Comments 533

Re: Talking Point: What Will The 'Switch 2' Actually Be Called?

Hwatt

@Kingchin

You said it yourself, a “pro”per successor…

I understand that you’re trying to be helpful. Just keep in mind that this article is for creative output and comedic relief

My personal favourite would be the Nintendo Swatch, a wearable device that streams the gameplay directly into your brain. All inputs are neurologically mapped so you don’t need a controller. The display signal intercepts the signals from your eyes to your brain so you’re fully immersed. It’s years ahead of VR or the capabilities of OLED displays. It’s powered by your own life force, the only caveat is that the signal is still 720pz I’m sure of all of this because my uncle works at Nintendo

Re: Hideki Kamiya Hopes To Return To The Video Game Industry In 2024

Hwatt

I believe he has a 1 year non compete clause.

By the way, this makes no sense. Cites the reason to work is “having a meal”. Implying that he’s either poor or suffering, yet he chose to quit his job in a terrible economy and market whilst also highlighting his Lamborghini.

Honestly, this guy is out to lunch. Go work in another job for a year or sell your Lambo. The amount of entitlement in this industry is ridiculous.

Re: 'Switch 2' Will Be An Iterative Evolution And Will Cost $400, Predicts Analyst

Hwatt

@WhiteTrashGuy

I think you misunderstood my comment. I’m not questioning the name of the product. I am stating that I am unsure if the next console will be similar to a Switch or will actually be a revolution. Like the transition between Gamecube to Wii, Gameboy to DS, Wii U to Switch.

If the next gen console is a follow up to the Switch in the likes of SNES to NES or Wii U to Wii, it’s very likely that the console will not supersede the sales of the Switch. History has proven that they’re less successful (if success is defined by consoles sold) if they iterate. A Switch 2 / Pro will be nice for sure but I’ve always enjoyed when Nintendo disrupts conventions and defines a new strategy or way to play. Chasing perf is not their strong suit.

Re: 'Switch 2' Will Be An Iterative Evolution And Will Cost $400, Predicts Analyst

Hwatt

All info points to an updated Tegra processor with an updated generation (Ampere or Ada). The community generally believes it will be mobile. These new predictions don’t add anything meaningful to the discussion except one point.

Iterative vs. revolution. Whilst as a consumer I would prefer iterative, Nintendo voiced before to their investors that they’re fully aware of the regressive nature of a sequel hardware (SNES vs. NES, Wii U and Wii).

This is the only piece where I am unsure if the console will in fact be a “Switch 2” or something different. Everything points to a Switch 2 but is Nintendo willing to repeat history to sustain sales without significant growth or will they take a risk?

I suspect the former but I am unsure.

Re: Fighters From Smash Bros. For 3DS Were Leaked By Former NoA Employee's Child

Hwatt

“an exclusive tight-knit of online friends”

Well kids, this is why you think twice before sharing content online. The 5mns of fame wont help when your parents are now unemployed.

Actions have consequences and this one is rather unfortunate for all. Surprised this is coming up nearly 10 years later but it’s a good reminder to think twice before posting or sharing any content on social media / online.

Re: Soapbox: Donkey Konga Introduced Me To One Of My Favourite Songs Ever

Hwatt

Did I play Donkey Konga on Gamecube? Yes, in fact, I really liked the game. Unfortunately, thanks for the reminder Nintendo Life XD, one day I came home (I was still living with my parents at the time) and my closest was cleared out.

I had a few storage boxes (office style cardboard) with unused games / toys. In one box was all my spare Lego pieces, the other, my retail box of Donkey Konga, which had a copy of the game and the bongo controllers. Seems someone went a bit too hard in the paint with the whole "spring cleaning" XD. For context, this isn't typical spring cleaning. It's rural Canadian cleaning, which means take all of your junk, bag it, throw it in the bed of the pickup, and drive for 30mns to the nearest dump.

In retrospect, I'm not too bothered by it but I rip on my parents from time to time when I visit to remind them how all of my Lego disappeared. Because I still help them with visits to the dump... XD Hopefully my Donkey Konga was salvaged by someone before it got buried under mountains of garbage in a landfill. RIP.

Re: Nintendo Reminds Fans Zelda Is Up For Nomination At This Year's Game Awards

Hwatt

@TruestoryYep

As much as I love Tears and yes it does also have a 96, I just don’t see it on the same level.

BG III took table top DnD and made it main stream. Not to mention the game actually released three years ago in early access and has seen a ton of changes, driven by the community, and supported by the developers.

Those are very atypical situations and extremely rare when resulting in a 96 metacritic.

Those are the reasons why BG III will win. It’s not just the quality of the game. It’s everything the lead to the game and the on-going support. We have to split hairs this year because it’s STACKED with quality games.

