I'd love for it to give me something to be excited about. It'd be nice for the Switch 2 to have a 'must have' first-party exclusive sooner rather than later.
Mario Kart World turned out to be style over substance for me, and so far, Bananza seems a bit like that too.
It's not a super surprising choice. Nintendo has been promoting Clubhouse Games 51 a fair bit recently, as it's one of the games that's received a free Switch 2 update to include GameShare. This is just another bit of promotion, I guess.
It's pretty dull overall, but a few of the P-Switches have been entertaining. I think Ollie had the right idea with making characters unlockable in Free Roam by having a one on one race. Alas, Nintendo wants us to enjoy our coins and stickers instead.
@tobsesta99 Again, for those who have difficulty reading, I'm saying that, so far, the environment smashing gimmick seems like a tech demo. The Treehouse presenters even focused on how much the mechanic showed off the power of the Switch 2.
Remind me, which other Switch 2 first-party titles feature rock breaking mechanics?
@sanderev I'm sorry you don't like it, but it's my opinion. Luigi's Mansion started out as a tech demo and was fleshed out for a launch release.
That's what DKB reminds me of so far, as the environment smashing mechanic has been used to show what a 'powerhouse' the Switch 2 is compared to its predecessor.
DS and Double Dash are joint first place for me. I'm happy to see 'recency bias' didn't affect World's positioning. The game doesn't deserve to be any higher than it is in its current state.
This is good news for Switch 2. However, I wasn't sold on the demo, unfortunately. I was really looking for to World Tour, but it was so repetitive that I was bored of it by the end of the demo.
I'll either wait for it to go on sale, or hold out for the Mortal Kombat collection that's just been announced. It's not like there's a shortage of fighting games on Switch.
It's fine, albeit unexciting. There's definitely some kinks that need ironing out, hopefully sooner rather than later. The new software is kinda underwhelming, especially Mario Kart World. However, the 'glow up' that Switch 1 games are getting is making me feel better about my purchase. The GameCube games have been taking up a lot of my time too.
@Stormcloudlive It actually makes me feel excited about going through my backlog, rather than 'Ah, I really should get around to that'. I'm having fun revisiting games too.
The Splatoon update does feel like a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, which is great, especially for free and benefiting Switch 1 owners at the same time.
I'm so happy with this update. Splatoon 3 has always performed really well on Switch, but the Switch 2 improvements make it feel incredible. I spend most of my gaming time playing this title, so I'm really grateful for this performance patch.
The game is bursting with character, but the gameplay is severely lacking. The AI is cheap and the Grand Prix is boring 70% of the time. I understand Mario Kart is about that 'random' factor, but between the item assaults and rubber banding being turned up to 11, it's just not fun in single-player.
The open world is structureless, which doesn't hold my attention for more than 10 minutes at at a time. As someone who played MK8 to death on the Wii U and has been excited for a new Mario Kart entry for almost a decade, this entry is a let down. It just feels unfinished somehow.
Whether that's because Nintendo is holding content back, or it just dropped the ball because it had too much development time, I don't know. But it should have been better than this, especially with the cost of entry.
Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get back to F-Zero 99, which is far more entertaining.
I'm surprised we've still not heard anything official about any of the Xenoblade games getting patched yet. The locked handheld resolutions looks pretty bad on the Switch 2's screen. Loading times are noticeably faster though, as expected.
Splatoon 3 also feels smoother. No frame rate stutters when you first enter the lobby, and much faster loading when booting the game up.
@John_Deacon Sorry, yes there is. I was merely speaking about the value of buying the base game and then adding the two DLC separately at a later date. Each 'Year DLC' costs exactly the same as the digital base game on the eShop.
Personally, I'm still not 'gelling' with it. It looks great and has heaps of character, but the AI is cheaper than Shao Khan in MK3, which makes single-player modes a drag. The open world isn't fully realised, the character select screen is a mess, the Grand Prix set up seems like a big mistake, etc.
I feel like this one has been in the oven for so long that Nintendo kept thinking 'What if we make this small change, and this small change..." over the last few years, and ended up with a product that was miles away from the initial vision.
The Game Key Card is way better value than currently purchasing the base game and the two DLCs separately on the eShop. In fact, the GKC version is already discounted in a few stores too.
This was a great way to announce a new Splatoon game! I'm really excited about it. Also looking forward to Urchin Underpass being added to Splatoon 3 and the Switch 2 update in a couple of days.
@OorWullie Absolutely. I think Sega could have potentially earned more from providing an upgrade path seeing as the original version sold so well on Switch. Hopefully, it was just testing the waters. Maybe an upgrade option will be provided at a later date?
