weekend (and into next week) it will be complicated. I'm getting married today in about 6 hours so I gotta get my @ss moving soon to shower up and shave, get back to the hotel, get half ready, get to the venue on time for the getting ready pictures, first look, pictures, private vows, etc., yada yada yada an "I do" somewhere in there, more pictures and then boozing into the night and hopefully not wake up dead tomorrow

We're taking off to Maui for the week afterward, so the new wife gave permission (or encouraged me) to bring the Switch for the flight and any relaxing downtime while we're there. I've been debating back and forth a lot about bringing it since I'm supposed to be "honeymooning" and not gaming. If I do end up taking it, I'll continue my addiction to Snowrunner (Switch). I just 100% Michigan and started to explore Alaska and holy sh#t even with snow tires the terrain there is rough! I can tell this will make anything in Michigan look like a child's sandbox. Hopefully it's not too much of a difficulty spike to where it becomes less fun and more frustrating. I'm all for challenge but there always has to be a balance of a fun challenge instead of just straight up time consuming brutal trolling. We'll see but I'm looking forward to the new areas and setting.

Still all over Snowrunner (Switch). This game continues its vice grip on my b@lls and I'm perfectly fine with that! I'm getting really close to finishing off Michigan. On the last few contracts which consist of a lot of big deliveries all over the place across some rough terrains. Once I knock those out, I'll finally move on to Alaska. Yeah, I know I could have moved on a lot sooner (especially once I ranked up and got better gear) but it made me nuts to leave Michigan without finishing the job(s). Alaska looks to be a whole different beast so I want to be able to fully commit to it when the time comes. Bring it on, nature you b!#ch!

Oh yeah. Back then I upgraded immediately to the New 3DSXL for Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate. I was so hyped and pumped I was in gaming heaven for quite a long time! I believe it also came with a MH4U theme that was such a cherry on top

Ah I had a feeling this one would get remastered. I had this day one for PS1 and it was such a mix of fun and straight up trolled frustration. I'm wondering how this remaster will play because if I remember correctly the game (at least on PS1) was janky as hell.

Whether solo or coop the gameplay was either fun arcade beat up style or annoying. The camera would sometimes be a nightmare. Some angles would completely block any visibility of enemies and they'd start shooting at you way before you could see them. That camera also would set you up to just fall off a platform.

Speaking of falling off an unseen platform there was also the random platform jumping areas. Those could be BRUTAL (especially in coop). The camera made it next to impossible at times to correctly judge where you had to jump. It was rather common to burn through all your lives at a jumping section. Game over.

Also, there was plenty of bugs. The most common I'd run into was where you would get stuck in a platform corner you'd jump to. Meaning if you landed too close to the edge of a platform, you'd get stuck for a few seconds at your waist and would just die.

In those days you put up with those things because there was still plenty of fun to be had especially if you really dug Star Wars. This game came out during the beginning Prequel Era hype of the early 2000's so it got many of us pumped up to play. It was a common game a gang of us would play coop because it felt dope to deflect blaster bolts and combo an enemy to pieces. You just had to put up with all that janky stuff however again it was a different time of gaming. If it reviews well, I may pick up but it's also very possible once I encounter a jump section and burn through all the lives again, I'll dump it.

@Burning_Spear Nice! Be careful if it clicks with you you're gonna really make Balatro jealous.

Whenever you give it a go keep in mind the beginning 'tutorial' portion can be a slog and confusing. The overall early game can be tough too. I apparently made it a lot harder for myself because I was using the crappiest vehicle choices and tactics but the game does a horrible job at helping you understand it all. I had fun but there was some moments in that beginning map where I felt like I'm over my head.

When my weekend starts, I'll continue being completely absorbed in the world of Snowrunner (Switch). I've made so much progress, yet it still feels there so MUCH I have to do! I recently felt so accomplished just getting one load of long logs across 2 maps, yet I still have more log deliveries needed to finish the job. Can't wait to get back at it! This freaking game is quickly becoming a strong contender for my 2024 GOTY. I've said before I'm sticking to the base game (no DLC's) for everything because I don't want to cheese it. I want to earn those accomplishments!