Re: Nintendo Reminds Fans Zelda Is Up For Nomination At This Year's Game Awards

Hwatt

Honestly, with so many GotY worthy titles this year, I am impressed Tears of the Kingdom didn’t get snubbed. The reality is Baldur’s Gate III moved the medium forward in a meaningful way not only from a quality perspective but also community engagement perspective that no one really expected and it’s holding a 96 Metacritic score.

I think the category best Action-Adventure game is a good opportunity for Tears of the Kingdom.

My personal GotY is surprisingly Resident Evil 4 Remake. I thought the effort to remake RE4 and change the themes, make the game darker, modify level design, and all sorts of changes would ruin what was essentially a perfect game. They nailed it and it’s my favourite remake to date.

So many great games… any one game in a normal year really deserves the win but with SO much competition, we all know it’s Baldur’s Gate III.

Re: Super Mario Bros. Wonder Also Had A Strong Start In The US

Hwatt

The game deserves the success. Well done, Nintendo.

If you recall, Nintendo was citing Super Mario Bros. Movie as a reason it has seen increased sales and engagement across the Mario brand. Well for me, Super Mario Bros. Wonder actually got me more interested to go back and play other titles.

I’ve got my SNES classic hooked up and I’ve been jumping on SMW and SMB.3 (NES ROM on SNES) as well as Super Mario Maker 2 (SMM2). I haven’t played SMM2 since 2020 and wow does it still hold up.

If you’re addicted to 2D Mario like I am right now, I can’t recommend SMM2 enough.

Imagine Wonder style was added as a final DLC next year? OOOOF

Re: Best WarioWare Games Of All Time

Hwatt

Touched! is the only one I own and well, I am extremely biased. I’ve played other titles with friends (smooth moves) but never felt compelled to buy another title in the series. The Switch titles seem to be more focused on group settings and those are too far in between for me with the Switch to justify a full price purchase.

Going back to Touched! I love it! I love the mode where each microgame comes out faster and faster. Having to scramble with the stylus or switching to blowing into microphone was a blast.

It’s the first time, ok second time (Kirby Tilt n’ Tumble) I’ve played a game where the control gimmicks improve the core gameplay experience.

I may consider getting… “Get it Together!” over “Move It” but still, a bit skeptical.

I’ll always love Touched! and I hope single player WarioWare games come back into style and focus with Nintendo.

Re: Poll: What Review Score Would You Give Super Mario Bros. Wonder?

Hwatt

I agree with the 9.

It’s a fantastic game, honestly it hard to find faults. The game is exceedingly more fun when playing co-op and to my surprise, without spoilers, there are some seriously difficult levels. I’m not sure if the reviewer missed these levels or it’s because co-op increases the challenge.

For context, on one level (5 star difficulty), my friend and I spent 80 lives (40 x2) approximately to beat said level.

I don’t believe any game is perfect. I do think this has potential to be one of the best 2D Mario games but to reflect on other Mario games, like Odyssey, Galaxy, or 64, it doesn’t seem to push the innovation in such a significant capacity for me to give it a 10.

It’s a highly successful evolution of the series, but it doesn’t push boundaries in a way that now raises the expectations of the series going forward. It’s not a revolution. It's an excellent 2D Mario, it goes back to really tight controls, bombastic music, great level design, it’s creative, colourful, and I am having a fantastic time enjoying every moment of it.

It’s just that it feels like it’s resting on the laurels of past games more so than take on significant risks. So that’s really the only reason I don’t believe it is a 10.

Im only about 6-7 hrs and maybe I need to try online but I’m sitting at a 9 and that’s still very impressive in a year of many great games.

Re: Nintendo Website Shares First Look At Hogwarts Legacy On Switch

Hwatt

I’ve put about 25hrs into the PC version and I had a splendid time back in February / March. It’s not a revolutionary game and in some instances, it’s a bit outdated.

However, if you’re looking for an open world Harry Potter game, they nailed the atmosphere and you don’t need high end graphics to experience it.

Granted my system is very robust (7900 XTX, 5800X3D) and the visuals and performance were fantastic, the core gameplay, the environments, the music, and the mission structure make the game simply fun. As long as the game runs at 30fps on Switch, you’re in for a fun time.

There is obviously a huge market on Switch for this type of game and considering how long it’s been delayed, I hope they managed to get it running. Considering a Switch is basically a portable Xbox 360 in terms of raw power, it will be hella impressive if they’re successful.

Hopefully Digital Foundry does a deep dive 🤞.

Re: Embracer Group: More "Tough Decisions" To Come As Crystal Dynamics Suffers Layoffs

Hwatt

@Woderwick

RE: Consolidation with administration teams

There could be some solutions for management but each studio under Embracer's ... embrace (?) are located in different countries, jurisdictions, and taxes. The theory make sense but in practice it would be extremely difficult without a large reorganization stemming from the top.