@HalBailman Thanks! Yeah, I'm using the HDMI cable that came with the Switch 2, and it's in the HDMI port that my OG Switch was in. I've turned off HDR, played with RGB, and turned of 120Hz as my TV doesn't support it. I'll have to see if that makes any difference over the next week.
@arb93 Oh, I didn't notice if the Switch thought it was in handheld or not, but that is very worrying if so. A non-handheld option would have been my preference too.
About once a day, when docked, I'll be playing my Switch 2 and the TV screen will go black for about five seconds. No idea what's going on but it seems to happen at random times in-game.
"If you've played Welcome Tour, Nintendo details the challenges of moulding the new pad in such a way that your hand wouldn't rest on grooves which would collect everyday grime and dust."
I love it. Definitely a top 3 Zelda for me too. I don't even mind the padded out quest towards the end. I excitedly bought the Wii U version when that came out too, but found the visual 'upgrades' a bit of a disappointment.
I've been playing through this again since Thursday, which has been amazing, especially after inverting the camera. One issue is that the in-game saves don't always work. I think this might due to closing the app too soon after saving, but I'm not 100% sure yet (save states FTW).
If you've not played Wind Waker before, you really should.
Comments 2,006
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Channels Super Mario 64 Energy With Its 'DK Artist' Mode
A totally unnecessary and completely bonkers addition, but why not? 😅
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Features Two-Player Co-Op, And You Can Even GameShare To Switch 1
"Sling a remote"? Are we back in the ol' Wii-era? 😅
Re: Say Hello To Pauline In Donkey Kong Bananza
I was on the fence, but now I'm sold.
Not a huge fan of all the singing stuff though.
Re: Poll: So, Have You Used Zelda Notes Yet?
I've got an old iPad I'm going to repurpose just for this. No way I'm looking a my phone while trying to immerse myself in these games.
Saying that, I'm surprised no-one's designed a Joy-Con grip which could hold a phone in the in-between the two controllers. Wait a minute...
Re: More Than 2,800 Switch 2 Consoles Have Been Stolen From A Semi-Truck
Can't Nintendo just render them unuseable by the stolen units' serial numbers?
Re: Nintendo Reminds Mario Kart Players They Can Toggle Auto And Smart Controls
The auto-assist should have a simple on/off switch on the vehicle select screen, just like how F-Zero 99 has implemented it.
In other news, I'm a new convert to ways of the auto-accelerate. Firing items in 360 degrees is the future.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Hoping To See In The Donkey Kong Bananza Direct?
I'd love for it to give me something to be excited about. It'd be nice for the Switch 2 to have a 'must have' first-party exclusive sooner rather than later.
Mario Kart World turned out to be style over substance for me, and so far, Bananza seems a bit like that too.
Re: Poll: Has Your Switch 2's Screen Got Any Nasty Scratches Yet?
@OldGamer999 I use amFilm on all my devices and their OneTouch screen protector for Switch 2 was by far the easiest application ever. It's perfect.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/amFilm-Auto-Alignment-Switch-2025-Installation/dp/B0DRCKDWD1/ref=sr_1_1?sr=8-1
Re: Nintendo's Music App Is Back On Track With A New Album Update
It's not a super surprising choice. Nintendo has been promoting Clubhouse Games 51 a fair bit recently, as it's one of the games that's received a free Switch 2 update to include GameShare. This is just another bit of promotion, I guess.
Re: Talking Point: How Are You Finding Mario Kart's Open World?
It's pretty dull overall, but a few of the P-Switches have been entertaining. I think Ollie had the right idea with making characters unlockable in Free Roam by having a one on one race. Alas, Nintendo wants us to enjoy our coins and stickers instead.
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Direct Revealed For Wednesday, 18th June 2025
@tobsesta99 Again, for those who have difficulty reading, I'm saying that, so far, the environment smashing gimmick seems like a tech demo. The Treehouse presenters even focused on how much the mechanic showed off the power of the Switch 2.
Remind me, which other Switch 2 first-party titles feature rock breaking mechanics?
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Direct Revealed For Wednesday, 18th June 2025
@sanderev Sounds a lot like Luigi's Mansion then doesn't it? I merely said the mechanic seem like a tech demo so far.
BTW, you're the only one shouting.
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Direct Revealed For Wednesday, 18th June 2025
@sanderev I'm sorry you don't like it, but it's my opinion. Luigi's Mansion started out as a tech demo and was fleshed out for a launch release.
That's what DKB reminds me of so far, as the environment smashing mechanic has been used to show what a 'powerhouse' the Switch 2 is compared to its predecessor.
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Direct Revealed For Wednesday, 18th June 2025
@kfflscnt The potential lack of challenge is something I'm concerned about too. Especially as it's been developed by the Odyssey team.
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Direct Revealed For Wednesday, 18th June 2025
@Grumblevolcano You could say it's even going back to the 2013 approach.