My backlog is so pissed off at me right now. I had a good rhythm going getting through it but once Snowrunner unexpectedly clicked they got put on ice.

I could go for a remaster double pack of the Rainbow Six Vegas games. That would be an instant buy from me!

@ChHa I really wish there was a way to strip older sports games of any team licensing/player associations and re-release them. I played the hell out of Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey and NFL Blitz/2000 during the N64 era. Sucks due to those licensing issues those games will never see the light of day again.

That OG THPS game was one of those cultural moments in gaming. All of us kids in school were playing it (I believe I was a sophomore in high school). That was a game kids would talk about high scores on this or that level with this skater, etc. That was a game where YOU had to put your money where your mouth is after school, and all go to Andrew's house to play "horse" and prove your abilities. Lots and lots of trash talking and intense close score battles in a crowded room. It was definitely a different time where the conditions no longer exist today. It will never happen again.

@cosmograph LOL oh I can promise you you'll get through lots of audible books and podcasts with this game. As for how it runs on Switch is subjective and will vary per individual. In general, it runs and looks good for Switch. The port was done by Saber Interactive and they have a great reputation for good ports. However, obviously there is usual Switch compromises done in the expected places. Saber sure did though work some magic so that the core of everything is there. Obviously on any other platform it will perform a ton better. The Switch is all I got and I couldn't be more satisfied. I'd recommend watching SwitchUp's review of it because they go in depth with the Switch version. The game has received a ton of updates since then so performance has improved a lot.

@Rainz Yes, it's digital crack but not in the way of "gotcha" mechanics and/or via instant dopamine hits. It's a very, very slow experience. Especially in the beginning as you're getting to grips of things (there's a whole lot thrown at you). There was a moment or two I was very overwhelmed I was thinking I might be over my head. But I stuck with it and once more things "clicked" (also with help from a few beginners' tips You Tube videos) I just got so engaged it's all I want to play.

My poor backlog. I was doing so well tackling it and pulled the trigger on this game. Ah well I'm having a blast.

Snowrunner (Switch). This freaking game. This freaking game has me by the b@lls. Completely out of left field. I just can't explain how compelling this game is. I finally got myself a good off-road vehicle, tossed some upgrades on it and it became a workhorse. Those long cross-town hauls through the nastiest of roads are going down! Bring it on, nature!

I'm also sticking to the base game vehicles and avoiding any of the DLC stuff because I don't want to cheese it.

The latest rumor I heard is that it's going to launch in such a stable state it won't need any system updates for at least halfway through its lifecycle.

@Yoshi3 @Zuljaras @Truegamer79 I totally agree with everything said. Being in my 40's and living through most of the great gaming leaps in tech really grounds me in what is most important. And I used to be a PC gamer (I was the cool kid on the block when I got the 3DFX Voodoo2 graphics card ) throughout some of those eras. Now living in present day I know that matters most. Just make a fun game!

Lastly, when these types of articles come out I find it so amusing to see how history just repeats itself. On any sort of possible eve of the "next big thing" of hardware any of today's problems are considered to be solved once that next big thing comes out I can now say in all confidence...it won't! Rinse and repeat!

@Burning_Spear I don't know anything about the season packs because as of now I'm only playing the base game. And that alone is massive. It looks like the season packs add a ton more.

I may force myself to play a round of Balatro today because once I boot up Snowrunner then nothing else gets touched. Be careful because it could happen to you!

@Burning_Spear I think the last one I beat was the green stake using the green deck. I think the green deck is my main because of always getting some money coming in. And yeah that boss blind that has an extra large blind is straight up troll. That one has b!tch slapped me more times than I'd like to admit. If it ever comes around I'm hoping it's towards the early runs, or have any of those blind killing jokers. Or even that one joker that requires you to only have like 25% of the amount to pass.

Balatro though may have been put on the backburner a bit for me though. If you see my post on this topic (#93) you'll see why. I think I'm toast again in such an unexpected game to do it.