I bet you that didnt happen for a variety of reasons and the studios were simply asked by their overlords to pick out roles or individuals to trim.

Re: Early Tech Analysis Suggests Paper Mario's Thousand-Year Door Remaster Might Run At 30FPS

Hwatt

A couple things.

1. Don’t jump to conclusions yet. It’s still a year away (likely).

2. Just enjoy that Paper Mario: TTYD is coming at all.

I do agree with both sides of the argument. The game should be rendering at 60 fps if it did so on Gamecube. However, if it doesn’t, I really don’t believe this game will suffer as much as people believe it will. If it’s that important to you, Dolphin has been around for a while and can easily play PM at 60 FPS at 4K with an old CPU / GPU.

Re: Rumour: 'Switch 2' Gamescom Demo Supposedly Had Zelda: BOTW Running At 4K 60FPS

Hwatt

@CairiB

Lets simplify. Every 2 years (approx.) hardware manufacturers update their products (hardware) by either updating the layouts and features (architecture) and / or moving to a smaller node (more transistors per mm2).

Ada Lovelace is Nvidia's newest architecture. It's the base of all of their 4000 series products. Their GPUs that can push 4K 60 fps in modern titles without DLSS / upscaling draw over 200w (GPU alone).

The current Switch total power budget is 15-17w whether docked or mobile.

I don't know the future Switch specs... but if they want to keep similar battery life and well, a hybrid device, I imagine they don't want to go above 20w.

Logic tells me that this new GPU will likely be in the range of 5-7w (ignoring CPU, RAM, LCD screen) and well, you can gather quickly 720p will be the render resolution. 1080p maybe on dock some games. DLSS will allow the resolution to be displayed or upscaled to 4K. It won't be super clean but it will be better than a TV or other hardware upscaler.

Re: Rumour: 'Switch 2' Gamescom Demo Supposedly Had Zelda: BOTW Running At 4K 60FPS

Hwatt

3.5 could mean they were demonstrating Ray Reconstruction. A new feature Nvidia has highlighted about a month ago.

As long as the Switch has an Nvidia GPU with dedicated RT hardware, it’s all feasible.

Just keep in mind that “4K” is likely reconstructed from 720p.

Nvidia doesn’t manufacture a GPU with a power budget of 15w that can handle modern games at 4K native, 60 fps

Re: Review: Excitebike 64 - An Underrated Racer That Deserves To Ride With Its N64 Stablemates

Hwatt

I’ve rented this game once or twice from blockbuster back in the day. Solid fun for the time but an 8 in 2023? This was a 7 at best in 2000 and that’s even a stretch. It had fun mechanics but it was very repetitive.

Happy people can play it today but this is just a game to play around for a couple hours and then move on.

The MX vs. ATV THQ series that spawned after took that experience people were looking for and really expanded upon it with a ton of modes, track editors, vehicles, and customization. The one for 360 / PS3 is really good! Reflex? Can’t recall.

Highly recommended that series for those who want to BRAAAAP.

Re: Review: Red Dead Redemption - A Fine But No-Frills Switch Port, For A Fistful Of Dollars

Hwatt

@russell-marlow

“because they can get away with it”

That’s ultimately what people are flagging. No, I am not boycotting this game. Yes, I even want the physical edition. No, I didn’t expect a full remaster, especially on Switch.

It just feels like a poor value @ $50 for me and other people feel the same way too. It doesn’t mean it’s a terrible value for everyone because that is subjective.

At the end of the day, I’m just glad they have RDR on Switch and its NOT botched. The GTA trilogy was a disaster. This is just wait for a sale / price drop moment. Unfortunate or frustrating but not a deal breaker.

Re: Review: Red Dead Redemption - A Fine But No-Frills Switch Port, For A Fistful Of Dollars

Hwatt

@russell-marlow

Yes… The game scope and complexity is vastly different. Yet you can easily understand from first glance that they put a ton of effort in Quake II, from the new features, split screen, extra content, graphic tweaks. Most importantly, it’s just a mere $10 or alternatively, a free upgrade if you already got the game on Steam.

The two announcements are wildly different and it’s interesting to compare them considering the timing. RDR doesn’t need the same level of treatment but for the $ they’re charging, I think it just raises the expectations.

If they priced this more appropriately, at launch, not a wait until next year sale, I think people would have reacted differently.

No, I don’t think Switch owners in isolation have much to complain about but when you look at the bigger picture, it feel underwhelming knowing Rock* could have definitely done more or simply lowered the price.

Re: Review: Red Dead Redemption - A Fine But No-Frills Switch Port, For A Fistful Of Dollars

Hwatt

@Stamina_Wheel

Look, I agree with you that the getting the game on switch is an achievement but we can’t ignore why the general reaction was negative.

