HylianJowi

Nooooot my favorites from this game, to say the least, but--and I say this without sarcasm--good for him. I embrace how weird and fun some Pokémon designs are, even if they're not personally to my taste. 😄

Never expected to see a ranked list I agree with 100%... but here we are.

@Fizza I misread the headline as exactly this, lol.

Neon White. It's not even close, even as much as I love Kirby and the Forgotten Land. NW is just that good.

Well, this just made my day! I really didn't expect this to happen. I am overjoyed! 😭

#TeamClemens. That is all.

I haven't commented on an NL piece in years, but I've enjoyed enough of Kate's work at this point that I really want to say what a breath of fresh air her writing is. I have been thinking about this topic so much lately now that I'm getting older. For me, recreational time is just too limited to spend on something that feels like an obligation. So nice to read your thoughts, Kate. Keep it up. ☺️

@Hero-of-WiiU Please don't use slurs. I understand the anger — believe me, I do — but there's no need for that kind of language.

Well-played on that tagline, @Damo. Well-played.

@Artwark This isn't covered by intellectual property; most laws governing IP protect the expression of ideas and concepts, not the ideas and concepts themselves. Wouldn't hold up in a lawsuit to just say "It looks like Sonic!", it would actually have to steal characters or assets.

@Morpheel Nope. The public domain recording I linked to in the review is exactly the same one you hear in-game, just chopped up to correspond to the text appearing in the boxes.

@DarthNocturnal @SH007ME Dammit, all of these are better than "cut the crap." We should start hiring you guys to write the tagline puns.

Rest peacefully, Iwata-san. You've given me more laughs than any CEO could ever be expected to. <3

The game froze constantly when I tried to play it. :/

Painfully, agonizingly labored.

...Kinda like the logo, though. (Probably a free public domain font for all I know.)

@ClassicJetterz Was going to write a comment, but this pretty much sums up my feelings on this one.

Natsume's localizations have always been subpar, and their HM games are looking pretty wretched too.

Yeah, this one's pretty painful.

@Plateface As many times as they have to report on Nintendo's stability-enhancing system software updates, haha. And besides, they do variations — helps keep the monotony down.

Though the footage is very early, I can't wait to try this! Looks absolutely excellent.

Well, you can say one thing about this studio. They're consistent in their embarrassing lack of professionalism.

I cannot WAIT to see where this goes. Nintendo's cast of real-life characters is the best.

@ActosGames Oh my goodness, this is so great to hear! I have to be honest, it's never been more painful for me to give a bad score — I specifically requested to review this one because the trailer got me so excited.

I can't overstate how outstanding it is to see a developer taking responsibility and listening to criticism. I know it's probably not the easiest thing to do, but there's clearly so much passion in this project and it would be a shame to let it go to waste.

I'll be looking forward to seeing where this goes in the future! Keep up that awesome attitude!

@BLPs Definitely! It's a bit of a weird position for me, because as reviewers we're writing from two perspectives simultaneously — we're giving both our individual opinion as well as representing NL's take on a game. It can get confusing.

My reasoning this time around stems from the fact that the conclusion portion of our reviews usually appear on Metacritic and other critical aggregation sites, so I switched to the collective pronoun to speak in my capacity as NL's representative.

It's not technically grammatically correct in that it lacks clarity, but again — it's a weird stylistic thing (like AP style dropping Oxford commas, which I also think hurts clarity). I'm pretty sure most people who read these reviews are aware that we are writing in a dual role and understand that "we" means the publication and not necessarily an actual collective.

Either way, the consensus seems to be that the game's disappointing — look, there's our collective! (Just kidding.)

@BLPs It's a journalistic style thing. Many publications, including NL, frown upon using first person perspective in articles and reviews. In place of that, we often write "we" (as if we're speaking AS the collective publication) or "this writer/reviewer" to avoid that. It comes across as a little strange sometimes, but that's journalism.

@TobiasAmaranth Pretty much, except you're not gonna see this:

@Nintendobro Because I didn't know the quote was going to be that stupid before I clicked on the article, as I am not in possession of psychic powers at the current moment? O:

Oh look, it's the same thing Nintendo says LITERALLY every time it comes out with a new console. Yawn.

@Falchion See what I did there?!

@Ducked @Tops @Rhansley64 @BieberBlows I fifth this notion of a Fire Emblem Warriors.