Oh man I think I can honestly say now that I've stepped in it big time. Early last week I picked up Snowrunner (Switch) and it's all I've been playing ever since. I have no desire to touch anything else and my backlog run I've been so good at getting through just got put on ice. I've never thought in all my years of gaming that this of all games would just have unexplainable voodoo black magic over me. I've put in hours and I'm still in the beginning area.

As I'm typing this, I can't wait till I can continue trying to deliver medium and long logs across town with low tier vehicles that will probably get stuck all the time and I have to grab another vehicle to hopefully winch them out. Why is this so freaking compelling!?

@Burning_Spear That game has you so by the b@lls Every week when I see your post I already know what you're all about. I totally get it that game is awesome and 'all hope is lost' at the same time for me. Meaning I could be having the most bulldozing run and then I hit a wall of a boss blind that just torpedoes me. I've unlocked most of the decks so to keep my sanity I hack at it on and off. Otherwise I'd be like you

In my quest to stay concentrated on the backlog and push myself to play games that aren't what I would normally gravitate to, I worry I just made a huge mistake. I picked up Snowrunner (Switch) and started very slowly figuring things out during the week. I have to say it's completely out of left field of anything I'd ever touch but I would always hear so much about it (Switch Up for years always brings it up). I say I possibly made a huge mistake in the sense that it's very slowly digging in meat hooks into me in a way I could see myself putting that backlog on ice (again!).

I honestly don't know how to explain it. I'm nothing of a "trucker" type person and/or have any desire to be. But yet as I learn more and more of this game's mechanics, I find myself losing track of the real world and just being absorbed into Snowrunner's world. I don't get it. It's a freaking slow (and I mean slow!) paced game but it's grabbing me. This game is so massive and literally hundreds of things to do on each map. If this continues, I could see my quest of the backlog being once again at a standstill (I've been doing so good the year or so cracking at it!). I never expected I'd be so fascinated with conquering an antagonist that is nothing more than an environment...?...crazy.

Honestly, it's really tripping me out. I've been gaming on some totally awesome games all over the spectrum lately but there's something about this game that feels the most unique and unexpected. Anyone else know what I'm talking about?

When my weekend starts I plan on wrapping up the last of the expert levels with gold stars in Mario vs Donkey Kong (Switch). Great game. I definitely prefer the Plus and Expert levels over the main ones.

I also found myself having the bug of replaying Company of Heroes Collection (Switch) so I redownloaded it. It's real time sink but the game just hits all the right notes when you're in the mood. Because of that now I'm forcing my fiancé to watch "Band of Brothers" with me

@batmanbud2 Tropical Freeze for the first time. I've missed out.

That has to be my favorite platformer. Never before has a game like that got me super excited for the next level and replaying the level to collect the goodies. The graphics, sound and charm are chef's kiss Super Mario Wonder came pretty close but in the end Tropical Freeze still reigns supreme!

Since I just beat Zelda Skyward Sword HD I'm in the 'in between' zone before my next bigger game on my quest to stay focused on the backlog. I'll still do runs with Sifu (Switch) because I just love the gameplay and maybe some Balatro. I just want some uncommitted pure fun after finishing a big game. I did just pick up Mario vs Donkey Kong (Switch) but to me that doesn't feel like something you can lose yourself into like I recently did with Skyward Sword. So far it's fun.

I did however feel an itch for Everspace (Switch) again so I redownloaded it and once again it's hooking its meat hooks into me. That game is such a perfect combination of experiences such as peace, relaxation, intensity, curiosity, dangers, exploration etc. all in one game. Now I remember why I had to uninstall it so I could focus on other games. I'll do a few more runs before I probably will have to uninstall it again to get back to the backlog. What can I say I just love having fun with games.

@Qwiff Also, Turok 2. Played only for a bit, but I can already tell it's a great 90s shooter. Hint: it's still on sale.

Be ready for "Lair of the Blind Ones". Even WITH a guide it may still a mess to get through. I try to complete games without online assistance but that one broke me. I used the save anytime feature the most on that place. That level can eat my @ss. It's like they had Stevie Wonder design it.