Re: Donkey Kong Bananza Direct Revealed For Wednesday, 18th June 2025
I'm hoping this puts a lot of my doubts about the game to rest. So far, the rock smashing has looked like a fancy tech demo.
Re: Best Mario Kart Games Of All Time
DS and Double Dash are joint first place for me. I'm happy to see 'recency bias' didn't affect World's positioning. The game doesn't deserve to be any higher than it is in its current state.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (14th June)
My word... A rare Ant Dickens appears!
Sooo... Wind Waker, Mario Kart World, Fast Fusion, Xenoblade Chronicles X, F-Zero 99, and my beloved, better than ever Splatoon 3.
Have fun, folks!
Re: Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound Unleashes Two Physical Editions On Switch This September
@Ryu_Niiyama They often (not always) get added to Bandcamp eventually for extra revenue.
Re: What Review Score Would You Give Mario Kart World?
7/10 at best, currently.
Re: Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound Unleashes Two Physical Editions On Switch This September
@PJOReilly The standard is only £34.99 on Silver Lining's website. 🙂
Re: Video: Here's How Splatoon 3 On Switch 2 Improves Visuals And Performance
@Stormcloudlive Ha! I feel you on that. I bought Splatoon 2 on cartridge, but I learned from my mistake by the time Splatoon 3 was released. 😅
Re: Street Fighter 6's Switch 2 Version Declared Tournament Legal By Capcom
This is good news for Switch 2. However, I wasn't sold on the demo, unfortunately. I was really looking for to World Tour, but it was so repetitive that I was bored of it by the end of the demo.
I'll either wait for it to go on sale, or hold out for the Mortal Kombat collection that's just been announced. It's not like there's a shortage of fighting games on Switch.
Re: Hardware Review: Nintendo Switch 2 - A Faster, Slicker, Sexier Switch
It's fine, albeit unexciting. There's definitely some kinks that need ironing out, hopefully sooner rather than later. The new software is kinda underwhelming, especially Mario Kart World. However, the 'glow up' that Switch 1 games are getting is making me feel better about my purchase. The GameCube games have been taking up a lot of my time too.
Re: Japanese Charts: Switch 2 Crushes PS2 To Become Fastest-Selling Console Ever
That's an impressive feat considering the stock shortages that have been reported about Japan. Seems Nintendo really did stockpile Switch 2s.
Re: Video: Here's How Splatoon 3 On Switch 2 Improves Visuals And Performance
@Skunkfish I don't believe there's an official statement about the new resolution. We might have to wait for a Digital Foundry breakdown.
Re: PSA: Splatoon 3 On Switch Has Made Some Cuts To Keep Pace With Switch 2
@LinktotheFuture That's only if someone drops out of the match in the first minute.
Re: Video: Here's How Splatoon 3 On Switch 2 Improves Visuals And Performance
@Stormcloudlive It actually makes me feel excited about going through my backlog, rather than 'Ah, I really should get around to that'. I'm having fun revisiting games too.
The Splatoon update does feel like a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, which is great, especially for free and benefiting Switch 1 owners at the same time.
Re: Video: Here's How Splatoon 3 On Switch 2 Improves Visuals And Performance
I'm so happy with this update. Splatoon 3 has always performed really well on Switch, but the Switch 2 improvements make it feel incredible. I spend most of my gaming time playing this title, so I'm really grateful for this performance patch.
Re: Round Up: The Reviews Are In For Mario Kart World
The game is bursting with character, but the gameplay is severely lacking. The AI is cheap and the Grand Prix is boring 70% of the time. I understand Mario Kart is about that 'random' factor, but between the item assaults and rubber banding being turned up to 11, it's just not fun in single-player.
The open world is structureless, which doesn't hold my attention for more than 10 minutes at at a time. As someone who played MK8 to death on the Wii U and has been excited for a new Mario Kart entry for almost a decade, this entry is a let down. It just feels unfinished somehow.
Whether that's because Nintendo is holding content back, or it just dropped the ball because it had too much development time, I don't know. But it should have been better than this, especially with the cost of entry.
Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get back to F-Zero 99, which is far more entertaining.
Re: Feature: 11 Games With 'Secret' Performance Bumps You Should Revisit On Switch 2
@PJOReilly Ah yes! Tomorrow!
Re: Feature: 11 Games With 'Secret' Performance Bumps You Should Revisit On Switch 2
I'm surprised we've still not heard anything official about any of the Xenoblade games getting patched yet. The locked handheld resolutions looks pretty bad on the Switch 2's screen. Loading times are noticeably faster though, as expected.
Splatoon 3 also feels smoother. No frame rate stutters when you first enter the lobby, and much faster loading when booting the game up.