Awesome article, @ThomasBW84! Brings light to a lot of my biggest concerns with Nintendo's business model right now, while also acknowledging what they're doing right.

Boy, will I be glad when amiibo go out of style. This whole thing brings out the absolute worst in people.

You're far too kind, @Liam_Doolan. Far too kind.

@Squid You're awesome too!

@duffmmann Just being gay doesn't sllow you to speak on behalf of all gay people. In addition, your claim that I invented the context is flawed — if there was truly no stereotyping going on, Aonuma would have fielded questions about the other Zelda characters' sexualities at some point, too. But he hasn't. Why do you think that is?

@NorthLightSuplx The site Tom cited, while actually a site for gay gamers, disappointingly labeled Tingle gay for the stereotypical reasons I mentioned before. He's flamboyant, wears tight clothing, and has a high voice. That gives no inherent evidence of sexuality, but many gay men allow themselves to be stereotyped. Why? I dunno. But look, they were wrong.

Cue the wah-wah music...

@duffmmann It is inappropriate to ask about someone's sexuality because of certain characteristics they exhibit, especially when the question reinforces stereotypes. The question isn't just "Is Tingle gay," it's actually "Because Tingle is flamboyant, wears tight clothing, and has a high voice, does that make him gay?" That's the problem.

What's concerning is that Nintendo would never even have CONSIDERED doing this years ago. Suffice it to say that this is one of the parts of the modern gaming landscape I'd rather Nintendo not adapt to.

You're picking the wrong things to get hip with, Ninty! D:

@duffmmann Beyond just being a stupid question to ask Aonuma, the problem is that the question is directed at Tingle. People rarely (if ever) question the other characters' sexualities, mainly because it's not relevant in the slightest to people's enjoyment of the games. So when Tingle's sexuality is questioned on the basis of his flamboyant personality and dress, there's an insinuation there that flamboyance in men has a direct correlation with homosexuality.

I don't think it really needs to be said, but that's a really old and tired stereotype that can be hurtful to a lot of people. I know plenty of straight men whose personalities just happen to be flamboyant, just as I know plenty of gay men who act more traditionally masculine. Sexuality is an indicator of sexual preference, nothing else: it's not a lifestyle, not a culture, and certainly not something to use as a basis for conclusions on what type of a person someone is.

@Quorthon Oh yes, thank you as well for bringing sanity to any of the comment sections you post in. Your statement about fanboys is on point as usual.

@Peach64 Thank you for bringing much-needed sanity to nearly every comments section you post in.

Suffice it to say that a question like that doesn't deserve a response. You have an opportunity to interview Eiji Aonuma, one of the most influential game creators of all time, and you ask a stereotype-reinforcing question about a character's irrelevant sexuality?

Somebody needs to go back to journalism class!

"SHOW THIS TO THE OLD WOMAN. WHAT CAN I SAY? I'M FORWARD."

I can't breathe

Anyone remember the thankfully short-lived "touching is good" campaign for the original DS?

@DarkKirby Bam. Couldn't have said it better myself (I, however, am not getting the New 3DS XL for the same reasons).

Cringe-inducing. But cute. XD

@TylerTreese Oh yes, I would agree. Gunman Clive and its sequel are excellent examples — but then there are also flash sales on rival platforms with FULL GAMES from 99 cents to a few dollars. 2 bucks doesn't seem like a lot, but for what you get here it's actually a ripoff.

I try to assess these games as fairly as possible and find something to enjoy, but many just don't have much content at all. Say what you want about Nintendo, they do offer excellent value for their asking prices. Just wish some indies and third parties would take note.

@Jahir I'm obviously not Ron, but just a heads up — it's for 3DS.

@Quorthon Wow, you locked it up and put it away. That last post just about sums up my reaction to how they've been handling things, and how so many people hold a bias that — while understandable, Nintendo is awesome — doesn't change the fact that the company is woefully behind.

@KeeperBvK That was an error on my part — my apologies. I guess I was at a loss for words!

@DiscoGentleman That sense of community is one of the things that's really made this game worth it; Dark Roast has clearly made a concentrated effort to keep it moving with updates, which is a breath of fresh air during a time when so many major companies — let alone indie developers — seem to offer middling support for their software.

@GetClose Looking forward to it! Thanks for bringing such a clever, simple, downright fun game to the eShop.

I wouldn't call this a GOOD game, but I did have fun with it. It has a weird appeal that's hard to put my finger on.