Jack_Goetz

@HeeHo "Both the Switch 1 and Nintendo Switch 2 Edition will be getting a physical in the US courtesy of PM Studios, with Reef Entertainment's European release sticking with just the Switch 2 version."

This might be my first Switch 2 physical if the European release is covered in useless text at the bottom of the artwork. Picked up the Switch 1 version of MP4 today because of the state of the Switch 2 box art.

I'd put Ball x Pit and The Hundred Line over anything new Nintendo's published this year. Honestly, it seems like 2025 has been one of Nintendo's weakest years in terms of how well its first-party titles have been received, bar DKB.

Any major potential DLC for this game should be given away for free, considering how many of these 'updates' should have been in the base game on launch day.

Nintendo has certainly 'cashed in' on this release, so it could at least show some good will.

@LazyDaisy I've got some bad news for you...

The biggest problem with the open world desert in MP4, according to many reviews, is that it predictably serves as padding and nothing more.

Hell, the desert even contains it's own tedious crystal collecting fetch quest, which is necessary to complete in order to finish the game. If that's not a shoed-in open world then I don't know what is.

IGN has covered the Switch 1 version: "The resolution downgrade is obviously noticeable in comparison to the fancy Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, as things look much fuzzier than they do in crisp 4K. But it still holds its own and runs at an impressive 60 fps on the old hardware. The initial loading screen upon choosing your save file felt much longer, and there was some slight pop-in I noticed when driving around the desert."

@Qwiff Indeed.

I just read Metro's 7/10 review which says: "Barely a Metroidvania at times, with some sections being almost entirely linear. Very simplistic puzzling and few new ideas in terms of items and weapons."

The Eurogamer review is quite fascinating in the way it compared MP4 to several elements from various Zelda entries, including Wind Waker's end game fetch quest. Worth a read if you're on the fence about Beyond.

The reviewer sadly didn't feel the need to start over again on hard mode or to 100% it, and ending up playing through Dread again instead.

It's quite remarkable to see Retro Studio's name on something after so long.

The Eurogamer review kinda confirmed my fears regarding the desert just being Hyrule Field though. In fact, that review compares this game to a number of Zelda entries. Not always in a good way either.

I loved Streets of Rage 4 and Shredder's Revenge, but Marvel just doesn't do anything for me. Maybe I'll try it after a deep sale.

My favourite of the series. Really loved all the characters in this one. The one-two of this and Torna was just incredible. I imagine there'll be some kind of expanded Switch 2 Edition down the line, ala Animal Crossing.

Doesn't really make sense for Nintendo to give us a free patch when it can resell us the same game again.

Retro Studios: Let's take the worst part of the most poorly received Prime game and rack it up a notch!

Nintendo: Love it!

Tip: Press, hold, or tap 'B'.

Feeling sorry for anyone who brought a 4K TV just for the Switch 2 at this point. I nearly pulled the trigger myself, but I thought I'd wait until Black Friday, which is now here and I have no desire to pick one up. Maybe next year, eh?

Interesting. Seems there are slightly better deals available for Switch 2 bundles on the continent than in the UK.

The only reason Ubisoft still wants to put this out is for the hefty tax write off.

The demo did little to convince me to pick it up, especially at its RRP in Europe. However, it's only £35 on Amazon Japan, so I may get around to it at some point.

Still, no racing game on Switch (or Switch 2) gets my adrenalin going as much as F-Zero 99 does. I was hoping for something similar from Air Riders.

I wonder if Air Riders would have done better if it didn't have a demo...

I feel like each iteration of Animal Crossing gets progressively worse. For me the GameCube version was peak. Having Wild World on the go was certainly novel and easier to dip into, but it felt like too many corners were cut to make it a DS game. Let Go to the City, could have been a contender to knock the GC version off its perch, but the city just felt bolted on, making it more of a nuisance to navigate. New Leaf felt a bit too bloated for my liking, and New Horizons completely alienated me with all the terraforming stuff.