We have many examples of ports and remasters coming out that offer more content or improvements at an adjusted retail price.

I would love to pick this game up again but for $50 in a year full of excellent releases… no. I have and likely others, have limited budget towards games. I just don’t see a moment where I walk into a store to pick this up considering the full scope at the price they want.

Re: Review: Red Dead Redemption - A Fine But No-Frills Switch Port, For A Fistful Of Dollars

Hwatt

@EarthboundBenjy

Co-op heists and missions as well as various competitive modes. Including duels and team death matches. All connected in a free roam mode if I recall correctly.

I have vivid memories in the 360 era steering a wagon with friends into a gorge full of enemies (AI / bots) whilst they hurl dynamite.

I don’t believe the missions or heists being particularly complex or full of depth, but they were fun.

The competitive modes were a nice add-on but they got repetitive fast. You could always just mess around in free roam too. Go to Mexico, camp in the fort with the cannon, and try to survive as the “police” come for you.

It (multiplayer) as a package was definitely substantial but not an experience I would expect to be good on Switch considering it’s lackluster online capabilities.

Why it’s not on PS4 and why there isn’t a PC version is where the problems (scope) truly lie if you ask me. Price for omissions and lack of upgrades follows.

Compare this to the effort in Quake II. Quite ironic but nonetheless, we have RDR, one of my all time favourites, on the go. There is something to be said about that.

Re: Video: Red Dead Redemption Graphics Comparison (Switch & Xbox Series X)

Hwatt

@Dm9982

Honestly, I won’t be buying it at $50 USD but it doesn’t exclude the fact that I want to buy it.

An ideal price would be as cheap as possible of course but they have R&D into converting the game to run on base PS4 and Switch.

I’m sure their core tech team or programmers didn’t just copy / paste code, run it on dev kit, and call it a day.

Besides, I think they learned their lesson from the GTA trilogy. Unless you’re going to commit resources to properly remaster the game (e.g., Metroid Prime) it’s best to ensure the original game runs properly on new hardware. Metroid Prime Remaster retails for $40 USD just as a reminder.

It also takes additional time and effort ($) to also test a game and run through and solve any bugs that may occur on these new platforms.

A fair price seems to be $30 USD all things considered but since this isn’t a Nintendo first party title, I expect the market (demand) to help drive the price down sooner than later. Especially if Switch 2 rumours are true.

Re: Mario + Rabbids Sparks Of Hope Dev Is "Not Worried" About Game's Initial Sales

Hwatt

I think for the core gamer demographic, sparks of hope adds enough mechanics, changes, and challenge to keep it exciting. The removal of the grid is very much much appreciated. It’s a natural progression of the series and I think the developers took the right steps for this franchise to stay relevant.

I found Kingdom Battle a bit too simple and easy, personally. However, its accessibility is likely the reason why it was more successful financially (date to date comparison).

Sparks has legs but I don’t believe they catered to the correct demographic if their financial goals were to supersede Kingdom Battle.

Keep in mind one fact - Kingdom Battle announcement and release was a spectacle of its own. There were leaks prior and people were extremely skeptical. Once they announced the game, the press and the public reaction was a complete 180.

It reviewed very well and sure, it didn’t blow up in sales initially but there were very few new Mario games on Switch. I bet you, over time that more and more kids bought / were gifted Kingdom Battle because of the mario brand.

Now there are a lot more Switch titles available vs. 2017 to 2019.

Re: Video: Red Dead Redemption Graphics Comparison (Switch & Xbox Series X)

Hwatt

Ignore the noise for a moment - We’re getting Red Dead Redemption and Undead Nightmare on the Switch.

Sorry but that is quite the accomplishment. It’s not as ambitious as Witcher 3 in terms of complexity and scope but damn, people forget that Red Dead Redemption PUSHED the 360 to the limit. It’s arguably one of the best looking AAA games (Halo 4 takes the crown) and the game holds up really well.

I for one will get a physical copy at some point. I went back and beat Undead Nightmare earlier this year on original hardware (360) and had a blast.

As long as it holds 30 fps, it’s a win. If we get worse performance than 360… then we are in trouble.

I understand a vocal group may be boycotting the game and they are free to express their discontent, which is valid. However, I see the situation a little bit differently and I am glad Rock* are bringing back an older game. Even if it’s at a price I don’t particularly agree with.

Re: Poll: Do You Think Switch Can Catch PS2's Total Sales Before 'Switch 2' Arrives?

Hwatt

With an asterisk*, yes

The gaming market is so much larger and accessible is we look at 2017 - 2030 vs. 2000 - 2013.

I'm not sure if its fair to just compare unit sales without that context. However, if we look at the same 13 cycle, (launch to end of life for PS2) Switch should beat PS2.

That's less than 1M (0.93M) units per quarter OR 3.71M per year, until end of calendar year 2030.