Re: Switch 2 Helps Street Fighter 6 Achieve Five Million Global Sales
@John_Deacon Sorry, yes there is. I was merely speaking about the value of buying the base game and then adding the two DLC separately at a later date. Each 'Year DLC' costs exactly the same as the digital base game on the eShop.
Re: Review: Mario Kart World (Switch 2) - The Perfect Introduction To A New Console Generation
Reads like a 7/10 gets 9/10. 🤷
Personally, I'm still not 'gelling' with it. It looks great and has heaps of character, but the AI is cheaper than Shao Khan in MK3, which makes single-player modes a drag. The open world isn't fully realised, the character select screen is a mess, the Grand Prix set up seems like a big mistake, etc.
I feel like this one has been in the oven for so long that Nintendo kept thinking 'What if we make this small change, and this small change..." over the last few years, and ended up with a product that was miles away from the initial vision.
Re: Switch 2 Helps Street Fighter 6 Achieve Five Million Global Sales
The Game Key Card is way better value than currently purchasing the base game and the two DLCs separately on the eShop. In fact, the GKC version is already discounted in a few stores too.
Re: Best Nintendo Switch 2 Game Card Cases
These things seem like a great way to lose all your games in one go.
Re: Splatoon Raiders, A New Splatoon Spin-Off, Is Confirmed For Switch 2
This was a great way to announce a new Splatoon game! I'm really excited about it. Also looking forward to Urchin Underpass being added to Splatoon 3 and the Switch 2 update in a couple of days.
Re: Sounds Like Switch 2 Is Already Breaking Sales Records In France
If the PS5 was France's biggest launch at the time, that's not really saying a lot about the Switch 2 sales is it?
Re: UK Charts: Nintendo Switch 2 Annihilates The Competition In Its Debut Week
@OorWullie Absolutely. I think Sega could have potentially earned more from providing an upgrade path seeing as the original version sold so well on Switch. Hopefully, it was just testing the waters. Maybe an upgrade option will be provided at a later date?
Re: UK Charts: Nintendo Switch 2 Annihilates The Competition In Its Debut Week
Seems Sega's no upgrade path for Sonic X Shadow Generations kinda paid off.
Re: Random: Transferring Pics From Switch 2 To PC Via USB-C Only Works Via The Bottom Slot
@HalBailman Thanks! Yeah, I'm using the HDMI cable that came with the Switch 2, and it's in the HDMI port that my OG Switch was in. I've turned off HDR, played with RGB, and turned of 120Hz as my TV doesn't support it. I'll have to see if that makes any difference over the next week.
Have you had it happen in split screen since?
Re: Random: Transferring Pics From Switch 2 To PC Via USB-C Only Works Via The Bottom Slot
@arb93 Oh, I didn't notice if the Switch thought it was in handheld or not, but that is very worrying if so. A non-handheld option would have been my preference too.
Re: Random: Transferring Pics From Switch 2 To PC Via USB-C Only Works Via The Bottom Slot
@Cheez Thanks! I've played with some of the display settings, so going to sit with it another week and see if it's made any difference.
Re: Random: Transferring Pics From Switch 2 To PC Via USB-C Only Works Via The Bottom Slot
About once a day, when docked, I'll be playing my Switch 2 and the TV screen will go black for about five seconds. No idea what's going on but it seems to happen at random times in-game.
Re: Best Nintendo Switch 2 Cases To Carry And Protect Your Console
@WillQuan Yeah, it's a description for the wrong product.
Re: Switch 2 Pro Controller Teardown Gives Us A Good Look At The New Sticks
"If you've played Welcome Tour, Nintendo details the challenges of moulding the new pad in such a way that your hand wouldn't rest on grooves which would collect everyday grime and dust."
Spoiler alert 😅
Re: Review: Genki Sleeper Case - A "Virtually Indestructible" Switch 2 Carry Case That Looks As Good As It Protects
Just get yourself a TomToc slim case. Job done.
Re: Game Freak's Upcoming Action RPG Looks Awesome, But Don't Expect It On Switch 2 Yet
Wow... That actually looks really good. Not what I expected from Game Freak at all.
Re: Review: The Legend Of Zelda: The Wind Waker (GameCube) - A Timeless Treasure
I love it. Definitely a top 3 Zelda for me too. I don't even mind the padded out quest towards the end. I excitedly bought the Wii U version when that came out too, but found the visual 'upgrades' a bit of a disappointment.
I've been playing through this again since Thursday, which has been amazing, especially after inverting the camera. One issue is that the in-game saves don't always work. I think this might due to closing the app too soon after saving, but I'm not 100% sure yet (save states FTW).
If you've not played Wind Waker before, you really should.
Re: PSA: Here's How To View The Iconic GameCube Startup Screen On Switch 2
@SoIDecidedTo That happens if you open the app with the GameCube controller connected.