When my weekend starts, I will be continuing Zelda Skyward Sword HD. I have to admit for not being a Zelda guy this game has really grown on me. A little of a slow start for me but once I got familiar with the game and story I'm having a real good time.

When I'm not playing that I like to keep doing runs of Sifu (Switch). Even though I've achieved both endings I just love repeating the campaign. This game really plays on that childhood fantasy of being a kung fu bad@ss and just beating up bad guys in style. Can't get enough

@Satamer Yeah it took a while for me to get it down and what I love about it is that even when you get better it will still challenge you unexpectedly.

You may have already but you need to check out this video. It completely clarified and changed everything for me on understanding what's going on. Most especially the difference in dodging vs. parrying. Dodging seems a lot better to manage than parrying everything. I didn't watch the boss portion(s) until I tried and died a lot of times but even with help it was still a challenge.

https://youtu.be/qeVl3wl1Esg?si=x7zXlV2Yj3U1Ft_C

@Satamer ...final boss on Sifu - playing through the first levels again first to bring my age down

Oh, do I know what you mean. I played the first levels many times so I could start the Museum level at age 20. I had to do that because Kuroki would take up quite a few deaths. Very helpful that the elevator goes straight to her. After enough times I was happy to start the last level at 32 which was enough for me to beat the final boss. Then had to do it all over again to spare the bosses to get the true ending. The gameplay is so fun I had a blast attempting that challenge. I love the game so much I still do runs just for fun to see what age I could beat it without using any shortcuts.

In progress reviews now? Hmmm. My best guess is this came from up above to generate some extra traffic. If so then this means pick your poison. Do these types of articles or go the Kotaku route and make a "whack the beehive" article to get everyone at each other's throats for traffic. Nintendo Life dabbles in those from time to time so I'm curious to what the future holds.

When my weekend starts I'll most likely continue playing through Sifu (Switch). I already beat it with both endings but I'm so addicted to the gameplay I just love playing through the levels over and over again. For whatever reason the 'Arenas' just don't do it for me.

I'll also continue Zelda Skyward Sword (Switch). I'm not a Zelda guy by a long shot but always respected everything about it. So far it's pretty good but I just haven't had the time to really dig into it. The controls are taking time to get used to but I'm sure I'll adjust in time.

North America all the way (very biased here)! This game was by far the most played in my household back in the day. Between my brothers and I we had intense battles for high scores. One of my older brothers though used to dominate it so much that he always made it a mission to make sure the scores were only his name. This needs to come to NSO!

When my weekend starts I plan on continuing my kung fu fighting adventures in Sifu (Switch). Man this game has its hooks into me good. The more I play the better I'm getting however you have to always stay on your toes regardless. If you get over-confident even a few low level thugs can surround you and it's lights out. I beat the game last weekend but now I'm motivated to go for the true ending and sparing all the bosses. I did the first one with no deaths (took a lot of tries) so hoping I can do the 2nd boss the same (if not only 1 or 2 deaths) because the 3rd boss will definitely be a monumental task. Her freaking blade combos are brutal to navigate!

I finally picked up Sifu (Switch) on a good sale last week so I hope to continue my kung fu fighting adventures (or getting my @ss handed to me). This game is so awesome and addicting. I love the constant challenge it throws at you. The game can make you feel overconfident at times then you get surrounded by low level thugs that just pummel you to death. You need to stay on your toes and constantly thinking strategy regardless of how much you want to unleash your inner Bruce Lee on a big group. In an instant it's all over. A great, unexpected thrill.

After finishing up Princess Peach Showtime this week (and taking a few days off to recover from a vasectomy ) I've finally moved onto Sifu (Switch). It's been on my backlog for a long time and picked it up during its current sale of 60% off. This game is dope however it's hard as nails! Even the lowest goons give me a good spanking. I've read and watched some beginner tips on YouTube so this game looks like it'll be an investment. Not a quick laid-back experience like I just had with Princess Peach.