Still, I'm open to seeing how things will look going forward. I'm going to give NH another shot when the next major update drops in 2026.

Rushes to see what's at No. 1

Ah, Super Mario World is still where it should be.

'Make Mario Kart World even more boring by watching other people play it instead'. 😅

Some of the screenshots are reminiscent of Eurotrash.

'Addicting' drives me nuts too. 😅

I've always had a soft spot for this entry. It's by no means my favourite Hitman game, but it was still a fun experience and Contracts Mode gave it some longevity.

I'll certainly be diving back into this one.

I kinda have the opposite issue, where the Switch 2 doesn't switch to WiFi from wired when in sleep mode. Also, the intermittent video drop outs still occur once in a while for a couple of seconds at a time. I thought it was fixed, but it happened to me again during a Ball x Pit run last week.

Sounds like they're holding the digital version back because it's not been optimised well (peep the Switch 1 version) and would it hurt physical sales once word gets out.

@Munchlax Exactly. Like the Switch 2 itself, for instance.

How on earth did Mario Kart World make this list?

CBeebies is getting worse by the day.

The desert area with the bike still looks likes padding, unfortunately.

And the teamwork aspect seems like there's going to be way too much talking.

There's a particular irony about this article.

How is Ball x Pit missing?

Runs to check NL's 'and Roger' review

Oh...

I played this one NYE with my then girlfriend, who really wasn't into video games. She enjoyed this though, which made it a fun experience for me, but that might have been down to the bottle of Buckfast I downed prior to playing.

Interesting that he doesn't directly mention Mario Kart World. I wonder if he also found it to be a bit of a misfire?

Nintendo really needs to introduce partial installs from game cards, where there are data streaming speed issues. This all or nothing approach is quickly alienating me.

Interesting that Mortal Kombat X and 11 are in there, but no sign of MK1.

The irony of this coming from Pillsbury, when movie Mario is looking like the Doughboy.

@Dee123 No, but 2035 (Mario's 50th anniversary) does feel quite a way off, currently.

"I always personally play through about the first 30 minutes of the game..."

Well, I guess that actually explains a lot. I've always felt Odyssey and Wonder were missteps for the Mario series, that got boring really fast.

Um... Well, it looks great in action, though the I'm tired of the Smash Bros. UI at this point. While I had fun (certainly more than I've had with MKW) with the lessons, three courses, and the city run, I can't see myself coming back to it, especially at its current asking price.

I'm not a huge Kirby fan, and while I appreciate Air Riders having its own 'feel', I think I'll just stick with F-Zero 99, Fast Fusion, and CrossWorlds for the foreseeable.

Zelda's English voice acting really gets on my nerves. It's so over the top and pathetic-sounding. Nothing against Patricia Summersett though, as she's only doing what's being asked of her.

Zelda Notes on the Switch 2 Editions of BotW and TotK could have been a great feature, but I'll never get around to using it based on the voice acting direction going on in these games recently.

This guy is one of the biggest shills in the industry. Mighty No. 9 is still one of the worst games I've ever played. The only reason that campaign was so successful was his constant reliance and referencing of a big IP (Mega Man) and making out he had a bigger part in that series than he did. So I guess that makes him somewhat of a hypocrite too.

And let's not forget this gem, which ended up backfiring spectacularly: https://www.eurogamer.net/mega-man-creator-laments-tragic-state-of-japanese-games-industry

The lengths some companies will go to please their shareholders is gross. The real QA team will be those buying the game on day one, as is pretty much the norm these days.

I'm guessing they've nearly mastered their HD2D AI engine then.

I dunno... That might be one of the worst amiibos I've ever seen. The pose just seems so unnatural for Samus.

@Serpenterror I doubt Mortal Kombat Legacy Kollection will be near finished before next year even.

@Ironcore I concur. Even though I'm having a blast with Ball x Pit, there's something very special about Silver Bullet (not to mention its bargain price).

@cmbaum It looks like the user score is for the Switch 2 Edition, which runs worse than the Switch 1 version currently.