Mortal Kombat Trilogy all the way! That was by far my most favorite and most played MK game to date! What I loved about the N64 version was how OP'd and broken Sub Zero was. In the N64 they combined the old and new Sub Zero into one character, so he had all moves and combos of both.

Man, I really must be from a different era of gaming. All I care about is the game fun. Some of my most favorite games from the last year or so have been indies with graphics from the mid 2000s or later. Bells and whistles are nice and all but if the game isn't fun then they mean nothing. Just make it fun, Nintendo, and my money is yours

Also, would like Prime 2 & 3 to get some sort of Switch release so I can play through those beforehand.

@PKDuckman Eh, it's just my two cents which in the grand scheme of things means nothing. Don't let me keep you up at night I'm a complete nobody. I have nothing against you or your stance.

I was just coming from what is common to see nowadays. Especially on the click bait farms. Not saying it's right or wrong. It will do the usual rounds. Whack the beehive and then fade away.

Let's be honest Nintendo Life is loving this because it's generating traffic for ad revenue. It's why they posted it and we all just go at it like moths to flame. When bills are due and/or the higher ups tell them to there will be another article for us to do this all over again. Maybe I'll see you there

While I'm sure there are at least some out there trolling just to troll. The problem for me is being the internet you can easily create anything with social media via sock puppet accounts, having other people you know troll you, you respond, they "troll back", you use go back to your sock puppet account to whack the beehive again, rinse and repeat.

It's a good way to create whatever narrative and most especially attention you want. Especially when it comes to selling something. There are actually various PR firms that have armies (literally, ARMIES) of bots that can do whatever you pay them to do. Anything from puffing you up to putting you down to work with the algorithms.

I knew someone at the gym that owned a private firm that did that for influencers especially in the fitness industry. Besides boosting follower numbers, you work with these firms to give you praise or "bully" you so then you can "clap back" at the haters and work those algorithms. If you do it right you can draw attention from the click bait farms like Yahoo, Buzzfeed, Vice, etc. for them to have some hack "journalist" make an article about you owning "the haters" or what an "inspiration" you are.

The "body positivity" influencer category is saturated with that. Celebrities do it all the time, too. If you go on Yahoo or any of those other click bait farms it's all you see. It's a machine of working algorithms as long as you got the green in your wallet.

So, with that while I don't doubt he may have received some trolling. I mean, welcome to the real world. However, this dude is selling something and race baiting used to be very lucrative. The small issue is it's not the "Summer of Love 2020" anymore and the average Joe has moved on. Perhaps if he was Israeli or something that might have generated more but even the media is slowing down on that (like how the Ukraine war went to the back burner).

Didn't Rocky say something about "It's not how hard you hit. It's about how hard you get hit and keep moving forward." Maybe he should ignore the keyboard warriors and live life. Unless he paid some PR firm and/or using the sock puppet accounts then by all means best of luck to you, dude.

When my weekend starts I'm finally hoping to wrap up the last expansion "Tales of Valor" from the Company of Heroes Collection. That game is such a gem.

@Warioware They can cherry pick all they want but whatever it is it will NEVER be what it originally was. It will be what Disney wants it to be. It's just the character/situation in a skin suit.

@Maxz At first glance that looked like something Cheech & Chong would make.

@jojobar There was a time almost anything video game Star Wars was money in the bank. Even the mediocre games had enough to get some fun out of it despite any issues (mostly). Especially the ones where you could see the teams involved put a lot of love into it. Besides the diehard Star Wars fans, the games would attract a good amount of the normies and casuals. As long as there was just the right amount of fun the games would stand on their own. It wasn't necessary to spend millions of dollars in marketing because the games sold themselves.

Nowadays there's virtually no enthusiasm coming from any corner especially even the supposed remaining "diehards". You see the millions of dollars in marketing, yet the game will release and just fade out. Even if it's good it has no legs. There's little conversation and community behind them. 15 plus years ago if you told me this is what would happen to Star Wars I'd call you nuts. And this is coming from a former hardcore fan that used to be OBSESSED with the Expanded Universe and lore. Now I see it all as a past life and just moved on. Every time I do a random check of where it's all at now, I don't get mad I just shake my head in apathy.

Anyone want to take bets on whether there will be any conversation and/or anything trending of this game by July 4th? I'm betting by then it will be forgotten. Maybe I'm being too harsh. Definitely won't last the summer for sure.

I bet this guy was a teacher's nightmare during his K-12 years...I bet the "Mr. Strickland's" of his schools called him a slacker a lot. Who's laughing now!?

After finishing Blast Corps on the N64 app I decided to circle back to Company of Heroes Collection and complete the expansions. Currently in the middle of the "Opposing Fronts" campaign. I'm trying so hard to just keep on the backlog and not get stuck on any "forever" games. For shorter sessions I do still fire up Balatro (have most decks unlocked) and Hades. All I really have left to do in Hades is purchasing House items but it's always such a fun game to do a random run.

Sometimes it's those little things that matter. Now, Sakurai, get to work on porting Kid Icarus: Uprising to Switch!

So crazy that I remember borrowing Alleyway from a neighborhood friend back in the day. Never thought of that game again till now. I believe I put some time into that game.

I'm still waiting for Kirby's Pinball Land. Give it to me, you cowards!

Never would have imagined the level of success this series would achieve back when I started on Monster Hunter Tri (Wii). It's been a blast staying with the franchise since then. I'm really trying this time to retire (last game was Sunbreak) from the franchise due to it always completely taking over my gaming time and my backlog just grows and grows.

In other words they're running out of money and it's time to pivot to profit.

I have to admit I'm really confused here. So let me get this straight. I feel like the Switch is getting smacked in the back of the head unnecessarily. A medium to below average game is ported to Switch yet the Switch is taking the heat for not being "up to par" for this below average game. I could understand more if it was some super highly anticipated GOTY consumer demanded title and we were given a lemon but that is far from the case. There's something that just isn't adding up for me. Oh well.

I feel like now that there's some sort of confirmation of the "next big hardware" the Switch is going to get backhanded for any type of perceived problem with virtually any game going forward. I've definitely noticed the shift in the narratives now for Switch games. Any issues (that can also exist and have existed for generations on other platforms) will come down to "the next hardware will solve everything wrong with this game" and/or "should have just waited, gosh!".

To each their own. I got my Switch in summer 2018 and it's been by far one of the best purchases of my life (besides my car cause obviously I need to get around). My backlog is never ending! I've told my fiancée my Switch is my mistress. If any "Weird Science" magic turns my Switch into a hot woman I'm so running away with her.

When my weekend starts (Monday) I'll try to wrap up the Switch Lara Croft Collection. I finished the first game last week and should be getting close to finishing the second game. Those games really surprised me. Nothing groundbreaking just simple fun.

Once I wrap that up I need to decide do I continue the backlog like I've been doing or circling back to Company of Heroes Collection and finishing the expansions. I had a blast with the main campaign but got kinda burned out about 3 missions into the Opposing Fronts campaign. Those games are huge time sinks so I just moved on but occasionally it nags me that I never finished the expansions. I don't know the main campaign was so engaging but Opposing Fronts just felt kinda "meh" and by the numbers. "We're being attacked over here, send help!" followed by "Oh no! We're under attack over here, send help!". We'll see how I feel when I finish up Lara Croft.

@Serpenterror If only we had the Super Star Wars Trilogy in the eShop.

Oh hell yeah I'm with you! I was obsessed with all 3 games when I was a kid even though they didn't make any sense in terms of story. LOL as a wee kid when I played Super Star Wars I remember thinking I don't remember in the movie Luke going on a murderous rampage on the Jawas or even Han Solo becoming an active shooter in Mos Eisley Spent a lot of 'home sick from school' days on those games

I've been hoping they'll do something similar to the "Cowabunga Collection" and release all the NES, Game Boy, and SNES on one big collection. I actually put a good amount of time on the NES and Game Boy Star Wars games too. They were SO HARD but I still put many hours into them just to constantly die and try again. It was definitely a different time in those days. If they ever did this it would be an instant buy for me. But if not I'll take the Super Trilogy in a heartbeat.